The Thirty third Sunday in Ordinary Time (Cycle A)

The tie in between today’s readings: The Labors of Love

Psalm 128:1-5, Proverbs 31:10-31, 1 Thessalonians 5:1-6, Matthew 25:14-30

Today’s epistle, 1 Thessalonians 5:1-6, revisits Christ’s second coming. For most of mankind, it will be a sudden and unexpected intrusion that will disrupt all their well laid plans. The Apostle, Paul comforts us that this will not be our fate. We are not like the world: careless, clueless, and asleep in the dark. We are children of the light, awake, alert, and anticipating the very event that will take so many by surprise. In the meantime, God does not want us to be idle. There are missions to fund. There are churches in which to serve. There are duties to our families as well as the inward challenges to grow in Christ. St. Paul encourages us to, “Always give ourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because we know that this work is never in vain” (1 Corinthians 15:58). God, the Holy Spirit, gives every believer gifts and talents to play their part, but always remember that it’s not about us. We are His stewards. Whether it’s our interaction with the world outside or our responsibilities to our loved ones at home, our Father is profoundly interested in the way we handle what He gives us.

Our Gospel, in Matthew 25:14-30 is a case in point. A wealthy man entrusts His servants to invest some of His money while He’s gone away on a long journey. To one, He gave five talents, another received two, and the last got only one. Upon His return sometime later, He called them together for an accounting. The servants that received the five talents and the two talents both doubled their money. The man with the one talent…well, let’s listen in.

“It’s nice to see you in good health, Master. Time sure flies! If I knew you were coming, I’d baked a cake. Ha, Ha…about this one talent that you lent me. I know that you don’t suffer fools lightly and that your motto is, ‘What have you ever done for me lately and what took you so long?’ So…when you gave me this money, well I panicked. The stress became unbearable and I said to myself, ‘I need this like a need a hole in the head.’ Not knowing what to do, I buried it. And it worked. All my anxiety went away. Out of sight, out of mind, you know. Now, I’m not saying that when the cat’s away, but, while I was working my own ventures on the side, I forgot all about your money. So, here is that one little talent that you gave me…no harm, no foul. I hope that we can get past this and let bygones be bygones.”

The Master replied stern and disappointed, “Obviously, you don’t understand stewardship. I am a rich man. I own the cattle on a thousand hills. I don’t need the money! I am interested in connecting with you. These talents that I had given to all of you were tokens…opportunities, if you will, for us to get closer to each other. I had history with the other two servants. So, I entrusted them with more responsibly in order to mature their faithfulness and, yes, love toward me. But you’re new here. This talent was my first step toward you. And now I know what you think of me…not very much. You couldn’t even be bothered to go into town and open a bank account. YOU STUCK IT IN A HOLE! It’s apparent that you don’t know Me…you can’t honor Me…and you won’t love Me. So, I’m going to take back that talent that I gave you and bless the guy who has ten with one more. On top of that, they’re both invited to have dinner with me at the main house tonight, where we’ll swap stories of what we’ve all been doing while I was gone. As for you, since you like cliches so much, here’s a new one for you. When it comes to relationships with Me, ‘To everyone who has, more will be given, but to the one that does not have, even that little bit will be taken away.’ Now, throw this worthless servant off the estate and get him out of My sight!”

As you can see, God is all about the relationship. Being a servant is a labor of love. Consider the worthy wife in Proverbs 31:10-31, our Old Testament passage for today. You have a woman who is trustworthy and hardworking, with the foresight and an entrepreneurial spirit. She is a steel magnolia with a soft side, caring for her family and generous to others. This girl is the whole package! Who wouldn’t want her for a wife and what woman wouldn’t want to marry a man like that? Just saying. Why does she do it? Well, they love each other in the Lord. It is a beautiful thing when a marriage exists in that triangle of devotion between two people and God. Our reading in Psalm 128:1-5 lists the blessings of prosperity, health, and family for the couple that follows this path. It’s so nice when it happens, and loving is easy.

But the world is a vampire. A cynic can read Proverbs 31 and just as easily assert that the wife is being exploited by a Patriarchal society. Sadly, we all know scenarios of faithlessness, deceit, abuse, and worse that foster anger and bitterness not only in our marriages, but in our families, work, and communities. You may be going through a trial yourself right now. You may feel like the band, Smashing Pumpkins, that “Despite all your rage you’re still just a rat in a cage.”. You face a choice. It’s all too human to despair in troubles, break commitments, and get out when every day is draining and miserable. It’s hard and it’s not fair! Don’t give up. Even here, God uses these circumstances to look for a greater intimacy with you. He knows your sorrows. He asks you to trust Him and do it His way as He guides you through your dark time. Get the help you need whether it’s physical, psychological, or spiritual, all the while believing that He loves you and is using your situation for the better. We all want the easy communion of a garden stroll with the Lord, but grasping His hand on the stormy waves brings us into deeper things. If you cut and run, you may lose the little that you had. If you see it through…priceless.

Lastly, while love is the motivating factor in serving the Lord, there are rewards. One day, the Master will return. We will account for the talents that He gave us. 1 Corinthians 3:12-15 says that all our work will be piled up before Him. He will burn the worthless things in our lives. The precious will stand the flames and be our reward. It would be a shame to enter heaven empty handed. Stay focused on God’s work and in your labor of love for Him. Invest what He has given to you. Increase His glory in your life and the lives of others. Set your mind on things above. Be strong in the Lord. Stay the course…good and faithful servant.