In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

     "Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an unexpected hour."

     If you didn't know that last Sunday was Christ the King Sunday, the final Sunday of the Church year, and if you didn't realize that the blue paraments and banners indicated we have entered into the season of Advent, upon hearing our gospel text for today, you might think we're still in the time we call "Kingdomtide"-the last four Sundays of the church year, when the lessons are all about the last judgment and the second coming-and well, final things. Because the lessons for today continue that theme, quite seamlessly, as in the first lesson, we hear Isaiah's prophecy about the days to come, when the mountain of the Lord's house will be established as the highest of the mountains and all people shall come to it. And in Romans, Paul writes, "besides this, you know what time it is, how it is now the moment for you to wake from sleep. For salvation is nearer to us now than when we first became believers." And in our reading from Matthew, Jesus himself exhorts us saying, "Therefore, you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an unexpected hour." And this connection, between Kingdomtide and the end of the church year, and the lessons of the first Sunday in Advent, is no coincidence, but reminds us of the cyclical nature of life-and how year after year, we are to keep watching and waiting-to keep ever focused on the hereafter. And I know, the older we get, the easier it is to think about the hereafter. As the saying goes, "I come into a room, and I think, what did I come in here after?" But that's not the "hereafter" our lessons are speaking about today-rather, Isaiah, and Paul and Jesus, are each encouraging us to think on what comes after this, life. To think on death, and the nearness of it, and the time when Jesus will come again-and two will be working in the field, and one will be taken and the other left; and Jesus concludes, "Keep awake therefore, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming." And that's true, for the time of death, as well as for the time of Jesus' return. No one knows when that time is coming, says Jesus-neither the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. And why is it that God has kept these times, secret? Why won't God reveal, the hour of our death, and the hour of Jesus' second coming? St. John Chrysostom wrote, "Jesus' meaning is this: if ordinary persons knew when they were going to die, they would surely be striving earnestly at that hour. In order therefore that they may strive, not at that hour only, he does not tell them the hour or the day. He wants to keep them on their toes looking for it, that they may always be striving. This is why God makes the end of each person's life so uncertain." The church fathers, in the Incomplete Commentary on Matthew, said, "the date of an individual's death is hidden from him, clearly so that he might always do good, since he can expect to die at any moment. The date of Christ's second Advent, or coming, is also withheld from the world for the same reason, namely, so that every generation might live in the expectation of Christ's return."

     Now we know why the hour of our death, and the time of Jesus' return, is not for us to know-it's just tragic that it doesn't have the desired effect. Not knowing the hour or the day is supposed to keep us vigilant, and striving, and doing good, and being prepared-but not knowing seems to have the opposite effect-we are lulled into complacency, we doze and become lethargic in our faith and good works, we live like we will live forever-as if we will never die, and there will never be a final judgment and Jesus will never come again, to hold us accountable! Isn't it sad that we live, much like people lived in the time of Noah, eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, committing adultery and divorcing and remarrying, as if we have all the time in the world, as if our behavior will have no eternal consequences, as if God is watching us from a distance, if at all, unconcerned, detached, oblivious to what we're doing, or not doing in our lives. The most heart-breaking experience of my ministry, was the time I was visiting an unchurched man in the hospital in Lubbock, Texas, who, near death, was taking stock of his life. And he said, sadly, "You know pastor, I always intended to get right with God and get myself to church, and live right-but I just never got around to it. And now, it's too late." Maybe you read in the Gazette last Sunday, about former Bronco offensive lineman, Harry Swayne who is now an ordained minister and chaplain of the Chicago Bears. He said, though he attended Catholic schools, religion had little meaning in his life after college started. He said, "Football became my new God. When asked who I was, I said, 'football player'. "That should have been what I did, but that's who I became." Fortunately, Swayne was impacted by the Baltimore Ravens' chaplain, and Swayne finally realized, "Hey, this isn't how life is supposed to go." Indeed. Life isn't supposed to go like that-with football, or baseball, or youth sports, or your job, or your education, or your family, being your God! Just as golf, and going to the gym, and making money, isn't supposed to be your God. Life is more than these diversions and pre-occupations. Life is supposed to be more than these diversions and pre-occupations. Life is to be life, lived in and for and with, God! Our lives are to be full of God and his will for us, and the joy and hope and love and service that God intends for his children. Our lives are not to be, just eating and drinking, and doing this and doing that for ourselves, as we see fit. Our lives are not to be spent dragging ourselves from this event to that event, from this day to the next, without real, deep, eternal meaning and purpose. To live like that, leaves us, ultimately, empty, and sometimes, without direction-so that, when our final day comes, when we are about to breathe our last breath-we might find ourselves asking, "what have I done with my life?"; "what have I done for God?"; "I always intended to get right with God, get back to church, and live right-but now, its too late." That, would be a sad place to be, truly. Which is why, our lessons come to us, to you and to me, as good news-the Gospel-because in them, God is giving us another chance! Because in our readings from Scripture for today, Christ is calling us back to the well, where we can get a long, deep drink from the springs of the water of life, so that our lives can be renewed, our minds refocused-we can turn away from ourselves, and our busyness and our self-centeredness, to turn toward God... that today, we might begin striving, not for wealth or prosperity or recognition or entertainment-but to strive for God-to live for God, in every breath and heartbeat of life, loving Him, serving Him, worshiping Him, week in and week out, day in and day out-so that, at the hour of our death, when Jesus meets us for the final judgment, we can say simply and honestly and humbly, "I tried to be ready-I tried to stay awake-knowing that my end would come at an unexpected hour." And what does it look like, to live life, striving, ready, awake and prepared?"

     St. Paul writes, "lay aside the works of darkness; put on the armor of light; let us live honorably, not in reveling and drunkenness, not in debauchery or licentiousness, not in quarreling and jealousy. Instead, put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires." The Church Fathers said, "the mouth should be occupied with holy speech, the ears with pious sounds, the eyes with a vision of the wondrous works of God, and the mind with heavenly thoughts." That's what it means to be ready-to remain alert and awake and prepared for our ultimate end-whenever it comes-it means, putting on the Lord Jesus Christ-that He may be, our garment in life, our covering, in this life, and our crown and our glory-in the next!

     In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.