Scripture Study for
First Sunday of Advent
Isaiah 63:16b–17, 19b; 64:2–7 / Psalm 80:4 / 1 Corinthians 1:3–9 / Mark 13:33–37
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Understanding the Word
By Br. John R. Barker, OFM
The Isaiah reading comes from the post-Exilic period, when Israel’s hopes for restoration remained unfulfilled. Years after their return to the ancestral land, God’s people remained under foreign rule and suffered agricultural, economic, and social difficulties, which many took as a sign that Israel remained under divine judgment. Thus the lament and communal confession in the reading, which features reminders of the deliverance from Egypt. God is Israel’s father (Exodus 4:22) and redeemer, an enduring reality that is the basis for the present hope in God’s fidelity. As in the past, Israel’s heart is hardened, but confession opens up the possibility of God’s saving return. As in the past God came to Israel as redeemer, so now Israel hopes to receive mercy again.
Paul begins his First Letter to the Corinthians by reminding them that they have been “sanctified in Christ Jesus” and are called to be holy (1:2). Paul gives thanks that they do indeed show signs of having received God’s grace in the form of spiritual knowledge and gifts. These manifestations of God’s grace are also confirmation of the truth of the gospel that Paul had preached to them (the “testimony to Christ”). These divine gifts also reveal God’s fidelity and desire to keep the Corinthians faithful as they persevere during this time of waiting. It is God who has called them to fellowship with Christ and it is God who will give them what they need to be faithful.
Jesus’ warning to his disciples is essentially an exhortation to avoid spiritual procrastination, putting off ultimate concerns because one perceives there is plenty of time to “take care of things” like repentance or growth in virtue. Just previous to this reading, Jesus had informed his disciples that only the Father knows when the end will come (13:32), which means it is pointless and dangerous to hope there will be time to get one’s house in order. When the Lord decides to come, those who have persuaded themselves they can delay their repentance or ignore their obligations to God and neighbor will be found “asleep.” Jesus leaves it to his audience to imagine the fate of those found asleep by the “man traveling abroad” when he returns.