33rd Ordinary Sunday, Year B, 18.11.2012

Daniel 12:1-3/ Hebrews 10:11-14, 18/ Matthew 24:42-44


Next Thursday is the 22nd November. It will be an anxious day for parents who have 12-year-old children and of course for the 12-year-old children too.

Because on next Thursday, the results of the PSLE will be announced!

Yes, the PSLE – Primary School Leaving Examination results will be announced.

And the PSLE results will determine which secondary school the 12-year-olds will be studying in for the next phase of their education.

Already there is much discussion on how stressful the PSLE is for the 12-year-olds and whether things can be changed and adjusted for the better.

And amidst all that serious discussion, there is also the lighter side of what PSLE stands for:
-Please Start Learning Everything
-Please Start Learning Early
-Parents Should Learn Everything
-Procrastinate Sure Liao (Fail) Exam

And all this is over the Primary School Leaving Examinations. It goes to show how stressful and how tensed it can be even at Primary School level.

We can surely imagine what it is like when it comes to exams at Secondary School, Junior College and at University.

Exams are indeed a big thing in Singapore and the results somehow determine what kind of future will be in store for the children.

So, next Thursday, the 22nd Nov is like some kind of judgment day.

It will be a distressful time and heaven will be stormed and shaken with prayers (will that be too late?)

And when the results are out, those who scored brilliantly will shine like bright stars.

It is actually quite amazing to see how much the Primary School Leaving Examinations means to the students, the parents and the schools.

At the bottom of it all, there is something at stake. For the students, it is an achievement; for the parents, it is an investment; for the schools, it is the reputation.

Undeniably, there is a lot of hard work that went into the preparations for the exams, the extra tuition, the sacrifices and also the bottles of chicken essence.

And yet, when it is over and done, for better or for worse, it will pass on, everyone will move on and there will be another exam to face.

So for all that is achieved with whatever brilliant results, the shine will begin to fade as soon as the next day arrives.

And in time to come, this year’s results will just fade into history and the students will face other exams.

Yes, exams come and go, not only in school but also at work, when we sit for promotion exams or in pursuit of higher qualifications.

Yet, the objectives are also quite similar as at the PSLE, and that is for achievement, investment and reputation.

But for all that we work so hard for, we have to realize that it is all transient, all will fade into history, all will pass on.

In the gospel, Jesus talks about the end times. He has a grim reminder for us as He says this: Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.

That should make us stop and think. We have studied a lot, we have learned a lot, and we also know a lot.

We have taken one exam after another, we have collected certificates, diplomas and degrees.

But just how much of what Jesus said have we remembered? And how much of what Jesus said have we put into practice in our lives?
For example, on the teaching on love, Jesus said this, “I give you a new commandment: Love one another as I have loved you.”

So it is a new commandment, and not a new suggestion or a new option.

And that means that just as Jesus loved us, we too must love God, love our neighbor, love our enemy and love those who hurt us or even do us harm.

We will remember that Jesus said, “Love your enemy, do good to those who harm you, bless those who persecute you.”

Certainly a difficult teaching to follow but in the exams of life, we must remember it.

Not to remember that teaching and to fail in the exam of life would certainly spell disaster for us.

And just like the exams in school, where we prepare for it by working hard and making sacrifices and denying ourselves, so too in the exams of life.

Again we need to remember that Jesus said this, “What then will a man gain if he wins the whole world and yet ruins his life? Indeed what can a man offer in exchange for his life?”

Yes, we may work hard for our achievements, recognition, status, wealth, and may even win the whole world, but how much and how hard do we work for life eternal?

We need to remember what Jesus taught us because His words will never pass away because His words are Spirit and they are life and He has the message of eternal life.

And what is this message of eternal life?

Maybe let’s talk about exams again and there is this story of a student who went to see a wise and holy man to ask for prayers for success in his final exams.

The student made his request and the holy man said: I will pray for you but how successful do you want to be in your exams?

The student answered: I want to be the top student.
The holy man asked: And then what?
The student answered: Then I will graduate and find a good job.
The holy man: And then what?
The student: Then I will work hard and earn good money.
And then what? Then I will look for a wife, get married and buy a nice house.
And then what? Then I will retire and enjoy life.
And then what? The student: And then errr… and then err…

Yes, and then what? After our studies and exams, after meeting the demands of life and work, are we prepared to take the final exam of life?

Or are we going to be that student who thinks only of what is in this passing world and when it comes to the world that will not pass away, we can only say, “And then err… and then err…” 

We may have passed our Primary School Leaving Examinations but will we be able to pass the primary exam of life, and enter into eternal life?

Every day we will have to sit for the exam of life. Let us pray that we will pass each exam and finally be rewarded with a life that will not pass away. It’s an exam that we cannot fail.