The groom is late, are you prepared?
Good morning church!!
Today, we find ourselves with Jesus, and he is finishing up preaching on the Mt Of Olives
• he is desperately trying to prepare everyone because he knows is time is short
Jesus is Days from the crucifixion of Jesus, and he is preparing his disciples for life without him, and he desperately wants them to be prepared. Because we never know the day or the hour. And today his message is for his followers but, there is a valuable lesson for us all about being prepared.
Matthew 25:1–13 (NIV)
1“At that time the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom.
2Five of them were foolish and five were wise.
3The foolish ones took their lamps but did not take any oil with them.
4The wise ones, however, took oil in jars along with their lamps.
5The bridegroom was a long time in coming, and they all became drowsy and fell asleep.
6“At midnight the cry rang out: ‘Here’s the bridegroom! Come out to meet him!’
7“Then all the virgins woke up and trimmed their lamps.
8The foolish ones said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil; our lamps are going out.’
9“ ‘No,’ they replied, ‘there may not be enough for both us and you. Instead, go to those who sell oil and buy some for yourselves.’
10“But while they were on their way to buy the oil, the bridegroom arrived. The virgins who were ready went in with him to the wedding banquet. And the door was shut.
11“Later the others also came. ‘Lord, Lord,’ they said, ‘open the door for us!’
12“But he replied, ‘Truly I tell you, I don’t know you.’
13“Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour.
So, let’s talk about the imagery of this parable
• this is a pretty typical 1st century wedding
• after the wedding (at the bride’s home) there would be a procession
• The procession of the wedding party and friends was from the bride’s house to the groom’s house
• And it was lit by friends with torches because, remember, there are no streetlamps and this was a festive occasion!
• And when they arrived at the groom’s there would be a big feast!
Understanding the context helps you see why Jesus uses the situations that he does, to get his point across
• Jesus is relatable
• Jesus is relevant
• Jesus speaks to his audience, not over them
I know what you’re thinking, what does this have to do with me??
• Jesus isn’t quoting scripture
• He is not blowing them away with a bunch of systematic theology
• He is using life experiences to teach people
• You are the walking gospel, don’t be afraid to preach Jesus with your story!
I got three take aways in this parable
1. The work of following Jesus is marathon not a sprint
5The bridegroom was a long time in coming, and they all became drowsy and fell asleep.
Follow me on this:
• If Jesus is the groom
• And we, believers in Jesus, are the virgins
• And the lamps, that represents the light that dwells in us
That means if we aren’t careful, we are going to run out of spiritual fuel!
• We won’t finish the race
• We won’t make it down to narrow path
• If we prepare for a sprint instead of a marathon
Remember
• Gods’ patience has to be shown
• Our patience’s has to be tested
• And the harvest has to be ready
• Before Jesus returns
• He will not be late, he will appear at the perfect hour
So, get you expectations right
• Bad expectations causes us to:
• Lose site of the goal
• Give up on the fight
• Not because it’s too hard, but because we go in with the wrong expectations
2. You can be wise, or you can be foolish
King Solomon said:
Ecclesiastes 2:13 (NIV)
13I saw that wisdom is better than folly, just as light is better than darkness.
We have ten virgins
• Five are foolish and five are wise.
• The foolish took lamps but did not take any oil with them.
• The wise ones, however, took oil in jars along with their lamps.
So, if Jesus is the groom
• And the light is to honor him
• Then that means the light would be the gospel
Then the Foolish believer:
• Light would flame out
• Would be dim
• They have no roots
• They have no stamina
• They use the gospel to their advantage
• The lord over people, and judge people
• They start strong, but finish last
• They love themselves and use their neighbors
But, the wise believer would:
• Use the gospel to learn from and to change.
• To be enlightened by it, enriched by it
• To learn grace from it, humility, compassion
• To see the lost and hurt for them
• They get their fuel for the living well.
• And then, they shine the gospel to the world through their actions
Philippians 2:15–16 (ESV)
15that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world,
16holding fast to the word of life, so that in the day of Christ I may be proud that I did not run in vain or labor in vain.
Someday is not a day of the week!
*Luke 21:36 (ESV) *
36But stay awake at all times, praying that you may have strength to escape all these things that are going to take place, and to stand before the Son of Man.”
• Procrastination will get you know where
• We must always be prepared
• Not just in case Jesus comes back
• But we don’t know when he will call us home
• We will never be perfect, but we must always be working on it
That’s why we need to spend more time looking in the mirror and less time looking out the window
The road we are on is single file
8The foolish ones said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil; our lamps are going out.’
9“ ‘No,’ they replied, ‘there may not be enough for both us and you. Instead, go to those who sell oil and buy some for yourselves.’
• No one can prepare you but you
• No one can answer for you but you
• You either make it through the gate or you don’t
• We can walk together, we can learn and grow together
• but the journey and the decisions are our own
Don’t get left behind
10“But while they were on their way to buy the oil, the bridegroom arrived. The virgins who were ready went in with him to the wedding banquet. And the door was shut.
11“Later the others also came. ‘Lord, Lord,’ they said, ‘open the door for us!’
12“But he replied, ‘Truly I tell you, I don’t know you.’
• Don’t be late to the party
• Dot miss the bus
• Keep working on you
• Keep pressing forward
• Remember this is a marathon
• That there are going to be a lot of hard days, bad days
• That Jesus is not for the faint of heart
• Set your expectations right
Remember what Paul said:
*1 Corinthians 9:24 (NIV) *
24Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize.