Rancho Bernardo Community Presbyterian Church

Matthew 25:1-13

They weren't ready for the baby in Bethlehem. As we begin preparing for Christmas, it is traditional for followers of Jesus to consider the prophecies of Jesus' return and ask ourselves whether we are better prepared today than they were then. The Bible teaches us that when Jesus returns to earth, he will return as the "King of Kings and Lord of Lords." The traditional Advent wreath and candles invite us to consider, "What must we do to be prepared for Christ's return?"

Some of Jesus' clearest teachings about his return at the end of the age are given in Matthew chapters 24 and 25. When the disciples asked about the end of the age and Jesus returning in judgment, Jesus responded by describing the signs of the times. He warned them not to get too upset when they hear of wars and rumors of wars, since these happen in every generation. Likewise, Jesus warned that earthquakes and natural disasters are not the ultimate sign of the end.

Jesus used familiar images to remind them that the signs do not clearly identify the exact day or hour. He said it would be like vultures circling in the air. From a distance you know there is a carcass somewhere but you don't know exactly where. Jesus compared his return to seeing the clouds blowing overhead and knowing that a storm is headed our way. You don't know exactly when the storm will hit. It is like seeing a fruit tree in springtime. You know it will bear fruit but not for a while. So it is with the signs of the times. There are enough signs to be expectant and prepared, but not enough to be sure of the specifics.

Jesus concluded his teachings on the end of the age with some parables about being prepared. Let us consider the par-able of the ten bridesmaids. How does this wedding imagery help us be prepared for Christ's return? Then the kingdom of heaven will be like this. Ten bridesmaids took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish, and five were wise. When the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them; but the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps. As the bridegroom was delayed, all of them became drowsy and slept. But at midnight there was a shout, 'Look! Here is the bridegroom! Come out to meet him.' Then all those bridesmaids got up and trimmed their lamps. The foolish said to the wise, 'Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.' But the wise replied, 'No! There will not be enough for you and for us; you had better go to the dealers and buy some for yourselves.' And while they went to buy it, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went with him into the wedding banquet; and the door was shut. Later the other bridesmaids came also, saying, 'Lord, lord, open to us.' But he replied, 'Truly I tell you, I do not know you.' Keep awake therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour. - Matthew 25:1-13

The young bride was so nervous at the wedding rehearsal that the pastor came up with a way to calm her fears. The pastor gave her a tip for remaining calm as she walked down the aisle. The pastor said, "When you come in the back door of the church, don't worry about who is there or not. Don't even look out at the congregation. All I want you to do is look a few steps ahead of you at the aisle. Just focus on the aisle. When you have walked about halfway down the aisle, then lift your eyes and look straight ahead to the altar. Don't look to the right or left, focus on the altar. Finally, when you get near the front, then look over at the groom. Focus on him. He is waiting for you." The pastor then asked her to repeat where she was going to look as she came down the aisle. The nervous bride responded, "Let's see. When I come in the back door, I look straight down the aisle. Then when I am about halfway to the front I look straight up at the altar in the front. Finally, when I get near the front I look at the groom. I look at him because he is waiting for me." The pastor encouraged her to repeat this to herself that night and she would do fine the next day.

Indeed, she looked so calm and beautiful as she came down the aisle. But there some people sitting at the back of the church that day claim they heard her repeating as she went forward, "Aisle altar him. I'll alter him." The wedding ceremony has been altered significantly over the generations since ancient Israel. In fact, we may have trouble understanding Jesus' parable about the ten brides-maids without some background on wedding traditions of the day.

While many traditions have changed, one thing has remained the same. Getting married requires preparation. Preparing for a wedding was a three-step process in ancient Israel. The first step was the arrangement made by the parents. Often this occurred while the bride and groom were still children. Our idea of a couple falling in love and choosing each other is quite modern. In the ancient world marriages were considered primarily as financial arrangements that gave social stability to the community. Thus, parents arranged marriages for the good of their families and the community.

The second step toward marriage was the betrothal. This was quite different from today's engagement. Couples were betrothed for one year leading up to the wedding ceremony. Betrothal took place in various ways. The most common ways were either that the groom paid a price to the father of the bride or signed an official document announcing publicly his betrothal to his bride. Another form of betrothal was that the couple moved in together. For the year leading up to their wedding ceremony they lived together as betrothed husband and wife. Lest we misunderstand what we might call "common law betrothal" we need to know that betrothal could only be broken by divorce or death.

This helps us understand why Matthew clarified which form of betrothal Mary and Joseph had. He made the point that their betrothal did not include moving in together. While Mary was still a virgin, she was found to be with child. Because they were betrothed, Joseph considered divorcing Mary, when he learned that she was pregnant. Knowing that he was not the father, he assumed she had been unfaithful to her betrothal vows (Matthew 1:18-19).

Near the end of the year of betrothal, they prepared for the wedding. Many betrothed couples had barely seen each other before the wedding. If the groom lived in one village and the bride in another, they would not have built a relationship prior to the wedding. So, when did the young couple fall in love? What about romance and courting?

The answer is that the courting and romance often happened during the wedding week. The wedding included dancing and laughter, drinking and riddles, games and speeches. We know, for instance, that Samson posed riddles for his wedding guests and then gave them presents when they figured it out. We know that Jesus' first miracle was to turn water into wine at a wedding party that lasted several days. But what were the bride and groom doing during that week?

One of the traditional games was that sometime during the wedding week the groom would steal his bride away. While the family and guests were distracted, he would take her to a secluded place where he romanced and courted her. Then the couple would return again and try to surprise everyone. The groom might take her away in the middle of the night. The couple might return in the early morning. In this roman-tic game it was apparently the job of her bridesmaids to be prepared to celebrate the arrival of the groom.

With a fresh understanding of how wedding preparations took place, we see Jesus comparing his return for judgment to the unexpected arrival of the groom. He encourages us to prepare for his return in the way that people prepare for a wedding. Jesus referred to five bridesmaids who wisely prepared for the arrival of the groom by keeping enough oil in their lamps to last for his delayed arrival. He also calls five of the bridesmaids foolish for failing to take seriously that his return might be delayed, so they ran out of oil. Are we prepared for the return of Christ or will we be caught off guard?

I find it interesting that this parable equates trusting the Lord with being prepared. There are some Christian groups that present these as mutually exclusive opposites. They imply that if you prepare ahead of time, then you are not trusting the Lord. I have Pentecostal preacher friends who tease me about our church printing a worship bulletin ahead of time. They think our preparation of a bulletin shows a lack of trust in the Holy Spirit to spontaneously guide our worship. Is preparation the opposite of trusting God?

Preparation goes together with trusting the Lord. The Bible tells us that Joseph learned through Pharaoh's dreams about an impending famine. Joseph encouraged the Egyptians to save extra grain during the seven good years of prosperity in order to prepare for the seven bad years of famine. Hebrews records Joseph as a man who showed his faith by planning ahead. The main point of the parable, then, is that we show our faith by being prepared for Christ's return. However, there is an aspect of this parable that I find disturbing. The wise maidens who prepared well and had enough oil refused to share their oil with the foolish maidens. Isn't this the opposite to the rest of Jesus' teachings? So, why does Jesus hold up these five wise maidens as a positive example when they refused to share their oil?

I think Jesus is reminding us that there is an aspect of preparedness that each of us must do for ourselves. While there are many things that one person can share with another, some things we must do for ourselves.

The young mother looks a second time at herself in the mirror. She has not lost as much of the pregnancy weight as she had hoped by the end of November. She already bought a new holiday dress, but needs to take off about ten more pounds before Christmas in order to wear it. So she gets on the phone and calls her friend. "Do you still go to that exercise club each day?" Her friend answers, "Yes." The young mother makes her request, "Would you mind exercising an extra ten minutes each day for me until the Christmas party?"

What is the oil in the maiden's lamps? I think it represents those things in life which each person must maintain individually. Some commentators suggest that the oil represents joy. Perhaps it symbolizes peace of mind. It could be inner character. We simply cannot pass such things from one person to another.

Each of us prepares for Christ's return by nurturing our own relationship with him. Those who are prepared and maintain their oil until his delayed return will hear the words of Jesus, "Well done!" However, some people assume that when Christ appears they will be able to borrow another's oil at the last minute. Can you imagine Jesus suddenly appearing for the final judgment and someone says, "My uncle was a Methodist Preacher. Doesn't that count?" Jesus told us what will be said to those who are not ready, "I do not know you" (Matthew 7:23).

What a contrast. When Jesus appears, some will hear, "Well done!" Others will hear, "I don't know you." Which greeting do you want to hear?