UNFINISHED BUSINESS (Matt 25:1-13)
A good friend called me shortly on the Saturday afternoon exactly a week before the day of my wedding. He asked hesitatingly, “What are you doing?” I sensed something was amiss and asked him what he meant. After a brief pause, he asked meekly: “Aren’t you getting married today?” Refraining from laughing, I answered, “No, it is next week.” He mumbled, “My wife and I are standing outside the church you have picked for your wedding ceremony. I must have seen the wrong date on the invitation card.”
Poor guy. He had caught a break - his in-laws were available to baby-sit their two kids, who were 5 and 2, so that the couple could attend the wedding. As one of the two wedding ushers for the big day, he had a part in the wedding rehearsal but was spared from the rehearsal, with embarrassing consequences. All he had to do was to show up for the wedding day and do the ushering, a chore not unfamiliar to him.
The wedding usher realized something was wrong when he arrived to ample parking and quiet streets. Next week he and his wife returned to the same church, on the right date this time, and did his ushering best.
Jesus compared a person’s ill-preparation for His return to bridesmaids that slept on the job and missed out on the bride and groom’s wedding ceremony, the biggest day of their lives, and the subsequent wedding reception, party or banquet.
BE READY WITHIN, NOT OUTSIDE
25:1 "At that time the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. 2 Five of them were foolish and five were wise. 3 The foolish ones took their lamps but did not take any oil with them. 4 The wise, however, took oil in jars along with their lamps.
A film crew was on location deep in the desert. One day an old Indian went up to the director and said, "Tomorrow rain." The next day it rained.
A week later, the Indian went up to the director and said, "Tomorrow storm." The next day there was a hailstorm. "This Indian is incredible," said the director. He told his secretary to hire the Indian to predict the weather for the remaining of the shoot.
However, after several successful predictions, the old Indian didn’t show up for two weeks. Finally the director sent for him. "I have to shoot a big scene tomorrow," said the director, "and I’m depending on you. What will the weather be like?" The Indian shrugged his shoulders. "Don’t know," he said. "My radio is broken."
Appearances are deceiving. The foolish virgins looked, dressed, and marched like bridesmaids. They were pretty, radiant, and even charming on the outside, but dreary, dim and dull on the inside. The word “foolish” is none other than the Greek word “moros,” or the English equivalent “moron,” for stupid.
The foolish virgins were not prepared for the wedding or the ceremony. Their oil did not run out at midnight; it ran out much earlier. They did not even have enough oil for one day. The groom’s arrival at midnight – before the wedding day was over – exposed them for who they were. They had lived their lives like a bad Cinderella story - when the clock struck midnight, the coach had turned into a pumpkin, the horses became mice, and the beautiful clothes turned shabby. Unfortunately, their gowns were beautiful and their makeup was perfect, but their heads were empty.
All that the foolish ones had to do was to bring extra olive oil, which wasn’t expensive, heavy, or rare. The oil should were probably at the expenses of the wedding couple, not the bridesmaid. The wise ones, however, brought oil in jars or vessels. The only other Greek occurrence of this word for jar or vessel is the word for basket or pail or what fishermen used to collect a good catch of fish (Matt 13:48). The work was tough, taxing and tiring. They knew they had their work cut out for them. They had to carry, drag and transport the jars around, but the girls were glad for their friends getting married, eager to help out their friends, and willing to do what was asked. Goofing, fooling, and lazing around would have to wait.
The five virgins were foolish because they saw the wise virgin’s intense preparation, incessant activities, and infectious spirit, but they did not ask how others did it, how much was necessary or how long to wait. Possibly, they did not care for the work, the gear or the baggage. They sure had ample time to change their minds and were free to talk to the wise ones. They were not sequestered or barred from meeting together, asking questions, seeking opinions or exchanging insights.
BE READY BEFORE, NOT AFTER
5 The 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. 8 The 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.
A great prophet once addressed a herd of donkeys. “What would a donkey require for a three-day journey?” he asked. And they answered, "Six bundles of hay and three bags of dates."
"I cannot give six bundles of hay and three bags of dates," the great prophet said. "Who will go for less?’ One donkey said he could go for six bundles of hay and two bags of dates. Another offered to make the journey for three bundles of hay and one bag of dates. Then one long-eared, sad-looking donkey said he would go for just one bundle of hay.
"Thou art a disgrace to the herd and an Ass," said the prophet. "Thou cannot live for three days on one bundle of hay, much less undertake the journey and make a profit."
"True," replied the Ass, hanging his long ears in shame. "But I wanted to get the order." (Bits and Pieces 5/25/95)
It’s been said, “It’s easy to be wise in hindsight.”
The foolish virgins’ problem wasn’t drowsiness or sleep. Even the wise ones dozed off. They were foolish because they chose sleeping over shopping at the wrong time and on the wrong day. Even if they were tired, they could have sent someone else in the wedding party to purchase more oil. Sleeping was so important to them they were not bothered with anything else. They could not see beyond their immediate need to sleep, so they slept things off. Unlike the foolish ones, the wise ones could afford to sleep because they were prepared for the long wait.
The wise virgins did not keep the oil to themselves, but for themselves. Keeping oil to oneself meant wasting it instead of using it, but keeping oil for oneself meant saving it for a reason and for later use. The former would rather pour oil down the drain than for others to use it, but the latter would rather save the best for last. The wise virgins were not opposed to benefiting others, helping others or covering for them. They were not the type, as the Chinese say, to “forbid fat water to irrigate others’ fields.” They could not give away or help others with what they themselves needed. To their credit, they were wise enough not to share at the wrong time. Selfishness, by definition, is an excessive or exclusive concern with oneself without regard for others. They were not unkind, unmerciful or unfeeling, but they could not afford to be sentimental, emotional or naive. Their friends’ wedding was at stake. They felt sympathetic, but they could not afford to be soft or sloppy.
The wise virgins did not wish for others’ exclusion, rejoice in others’ misery; however, they just couldn’t spare any. If they could, they would be delighted with less work to do. Instead, they should be commended for their sober judgment, sound thinking, and stubborn resistance. Also, they did not have hardened hearts or push others away, but suggested an alternative to the foolish virgins, not knowing that they would not make it back on time.
The wise virgins’ reply in NIV and KJV does not do justice to their answer in Greek. They did not begin with a harsh “No,” (NIV) or “Not so” (KJV). The Greek reply is, “Lest” followed by “not enough for us and you.” The wise ones weren’t screaming “No” at the top of their voice. They turned the foolish virgin’s request down with the utmost sensitivity, class, and regret. They explained the quandary they were in, the luxury they did not have, and what would happen if they try to do too much. They were reluctant like “mud Buddha crossing a river; they can’t even protect themselves,” as the Chinese would say. Disqualifying themselves would not do anyone any good.
BE READY SOONER, NOT LATER
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. ’Sir! Sir!’ they said. ’Open the door for us!’ 12 "But he replied, ’I tell you the truth, I don’t know you.’ 13 "Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour. (Matt 25:1-13)
Sean, Juan and Billy Jack were doing construction work on scaffolding on the 20th floor of a building. They were eating lunch and Sean said, "Corned beef and cabbage! If I get corned beef and cabbage one more time for lunch I’m going to jump off this building."
Juan opened his lunch box and exclaimed, "Burritos again! If I get burritos one more time I’m going to jump off, too."
Billy Jack opened his lunch and said, "Bologna again. If I get a bologna sandwich one more time I’m jumping too."
Next day the Sean opens his lunch box, sees corned beef and cabbage and jumps to his death. Juan opens his lunch, sees a burrito and jumps too. Billy Jack opens his lunch, sees the bologna and jumps to his death also.
At the funeral, Sean’s wife is weeping. She says, "If I’d known how really tired he was of corned beef and cabbage I never would have given it to him again!" Juan’s wife also weeps and says, "I could have given him tacos or enchiladas! I didn’t realize he hated burritos so much." Everyone turned and stared at Billy Jack’s wife. "Hey, don’t look at me" she said. "He made his own lunch."
When Doris was in high school, her friends challenged her on this parable: “Why was the ending so harsh? Shouldn’t the wise ones distribute (fen) a little (dit) to others?”
Harsh is letting no one in, but God let the right people in and kept the wrong crowd out. Harsh is letting one person in, and keeping nine people out. Harsh is letting everyone in, but keeping one out. Harsh is forcing good people out and compelling bad people in. Harsh is kicking out people that are in. Harsh is barring people that do right from entering and embracing people that do little or nothing.
The romance of heaven is that it is a wide door; the reality of heaven is that it is a narrow gate (Matt 7:13). Jesus says, "Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it” (Matt 7:13-14). The romance of heaven is that it is open to strangers. The reality of heaven is that it is open to newcomers. Jesus says to trespassers, “I don’t know you.” The romance of heaven is the belief in a benign, humanitarian, and liberal God, but the reality of heaven is that He is sovereign, just, and patient. His love, forgiveness, and salvation are not extended to sinners beyond death and this life.
Like the foolish virgins, many will cry on the last days, “Open for us,” but it will fall on deaf ears. A lot of people’s only concern is for the door to open, and nothing else. They don’t care if the groom recognizes them, knows them, or likes them.
Don’t wait till the last minute or second to act on salvation, like the foolish ones that cried in vain to the wise virgins “Give us oil” and to the Lord “Open for us.” Some mistakes are rookie mistakes, some are juvenile mistakes, and some make honest mistakes. Some losses are bearable, recoverable, and even unavoidable, but the loss of a human soul is unacceptable, irreversible, but preventable. God has given us the rest of our lives to get things right and turn things around. Life without God is a risk no one should take.
Conclusion: There is no bigger day than your appointment with the Lord. Are you ready? Are you guilty of padding your resume, assuming a false identity, and living a vain existence? Time flies when you are having fun and having a good time; before you know it, your time is up. Preparing for life on earth is a honeymoon compared to preparing for life in heaven. If you are not prepared for life today, how are you going to be prepared for tomorrow’s destiny? Do you know the God who holds all things together (Col 1:17), your life in His hands (Dan 5:23) the keys to death and life (Rev 1:18)?
Victor Yap
http://epreaching.blogspot.com/
www.riversidecma.org(For sermon series)
www.preachchrist.com (For Chinese sermons)
