TEN BRIDESMAIDS

“At that time the kingdom of heaven will be like ten bridesmaids who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom.  Five of them were foolish and five were wise. The foolish ones took their lamps but did not take any oil with them. The wise ones, however, took oil in jars along with their lamps. The bridegroom was a long time in coming, and they all became drowsy and fell asleep.

 “At midnight the cry rang out: ‘Here’s the bridegroom! Come out to meet him!’

 “Then all the bridesmaids woke up and trimmed their lamps. The foolish ones said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil; our lamps are going out.’

 “‘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.’

 “But while they were on their way to buy the oil, the bridegroom arrived. The bridesmaids who were ready went in with him to the wedding banquet. And the door was shut.

 “Later the others also came. ‘Lord, Lord,’ they said, ‘open the door for us!’

 “But he replied, ‘Truly I tell you, I don’t know you.’

“Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour."Matthew 25:1-13

It’s difficult for to me to read these parables of Jesus and then try to  understand how some people challenge the demands that God has placed upon humanity.  Judgment is coming—and there will be no appeal!  This story is all about the Day of Judgement; it’s eschatological in theme, as most of His parables were, but there’s no doubt that Jesus knew that some folks, who were listening right then,  were going to be sorely disappointed, confused, shocked and in utter disbelief that they’ve been left out!!!

We have all heard people say a hundred times over that the Jesus of the New Testament is indeed the most merciful and humane lover of humanity, but that the Church has hidden this human character in repellent dogmas and stiffened it with ecclesiastical terrors till it has taken on an inhuman character. This is the reverse of the truth. The truth is that it is the image of Christ in the churches that is almost entirely mild and merciful.” The true image of Jesus, if you read the the New Testament, has been reduced to some sentimental kind of love that does not represent Jesus or His Holy Father. We’ve been deceived. (Chesterton)  Jesus demands that we are born again, that we die to self and that we are prepared  live for Him.  That’s the point of this parable. Christianity is not a religion that says, “Come as you are, stay as you are, and be blessed by God”.  Jesus would tell us that we should come to Him when we are ready to be His disciples and follow Hime—even to death.  He said that it would better to cut off our hand or pluck out our eyes—-if they stood in the way of us attending this wedding!!!  Think about it.

In the Parable of the Ten Bridesmaids, or “Ten Virgins”,  Jesus tells a story about a wedding party, with these girls being some sort of torchbearers for a procession; but for a wedding, as was the custom that took place at night—it was a long, elaborate celebration, and these girls knew it, so that should all have been prepared!  Each of the ten bridesmaids was carrying a lantern or torch  as they waited for  the coming of the groom, and they knew that it would at some time during the night and after all the parties of the groom were over.. Five of the bridesmaids were smart, and brought extra oil for their lamps. The other five are foolish and brought their lamps but no extra oil.  Here’s a spiritual lesson Jesus is teaching: God might have leniency for or ignorance, but not for foolishness—-or to put it  better, for lazy lack of preparation.  We do not know that hour of our departure from this earth or the moment of His return—-SO BE READY!

At midnight, all these bridesmaids heard the call to come out to meet the bridegroom. But when the lazy ones realize that their lamps are going out, they ask wise ones for oil, but they refuse, saying that there will certainly not  be enough for them to share. And sadly while the foolish young ladies are away trying to find someone at midnight to sell them more oil, the bridegroom arrives. The wise bridesmaids then accompany him to the celebration. The others arrive too late and are excluded from the event. Jesus says this same thing time and time again. It’s going to be too late for some people, and some people are going to be amazed that they are turned away!

Now, you might think that the five wise bridesmaids with the extra oil were selfish, and that they should have shared, but then no one would have had enough oil for the lamps—-no one would have attended.  e.g. of flying a plane and putting YOUR mask on first!!!

Jesus offered this parable when He was asked the question: “When shall these things be? And what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world?”   (Matthew 24:3, King James Version).  It was a warning to those that assume that they are God’s elect—but are not—-or that they have been born again—-but have fooled no one but themselves.

It was addressed to religious people—not the atheists, or murderers or  drug addicts or those obviously outside the flock.  More than one time Jesus said, “Do not to assume that your future is certain because you’ve been invited to the party.”  Jesus does not criticize the bridesmaids  for sleeping, since both groups do that, but for being unprepared for the coming of the groom, since they brought no extra oil.

Now some have suggested that this parable proves that good works are essential for salvation,  and that the spare oil symbolizes all those good deeds we did—-things that are stored up for us to get into heaven. They would argue that the lazy Christians don’t do the good things essential for God’s favor, and end up in hell, even though their entire lives they assumed they were going to heaven.

First, to be clear, God wants all of us to enter into His rest! ALL OF US! We’re reminded in Rev. 19:7,  “Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory! For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready.” The messianic wedding banquet—the time when the Lord will come to set all things right in this fallen world,.the time of great celebration when he will gather his people in great joy and praise.That is an event that we don’t want to miss!

But we’re told time and time again, that we have to come properly dressed, prepared, with the right attitude towards charity and forgiveness to others, etc.  These point to our hearts, not merely our actions.

A little more background on the parable: The story pictures ten bridesmaids is based upon the marriage customs of Jesus' day --because after the formal engagement, the groom would go away to establish a home for his bride. At some later date he would return to her parents' house where the bride would be attended to by her unmarried friends, or bridesmaids for the wedding. After the groom met the bride, together with her attendants, they would go to his house for a week-long wedding celebration. So Jesus is posing the question to all those listening: Who will be welcomed into this great wedding celebration? Who will be included in this magnificent heavenly feast?

Notice that it is clear that both the wise and the foolish bridesmaids  were waiting for the bridegroom to arrive. Clearly, they all hoped to share in the wedding banquet. They all thought they were ready and would be included in the festivities when the bridegroom arrived.  But only at the end does the wisdom of the one group and the foolishness of the other become evident. Only then is it clear which ones will be received by the bridegroom and which ones will not. Think of the what Jesus is saying:— knowing that He is returning or even hoping to be received by him when he does come, is not enough.  Something more is required.    

And remember, this story in not addressed to  arrogant sinners.   The foolish bridesmaids don't represent those who are vehemently anti-Christian, or sexually immoral, or atheists. They thought they would be welcomed to the party!  But the time at which the groom came was unexpected and they were caught unprepared.  But unless you take your own life, you cannot know the day and hour you will stand before God.  And in terms of Christ’s return,  "No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.”

So, forgetting what we want to believe about salvation and heaven, note here that only those who were ready, only those whose lamps were burning when the bridegroom arrived, were at the feast. The others would be missing out. This is the heart of the story: ”Keep watch, and be ready, because you do not know the day or the hour.  Jesus is calling each one of us who would claim to belong to Christ to be continually and constantly faithful until he returns.

Our lamps must be burning, but what does this mean?  Your faith has to be alive! Not cold and extinguished.  He expects us to be on fire for Him—not Lukewarm—see the book of Revelation and what Christ says to the church of Sardis! We are to be dependent on Him for our oil—not looking for the oil of others.

The oil that keeps the lamps burning (that is, living faith) is not transferable. Your parents may be Christian, ,and you may have grown up in a Christian home. Your husband or wife may be a Christian, or you may attend a very good church that is on fire for Christ— but is your lamp burning? He is the source for that flame—-you can’t steal or borrow it from others. It’s going to be a first hand experience with Jesus Christ if you want to be in heaven.

The parable teaches us that we must not be complacent about our faith. Remember that the lamps of all ten bridesmaids were burning at one time. When Christ returns the question will not be were you ever faithful at some time in the past,  but are you faithful now. Jesus told his disciples that before he returns, the love of many will grow cold, but the one who perseveres to the end will be saved. (24:13)

You may have been baptized, or confirmed, you may have prayed a prayer, or walked an aisle…. you may have been a Bible study leader, a Sunday School teacher, or even a church Elder--but what are you doing now?  The fault of the foolish bridesmaids is not wickedness, but lukewarm-ness. It's not atheism, but apathy towards Jesus.  They took their participation in the banquet for granted, and as a result, they made no preparations. Their hope was real, but they did not have roots that went down deep—as in the parable with the sower.

We do not know the day or the hour when our time will come— but when it comes, it will be too late for those caught unprepared.  You are foolish to procrastinate about making a decision to be born again.

Yes, that fear of being left out ought to be very real to us all. Left out forever— in that darkness which no light can ever penetrate, experiencing an unrelenting loneliness.“We can be left utterly and absolutely outside –repelled, exiled, estranged, finally and unspeakably ignored.”“On the other hand,  we can be called in, welcomed, received, acknowledged.We walk every day on the razor edge between these two incredible possibilities. We must not say, “I'll attend to it tomorrow. Do it now!” (C.S. Lewis)

I think, lately, that the most over quoted but less respected verse in the Bible is John 3:16, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth on him should not perish, but have eternal life.”   Believeth in Him does not simply mean to believe that He is the Son of God—-the demons believe that, tremble and are still condemned to hell.  “Believeth” means that  you  believe what He said about the the Kingdom of God is true!  And that means that you must be born again, forgive,  love and pray for your enemies! It means that you understand that you’ve been saved for the purpose of living a life dedicated to God, and that you prove that in the manner in which you treat others.  And if this is the truth,  I declare that there are some of you listening to me, or reading this devotion this, that are headed to hell, not heaven, no matter what you’ve confessed or believed. Your lamp is extinguished because His Holy Spirit was never ignited in the first place!  You’ve come to God on your terms—not His—and that’s not going to work.

“Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour.

Following Jesus is a life-time decision—not a quick fix for salvation. It’s a decision to place your hand in His hand—your life at His disposal—your dreams so that you might realize HIS dreams….