8/7/16-Matt. 25:1-13-Keep On Keeping On
This parable of Jesus says that we must be prepared for His return, and He uses a story about a wedding, but the wedding that Jesus mentions here is a bit different, because it is the most important wedding we will ever attend. Why? Jesus Himself is the groom.
Weddings back in Jesus’ day are not like they are today. Today’s weddings go fairly quickly, but back then it was a full night and day of dancing, and then you actually got to the wedding.
If you were a bridesmaid, that was a great honor. So before the feast started, all bridesmaids left the bride’s house, went to meet the groom with torches for light that was lit with oil, and then they would escort him back to the bride, whom they all, in turn escort to the groom’s house, and because this was a great honor you had to be prepared.
5 Bridesmaids were prepared because they had oil, 5 were not because they lacked oil. Well what does it all mean? There are a couple of important points to see here.
Who is the groom? Jesus. The bridesmaids? Well, that is us. What does this all have to do with our lives today? It is about how we live our lives knowing this day is coming, and it is about being ready for it.
Some people out there say that Jesus is never coming back, and they are like the bridesmaid that is a naysayer to the bride and groom. I don’t know about you, but I don’t want that bridesmaid anywhere near my wedding, because they are not encouraging.
They don’t have the best interests of the bride (which is the church by the way), and the best interests of the bride should be equal to the interest of the groom (Jesus).
Notice something here, it is not because the bridesmaids slept that they were unprepared. It was because 5 of them had what the other 5 lacked…oil, fuel to keep the fire going.
Staying up all night would not have solved the lack of oil problem, they needed to be ready before that.
What does the oil mean for us today?
It is The Holy Spirit. For unless we have the Holy Spirit’s constant presence in our lives, giving us energy to be diligent for the work of the Kingdom of God, then we aren’t born again, and therefore we are unprepared like the 5 bridesmaids.
That is why the 5 prepared bridesmaids couldn’t share. IT was because of lack of love, rather it was because every person has to be responsible for their acceptance or rejection of God’s grace, and God’s grace is the wedding invite.
Try as we might, we cannot ask for the Holy Spirit from others, and we cannot give the Holy Spirit to others.
If we want the Holy Spirit, we must be born again, and how? We must repent, turn from our sins, and believe the good news, believe the gospel.
THEN we receive the oil, the Holy Spirit, and we are invited to the wedding, but there is one more piece here. Notice the groom was delayed, which was common back then.
People think that because Jesus has taken so long and has not returned yet, that maybe He is not coming at all.
Well, I can tell you this, as a future groom, that any groom who loves His bride as much as Jesus loves His bride (the church), will come and will come at the right time.
So why hasn’t Jesus come yet? Did you ever think that it is because He still has work for us to do?
YES! The fact that Jesus has not come back yet means the church still has a purpose, still has work to do in this world.
God is not done with us here yet, so we must keep on keeping on. We still have a reason to be here! We still have glorious work to do!
The point is to endure. Whether you are working or resting, we must be like the faithful bridesmaids, and the point is to endure.
And we endure by keeping the oil supply up, by asking for more of the Holy Spirit, the Living Water, the Bread of Life!
How? Ask God. Believe the Gospel deeper, spend time with God, spend time in prayer, spend time with other believers.
Keep that oil going so that your torch shines brightly, keep the Holy Spirit so that your life shines brightly, so that rather than being locked out, instead the Groom will say to you, “well done good and faithful servant, come to the wedding feast”