Parables #43 Wise And Foolish Virgins
Parable #43 Wise and foolish virgins
The Cry At Midnight The Parable of The 10 Bridesmaids)
Let us pray: Dear Heavenly Father, through our baptism into Christ’s death and resurrection, you have claimed us as your sons and daughters, and made us heirs of your eternal kingdom. Through the power of your Holy Spirit, You inspire us to live our lives in faith.
Break the bread of life this morning for us to eat and let us be filled and leave here satisfied.
This we ask in Jesus’ name . Amen.
Let’s first read from :
Psalm 78:1-7
1 O my people, listen to my instructions. Open your ears to what I am saying,2 for I will speak to you in a parable.I will teach you hidden lessons from our past—3 stories we have heard and known, stories our ancestors handed down to us.
Our parable this morning comes fromMatthew 25:1-13.
The wise and foolish virgins“Then the Kingdom of Heaven will be like ten bridesmaids[a] who took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom. 2 Five of them were foolish, and five were wise. 3 The five who were foolish didn’t take enough olive oil for their lamps, 4 but the other five were wise enough to take along extra oil. 5 When the bridegroom was delayed, they all became drowsy and fell asleep.6 “At midnight they were roused by the shout, ‘Look, the bridegroom is coming! Come out and meet him!’7 “All the bridesmaids got up and prepared their lamps. 8 Then the five foolish ones asked the others, ‘Please give us some of your oil because our lamps are going out.’9 “But the others replied, ‘We don’t have enough for all of us. Go to a shop and buy some for yourselves.’10 “But while they were gone to buy oil, the bridegroom came. Then those who were ready went in with him to the marriage feast, and the door was locked. 11 Later, when the other five bridesmaids returned, they stood outside, calling, ‘Lord! Lord! Open the door for us!’12 “But he called back, ‘Believe me, I don’t know you!’13 “So you, too, must keep watch! For you do not know the day or hour of my return.
We need to set the scene, to grasp the historical context in which the action takes place, to better understand its significance for those of us who live in a different age.The time is 80 AD, some fifty years after the death and resurrection of Jesus. Rome just defeated an uprising in Jerusalem, and destroyed the temple (for centuries, the center of worship for the Jews).
It was the place where God’s presence was thought to dwell.
As a result, many of the Jews lost their center of hope, questioning whether God had abandoned them and their pleas for deliverance.Before we go further Let us first look at why Matthew included this parable in his gosple. It was a time of the early Christians, who believed that Jesus was the Christ, who had risen from the dead and ascended into heaven, who promised to return to establish God’s kingdom, and hadn’t done so yet. Not only had the temple been destroyed, but even those who had faith in Jesus, were being persecuted and dying, longing for his return. Some of these early Christians were also beginning to lose hope, for they expected that his return was about to happen. This is what also prompted Paul to write to the people in Thessalonica
1 Thessalonians 4:13-1513 And now, dear brothers and sisters, we want you to know what will happen to the believers who have diedso you will not grieve like people who have no hope. 14 For since we believe that Jesus died and was raised to life again, we also believe that when Jesus returns, God will bring back with him the believers who have died.Paul was assuring the early church that the dead would not miss our Lord’s return and his establishment of God’s righteous kingdom.It was a time in which both Christians and Jews believed that God would soon act to bring his judgment upon the earth, and justify those who had faith in him. This is the scene, the historical background of the people to whom Matthew addressed his Gospel with this message of hope.
We have the same expectation 2000 years later so this parable still brings us the message of hope .
As I said last week Jesus is aware of the fact that His time is running out and the crucifixion is looming o his message is getting more and more urgentHe explained to His disciples in Matthew 24 about the things that will happen before He returns , they did not understand so He told them the first of three parables
The first parable of three started with the sign of the fig tree then the second one was the parable of the unfaithful servant. This parable that Jesus told about the Kingdom takes place at night, 10 young womenare among the guests, each of them has a lamp, and of course all 10 lamps are lit.For young unmarried women, in the Middle East, to move around in the dark without carrying lamps is unthinkable!A young woman without a lamp was very suspicious, what might they be doing in the dark and with whom? The 10 young women were very cautious in their behavior. They all had lamps and their lamps were burning. But there werewise and foolish onesamong them. Half of them brought extra oil with them in a small flask, while the other half had not taken this precaution.What then is the story all about?On the ethical level Jesus appears to be saying four things:Firstly.
The importance and worth of women is implied in this parable. This could have been a parable about 10 young men. By contrast this story is about women, not men, and there are 10 of themWhy women?Well, in the Gospels, when referring to the church it is always feminine: it is described as the Bride of Christ. Therefore it is appropriate that Jesus chose women to act the part of the membership of the church where you would find both wise and foolishpeople .According to some Rabbinical Historians;
At that time in the Middle East they required 10 Jewish males to form a company for the celebration of the Passover.And 10 males were also required for a valid wedding ceremony.By choosing 10 women, Jesus is trying to compensate for the gender gap in the religious culture of his day. The worth of women is clearly affirmed by the composition of the tory.
Secondly
There is the question of borrowed resources. The faithful borrow many things from each other.But they cannot borrow their own preparations for the coming of the kingdom. Commitment and the discipleship that follows can neither be loaned nor borrowed. Each believer must participate in the kingdom with his or her own resources.Thirdly,
The life journey as a Christian is a long one. Life in the kingdom of God requires commitment during this long journey . Advance planning is necessary and reserves must be on hand. There is neither instant discipleship nor instant maturity as a believer
The 5 wise woman knew it might be a long night and prepared accordingly.Fourthly
The reactions to failure. When things go wrong, due to poor judgment and other preperations that were left unattended, the resulting problems cannot be resolved by shouting orders at neighbor or at the Lord.
As displayed by the foolish women. When they discovered that they were short of oil they demanded oil from their friends, “Give us some oil!” And when they arrived late and found the door locked they cried to the bridegroom “Lord! Lord! Open the door!” These five women are like the rich man in the story of Lazarus, who in life mistreated Lazarus day after day. They both died and the rich man found himself in Hades while Lazarus was taken by the Angels to the side of Abraham.The rich man then began giving orders. He commanded Abraham to send Lazarus down with a drink of water because he was thirsty. When that did not work, he made a second demand, which was, “Send Lazarus to my brothers to warn them.” The rich man expected Abraham to carry out these orders. In the kingdom of God, shouting orders at others is not an acceptable way to try to resolve problems created by our own inadequacies. That is the Ethical Level of the Parable.
Lets look at the meaning of the Parable?“As we take a good look at the Parable of the Ten Virgins in Matthew 25:1-13 we must acknowledge up front that there has been much debate as to the meaning of these words of our Savior Jesus Christ.
At least one aspect of this parable can be known with absolute certainty.
The bridegroom is Jesus Christ, and this parable describes His return.
We find it inthe Old Testament and in the New Testament
Lets look at the old testament firstIsaiah 54:4-6
“Fear not; you will no longer live in shame. Don’t be afraid; there is no more disgrace for you.You will no longer remember the shame of your youth and the sorrows of widowhood.5 For your Creator will be your husband; the Lord of Heaven’s Armies is his name!He is your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel,the God of all the earth.6 For the Lord has called you back from your grief— as though you were a young wife abandoned by her husband,”says your God.
Isaiah 62:4-5
4 Never again will you be called “The Forsaken City” or “The Desolate Land.”Your new name will be “The City of God’s Delight”and “The Bride of God, “for the Lord delights in you and will claim you as his bride.5 Your children will commit themselves to you, O Jerusalem,just as a young man commits himself to his bride.Then God will rejoice over you as a bridegroom rejoices over his bride.
Hosea 2:19
I will make you my wife forever, showing you righteousness and justice, unfailing love and compassion.
andin the New Testament John 3:27-3027 John replied, “No one can receive anything unless God gives it from heaven. 28 You yourselves know how plainly I told you, ‘I am not the Messiah. I am only here to prepare the way for him.’ 29 It is the bridegroom who marries the bride, and the best man is simply glad to stand with him and hear his vows. Therefore, I am filled with joy at his success. 30 He must become greater and greater, and I must become less and less.Matthew 9:1515 Jesus replied, “Do wedding guests mourn while celebrating with the groom? Of course not. But someday the groom will be taken away from them, and then they will fast.Mark 2:19-2019 Jesus replied, “Do wedding guests fast while celebrating with the groom? Of course not. They can’t fast while the groom is with them. 20 But someday the groom will be taken away from them, and then they will fast.Jesus represent the Messiah as a bridegroom. Both God’s people Israel and the Church are described in Scripture as the bride for the Messiah.
Ephesians 5:31-32
31 As the Scriptures say, “A man leaves his father and mother and is joined to his wife, and the two are united into one.” 32 This is a great mystery, but it is an illustration of the way Christ and the church are one.The historical setting can also be known with a fair amount of certainty.
In describing a first-century Jewish wedding, D.A. Carson in theExpositor’s Bible Commentarydescribes the setting this way: “Normally the bridegroom with some close friends left his home to go to the bride’s home, where there were various ceremonies, followed by a procession through the streets – after nightfall – to his home.
The scene of this parable of the 10 Bridesmaids focuses on preparations for a wedding banquet that is to take place in the home of the groom. A great crowd of family and friends fills the groom’s home and even filled the street in front of the house. As the crowd is gathering, the groom and several close friends are making their way to the home of the bride, which is assumed to be across town or in a nearby village. From there the groom collects his bride and escorts her back to his family home, where the crowd awaits and the marriage feast will be held. When the bride was ready, she would be placed on the back of a riding animal, and the groom, with his friends, would form a disorganized but lively parade.This happy group would take the longest possible route back to the grooms’ home. Deliberately, wandering through as many streets of the village as possible so that most of the people could see and cheer them on as they pass.Back at the grooms home some of the crowd would wait in the street as they anticipate the arrival of the strolling wedding party.The parade, winding slowly through the village, takes a bit longer than these 10 young women, in their youthful enthusiasm, anticipated. Such things usually do. The Young woman became drowsy so they carefully placed their burning lamps on a window ledge or some other appropriate place and dozed off outside the house.
Finally the front of the parade enters the alley and the cry goes out, “Behold the bridegroom. Come out to meet him.”Guests and the family still in the house rushed out into the street.The 10 young virgins woke up suddenly, realizing that some time had passed and began to “service their lamps.”To their horror, five of the women suddenly realized their lamps were almost out of olive oil and they had no reserves. The other five took out their little clay flasks and calmly filled their lamps.The Five foolish women gathered around them demanding them to fill their lamps. But they were told, “We do not have enough for you and ourselvesgo to the dealers and buy more!”Irritated and anxious, the five decided to go and get some oil, perhaps to beg, borrow or buy some.Everyone knows everyone in such villages, so to get a little oil from someone wasn’t really a problem, even in the middle of the nightIn the meantime, the groom and his new bride arrived and the huge crowd followed them into the house upon which the door was closed and bolted. After all, it is the middle of the night.In the mean time, the shortsighted five women finally acquired some oil, got their lamps working again and arrived back at the house. “Sir/Lord! Open up!” They shouted through the door.But the groom replied “I do not know you.”In the Middle East the word no is never an answer, rather it is a pause in the negotiations.But in this instance the words I do not know you seemedto be the last word.
What then is the story all about?The ten virgins may be bridesmaids who have been assisting the bride; and they expect to meet the groom as he comes from the bride’s house…Everyone in the procession was expected to carry his or her own lamp or torch.
Those without a torch would be assumed to be party crashers or even thieves or robbers.
The festivities, which could last several days, would formally get under way at the groom’s house.”
The torch was either a lamp with a small oil tank and wick or a stick with a rag soaked in oil on the end of it which would require occasional re-soaking to maintain the flame.
Of interpretive significance is it up to us to determine which return of Christ this is?
Is it His return for the rapture of the Church, or Is it His return to set up the Millennial Kingdom at the end of the Tribulation?
Bible scholars are divide over this issue, and we willnot attempt to answer that question here.
Regardless of which return it is, the lessons to be learned are relevant to both.The thrust of the parable is that Christ will return at an unknown hour and that His people must be ready.
Being ready means that we are prepared for whatever unforeseen eventthat may arise in our lives and keeping our eyes fixed on Jesus at all times while we eagerly await His coming.
As seen in the fact that all the virgins were sleeping when the call came indicates that it doesn’t matter what we are doing when Christ returns.
We may be working, eating, sleeping, or busy with leisure activities. Whatever it is, we must be doing it in such a way that we don’t have to “make things right” (such as get more oil) when He comes. This would apply to either the coming of Christ for His Church or for the Tribulation saints as they await His second coming.Being ready for Christ’s return ultimately involves one major thing which manifests itself in several areas of our lives.
If we are to be ready for Christ’s return, we must be born again through saving faith in Jesus Christ…His death, burial and literal resurrection from the dead
John 3:16
16 “For this is how God loved the world: He gave[a] his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.
John 14:6
6 Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me.
Romans 10:9-10
9 If you openly declare that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by openly declaring your faith that you are saved.
1 Corinthians 15:1-4
Let me now remind you, dear brothers and sisters,[a] of the Good News I preached to you before. You welcomed it then, and you still stand firm in it. 2 It is this Good News that saves you if you continue to believe the message I told you—unless, of course, you believed something that was never true in the first place.[]3 I passed on to you what was most important and what had also been passed on to me. Christ died for our sins, just as the Scriptures said. 4 He was buried, and he was raised from the dead on the third day, just as the Scriptures said.
Saving faith in Jesus Christ will manifest itself in every aspect of our lives.
The fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22) will begin to show.
A desire for greater holiness and less sin will be apparent.
And a consistent looking for His coming will be an expectation and part of our lives.
One of the best passages describing how saving grace and faith is evident in a believer’s life we find in
Titus 2:11-14
“For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. It teaches us to say ‘No’ to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, while we wait for the blessed hope — the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good.”The five virgins who had the extra oil represent the truly born again believerswho have saving faith and are eagerly looking forward and enduring whatever adverse circumstances that may occur, during their long wait,for Jesus to return.
The five virgins without the oil represent false believers who enjoy the benefits of the Christian community without true love for Christ.
The foolish virgins looked, dressed and marched like bridesmaids. They were pretty, radiant and even charming on the outside, but dull, dim and dreary on the inside.The word foolish is none other than the Greek word moros, which is the root word for the politically incorrect English word moron.
They are more concerned about the party than about longing to see the bridegroom.
Their hope is that their association with true believers (“give us some of your oil” of verse 8) will bring them into the kingdom at the end.
This, of course, is never the case.
One person’s faith in Jesus cannot save another.
The “Lord, lord” and “I do not know you” of verses 11 and 12 fit very well with Jesus’ condemnation of the false believers ofMatthew 7:21-23, “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness.’”We must be ready and not be found “going away to purchase”
(v. 10) when Christ returns.
We should take the time now to fill your lamp with oil and take extra along. Keep waiting and watching with joy and anticipation.So if we look at this parable from a theological level Jesus appears to be sharing with us these things:1. There is a challenge and a warning related to his second coming.The story clearly looks forward to the perfect ending of all things; when the Messiah comes tomeet his own and his own receive him at the marriage supper of the Lamb.Jesus knows that there will be some at the banquet, who will be waiting for his arrival, but will not be ready when it happens.2. The kingdom has a door that can and does close.For all those who are committed to the host of the banquet,the bride groom the door to the banquet is open. But near the end of the parable that door is closed. The Lord shares this truth with us concerning the last days. Many will say to me on that day,“Lord, Lord did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name cast out demons, and in your name perform many miracles”.And then He will say to them. “I never knew you”The foolish virgins stand for unfaithful disciples and reveal that religious failure will suffer eternal punishment.3. This parable is also a warning that the time of the arrival the bridegroom is unknown and that speculation regarding the hour is pointless. An enormous amount of time and energy is spent in certain Christian circles on speculation as to the time and date of His second coming. The Scriptures tell us categorically:
Mark 13:32
32 “No one knows the day or hour when these things will happen, not even the angels in heaven or the Son himself. Only the Father knows.4. Finally the parable also provides information about the person of Jesus.The bridegroom (Jesus) was delayed, and all ten bridesmaids became drowsy, and fell asleep.
But when the cry came, “Awake, for the bridegroom is coming!
Go out to meet him.” The bridesmaids got up to trim their lamps, and the foolish bridesmaids discovered that they were nearly out of oil. Their lamps were going out.So they asked those who had brought the extra oil if they might borrow some for their lamps.
But the wise said, “No, we still don’t know how long we might need to wait. Go and buy some for yourselves.”
And while they were gone, the bridegroom came, and they missed the opportunity to escort him to the wedding banquet, and were later even denied admission to the feast.What does it mean for us todayFor those of us living today, the scene has changed.
Nearly two thousand years of history has elapsed, expressing Christian hope. Over these years, there have been numerous wars, numerous periods of persecution, millions of people unjustly killed because of their faith. And still, the bridegroom has not arrived.As a result, I doubt that there are many Christians today who anticipate that Jesus will return in their lifetime to judge the earth as God intended and correct the injustices done that reduces and effects human life.
As Michael L. Sherer points out in his commentary on our text, “Today, we are more inclined to interpret the call to readiness in a second, equally appropriate way:
Be ready for the end of your world, when death comes… It can prove helpful as a preparation and a word of caution for us to be ready for the grave… Like the bridesmaids in this story, we must be ready, even when we’re sleeping, for the possibility of death to arrive.”
End quote. [And God Said…Yes!, C.S.S., 1983]So, even today, we need to be prepared to meet our crucified and risen Lord at any time, by keeping our lamps of faith burning.
And it is by the grace of God that we continue to have enough oil supply tofues our lamps of faith.
For the oil that keeps our light of faith glowing, is still the same oil that fueled the lamps of faith in the first century.
What is that oil ?1theoil, is the Word of God. It is a word that not only describes the history of people of faith, but through this sacred history, we can discern God’s promise of redemption and victory over sin and death, culminating in Christ’s death and resurrection.
It is a Word that has been interpreted, and found to provide inspiration and meaning for life for thousands of years.2 the oilis the sacraments – those rites which we celebrate in worship at our Lord’s command, that convey to us God’s gracious promise of new life. In baptism, God claims us as his own, uniting us to Christ’s death and resurrection, making us heirs of his eternal kingdom. And in Holy Communion, our Lord has promised to be present to us, to fuel our lamps of faith through the assurance of the forgiveness of our sins.3 the oilis prayer, where we enter into conversation with God, and enable him to strengthen our relationship with him.
As Jesus taught us, we can approach God in prayer as a loving parent, who truly cares for us, loves us, and is always willing to listen to us – to hear our joys and concerns with a caring ear.4 the oilis the fellowship we share with other Christians, who share our faith and support us as we grow in our walk with our Lord throughout our lives. That fellowship is shared as we study God’s Word, and simply enjoy each other’s company over coffee or when we relax.5 The truth is, the oil that fuels our lamps of faith is no different from the oil that fueled the lamps of faith for those who first read Matthew’s Gospel in the first century.
Although their expectations of when and how they would meet the crucified and risen bridegroom of the church may differ from our own.It is the same oil that fuels the light of faith from one generation to the next.This parable suggests that we should not self-righteously thinkingthat the gift of grace that God gave us;is now a reason to sit back and not be involved with building His Kingdom by not participating in the life of the church while we wait for His return, we should be participators not just spectators .
This parable is a treasure that not only helps us to prepare for his coming to judge the world in righteousness, but also to prepare us to meet the end of our life, where the faithful will be with Christ forever.
Jesus is the returning bridegroom who will arrive triumphantly at the end of the age.We should be mature in the FaithFriends ….scripture says… Blessed are those whose lamps are faithfully keptburning as they watch and wait for his appearance.So let us be prepared and while we are waiting we read in.
Matthew 5:16In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father, sothat your Father in Heaven is glorified.Be Ready …. Be Ready …..for The Cry at Midnight.
Amen.