The parable in today’s
gospel is hard to hear. It doesn’t sound like the Jesus who preached the sermon
on the mount or had the disciples share what they had so that all would be fed.
Instead, here the word
of judgment resonates loudly. Five bridesmaids are called foolish. And with that declaration, our hearts clench because none of
us wants to be seen as foolish, do we?
Of course not. We want
to be like the wise characters in this
parable. We want to know what they knew, do what they did and be approved by Jesus.
But that’s
problematic, too, isn’t it? Grace by definition is unmerited – unearned and
given freely by God – so what we do, or perhaps more importantly, what we have
left undone doesn’t change the measure of grace that we receive.
So why does Jesus tell this story?
In the parable. Jesus
says that the bridesmaids were waiting to meet the bridegroom. This wasn’t an
episode of reality tv where someone waits for a surprise arrival from off-stage.
“In first-century Palestinian marriage customs, …the groom would go to his
bride’s family home to complete [the marriage] arrangements and bring her to
his own house …where a celebration would take place.”[i]
According to the
parable, and the custom, these women were waiting for the bridegroom’s arrival.
You can imagine them watching out a door or window, filled with anticipation,
but, as the evening lengthened, they became drowsy and slept, even as their
lamps continued to burn. And then, a shout startled and woke
them!
The bridegroom had
arrived. Their task was at hand. They were there to welcome the bridegroom. This was their moment, the time that they had awaited and prepared
for!
But instead of
welcoming the bridegroom, five of them left to find more oil so their lamps
would burn as brightly as the others’.
These five are called
fools. Yes, it would have been good for them to have been better prepared and
to have carried an extra flask of oil, but they are not fools because they made
a mistake. They are fools because they were
distracted from their one job:
to welcome the bridegroom!
As followers of Jesus, our one job is to let the
world see Jesus in us; to show God’s love for every created thing by our words
and actions.
Like the bridesmaids
who left to find more oil, it’s easy to be distracted by the particularities of
our work as disciples. But, as business author Steven Covey has said, “The main thing is to
keep the main thing the main thing.”
And, the so-called “wise”
bridesmaids failed at discipleship, too, didn’t they? Sure, they were there to
welcome the bridegroom, but the welcome was diminished by the absence of the
others who they sent out at midnight to find more oil for themselves. The
celebration would have been more full if they had been less stingy or selfish
with what they had; if they had not been afraid of scarcity or of not having enough, the whole community would have
been together for the celebration.
The gospel reminds us that we are gathered as a community of
believers and that we live as followers of Jesus in life together.
It reminds us that
being disciples does not mean being perfect,
but it does mean knowing we are perfectly loved by God in God’s abundant grace.
It reminds us that
while we appreciate our setting of stained glass and candles or quiet
meditation, worship is not about the beauty of
the paraments, singing in the right key, pronouncing the words correctly, or
praying with eloquence. Worship is about being
gathered together in God’s presence, even as we wipe the
sleep from our eyes.
And finally, the
gospel reminds us that we are not called together to
celebrate how well we have done our work or how carefully we have prepared, but
to celebrate the God who calls us and sends us that the world may
know God’s love.
So maybe this parable sounds like the Jesus we
know after all. The Jesus who preaches in his Sermon on the Mount, “do not refuse anyone who wants to borrow
from you.”[ii] The same Jesus who
taught, “Do
not judge,
so that you may not be judged.”[iii] And the same Jesus
who told his disciples,
37 'You shall love the
Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your
mind.' 38 This is the greatest
and first commandment. 39 And a second is like it: 'You shall love your neighbor as
yourself.'[iv]
Let us pray…
God of light and love,
Thank you for your abundant grace, given to us
as an unmerited gift, and for your love that never runs out, but is always plentiful;
Thank you for the gift
of your Son Jesus who shows us the foolishness of the cross in a world that
walks away from it;
By the Holy Spirit
give us wisdom to share your love and mercy in a world that fails to welcome
you.
Amen.
[i] Donald
Senior. Matthew. 274.
[ii] Matthew
5:42
[iii] Matthew
7:1
[iv] Matthew
22:37-39
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