CALL TO WORSHIP
WELCOME and THANKS for joining
OPENING PRAYER
OPENING COMMENTS
OPENING SONGS
Psalm 78:1-7 • Joshua 24:1-3a, 14-25 • 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 • Matthew 25:1-13
The theme for this week is the hope of patient waiting. Psalm 78 talks about the importance of remembering the good and sharing the good works of God from one generation to the next. Joshua 24 offers an example of one of those monumental blessings when the Israelites acknowledged their commitment to a covenant with God because of his deliverance from slavery in Egypt. The sermon text comes from 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18, and it explores our assumptions about Paul’s role as a pastor vs. a theologian, the way hope informs our lives now, and Christ’s return.
SPECIAL MUSIC
SERMON
Waiting, Watching or Looking for Oil?
INTRODUCTION
A. Christ is coming back … Will you be ready?
B. If Christ were to return right now … would you be ready?
C. Where will you be? … Out looking for oil … or waiting on the Groom?
D. Our sermon today is about what we, as Christians, should be doing as we await Christ’s return.
Matthew 25:1-13
1 “Then the kingdom of heaven shall be likened to ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. 2 Now five of them were wise, and five were foolish. 3 Those who were foolish took their lamps and took no oil with them, 4 but the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps. 5 But while the bridegroom was delayed, they all slumbered and slept.
6 “And at midnight a cry was heard: ‘Behold, the bridegroom [a]is coming; go out to meet him!’ 7 Then all those virgins arose and trimmed their lamps. 8 And the foolish said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ 9 But the wise answered, saying, ‘No, lest there should not be enough for us and you; but go rather to those who sell, and buy for yourselves.’ 10 And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the wedding; and the door was shut.
11 “Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, ‘Lord, Lord, open to us!’ 12 But he answered and said, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, I do not know you.’
13 “Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour [b]in which the Son of Man is coming.
WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THE PASSAGE? WHAT SHOULD WE TAKE AWAY?
Let’s take a closer look at the passage … and try to find out …
Matthew 25:1-13
1 “Then the kingdom of heaven shall be likened to ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom.
-
- To whom is Jesus telling this parable?
- What were the virgins in the story going to do?
- Why did the virgins take their lamps? Do you think the bridegroom would need their lamps?
- Why do you believe the virgins took their lamps?
- Whom do you think the bridegroom represented?
- Whom do you think the virgins represent?
2 Now five of them were wise, and five were foolish. 3 Those who were foolish took their lamps and took no oil with them, 4 but the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps.
-
- Why were five called wise?
- Why were five called foolish?
- What do you think the lamps represent?
- What do you think the oil represents?
- What does “taking their lamps, but taking NO oil” look like today?
5 But while the bridegroom was delayed, they all slumbered and slept.
-
- Why did the virgins slumber and sleep?
- What caused the bridegroom to be delayed?
- Which of the virgins did not slumber or sleep?
- What do you understand the message of verse 5 to be?
6 “And at midnight a cry was heard: ‘Behold, the bridegroom [a]is coming; go out to meet him!’
7 Then all those virgins arose and trimmed their lamps.
8 And the foolish said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’
9 But the wise answered, saying, ‘No, lest there should not be enough for us and you; but go rather to those who sell, and buy for yourselves.’
-
- What do you think the lamps represent?
- What does the oil represent?
- What do you think the cry of “our lamps are going out” means?
- Whom do you think “those who sell” are representative of?
10 And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the wedding; and the door was shut.
-
- Why did they go to buy?
11 “Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, ‘Lord, Lord, open to us!’
12 But he answered and said, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, I do not know you.’
-
- Why had the five foolish been shut out?
- Why were they not able to enter?
- What would have caused Him to say He did not know them? They went to buy, rather than ask Him to give.
- Would putting oil in their lamps have helped the bridegroom to know them better?
- Would putting oil in their lamps have helped them to know the bridegroom better?
13 “Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour [b]in which the Son of Man is coming.”
-
- Why should the disciples watch? To know the day … or to be ready?
- What do you think Jesus intended for them to watch?
- What should they have been doing while watching?
WHAT IS THE POINT OF THE PARABLE?
- What do the lamps represent?
- Who needs the light of the lamps?
- Who suffers if the lamps don’t shine? … See Matthew 24:45-47
According to William Barclay …
Like so many of Jesus’ parables, this one has an immediate ind local meaning, and also a wider and universal meaning.
In its immediate significance it was directed against the Jews. They were the chosen people; their whole history should have been a preparation for the coming of the Son of God; they ought to have been prepared for him when he came. Instead they were quite unprepared and therefore were shut out. Here in dramatic form is the tragedy of the unpreparedness of the Jews.
But the parable has at least two universal warnings.
(i) It warns us that there are certain things which cannot be obtained at the last minute. It is far too late for a student to be preparing when the day of the examination has come. It is too late for a man to acquire a skill, or a character, if he does not already possess it, when some task offers itself to him. Similarly, it is easy to leave things so late that we can no longer prepare ourselves to meet with God. When Mary of Orange was dying, her chaplain sought to tell her of the way of salvation. Her answer was: “I have not left this matter to this hour.” To be too late is always tragedy.
(ii) It warns us that there are certain things which cannot be borrowed. The foolish virgins found it impossible to borrow oil, when they discovered they needed it. A man cannot borrow a relationship with God; he must possess it for himself. A man cannot borrow a character; he must be clothed with it. We cannot always be living on the spiritual capital which others have amassed. There are certain things we must win or acquire for ourselves, for we cannot borrow them from others.
The parable of the ten young women (or bridesmaids in some translations), found in Matthew 25:1-13, seems to talk about how Christians should wait and be prepared for Christ’s return, but like any parable, it provides an opportunity to think that perhaps the focus should be more on the returning Bridegroom than on us.
SPECIAL MUSIC
SERMONETTE
You Don’t Have to Be a Girl Scout
Michelle Fleming
I was involved in Girl Scouts when I was younger. Maybe you were a Girl Scout or Boy Scout, too. The motto for Scouts is “Be Prepared.” This reminds me of the way Christians have been warned to be prepared for Christ’s return. One example that’s often cited is the parable of the Ten Bridesmaids where Jesus is telling his disciples what the kingdom of heaven is like.
The story goes like this:
Ten young women took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish, and five were wise. When the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them, but the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps. As the bridegroom was delayed, all of them became drowsy and slept. But at midnight there was a shout, ‘Look! Here is the bridegroom! Come out to meet him.’ Then all those young women got up and trimmed their lamps. The foolish said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ But the wise replied, ‘No! there will not be enough for you and for us; you had better go to the dealers and buy some for yourselves.’ And while they went to buy it, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went with him into the wedding banquet, and the door was shut. Later the other young women came also, saying, ‘Lord, lord, open to us.’ But he replied, ‘Truly I tell you, I do not know you.’ Keep awake, therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour.
Matthew 25:1-13
Passages like this one have often been plucked from scripture without thinking about them in the context of other direct commandments Jesus said or the way he behaved in the world. This story sounds out of character for Jesus who told us to love and serve others and put them first.
We don’t base theological doctrine on a parable because a parable wasn’t meant to be used that way. It’s a story that offers us the opportunity to consider truth from the point of view of different characters. In this parable, we see that the five bridesmaids who had plenty of oil believed that being self-reliant was more important than helping others. The five bridesmaids who didn’t prepare believed they deserved help from the ones who prepared. I mean, they had fallen asleep, waiting. But what if the parable isn’t about what the bridesmaids should have done or shouldn’t have done? What if it isn’t about the bridesmaids at all? Let’s consider a different perspective.
We assume that the five bridesmaids who ran out of oil are called foolish because they ran out of oil. But what if the reason they’re called foolish is because they listened to the other bridesmaids who told them to go buy more and then ended up missing the wedding? Maybe they were foolish because they forgot who the Bridegroom was and what he was capable of. This bridegroom was The Light of the World, and he didn’t need their lamps. They were foolish because they allowed their shame over running out of oil to drive them to try to fix it, and thus they missed the wedding banquet.
When the Bridegroom says, “I don’t know you,” he’s also saying that they didn’t really know him. And this is part of the lesson of this parable. When we focus on Jesus, we know he is the one who makes us enough. He is the light we need when our own lamps run low. He is sufficient.
May we be blessed with the understanding that we are made whole and enough in Christ.
I’m Michelle Fleming, Speaking of Life.
WHAT IS THE MAIN TAKEAWAY?
SONG OF RESPONSE / CLOSING SONG
CLOSING PRAYER
- As we have reflected on the return of Your Son … help us to be ready for His return.
- Help us to really know You and Jesus Christ, whom You sent as You want us to know You .
- Help us to focus on Jesus … so that we realize He is the One who makes us enough.
- Help us to realize and remember that Jesus is the Light we need and that He is sufficient.
- Bless us with the understanding that we are made whole and enough in Christ.
BENEDICTION
SHARING TIME
ANNOUNCEMENTS
- Upcoming Bible Studies ONLINE
- Members meeting — Saturday, Nov.18 … F2F … to help plan for 2024
- SURVEY: What about a relaunch of our Sunday Church on Christmas Eve?
- SURVEY: What about a Watchnight Service online this NewYear’sEve
PRAYER UPDATES
PRAYER REQUESTS
- Claire Palmer … has pancratic cancer