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Keep Awake
Patty Ebner
Keep Awake
Matthew 25: 1-13
“Then the kingdom of heaven will be like this. Ten bridesmaids took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom.2 Five of them were foolish, and five were wise. 3 When the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them; 4 but the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps. 5 As the bridegroom was delayed, all of them became drowsy and slept. 6 But at midnight there was a shout, ‘Look! Here is the bridegroom! Come out to meet him.’ 7 Then all those bridesmaids got up and trimmed their lamps. 8 The foolish said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ 9 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.’ 10 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. 11 Later the other bridesmaids came also, saying, ‘Lord, lord, open to us.’ 12 But he replied, ‘Truly I tell you, I do not know you.’ 13 Keep awake therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour.
“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 bridesmaids 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.”
In Jesus’ time, wedding guests would assemble at the home of the bride. When the groom would arrive there, he would be greeted by the guests and bridesmaids, all of whom would be holding torches. They would then proceed to his home where the wedding ceremony and reception would be held. Matthew 25:1-13 tells a story of where the wedding party grows tired while waiting on the groom and eventually falls asleep. Upon the groom’s arrival, the torches of the “foolish bridesmaids” have burnt out requiring them to go shopping for oil since the “wise bridesmaids” will not share their oil. When they return, presumably with oil in hand, the host denies knowing them and closes the door admonishing them that they know neither the day nor the hour.
The writer of the parable contextualizes the wedding story with: “Then the kingdom of heaven will be like this.” He was writing to a group of Christians who had been waiting for 100 years for the 2nd coming of Christ, the bridegroom. They thought that he would have come long before this time and were becoming concerned and impatient.
As many of you know, this story is often used to classify Christians as the “wise bridesmaids” and non-Christians and the “foolish bridesmaids.” It has been used by some Christians to support a very strong “us vs. them” current which continues to flow through various Christian communities. This is not the message I will bring to you today.
The message I hope to bring will enable and prepare us to discover the Kingdom of Heaven and to keep awake as we do so. So, how might we describe the Kingdom of Heaven? Where is it? What does it look like?
I am the Great Aunt of 6 grand nephews and 1 grandniece. In a road trip to Galveston, TX several years ago, my niece drove past a cemetery where most of the graves take the shape of mausoleums. This caught the attention of several of the boys who asked “what is that place?” My niece answered them, “that’s a cemetery—it is where people are buried when they die.” A cloud of silence hovered above them in the back seat. Finally, one of the boys spoke up. “You told us we were going to Heaven when we die. We don’t want to go to that cement place.”
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By First Congregational Church, BellevuePatty Ebner
Keep Awake
Matthew 25: 1-13
“Then the kingdom of heaven will be like this. Ten bridesmaids took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom.2 Five of them were foolish, and five were wise. 3 When the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them; 4 but the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps. 5 As the bridegroom was delayed, all of them became drowsy and slept. 6 But at midnight there was a shout, ‘Look! Here is the bridegroom! Come out to meet him.’ 7 Then all those bridesmaids got up and trimmed their lamps. 8 The foolish said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ 9 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.’ 10 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. 11 Later the other bridesmaids came also, saying, ‘Lord, lord, open to us.’ 12 But he replied, ‘Truly I tell you, I do not know you.’ 13 Keep awake therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour.
“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 bridesmaids 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.”
In Jesus’ time, wedding guests would assemble at the home of the bride. When the groom would arrive there, he would be greeted by the guests and bridesmaids, all of whom would be holding torches. They would then proceed to his home where the wedding ceremony and reception would be held. Matthew 25:1-13 tells a story of where the wedding party grows tired while waiting on the groom and eventually falls asleep. Upon the groom’s arrival, the torches of the “foolish bridesmaids” have burnt out requiring them to go shopping for oil since the “wise bridesmaids” will not share their oil. When they return, presumably with oil in hand, the host denies knowing them and closes the door admonishing them that they know neither the day nor the hour.
The writer of the parable contextualizes the wedding story with: “Then the kingdom of heaven will be like this.” He was writing to a group of Christians who had been waiting for 100 years for the 2nd coming of Christ, the bridegroom. They thought that he would have come long before this time and were becoming concerned and impatient.
As many of you know, this story is often used to classify Christians as the “wise bridesmaids” and non-Christians and the “foolish bridesmaids.” It has been used by some Christians to support a very strong “us vs. them” current which continues to flow through various Christian communities. This is not the message I will bring to you today.
The message I hope to bring will enable and prepare us to discover the Kingdom of Heaven and to keep awake as we do so. So, how might we describe the Kingdom of Heaven? Where is it? What does it look like?
I am the Great Aunt of 6 grand nephews and 1 grandniece. In a road trip to Galveston, TX several years ago, my niece drove past a cemetery where most of the graves take the shape of mausoleums. This caught the attention of several of the boys who asked “what is that place?” My niece answered them, “that’s a cemetery—it is where people are buried when they die.” A cloud of silence hovered above them in the back seat. Finally, one of the boys spoke up. “You told us we were going to Heaven when we die. We don’t want to go to that cement place.”
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