Waiting

Here are some thoughts on this Sunday's gospel text that I shared with the people of St. Timothy Lutheran Church. What do you think?

Gospel: Matthew 25:1-13

[Jesus said to the disciples:] ¹“Then the kingdom of heaven will be like this. Ten bridesmaids took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom. ²Five of them were foolish, and five were wise. ³When the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them; ⁴but the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps. ⁵As the bridegroom was delayed, all of them became drowsy and slept. ⁶But at midnight there was a shout, ‘Look! Here is the bridegroom! Come out to meet him.’ ⁷Then all those bridesmaids got up and trimmed their lamps. ⁸The foolish said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ ⁹But 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.’ ¹⁰And 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. ¹¹Later the other bridesmaids came also, saying, ‘Lord, lord, open to us.’ ¹²But he replied, ‘Truly I tell you, I do not know you.’ ¹³Keep awake therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour.

Every time I read this parable, I am brought back to a moment in the 1980s when my then young children, their father, and I lived in Palestine. There is much in village Palestinian culture that mirrors the culture of Jesus’ day. 

Iman, a Muslim young lady, whose father was a sheikh (religious leader), was a student at Bethlehem University, where our colleague, Willow, taught English. Through this initial relationship, great inroads were made in the Muslim community. Many relationships with other university students formed and out of that was born the Friendship Center, where we hosted countless young people.

 

It was time for Iman, whose name means “faith” to get married. Of course, she invited her teacher Willow and us as well. The festivities began at Iman’s house, where all the women waited and waited and waited some more. We would hear something and the talk would begin, “Is it him? Is it? No, it’s not him.” And so, we would wait some more and more and more. We got impatient. We were there for hours before the groom’s arrival.

 

Finally, the time had come and so had the groom and his men. We all then went to the mosque for the wedding. After that, it was on to the groom’s house for the party. It’s easy for me to see the same pattern of that day in this parable.

 

So, is the issue really the foolish bridesmaids’ lack of oil? Their short-sightedness tells us that they had their own agenda and timeframe. They only had enough oil with them for so much time. What an insult this was to the groom. They couldn’t be bothered to be prepared for an extended time of waiting. This was the real issue. They were not prepared. They couldn’t be bothered with the extra preparations that would be needed.

 

Are we trying to skate by on fumes of oil? The oil can represent the Holy Spirit and its work, which enables us to do the good works that reflect God’s love in our lives. Will we take the time in prayer and reading God’s word to live bright, oil-filled lives of God’s power? Jesus said, “No one after lighting a lamp puts it under the bushel basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all in the house. ¹⁶ In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven” (Matthew 5:15-17).

picture