I. THE UNLIFE: UN-PREPARED!

Matthew 25:1-13=

(Note: Ten girls came down the aisles of the sanctuary carrying oil lanterns to help “visualize” this parable. The ten lamps were p= laced on a table at the front. Five were left burning and five were extinguished.= )

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Does an= ybody remember THE UNCOLA? Some of you won’t because th= at advertising campaign ended back in 1999.&n= bsp; Most of us will recall, however, that in a world dominated by colas,= as in Coke, Pepsi, and Royal Crown, 7-UP began marketing itself as Something Refreshingly Different: The U= ncola! Maybe this will jog your memor= y. (Show an excerpt from an old commercial here, if possible, or the presenter could simply “re-enact” one. These are available on U= -Tube and can be found by googling “The Uncola.”)

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So, the choice was clear. We could have another old, boring = cola drink, or we could choose a delicious new flavor combination of lemon and l= ime: The UNCOLA!

This morning we turn to the twenty-fifth chapter of Matthew’s Gospel. For t= hree Sundays we’ll explore the three parables of Jesus contained in this chapter. These stories from t= he Master Teacher are only found here in Matthew’s Gospel.

In the twenty-fourth chapter of Matthew, Jesus is talk= ing about “end-times” or “the end of the present age.”<= span style=3D'mso-spacerun:yes'> Think Left Behind or, from = a few years back, The Late, Great Planet Earth. Keep in mind, however, that althou= gh Jesus says that such a wrapping up of history will happen, He does not personally know when this will take place: “No one knows about that d= ay or hour,” Jesus says, “not even the angels in heaven, nor the S= on, but only the Father” (Matthew 24:36).

The parables of Matthew 25 present us with clear choices—as distinct as Cola compared to Uncola, but these choices have eternal consequences! It̵= 7;s the choice between life and death, or life and what I’ve chosen to ca= ll UN-LIFE. Jesus points to three warning signs of the UN-LIFE: when our lives are UN-PREPARED, UN-USED, and UN-RESPONSIVE.

Jesus came to give us life, but we must choose to acce= pt His offer by living the life to which He calls us. He issues stern warnings in Matthe= w 25 to those who choose UN-LIFE instead, and the first of these is found in vv.1-13, in the story we know as “The Parable of the Ten Virgins (or Maidens, Bridesmaids).”= ;

Matthew 25:1-13--

1"At that time the kingdom of heaven will b= e like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. 2Five= of them were foolish and five were wise. 3The foolish ones took their lamps but did not take any oil with them. 4The wise, however, took oil in jars along = with their lamps. 5The bridegroom was a long time in coming, and they all became drowsy and fell asleep.

6"At midnight the cry rang out: 'Here's the bridegroom! Come out to meet him!' 7"Then all the virgins woke up and trimmed their lamps. 8The foo= lish ones said to the wise, 'Give us some of your oil; our lamps are going out.' 9" 'No,' they replied, 'there may not be enough for both us and = you. Instead, go to those who sell oil and buy some for yourselves.'

10"But while they were on their way to buy the oil, the bridegroom arrived. The virgins who were ready went in with him to the wedding banquet. And the door was shut. 11"Later the others also came. 'Sir! Sir!' they said. 'Open the door for us!' 12"But he replied, 'I tell you the truth= , I don't know you.' 13"Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour.

Well, let’s begin by acknowledging that this is = unlike any wedding we’ve ever attended.&nbs= p; There is an aspect of it, strangely enough, that actually reminds me= of the very first wedding I officiated. It was in Roanoke, Virginia, my first pastorate! The service was scheduled for 6:00= PM, and that was just minutes away.

I had spoken with the bride and with several family me= mbers, but it was only as the mothers were being seated that I realized that I had= not yet seen the groom. None of h= is groomsmen had seen him either—something they hadn’t bothered to mention!

As general panic began to set-in among the attendants,= and I pondered how to break this troubling news to family members and guests wait= ing in the sanctuary—at the last possible moment--the disheveled groom co= mes running in the side door of the church.&nb= sp; He reports that his car had broken down—which happens, of cour= se, when you go long enough without putting gas in it.

We dusted him off and straightened his tie just as “The Wedding March” began to sound from the organ. I suppose several of us had reason= to feel a bit foolish on that occasion—especially the out-of-gas-groom--= but we got the couple married and nobody was left out of the proceedings!

It’s different in Jesus’ story. There are five bridesmaids who, be= cause of their foolishness, get shut out of the wedding banquet. This requires some explanation.

The feast does not begin until the groom arrives. The bridesmaids are there to make = sure the bride is ready. To add to= the anticipation and excitement, the groom, according to the customs of the day, might not come for his bride until sometime in the middle of the night. Whenever he shows up, though, the = bride and her maidens are supposed to be ready!

When the groom arrives, he and the bride would lead a lighted procession through the city to the wedding banquet, usually held in= the house where the couple would reside. Others would join the procession along the way. The celebration woul= d continue for days, but only those who were part of the procession were allowed to en= ter the house.

In this case, the groom is later arriving than some of= the maidens had anticipated, and they simply do not have sufficient oil to keep their lamps burning for the procession.&nb= sp; They are UN-PREPARED! =

They try to borrow oil from the others, but they insist there is not enough—they would have to get their own. By the time the five foolish maide= ns find some oil and finally make their way to the banquet, the doors are shut. Even though they plead = with the doorman to let them in, it’s too late. They should have been PREPARED. Entrance refused--end of story.

Of course, nothing like this would ever happen to us.<= span style=3D'mso-spacerun:yes'> We are prepared people! We’re the kind of folks who = pride ourselves in being responsible.

We have an emergency fund set aside. We make regular contributions to o= ur retirement accounts just like Dave Ramsey tells us. Our children are ready to enter fi= rst grade, ready to take the SAT, and ready to embark upon a good career after college. We insure our homes,= our cars, our lives, and our long term care—just in case.

We vote for candidates who promise a strong military.<= span style=3D'mso-spacerun:yes'> If that 3:00 AM phone call actually comes, we want to be ready to respond.&nbs= p; We go through pre-marital, pre-parenting, and pre-retirement counseling. Some of us have e= ven pre-planned our funerals.

Come to think of it, we spend a lot of time and energy getting ready for whatever may come our way. In reality, much of what we prepar= e for never actually happens, but we’re bound and determined not to be caug= ht unprepared!

So does this parable that Jesus told so long ago even = apply to us? Our wedding traditions= , as already noted, are certainly nothing like those of first century Palestine. Maybe whatever Jesus is trying to = say here doesn’t really relate to us either.

But we know better, don’t we? If we pay any attention to the wit= ness of Scripture, we realize that much of the Bible deals with this matter of b= eing prepared. God sets the exampl= e as He makes His own preparations for us. Listen:

1) "See, I am sending an angel ahead of you to gu= ard you along the way and to bring you to the place I have prepared.” (Ex= odus 23:20)

2) Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of= mine enemies. (Psalm 23:5)

3) "No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him"^{(I
Corinthians 2:9)}

4) For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jes= us to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. (Eph. 2:6)

The ability God has given us to make preparations is o= ne of the ways in which we are like Him. Matthew tells us about John the Baptist:

1) “This is he who was spoken of through the pro= phet Isaiah: "A voice of one calling in the desert, 'Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him.'" (Matt. 3:3)

2) Preachers are told “…to prepare God's p= eople for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up…R= 21; (Eph. 4:12); and “Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction.” (II Tim. = 4:2)

3) These words are for all of us:

“But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answ= er to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect…” (I Peter 3:15)

Evidently the God who prepares such wonderful things f= or us wants you and me to prepare to receive His blessings and share them with others. He tells us to make t= hese preparations now. God knows t= his is too important to put off until some later time.

Be PREPARED--that’s the point of Jesus’ story. We don’t know wh= en the groom will arrive (i.e., the Lord will come for us). Until He does, the foolish procrastinate; but the wise PREPARE.

It’s this way for so many things in our lives, j= ust as it is for the life to come. W= ise people prepare for the time when life as we experience it here ends and we embark upon eternity. That wi= ll be a dark reality without the oil of God’s grace in our lamps—with= out the Light of Christ in our hearts! <= /span>

If, on the other hand, we’ve prepared for that time—if we’ve placed our faith in Christ as Savior, if we’= ;ve kept our lamps filled full through faithfully following Him, worshiping and serving and giving of our time and substance--then our oil is overflowing a= nd our preparations are complete.

There’s never been any question about our invita= tion to the banquet—all ten maidens were invited. God invites everyone to His feast: “whosoever will may come.”&nbs= p; The invitation doesn’t last forever though. We have to be prepared when the bridegroom arrives—whether He comes for us individually or for all of= us together.

Like everything else in life, though, some will be rea= dy, and some won’t be. Ther= e are people who have no interest in living for Christ. They just want to be sure somehow = that they die in Christ. They keep fooling themselves into believing they can slip through the door at the last minute, but they don’t have enough oil in their lamps to even find the door.

There are so many important things that cannot be put = off till the last minute—this just happens to be most important of all. It’s WISE to be PREPARED. It’s foolish, though, and te= rribly sad, to be UN-PREPARED when the Lord comes for us!

I spoke with an elderly saint who was on her deathbed-= -she knew it. “Are you ready= for the next part of the journey?” I asked her. “Oh, yes, preacher,” s= he said. “I’ve been preparing for this all my life.”&nbs= p; And she had. Everything about her life and witness gave evidence to her careful preparations.

Are you ready—prepared for when the Lord comes f= or you? Sometimes the question is asked, what would you do if you knew this was the last day of your life on earth? Would you pray, read t= he Bible, worship, tithe, do a good deed?&nbs= p; Would you finally get serious about your walk with the Lord?

Is there someone you would forgive or ask to forgive you? Is there an attitude you= would adjust or a wrong you would rectify?

Well, then, that’s what preparation looks like f= or you. So do it today. Then do it again tomorrow and the = next day—unless, of course, the bridegroom comes. It will be too late then!

Prepare now. Today! And if He shows= up tonight—good news—you’ll be ready! And the Lord Himself will lead you= into the banquet of His Kingdom—the Kingdom which is forever and ever. It’s well worth preparing fo= r!