Sermon on Matthew 25:1-13, for the Last Sunday of the Church Year, "Parable of the Ten Virgins"

abbreviated sermon outline--for full sermon listen to the audio on thejoshuavictortheory.podbean.com

• Last Sunday—waiting for Christ
• Picture of long delay—so long all fall asleep. The delay of Christ impacts people differently. The faithful wait with joy and expectation while faithfully living out the callings their Master has given them. Use their talents, serve the fellow servants according to Master’s instructions, living in faith and love.
• Others: mock and scoff at Christ’s promise to return—disbelieve, persecute the faithful. Others: neglect their talents, do nothing. Others: abuse fellow servants, and gifts of Master. Others: live immoral lives careless of His return. These are the category of those whom Jesus will tell “I never knew you”
• Parable shows the wise and foolish. Does not seem to be speaking about unbelievers outside the church, because all ten are waiting for the Master’s return. Luther—the foolish are the hypocrites hidden in the church. What sets them apart?
• Preparation. Both groups fall asleep during Christ’s delay. But wise are prepared. Difference is that wise have prepared oil in advance, foolish did not. Notice that oil is not something we possess in ourselves. One has to get it. Spiritually speaking, we cannot borrow someone else’s preparations, readiness for the kingdom, their faith, the spiritual gifts, etc. You can’t “mooch” off someone else, or ride in on “coattails.” You must be prepared yourself.
• Temptation to procrastinate—always can prepare later, always something more important. Normally we don’t mock every day preparations—we consider it wise or even expected. Athletes train and prepare for their competitions; students prepare for their careers; workers prepare for their deadlines; people save for their retirement. And in all of these situations, those who don’t prepare are often caught off guard and don’t usually succeed as well as those who have prepared. We understand in daily life how there is always a so called “good excuse” to procrastinate on something until it’s too late—many of the same things compete for our attention and priorities, and prevent our preparation sleep, sports, work, learning, or even just laziness. But the warning of the parable is that there will be a time when it’s too late. Spiritually the danger is to devote our attention to preparing for earthly things, but not devoting our attention to prepare for Christ’s return. We assume that what we possess is enough to sustain us. But the door does shut, and no one gets in after closing time. To be ready to enter, we need to prepare.
• Note again that the oil is something we don’t possess in ourselves, but have to get somewhere. What is it? Spiritually speaking, it has to point to the gifts of the Spirit—whether just faith, or all its attendant gifts. Clear that it’s available, but ignored by the foolish. How do we prepare then? Repent of our sins, trust in Jesus, and ask for His gifts, which He freely gives. He freely pours out His Spirit; freely increases our faith; freely forgives all those who cry, “Jesus, have mercy on me, a sinner.” There is no reason or excuse for not having the gifts that Christ freely gives.
• Wise and the foolish—theme in Proverbs—wise have the fear of the Lord—trust in Him and not in their own wisdom or strength. The wise are humble, open to correction and instruction. The foolish are stubborn, disobedient, proud, and self-destructive. Jesus will deny entrance to the foolish, those who do not accept the preparations for the kingdom that He freely gives.
• But for the wise who enter the banquet, there is great joy. To be with in the celebration, to have lamps of faith burning brightly at His arrival, greeting Him gladly and being ready to enter. The joy all centers around Him. We are here today gathering with Christ’s freely given gifts. Today, Christ replenishes your oil for the wait till His return. Today He pours His forgiveness into the dry reservoirs of hearts that are weary. Today He renews you in the washing of water with the Word, as repentance and forgiveness calls you back to baptism. Today He renews in us the joy of the wait, as we remember the One who loves us. Today He increases your faith and your love by His Word, to make you wise for salvation. Today He joins you in a praying community who eagerly cries for His speedy return—Amen, Come Lord Jesus! Today He feeds you with His body and blood for the very foretaste of the feast to come—giving you the anticipation of the joy of His marriage feast. Be renewed, be restored, be watchful and ready! His delay is not slowness, but it is for the salvation of many, for God wants all to come to knowledge of the truth, and to reach repentance. Such a salvation is ours in Christ Jesus!
• Reread  the closing words of our epistle: “since we belong to the day, let us be sober, having put on the breastplate of faith and love, and for a helmet the hope of salvation. 9For God has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, 10who died for us so that whether we are awake or asleep we might live with him. 11Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing”. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.