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 by David
Phelps
“Do not wait for leaders; do it alone, person to person.” – Mother Teresa
I have to confess, the parable
of the Ten Virgins or Bridesmaids (Matt. 25:1-13) used to
really bother me. Honestly, I prefer parables that don’t end
with “weeping and gnashing of teeth.” But sometimes the Holy
Spirit leads us in directions we’d rather not go so we can
grow, and eventually I confronted the parable.
The reason it’s always bugged me is that it seems to go against one of the main messages of Gospel: Second chances. Jesus’ whole ministry, his whole time on Earth, was largely about second chances: He told people,“Go and sin no more,” on at least two occasions (John 5:14, 8:11). After the Resurrection, after Peter had denied him three times, Jesus didn’t say, “Get lost.” Instead, he said essentially, “Get busy. Feed my sheep. You’ve got another chance.” (John 21:17 paraphrased). The whole concept of being “born again” (John 3:3-7) means a second chance at life. But this parable says some people won’t get second chances. Here, as usual, context is everything. At the beginning of the previous chapter, Matthew 24, Jesus tells the disciples the Temple will be demolished (vs. 1-2). Later, when they’re together on the Mount of Olives, they ask him when that is going to happen (vs. 3). Jesus talks about signs (vs. 4-40). Then he tells the parable. At that time, there were three stages to a Jewish wedding: First, engagement—a formal agreement made by the two fathers. Second, betrothal—a ceremony where the two parties made promises to each other. Third, marriage—which took place about a year after betrothal, when the bridegroom came at an unexpected time. At that time, the bridesmaids would go forth to meet him, with their lamps lit, and lead him and his companions to the bride. Incidentally, this was a torchlight procession. What the Bible calls “lamps” were “torches.” In this case, the first two stages, engagement and betrothal, have already taken place. The ten bridesmaids are waiting for the bridegroom to come for the bride (25:1). The bridegroom doesn’t come right away and the bridesmaids fall asleep waiting for him (vs. 5). When the bridegroom finally comes and the cry rings out, the bridesmaids wake up to find their torches going out (vs. 6-8). Five bridesmaids have remembered to bring extra oil, and five haven’t (vs. 3-4). The five who don’t have extra oil ask the others to share (vs. 8). But the other five say, “Get your own. It’s every woman for herself.” (vs. 9 paraphrased). It seems unlikely it would’ve been possible to buy olive oil at midnight (vs. 6) but the five who don’t have extra go to the market and buy oil (vs. 10). If they had to wait until morning, it goes a long way toward explaining what happens next. When they finally get to the wedding banquet, the bridegroom meets them at the door and says, “I’ve never seen you before in my life!” (vs. 12 paraphrased). Then he slams the door in their faces. If the bridegroom represents Jesus and the bridesmaids represent us, then this shows Jesus slamming the door in our faces, which is not an encouraging thought. This is another reason the parable makes me uncomfortable. But this is also the same chapter where we read about the sheep and the goats (vs. 31-49). The “Son of Man,” the “king” says, “‘Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did it to me.’” (vs. 40b New Revised Standard Version) and “‘Truly I tell you, just as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.’” (vs.45b NRSV). The ones who didn’t care for “the least of these” can’t make up for a life time of neglecting God’s people all at once. That means we’re not talking about people who didn’t get second chances, we’re talking about people who may have had thousands of chances. Neglectful disciples aren’t the only ones who can have doors slammed in their faces. Every time someone isn’t having his or her needs met, whether physical, emotional, or spiritual, he or she is in danger of having the door slammed in his or her face. Preparing for the day the “Son of Man,” the “king” comes looks like caring for everyone as if he or she was Jesus. It looks like having oil in our lamps and being ready to welcome Christ. “Let each of you look not to your own interests, but to the interests of others. Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus,” (Phil. 2:4-5 NRSV.) (Based on a
sermon I preached November 12, 2023 at Centenary UMC in St. Louis.)
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