He's Back - Ready or Not!
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How often do we hear a kid say at a race - “Hold it, I wasn’t ready?” Or in playing a game - or when a preacher rattled off a point and our pens aren’t ready!
My biggest thing I am never ready for are picture moments… YOU KNOW, you see your dog or child or someone doing something cute, and you just want to capture the moment but cannot get the camera on the phone opened quick enough.
Yesterday, one of our dogs was sitting by our piano with the cutest stance, by the time I was ready to take the pic she was scratching her ears!
There are NO DO OVERS!
Sometimes there are just NO DO OVERS!
When Jesus comes back and raptures the church - it’s done!
Jesus taught us this in this parable of the 10 bridesmaids, and as we wrap up this teaching on Jesus coming back - I have to put out this question...
As we wrap up this teaching on Jesus coming back - I have to put out this question...
Will you be ready??
Turn with me to
1 “Then the Kingdom of Heaven will be like ten bridesmaids who took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom.
2 Five of them were foolish, and five were wise.
3 The five who were foolish didn’t take enough olive oil for their lamps,
4 but the other five were wise enough to take along extra oil.
5 When the bridegroom was delayed, they all became drowsy and fell asleep.
6 “At midnight they were roused by the shout, ‘Look, the bridegroom is coming! Come out and meet him!’
7 “All the bridesmaids got up and prepared their lamps.
8 Then the five foolish ones asked the others, ‘Please give us some of your oil because our lamps are going out.’
9 “But the others replied, ‘We don’t have enough for all of us. Go to a shop and buy some for yourselves.’
10 “But while they were gone to buy oil, the bridegroom came. Then those who were ready went in with him to the marriage feast, and the door was locked.
11 Later, when the other five bridesmaids returned, they stood outside, calling, ‘Lord! Lord! Open the door for us!’
12 “But he called back, ‘Believe me, I don’t know you!’
13 “So you, too, must keep watch! For you do not know the day or hour of my return.
Matthew 25.
I need to preface the message this morning by saying that this parable is not a “timing” display of events of rapture, as much as it is an admonition of being PREPARED for the RETURN OF CHRIST!
You will not be able to see the events of the Wedding Feast of the Lamb, the Rapture, the Bride, Bridegroom and Bridesmaids in correlation to the Bride of Christ and that big feast.
Rather, it is taking the ancient custom of the Wedding Celebration and showing a picture of those unprepared to partake!
In Ancient Oriental customs - a bridegroom will arrange with the parents of a bride to wed their daughter. Then he will go out to make the arrangements for the wedding celebration, payment of dowry, etc. This can take up to a year, but can be as brief as a few days.
The bride calls together her bridesmaids to join her at her parents house awaiting the bridegroom. Custom would be that the bridegrooms attendants will come to gather them and they will begin a processions through the streets to the festivities.
Some have suggested, that the bride may first be taken back to the bridegrooms parents’ home and then the attendants are pursued for the procession. Once arrived at the bridegroom’s home the festivities will go on for days or even weeks.
In this case, the indication is that the bridegroom was delayed in coming back for the attendants for the procession, and therefore the bridesmaids had all fallen asleep - that is not much as the issue as is the UNPREPAREDNESS of half the bridesmaids.
The lamps were most likely torches, sticks with cloths wrapped around them and soaked in oil to burn, in order to complete the procession the bridesmaid know they would need extra oil to replenish so their torches would remain lit. IN this parable, only half made the preparations for the return of the bridegroom. Only half had obtained the oil, only half had cared to make preparation, only half were allowed to enter the feast.
1. The Call of the Bridegroom
1. The Call of the Bridegroom
We know from the Scriptures that we have read over the past several weeks, that the TRUMPET will sound announcing the return of Christ and the imminent CATCHING AWAY OF THE SAINTS from the earth!
The reality is, when that call comes that the bridegroom is ready is SOUNDED there is no more time left to prepare!
2 For God says, “At just the right time, I heard you. On the day of salvation, I helped you.” Indeed, the “right time” is now. Today is the day of salvation.
There will be no TIME TO PREPARE once the CRY has been sounded, when the TRUMPET has been blown!
I am warning you today, that NOW IS THE TIME TO MAKE PREPARATION!!!
We see half the bridesmaids unprepared for the bridegroom to arrive ---
They knew he was coming!
They knew how the custom worked!
They knew they would need enough oil to keep their light burning!
YET THEY WERE UNPREPARED!
They were not ready…
Did they think they could sneak by without having made the proper preparations???
Did they think the bridegroom would not care that there lights were not shining brightly???
The reality is when Jesus returns, He is coming for those who are ready!
He is coming for those who are prepared for HIS arrival, not saying, oh wait Lord, I will go and get my stuff together!
He wants those whose lights are trimmed and ready to burn!
You can look like OTHER CHRISTIANS, but if you are not prepared, just because you called yourself a CHRISTIAN and played the part, does not mean you are going!
YOUR HEART MUST BE PREPARED!
2. The Oil of the Holy Spirit
2. The Oil of the Holy Spirit
What is the OIL --- it is the HOLY SPIRIT!!!
At salvation, we are given a deposit of the Spirit into our lives.
13 And now you Gentiles have also heard the truth, the Good News that God saves you. And when you believed in Christ, he identified you as his own by giving you the Holy Spirit, whom he promised long ago.
This oil is given in abundance...
In fact, Jesus offers to immerse US in the HOLY SPIRIT through the Baptism of the Holy Spirit! What the disciples experienced on the Day of Pentecost - a secondary experience to salvation where the Spirit overflows us with great power.
The Baptism is not required to demonstrate salvation, but it is certainly encouraged by Christ to be empowered so our LIGHTS WILL BURN BRIGHT FOR HIM!
The reality is, in this parable, half of the bridesmaids were out of oil!
They were not prepared, because they did not care ---
They were sloppy with this invitation to be at the great WEDDING FEAST — they treated it as nothing important, something to delay in making ready for, to procrastinate about
You can procrastinate a lot of things in this life and get away with it, but you cannot procrastinate with your salvation and having your oil filled by the Spirit of God!
They THOUGHT they could borrow what they needed when the time came, or that they could squeak by, but here is the reality---
They THOUGHT they could borrow what they needed when the time came, or that they could squeak by, but here is the reality---
I can share the Gospel with you, but I can’t share MY SALVATION with you! You have to have your own. You have to get the Holy Spirit in your life and keep your oil filled for the day of Jesus return!!!
There is no - I was not ready, can I have some of yours!!!
These 5 bridesmaids find themselves at a midnight hour going to buy oil --- I doubt they ever found any --- the stores were closed and the time had passed!!!
They show up to the house of the wedding feast saying let us in, we are here - but are denied entrance!
3. The Locked Door
3. The Locked Door
The prepared bridesmaids entered the door and celebrated, and the unprepared were LOCKED OUTSIDE!
Scripture says, the bridegroom LOCKED THE DOOR!
Denied and LOCKED OUT! The opportunity was past and they were shut out!
There is a historical account in the Old Testament of being prepared for salvation in coming destruction… it is a picture of the day when Christ returns...
Noah was prepared by building an ark. He called for all those around to join him, but in their FOOLISHNESS they were unprepared.
They did not really believe that destruction was coming, or that they would be denied entrance to salvation.
The Bible tells us that when the time came for the floods to begin, that the LORD SHUT THE DOOR of the ark.
13 That very day Noah had gone into the boat with his wife and his sons—Shem, Ham, and Japheth—and their wives.
14 With them in the boat were pairs of every kind of animal—domestic and wild, large and small—along with birds of every kind.
15 Two by two they came into the boat, representing every living thing that breathes.
16 A male and female of each kind entered, just as God had commanded Noah. Then the Lord closed the door behind them.
FOOLISH BRIDESMAIDS --- UNPREPARED because of their own folly, their own disbelief, their own laziness, their own stubbornness, their own pretending to be what they were not...
Their hearts had deceived them to thinking they would be ok, and instead they were locked out!
9 “The human heart is the most deceitful of all things, and desperately wicked. Who really knows how bad it is?
There are so many today who are following the desires of their hearts, but their hearts are wicked and deceiving them into being unprepared for return of Christ!
CONCLUSION to Parable
CONCLUSION to Parable
You can look like your dressed for the wedding and call yourself a part of the bridal party, but are you prepared for the bridegroom - even if he is delayed - have you made yourself ready?
Is your lamp full of oil? Have you kept it filled with the Holy Spirit - so what if the bridegroom is delayed - we are called to watch and be attentive. You can’t borrow others oil.
Not your parents
Not your spouse
Not your friend
Not your neighbor
You must have the oil yourself!
You can follow your heart in this world and feed its desires, thinking that you will receive mercy on that day, but the reality is you have been told — if you are not prepared you will be locked out!
Jesus ends with these words...
13 “So you, too, must keep watch! For you do not know the day or hour of my return.
KEEP WATCH - be prepared!!! You do not know the day or hour.
READY OR NOT - HE WILL COME - WILL YOU BE READY???
MAKING YOURSELF READY
MAKING YOURSELF READY
IT is really quite simple …and those who truly love God will not struggle to make this happen.
Receive Christ as Your Savior — confess your sins, allow Him to forgive your sin
9 But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness.
Pursue becoming like Christ — Put on holiness
16 For the Scriptures say, “You must be holy because I am holy.”
To be holy is to set yourself APART from the sinful things of this world. Change your patterns and behaviors, flee from the lust of this earth, the foul language, the materialistic desires, the self pleasing, do not be ruled by your own deceptive heart, but allow the Spirit to guide you into truth
Read the WORD of GOD
11 I have hidden your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you.
11 I have hidden your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you.
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Seek God in Prayer
Seek God in Prayer
6 Seek the Lord while you can find him. Call on him now while he is near.
Get all of the Holy Spirit you can into your life
8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
4 And everyone present was filled with the Holy Spirit and began speaking in other languages, as the Holy Spirit gave them this ability.
Pursue God’s Work on this earth
matt 25.34-
34 “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the creation of the world.
35 For I was hungry, and you fed me. I was thirsty, and you gave me a drink. I was a stranger, and you invited me into your home.
36 I was naked, and you gave me clothing. I was sick, and you cared for me. I was in prison, and you visited me.’
37 “Then these righteous ones will reply, ‘Lord, when did we ever see you hungry and feed you? Or thirsty and give you something to drink?
38 Or a stranger and show you hospitality? Or naked and give you clothing?
39 When did we ever see you sick or in prison and visit you?’
40 “And the King will say, ‘I tell you the truth, when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to me!’
We can be so selfish in the body of Christ, ready to receive and yet unwilling to give of ourselves. To see needs within the church, within our fellow man and let them go unfulfilled… why, because they infringe on our time and pleasure, comfort...
I challenge you today to be a body of believers that is READY and PREPARED for HIS RETURN!