Year A Proper 27 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 Matthew 25:1-13

It never fails to amaze me how many otherwise intelligent, adult, Christian people seem to be terrified of “the end of the world.” Here we are in what may still be the middle of a worldwide pandemic and folks have questioned, “Is this the end?” Some people are genuinely, and probably wisely, afraid of dying of Covid-19, but this ought to spur folks to following the restrictions put in place to protect us. Most folks are doing just that, but people who’ve expressed to me a fear of “the end” have done so only in terms of their physical passing. There’s something else everyone seems to be overlooking.

No one who spoke to me about “the end” was excited that, if this is it, Jesus might be returning. In fact, that thought apparently hadn’t crossed their minds. Even though they weren’t fundamentalists, just regular folks, here they were, asking about Armageddon. What no one asked me was, “How do you think I’m doing? If I die, do you think I’m ready for it?”

Today we are approaching the end of the Christian year. As always, the lessons focus on the end of things and, in the Gospel, on the return of Jesus. This is a time for us to take seriously the message that one day Jesus will return, and most likely even before that, one day we will go home to God.

To answer the question, “is this the end?”, I don’t think so. However, it is a great opportunity to take stock, to follow restrictions, and to see just how well prepared we really are spiritually for the conclusion of our own personal stay on earth. Jesus tells us, “For the Son of Man is coming at an unexpected hour.” We really need to be always be ready.

St Paul tells us, “But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers and sisters, about those who have died, so that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope.”

It seems that the thought of dying scares the socks off most folks. Even those people who seem to live to complain really don’t want to give up this life for the next. No matter how much they grumble, how miserable they say life is, given the option, rather than die, they’d prefer to stay here. Paul, however, isn’t speaking to the Thessalonians because he’s trying to calm their fear of dying. He’s explaining to them the end which has been promised by Jesus in His resurrection.

I’ve heard a lot of opinions on the resurrection of the dead, mostly from lifelong churchgoers, devout people. Interestingly, though it is a tenet of our faith, many people flatly do not believe in it, and think anyone who does must be some sort of throwback to a day when no one had ever heard of science as we know it today. They question the resurrection because they can’t explain it in scientific terms.

It would never have occurred to Paul that any Christian would be in doubt concerning the resurrection of the body, so he carefully lays out how it will occur. In the fullness of time, the Lord will come for us. That’s it! We modern folks would prefer scientific explanations, but we aren’t called to be able to explain the unexplainable. We are called to accept, with joy and in faith, what Jesus has promised.

“Then the kingdom of heaven will be like this. Ten bridesmaids took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish, and five were wise.”

Heaven! This is another teaching that confounds many. As we advance in scientific knowledge, we no longer accept the idea of a heaven “up there” or “out there”. The temptation, of course, is to decide that there is no heaven at all, because the idea doesn’t “make sense”. Yet, Jesus promises us the Kingdom of Heaven. Jesus tells us that at the end there will be wise and foolish among us, and only the wise will enter the kingdom. Difficult as it may be, the first step in wisdom is to believe that the Kingdom exists.

“When the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them; but the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps. As the bridegroom was delayed, all of them became drowsy and slept.”

To be a bridesmaid was a great honour. We have here, ten young ladies who have probably spent, not just one day, but several days in preparation for this wedding. The custom was that all young, unmarried women would attend the new bride, and of course they would want to be decked out in their finest, their hair done, their bangles and bracelets in place. In the story Jesus tells, it appears that the groom is coming from another village or town, and so all must wait for him to arrive. Obviously he's been delayed along the way.

In terms of getting ready for this occasion, all the young ladies appear outwardly wise. There’s no mention of failure to wear a wedding garment, or of one of them not properly dressed, adorned, decked out for the day. All of them believe the bridegroom will come. All believe there is a feast prepared for them. If you were to look at the group, you wouldn’t see anything amiss. The difficulty is not obvious, not immediately apparent. So it is with us. If we look around us, we see other Christians, good people, people we know, and like, and trust. There is nothing outwardly unwise about us or them, nothing foolish.

“But at midnight there was a shout, ‘Look! Here is the bridegroom! Come out to meet him’. Then all those bridesmaids got up and trimmed their lamps. The foolish said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’”

Not being prepared is an awful problem in our society. Just this past year we’ve experienced what it means to not be prepared – in this case for a global pandemic. No – it wasn’t possible to predict, but it was possible to be ready for a health emergency, and when one was declared, to act swiftly to put those preparations into action. We’ve all experienced what happens when we are not properly prepared.

When faced with worries such as what will happen to our health insurance, how long with this pandemic last, are we going to stay safe and well – or when faced with personal tragedies, such as sudden illness or death, we seem to be unprepared, and worse, we become afraid. Despite a lifetime of church attendance, which makes us outwardly appear completely ready to face whatever might come, we suddenly find we have totally forgotten to replenish the Light of Christ kindled in us at our baptism. We have enough for day to day living, but no reserve for the times that try our souls.

In our secular lives, we know, as perhaps never before in our national history, the importance of vigilance. For the most part, to keep us safe in the secular world, we rely on our military, of whom we think proudly on Veterans Day, and our law enforcement people to be our watchers. Anyone who has served in the military or with the police, or seen any modern movies concerning them, knows what it means to be “on watch”. Closer to home, we teach our children to watch traffic, to watch out for predators. We wear masks when we go out nowadays, we keep a social distance from each other, we “shake hands” by bumping elbows. We keep watch over our homes, ourselves, and our families.

But despite all our secular watchfulness, we are, for the most part, not vigilant in our spiritual lives. Without faith in the resurrection, without faith that Jesus will return, we see no need to be watchful. Then, when something kindles our fears, we give little thought to our responsibility as Christians. When we are suddenly caught unaware, we panic. We are called to be awake, alert, calm, and centered. This is the work Jesus has given us to do. Centered in Christ, we should have no fear at all, but that doesn’t seem to be the case.

In the 1600s, a monk named Br. Lawrence, explained in letters, his life of sanctity. He said it was quite simple, all he did was be ever mindful that each and every act he performed, even sleeping, he did in the Presence of God. This is an excellent example of what we are called to do – to be ever aware of Christ with us. But we get distracted, pressured, harried, and overwrought. We fly off the handle. We forget! If we merely recall that Jesus is, quite literally, always by our side, everything becomes simpler. Everything works out when we are aware, watchful, for Jesus’ Presence in our lives – because He is always there.

Not only does Jesus stand by us and take care of us, He presents Himself to us, in the poor, the needy, the annoying, the angry, those people who upset and distress us. He comes to us and asks us to light our lamps, to shine with His love, His patience, His kindness, His compassion, His generosity. All too often, we forget that we are the ones carrying the Light of Christ.

“Keep awake therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour.”

It is our work in this world to believe, to shine with Jesus great Love, and to be constantly, consciously, replenishing the oil in our lamps. We must do our part. In our daily lives, doing our daily chores, amid the stress and anxiety of this time in which we live, we must remember Jesus is with us.

Paul has exhorted us to pray without ceasing. It’s not as difficult as it sounds. Do as Br. Lawrence did. Take a deep breath. Look around and recollect, “By my side, is Jesus. Everywhere I look, is Jesus. In everyone I see Jesus.” Your oil flask will always be full. Spread the light of Christ, and when your time comes, you will be will be welcome at the banquet, welcomed into the Kingdom of Heaven

Let us pray:

O God, whose blessed Son came into the world that he might destroy the works of the devil and make us children of God and heirs of eternal life: Grant that, having this hope, we may purify ourselves as he is pure; that, when he comes again with power and great glory, we may be made like him in his eternal and glorious kingdom; where he lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.