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Text: Matthew 25:1-13

Jesus' was a great communicator. His stories and parables reveal that he was an astute observer of the human situation. He loved to tell about farmers sowing seeds, shepherds pursuing lost sheep, wayward sons who left for the far country, and housewives sweeping the entire house looking for a lost coin.

Our text for today deals with the parable of the ten bridesmaids, five of whom didn't bring enough oil for their lamps. I was reminded once again that Jesus knew about real life, for most weddings have something that goes wrong.

Sometimes the wedding is felled by a groomsman who locks his knees. Perhaps you have seen samples in person or on Funniest Home Videos. I always try to remember to tell everyone in the wedding party not to lock their knees because it will make them faint dead away. When they fall, they usually don't explain that they are dizzy and make their way to a seat. Nope, they tumble like timber. Straight as a board they fall over. Now that will disturb a good wedding!

Another common problem with weddings is the children who are enlisted to serve as flower girl and ring bearer. Little children are so cute in a wedding, but often the pressure is too much for them. Sometimes the flower girl finds herself struck with mortal fear when she sees so many people in the pews, and she makes a tearful path straight to her mother.

But more often I find the flower girls are distracted by the flower petals. During practice the night before they only pretend to drop petals as they walk down the aisle. But during the wedding, she gets a close look at the petals for the first time. Usually, she has to study each one for thirty seconds before dropping it to the floor. Then she becomes fascinated by the trail of petals, and it takes her fifteen minutes to make it down the aisle.

Some of the same problems arise with the ring bearers. Sometimes they run to a parent in tears. Other times they make it all the way to the stage, but then wander about during the ceremony. As the minister speaks, he can see the eyes of everyone in the congregation following the ring bearer from one side of the sanctuary to the other.

I even read about a ring bearer who took his misunderstood title too seriously. When it came his time to proceed to the front, he took three steps, turned to the congregants on one side, raised his hands and growled fiercely at them. Then he took three steps more, turned to the other side, and growled again. Later when his horrified parents asked what in the world he was doing. He replied, "Well, you said I was supposed to be the RING BEAR!"

Sometimes those who have the least responsibility at a wedding fail in their charge. In one wedding I performed, the best man forgot the bride's wedding ring. When we came to that point in the wedding, I asked for the rings. I reached out to the maid of honor, and she carefully placed the groom's ring in my hand. Then I reached to the best man asking for the bride's ring. But I could tell by the big-eyed, horrified look on his face that something was wrong. He reached over and pretended to put the ring in my hand!

The middle of a wedding is a bad time to stop everything and send someone scurrying off for the hardware. So I did the first thing that came to my mind - I pretended to put the ring in the groom's hand. With a wink and a nod, I indicated to him that he should go along with this ruse. Dutifully, the groom slipped the pretend wedding ring on the bride's finger as he repeated, "With this ring, I thee wed!"

In Jesus' story, they had different customs, but Jesus knew that things sometimes go wrong with weddings. Their custom was for bridesmaids to wait for the bridegroom to come before starting the party. Often the grooms were fashionably late. The ten bridesmaids wait at one place, which I always picture as a wooded area for some reason. After waiting for a long time, the word comes that the bridegroom is coming.

That's when the five foolish maidens realized that their lamps were burning out. They asked the five wise bridesmaids to share some of their oil. But they explained that there would not be enough, so they suggested that the others go buy extra oil.

I always thought that was odd advice. What oil merchant would be open at midnight? But the foolish maidens think that is a good idea. They leave to go replenish their supply of oil.

While they are gone, the bridegroom comes, and everyone proceeds to the party. For some reason, they lock the door so that when the foolish bridesmaids finally arrive, they are not allowed into the party. Jesus ends the story by saying, "Keep awake therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour."

I have always had some difficulties with this story. First of all, I wonder why the groom is so late. What is he doing coming to the party at midnight? And it seems harsh to me that the groom locks the door of the party and won't let anyone in late.

And what about the five wise bridesmaids? Why won't they share their oil? We teach our children that the Christian thing to do is to share with one another.

I guess, as always, that we just can't press the details of a parable. We have to focus on the main point. Certainly the main point here is to be prepared.

I feel for the foolish bridesmaids. They were not prepared, but how many times have we been unprepared for something? That doesn't seem like the unforgivable sin to me. Maybe their real problem was one of priority. They knew the groom was coming when they went off to buy extra oil. They were so focused on keeping their lamp burning that they weren't focused on what they were supposed to be doing which was welcoming the bridegroom. They could have stayed there and used the light from the other bridesmaids. I think five lamps is enough to get through the dark to the party. So maybe they made some wrong choices.

Matthew's intention is clearly to say something about the Second Coming of Christ. The Bible says that Jesus would return at the end of time. Many in that day expected Jesus' return during their lifetime. Even the Apostle Paul expected it before his death. So there was a deep sense of expectation.

By the time the Gospel of Matthew was written, as much as 50 years had passed and Jesus had not yet returned. Christians were bothered by the delay. This is a story to tell Christians that they have to be prepared whenever Jesus comes. That is a good message for us as well. History could end at any moment. We must live every day as if this were our last day. We should live with such character and integrity that we would not be embarrassed if Jesus should return today. We should be prepared.

The last time I preached on this text, I focused on the aspect of the story that the bridesmaid did not our could not share their oil. I pointed out that there are some things that we just have to do for ourselves. There is an old saying in Arkansas that goes, "Every tub must sit on its own bottom." It means that every tub is responsible for itself. It obviously can't sit on another tubs bottom. It is a colorful way of saying that we are responsible for our own actions. The fire bridesmaids were responsible for their own oil.

I think we can apply this to our spiritual lives saying that there are some things in our spiritual lives that we can't borrow. We can't borrow faith in Christ. Our parents may have been religious people and we think we can ride their coattails into the Kingdom of God. But every person has to care for their own oil of faith. Every person has to have their own experience with God.

I think this passage says that each of us must be prepared for our relationship with Jesus Christ. We can't loan that out, just as someone else can't eat for us. No one else can have faith for us.

But today I want to focus on an allegorical aspect of the oil. I think about the lamps burning out, which reminds me of a term used to describe stress-filled lives today - "burn out."

Let me ask you several questions related to the level of stress in your life:

Do you wake in the morning feeling tired and drained? Are you losing your sense of humor or optimism? Do you ever find yourself unexpectedly crying or inwardly hopeless? Do you find yourself wringing your hands and clenching your jaw, overwhelmed by problems that seem difficult to sort through? Is your public demeanor devouring your private life?

If your answer to these questions is "Yes," then you are likely suffering from burnout. I don't know who invented the word "burnout," but it seems to be a good term for describing a condition that many of us feel at times. Burnout is emotional exhaustion or what some have called compassion fatigue. One person defined burnout as "a state of physical, emotional and mental exhaustion marked by physical depletion and chronic fatigue, feelings of helplessness and hopelessness, and by development of a negative self-concept and negative attitudes towards work, life and other people."

Do you find yourself experiencing burn out? Jesus says we need to prepare to have the oil of lives replenished so that we are prepared for long nights and difficult times. Jesus called the disciples to a tough mission. He didn't say, "Follow me and everything will be great all your life with never a problem." Instead he challenged his disciples to take up a cross and follow him. One time he told a story about a man building a tower. He said the man must make sure he has enough bricks to build the tower or he will not be able to finish it and look like a fool. Jesus wants us to count the cost of discipleship and be prepared for the long haul.

The Apostle Paul was a man of great faith, but he struggled with a thorn in the flesh. Three times he called upon God to relieve him. 2 Corinthians 12:9 he lists a response from Jesus. These are red letter words. In a red letter edition of the Bible, we find the words of Jesus in red. As we thumb through the New Testament, we find many words in read through the gospels, but it is unusual to find red letter words after John. Here in 2 Corinthians are the red-letter words of Jesus spoken to Paul, "My grace is sufficient for you; for power is made perfect in weakness."

Jesus promises us that when we are at the end of our rope, God will give us the grace to carry on. When we are burned out, God will give us the oil to carry on. Jesus says to us, "My grace is sufficient for you."

When we feel that we are burned out, Jesus has a word for us. He says once again, "Come unto me all you that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest."

Come to Christ. Be fed. Be refreshed. Be renewed, so that you will have your lamp burning bright with the oil of the grace of God.