While I was reading the gospel for today, I kept having this image of Bob Eubanks and that old game show “The Newlywed Game.” I had to wonder, was I getting some kind of profound theological insight into this reading? Was it something about weddings? Did I find the only Biblical reference to 20th Century television? What was going on here?
Then the tag line of the show came back to me! (Can anyone remember it?) “You can always expect the unexpected on The Newlywed Game!” That was it! That was the exact feeling I was getting form the reading; as Christians, we need to expect the unexpected.
But then I thought, “What a stupid concept. If you expect the unexpected, it is no longer unexpected!” So if something is truly unexpected, we couldn’t expect it. So we may not be able to expect the unexpected, but we can at least prepare for the unexpected.
In the past, I learned the truth of preparation. Through Martial Arts and through Aggression Management Training, I learned to keep my senses attuned. I learned that through practice, actions and reactions would be come automatic. When someone is pulling your hair, you don’t have time to thing, “Humm…Let’s see…Maybe I should grab his arms and pull them down onto my head.” By this time, you would be missing huge amounts of hair. No, it is important to work and practice until the actions become automatic. And when these actions become automatic, life, in general, becomes better.
In today’s gospel reading, we have another parable. We can ask all kinds of questions about the reading, like why do we have bridesmaids? Why are there 10? Why are 5 silly and 5 not? Why wouldn’t the 5 bridesmaids share their oil with the other 5 bridesmaids? We could go in all kinds of directions, but we really need to ask one question: What is the main point of the parable?
This is where the idea of The Newlywed Game cropped up. The bridesmaids were to expect the unexpected. Or probably even better, they were to be expected for the unexpected; the return of the bridegroom.
A while back, we discussed some of the overarching metaphors of the Bible. We discussed feasts and that feast represent the reign of God. I pointed out that the feast in question was a wedding feast and that weddings were a symbol of our relationship with God. So now we have the bridesmaids awaiting the bridegroom. We should be clued that we, at least in part, are speaking about Christ return. Or maybe we are discussing our return to Christ? Either way, the overarching theme is that we will not know when we will meet the bridegroom. Therefore, we need to be prepared at all times.
I guess another thing we can learn from this parable is that it is not a case of “if” the bridegroom returns. He is coming back. The question is “when.” And then, when he does return, will we be prepared?
So if we are supposed to be prepared for Christ’s return, what would being prepared look like?
Depending on your view of God, preperation may take entirely different forms. If you view God as a vindictive bean counter, who is totally keeping track of everything we do wrong just to zing us in the end, then preparing would be making sure everything was in order: All the “t’s” are crossed and all the “I’s” are dotted. Being that good all the time is something that is really tough to do. I don’t think any of us can do everything right at all times. If we want the bridegroom to be happy when he returns, we would need to be perfect at all times since his return will be unexpected.
Granted, keeping our lives tidied up is probably a good thing, and something that the bridegroom would probably appreciate, but the cleanliness of the house is not what the bridesmaids are judged on. Rather, they are judged by whether their lamps are full and lit. They are judged by whether their light is shining or not.
Light is another symbol in the Bible. Light represents goodness, wisdom, and faith. So when the Bridegroom comes, he is looking for those with the light of faith in their lives. Those who were not ready and who do not have their lamps lit, the Bridegroom says he does not know.
Wow, how do we deal with this? This does not seem much like the Christ that I know. The Christ that I know and that I preach would have worked to help the bridesmaids to find oil or would have suggested that the other bridesmaids share their oil so that all could have light. But in this parable, the Bridegroom tells the silly bridesmaids that he does not know them and in effect leaves them alone in the dark. I am not so sure how to deal with this!
The only way that this makes any sense to me is to remember that we may not know when the Bridegroom is coming, but we also do not know when we might be going to the Bridegroom. We would like to think that we can all kinds of things to prolong our lives. We exercise and eat right to add years to our lives. But a car accident or something such as an aneurysm could take our lives without any notice at all. We can consider these to be situations where the Bridegroom arrives unexpectedly.
In these situations, would the Bridegroom find our lamps filled and our wicks trimmed? Are we prepared for situations such as this? Are there people we need to make amends with? Are there situations that are currently in need of having the light of grace shine upon? If the Bridegroom were to arrive right now, would you feel prepared for his unexpected arrival or would you feel that you were caught off guard?
Well, the good news is that there is still time to make those preparations. There is time to embark on spiritual exercises such as prayer and Bible study and daily devotions. These practices help us to expect the unexpected, or maybe it is better to say be prepared for that which is unexpected. These practices also help us with the here and now. These practices help us to be prepared when the unexpected events of life befall us.
Just like it would be foolish to think the Bridegroom will never return, it would be foolish to think that there will never be hardship in our lives. But by keeping the oil of our faith full, we can make it through even the times that seem insurmountable. In keeping with spiritual disciplines, we learn to rely on Christ and to know that even when things appear difficult, Jesus is there to lead us and to help us.
We will remember that the bridesmaids were not able to share their oil; well, in life, we cannot give our faith to another. If situations of trial, we need to rely on our own faith to see us through. And the wisdom that we show in how we tend to our lives and our faith lives will have a large impact on our lives.
I still believe that Christ’s death and resurrection trumps any parable that we might read. Even if we do not have a strong faith life, we will not be left out in the cold. Christ called us in our baptism and that call cannot be revoked. But the strength of our faith has a great deal of influence on the quality of our life right now. And I do believe that God wants us to have a life of giftedness and wonder here on earth. I believe our faith is something that is give not just for the hereafter, but for the here-and-now! And as we head into what appear to be some troubled waters in life, it is our faith that will help us through.
How is your lamp doing? If you lamp is full, then continue to thank the Lord for the gifts you have been given. Thank the Lord for the firm foundation in faith that you have. If the lamp is a little low, there is still time! There is still time to take on those spiritual disciplines that will help prepare you for the difficulties in life.
The Bridegroom is coming, of that we can be assured, but we can also be assured that the Bridegroom that is coming wants to find us all with our wicks trimmed and our oil full. And we can also be assured that it is not to late to start to get our spiritual lives in order.
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