Monday, October 31st, 2005
A Story about Ten Girls
The kingdom of heaven is like what happened one night when ten girls took their oil lamps and went to a wedding to meet the groom. Five of the girls were foolish and five were wise. The foolish ones took their lamps, but no extra oil. The ones who were wise took along extra oil for their lamps. The groom was late arriving, and the girls became drowsy and fell asleep. Then in the middle of the night someone shouted, “Here’s the groom! Come to meet him!”
When the girls got up and started getting their lamps ready, the foolish ones said to the others, “Let us have some of your oil! Our lamps are going out.”
The girls who were wise answered, “There’s not enough oil for all of us! Go and buy some for yourselves.”
While the foolish girls were on their way to get some oil, the groom arrived. The girls who were ready went into the wedding, and the doors were closed. Later the other girls returned and shouted, “Sir, sir! Open the door for us!”
But the groom replied, “I don’t even know you!”
So, my disciples, always be ready! You don’t know the day or the time when all this will happen.
Matthew 25:1 to meet the groom: Some manuscripts add “and the bride.” It was the custom for the groom to go to the home of the bride’s parents to get his bride. Young girls and other guests would then go with them to the home of the groom’s parents, where the wedding feast would take place.
Matthew 25:1-13 (Contemporary English Version) (CEV)
© 1995 American Bible Society
I’ve heard a few strange interpretations of this parable. Like the one where we’re told we shouldn’t sleep. ‘It’s a sign of disloyalty and laziness’. I don’t think so. After all, sleeping is an excellent way to prepare for action. When the time for action comes, don’t sleep.
What does make sense though is the call to invest in relationships with God and with one another now - while we have the opportunity.
From the context of Matthew 24 and 25, Jesus appears to be asking his followers to be prepared for his second coming. If that’s the case, we need more than an individual preparation for the contingency of Jesus returning in our lifetime. We need a ‘Body of Christ’ approach that keeps the fire burning over many lifetimes.
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Saturday, October 29th, 2005
The Most Important Commandment
After Jesus had made the Sadducees look foolish, the Pharisees heard about it and got together. One of them was an expert in the Jewish Law. So he tried to test Jesus by asking, “Teacher, what is the most important commandment in the Law?”
Jesus answered:
“Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, and mind.” This is the first and most important commandment. The second most important commandment is like this one. And it is, “Love others as much as you love yourself.” All the Law of Moses and the Books of the Prophets are based on these two commandments.
Matthew 22:34-40 (Contemporary English Version)
First question - how did Jesus make the Sadducees look foolish? Looking at the previous story, Jesus appears to have outclassed these guys in a debate over life in the future world. He’s made it clear that they’re using categories that are too small to deal with life after death.
Second question - what are the categories from which this ‘Pharisee’ is operating? It would seem his vision of human life is derived from interpretation of the written codes and guidelines of the Hebrew Scriptures.
Jesus here opens up the perameters by which people can develop their expression of God-honouring humanity. By giving us the big picture of loving God and loving one another he gives us room for cultural interpretation.
I spent part of yesterday with a colleague who was reflecting on the distinction between discipleship and socialisation. Much of what we think is obedience to God is in fact conformity to the codes of politeness we’ve inherited from our families and churches. Take for example our codes on swearing, drinking, smoking, tattoos and dress code. Can you have a swearing, drinking, smoking, tattooed, roughly dressed person who loves God and loves others as him/herself? Sure thing.
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Thursday, October 20th, 2005
When the Son of Man comes in his glory with all of his angels, he will sit on his royal throne. The people of all nations will be brought before him, and he will separate them, as shepherds separate their sheep from their goats.
He will place the sheep on his right and the goats on his left. Then the king will say to those on his right, “My father has blessed you! Come and receive the kingdom that was prepared for you before the world was created. When I was hungry, you gave me something to eat, and when I was thirsty, you gave me something to drink. When I was a stranger, you welcomed me, and when I was naked, you gave me clothes to wear. When I was sick, you took care of me, and when I was in jail, you visited me.”
Then the ones who pleased the Lord will ask, “When did we give you something to eat or drink? When did we welcome you as a stranger or give you clothes to wear or visit you while you were sick or in jail?”
The king will answer, “Whenever you did it for any of my people, no matter how unimportant they seemed, you did it for me.”
Then the king will say to those on his left, “Get away from me! You are under God’s curse. Go into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels! I was hungry, but you did not give me anything to eat, and I was thirsty, but you did not give me anything to drink. I was a stranger, but you did not welcome me, and I was naked, but you did not give me any clothes to wear. I was sick and in jail, but you did not take care of me.”
Then the people will ask, “Lord, when did we fail to help you when you were hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in jail?”
The king will say to them, “Whenever you failed to help any of my people, no matter how unimportant they seemed, you failed to do it for me.”
Matthew 25:21-45 (Contemporary English Version)
I like the approach taken by William Loader, in his presentation to a worshipping community at Bishop’s College, Calcutta in 1999. This was just after a supercyclone had devastated the neighbouring region in the state of Orissa to the south. He tells the story from the perspective of a fictional goat. Here’s an excerpt from his web site:
He said to the red people who were on his left: ‘Come and live with me in my father’s city. For I was an outcaste and you welcomed me into your home; I was in Orissa and you sent me help; I was trying to bring change through politics and you supported me; I was a child labourer and you found me another way for me to live; I was a woman burnt by her husband and you gave me refuge.’ They all said, ‘When did we see you as an outcaste, or in Orissa, or a politician, or a child labourer or a burnt woman and come to your aid?’ He said, ‘You did it to them; it was like you did it to me.’
Then he turned to the people in blue who also called him, ‘Lord’, but the situation was much less happy. They had kept themselves pure and had not helped the outcaste, the people in Orissa, the politician, the child labourer, the burnt woman at all – or anyone else for that matter. There was no room for them in the city.
Just then it started to rain and the vision went away. We were left to ponder what we had seen.
Nanny, who was standing beside me, said, ‘I know. If I am a human being in my next life, I shall pretend I see the shining one in everyone I see. I shall help all those needy people like I’m helping him. That way he will reward me with a place in his father’s city.’
I was thinking about that when from the other side her sister – they always used to argue – said, ‘No, no, no! Don’t you see it was all a surprise. They didn’t care for people because they saw the shining one in them. They cared for people because they were people. They did it naturally. It was their way. Only later were they surprised to learn that they had also cared for him.’
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