Category: Trinity 27

How the Wise Keep Watch

11/26/2024

Gospel: Matthew 25:1-13
“Then the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom. 2 Five of them were foolish, and five were wise. 3 For when the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them, 4 but the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps. 5 As the bridegroom was delayed, they all became drowsy and slept. 6 But at midnight there was a cry, ‘Here is the bridegroom! Come out to meet him.’ 7 Then all those virgins rose and trimmed their lamps. 8 And the foolish said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ 9 But the wise answered, saying, ‘Since there will not be enough for us and for you, go rather to the dealers and buy for yourselves.’ 10 And while they were going to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the marriage feast, and the door was shut. 11 Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, ‘Lord, lord, open to us.’ 12 But he answered, ‘Truly, I say to you, I do not know you.’ 13 Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour.

Last Sunday of the Church Year
Matthew 25:1-13
Pastor James Preus
Trinity Lutheran Church
November 24, 2024

With the parable of the ten virgins, Jesus teaches us to keep watch and be prepared for His return, because we do not know when that will be. The ten virgins are the visible church on earth. On the outside they all look the same. And they have all gone out to meet the bridegroom. The bridegroom is Christ Jesus, who will return to welcome His Church into the wedding feast, which is eternal paradise. Those who do not enter with Him will be locked out of paradise forever. The Bridegroom arrives at midnight, illustrating what Jesus tells us, that no one knows the day or hour that He will return (vs 13; Mark 13:32). And so, the virgins go out with oil lamps to light there way in the darkness when the bridegroom will return.
But Jesus tells us that five of the virgins are foolish (the Greek word is μωραὶ [mōrai] where we get the word moron) and there are five virgins who are wise, that is, sensible, prudent, they think and plan ahead. And why does Christ call the five virgins, morons? Because they brought oil lamps, but didn’t bring any oil. That is indeed foolish! What good is an oil lamp without any oil? There is no fuel to burn to give light in the darkness! Jesus calls the other five virgins wise or prudent, because they thought to bring vessels of oil, so their lamps would not go out. Yet, Jesus draws this picture to describe the church on earth in the last days. So, how does this relate to us Christians? How might you be found a fool on the Last Day? And how will you be proved wise? What are these lamps and oil?
The lamps are the outward profession of the Christian faith. The flame is the true faith, without which a person cannot be saved. What then is the oil? Some say it is the Word of God, which is a pretty good answer, because St. Paul writes, “Faith comes by hearing and hearing through the Word of Christ.” (Romans 10:17) And Jesus says, “If you abide in My Word, you are My disciples indeed, and you will know the truth and the truth will set you free.” (John 8:31) Yet, not everyone who hears the Word of God takes it to heart. Most, as Jesus makes clear in His parables, ignore it, grow distracted, or fall away from it. Jesus uses these exact same words for foolish and wise at the close of His Sermon on the Mount in Matthew chapter 7, “Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. … And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man (μωρῷ) who built his house on the sand.”
So, to have oil doesn’t simply mean to hear the Word of God. Many hear the Word of God and reject it. But it means to hear the Word of God and to take it to heart, to believe it and do it. This means to repent of your sins when Scripture calls you to repent of laziness, pride, hatred, and lust. And it means to believe and take to heart Christ’s promises of forgiveness and salvation for the sake of His death on the cross, which He also attaches to Baptism and the Lord’s Supper. This is why God sends us His Holy Spirit through His Word, so that we may believe it and live according to it (Galatians 3:22-6). The Holy Spirit comes to us through the Word of God. He works through the Law to convict you of sin (John 16:8), so that you repent. And He works through the Gospel, so that you call upon the name of Christ and are saved (1 Corinthians 12:3). And so, the running out of oil is not simply forgetting the Word of God, but it is rejecting the Holy Spirit, who comes to you through that Word.
Going to church to hear the Word of God is necessary to be a Christian, but it is not sufficient. There are those who read their Bible and go to church, who will not be saved, because they rejected the Holy Spirit who came to them through God’s Word. This is not a lesson that you don’t need to go to church or read your Bible, because not everyone who goes to church and reads his Bible will be saved. St. Peter writes, “If the righteous is scarcely saved, what will become of the ungodly and the sinner?” (1 Peter 4:18). This is a lesson to not become complacent and simply go through the motions of being a Christian, but to wake up! Pay attention to what you are being taught in Holy Scripture. Don’t just read your Bible, but pay attention to what you read and take it to heart. Do not simply go to church regularly, but actively worship while you are here. Repent of your sins from your heart. Join your mind and soul to the prayers. Listen diligently to the Scripture lessons and try to learn something from the sermon, which you can take home with you and put to practice in your heart and in your living.
You can only receive oil for your lamp through the Word of God and His Sacraments. Yet, not everyone who hears the Word and is baptized and eats Christ’s body and blood is saved. You must have faith. So, you must also do as Jesus says, keep watch! So, how do the wise and prudent keep watch?
First, by diligently listening to Christ’s Word. Jesus says, “Blessed rather are those who hear the Word of God and keep it.” (Luke 11:28) And again our Lord says, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear!” (Matthew 13:9) Psalm 1 states, “Blessed is the man … [whose] delight is in the Instruction of the LORD and on His Instruction he meditates day and night.” And Psalm 119, “Your Word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.” (vs. 105) If you are not paying attention to God’s Word, then you are not keeping watch for the return of Christ. The wise virgins keep watch by worshiping diligently, reading, and learning God’s Word. They focus especially on the Gospel, that a sinner is saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ alone, who has made atonement for our sins. This is the power of God to salvation to all who believe (Romans 1:16-17).
The wise virgins keep watch by taking God’s Word to heart and putting their faith into practice. You should repent of your sins each day. This means that you should daily examine yourself, your heart, your words, your deeds. How can you better conform your life to God’s Word. What sins are trying to rule over you? You must put these sins to death, trusting in Christ for forgiveness and renewal. You must not let your sins grow stronger and control you, but you must daily break free of them and put on the whole armor of God.
St. Paul writes in Colossians 3, “Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. On account of these things the wrath of God is coming. … Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive.” (vss. 5-6, 12-13) Saving faith cannot abide with persistent impenitent sin. If you continue in sin without repenting, you are not a Christian; you have the faith of demons (James 2:19). St. Paul warns, “Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God.” (1 Cor. 6:9-10) Here, he is speaking of those who continue in these sins without repenting. And so, as the wise virgins trim their wicks and pour in fresh oil, so you must daily repent of your sins and walk in faith toward Christ.
It's easy in these end times to focus on the sins of others. We want to complain about the evils being done around the country. And there is a place for that. We should loudly oppose abortion, which is the violent murder of little babies, and we should protest the wicked butchery being carried out by the so-called trans movement against children and the mentally and spiritually disturbed, and all forms of sexual immorality, which are being celebrated by the powerful in this world. And these are certainly signs of the end times. However, the greatest evil you must complain about is the evil in your very heart, which wants to snuff out the lamp of Christ from within you. Repentance must start with you. If you are not daily repenting of your own sins and seeking to do better, then you are foolish.
You cannot keep watch without prayer. In the Garden of Gethsemane, shortly before He was arrested and crucified, Jesus said to weary Peter, “Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” (Matthew 26:41) And these are words we must all take to heart. Your spirit is willing now, but your flesh is weak. The pressures of this world will weigh on you. Satan will strike when you’re not ready. Your flesh will betray you. To keep watch, you must pray without ceasing (1 Thess. 5:17). This is why St. Paul writes in Colossians 4, “Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving.” Pray that God’s Word and Spirit would come upon you and make you holy. Pray for forgiveness and to be led out of temptation and delivered from evil.
Finally, confess and praise Christ with your mouth. Jesus says, “everyone who confesses me before men, I also will confess before My Father who is in heaven, but whoever denies Me before men, I also will deny before my Father who is in heaven.” (Matthew 10:32) People often say that you should not wear your religion on your sleave. Jesus says the opposite. “Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.” (Matthew 5:15-16) We should confess Christ often with rejoicing. “With the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.” (Romans 10:10) If we snuff out our confession and rejoicing from our mouths, we risk snuffing it out of our hearts as well.
Dear brothers and sisters, the hour is late. We are now dwelling in the deep darkness of night. Any moment the cry will come out, “Behold, the Bridegroom, come out to meet Him!” Will you be ready when He comes? Will you be found wise or foolish? To be found foolish is to hear the most harrowing statement from our Lord, “Truly, I say to you, I do not know you.” And at that time, it will be too late to get oil. The time we are now living in is the time of grace. It is the time to fill your oil, to keep watch and to guard your faith. But the time of grace will soon end. And when it ends, that’s it. Despite being a member of a Christian congregation, going through the motions of being a Christian, if you do not have faith in Christ, you are not ready for His return.
But when you receive that precious oil, that is, when you hear the Gospel with faith, so that the Holy Spirit kindles your flame, then you hear the glorious words from Jesus, “Truly, I say to you, I do know you!” That is the Gospel, the message of your Baptism, of the Absolution, and of the Sacrament of the Altar. “I do know you!” Jesus tells you every day that you repent of your sins and turn to Him for forgiveness. “I do know you!” He says to you whenever you pray to Him in faith. And when you confess Christ before men here on earth, Christ confesses to His Father and to the angels in heaven, “I know him. I know her.”
Receiving this oil today takes away the terror of the Last Day. It is this oil Jesus tells us to guard when He says, “Keep watch!” This precious oil truly is an oil of gladness and comfort, of forgiveness and peace with God. This oil anoints our souls with Christ’s blood and assures us of God’s pleasure in us for Christ’s sake. Only fools neglect this oil. May God richly supply this oil to us and may we guard it, so that we may be known by Christ on the Last Day. Amen.

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Be Watchful

11/29/2021

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"The Parable of the Wise and Foolish Virgins," William Blake, 1799-1800. Public Domain.

Last Sunday of the Church Year (Trinity 27)
Matthew 25:1-13
Pastor James Preus
Trinity Lutheran Church
November 21, 2021

After Jesus ascended into heaven, and Jesus’ disciples were still gazing into the sky where he departed, two angels appeared and said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.” (Acts 1:11) And from that moment on, the holy Christian Church on earth has been waiting with great anticipation for the return of our Lord Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead. This will be a joyful event. We will love his appearing (2 Tim. 4:8). He comes with redemption (Luke 21:28). He does not come to deal with us according to our sins, but to save those who eagerly wait for him (Hebrews 9:28).

In our parable today, the Bridegroom is Jesus Christ. The ten virgins are the holy Christian Church on earth. They are going out to meet the Bridegroom. This means that they have separated themselves from the unbelieving world. Through their worship, Baptism, services, devotion, and conduct, they have distinguished themselves from the non-Christians as they wait the return of the Bridegroom. Christ, the Bridegroom, has won their salvation with his bitter suffering and death. He has gone to prepare a place for them. The virgins expect him to return at any moment.

But Jesus tells us that half of the virgins are wise and the other half foolish. This tells us that even within the holy Christian Church on earth there are true believers and false hypocrites. There are those who persist until the end, and there are those who grow weary of waiting, grow unprepared, and ultimately are unready for Christ’s return. The wise virgins who made sure they had enough oil for their lamps were let in. The foolish virgins, who brought lamps with no oil were locked out.

All ten virgins fall asleep. This teaches us that no one knows when Jesus will return, not even the true believers. So, all Christians must be ready at all times for Christ’s return. We should live every day as if it is our last day before Christ’s return.

The five wise virgins fell asleep along with the five foolish. Even true Christians get busy with earthly things. Although being a Christian separates us from the unbelieving world, we are not called out of this world yet. We still have our earthly vocations. We’re fathers and mothers, sons and daughters. We must provide for our families, nurture and raise our children, make sure stomachs are full and bodies clothed. Yet, wise Christians do not place earthly things above Christ and his Word. They do not let their oil run out, even as they sleep. Their sleep is a restless sleep, frequently waking to check their lamps. It is one thing to attend to your earthly duties in this life, while maintaining faith in Christ. It is quite another thing to devote yourself solely to worldly things and to forsake Christ’s Word and run out of faith.

It was wrong even for the wise virgins to fall asleep, but the Lord does not rebuke them for their slumber. He comes with mercy and compassion. He has come to bring them into his wedding hall to celebrate. This is why he has sent his preachers to announce his coming, so that the virgins awake. What was much more important, was that they still had oil. The Lord harshly rebukes the foolish virgins for letting their oil run out, even saying, “I do not know you.”

The lamps are their faith. Faith alone saves, as Scripture clearly teaches (John 3:16; Mark 16:16; Romans 3:23-28; Ephesians 2:8-10; etc.). Yet, not all faith saves. Only that faith which trusts in Jesus Christ, who alone has made satisfaction for our sins. Lamps are no good without oil. They need something to burn. Faith is no good without Jesus Christ and his promise of salvation.

The oil is Christ’s Word and Holy Spirit. It is through Christ’s Word and Sacraments alone that the Holy Spirit works. Faith comes by hearing and hearing through the Word of Christ. Christ alone has won for us salvation. He has done everything. He obeyed the Law perfectly in our stead. He suffered and died for our sins. He rose again from the dead and is seated at God the Father’s right hand, pleading for our innocence by the merits of his own suffering and death for us. And the Father cannot deny his Son. Everything rests on Jesus and on Jesus alone. This is why only faith can save. Faith simply receives the promise. This is why Christ’s Word is the oil. Christ promises us salvation by his own merits. We believe the promise and are saved. This is why the Sacraments are the oil. The Sacraments have their power in Christ’s Word and promise. Baptism saves, because Jesus says it does (Mark 16:16). The Lord’s Supper gives you forgiveness of sins, because Jesus says it does (Matthew 26:26-28). The Absolution spoken by the pastor forgives all your sins before God in heaven, because Jesus promised it does (John 20:23). This is why the Holy Spirit is the oil. The Holy Spirit works through Jesus’ Word and Sacraments. It is the Holy Spirit who creates faith in our hearts and keeps us in the true faith. He does this by means of Christ’s Holy Word.

There are those who claim that the Holy Spirit comes to us apart from Jesus’ Word. They think that they can have faith in Christ without hearing God’s Word preached or receiving Jesus’ Sacraments. They disagree with Jesus. The Holy Spirit only works faith through Christ’s Word. Without God’s Word, faith cannot exist. It dies. This is why our Lutheran Confessions assert in Augsburg Confession Article V, “Our churches condemn the Anabaptists and others who think that through their own preparations and works the Holy Spirit comes to them without the external Word.” Our churches condemn not the persons, but the teaching that the Holy Spirit works without Christ’s Word, because this devilish teaching robs poor sinners of the true Gospel, which saves.

This is why it is so dangerous to skip church and go long periods of time without hearing God’s Word preached or receiving the Sacrament. We cannot by our own reason or strength believe in Jesus Christ our Lord or come to him, but the Holy Spirit calls us by the Gospel. Without the Gospel, the Holy Spirit does not call us or sanctify us. The claim that you don’t have to go to church to be a Christian is a lie Satan has been repeating in the ears of Christians for generations. It’s absurd on its face. I know that this is offensive to many, because this is such a popular phrase, but we have to get to the root of Satan’s lie. What is his goal? His goal is for you to not hear God’s Word! Obviously going to a church building doesn’t make one a Christian, but hearing Jesus’ Word does! You go to church to hear Jesus’ Word. Christians listen to Jesus’ Word. Of course, you need to go to church to be a Christian, that is, you need to hear Jesus’ Word. You need oil for your lamp, otherwise it will burn out. And those who cannot physically come to the church building because of sickness or old age still need to hear God’s Word. That is why pastors visit their sick and elderly members, so that they can replenish their lamps with needed oil. Those who say you don’t need to go to church to be a Christian are saying that you don’t need oil in your lamps. It’s foolishness.

The foolish virgins had lamps with no oil. They looked like Christians, but they did not hold in their faith the saving Gospel. They either got caught up with the cares of this world and neglected to hear God’s preaching and receive the Sacrament for long periods of time, thinking, “Oh, I know it. My faith is still good.”, until their lamps are dry and the flame has gone out. Or, they hear the preaching of God’s Word and receive the Sacrament, but they pay no attention to it. They refuse to learn from it. They don’t take it to heart. They grow lackadaisical toward Jesus’ teaching. They grow bitter toward their fellow Christians and their love for others grows cold.  In short, they have no faith in the content of what Christ preaches. They let the oil spill out and don’t put any in their lamps.

It is the oil that gives us confidence that Jesus comes to us with love and mercy. It is the content of our lamps, which gives us confidence that Jesus comes with salvation. St. Paul says in 1 Thessalonians chapter 5 that God has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain mercy through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us so that whether we are awake or asleep, we might live with him. This is what the oil is. God’s promise of mercy and love. The Holy Spirit works through the message of God’s love and forgiveness through Christ Jesus. Filling your lamps with oil is only burdensome, if you think that Jesus’ love and forgiveness is burdensome, that your sins are not a pressing issue, that God’s judgment is not something to fear. This oil is given to us freely and liberally. It is the message of Jesus’ work of salvation for you. If Jesus willingly went to the cross to die for your sins, why would he hate you? Why would he desire to return to damn you? The oil tells you that you have a loving God and Savior in Jesus Christ.

The Bridegroom told the foolish virgins, who didn’t bother to fill their flasks with oil, that he did not know them. He did not know them, because they would not know him. They didn’t value the oil. They weren’t comforted by the flame of faith that came from their lamps. They spurned the Gospel of Jesus Christ. They would not listen to Jesus’ teaching, or at least, would not take it to heart. They didn’t trust in Jesus’ promise of forgiveness won by his blood. They looked like Christians. They were members of Christian parishes. They even showed up to church, some of them, quite often. But they spilled out the oil, lest it be stored in their heart and burn brightly in anticipation for the Lord’s coming.

The wise virgins were welcomed into the wedding hall. The Bridegroom knows them. They know the Bridegroom. They delighted in his oil. They were comforted by his promise that he would welcome them; that he had paid all their debts. They were filled with the Holy Spirit.

What I speak to you now is the precious oil, which keeps your lamps burning, so that you are prepared for the return of Christ. Jesus Christ, our God and brother, died for all your sins. He is risen, and reigns with God the Father in heaven. He will return to bring those who trust in him to salvation. The Sacrament of Baptism is the oil. It assures us that our sins are washed away and that we are God’s children now. The Sacrament we prepare our hearts to receive is the oil. It declares that Jesus gave up his body and shed his blood for your forgiveness and salvation. The Holy Spirit himself works through the Word and Sacraments, to open your hearts to this promise. If you trust in this Gospel, you are prepared for the return of Christ, whether he comes by night or day, today or tomorrow. If you trust in this Gospel, you are prepared whether death takes you tonight or fifty years from now.

Jesus tells us to be watchful, for we know neither the day nor the hour. We are watchful when we hear and take to heart the Gospel of Christ. Then our flasks are full of oil. Then our lamps are burning brightly. Then we will arise with joy when our Savior finally appears. Amen.

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Watch Therefore, For You Know Neither The Day Nor The Hour.

11/23/2020

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James Tissot, The Wise Virgins, 1886-94, Brooklyn Museum, No Known Copyright Restrictions

Last Sunday of the Church Year
Matthew 25:1-13
November 22, 2020

“Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour.” This is an earnest warning from our Lord Jesus. Jesus will come to judge the living and the dead. Some will be found unprepared and will be barred from the heavenly banquet for all eternity. Those who are prepared will be ushered into the heavenly wedding banquet to enjoy eternal life. We do not know when this hour will come, so we should keep watch lest we be found unprepared.
Yet, how is one found prepared? Jesus says that the wise are prepared, while the foolish are unprepared. Yet, be careful. The foolishness Jesus speaks of is not the foolishness of this world. And the wisdom Jesus speaks of is not the wisdom of this world. Rather, it is as Scripture says, “For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God,”, and “For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe.” (1 Corinthians 1:18, 21) So, the wisdom Jesus speaks of here is entirely different from the wisdom of this world. And the foolishness Jesus speaks of is not what the world considers folly.
The ten virgins represent the church on earth. They all look the same. They look good. The only difference is that some have oil and some do not, but you won’t be able to tell that with your eyes until the lamps are lit. But outward appearance does not make one part of the true Church or make one wise. Only faith, which is in the heart can do that. The wise virgins had oil in their flasks. Their oil is faith given to them by the Holy Spirit through the Word of God. Just as you can’t see the oil in the flasks, you can’t see someone’s faith in the heart. The foolish virgins had no oil in their lamps. Their lamps were just pretty decorations. Beyond that, they were utterly useless.
To be wise means to listen to the Word of God, so that you repent of your sins and believe in God’s promise of salvation in Jesus Christ. The foolish pay no attention to God’s word, refuse to repent of their sins, and refuse to believe in the Gospel.
To be wise means to be humble and to fear the Lord. Scripture says, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.” To fear the Lord means to recognize him as Judge and to turn to him for salvation. Scripture also says, “The fool says in his heart, ‘There is no God.’” Despite what many think in this age where atheism is so rampant, the Psalmist is not speaking simply of those who deny the existence of a Creator. Rather, he speaks of those who behave in their heart as if there is no God to judge them. It is as Psalm 36 states, “Transgression speaks to the wicked deep in his heart; there is no fear of God before his eyes. For he flatters himself in his own eyes that his iniquity cannot be found out and hated.” And so many nominal Christians live as if there is no God, as if God cannot look into their hearts and judge them, as if we should not in fear humble ourselves before God and ask for forgiveness every day.
To be wise means to meditate on the words of God. Proverbs 9 states, “Give instruction to a wise man, and he will be still wiser; teach a righteous man, and he will increase in learning.” There is no such thing as a stagnant faith. We are surrounded by attacks against our faith. The devil roars at us. The world lures us away. And our sinful flesh battles against our spirit! If you are not growing in faith, you are shrinking in faith. To despise the word of God, to think that you just don’t need it or that you can go without it is foolish. It is a sure way to destroy your faith in Christ and to become unprepared for the return of Christ.
Sometimes I wonder whether Christ will decide to return during the Divine Service. How wonderful that would be! To prepare your heart to receive Christ in faith, to believe what your eyes cannot yet see, and then be so blessed as to see your Savior coming with salvation! And how awful it would be if you chose something else than to hear God’s Word! If the Lord finds you seeking after the “important” things of this life instead of filling your lamps with oil!
Skipping church is the most foolish and reckless thing that Christians do on earth. Not only is it a sin breaking the Third Commandment, which forbids us to despise preaching and his Word, but commands us to hold it sacred and gladly hear and learn it, but it is dangerous! Scripture promises, “Faith comes by hearing and hearing through the word of Christ.” And the Psalmist says, “How can a young man keep his way pure, by guarding it according to Your Word.” Yet, Christians habitually ignore this promise and warning as if they are thinking, “I think I’ve got enough oil in my lamp to get me to next week or next month or Christmas Eve.” This is like driving down the interstate on empty, but not taking the next exit to get gas, because you’re making good time, or the kids are asleep, or you like the song on the radio. You’d find yourself stranded on the side of the road.
Yet, hearing God’s word but not listening is just as damaging as not hearing it at all. Jesus says, “Everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it.” (Matthew 7:26-27) And this leads to our next point about the wise. The wise accept rebuke and correction. That is to say, the Word of God has an effect on them. When Christians hear that they have sinned, they repent of their sins. They know that it does them no good to defend themselves. It is God who justifies. Without the Word of God, it is impossible to have saving faith. And if you reject God’s Word, so that it cannot work on your heart to bring you to repentance and to trust in its promises, then you will remain without oil in your lamp.
The oil of the foolish runs out, because they behave as if they have plenty of time. They get preoccupied with the things of this world. They’re concerned with being found wise by those, whom God finds to be utter fools. And this foolishness spreads to all levels of the church. Entire church bodies devote themselves to ever new ways of being found wise by those who hate God. And so, shepherd-less flocks gather to hear words and leave without a drop of oil added to their flasks. And so, the wise must always take heed and listen to the voice of their Shepherd, Jesus Christ and to mark and avoid false teachers, who do not preach God’s Word.
When Jesus returns, there will no longer be any time to repent. There will be no time to get oil. You can pray for your loved ones, but you cannot believe for them. In order to be saved, one needs to have faith now. When Christ returns, there will no longer be time.
“Amen, I say to you, I do not know you.” These are the worst words you can possibly hear from Jesus’ mouth! Amen is the word we use at the end of prayers to express our firm faith that God hears us and will answer our prayers. We say, “amen,” at a Baptism to confess God’s sure promise to forgive and save the baptized. We say, “amen,” after we receive the Absolution, because we are confident that as far as the east is from the west, so far does God remove our transgressions from us. We say, “amen,” when we receive Christ’s body and blood for the forgiveness of our sins, because we confess that we are certain that we have Communion with Christ, forgiveness of sins, life, and salvation. We say, “amen,” when the pastor says, “The Lord bless you and keep you. The Lord make his face shine upon you and be gracious to you. The Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace.”, because we believe that the almighty God, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit has indeed put his name upon us and will save us on the Last Day. Amen is the most comforting word we Christians ever say or hear. It means, “This is most certainly true.”, and “Yes, yes, it shall be so.” Yet, Jesus uses this beautiful word in the most horrifying way. It means that the time to believe the Gospel is over. The door is shut. Amen, Jesus does not know you. That’s the end of it.
Yet, Scripture says, “For God has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us so that whether we are awake or asleep we might live with him.” (1 Thess. 5:9-10) How can we believe these words are meant for us? Because we believe the Gospel now. While it is still day and the hour has not yet come, we believe now that Christ Jesus has died for us, that he has forgiven our sins. We say, “Amen,” to the Gospel now, so that we will not hear Jesus say, “Amen, I do not know you.”, but rather, “Amen, I do know you as surely as I placed my name on you in Baptism, absolved you of all your sins, fed you my body and blood, and shepherded you throughout your life. I know you. Come into my wedding hall. Amen, I say to you, I know you and will know you forever.” We say, “amen.”, now so that we will never hear the dreaded amen of condemnation, but only the precious Amen of the Gospel for all eternity.
To be wise means to believe the Gospel that Jesus Christ has truly washed away your sins so that you are forgiven before God your Father in heaven. When we say, “amen” to the Gospel of Jesus Christ, it is like we’ve just put the cap on our flasks after filling it with oil. We hear the Gospel and we believe it. And everyone who confessing Christ will be saved. Amen. Amen. Amen.

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Last Sunday of the Church Year: Have Oil in Your Lamps

11/26/2018

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Matthew 25:1-13
November 25, 2018

The wise brought oil. The foolish did not bring oil. That makes sense. It is foolish to bring an oil lamp without oil and smart to bring oil. Yet, this is from God’s perspective, not man’s. The wise virgins Jesus speaks about here are not the wise of the world, but those thought to be foolish and naïve by men. And the oil they bring in their lamps is not the eloquent wisdom of philosophers and academics, but the foolishness of Christ’s cross. As St. Paul says, “For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to those who are being saved it is the power of God. For it is written, ‘I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the discernment of the discerning I will thwart.” (1 Corinthians 1:18-19)
So, the wise at the end of the age, who will enter into the wedding hall, are not those considered wise in this world, but those found foolish by this world. An oil lamb needs oil to give light. The flame fed by the oil is saving faith, which gives you the right to enter into heaven. The oil, for which faith is entirely dependent, is the wisdom of God given by the Holy Spirit. This wisdom, which shames the wise in this age, is the preaching of Christ Jesus, who was crucified for sinners, as St. Paul again writes, “For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe. For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to the Jews and folly to the Gentiles, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.” (1 Corinthians 1:21-25)
But why do the wise find the cross of Christ so foolish? For many reasons. People cannot understand how God could credit the sins of the whole world onto an innocent Jesus or how his punishment on the cross could make atonement for all sins. Others question the justice of God, claiming that it would be wrong for God to demand such punishment from his only Son. To many, the vicarious atonement of Christ is barbaric and unacceptable. Some have even coined it “divine child abuse.” Many more find a problem with Christ’s resurrection from the dead, claiming it to be impossible.
While many find the idea of a suffering Lord unacceptable, many more find the idea of a suffering Christian equally intolerable. That God’s power is made perfect in our weakness makes no sense in a world of survival of the fittest. “Suffering is bad. Meekness is a losing strategy. Sorrow over sin is dwelling on the past and being self-defeatist. You must strive to overcome your troubles by becoming stronger and better.”
The greatest offense Christ’s cross commits against the wisdom of mankind is its assault on the human pride. To say that, “When I am weak, then I am strong.” is offensive, because strength must be found within. If I do my very best, God will accept me! This is the creed of the world. To cherish the cross of Christ, you must crucify your own human wisdom and pride, acknowledge the seriousness of your own sins and look to God for free salvation. That is, you must have true, godly wisdom.
But this cannot come from your own reason or intellect. Such wisdom, such oil for your lamp is only given by the Holy Spirit. “The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned.” (1 Corinthians 2:14) This means that in order to have the wisdom of God, you must be taught by God. Proverbs 2:6 states, “For the Lord gives wisdom; from his mouth come knowledge and understanding.” This means that godly wisdom comes from the word of God.
“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge.” This statement is repeated several times in Scripture. It teaches us how we should approach Scripture. Yet, over the past few centuries a method of looking at Scripture, known as higher criticism, has become the dominant method in studying the Bible. Higher criticism aims to treat the Bible as “any other book” and in so doing, it questions the accuracy of what is written. Those, who reject higher criticism are called fools and are not taken seriously by the academic world. So, many, who don’t want to look like fools, try to have it both ways: treat the Bible like any other book and reject what seems too far-fetched to human reason, while still maintaining the Gospel. But we are not called to pick and choose what we want to believe from Scripture. Rather, in fear of the Lord we are called to hear the Word of God and keep it. This is how the Gospel is preserved among us. The holy Scriptures provide true wisdom that the world cannot give.
An oil lamp without oil is about as good as a flashlight without batteries. Yet, unless you tried to light the lamp, you might not know that the lamp has no oil. A lamp without oil may be useless, but it may also be very pretty, with fancy carvings and paintings on it. And that is how it is within the Christian Church on earth. The ten virgins all have lamps. You can’t tell who has oil, until the lamps are lit. So, Jesus teaches us that within the Christian Church on earth, there will be false Christians. They worship like Christians, they go to church, put money in the offering, and do good works. On the outside, they look like Christians. Yet, you don’t go to heaven for looking like a Christian. You go to heaven if you trust in Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, that is, if you have oil for your lamp.
Jesus says at the close of his Sermon on the Mount, “Everyone who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. … And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand.” (Matthew 7:24, 26) Notice, how both the wise man and the foolish man heard the words of Jesus. Not everyone, who hears the words of Jesus will be saved, but those who put their trust in Christ. God judges the inner heart. You can’t pretend to him. Having oil, which keeps your lamp burning, is trusting in the foolishness of Christ’s cross for your salvation.
This is why it is so important not only to be baptized and go through the motions of being a Christian, getting confirmed, showing up for services, etc. Being a true Christian and having wisdom from God is trusting in Christ. And this of course will cause you to come to church and hear God’s word and take it to heart.
Oil runs out and lamps grow cold. That’s just a matter of fact. And, so can your heart grow cold if it does not get replenished with the wisdom of God. This means that you must continue to hear the word of God. Of course, for those who trust in the Lord, this is not a burden. “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path!” says the Psalmist.
While hearing the word of God throughout your life, it is important that you hear not only the Gospel, which declares that your sins are forgiven for Christ’s sake, but that you also hear the Law. The Law is often despised, because it shows us our sins. Fornicators don’t want to hear that their fornicating is a sin. People with hot tempers don’t want to hear that their anger is a sin. Disobedient children don’t want to hear that their disobedience is a sin. And it goes on and on like this. Yet, it is important to hear the law for a couple of big reasons. First, your sins must be exposed to your conscience. When the law is preached to its fullest and you have nowhere to go, but to acknowledge that you are a sinner, then you are truly prepared to hear the Gospel. The Gospel is for sinners, for those who can claim no righteousness of their own, but must cling to Jesus for forgiveness and salvation. And Jesus forgives all sins.
Secondly, you should hear the law, because the law is good. It tells you how to love God and your neighbor. And as a Christian, who has the Holy Spirit dwelling in you, your desire it to do the will of God. And the will of God is revealed in the Law, which directs you to love as God has loved. So, it is important to listen to and learn the law of God, even when it points out your sin, as the Proverb says, “Do not reprove a scoffer, or he will hate you; reprove a wiseman, and he will love you. Give instruction to a wise man, and he will be still wiser; teach a righteous man, and he will increase in learning.” (Proverbs 9:8-9)
Yet, however important it is to hear the law, the Gospel must predominate. Because, it is not by following the law that you will be saved, but through believing the Gospel. The Gospel is the oil, which keeps your saving flame alive. Jesus warns that you know not the day or the hour when Christ will return and St. Paul says that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. Yet, you will not be caught off guard when you have faith in the salvation Christ has won for you. St. Paul tells us to prepare ourselves by putting on the breastplate of faith and love, and for a helmet the hope of salvation. “for God has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ.” You can only have such certainty that God has destined you for salvation if you hold fast to the foolishness of the cross, which is the true oil for your lamp. Christ has secured your salvation through his death on the cross and resurrection from the tomb. With such faith, you will not be put to shame. With such faith, you are prepared whenever that Day will come. Amen.

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Last Sunday of the Church Year (Trinity 27) The Bridegroom Comes When You Least Expect. Be Prepared!

11/22/2016

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Matthew 25:1-13
The Bridegroom Comes When You Least Expect. Be Prepared!
Pastor James Preus
Trinity Lutheran Church
11/20/2016

"Watch, therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour." Jesus himself tells us the theme of this parable. Watch! Be prepared! This is a message of urgency. Why so urgent? Because you don't know when Christ will return in judgment. St. Paul says, "the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night." (1 Thess. 5:2) And Jesus says, "But know this, that if the master of the house had known in what part of the night the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and would not have let his house be broken into." (Matthew 24:43) So also, Christ will come when you do not expect, so you must always be prepared for his coming.

Jesus tells us a story to emphasize this urgency. The Bridegroom is Christ Jesus. He comes to take his bride. The ten virgins are Christians, well, at least in appearance. The foolish virgins are Christians in appearance only. Like virgins, they look pure. They go to church and receive the Sacrament. They are on the membership rolls. But they don't actually have faith in Christ. The wise virgins are the true Christians. Their wisdom is not that acquired at universities or even the prestigious time-earned University of Life. Their wisdom is the wisdom of the Holy Spirit. Their wisdom is faith, which trusts in Christ alone for eternal salvation.

The foolish virgins are foolish, because they didn't bring oil with their lamps. The wise virgins are wise, because they did bring oil. Oil symbolizes faith. Without oil the lamps are useless. You might as well not bring them. Oil is needed to brighten the path. If it is midnight and you have no oil, you have no light and no way to greet the Bridegroom when he comes. So also without faith you cannot even recognize Christ at his return.

What is faith? Faith is not only knowledge of God and who Jesus is, but it is a firm trust that God will do as he promises in Christ Jesus. By faith you believe that your sins are truly forgiven for the sake of Christ. By faith you believe that Christ returns not to condemn you, but to receive you as his own and give you eternal life.

The Bridegroom delays. The virgins fall asleep. There is much speculation as to what it means to fall asleep. To fall asleep can symbolize falling into a life of sin. To fall asleep can also mean to die. Jesus probably mentions that they fall asleep here to emphasize that they don't know when the Bridegroom is coming. The Bridegroom comes at midnight; an unexpected time to receive anyone. No one, neither the foolish nor the wise knew that the Bridegroom would arrive at that time. And yet, the wise are not caught off guard as St. Paul writes, "But you are not in darkness, brothers, for that day to surprise you like a thief. For you are children of the light." Although the sun's rays are banished, the wise virgins' lamps shine bright. They are prepared for the Bridegroom to come at any time. Their faith lights the way.

To have faith is to trust like a child. A child trusts that her parents will take care of her. She doesn't worry about where her food will come from, where she will sleep, if the heat will stay on, or if her father will come home, unless something terribly wrong happens. Normally I help put our children to bed, read them stories, say prayers and sing hymns with them. But when I have an evening meeting, Bible study, or Saturday night church I don't get back until after Theresa has put the kids to bed. But when I open the front door, I will hear from Clara's bedroom, "Daddies home!" Clara was waiting up in bed for me to come home. I go up, sing her a hymn and kiss her goodnight. But sometimes, I'm delayed and when I go to give Clara a good night kiss she is already asleep. She grew tired of waiting.

But Clara didn't stop trusting that I would come home. She fell asleep. She's two. But she fell asleep confident that her father would come home. She's not surprised to wake up in the morning to find me getting ready for the day. And so it is with those of faith. They trust that Christ will return. They don't know when. But they are confident he will return and love them as he promised he would. And as they wait they trust that Christ will continue to forgive their sins and protect them from every attack of the devil, just as a little child trusts that her parents will provide her with all she needs each day.

You must have oil or you won't be ready. You must have faith or you will be unprepared. But oil runs out. You must know where to get it. Where do you get faith?

"Faith comes from hearing and hearing through the word of Christ," so says St. Paul in Romans 10:17. Faith is a gift from God (Ephesians 2:10) The Holy Spirit creates faith through the proclamation of the Gospel. The Gospel is a special word. It tells you that God sent his Son Christ Jesus into the world to save sinners. (1 Tim. 1:15) It is by Jesus' death that all sins are taken away. Through this proclamation a terrified sinner is brought to reconciliation with God. God himself creates sincere trust in the hearts of people through the promise of God's love, forgiveness, and grace.

God's Word creates faith, but as I said, oil runs out. It burns. So you must know where to find more. When a Christian is baptized and brought to faith Satan, the world, and his sinful flesh work hard to burn out the oil of faith. They lead into temptation, cast doubts, and present attractive false gods before the Christian, anything that will run out the oil and snuff out the lamp.

So the Christian must continue to hear God's word, to fill up with that oil that lights the way. The Christian does this by hearing God's Word and receiving Christ's body and blood in faith for the forgiveness of sins. This is how the Christian prepares for that Day that will come as a thief, as the author to the Hebrews writes, "Do not neglect to meet together as is the habit of some, but encourage one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near." (Hebrews 10:25)

But the Christian doesn't hear God's Word and receive the Sacrament simply to be prepared, like a man dutifully filling up his tank with gas before driving a long distance. If you are a Christian, you want to hear God's Word. You yearn for Christ's body and blood in the Sacrament. The Psalmist writes, "Lead me in the path of your commandments, for I delight in it." (Psalm 119:35) The Christian loves God, wants to be with God. Like a little girl waiting for her daddy to come home and give her a kiss; or a wife waiting up for her husband to return and embrace her and tell her he loves her, so a Christian desires to be with God, to hear his word, to receive his grace. The proclamation of the Gospel not only creates faith, but faith desires to hear the proclamation of the Gospel.

The word for wise used in this text comes from the word  to think. To be wise in the Holy Spirit means you want to learn the mysteries of God. You want to read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest God's teachings. Faith drives you to hear God's Word as often as you can. It makes you hungry for more knowledge of Christ, of God's love for you and his desire for you. Faith causes you to treat God's Word and Sacraments as a priceless treasure. It is what causes parents to bring their babies to be baptized, to talk to them about Jesus before they can even speak. A living faith causes you to confess your faith often, to discuss it with your family and friends, and to always desire to learn more.

If such a desire is weak in you, if you are bored with the Gospel or hate hearing it or talking about it, your oil may be low or even out. You need to hear God's Word or you will not be prepared.

When the Bridegroom arrived suddenly the foolish virgins were caught off guard. They had no oil. They asked the wise virgins to share. But no one can have faith for another. Each person must have his own faith. So the fools ran off to buy oil. But there was no time. This is how many people think. I don't need to go to church. It will always be there for me when I need it. They treat faith like Wikipedia. I don't need to know the answer. I can always look it up when I need it. But you can't. Christ will return like a thief in the night and there will be no time. You either have oil or you don't. You either have faith or you don't.

"Amen, I say to you, I do not know you," the Bridegroom will say to the foolish virgins from behind a locked door. "Amen." That is what we say at the end of a prayer to confess, "Yes, yes, it shall be so!" But here the Bridegroom says, "Yes, yes, I say to you, I do not know you." There is no worse sentence to hear. It is a proclamation of judgment. And it leaves no room for uncertainty. Those without faith will be shut out of the marriage feast. Rather they will be cast to the outer darkness where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

But those who were ready went in with the Bridegroom to the marriage feast. What will it be like for them? St. John writes in Revelation 21, "And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, 'Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.'" (2-4)

Christ Jesus is the Bridegroom. His holy bride is the Church, the community of saints washed clean by his blood. You are not simply attendants to this wedding following in the procession. You are the bride. Christ is your husband. And as a husband gives all that he has to his bride, so Christ gives all things to you. St. Paul writes, "If God gave us His Son, how then has He not also given us all things." (Romans 8:32) Christ gives all he has to his Church. He defeated sin, death, and the devil. So you have victory over these three tyrants. Christ has an eternal kingdom, so you too receive heaven as your home. Health, peace, gladness, they are all yours. Your tears will be wiped away, your mourning will be no more, and death will be a forgotten memory.

All this you can expect, although you don't know when to expect it. But with your flask filled with oil from God's Word you are as certain that Christ will come and give you all this and more as a little girl is certain her daddy will kiss her goodnight. With such faith you are prepared.

Amen.

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"For faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ." ~ Romans 10:17

How the Wise Keep Watch

Be Watchful

Watch Therefore, For You Know Neither The Day Nor The Hour.

Last Sunday of the Church Year: Have Oil in Your Lamps

Last Sunday of the Church Year (Trinity 27) The Bridegroom Comes When You Least Expect. Be Prepared!

Rev. James Preus

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