Nov. 9, 2014 22nd Sunday of Pentecost

Matthew 25:1-13

25:1 “Then the Kingdom of Heaven will be like ten virgins, who took their lamps, and went out to meet the bridegroom. 25:2 Five of them were foolish, and five were wise. 25:3 Those who were foolish, when they took their lamps, took no oil with them, 25:4 but the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps. 25:5 Now while the bridegroom delayed, they all slumbered and slept. 25:6 But at midnight there was a cry, ‘Behold! The bridegroom is coming! Come out to meet him!’ 25:7 Then all those virgins arose, and trimmed their lamps. 25:8 The foolish said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ 25:9 But the wise answered, saying, ‘What if there isn’t enough for us and you? You go rather to those who sell, and buy for yourselves.’ 25:10 While they went away to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the marriage feast, and the door was shut. 25:11 Afterward the other virgins also came, saying, ‘Lord, Lord, open to us.’ 25:12 But he answered, ‘Most certainly I tell you, I don’t know you.’ 25:13 Watch therefore, for you don’t know the day nor the hour in which the Son of Man is coming.

“GIVING THE GIFT”

Grace alone saves, but grace is never alone.
Grace is a free gift of Gods love in Jesus Christ. yet grace is not cheap.
“It demands my life, my soul, my all.”

It is by grace that we are saved, yet grace which makes no difference in who we are and how we are, becomes no grace at all.

The five foolish bridesmaids mirror this for us.
We dare not take grace for granted.  We must always be ready when the moment of ministry comes.  The moment to live out our gift of grace.
They were not ready and they missed the opportunity and the party.

The 5 bridesmaids who had enough oil and could not share it remind us that:

There are some things no one can do for me - I have to do it for myself.  I have to be responsible if there is enough oil in my lamp.  Co-dependency results when you try to do this for me.  
As Post Grape-nuts ad says, “You gotta try it a week- for yourself.”

Missed opportunities are just that - missed opportunities in which something of the goodness of life is lost and something of the grace of God is missing.
We need to be ready to be responsible to others, with enough oil in our lamps to be a source of hope, comfort, and joy to them.  We need to be ready to give the gift we have been given - the gift of grace!