Be Ready
Grace to you and
peace from God our Father, and from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.
Be ready! Jesus is
coming back. Though He has delayed these many years for the sake of the elect,
He is coming soon. We are to expect His return at any moment. To give up hope,
to live as though only this short life mattered, or as though the wait would
last forever, is to throw your lot in with the devil.
The ten virgins
all look the same. In weakness, they all fell asleep. This is not a parable
about good works. This is a parable about faith. The foolish virgins had burned
up their oil, exhausted their faith for something other than the coming
Bridegroom. They figured that, if He was coming at all, they’d have time to
make up for their sins. He came unexpectedly. The unprepared were shut out.
They was no time for deathbed repentance. They were damned. He says, “Truly, I do not know you.” Be warned.
The wise virgins
also were caught unawares. They had not kept the vigil, either. Somehow,
though, they still had oil. They trimmed their lamps and were welcomed into the
bridal chamber. Somehow, during the wait, they managed to never completely
forget what they were waiting for, what really mattered, who was coming. They
still had oil. That’s what faith is. It is not the outward appearance of good
works, such as being a virgin. It is not a perfect keeping of the Law. Rather,
the wisdom of faith is to remain aware that we are waiting, that this short
life is not all that there is, that He who has bought us with His life is
coming back.
There is danger in
the waiting. Satan has his season. He has asked to sift you like wheat. Will
your faith be consumed? At confirmation, full of zeal, we were bold to say with
St. Peter: “Lord, I am ready to go with You,
into prison and into death.” But before the night was over, we fell asleep
on the watch. It was too bothersome to keep praying. When things get bleak,
when the pressure mounts, we deny our Lord, hoping it will gain us the
favorable opinions of men. Repent. Repent before it is too late, before the
door is shut, before the night comes when no man can work. Like St. Peter
before you, repent and be welcomed back by grace. Faith that lives by grace—that
is, faith that does not rely on its own strength but is rather a submission to
the will of God—will not be consumed in the waiting. God intervenes for His
children. He wakes them, rebukes them, and forgives them. He fills the oil
flask with His Word.
While we wait, He
fills and prepares us by coming here and now in the Sacrament. He joins us to
Himself by entering into our fallen flesh with His crucified, risen, and
ascended body and blood. His innocence resides in our hearts. He is our King
who rules in our lives. He died in our place, the Innocent for the guilty. And
we proclaim that death every time we eat and drink His body and blood until He
comes again.
Here is oil for
your lamps; here is food for your soul! Here He encourages, nourishes, and
strengthens you for the watch. The Bridegroom comes now with forgiveness, life,
and salvation, with strength for the day. Heaven is opened, and He gently
whispers into your ear, “Hang on. I have not forgotten you. I am with you
always. Soon I shall return and complete what I began in you when I gave you My
name in Holy Baptism!”
Be watchful. His
return is not so far off as it once was. You have fallen asleep. But He loves
you nonetheless. He bids you come to Him, to bask in His forgiving presence, to
feast upon the very Bread of life! This is the only way to stay awake, to fend
off the cold boredom of a long watch as we wait for His final coming. Even so,
Lord Jesus, come quickly. In the name of the Father and of the Son (†) and of
the Holy Spirit. Amen.
The
peace of God which passes all understanding will keep your hearts and minds in
Christ Jesus always. Amen.
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