YE PREPARE

AUGUST 27-30, 2009 THURSDAY-SUNDAY SCRIPTURE MATTHEW 25

TEXT http://net.bible.org/bible.php?book=Mat&chapter=25

MESSAGE

Jesus tells his disciples three more stories to illustrate what the kingdom of heaven will be like when He returns in Judgment at the end of time.

“Wise vs Foolish Preparation”

He says the kingdom of heaven is like ten virgins who go out to meet a bridegroom with five virgins wisely preparing for the wait because they bring extra oil to keep their lamps lit, with five virgins foolishly preparing because they fail to bring extra oil for their lamps such that they start to extinguish while they sleep during the period of waiting.

When announced at midnight the bridegroom has arrived and the virgins wake up, the foolish unprepared virgins ask the wise prepared virgins for oil to keep their lamps lit but are told there isn’t enough to go around and that they need to go and buy some. But while off buying oil the bridegroom comes and the prepared wise virgins enter the wedding banquet with the unprepared foolish virgins returning after the door has been closed. When they call out for the bridegroom to open the door for them, he responds by telling them he doesn’t know them.

Jesus ends this story with the same warning he has previously given in the stories he has told about the day of Noah, those working in the field or grinding grain, the thief who comes in the middle of the night, and the servants put in charge of the master’s household, i.e. be prepared because you don’t know when his second coming will occur.

“Wise vs Foolish Management”

Jesus went on to illustrate what the kingdom of heaven will be like when He returns with a story about a man who before going on a journey gives three of his servants different sums of money to manage based on their ability. When the man returns after being gone a long time he meets with his servants to review what they have done with the money they were given to manage.

The servant who had been given $5000 managed it wisely and doubled it to $10,000 and the servant who had been given $2000 also doubled his money to $4000 by managing it wisely. Being very pleased with these servants faithful management of a few things, the master put them in charge of many things which allowed them to share in his happiness as well.

However, the third servant who had been given $1000, considering the master a hard man who profited from the work of others, was afraid, because either way, if he mismanaged the money and lost it or if he managed it well and increased it, he felt exploited by the master. Therefore he hid the money while the master was away and returned it to him without even having deposited the money in a bank to obtain interest which wouldn’t have required any work or effort on his part at all.

Because of this the master gave the servant’s $1000 to the servant with $10000 saying that whoever has will be given more to the point of having an abundance and whoever doesn’t have, whatever they have taken away and they will be thrown outside the kingdom of heaven into the darkness where they will suffer.

“Heartfelt Brotherly Love vs Neglect”

In his final story illustrating what the kingdom of heaven will be like when He returns, Jesus describes sitting on his throne in glory, surrounded by all the angels, with all the people of the world gathered before him.

And just as at the end of the day a shepherd separates the flock by placing the sheep on his right and the goats on his left, Jesus as King tells those on his right they have been blessed by His Father with entry into the kingdom prepared for them since creation because without realizing it, the help they have given his disciples when they have been hungry, thirsty, homeless, sick, naked, and/or in prison – they have done for him.

Then Jesus as King tells those on his left they are cursed with entrance into Hell because without realizing it, their neglect of his disciples when they have been hungry, thirsty, homeless, sick, naked, and/or in prison – has been their neglect of him.

Jesus ends by telling those who neglected his disciples with cold hearts they will be eternally punished in hell and those who helped his disciples with loving hearts they will live eternally in the kingdom of heaven.

TEACHING

Jesus tells his disciples three more stories about: (1) wise & foolish preparation, (2) wise and foolish management and (3) heartfelt brotherly love & neglect in further illustrating what the kingdom of heaven will be like when He returns on Judgment Day.

His illustration about wise & foolish preparation is told using a wedding story in which ten bridesmaids are waiting to escort the bridegroom, who is delayed in coming from the bride’s house, to his house where the celebration is to formally begin. In the story, Jesus is the bridegroom and those who have wisely prepared for the delay in the bridegroom’s coming are those who have prepared over their lifetimes for his return at any moment – at the midnight hour like when the thief in the night comes. On the other hand, those who have foolishly prepared for the delay in the bridegroom’s coming such that their running out of oil was causing their lamps to go out would be viewed as imposters crashing the wedding ceremony, are those who have not prepared over their lifetimes for his return at any moment – at the midnight hour. Those who have prepared over their lifetimes for Jesus to return at any moment, like the five bridesmaids who enter the wedding banquet before the door is closed, will enter the kingdom of heaven. However, those who have not prepared over their lifetimes for Jesus to return at any moment, like the five bridesmaids who after running out to buy oil came back to a closed banquet door, will be told by Jesus that he doesn’t know them and the door to the kingdom of heaven will remain closed to them despite their desperate pleas for it to be opened.

His illustration about wise and foolish management is told using a story about a master who returns from a long journey and reviews how his three servants have done managing the differing sums of money they were left in charge of (based on their abilities) while he was gone. Two of the servants faithfully manage the money left to them with one servant doubling $5000 to $10000 and the other servant doubling $2000 to $4000. Being very pleased with these servant’s management of small matters the master not only places them in charge of managing larger matters but allows them to share in his happiness. However, the third servant who had received substantially less to manage, $1000, feared the master who he felt would exploit him no matter what the outcome of his efforts would be, i.e. if he lost money in managing it his efforts wouldn’t be appreciated and if he gained money in managing it his efforts likewise wouldn’t be appreciated. Paralyzed by fear, the third servant did nothing productive and instead hid the money, returning the exact amount he had been given to the master upon his return. This resulted in the master scolding him for not even making the effort to get simple interest on the money from the bank. The master took this servant’s $1000 and gave it to the servant with $10000. Jesus makes his point through the master’s words that being prepared for his return doesn’t involve playing it safe like the servant who was paralyzed with fear, but instead producing results for the kingdom of heaven by growing and developing the gifts and resources given to us by God.

Jesus’ final illustration about heartfelt brotherly love & neglect uses a story about a shepherd separating the sheep from the goats at the end of the day’s grazing with the sheep going to the shepherd’s right and the goat’s going to the shepherd’s left. He uses this analogy to represent how at the end of time when he returns on his throne, surrounded by all the angels, as Judge over all people, he too will separate the righteous from the unrighteous. The righteous (those having hearts of love, who aren’t consciously aware they’ve doing anything special, whose care of his disciples when they’ve been hungry, thirsty, homeless, sick, naked, and/or in prison has been the same as caring for him) will go to his right and be blessed to eternal life in the kingdom of heaven. And, the unrighteous (those having cold hearts and who aren’t consciously aware they’ve done nothing wrong by neglecting his disciples when they’ve been hungry, thirsty, homeless, sick, naked and/or in prison has been the same as neglecting him) will go to the left and be cursed to eternal punishment in hell.

HEALING

Our Father in Heaven, we thank You for Your Word and for these stories Your Son tells us about how to prepare for His return. We thank you LORD for knowledge that we need to prepare for Your Son’s return by the way we live our life, that when midnight arrives for us it will be too late to buy oil, light our lamps, greet the bridegroom and enter the banquet hall before the door closes. LORD, we ask that through the power of Your Holy Spirit not only would our lamps be lit, but remain powerfully lit so they would shine brightly for others to see and help lead them to preparation before midnight arrives in their lives.

Our Father in Heaven, forgive us for all the times we have lived like the servant who hid the money given to him by his master rather than multiplying the gifts and resources You have given us to build up the kingdom of heaven. LORD, You are Almighty and All Powerful. Your Son fed 5000 and 4000 with just a few loaves and a few fish. Help the unbelief in our minds that paralyzes us from serving You and others as Your Son promised we are capable of doing with faith the size of a mustard seed.

Our Father in Heaven, transform our hearts and our minds through the Sacrifice Your Son made for us. LORD, change us through this, Your Love, so that out of our heart can flow acts of mercy and love as well, acts of compassion for your disciples who are in need and acts of compassion for our neighbors who are in need as well. LORD, Your Son came to the least of these, the outcasts, the rejected, the meek, the lonely – to Liberate the oppressed. Heal us through Your mercy, forgiveness and grace so that we may be agents of healing in this world and through acts of kindness and compassion, preach this Liberating Gospel until Your Son’s return.

In His Name, Amen.

SONG 'Sheep And The Goats, The' by Keith Green @imeem http://x.imeem.com/vyUDMDNVGZ