Listen for the Rooster- Mark 13:24-37

I ate too much Turkey, I ate too much corn,I ate too much pudding and pie.I'm stuffed up with muffins and too much stuffin'I'm feel like I’m going to die.
I piled up my plate and I ate and I ate.But I wish I had known when to stop,For I'm so crammed with yams, sauces, gravies, and jamsThat my buttons are starting to pop!
I'm full of potatoes and fresh baked rolls,My stomach is swollen and sore,But there's still some dessert so I guess it won't hurt
if I eat just a little bit more!
Anonymous
Pray- Lord- we come to you ready to eat a true meal. We are ready to feast on your word. We need nourishment for our souls- our lives- our family
So Lord- May the words of my mouth...
Mark 13:24-37– 24 "But in those days, following that distress,
"'the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light;
25 the stars will fall from the sky, and the heavenly bodies will be shaken.'
26 "At that time men will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory. 27 And he will send his angels and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of the heavens.
28 "Now learn this lesson from the fig tree: As soon as its twigs get tender and its leaves come out, you know that summer is near. 29 Even so, when you see these things happening, you know that it is near, right at the door. 30 I tell you the truth, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened. 31 Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.
32 "No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. 33 Be on guard! Be alert! You do not know when that time will come. 34 It's like a man going away: He leaves his house and puts his servants in charge, each with his assigned task, and tells the one at the door to keep watch.
35 "Therefore keep watch because you do not know when the owner of the house will come back-whether in the evening, or at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or at dawn. 36 If he comes suddenly, do not let him find you sleeping. 37 What I say to you, I say to everyone: 'Watch!'"
We read scriptures like these- at the beginning of Advent- because Advent is a season when we are reminded to be people on Watch.
Truths from this scripture:
We don’t know the date and time
There are many who spend their days and time trying to figure out when Jesus is coming back. But v. 32 says: No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.
There are signs that have happened, v. 30 I tell you the truth, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened.
There are signs that are happening, v. 29 Even so, when you see these things happening, you know that it is near, right at the door.
How can something be imminent - how can the Second Coming of Christ be both imminent and yet its signs happened for Jesus’ generation as they do in ours?
I can’t explain this away- this teaching is what it is.
Signs can be Obvious and Subtle- the subtle signs Jesus uses as examples are fig tree twigs and leaves- as well as quoting Isaiah 13:10 and Isaiah 34:4
The trick with signs is connecting their presence with what they are trying to point out-
Danny Illustration- of watching Charlie Brown’s thanksgiving- DVD- credits- he didn’t see them as a sign of the end of the DVD- but I knew- that this meant that the story was over
Sometimes we see the signs, sometimes we don’t
Signs can be misleading: There's a sign above the scale in my bathroom that says "Pretend it's your IQ."
Signs of Jesus’ approaching birth:
Ancient signs: prophecies- then the dreams- then the star
Modern signs: Commercialization of Christmas- we have already had a family argument about the ads in the paper on the day after Thanksgiving- are they "Christmas" ads- are are they "capitalism" ads. To me they are not advertising Jesus Christ.
How does this scripture relate to my daily living?:
What does it mean to "watch" in everyday life? What does it mean to "listen for the rooster"?
Life is meant to be lived in expectancy and hope, not in fear and despair
Life is to be lived as if everyday is your last day.
We are so busy- Sometimes we get so tired
An elderly couple stare silently at each other- as they have just bailed their adult child out of another life disaster- they feel frustrated...
A young parent- wakes up yet again to a screaming child- wondering if maybe God made a mistake in making them a parent, because they feel impatient...
A teenager gets home late Friday night after their game, his parents weren’t there again. A sore throat has set in, homework is piling up- what’s the point? He feels lost and lonely....
A father tries to come to grips with the cancer diagnosis for his 17 year old son
We, in the midst of this fantasized commercialized holiday season, are living real and sometimes painful, tiring lives
We are tempted to SLEEP. Physical SLEEP is okay. But we are tempted to SLEEP spiritually and slide into Spiritual Laziness- it is all to easy to drift into meaningless habits in our lives- as a sort of pain reliever for the problems in our lives
I am speaking to myself too- Steve Martin joke about criticism
We MUST NOT SLEEP- We are called to WATCH- to be Spiritually AWAKE- we MUST be people of prayer, fasting, study, service and worship
What is a rooster- It is essentially a living noise-maker. It was made by God to make noise- noise that Jars one awake.- it is an ancient alarm clock
God- wants you to be awake this Advent Season
To be ready to be used by God to bring a little bit more beauty and love into this world- The very next story in Mark is the story of a woman anointing Jesus with a very expensive jar of perfume. The disciples chastised her for wasting money.
She was awake to the fact that her savior was right in front of her- and she wanted to honor him with a beautiful act of kindness
Are we awake to the fact that Jesus is here in the midst of us? Matthew 18:20?
The more AWAKE we are to the Living Reality of Christ in our midst- the more we will become servants of His cause- servants of Love, Forgivness, Mercy, Kindness, and Beauty
I am convinced that the more beauty, forgiveness and love we bring into the world- brings a bit closer to the final return of Christ
I want to spend my life AWAKE and WATCHING for the possibilities- the signs God puts in my life that say- "help this person out" "say a kind word"
"it’s time to swallow your pride and ask forgiveness"
I don’t want to be surprised by the rooster
I want to be listening for the rooster
Jesus said: If he comes suddenly, do not let him find you sleeping. 37 What I say to you, I say to everyone: 'Watch!'"
Amen.

What's wrong with being a goat?

What’s Wrong With Being A Goat?
This is NOT a parable- Jesus says: When the Son of Man comes -
"When" ---- Not "If"- As you listen to this forshadowing of the end of history- put yourself in a mental place where you grapple with the fact that this will happen- and you will be a part of this story- on one side or the other.
Matt 25:31-46- 31 "When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory. 32 All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33 He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.
34 "Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.'
37 "Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?'
40 "The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.'
41 "Then he will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. 42 For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, 43 I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.'
44 "They also will answer, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?'
45 "He will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.'
46 "Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life."



Who is a Goat?
What’s Wrong with Being a Goat?- That’s what we will be looking into
Those who were hoping for a zoological ethics sermon today will be disappointed
We are looking at the spiritual meaning of being a goat.
Unable to See Christ-
Who is a Sheep?
Definitely something that would be difficult to determine here on earth
Unless we could see each action of every person and judge if they are serving the least of these- when they have opportunity
Right off we can tell that neither a goal or sheep is based on dogmas.
Not based on Doctrine-Based on Action
So in order to figure out what’s wrong with being a spiritual goat we will also consider What’s Right with Being a Sheep?
What makes these two groups different?
Conviction- Goats Lack Christian Conviction-
To be Christian means: becoming Christ-like.
To have Christian Conviction- simply means- in the truest sense- that you have a conviction to be like Christ.
Christian Conviction is Not first and foremost a set of religious or political values.
It is first and foremost the fruit of being in a relationship with Jesus Christ. Believing in Christ Jesus- his life, teachings, death and resurrection- and praying to Christ Jesus will produce a conviction to be Christ like
The Goats lack this initial fruit. They may have a set of values- but they may have no relationship with Jesus- no conviction to become Christ like, to become a selfless servant of others.
Goats may have convictions. But values don’t save people. Only Jesus saves. Only a relationship with God saves you. We become servants because we see Christ in the scriptures and see that He was a servant. We see that God in the flesh took time to feed the poor, heal the sick, weep with the grieving, make the blind see and the lame walk.
In serving others, even though we will not be seeing the historical face of Jesus we will be seeing the actual face of Jesus.
Vision phrase: We do what we do for an audience of one-
We do what we do for an audience of One
We may not end poverty, we may not cure a disease, we may not feed all the hungry- and I say "May" because by God’s grace we may solve some of these problems- cure some disease- But We may be depressed if troubles rage on- despite our service- but we will serve, because we are convicted to love others- because Christ has loved us.
We serve For the Glory of God- for an audience of One.
Believing in Christ- means believing that God is a God of love
Being a Christian- means putting in an operating system that calls you to love- to see people and to see their needs
Irony- the sheep are so committed to the vision of christ- when it is all said and done they don’t realize that they have been serving Christ the whole time-
How does one get there?
You don’t get Conviction to be a servant by excessive knowledge
We don’t want to be a notebook church- where we come and fill our brain but we don’t serve and change the community
Knowledge without loving action is self righteousness
Conviction to be Christ-like comes from an obvious source. It is a free gift of God. If we sincerely spend time with Christ in reading the gospels and in prayer. Christ will give you conviction.
Here’s my illogical deep thought: You know you have enough conviction to be christ-like when you know you can never have enough conviction to be Christ-like.
Curse vs. Blessing- Sheep Bless others, Goats curse others by their inactions and are Cursed to punishment
v41 Then he will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.
46 "Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life."
To forget that there are needs- that there are hurting people, starving people, imprisoned people- lost folks- is perilous-for them and for you.
Church folk can become hardened- Church folk are so "saved" they forget what it is to be lost- The Gospel is not one dimensional. It is not merely a get out of hell free card. Life with Christ- drawing closer to Jesus is a way of life.
A way of life that leads us out of cursing the world and into blessing the world
The Goats would never have cursed Christ to his face- if they had ever seen him
They were surprised that He said that they had seen Him- they were confident in their version of reality.
It is a cursed life if you are living in your own version of reality. We can’t= we aren’t able to determine what is ultimately real
My testimony from the U of C- -- "God spoke to my heart, my mind, my soul and said, "I am real, I am here and I will never leave you."
God is here- God is real- God is- according to this scripture- in and around the people of this world.
If you ignore this reality, you are living a cursed life- to say nothing of the curse that will await you after this life is over.
Calling separates sheep from goats
To the Goats- v. 41 he will say to those on his left, 'Depart
to the sheep- v.34 Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come,
Did you catch that difference?- God will only send those away who were running away from opportunities to love people in life. This is evidence that they have rejected the love of God.
God will call "come" to those who have been acting on opportunities to love.
This only makes sense. A person who chooses to be selfish in this life- to ignore God and to ignore loving God’s people- won’t enjoy heaven. Because heaven is an eternity of loving God and being with people who love God- serving God and serving God’s people
Oh we will serve in heaven. Did you know that? It is not inactive place. God cannot take people there who have rejected His sacrifice- it wouldn’t work.
We want God to call our name at the end of time.
But God is calling us right now. If you aren’t in a relationship with Christ- I hear him calling you to that relationship.
If you haven’t professed your relationship in Baptism- I hear him calling you to the water.
If you don’t have the eyes or heart to see that people in need could be Christ- God is calling you to open your eyes and serve
God is calling you. This is a deep conviction of mine.
This is why I am in Palouse. I believe I am called to help others find their calling and to encourage and build up those who have been called to serve the Lord in this community. I want to become more like Christ- and I want you to become more like Christ.
Calling- my story of being called to Palouse- is a story calling -
Did you know I really believe God made me to be here as your leader.
Don’t get me wrong- I am not saying I am God’s gift-
No, I simply, humbly believe I have been called here to be God’s servant and your leader.
I am here because I am called, because I can’t be anywhere else
I want to be here for at least the next ten years of my life- if you’ll have me
I want to help you be servants of this community-
I want to help you be people who serve the least of these
I want to reach this community for Christ
Along the years ahead of us we won’t keep track that we are serving little Jesus’s everywhere
because we will be people that are convicted to become more like Christ and in becoming like Christ we will be captured by the call of Christ to love others- and because we are captured by Christ’s love- we will do far more good than we measurably realize.
And at the end of time we will be assembled and by God’s grace we will hear, " 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.'

Thieves, A Midnight Snack and a Pregnant Woman

1 Thess 5:1-11
Now, brothers, about times and dates we do not need to write to you, 2 for you know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. 3 While people are saying, "Peace and safety," destruction will come on them suddenly, as labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape.
4 But you, brothers, are not in darkness so that this day should surprise you like a thief. 5 You are all sons of the light and sons of the day. We do not belong to the night or to the darkness. 6 So then, let us not be like others, who are asleep, but let us be alert and self-controlled. 7 For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk, get drunk at night. 8 But since we belong to the day, let us be self-controlled, putting on faith and love as a breastplate, and the hope of salvation as a helmet. 9 For God did not appoint us to suffer wrath but to receive salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ. 10 He died for us so that, whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with him. 11 Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.
(from New International Version)
Scripture Explanation: What is this part of Scripture all about?
what is the day of the Lord anyways?
When the Lord comes and makes a reckoning
The judgment at the end of the age
Mixing of metaphors:
Thief and pregnant woman- apparent contradiction?
Sleep and Night- "The DAY of the Lord"- currently we are in a "NIGHT" stage- "we belong to the day"- yet we are living "self-controlled" in the middle of the night. In this text Paul is encouraging disciples to focus on doing the work of the Lord- and avoid that which is out of their control, such as the Day of the Lord and Death
Good News:
Don’t worry about times and dates-
have you ever been mistaken?
Story of my youth and the freckle counter- my mother intentionally led me to believe there was a device that could determine how many freckles a person has on their body. Since I am freckled, this interested me.
Millerite Story- Great Disappointment 1843. Miller had determined that Christ would return on April 3rd, 1843- this obviously didn't happen.
If Paul is Not concerned with "figuring" out the day and the time- and if Jesus said "only the Father knows"- then my advice to you is to not worry about the day of the Lord
Thief In the Night:
Borrowing Paul’s Images: The Day of the Lord should not be like a robbery experience for us- but rather a birthing experience
We know the time is coming- but were not sure of the actual delivery date
Where as when you are robbed- you have no expectation and are completely surprised
Pregnancy is full of times and dates. One wants the pregnancy to go well of course- so each Dr. appointment is both an chance to find out something is not going well- or just the opposite. But as Tina and I went through her pregnancy each date meant we were closer to the birth of someone new-
When labor finally comes- if it is natural- it doesn’t arrive when you expect it- sometimes late- sometimes early Either way, the pains come in their own time for the purpose of preparing the mother to give birth
It is somewhat intriguing that Paul likens the "Day of the Lord" to both a Thief And a Pregnant Woman
They are both metaphors for how the day of the Lord will arrive- it will arrive suddenly with surprise-
Painful life-giving surprise for some and Painful life-stealing surprise for another
We are to be middle of the night people-
Maybe not literally- but figuratively
We are to be people who are awake in the midst of darkness-
We are alert when the rest of the world seems to be asleep
We should be attuned to detect injustice because we are God-lovers, and growing closer to God helps us to detect hate and injustice in the world- hate and injustice are the darkness
We are the spiritual night-watch of our community
We see the thieves before they attack and we drive them away
Spiritual thieves that come stealing faith, hope and love
We are midnight people- we are up SNACKING on the Word of God- Feasting on Prayer to God- while others are sleeping we are looking out for those in the darkness who try to sneak in leave addiction, despair, pride, greed, lust- in place of the true treasures in life
Good news there is "Peace and safety," in Christ
There are people living under illusions in this life. People believing that life with relative peace and safety is sufficient- that relationship with God is non-essential. This is an illusion.
You can say "Peace" all you want- but one does not have true peace until one has made peace with God- has embraced God’s love
Leaving God intentionally out of your life- or even worse- denying God’s existence- is folly
When destruction comes- when bad times come- when disease comes- when death comes- and it all will come to God People and Non-God People, people who deny God will be crushed by the pains
What is real peace? What is real safety? It is not the absence of conflict or loss in your life- it is trusting and embracing the love of God so that you can be a radiating source of love and trust for others as they and you go through the conflicts and losses in life. The safest place, the home of peace, is resting in the arms of Our loving God.
Good Habits: Be a humble hero- v.6 be alert and self-controlled
v. 8: "putting on faith and love as a breastplate, and the hope of salvation as a helmet"- Paul uses an ARMOR metaphor- he is saying- "you have seen heros of war put on their armor and go to battle- your armor is made of faith, hope, love and salvation- put it on and go to work."
The means to being unsurprised at the day of the Lord is to live a self controlled, faithful life- notice it has nothing to do with attending prophecy seminars or reading books with Bible codes that have it all figured out- that stuff is a waste of your God-given precious time.
If you are living a life of dedication to God, Family and Community- striving to keep your sinful nature in check- then you will not be surprised by the Day of the Lord
Let us not be lulled into being un-alert. Maybe its not drunkenness for you- maybe it is countless hours of television or trashy novels, conversations full of gossip- all these habits left uncontrolled cause you to be un-alert
There won’t be TV in heaven- did you ever think about that? Life will be real life- not vicarious living through shows, entertainment and such- if we are too invested in things on earth that have no eternal reality, this is a sign that we will be surprised at the Day of the Lord- but if we invest in the eternal parts of life- if we invest in love- if we act in kindness, if we serve others- we will be in practice for the eternal reality of God
If we’re not alert the question is: Are we really living in Christ- Or are we trying to live life our way?
Be a humble hero builder
V.11encourage one another and build each other up
What is the substance of our encouragement? We remind each other that we are called and loved by God. That we have been forgiven our sin- the first, last and all the sins in between were disposed of at the cross of Christ.
What do we build each other up into?
We are helping each other become humble heroes of faith, hope and love. That’s my job too. I encourage all of you, to encourage and build each other up to become humble heroes of the faith. People wanting to spread love. People who hope and light into dark places and times. People who share faith with those who linger in despair, lost in unbelief.
Beautiful Verses:9 For God did not appoint us to suffer wrath but to receive salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ. 10 He died for us so that, whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with him.
God did not create us so that we would be in everlasting punishment forever- even the idea seems odd. God calls us instead to salvation- to seeing life as it really is- this we receive through worshiping and knowing Jesus Christ. Whether we die or whether we live= we are with Christ. We must embrace this truth not as dogma= not as a mere required belief statement or a certain uttered prayer= no it is much deeper than that
We must embrace that Christ died for us- live with that as our total foundation of our identity- our source of self-worth , our drive to love self and others. He loves us so we build up and encourage others. To be Humble Heroes- working in the midst of the night
Story of one such hero: At the height of WWII, Protestant theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer was imprisoned for taking a stand against Hitler. Yet he continued to urge fellow believers to resist Nazi tyranny. A group of Christians, believing that Hitler was the Antichrist, asked Bonhoeffer, "Why do you expose yourself to all this danger? Jesus will return any day, and all your work and suffering will be for nothing."
Bonhoeffer replied, "If Jesus returns tomorrow, then tomorrow I’ll rest from my labor. But today I have work to do. I must continue the struggle until it’s finished."
Don't worry about the day that your life will end, or the day that the world will end. This is beyond your control. Instead, be humble heroes of the night- until Christ calls you home, you have work to do.
amen.

Give Me Diesel for My Truck- Matthew 25:1-13

PRAY- Give Me Diesel for my truck-
The Scripture Lesson is partly about time- and not being late.
A man pacing back and forth glanced at his watch and yelled upstairs to his wife, "Honey, are you ready yet? We're going to be late for the party."
Shouting back, the woman replies, "For crying out loud, Ed, I've been telling you for the last half hour that I'll be ready in a minute!"
Our scripture today is about being late for a party- its teaching to "not be late" is not aimed at unbelievers- it is aimed at believers- Let’s read it
Matt 25:1-13- 25:1 "At that time the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. 2 Five of them were foolish and five were wise. 3 The foolish ones took their lamps but did not take any oil with them. 4 The wise, however, took oil in jars along with their lamps. 5 The bridegroom was a long time in coming, and they all became drowsy and fell asleep.
6 "At midnight the cry rang out: 'Here's the bridegroom! Come out to meet him!'
7 "Then all the virgins woke up and trimmed their lamps. 8 The foolish ones said to the wise, 'Give us some of your oil; our lamps are going out.'
9 "'No,' they replied, 'there may not be enough for both us and you. Instead, go to those who sell oil and buy some for yourselves.'
10 "But while they were on their way to buy the oil, the bridegroom arrived. The virgins who were ready went in with him to the wedding banquet. And the door was shut.
11 "Later the others also came. 'Sir! Sir!' they said. 'Open the door for us!'
12 "But he replied, 'I tell you the truth, I don't know you.'
13 "Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour.
(from New International Version)
Sometimes it is important to translate the scriptures- into present day terms- to get the understanding
Matt 25:1-13- The NDV- New Diesel Version
25:1 "At that time the kingdom of heaven will be like ten farmers who took their trucks and went out to meet the John Deere Dealer who was giving free use demonstrations of a new combine. 2 Five of them were foolish and five were wise. 3 The foolish ones took their trucks but did not take a second tank of diesel with them. 4 The wise farmers, however, had diesel in a second tank along with a full tank in their truck. 5 The John Deere Dealer was a long time in coming, and they all became drowsy and fell asleep with their trucks running.
6 "At midnight the cry rang out: 'The Dealer is coming! Come out to meet him!'
7 "Then all the farmers woke up and put their trucks in gear. 8 The foolish ones said to the wise, 'Give us some of your diesel; our trucks are going to be empty soon.'
9 "'No,' they replied, 'there may not be enough for both us and you. Instead, go to a Busch station and buy diesel for yourselves.'
10 "But while they were on their way to buy the diesel, the John Deere Dealer arrived. The farmers who were ready went followed him to their fields and received free use of the new combine. And the way to the field was blocked for the others.
11 "Later the others also came. 'Sir! Sir!' they said. 'Use the combine on our field!’
12 "But he replied, 'I have to level with you- You’re not on my potential customer list.'
13 "Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour.
This is a parable of warning!
Parable is a fictional story- devised to teach an important truth
Learning truth via fiction
Main Truth: Don’t miss out on living life as God’s servant.
This is a story about getting into right relationship with God- and not waiting to further that relationship
Life lived as a servant of God- is a journey
It has many steps- I have abbreviated these steps into three main categories
(should I have one of Danny’s truck’s up there?)
1. Salvation- getting a truck (by the grace of God- why wouldn’t you accept a free truck from the Lord?)- choosing not to live in darkness anymore
A Lamp is essentially like a Truck- in basic terms they are both containers
They both have tanks for fuel.
We are not given the fuel first- with out a lamp or Truck- the oil and diesel would just be spilled fuel on the ground
God freely gives us the lamp- but he asks us to obtain the fuel
He makes possible that we Can live like Christ
He gave us His death on the cross- We cannot make our own lamp- our own truck that will be able to carry us where we need to go
On our own we cannot make a lamp with enough ability to outshine the darkness of this world and our own selfishness
On our own we cannot build a truck with an engine powerful enough to climb the hills of sin in our life- God gives us the lamp- the truck
2. Discipleship- getting fuel for your truck
Waiting- learning how and when to use your truck- keeping it tuned up - fuel ups- learning from the Word and fellow Christians- Praying and worshiping
Making repairs- when things go wrong- that’s repentance
Salvation and discipleship- like the Oil or the Diesel in our Parable- are things you can’t borrow from someone else- they can tell you where to get it (at the store- ie church) but they can’t give you their salvation-
You have to have your own salvation and discipleship
Think about it- Why didn’t they just walk side-by-side?
Jesus doesn’t say they walked side by side- because this parable is teaching us that we each need to be individually ready to follow the Lord
There are Christians- who have the attitude- I will know the Lord when I see Him or hear from him. They don’t fill up their tank with Prayer- With regular worship- with Bible study or Sunday school- they lean merely on their own resources- Will they recognize the Lord stopping by to call them to follow?
I say "Yes, but will you have the gas to follow him?"
There's a story that comes form the sinking of the Titanic. A frightened woman found her place in a lifeboat that was about to be lowered into the raging North Atlantic. She suddenly thought of something she needed, so she asked permission to return to her stateroom before they cast off. She was granted three minutes or they would leave without her.She ran across the deck that was already slanted at a dangerous angle. She raced through the gambling room with all the money that had rolled to one side, ankle deep. She came to her stateroom and quickly pushed a side her diamond rings and expensive bracelets and necklaces as she reached to the shelf above her bed and grabbed three small oranges. She quickly found her way back to the lifeboat and got in.Now that seems incredible because thirty minutes earlier she would not have chosen a crate of oranges over the smallest diamond. But death had boarded the Titanic. One blast of its awful breath had transformed all values. Instantaneously, priceless things had become worthless. Worthless things had become priceless. And in that moment she preferred three small oranges to a crate of diamonds.
Discipleship- is a process of learning to see life as it really is- an opportunity to love and serve God’s children. The disciple lifestyle, like the woman with the lifeboat- will seek to add things into their life- that make them a better servant of God
Disciples realize life is not pointless- it is purposeful
Realizing- like the wise farmers/virgins- that it does very little good to have a lamp without oil- no fuel for your truck- means no ability to follow the Lord when he comes by- a vessel with no fuel is a vessel with no vision!
The Lord is always coming by in our lives- asking us to serve in various ways- often- we have let the fuel run out in our tanks and our lights are off- we miss God’s leading- we can’t see him- and don’t have the means to follow. We must fill up often and repeatedly- going to the Spiritual Busch station- the Scriptures- to Prayer- to Worship- These activities fill up our tank and this makes us ready to follow the Lord
Without Discipleship we won’t be ready for the next stage of the Christian life.
3. Service- Using your truck- to do work- Lamps and trucks are both travel improvement devices. They both help us see at night- they improve our journeys- make us better able to know what we are doing in a dark world
Another interpretation- is that the Lamps- or in our case- the trucks- are not just for the journey to the party- but they are used to help do the work at the party. The bridesmaids were likely responsible for much work at the wedding feast.
The point of Christianity is not to "just save your soul" - this is the mere beginning- the point of Christ is to save people to become servants of love in the world.
Though it is NOT the acts of service that save you- it has long been held that a person claiming to be a Christian who does not do works of service and love- may be a sign of unbelief. True belief in the self-less- self-giving good news of Jesus Christ- leads people to be doing acts of service to others.
Martin Luther- who is famous for emphasizing God’s grace- also said this in his commentary on Romans, "O it is a living, busy, active, mighty thing, this faith. It is impossible for it not to be doing good works incessantly. It does not ask whether good works are to be done, but before the question is asked, it has already done them, and is constantly doing them. Whoever does not do such works, however, is an unbeliever."
If we are to use our God-given truck- we must not stop at having it- this is like accepting Christ and never doing anything beyond that- it would be like getting a truck and keeping it in the garage- never using it
God’s gonna call you to friendly work- loving your neighbors- and Don’t be surprised if he calls you to difficult work- Loving your enemies- one thing for sure is the Christian life is full of opportunities to do good in this world
To serve others- to look out for those in need
To tell others that they are dearly loved by God
To tell them that God has love for them, and work for them to do
Dale Bruner, "The Christian life is not just the initial thrill of a conversion, nor is it the series of thrills in praise services with their wonderful music; the Christian life is often dog-day service to households, in season and out, with or without ecstasy, in the simple determination to give faithful and creative service to others, with the correct sense that one day we will give an account of service to a Lord who will either be thrilled or repelled."
Often the second two stages overlap. The Learning and Serving- are often hard to untangle from each other- for when we serve- we inevitably Learn- and we learn- we should inevitably be drawn towards Service and Love
The life of a conversion-only Christian- they were so spiritual- that they never got to work- is in peril of missing the true party of God- God intends for us to move past conversion- into becoming a disciple- a humble, loving servant
You can be too late- you can have a lamp- or a truck- and miss the way to the real party- the real purpose of life.
Thief on the cross- it is never too late in this life- to start the journey
Conclusion:
Don’t live a Dark, Directionless, Dull Life
Let your light shine- get your fuel ups- look out for God coming by and calling you to work-
Don’t miss the party- fill up your truck and head out to the harvest- there’s work to be done.