Matthew 25:31-46

“When the Son of Man comes in his glory and all his angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of his glory. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate people, one from another, as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats, and he will put the sheep at his right hand and the goats at the left.

“Then the king will say to those at his right hand, ‘Come, you that are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was in prison and you visited me.’ Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry and gave you food, or thirsty and gave you something to drink? And when was it that we saw you a stranger and welcomed you, or naked and gave you clothing? And when was it that we saw you sick or in prison and visited you?’ And the king will answer them, ‘Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me.’

“Then he will say to those at his left hand, ‘You that are accursed, depart from me into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels; for I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not give me clothing, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.’ Then they also will answer, ‘Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not take care of you?’ Then he will answer them, ‘Truly I tell you, just as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.’ And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”

This is a hard one, this parable about separating the sheep from the goats. It’s popular because it speaks for itself when Jesus says, “whenever you did it to one of the least of these…you did it to me,” that stuff makes for a great inspirational calendar, or bumper sticker, or coffee mug, or whatever. But the rest of it is a different story – that stuff about separating the sheep from the goats, I mean. There was a thread about it on the ELCA clergy page this week with no less than 100 comments from pastors and preachers going back and forth about it what to do with it – again – on this Christ the King Sunday.

That “sheep and goats” stuff, can trigger the fear factor of our faith and makes us wonder about which side of God’s heaven we’ll find ourselves on when the time comes. And wondering about that, we become like kids on the theological playground, wanting to make sure we get picked – sooner rather than later – and that we end up getting picked for the right team. As far as the story goes, that means we want to get picked to play for the Sheep, not left out and left behind, like the Goats.

So, too much of the time this bit from Jesus moves us to worry too much – if not exclusively – about ourselves, about our own souls, about our own eternity, about our own status in the eyes of God. None of us wants to spend eternity as a goat – on the outs – and sent into everlasting punishment, am I right?

But I’m convinced, Jesus means to accomplish just exactly the opposite when he tells us this story. Because he’s Jesus … Christ the King … I’m convinced he means to get us thinking about anyone and everyone ELSE in God’s kingdom, rather than the one staring back at us in the mirror. I don’t think we’re supposed to worry as much about our own eternity as we are called to worry about the suffering of the world around us, right here and right now.

Which reminded me of a song … and a video … by Van Halen … that came out when I was a senior in high school – “way back in the 1900’s,” as my kids like to say. 1992 to be exact. Fair warning, I may not have chosen to show this on the wall in the sanctuary during a regular Sunday morning service, because some of it may seem inappropriate for some folks. But, since we’re online and in our homes, it seems doable. If not, I hope you’ll forgive me.

It’s called “Right Now.” [So much of it seems still applies, as you’ll see. And little bits of it seem even more strangely apropos, if you know/remember that Eddie Van Halen just died in early October.] Anyway, here it is:

(For the record if you ask me, the most controversial, offensive part of that video is the assertion that God kills dogs and grandmothers. I don’t think that’s even remotely true. But that’s another sermon.)

What I remembered – and still like – about that video is the way it makes you think about what’s going on in the world we live in, but that we don’t always notice. Stuff that’s easy to miss, ignore, deny, or pretend away. People, even, that are easy to miss, ignore, deny, or pretend away. And, again, I think that’s the same thing Jesus is calling our attention to in this morning’s Gospel:

“Whenever you did it to one of the least of these – you did it to me.” “Whenever you feed the hungry, welcome the stranger, clothe the naked, visit the sick or the imprisoned you do it to me.” Or not.

This isn’t just about our prospects for eternal life. This is about our potential to be God’s people, right now.

Instead of imagining who’s in and who’s out of the Kingdom when the end of time comes, I think Jesus is inviting us to imagine who’s being included and who’s being left out of the kingdom right here, right now.

Who is it that’s hungry and thirsty? Who is it that feels like a stranger in your town, in your neighborhood, in your classroom, in your congregation? Who is it that’s naked or sick or in prison and needs to be clothed with something like the love of God, the welcome of friend, the hope of salvation, the forgiveness of sins?

I don’t think Jesus is saying “we’d better get to work, or else.” I think Jesus is trying to change our perspective so that we’ll get to work because there’s a new kind of kingdom afoot.

Jesus showed up to jump-start the coming of God’s kingdom in a way that had yet to be seen. Jesus showed up – to die and to be raised – as a sign that God’s forgiveness and love and mercy and new life were for all of creation in a way that creation so easily forgets, too much of the time. Jesus showed up – this Christ, the King – to inaugurate a new era, a new, better way of being, to give us a glimpse of what has already come and to invite us to get in on it – and to get on with it: A kingdom where love rules, right now. Where justice would, could, should prevail, right now. Where hunger and thirst, poverty and nakedness, sinfulness and shame already … right now … don’t belong.

Jesus showed up to open our eyes to what’s going on in the world around us, right now, so that we would get to work doing justice, loving kindness, walking humbly, loving one another – even, and especially, the goats! – showing mercy, welcoming the stranger, caring for to the least among us, and more.

Because, when we do, it could change everything – for us, for others, and for the world – right now. And the kingdom will come among us – right now. And Christ, the King, will rule our hearts and our minds and our lives for the sake of the world, right now, when we – and so many others – need it most.

Amen

Matthew 25:1-13

“Then the kingdom of heaven will be like this. Ten bridesmaids took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish, and five were wise. When the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them; but the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps.

As the bridegroom was delayed, all of them became drowsy and slept. But at midnight there was a shout, ‘Look! Here is the bridegroom! Come out to meet him.’ Then all those bridesmaids got up and trimmed their lamps. The foolish said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ But the wise replied, ‘No! there will not be enough for you and for us; you had better go to the dealers and buy some for yourselves.’ And while they went to buy it, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went with him into the wedding banquet; and the door was shut.

Later, the other bridesmaids came also, saying, “Lord, lord, open to us.” But he replied, “Truly I tell you, I do not know you.” Keep awake therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour.”

What a strange parable for the strange time we’ve been living through this past week – and for whatever lies ahead for us in the days to come. Yes, I’m talking about our country’s presidential election that has caused most – if not all of us – some measure of stress, anxiety, frustration, and even fear, it’s fair to say, in too many cases.

It might seem like a stretch – and I’ll be curious to see what other preachers do with it this weekend – but I couldn’t help but think about those bridesmaids in Jesus’ story because of it all. There were 10 of them, remember. And five of them were foolish. Five of them were wise. Half of them got into the party. Half of them got shut out. Half of them won and half of them lost, you might say. (Sound familiar?)

And, of course, there was all of that waiting – for the bridegroom, as far as the parable goes. While so many of us were waiting – on pins and needles it seemed – for the announcement… for SOME announcement… for ANY announcement, about who the president would be, come January. And the announcement came, yesterday afternoon – whether we love it, or hate it, or believe it, or buy it; whether we were ready for it, or not.

Now, I’m not going to get into who might be foolish and who might be wise in all of this. The hard but holy truth about that for those of us at Cross of Grace – and all around this country, really – is that we find ourselves lined up all along the political spectrum. And the other truth is – no matter who you were waiting on or hoping would be announced as the winner, this week – neither of them measures up to the bridegroom who is the Messiah, in Jesus’ parable.

And the other truth is, too much of the time, for too many people, parables like this one are used to determine what it means to be – and who is – not just wise or foolish; but right or wrong; in or out; winners or losers, welcome or locked out – when it comes to the Kingdom of God. We love to make winners and losers out of each other, don’t we?

There’s something about human nature that makes us want to choose sides. And, that’s one way to look at this parable – for sure. I imagine there are plenty of pastors today preaching about being wise and not foolish – about being prepared rather than not – all in an effort to be on the right side of God’s banquet hall door before it closes.

But, we are a people who claim – and who have been claimed by – God’s grace for the sake of the world. So let’s not be so short-sighted or small or scared by this today, or by some of the things that are going on the world around us.

Because I started wondering something else this week and yesterday afternoon about Jesus’ parable of the bridesmaids. In light of what we’re up to and all we’re up against in our country these days, I wondered, would Jesus really close the door to the party on half of us, just because some of us might be more foolish than the others? Am I going to be locked out of the kingdom because I’m not always as ready, or as right, as the guy next to me? Are we going to miss our shot at the invite list because there have been times when we’ve fallen asleep at the wheel of our faith; made bad choices; lost or gotten lost every once in a while along the way?

And do any of us want to give that impression to anyone else in our lives or in this world? Because if any of that is true, we can bet there are going to be plenty of empty seats at God’s proverbial wedding banquet. Maybe nothing but empty seats based on the criteria of some people I know.

So, I don’t think any of that is what Jesus’ story holds for us today.

And remember the nuts and bolts of Jesus’ story… As far as the bridesmaids go (and we are represented by the bridesmaids in this one) some are prepared with lamps and plenty of oil. Others aren’t expecting to wait all that long, so they didn’t pack as many supplies. But the groom is late and they all fall asleep while they wait. And when they hear he’s on the way, they wake up and start preparing for the party. The five foolish ones, who didn’t bring extra oil, are out of luck and out of light and the five wise ones who came prepared don’t have enough to share. So the foolish bridesmaids are sent off looking to buy oil and in the meantime, the groom starts the party without them. When the slackers finally show up, it’s too late. The doors are shut and they miss the party.

But, instead of a “who’s in” and “who’s out” sort of morality tale, what if Jesus wants us to imagine why the ‘wise’ bridesmaids refused to share with their friends and neighbors when they had the chance?

Or, what if Jesus wants us to wonder about the variety of privileges and circumstances that allowed some of them (some of us) to be more prepared, more informed, more rich with oil than others?

What if, Jesus is reminding us that we’ve all had opportunity to be wise and foolish, to be awake and to fall asleep, to be ready and to be unprepared on any given day? And we have been.

What if Jesus wants us to wonder if those “wise” bridesmaids even worried about the others, once the party started? Did the ones who got in – the winners – have any concern for the ones who didn’t make it, I mean? Or did they just electric-slide their way into eternity, glad to know they weren’t left out in the cold?

So, I’d like us to get something from this parable other than more reason for self-righteous judgment or unfounded fear this time around. There’s too much of that in our world these days. I’d like us to get something out of this story besides a laundry list of what makes some of us better than or more ready than our neighbor to get into heaven. I’d like us to get something more out of this parable than the fire and brimstone and division that are so much easier to preach about and to practice, frankly, than the grace and the forgiveness and the salvation God promises, ultimately, in Jesus.

The problem with the fire and brimstone, winner and loser stuff – whether it comes from a pastor, a preacher or a political pundit – is the attention it pays to the end result, instead of what’s going on right here and right now among us, in our daily lives, on this side of God’s heaven.

See, I like to remember – and we just had a full-on discussion of this in our Bethel Bible Series class on Thursday night – that as often as not, when Jesus talked about the Kingdom of Heaven – which is what that wedding banquet represents, remember – he was talking about life on this side of the grave, not always or only about life on the other side of it all.

So what if, as bridesmaids waiting for Jesus, we looked for new, better ways to stay awake and keep alert – right here and right now, wherever we find ourselves. And what if the lamps we light – what if the light we shine for the sake of the world – doesn’t really have anything at all to do with oil? What if the light we shine comes from whatever grace, mercy, and peace we can extend? From whatever humility, forgiveness, and hope we can share? From whatever generosity, love, and kindness we have to offer?

And what if we were wise enough to share those blessings with each other more openly these days? What if we could muster a holy, sincere sort of curiosity, about all those who are feeling lost… or, like they lost… or, that they’ve been locked out of the party for whatever reason? Because they voted differently than us... because they’ve been told their whole lives the banquet isn’t for them… because the system is so stacked against them that they can never seem to get their fair share of oil… (This is about more than “RED” and “BLUE,” “LEFT” and “RIGHT,” after all.)

What if we worked harder to make sure all would come to experience something of God’s kingdom of justice and joy – here and now – knowing and believing and living differently because we’re each going to end up at the same heavenly banquet, in the end, thanks be to God.

Amen