The Twenty-second Sunday after Pentecost ---- 9 November 2014

Amos 5:18-24

18 Alas for you who desire the day of the Lord! Why do you want the day of the Lord? It is darkness, not light; 19 as if someone fled from a lion, and was met by a bear; or went into the house and rested a hand against the wall, and was bitten by a snake. 20 Is not the day of the Lord darkness, not light, and gloom with no brightness in it?

21 I hate, I despise your festivals, and I take no delight in your solemn assemblies. 22 Even though you offer me your burnt offerings and grain offerings, I will not accept them; and the offerings of well-being of your fatted animals I will not look upon. 23 Take away from me the noise of your songs; I will not listen to the melody of your harps. 24 But let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.

Matthew 25:1-13

1 "Then the kingdom of heaven will be like this. Ten bridesmaids took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom. 2 Five of them were foolish, and five were wise. 3 When the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them; 4 but the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps. 5 As the bridegroom was delayed, all of them became drowsy and slept. 6 But at midnight there was a shout, "Look! Here is the bridegroom! Come out to meet him.' 7 Then all those bridesmaids got up and trimmed their lamps. 8 The foolish said to the wise, "Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.' 9 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.' 10 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. 11 Later the other bridesmaids came also, saying, "Lord, lord, open to us.' 12 But he replied, "Truly I tell you, I do not know you.' 13 Keep awake therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour. 

Therefore encourage one another with these words.

• What sort of encouragement can we take from the rather harsh words of both the reading from the prophet Amos and today's Gospel passage? Neither one appears to carry a comforting message. In truth, both are quite challenging.
• Amos flatly says that God will not accept the worship of Israel. God will not hear their prayers, will not listen to their hymns, will not accept the offerings in the Temple. At one point, Amos says that God will not “smell” their burnt offerings. The prophet paints a picture of God covering his ears, shutting his eyes, and even holding his nose in response to the Temple worship.
• The prophets have always spoken against idolatrous worship and called the people away from it. Here Amos does not say that; the worship is proper and directed to the God of Israel. The problem is that it is hollow and empty. It is sincere and it is right but it is not connected with the life of the people. They have missed the point. They pray and worship but their prayer and devotion is somehow separate from all the rest of their lives and they do not do justice for those around them. But let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream. This is a strong theme in the preaching of all the prophets.
• Matthew's parable of the bridesmaids is not an easy one to hear as well. Personally, I've often been bothered by what appears to be a lack of sharing on the part of the prepared bridesmaids. On second thought, it appears to be similar to the case of a person who has not studied for an exam and demands - in the name of sharing - that you let them copy your answers in writing the examination.
• Preparation and watchfulness are the key words here. None of the bridesmaids know when the bridegroom is coming. All ten wait. All ten fall asleep and are awakened by the shout that the bridegroom has arrived. As all of them trim their torches, half of them realize that their lamps will not stay lit for long, but the other half – the prepared ones – cannot share their oil and the unprepared ones go off to the all-night store to buy lamp oil, causing them to be excluded form the wedding feast when they find themselves locked out. "Lord, lord, open to us.' But he replied, "Truly I tell you, I do not know you.'
• Be prepared. Be watchful. Be ready even if the one you wait for is delayed. Matthew puts it this way: Keep awake therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour.
• Cold comfort or not comfort at all. Isn't this what our religion should be all about?
• Actually, no. The Gospel should make us uncomfortable. The word of the prophets should make us sweat. Only when we're edgy and uneasy and a bit conscious of how we fall short does the Gospel offer comfort... and forgiveness. Only when we reach beyond ourselves to touch our neighbour in compassion and concern will we find that we've reached out to God and reached out with God. Good works do not work righteousness, but righteousness works good works.
• The readings prescribed for the Worship services for this time of year all speak of what is to come. They speak of the necessity of watchfulness and preparedness. They remind us that righteousness come from the only Righteous One and we can act as he did.
• The Church Year comes full circle, beginning with the ancient promise of a Messiah and all the preparation for the birth of Jesus, the Word-made-flesh. The Church year ends with reminders, and often uncomfortable reminders, of the Coming of Christ in glory for the sake of judgement. We might not comprehend the first and we may avoid thinking about the second, but we are placed squarely in middle of the mystery of God's concern and presence in history and in all that is created and all that exists.
• So here we are, at the final act of another church year and another year of the calendar. The yard has been cleaned up (I believe) and we are making preparations for the coming cold. The lessons for our worship are hard ones. They challenge us... and so they should. They remind us that being watchful and being prepared actually means being compassionate and concerned, which we are. It also means hearing the prophets who speak in the scripture and who still speak on the streets and other places.
• Earlier this week, in the state of Florida, a 90-year old man and two pastors were arrested for what their city considers criminal behaviour. They were led away by constables, hand-cuffed, and booked for the criminal act... of serving food to the homeless in their neighbourhood. Maybe they were simply being watchful and prepared.
• So there is good news in our day.

Keep awake therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour.

Therefore encourage one another with these words.