November 10, 2002 (Proper 27)
Amos 5:18-24
Psalm 70
1 Thessalonians 4:13-18
Matthew 25:1-13
The Scholars tell me [For the purposes of this sermon ‘The Scholars’ are the authors of The New Interpreter’s Bible, a 12 volume set of bible commentaries I use a lot for sermon preparation.] that this reading from Matthew probably wasn’t written by Jesus. None of the gospels were written by Jesus of course, but sometimes the stories are more based on what Jesus said than other times. They had quite a few reasons for thinking this story of the ten bridesmaids was something Matthew came up with to illustrate a point Jesus was trying to get across. The best reason, I thought, was that the story is pretty unlikely and usually Jesus had better stories than this.
I mean, what are theses bridesmaids doing waiting around with lamps like this? Why does the bridegroom come to fetch them at midnight? And where’s the bride? This story sounds more like the bachelor party than the wedding.
Whoever wrote it, and however unlikely it is in reality, the story does a good job of making last weeks reading from Matthew clear. Last Sunday, you may recall, we heard the beatitudes, that famous portion of Jesus’ sermon on the mount that reads, blessed are the poor, blessed are the meek, blessed are the peacemakers, etc. Having just enlightened his audience as to the various ways they can become blessed, Jesus expands on what it means to be that way over the long haul.
The first thing we learn about the ten bridesmaids is that five of them are wise and the other five are foolish. The reason we have to be told this is that there is no way to tell just from looking at them if they are wise or foolish. At the beginning of this spiritual journey, everyone looks the same. However, by the end of the journey, in this case midnight, it becomes clear that not all the bridesmaids are the same, for some are prepared for an extended trip, while some are burnt out early.
If you’re having trouble getting into a story about bridegrooms and bridesmaids and midnight rendezvous, let me offer another example. You may have seen in the last year a movie called Blackhawk Down. It was based on a book by the same name and details the experiences of a group of U.S. soldiers in Somalia who are sent on a mission to capture two Somali leaders. The mission is to be short and simple, no complications are expected. As the soldiers prepare to leave onboard their Blackhawk helicopters, we see them checking and loading their gear. One soldier removes the metal armor plate from the rear of his vest. When a new soldier questions him, the first soldier says that they probably won’t even be getting shot at, and besides, he doesn’t plan on running away so no one could shoot him in the back anyhow. No need to carry the heavy armor. Another soldier empties his canteen, saying that the mission will only last a couple hours and he doesn’t plan on getting that thirsty; why carry the water?
Since they made a movie about it, you can guess that things didn’t go according to plan. The mission goes wrong, and the soldiers end up spending all night under attack. The second soldier has no water to drink, and the first gets shot in the back. This example is far more violent and tragic than the one in Matthew’s gospel, but it illustrates the same point. It is one thing to be prepared for the short term, it is quite another to be ready for the long haul.
I think Jesus means this to warn us of what it will be like to try and live the beatitudes we heard last week. Most people can be peacemakers for a day or even a week, but very few of us spend a lifetime helping others be reconciled. Many of us are capable of humbleness on occasion, but only a small number manage to live in that humility for their whole lives. To live the beatitudes for a day is no problem. To live them every day is the work of a lifetime.
Amos has something to say on this subject as well. After spending six verses telling us how unimpressed the Lord our God is with snazzy worship, Amos lets loose with one of the best lines in all of scripture: “…let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.” Leaving aside the justice and righteousness for a moment, let’s talk about the stream. Waterways in ancient Judah were much like the arroyos in the Southwestern United States. Most of the time these mini-canyons are bare and dry, but when rain comes they turn into a raging torrent. You are more likely to die of thirst or be violently drowned by these waters than to be nourished. In such an environment, a steady source of water is incredibly valuable. This is the “ever-flowing stream” that Amos is talking about. Not a temporary rush of righteousness, or goodwill, or selfless living, but a constant, steady life of following the example of Jesus and his beatitudes.
In light of this metaphor, Amos’ railing against worship can be better understood. The Lord God is not opposed to solemn worship, or to the singing of songs, or even to the use of incense. What God does demand is that what is said and done in worship must correspond to what is said and done in our lives, and in our communities. In the words of The Scholars, “God does not accept the worship of those who show no interest in justice in their daily lives [New Interpreter's Bible vol. 7 p. 394].”
I think I’ve said all I have to say about these two lessons, but before I wrap this up, I’d like to say a couple words about Louise Barton. Nearly every person in this congregation probably has a story about Louise. I know nearly every child does. My story is that when I first moved here to Kansas City, just about two and a half years ago, Louise threw me a party. I hadn’t been in town a week yet, and wasn’t scheduled to start working here at the cathedral for another three weeks. But Louise invited all the youth ministers from the area to Carol Schwenke’s house and fed us barbeque. All she knew about me was that I had come here from California and that I wanted to work with youth. That was enough for Louise to want me to be happy. She even went so far as to try and set me up with a date.
We will remember Louise in a memorial service next Saturday morning at 10:30, and there will be plenty of time for more stories. In fact, if you have a story about Louise that you want to share, please call or write me this week so it can be included as part of that service. For now, I just want to point out that Louise is a great example of what Matthew and Amos are talking about. She taught Sunday school, here, and at St. Andrew’s, and in California, for more than forty years. She was a wise bridesmaid, a prepared soldier, and a long haul practitioner of the beatitudes. As a Sunday school teacher she missed much of every worship service, yet I cannot imagine that God had any trouble accepting her worship as the correspondent to the justice in her life. We should all be so lucky to have such an example in our lives. Our children should all be so lucky to have such a teacher in their lives. Amen.