There are few people who do not love a party, and we have seen some great ones in recent weeks. There is that Quadrennial party, you probably saw some of it, that happens each January 20, following a presidential election. There they were dressed up celebrating, at a series of inaugural balls following the day’s solemn ceremonies in which the Vice-President and President of the United States take their oaths of office.

On the third or fourth Sunday in January, there is the annual spectacle, with the accompanying hype and anticipation of both football game and the commercials that surround it of the Super Bowl. All over this country and in several others, there were parties.

This year as in every year, there will be birthday parties, wedding anniversary parties, retirement parties, holiday parties, any reason at all for family and friends to get together parties.

Each in its way requires a time of planning and preparation from both hosts and guests. As we plan, a frequently asked question is, ‘are you ready for the party?’ There is after all, food to be prepared, houses to be cleaned, dress codes to clarify, new clothes to be bought, hair to be done or cut. Some things need to be in place before you can say, all things are ready, come to the party.

In Matthew chapters 24 and 25, Matthew has Jesus saying to the disciples and to others, words that echo down to us, there is a great party coming, are you ready?

Matthew is addressing a situation that could have been a crisis in the early church. People were expecting the promised return of Christ in their lifetime. When the return was delayed, a question rose up among the church, probably based on the hard questions asked by non-believers who know even now how to ask questions that strike at the heart of our faith. When is your Lord returning? You said, I should believe because of what he has done, and because he will return any time for his church. So what do you and your church have to say for yourselves now?

The answer to that question will unfold in three sermons offered in February that will be based on the verses of Matthew 25. Each verse continues the lessons taught by Jesus on his promised return to receive his faithful church.

We do not often talk about the second coming of Christ, but I believe it is important for us, as we move toward Lent, to look closely at what Jesus wanted his disciples to know, listen as he says, "it might seem hard at first, but hang in there, it will be OK."

Listen as he says to us, put aside your questions about exactly when the promised return will happen, and trust that the one who has promised is faithful and will fulfill every promise he has made. Fine, but the disciples want to know, ‘what will be the sign of your return’? Jesus, answers their question this way. First he describes some difficult times, there will be persecutions, the temple will be destroyed, there will be other difficulties. Then he says the signs of return have been all around, all the time. Nevertheless, Jesus says, "don’t try to guess, just stay faithful and be ready for the coming party." "But of that day and hour, no one knows, neither the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but only [God]…keep awake therefore, for you do not know on what day your Lord returns (Matthew 24.42)." Will you be ready for the party?

In popular culture, in books and movies, and television shows, the promised return of Christ, and the times that accompany the return are usually full of fear. Far from a party, we see hysteria and horror, with the forces of evil seeming to carry the day.

Think about movies like The Omen, The Seventh Seal, The Apocalypse, and Rosemary’s Baby. Friday’s Columbus Dispatch Faith and Values and Accent section described a new entry, the movie based on the book series Left Behind by Tim La Haye and Jerry Jenkins.

But Jesus describes his return in another way. He says, whenever I return for the church I love, there will be a time of high celebration and rejoicing. Will you be ready for the party?

What will the sign be? It will be like the kingdom of heaven. What does that mean? Then he tells three stories that help the disciples and us to prepare for the time to come. First he talks about ten women at a wedding party, then he tells us about the consequences of investing talents, and finally he tells the parable about sheep and goats.

Jesus begins by saying, the kingdom of heaven will be a wedding banquet. Ten women, called bridesmaids in the version we heard today, other translations refer to them as virgins are waiting for the bridegroom. We are not told where the bride is.

Why ten? That seems like a rather large bridal party. Perhaps it is an arbitrary number. But I learned on the History channel last week that among other wedding traditions there was one in which 10 friends and relatives of the wedding couple would attend the wedding in disguise in order to hide the bride and groom from demons who wished them harm.

Perhaps that tradition was well-known to Jesus, perhaps not. In any case, Jesus whose first miracle was at a wedding understood the power of weddings. He knew they were occasions for the community to come together in celebration and thanksgiving. So he tells his disciples this story which we can imagine took place in the evening.

Now the women each of whom has a lamp, are described in specific terms. Five, we are told are wise enough to bring extra oil. The other five are described as foolish, they have oil in their lamps, but none extra.

Their preparation or lack thereof becomes important because the groom is delayed. He is so long delayed that the women become drowsy and fall asleep. Later at midnight, they are awakened with a shout. The groom has arrived, he is here, the party’s on, its time to go to the banquet hall.

The issue is not that the women went to sleep. All ten went to sleep, but when they woke up we see who was ready and who was not. They all wake up, stretch, comb their hair, adjust their makeup and clothes, and get ready to go. Then the women who had just enough discover that they are out of oil. Some of us can relate to these women who are present but not prepared. They remind me of the dream some students have in which they arrive at math class in their pajamas and discover that the math midterm is today, and they had no idea and had not studied.

Preachers have a similar dream in we show up for an afternoon service only to discover that we are the one scheduled to preach. We had no idea. You understand the women if you ever planned for your guests to show up for your dinner party at 6:30 and there they are at the door at 6:00, and you are still cleaning, or worse, just about to step into the shower. The five were present, but they were not ready.

The wise ones had enough. The foolish ones had no reserve at all. "Lend us some oil. It’s not our fault if he was late." But the issue is not fault, but accountability and preparation. This is the hour, now. "No. If we do, there will not be enough for any of us. Yes, it is midnight, it’s late, but Wal-mart and Meijer are open. Go on an buy some oil, and we’ll see you at the banquet."

Off they go, then the groom comes and the five who are ready go to the party. When the other five finally arrive, everything is in full swing. With their lamps now filled with oil, the glow of the light shining just so on their eager faces, they ask to be admitted to the banquet hall. The groom comes to the door and says to them, "do I know you?"

Jesus ends the story by saying, "keep awake, you know neither the day nor the hour." Eugene Peterson puts it this way, "stay alert. You have no idea when he might arrive" (The Message).

Clearly this is a symbolic story. The groom the women stand as images easily understood by a church wondering what to do when the Messiah had not returned quickly enough.

Put simply: "The virgins represent Christians who await the bridegroom, Jesus the Messiah. The bridegroom’s delay alludes to the fact that Jesus has not returned as soon as many had hoped. The marriage feast symbolizes the life of the age to come. The closed door stands for the last judgment when the faithful will be taken with Jesus and the unfaithful will not" (Douglas Hare, Matthew Interpretation series, p. 284).

For Martin Luther, the oil was our faith in God and faith in the return of Christ. For others, the oil represented enduring love, which bears, believes, hopes, and endures all things, and which never ends (I Corinthians 13. 7-8).

What then of the oil-less lamps)? One writer has said that they represent form without any connection to God. They are he says, "ecclesiasticism, that is church going without righteousness, or living without any sense of God’s presence, morality without godliness, and enthusiasm without perseverance." People with oil function well when things are well, but when midnight comes, when things get difficult, when they are without the needed resources, they function poorly, if at all and so come to expect the worst.

But when our lamps have oil, with some to spare, we can expect the best from God, when we continue to put our trust in God who promises never to leave us alone, we know that the delay is not a sign that he will not come, it just means, not quite yet.

The call to wake up is for us all. "In Matthew’s use, the parable refers to rank-and-file Christians – not to church leaders as some parables are, nor to people with special gifts as in some others, but to ordinary followers of Jesus who must persevere in their doing and being until Jesus comes, no matter how long the delay may be. It is those who endure to the end who will be saved (24.13, Hare, p.286).

When we trust God who in Jesus Christ offered the best God had to the world, to be the best for us, even when things are bleak, when we receive devastating news, when we are our wit’s end, when we are trapped and it seems that there is no way out, we can know that midnight can be a time for pray rather than for panic. It is a time to have open and honest conversations with God. Late night prayers, late night thoughts can lead us to insight and doing what we need to do in order to be the faithful followers of God we are called to be.

We are waiting for the beginning of the party. While we wait, will our lamps be filled with oil that keeps us ready? Will we as we wait, engage in ministries of hospitality, compassion, accountability and activity in the name of Jesus Christ, the one for whom we wait?

As we wait, can we remember that there are some things for us to do? We can involve ourselves in acts of ministry that serve others. And there are things that can show that we are ready for the party by behaving like good residents of the Kingdom of Heaven. We can show love for our enemies, love of other Christians and for all people, forgiveness of others, unhesitating faith, loyalty to Jesus, and love for God" (Hare, p. 285).

While we wait, we can praise God with the Psalmist. We can thank God that we are delivered from fear and sin, and that we can know the grace and love of God. We can know that worship and work which includes our praise of God and of Jesus Christ, the movement of the Holy Spirit that urges us forward, the grace and hope to manage the change that is inevitable, the seeking of eternal life that is prepared in heaven for those of us who are prepared on earth), is dress rehearsal for that great party which is promised to us.

While we wait, we can keep our lamps ready, keep a supply of oil handy, and invite others to join their lamps with ours. We can teach people to keep their lamps trimmed, oiled, ready.

Finally, while we wait, we can replenish our oil supply for that day when we hear the shout, "he is here! Let the party begin!" The Lord of heaven and savior of the world will be there, and asks us even now, are you ready for the party? Continue to practice till that day when the doors are open and we all enter in. When we get there, we will sing and feast, pray and proclaim, what a day of rejoicing that will be. Thanks be to God who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.