Ready or Not?

Jesus once told a story about a wedding, but it’s not like a wedding any of us have been to, I’m sure. 

Every country has its wedding customs which can look a bit strange to people from other lands. 

 

In China, the groom’s family offer a whole roast pig to the bride’s family as an engagement gift and the bride usually wears red, not white. 

 

In Finland, the bride-to-be to walks from house to house with a pillowcase to collect wedding presents. 

 

In India, the bride’s parents wash the happy couple’s feet with milk and water. 

 

In Greece, they smash dishes on the floor for good luck and throw money at the musicians. 

 

Let me tell you what a typical 1st Century Jewish wedding would look like. 

First of all, the bride, beautifully adorned, would walk from her parents’ home to her future parents in laws’ home where the wedding will take place. When she arrives, there is no bridegroom waiting nervously at the altar. 

He is out with his mates eating his last meal as a single man. Like a kind of stag evening. Finally, between 10 at night and 3 in the morning, he sets out with the lads to get back home where his bride and half the village are waiting. And then the party lasts about a week! 

The custom was that the groom can turn up at the wedding at any time of the night he chooses. 

In a UK wedding, it’s the bride who can be as late as she wants. (I’ve officiated at about 100 weddings and my record for late bride stands at 43 minutes - she blamed the hairdresser), but at a 1st century Jewish wedding, it's the groom who keeps everyone waiting. 

And because it was usually late in the evening, the route to his home from the pub had to be lit up with oil lamps by the bridesmaids.

 

As soon as they hear the bridegroom and his merry men coming down the road, they quickly light their lamps, greet him, and join the procession. 

 

The moment they all get to the groom’s house they shut the doors and the wedding starts straight away. 

If you’re late you miss it. 

In the story Jesus told, the groom takes much longer than expected - in fact he and the lads are having such a great evening that all the bridesmaids fall fast asleep. And while they sleep five lamps out of ten run out of oil. 

They hear the bridegroom arriving and it’s panic stations.

 

Perhaps the equivalent here would be a bridesmaid who discovers an hour before the wedding that she left her dress at home 100 miles away. What’s she going to do? Follow the bride up the aisle in a pair of jeans? 

 

Jesus' story has a hidden meaning. The bridegroom, late arriving, is Jesus.

 

In fact, the Church has been waiting for him for about 1,987 years now which is, let’s be honest, quite a while.

 

The point is very simple; 5 bridesmaids thought there might be a delay so they made sure they had plenty of oil. 

The other 5 were careless; their oil ran dry, their lamps went out, they were taken by surprise and so blew their chances of getting to the party. 

 

So, to sum up:

10 bridesmaids were waiting. 

10 were dressed up and looking their best. 

10 fell asleep when the groom was late. 

10 had lamps. 

10 desperately wanted to go to the wedding. 

But only 5 did because only 5 were ready when the bridegroom arrived. 

 

Jesus will come again one day, perhaps in 10 years, maybe in 100 years, it could be tonight. 

The thing is are you ready and waiting? 

Short Advent talk, King's Church Darlington, 6 December 2020