Persistence

Charlotte Collins Reed
Christ Church Episcopal
November 8, 2020

 

27 Proper A 

          Our baby granddaughter Collins was 6 months old on Friday.  She loves music and singing, being held and playing with her toys, and is generally a delightful baby, although her parents could use a bit more sleep.  But Collins’ most striking characteristic is her persistence.  In addition to her persistence in making her needs known, Collins has been trying to crawl for about a month now.  She has advanced from a pretty impressive plank, to getting herself on her hands and knees, to rocking back and forth in a way that sends her backwards, to lunging herself forward so that she does a face plant on the blanket.  She practices this All The Time and for longer at a time than I thought babies could concentrate.  When she wakes up in her crib, we can see her on the monitor trying to get those hands and knees going.  When she is playing on the floor, she spends the time on her hands and knees, back and forth, back and forth, trying to get those hands and knees to do what she wants them to.  Obviously, this is not always successful and never graceful.  After 20 or 30 minutes, she does get tired, but after a cuddle and a song or two, or maybe a nap, she is ready to go again.  Even though she is a bit young, we all wish she would finally master the art of crawling to reward her persistence and her practice and end her frustration!

          This morning, we hear Jesus’ parable about the wise and foolish bridesmaids.  On the surface, the parable sounds like a call to spend all of our time awake, watching for Jesus.  But this is a tricky little parable.  Even though Jesus ends the parable with the words “Keep awake therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour,” I am not sure the parable is really about keeping our eyes open 24/7.  Both the wise and the foolish bridesmaids fell asleep, so perhaps the parable is really about something else.

          What separates the wise and the foolish bridesmaids is that the wise bridesmaids took flasks of oil with them while the foolish bridesmaids took no oil.  When the bridegroom was delayed, all ten bridesmaids became drowsy and fell asleep.  They all awoke to a shout that the bridegroom had arrived, but the 5 foolish bridesmaids could not go out to greet the bridegroom because they had no oil, and the wise bridesmaids refused to share lest they run out of oil.  Clearly this is not a parable about abundance and generosity!  When the bridegroom arrives at midnight, and the bridesmaids awake, the foolish ones are sent off to the dealers to buy more oil.  At midnight.  In the first century.  I’m not sure you can buy oil at midnight in Hudson, Ohio in 2020.  So the parable must not be about common sense, but then none of Jesus’ parables are.  But the 5 foolish bridesmaids do find oil, and return, only to find the door to the banquet hall shut, and the bridegroom refuses to let them in.  Clearly this parable is not about gracious hospitality, either.

          So what is this parable about?  The faith of the early church and the faith of the church now is rooted in the belief that Jesus will return.  In our reading from 1 Thessalonians, the very early Christians worried about what would happen to those who died before Jesus returned, as his return was thought to be imminent.  Paul’s answer is to reassure the Thessalonians that those who have died in Christ will rise first when Jesus returns. When we, in the 21^st century, celebrate the Eucharist, we affirm the faith of the church and say “Christ has died. Christ is risen.  Christ will come again.”  Around the time that the gospel of Matthew was written, likely toward the end of the first century, the early Christians were struggling with Jesus’ delay.  Some believed that perhaps Jesus had returned and they missed him.  Some gave up the belief all together.  And many struggled with how to wait until Jesus finally returned. 

          In the parable, what was needed for a successful wait was oil in the bridesmaids’ lamps.  Those with oil were ready when the bridegroom appeared with no advance notice and the wedding banquet began.  What do we need in our lamps for a successful wait?  In the big picture, we do still wait for Jesus to return.  Some of us may wonder if Jesus has returned and we missed him, or if Jesus returns in our midst and our eyes are not open to see him, or if the church has been wrong all along about Jesus’ return.  But the faith of the church in Jesus’ return has not changed.  “Christ has died. Christ is risen. Christ will come again.”  What is the oil that we need in our lamps as we wait?

          I believe that the oil we need is a dogged persistence and determined practice that parallels that of baby Collins.  Rather than crawling, however, we are called to persist and practice what our baptismal covenant calls  seeking and serving Christ in all people.  All people, all the time.  I believe that if we practice seeking and serving Christ in all people, we will recognize Jesus when he returns in all his glory.  We don’t have to agree with everyone, want them as a best friend, or even have lunch with them.  But we are called to seek and serve Christ in them.  The process will not always be graceful and we may not always succeed.  But we are called to persistence and practice as we do the work of seeking and serving Christ in those who are a different color, faith, ethnicity, political persuasion, socio-economic background, gender orientation, or anything else from ourselves.  If Jesus is in our midst, which I believe he is, we will recognize him if we are seeking and serving him in all people.  If our lamps are full of persistence and practice, we will succeed at all the other waitings we do, like waiting for the pandemic to end, or the votes to be counted, or a diagnosis to come, or a special day to arrive, and we will make a gospel difference in the world while we wait.  And I believe that if we have spent this time before Jesus arrives with our lamps full of persistence and the practice of seeking and serving Christ in all people, not only will we recognize Jesus when he returns, but Jesus will be more likely to recognize us at the door to the great wedding banquet.

                                                                                            Amen