Matthew 25:10
And while they were going away to make the purchase, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the wedding feast:
And the door was shut.
Reading this verse today brought my heart to a standstill.
I was researching verses about open doors - one of my favorite topics in the Bible. God has used the passages about open doors so many times in my life, in our lives together (mine and Joe’s).
I have searched for open doors to go through over and over throughout my life. Every door leading to the next point in my life, leading me to here: Arden 1st.
The concept of a door shutting jarred me. There have been closed doors in my life - that caused me to catapult into the new open doors. These doors have consisted of jobs, or friends, or places - wherever God was leading us.
God closed the doors to lead me forward. But those doors were used for the purpose of propulsion. Movement. What has this movement been for?
For wherever God wanted to send me. To send us collectively. (my husband and I - and now my son with us)
But why? What is the point of this movement? I believe it is close to what Paul was saying in 1st Corinthians 16:9: ‘There is a wide open door for a great work here….’ Just like Paul’s missionary work - God opens doors for us to take part in spreading the gospel and building the church. Jesus’ Great Commision is to go and make disciples. What a privilege for us to be used in that way.
In all my going - the purpose almost escaped me. I love adventure and travel and change. I love newness and fresh life. New beginnings. God has certainly blessed me with those. But now we are at a place of planting. We are putting down roots - in order to make disciples and invest in the long term work.
Today - with the thought of a ‘shut door’, I am reminded of why we are all here as Christians.
This shut door mentioned in Matthew 25 is different. It’s not a door propelling me into my next mission. It is the door we want to bring as many people through as possible before it shuts.
Matthew 25 follows Matthew 24 - The chapter where Jesus explains to the disciples the signs of the end of time.
3 As Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately. “Tell us,” they said, “when will this happen, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?”
4 Jesus answered: “Watch out that no one deceives you. 5 For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Messiah,’ and will deceive many. 6 You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. 7 Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. 8 All these are the beginning of birth pains.
9 “Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me. 10 At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, 11 and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. 12 Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, 13 but the 14 And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.’ (I recommend reading the entire chapter.)
Jesus is explaining the signs we need to recognize that he is, in-fact, on his way back. The next chapter, Matthew 25, is explaining the need for us to be ready.
The Parable of the Ten Virgins
25 “At that time the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. 2 Five of them were foolish and five were wise. 3 The foolish ones took their lamps but did not take any oil with them. 4 The wise ones, however, took oil in jars along with their lamps. 5 The bridegroom was a long time in coming, and they all became drowsy and fell asleep.
6 “At midnight the cry rang out: ‘Here’s the bridegroom! Come out to meet him!’
7 “Then all the virgins woke up and trimmed their lamps. 8 The foolish ones said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil; our lamps are going out.’
9 “‘No,’ they replied, ‘there may not be enough for both us and you. Instead, go to those who sell oil and buy some for yourselves.’
10 “But while they were on their way to buy the oil, the bridegroom arrived. The virgins who were ready went in with him to the wedding banquet. And the door was shut.
11 “Later the others also came. ‘Lord, Lord,’ they said, ‘open the door for us!’
12 “But he replied, ‘Truly I tell you, I don’t know you.’
13 “Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour.
What is the point of all of this? What is our mission? Go and make disciples. I believe our time is drawing shorter and shorter every day. It is time for all of us under the Lordship of Christ to tell others about him. It is time for us to invite friends and family to church. Invite your coworker. We need to preach Jesus and the gospel more than we ever have.
What does it mean to ‘take oil in your lamp’ (Matt 25:2)? Our life, our living water is Jesus. Once we call on Jesus to be our savior - our lamps are full of oil. We have the truth of life. I believe our ‘wicks being trimmed’ (Matt. 25:7) has to do with us preparing. His return has been a long time coming, and as the virgins mentioned, we tend to forget he’s returning and that we have an urgent mission. It’s time to wake up. It’s time to trim the wicks. We need to be in the Word every day. We need to be open to listening to God - don’t miss any divine appointments he puts across your path - any people he places in your path.This is the time to be on fire. This is the time to listen, to speak, to proclaim. To be “a voice of one calling in the wilderness, ‘Prepare the way for the Lord!!! (Mark 1:3) As John the Baptist called out in the Bible to signify that Jesus was entering the scene, Jesus is now revealing to us the clues to realize he is being heralded again - for his second coming. (Matt. 24, Revelations)
The worst words that could be heard are… ‘And the door was shut.’
Don’t let the door shut without knowing the truth:
Jesus is Lord. He is the one and only son of God - born of a virgin, being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. (Phil 2:8) He died to take away our sins - to bridge the path to God by acceptance of Him as our savior. He then rose again three days later to reign on high at the right hand of God.
He stands at the door of our heart knocking - so we will let him in. (Rev. 3:20)
Let him in. If ever there was a time, let him in. Then call or go to a church to learn how to live as a disciple of Christ - (reach out to me if you have questions.)
But do Not wait. Do Not let that door shut.
For us as christians - Go. I keep thinking of a sports chant… Be aggressive… be be aggressive.
It’s time. We are in a war. A fight. We are the tools God uses to spread the gospel to others. Trim your wicks. As Pastor Timothy said Sunday - give God your donkey (talents gifts, life). You are the chosen ones to spread the only news - the best news there is. Jesus.
Please do this before the door shuts - it is coming soon. He is coming soon. His words - the last words of the Bible - Rev. 22:20 ‘He who testifies to these things says, “Yes, I am coming soon.” Amen. Come, Lord Jesus.
