When the Door Shuts

Turn to Matthew chapter 25, Matthew chapter 25.

Matthew 25 · chapter mention Matthew 25 · chapter mention

I'm just going to tell you up front that anybody who has a problem

with a preacher speaking of hell, speaking of its certainty,

speaking of the need for an individual to make a decision

because of its reality would have a hard time

with the teaching of Jesus because he's very clear.

He speaks and refers more to hell than he does to heaven

and he warns folks of it often.

He wanted folks to clearly know the need to make a personal decision

to follow him.

This morning I just want to share one story that he told

and to share with you the applicable truths that go along with that.

It's found in Matthew chapter 25.

Matthew 25 · chapter mention

Begins in verse 1 and it says this.

Then the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins

who took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom.

Five of them were foolish and five were wise.

For when the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them.

But the wise took flask of oil with their lamps.

As the bridegroom was delayed, they all became drowsy and slept.

But at midnight there was a cry.

Here's the bridegroom.

Come out to meet him.

Then all those virgins rose and trimmed their lamps.

And the foolish said to the wise,

Give us some of your oil,

for our lamps are going out.

But the wise answered saying,

Since there will not be enough for us and for you,

go rather to the dealers and buy for yourselves.

And while they were going to buy,

the bridegroom came.

And those who were ready went in with him to the marriage feast.

And the door was shut.

Afterwards, the other virgins came also saying,

Lord, Lord, open to us.

But he answered,

Truly I say to you, I do not know you.

Watch therefore,

for you know neither the day nor the hour.

Everybody loves a wedding.

Except for maybe an ex-fiancee.

Or a previous spouse.

Or a discontent child in the midst of the ceremony.

Or a paying parent.

Maybe everybody don't love it.

But at least for some,

it is a grand occasion.

Whether it's a big one,

or whether it's a small one,

the couple likes to make it right.

There's no difference in that in the ancient Jewish world.

As a matter of fact,

it was a bigger, more grand occasion in that world

than it is in ours.

There are similarities to us,

as well as differences to us.

It's important, I believe,

to understand those differences,

to understand the story.

The bride was accompanied by her bridesmaids.

Just like today.

In America.

But here they're called virgins.

Virgin is a term here that is used,

that's spoken of sexually,

as well as maritally.

Speaking of their status.

One and the same was the thought.

And I'm not going to say some couples didn't try to act married,

but it was never condoned,

and a lady was marked by it if she was caught.

These virgin bridesmaids help the bride prepare herself

and celebrate with her before the wedding.

Very similar today that when the bridal party takes all day to get dressed together,

do all those things together.

Fellows try to do that as well,

but they put their britches on about five minutes,

and they leave, and they're ready.

And so they don't know what to do with the rest of the day.

But the bridegroom would then come and receive his bride at her house.

And he would take her to his house if he had one.

If he did not, he would take her to his parents' house.

And there the celebration would take place among the invited guests.

The festivities could last a week

and be filled with dances and feasts and receptions.

And therefore, when the bride was ready and waiting,

the bridesmaids would all go out into the streets

to watch for the groom coming.

Often he took his time to build anticipation.

Seems somewhat the opposite today of sorts

because if you go to a modern wedding in a church,

you'll see that when the rest of the party is waiting,

everybody's waiting for the bride to come down the aisle.

And everybody stands to welcome her as she comes down the aisle.

Well, in that day, in that culture,

it was one where they were waiting on the groom to get there,

and he would sometimes be a little late to build that anticipation.

I'm just going to tell you, men,

I encourage you, don't try that today, okay?

Don't make them wait today.

It no longer builds anticipation.

It builds animosity, and that's not the best way to start.

When he arrived, his arrival was repeatedly announced.

The bridesmaids would have lamps,

torches made from oil-drenched rags

with catched dishes under them.

And so that they could proceed through the part of that present,

as they proceed through town, excuse me,

there would be no streetlights for the most part.

What they had were made with oil rags,

and by midnight, many of those would burn out

if they hadn't rewrapped them.

They didn't have phone lights in that day.

If they didn't have a lamp, they wasn't a part.

So extra oil was to be carried for the lamps

because once they'd lit,

they would only stay lit about 15 minutes.

So you didn't light them early.

You made sure you had enough oil

in case the procession was long

or in case the anticipation was a little longer than expected.

At the end of that procession,

the wedding party went into the courtyard

in the center of the home,

and they would shut the gate

to keep any intruders out.

And once that gate was shut,

it typically was not opened again

to keep those uninvited out.

Those that were late were left out.

Jesus told this story to speak to people

about a cultural event that they were familiar with,

to speak to them in their language

about things that they would understand.

He always spoke to people

about what they were familiar with.

And I thank God through the power of the Holy Spirit.

He still speaks to us at the level in which we need to hear it.

The Holy Spirit works that way.

Most people understand the wedding customs of their environment.

Therefore, Jesus tells a story that points,

that speaks of weddings,

but it points to the return of the Lord.

And he often spoke of his return.

And when he spoke of his return,

and when he spoke of our arrival in heaven,

he spoke of it as a wedding,

with him being the groom

and the church of Jesus Christ,

being the bride of Christ.

And that our engagement,

as it is now,

will be consummated

when he returns to receive us unto himself.

He illustrates that through this story.

And what he tells,

the message in this story is simply this.

You better be ready for it.

Now, much can be said about this story,

but I'm not going to keep you long.

I want to share three applicable truths with you today about this story.

The first one is this.

The wait does not change the reality.

The wait does not change the reality.

Some had prepared so they could participate.

Some had intended to prepare,

and they didn't get it done.

They put it off in prep.

They got lax.

Possibly because he didn't come till midnight,

they fell off to sleep.

When the bridegroom came,

they were not ready,

and they were left.

Those without oil represent those

who never have surrendered their lives to the Lord.

It is often those that think about spiritual things,

but they put them off for a time.

They're not quite ready yet.

Or possibly there's a time in their life

when they thought about that

and it became something important to them,

but they didn't really do anything about it.

They didn't really act on it,

so they got lax about it spiritually.

Or either they just spiritually went off to sleep.

Never really dealing with it.

The prepared ones here are those who have dealt with it.

And there's a lot of symbolism here

because he talks about an oil-filled lamp

or an oil-drenched lamp.

Oil is often used in Scripture

as an illustration for the Spirit of God.

You see that in the Old Testament.

You see it here in the New Testament.

Oftentimes, it speaks of the Holy Spirit of God.

And when somebody gives his or her life

to the Lord Jesus Christ,

Scriptures tell us

that he immediately will save us,

change us,

and empower us

with the Holy Spirit of God

living within us.

So those who live for the Lord Jesus

have the Holy Spirit

and they are ready to meet the Lord.

And those who do not have the Holy Spirit

because they've not surrendered their life to the Lord

are not ready to meet the Lord.

You receive the Holy Spirit

when you surrender your life to Christ.

And if you share your faith,

people will often tell you

they're not ready yet.

That sounds good,

but I'm not ready yet.

People can be on the verge

of making a decision for Christ

in a conversation

or in a worship hour

and fail to respond.

And as they leave,

sometimes urgency leaves them as well.

They go back,

leave that worship hour,

leave that conversation,

go back to their lives

knowing that they're still incomplete.

And thank God the Holy Spirit

continues to nag somewhat at them.

But over time,

that may dissipate.

That may not be there.

Time passes,

too much time.

Opportunities come,

opportunity goes.

And then the bridegroom comes.

What does it mean

when the bridegroom comes?

It means it's too late.

I have a friend

I had the opportunity

to pastor his family.

He grew up in Pickens.

Served the Lord faithfully

as a minister

for many years.

And just this past week,

when he went to pick his wife up

at the airport on the way home,

they were in a tragic car accident.

And she went home

to be with the Lord.

Never anticipated that.

Never knew that was going to happen.

It was suddenly

that it took place.

Dear lady in my previous church

this past week,

she had some health problems,

nothing serious.

But something turned on Thursday.

Something quickly turned.

And on Friday,

those dear fellas said goodbye

to their mother

and their wife.

It was quick.

It came unexpected.

They didn't anticipate it.

That could be

what he's talking about

when he talks about

when the bridegroom comes.

He could also be talking

about the return of the Lord.

The second coming of Christ.

Who I believe

can come at any moment.

I don't believe

we're waiting on something

to happen.

No, I believe

he can come at any moment.

Whatever it is,

the wait does not change

the finality of it, folks.

I don't know about you,

but sometimes I've had to wait

so long for something

I just kind of gave up on it,

you know.

I don't want to get personal here,

but I live in a house of ladies.

And sometimes

it's just time to go back

in the house

and make a sandwich

instead of going to eat,

you know.

You just get tired of waiting.

Don't let the wait

change the reality

of the finality.

I'll make you two promises.

One is,

the Lord's going to return.

I promise you.

And number two,

it's sooner than it's ever been.

And so we need to be ready.

Whether it comes for us individually

or whether it comes in the sky,

we must be ready.

Second thing is this.

The unprepared

cannot get ready

fast enough.

The unprepared

cannot get ready

fast enough.

The procrastinator slogan is,

why do it today

when you can put it off

to tomorrow?

And if that's mowing

your grass,

that's okay.

It'll just grow a little bit

and be a little longer

the next day.

But if it's your soul

and your eternity

is at stake,

you better be careful

with that.

I'm not telling you that.

Jesus told you that.

He spoke in Luke chapter 12

Luke 12 · chapter mention

with the parable

of the rich fool.

He was a man

who had a field

that produced a good crop.

As a matter of fact,

he grew so much crop

and had so much intake

that his barn

wouldn't hold it anymore.

And so he invested

in the farm

and he decided to build

his barns bigger

and store it more

and so he could retire

and take it easy

once he got it all in.

He had his plan

complete on earth,

had his profile

all set up.

He was ready.

But then God said

in Luke chapter 12

Luke 12:20

verse 20 and 21,

you fool!

This very night

your life will be

demanded of you.

Then you'll get

what you have prepared

for yourself.

This is how it'll be

when anyone

who stores up things

for himself

but's not rich

toward God.

We can invest

so much of ourselves

in this life

and forget

the most valuable thing

we have

is our own soul

and it is incomplete

and hopeless

outside of Christ.

when we get

so wound up

about our life

be careful.

We'll lose

our own soul.

You must be ready

for we have no idea.

Concerning the return

of the Lord

Jesus says

no one knows

not even the angels

in heaven.

I want you to listen

to what he says

in Matthew chapter 24

Matthew 24:40

verse 40

says this

then two men

will be in the field

one will be taken

and one left.

Two women

will be grinding

at the mill

one will be taken

and one left.

Therefore stay awake

for you don't know

on what day

your Lord is coming

but know this

that if the master

of the house

had known

in what part

of the night

the thief was coming

he would have

stayed awake

and would not

have let his house

be broken into.

Therefore listen

to what the Lord says

you also must be ready

for the son of man

is coming

at an hour

you don't expect.

You see

once it's too late

you can't get ready

fast enough.

In an instant

life is gone.

The unprepared

can't get ready

fast enough.

Third truth is this

I want you to hear me

clearly.

The door will never

be opened again.

It'll never be

opened again.

I believe two of the

most horrifying

pictures of heaven

for me

is one

the separation

and the second

is the finality.

And once the door

is shut

you're left out.

all the times

you could have

but now you can't.

It's final.

One of the difficulties

of doing a funeral

and visiting

with that family

just like I did

on Friday

was knowing

as I stood

before that casket

this is final.

Whatever's been said

has been said

whatever's been done

has been done

whatever decision

has been made

has been done

this is final.

whatever you say

about death

whether you're

afraid of it

or not

it is

final.

Now I'll tell you

I have no fear

of dying

itself

but I'm kind of

like Will Rogers

when he said

I want to die

like grandpa

who died peacefully

in his sleep

not screaming

like the passengers

in his car.

The transition

and the difficulty

before

can be dreadful

but death

in itself

I don't dread.

Each day

God gives me

an undeserved blessing

and what horrifies

me honestly

is the death

of others.

Some folks

are scared

to die

and someone

without the Lord

ought to be

afraid to die.

Christians

if you know

that you know

I'm not talking

about by your

church affiliation

I'm not talking

about by your

doctoral education

I'm not talking

about by your

baptism

or by your

confirmation

I'm not talking

about by your

family heritage

I'm talking

about by your

personal decision

to say

Lord

I am a

sinner

and have no

hope outside

of you

today I ask

you to forgive

me of what

I've done

wrong

and what

I'll do

wrong

and to

come into

my life

and change

me

empower

me

to rise

above the

temptation

that comes

into my

life

and save

me Lord

for all

eternity

I am thankful

that the Lord

says

everyone who

calls upon

the name

of the Lord

shall be

saved

if you've

done that

you have no

reason to

fear death

many do

even though

Christian

and I

understand that

it's common

we ain't been

there

you know

new experiences

are scary

don't feel bad

about that

it's the fear

of the unknown

whatever you say

about it

afraid or not

though it's

final

there's no

turning back

and I want to

be clear today

there's theological

discussions about

all this stuff

I want to be

clear today

what I see

in scripture

tells me that

once the door

of opportunity

is shut

it's gone

it's gone

there is no

second chances

after this life

let me go a

step further

and say this

I believe the

door can be

shut spiritually

before one

dies

and this is

why

the Bible

is clear

that we

only come

to God

because the

Spirit of

God draws

us

it is God

that does

the initiation

it is God

that does

the knocking

and on some

hearts doors

it may only

be once

and in other

people's lives

it may be

multiple

times

but there

comes a time

either in

your death

or possibly

before your

death

when God

no longer

initiates

that

and without

his initiation

we're not

awake enough

spiritually

to follow

his lead

God has a

deadline

you don't know

what that is

I don't know

what that is

I had a man

tell me one

time

he said

I don't think

I can be

saved

I think

I passed

God's

deadline

I said

that's

blasphemy

you don't

have a clue

how God

works in

your life

and what

he'll do

in you

there comes

a time

when the

Spirit's

conviction

does not

come

hardness

sets in

there comes

a time

when the

message

is not

heard

the

knock

does

not

come

and so

if God

is speaking

to your

heart

today

respond

the

door

may never

be opened

again

I don't

understand

all that

I'm not

saying that

definitively

for your

life

I'm just

telling you

that if you

slip out

of this

life

or he

interrupts

our life

by his

return

you will

miss

the

opportunity

and I

want you

to hear

me today

Jesus

is clear

the door

will not

be opened

again

I'm not

sure how

to stress

the urgency

and I

know when

I do

that somebody

will say

it sounds

manipulative

and you know

what I'll tell

them to do

I'll tell

them to go

back and read

Matthew 25

because what

Jesus says

is you need

the oil of the

Holy Spirit of

God in your

life before

it's too

late

and I

thank God

today

that today

is the day

of salvation

he provides

us that

opportunity

when God

calls

come

when he

leads

go

and every

time you

deny him

understand

your heart

grows

harder

toward his

truth

now that

speaks to

us in

several ways

today

for one

if there's

any uncertainty

in your

life about

your salvation

and a lot

of people

teach different

things

I truly

believe that

scripture says

that unless

we confess

with our

mouth that

Jesus is

Lord and

believe in

our heart

that God

raised him

from there

we won't

be saved

I mean

that's the

only way

we can

be saved

is to

acknowledge

that

you can

learn all

the theology

you want

to

you can

go through

all the

steps of

any church

affiliation

you want

to

but if

you've

never

surrendered

your life

to the

Lord

if he's

not Lord

of your

life

you're

not ready

for his

return

you're

not ready

to leave

this life

and I

don't want

anybody

who has

the responsibility

of hearing

that message

because you've

heard it

to be

left with

the guilt

of it

by not

responding

if your

house was

on fire

at 2 a.m.

in the

morning

I'm not

going to

sit in your

driveway

and wonder

should I

knock on

the door

should I

tell them

I sure

don't want

to wake

them

I'm not

going to

do it

I'm going

to knock

on your

door I'm

going to bust

out a window

I'm going

to do

whatever

I can

to make

sure

that you

hear the

message

that it's

almost too

late

that may

not be

for you

I don't

know

and if

you know

you're a

Christian

today

and you

can rest

in that

fact

you're

certain

of it

thank God

you have

a story

to tell

and the

Christian

church

in America

has went

to sleep

and that

is why

our world

is in the

mess that

it's in

you say

well what

can I

do

it ain't

about what

you can

do

it's

about what

God

can do

in you

and through

you

when you're

willing to

do something

for him

he took

a ragtag

bunch

of 11

men

added a

12th

one

when the

one

wasn't

good

and they

changed

the world

and if it

wasn't for

them we

wouldn't have

this gospel

today

we have a

job to do

folks

and I don't

know how much

time we have

to do it

but I know

we don't have

a day to

waste

if you don't

know the

Lord today

let's talk

about it

let's pray

about it

together

Lord Jesus

I love

you

I thank

you Lord

for your

word

I thank

you Lord

for your

message

I thank

you Lord

that you

loved us

enough to

give us

an adequate

warning

and Lord

I

I've

tried

today

to be

true

to what

you've

shared

to not

overdo

to not

underdo

to not

play off

of it

but to

be real

God I

ask that

your Holy

Spirit

is working

and moving

in hearts

and lives

today

and giving

folks the

boldness

to step

up and

step out

to do

what it

takes

to honor

you with

their lives

thank you

Lord

that I

can share

a gospel

message with

anybody and

let them

know the

Lord will

save them

he's willing

and able

to if

they'll

respond to

him

lead us

right now

oh God

I pray

whether it

be a public

decision

about a

previous private

decision

whether it be

one who's

felt led to

be a part of

this congregation

whether it

be one who

needs to

get saved

today

or one who

needs to let

their salvation

shine through

their lives

God

whatever it

may be

lead us

Lord today

and help us

to be obedient

as you speak

in Jesus

precious name

amen

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