I Don't Know You!

Psalm 37:27-33 27 Turn from evil and do good; then you will dwell in the land forever. 28 For the LORD loves the just and will not forsake his faithful ones. Wrongdoers will be completely destroyed the offspring of the wicked will perish. 29 The righteous will inherit the land and dwell in it forever.30 The mouths of the righteous utter wisdom, and their tongues speak what is just. 31 The law of their God is in their hearts; their feet do not slip 32The wicked lie in wait for the righteous, intent on putting them to death; 33 but the LORD will not leave them in the power of the wicked or let them be condemned when brought to trial. Exodus 26 30 “Set up the tabernacle according to the plan shown you on the mountain.31 “Make a curtain of blue, purple and scarlet yarn and finely twisted linen, with cherubim woven into it by a skilled worker. 32 Hang it with gold hooks on four posts of acacia wood overlaid with gold and standing on four silver bases. 33 Hang the curtain from the clasps and place the ark of the covenant law behind the curtain. The curtain will separate the Holy Place from the Most Holy Place. 34 Put the atonement cover on the ark of the covenant law in the Most Holy Place. 35 Place the table outside the curtain on the north side of the tabernacle and put the lampstand opposite it on the south side. 36 “For the entrance to the tent make a curtain of blue, purple and scarlet yarn and finely twisted linen—the work of an embroiderer. 37 Make gold hooks for this curtain and five posts of acacia wood overlaid with gold. And cast five bronze bases for them. Matthew 25:1-13 The Parable of the Ten Virgins 1 “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. Reflections: As God gave the Israelites further instructions for the tabernacle, we begin to see a pattern set up for how the Israelites were to approach God and experience His presence. For a wonderful description of how we can use this model as we approach God in prayer see this fabulous resource by Jon Courson called, It gives a helpful guide to use the tabernacle as a model for our prayer lives. As walk through gate with thanksgiving, the courtyard as the place of praise, the brass altar as a place of confession, the laver as a place of meditation on how our sins have been washed away, the Table of Showbread as the place of petition (asking God for our daily bread), the lampstand as the place of ministry (letting our light shine), the altar of incense (as the place of intercession), and the holy of holies as the place of worship we can enter into God’s presence any time of day. In the Jewish faith, only the Most High Priest could go into the Holy of Holies once per year to offer sacrifices for the sins of the people (the day of atonement – Yom Kippur). This happens on the tenth day of the seventh month in the Jewish (lunar) calendar. There are five services on that day as opposed to the three services each day and four services on the Sabbath. Of course, all of these services were to prepare people for the coming of the Messiah. Now that the Messiah has come, the verses in our Gospel give us wisdom as to prepare for His return. The parable tells of ten virgins who went out to meet the bridegroom. Some had prepared by having extra oil to keep their lamps lit. The ones who weren’t prepared asked them to give them some of their oil, but they denied. Then they went to go get some oil, and while they were on their way, the bridegroom appeared and the door was shut. When the knocked on the door, the bridegroom said, “I don’t know you!” Do you know him? He knows you! He wants to be in relationship with you. Don’t wait until the end to be ready. You never know the day or the hour. Our lives can be taken from us in a heartbeat. Therefore we must be ready any day, any hour. Both we and our ancestors have sinned; we have committed iniquity, have done wickedly. Psalm 106:6 To one who without works trusts him who justifies the ungodly, such faith is reckoned as righteousness. Romans 4:5 Most holy and almighty God, our Savior, we confess our disobedience. We, like sheep, have gone astray, all of us turning to our own way. We have sinned and have done wrong. The good that we knew to do we have not done. We know that we have been unworthy servants and have fallen short of your glory. Help us, deliver us, and forgive our sins, O God of our salvation, for the sake of your Son, Jesus Christ, who loved us and gave himself for us. Amen.