The foolish ones said to the wise, 'Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.' But the wise ones replied, 'No, for there may not be enough for us and you. Go instead to the merchants and buy some for yourselves.' While they went off to buy it, the bridegroom came. We are now back in the Temple precincts in Jesus’ last week before His arrest and execution. As this time drew near, the Disciples questions about the end increased. Jesus did not focus on those questions, for which He had no answer, but continued teaching on how we are to live considering the coming end. Our first reading from the Book of Wisdom tells us to pursue wisdom, to acquire it, and to dwell within a life marked by wisdom. Now there are a lot of ways we think get us to wisdom...
The foolish ones said to the wise, 'Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.' But the wise ones replied, 'No, for there may not be enough for us and you. Go instead to the merchants and buy some for yourselves.' While they went off to buy it, the bridegroom came
We are now back in the Temple precincts in Jesus’ last week before His arrest and execution. As this time drew near, the Disciples questions about the end increased. Jesus did not focus on those questions, for which He had no answer, but continued teaching on how we are to live considering the coming end.
Our first reading from the Book of Wisdom tells us to pursue wisdom, to acquire it, and to dwell within a life marked by wisdom. Now there are a lot of ways we think get us to wisdom. Some would say, get well educated. You need at least a Master’s degree or a Doctorate – then you will have wisdom. Other will try to sell you a formula or a process – and they will assure you, for a price, that you will have wisdom.
Gaining knowledge is awesome – but that is not wisdom. Wisdom is the common sense that comes from studying and following the best free resource available – God’s Word. It tells us how to apply what we have learned from the best teacher ever toward the goal of eternal life.
Jesus lays out the parable of the wise and the foolish lamp bearers. On its face, it is simple. The wise bring extra backup oil, the foolish do not. When the bridegroom arrives the foolish are not there – they are at the market buying oil.
It might help to understand context. In Jesus’ time torchbearers acted as a nighttime escort and honor guard for the bridegroom and his friends as they traveled from the bride's house to the groom's in the night procession. They would greet the groom's party expressing joy, celebration, and respect for the couple. An unlit lamp was considered a social slight.
We might also ask why the wise virgins refused to share their oil. It is not selfishness, but a reflection of spiritual reality: spiritual readiness is non-transferable. When the bridegroom arrived, the foolish virgins lacked the personal capital—the oil of inner transformation—required to join the celebration.
For us, we must be ready to celebrate the coming time, both our personal death and the consummation of the world. We have God’s Word available to us as our wisdom guide.
When the time comes for the celebration, we will not be able to go to market, we will not be able to obtain spiritual readiness. We will not be able to grab someone else’s coat tails and get in. We have every opportunity to be wise now and prepare ourselves. Let us then strive for that wisdom that will open the door for us.
