If you are a fan of big-budget Hollywood “blockbusters,” you are probably aware that in the late 1970’s and 80’s, so-called ‘disaster’ flicks were all the rage.  Throughout the culture, people seemed to have developed a sudden fascination for witnessing death and destruction on a grand scale, with an insatiable appetite for more.  

The trend was so strong and by Tinseltown’s fleeting standards so enduring, that social scientists, religionists, pundits and others were becoming concerned.  The Zeitgeist had definitely changed.  But what was the new spirit of the age and where had it come from?  Had hope given way to pessimism?  Had faith turned to despair?  What did it say about our times that mass devastation had become a leading source of entertainment?

Talk show hosts interviewed legions of “experts”—sociologists, psychologists, pollsters and professors—for their theories on the latest public opinion surveys.  Despite their professional differences, there was consensus around one point: whatever was driving this, it was disturbing and probably unhealthy.  It clearly reflected deep angst about the general direction of humanity.  Had the nearness of the end become so obvious that the average Joe sensed it lurking just around the next corner?  Or was this merely a passing popular interest in spectacular “special effects,” which advancements in technology were improving by leaps and bounds?

My own motivation for watching some of these disaster films was not thrill-seeking.  I was interested because they made me think.  I recall a scene in one such picture about an ill-fated ocean liner named for the Greek god of the sea.  The ship was capsized by a towering wall of water from an enormous wave.

One of the main characters, a minister, having persuaded a mere handful of uninjured survivors to join his search for a way out of the doomed vessel, had no choice but to seal off their escape route from the rising waters.  The camera was fixed on the pastor’s face, as he did so, shutting his eyes tightly, as if blocking out the chaotic scene below his little band, and the screams and sobs of those who had chosen to stay behind.

As I watched, a 5-word fragment of a Bible verse popped into mind: “…and the door was shut.”  It’s from a parable that Jesus taught—not about safety and seamanship aboard large boats, but about the kingdom of heaven.  It’s found in the Gospel of Matthew, chapter 25, verses 1-13:

“Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom. And five of them were wise, and five were foolish.

They that were foolish took their lamps, and took no oil with them: But the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps.

While the bridegroom tarried, they all slumbered and slept.  And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him.  Then all those virgins arose, and trimmed their lamps.  And the foolish said unto the wise, Give us of your oil; for our lamps are gone out.

But the wise answered, saying, Not so; lest there be not enough for us and you: but go ye rather to them that sell, and buy for yourselves.

And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came; and they that were ready went in with him to the marriage: and the door was shut [emphasis added].

Afterward came also the other virgins, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us.

But he answered and said, Verily I say unto you, I know you not.

Watch therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh.”

The first thing we are told about this story is that it isn’t about how to ensure that weddings run smoothly.  It’s a parable illustrating what the kingdom of heaven is like, by comparing it to something simple and commonplace.

According to Jewish matrimonial custom of that day, when the Bridegroom had prepared a place for the bride to live, he came unannounced to her father’s house, to collect his beloved.  That event, is what the ten virgins (think bridesmaids) are anticipating.

The “lamps” that they carry are torches, which need to have the oil in which they’re soaked replenished every 15 minutes or so.  Half of the bride’s attendants had the good sense to bring oil for this purpose, and half did not—an oversight with tragic implications.  Oil is a common biblical symbol for the Holy Spirit.  The five unwise bridesmaids “took no oil with them.”  They did not have the Holy Spirit.  In other words, they were unbelievers.

When the Bridegroom had not appeared by late evening, all the bridesmaids nodded off.  At midnight came excited shouts.  ‘Get up.  The Groom has arrived!  He’s finally here!’

The bridesmaids quickly trimmed the charred outer layers from their firebrands.  The wise bridesmaids dipped the fresh tips of their torches in the oil they had brought, ready to ignite them and form up for the joyous procession to the bride’s new home.  The thoughtless ones turned to their prepared counterparts with what seemed to them a very simple solution: ‘Give us enough of your oil to get us by!’

The well-prepared bridesmaids could not comply with this request, not because they were selfish, but for the obvious reason that if there isn’t enough oil, the entire wedding procession could be plunged into darkness without warning, and the celebration of the happy couple’s nuptials embarrassingly ruined.  The unwise are urged instead to buy oil for themselves.

While the “foolish five” bridesmaids scurry off in search of it, the Bridegroom arrives and the remaining bridal attendants serve as the bride’s personal entourage, escorting her to the site of the wedding feast.  They all enter the site “and the door was shut” after them.  For the protection and comfort of the assembled guests, no one else would be admitted.

Sometime afterward, the bridal procession over, the foolish five come knocking.  “Lord, Lord, open [the door] to us!” they cry.

He answers, “Truly I say to you, I don’t know you.”

Jesus assures those who put their faith and trust in Him, that He knows those who belong to Him (John 10:14, 27), but declares that He does not know the foolish bridesmaids.  They have no personal relationship with Him.  They are strangers.  Their unbelief has become their undoing.

Jesus concludes with this admonition: “Therefore, watch because you don’t know the day or the hour at which the Son of man is coming.”  The moral of the story is simple and clear: Be watchful for His coming, but don’t just watch—be ready to greet the Bridegroom at all times!

What about you?  Are you among the wise or among the foolish?  Is your life a highlight reel of obedience to God’s call to repent and believe the gospel, a faith-filled journey of surrender, servanthood and self-sacrifice?   Or is it a disaster epic, rife with rebellion, unbelief, selfishness, and sin, where you are always the star of the show and the center of attention?

Are you ready and waiting with eager longing for Christ’s return for His own, no matter what, no matter when?  Have you been born again (that is, born from above, made not just physically, but spiritually alive)?  Do you have a personal relationship with God, so that the Holy Spirit lives inside of you?  Do you have assurance of your salvation, based not on your conduct but God’s free gift, received by faith in the death, burial, resurrection and return of Jesus Christ?

If your answer to ANY of these questions is ‘no,’ I urge you to read on.  God loves you and created you to live eternally with Him in an indestructible body and a brand-new world of indescribable beauty and wonder.  But He warns that judgment is coming quickly for those who reject the pardon Jesus died to give them.  If you die without Christ, you will not be at the wedding.  The only door will be shut and He will have to say those awful words: “I truly don’t know you.”

HOW TO BE SAVED:

• Admit to God that you are a sinner (that you have not kept His moral law to perfection; in your thoughts, words, and actions you have done what His law forbids and have failed to do what His love demands).  This is seeing yourself from God’s point of view and agreeing that He is right about you.  Be as specific as you can.
• Believe in your heart that Jesus died for your sins and that God raised Him from the dead.
• Sincerely repent (turn away) from your sins, asking God to forgive you and to use His power to help you resist temptation, no matter how strong the pull of sin may be, at first.
• Acknowledge Jesus as the Lord of your life.  Invite Him to move into your heart and take up residence there, so that He can change you from the inside out.
• Trust His promise to save you and give you a new spiritual birth and a new nature (thoughts, desires, priorities, hopes, dreams, and character).

SOME KEY TRUTHS:

• “For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.”  (Romans 3:23)
• “As it is written, there is none righteous, no, not one.”  (Romans 3:10)
• “For the wages of sin is death: but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”  (Romans 6:23)
• “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”  (John 3:16)
• “But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”  (Romans 5:8)
• “For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures.”  (I Corinthians 15:3,4)
• “But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name.” (John 1:12)
• “Behold, I stand at the door and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him…”  (Revelation 3:20)
• “For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”  (Romans 10:13)
• “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.  For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.”  (Romans 10:9-10)
• “Verily, verily, I say unto you; He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life; and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.”  (John 5:24)
• “But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing, ye might have life through his name.”  (John 20:31) 
• “These things I have written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God.”  (I John 5:13)