Mt 25:1-13 Who Are The Wise Ones?

Matthew 25:1-13 Who Are The Wise Ones?

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“Jesus told his disciples this parable…” Once again, the Lord speaks to his own, his closest associates, his friends, his Apostles. He uses the image of ten virgins for twelve chaste men. It is all or nothing. We must never forget that the Lord is a demanding God. He demands a lot and expects a lot and that is fine with me. The Lord deserves a lot because he loves a lot! “We love because he loved us first!” (1 Jn. 4:16) Where God’s Will is done, there is the Kingdom of Heaven. The Kingdom of Heaven is a wedding feast, where man ascends to God and God descends to man: “Thy Kingdom come, Thy Will be done on earth as it is in Heaven. Two wills become one.

The Foolish Ones

Who are the foolish ones? They are the ones that come unprepared and are ill-equipped in meeting the bridegroom and understanding the dangers of his delay. The doors are shut for them because they were too slow in meeting the bridegroom. They became distracted with his delay and did not realize that the feast would begin immediately upon his arrival. The words of the Lord are devastating, “Amen, I say to you, I do not know you.” Do I realize what this means? For God not know me is equivalent to not having created me! Who are the foolish ones? Those who wish to go to their wedding unprepared and ill-equipped; who have already spent all their oil, their richness, their beauty, their love on someone or something else! They were deceived, and they are perishing. St. Paul’s message of the Cross is simple: We sacrifice while others party! We nail ourselves to virtue and to honor, while others strip themselves naked and go all out in meeting their own catastrophic destruction. “Who are the wise ones today? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made the wisdom of the world foolish?” (1Cor 1:17-25) Freedom without discipline spells DISASTER.

The Wise Ones

Who are the wise ones? The Just ones. “Exult, you just, in the Lord; praise from the upright is fitting” (Ps 33:1) because it is fitting to be upright! Who are the wise ones? Those who maintain their dignity and never lower their standards. The ones who come prepared and await the moment of the bridegroom – the authentic groom. They follow the Law of the Lord; patient in his arrival; confident in his word! “For upright is the word of the Lord” (Ps 33:4). The just ones are those who proclaim the Cross! “I suffer know for I know my savior lives.” The Cross is the greatest stumbling block for all men. We want Christ but without a Cross. “The Jews demand signs and Greeks look for wisdom, but we proclaim Christ crucified!” The Cross is the greatest symbol of tolerance, of patience and of VICTORY! “For the foolishness of God is wiser than human wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than human strength.” Perseverance, hard work and faith equal SUCCESS! It is organic. It is all natural. It is HEAVEN! To those who have much, more will be given. We wait patiently for the coming of the Lord. We know neither the day nor the hour. But we do know it will come one day in my life and in the life of the world.

Today, demand a lot from yourself and from your children. Raise the bar. Expect a lot from yourself and from your children, because only he who loves a lot deserves a lot. Love for LOVE. Feel the pinch of the Cross.