Sermon Recording:

Grant to us, Lord, we pray, the spirit to think and do always those things that are right, that we, who cannot exist without you, may by you be enabled to live according to your will, in the name of God our Father and Mother, of God the son, and God the holy spirit, Amen

As I read through the Epistle and the Gospel, ‘waiting’ was the key theme that came to my heart. I was attracted specifically to Jesus sharing with his disciples of the servants waiting for the bride groom to return. The reason is that I attended a wedding reception a couple of Sunday’s ago. You see, the wedding itself was about a year ago, and was a civil marriage in Boston. I guess they wanted to make sure the marriage would take before throwing a big celebration party, smart I think.

The reception was scheduled from 6 – 10 pm. It was a lovely venue in Spencer, MA, way out in the woods and not a particularly enjoyable drive from Wrentham. Unbeknownst to me, my wife and I actually arrived a few minutes early. We are never on time…a mystery in itself, or maybe a sermon for another day. We entered in the hall and found our way to the bar for a cool refreshment and found that we were the second group to have arrived. Nothing like being fashionably on time for a change.

As the first hour went by, more guests arrived. More friends and some family, but no one from the wedding party. Shortly thereafter, the young crowd arrived…the twentyish group. They were the siblings and close friends of the couple. This included my son and daughter. But the bride and groom were nowhere to be seen.

I realized I was in a state of “wait”. I kept looking over my shoulder every time I saw a movement near the entrance, but still no bride or groom. Seems it would be difficult to have a wedding reception without a bride and groom.

Next came the announcement, the wedding party had arrived, and we were shoehorned from the banquet room outside to a lovely tent-covered dinner area. The waiting was over…or so I thought. You see, once we were seated, the wedding party was introduced. The parents of the groom, the parents of the bride, the sister and the brother, and of course the best man and maid of honor. Then, finally the pinnacle of the night. It was time to stand and applaud as the new bride and groom were introduced and presented to the crowd.

There was a certain amount of anticipation as we waited. We had a high degree of certainty that the couple would arrive. The waiting was not painful to say the least, as we had time to reminisce with old friends and their family. It was not necessary that we were dressed for action, even though we looked pretty sharp, nor was it necessary to have our lamps lit.

But let’s back up a bit and talk about waiting, what it is, and what does it mean to us, and what do we find ourselves doing during these times of ‘wait’.

What is waiting?

Per dictionary.com, ‘wait’ means to remain inactive or in a state of repose, as until something expected happens…often followed by the word ‘for’, ‘till’,  or ‘until’… such as Wait for your sister to finish, Wait till after dinner, or Wait until your father comes home. Another definition is the action of staying where one is or delaying an action until a particular time or until something else happens.

I do not usually associate ‘waiting’ as a time to remain inactive or even to be in a state of repose, a time of tranquility or restfulness. Usually, my waiting comes with huffs and puffs, wondering when this time of ‘wait’ will come to an end.

What has your experience been with respect to waiting? Think about times when you found yourself waiting, either planned or unplanned, whether good, bad, or indifferent. Close your eyes if you like and find a time when you waited.

• Maybe it was waiting for your table at a restaurant.
• Possibly you were returning an item to a store.
• Or maybe the last time you were stuck in traffic.
• Or waiting on a solution, an idea that sparks in your brain that resolves your quandary.
• Or even waiting for the sun to set as you cast your eyes over the water.

Do you find yourself in a state of calm, your mind drifting or do you find yourself huffing and puffing with impatience, or maybe you are indifferent. It could be all three, it could be almost anything given the situation and I am sure it happens on a daily basis.

So let’s focus on this time of waiting, the act of waiting. What are you doing? I believe this is where Jesus is asking his disciples to go. As I alluded to earlier, waiting can be unpleasant, especially when the waiting comes as a surprise. I bet the disciples were tired of waiting. Jesus continues to teach them in parables about the kingdom of God and that the son of man will suffer and die, but they never seem to quite grasp the totality of his teaching.

In Luke’s Gospel, Jesus is also telling his disciples not to be afraid. Where else have we heard this. The joke is always to be aware when you are told ‘not to be afraid’ for something surely daunting is coming your way. In this case Jesus is telling his disciples not to worry, for the kingdom of heaven is already with them. But as was then and is today, we have much to fear. What if Jesus does not return? What evidence is there that Jesus is coming. But this is our time to examine our fears, ponder if we have enough oil in our lamps.

We are living in a time of fear, a time of darkness. We are in a time of ‘wait’, a time to see what comes next. What disastrous news will fill our ears tomorrow and the day after? How do we overcome this fear? How do we live through this time of waiting? Are we afraid that evil will overcome good, that the dark will overcome the light? It is dark out there at times, and sometimes it seems really bad, but we must be alert ‘dressed for action and have our lamps lit.’

This is what I believe Jesus wanted his disciples to believe and understand. This is what Jesus wants us to understand as well for today. That we must have hope, as Paul stated, ‘Faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen’, and with hope comes our faith, and faith is what Jesus desires from us. The faith that we are children of the resurrection and that we believe in the eternal life, and that Jesus Christ will come again.

We say this every week in the Nicene Creed as what we believe. And we profess it during every baptism through our baptismal covenant. We are challenged to proclaim by word and example the Good News of God in Christ, to seek and serve Christ in all persons, loving our neighbor as ourselves, and strive for justice and peace among all people, and respect the dignity of every human being.

We must have faith in the darkest of times and believe no matter how dark it gets, light with always shine through, for dark only exists in the absence of light and likewise, evil only exists in the absence of good.

It is our responsibility to be that light, to be that goodness. Jesus is not so much asking us to be on high alert, but he is definitely telling us not to be asleep at the wheel. If that analogy does not work, then consider the difference between being the lookout and being on the lookout.

Our beliefs, our covenant, our faith is what will guide us, if we allow it. We are the light that will defy the darkness, the good that will wash away the evil. We must be patient, we must be diligent, as we do not know when the thief will come to our house, but know that our faith is what will