Will You Be Ready?
“Afterwards the other virgins came and said,
'Lord, Lord, open the door for us!'
But he said in reply,
'Amen, I say to you, I do not know you.'
Therefore, stay awake,
for you know neither the day nor the hour."
Matthew 25:11-13
As we quickly approach the end of the liturgical year, the Church reminds us of our mortality. What is it that we seek in life? What is the first thought when we wake up? What is the last thought when our heads hit the pillow? Do we seek only to live this earthly life while neglecting the life that is prepared for us for eternity? When the Lord comes, will He find us ready for the Kingdom?
In the Parable of the Virgins, some were prepared with oil for their lamps while others were not. On the surface, some might ask why did those with the flasks of oil not share with those who had none? Wouldn’t that have been the charitable and Christ-like thing to do? The answer is “yes” if the moral of the story was about sharing, but the Lord was teaching about something deeper here. The Lord is talking about our salvation and the part we play in it. There are some things that we just can’t do in another’s place, and that is what the Lord is referring to in this parable.
Think about a parent or teacher who so wishes their children would understand right from wrong and see that their actions are only hurting themselves. Oftentimes perhaps when parents see their child struggling, they say “I wish I could take her/her place,” but they know they cannot, no matter how much they want to. This is the same for the spiritual life. No matter how much we may want our family member or friend to have a relationship with God or to see how their lives may or may not be a reflection of God’s love, we cannot do it for them. The “oil” for the lamps in this parable are just those things, the things that one must work on and towards themselves, the things which no one else can do for another or in another’s place.
We cannot want salvation for someone who does not want it. We cannot seek forgiveness and expect absolution for the sins of another who is not contrite (although we have faith in and pray for God’s boundless mercy to be extended towards them). We cannot believe in God for someone who rejects Him. We cannot encounter God for someone else. We cannot open the heart of someone who choose to keep it closed. Our faith is twofold, both communal and personal, and both are needed for the spiritual life. Yes, intercessory prayer is real and it works! The power of prayer is indeed real and effective. When we pray for others, God hears us, but even when God answers those prayers, if we are not willing to receive those graces, God will not force them upon us. It takes a personal assent and “yes.” At our baptism, parents and godparents said “yes” in place of the baby, but when that baby grows older he or she must choose to say “yes” on their own.
Where are we on our spiritual journey? Do we have flasks of oil ready for the night that is coming? As long as we are alive and breathing, we have time and we have the opportunity to visit those merchants (sacraments) to seek reconciliation and the graces that we so need in our lives. Do not delay and think we have plenty of time, for that is one of the greatest lies that the devil uses to tempt us — that we always have more time. So, will you be ready when the Lord comes and when the door behind Him closes? The time of salvation is now! May we today choose to say “yes” to God, to work to grow towards Him everyday, and to invite those around us to do the same.
