{"id":1265,"date":"2025-08-10T14:35:46","date_gmt":"2025-08-10T13:35:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/slipend.co.uk\/sermons\/?p=1265"},"modified":"2025-08-10T14:41:13","modified_gmt":"2025-08-10T13:41:13","slug":"better-be-ready","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/slipend.co.uk\/sermons\/2025\/08\/10\/better-be-ready\/","title":{"rendered":"Better Be Ready"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Sermon from St Andrews Church, Slip End, UK. Given by our reader Richard Palmer on the 10\/8\/25 <\/p>\n\n\n\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/archive.org\/embed\/100825\" width=\"500\" height=\"30\" frameborder=\"0\" webkitallowfullscreen=\"true\" mozallowfullscreen=\"true\" allowfullscreen=\"\"><\/iframe>\n\n\n\n<p>Download Mp3&nbsp;<a href=\"http:\/\/archive.org\/download\/100825\/100825.mp3\">HERE!<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Sermon starts at 2:35<\/p>\n\n\n\n<font color=\"red\">Matthew 25 v 1-13\n<br><br>\nThe Parable of the Ten Virgins<\/font>\n<br><br>\n<font color=\"blue\"><b>1<\/b><\/font> \u201cAt that time the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. \n<br><br>\n<font color=\"blue\"><b>2<\/b><\/font> Five of them were foolish and five were wise. \n<br><br>\n<font color=\"blue\"><b>3<\/b><\/font> The foolish ones took their lamps but did not take any oil with them. \n<br><br>\n<font color=\"blue\"><b>4<\/b><\/font> The wise ones, however, took oil in jars along with their lamps. \n<br><br>\n<font color=\"blue\"><b>5<\/b><\/font> The bridegroom was a long time in coming, and they all became drowsy and fell asleep.\n<br><br>\n<font color=\"blue\"><b>6<\/b><\/font> \u201cAt midnight the cry rang out: \u2018Here\u2019s the bridegroom! Come out to meet him!\u2019\n<br><br>\n<font color=\"blue\"><b>7<\/b><\/font> \u201cThen all the virgins woke up and trimmed their lamps. \n<br><br>\n<font color=\"blue\"><b>8<\/b><\/font> The foolish ones said to the wise, \u2018Give us some of your oil; our lamps are going out.\u2019\n<br><br>\n<font color=\"blue\"><b>9<\/b><\/font> \u201c\u2018No,\u2019 they replied, \u2018there may not be enough for both us and you. Instead, go to those who sell oil and buy some for yourselves.\u2019\n<br><br>\n<font color=\"blue\"><b>10<\/b><\/font> \u201cBut while they were on their way to buy the oil, the bridegroom arrived. The virgins who were ready went in with him to the wedding banquet. And the door was shut.\n<br><br>\n<font color=\"blue\"><b>11<\/b><\/font> \u201cLater the others also came. \u2018Lord, Lord,\u2019 they said, \u2018open the door for us!\u2019\n<br><br>\n<font color=\"blue\"><b>12<\/b><\/font> \u201cBut he replied, \u2018Truly I tell you, I don\u2019t know you.\u2019\n<br><br>\n<font color=\"blue\"><b>13<\/b><\/font> \u201cTherefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour.\n<br><br><br>\n\n\n\n<font color=\"red\">Luke 12 v 35-40\n<br><br>\nWatchfulness<\/font>\n<br><br>\n<font color=\"blue\"><b>35<\/b><\/font> \u201cBe dressed ready for service and keep your lamps burning, \n<br><br>\n<font color=\"blue\"><b>36<\/b><\/font> like servants waiting for their master to return from a wedding banquet, so that when he comes and knocks they can immediately open the door for him. \n<br><br>\n<font color=\"blue\"><b>37<\/b><\/font> It will be good for those servants whose master finds them watching when he comes. Truly I tell you, he will dress himself to serve, will have them recline at the table and will come and wait on them. \n<br><br>\n<font color=\"blue\"><b>38<\/b><\/font> It will be good for those servants whose master finds them ready, even if he comes in the middle of the night or toward daybreak. \n<br><br>\n<font color=\"blue\"><b>39<\/b><\/font> But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what hour the thief was coming, he would not have let his house be broken into. \n<br><br>\n<font color=\"blue\"><b>40<\/b><\/font> You also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.\u201d\n<br><br>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Sermon from St Andrews Church, Slip End, UK. Given by our reader Richard Palmer on the 10\/8\/25 Download Mp3&nbsp;HERE! Sermon starts at 2:35 Matthew 25 v 1-13 The Parable of the Ten Virgins 1 \u201cAt that time the kingdom of &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/slipend.co.uk\/sermons\/2025\/08\/10\/better-be-ready\/\">Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[42],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/slipend.co.uk\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1265"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/slipend.co.uk\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/slipend.co.uk\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/slipend.co.uk\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/slipend.co.uk\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1265"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/slipend.co.uk\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1265\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1268,"href":"https:\/\/slipend.co.uk\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1265\/revisions\/1268"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/slipend.co.uk\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1265"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/slipend.co.uk\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1265"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/slipend.co.uk\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1265"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}