PARABLE OF TEN VIRGINS

1. PARABLE OF TEN VIRGINS was told a day before Jesus was betrayed to be crucified.  “… when Jesus had finished all these sayings, he said unto his disciples, Ye know that after two days is the feast of the passover, and the SON OF MAN IS BETRAYED to be crucified” [Matthew 26:1-2] In the PARABLE, Jesus spoke of events leading to His appearance to receive His BRIDE. To emphasize importance of the message, the Lord added two PARABLES in the same vein. PARABLE OF TALENTS came right, where he positioned Himself as a man travelling to a far country, who committed his goods to his servants, “And unto one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one; to EVERY MAN ACCORDING TO HIS SEVERAL ABILITY; and straightway took his journey” [Matthew 25:15] PARABLE OF SEPARATION OF SHEEP AND GOATS went further; Jesus spoke of the end, when He shall sit to JUDGE the nations, “… then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory: And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats” [Matthew 25:31-32] PARABLE OF TEN VIRGINS speak to the present Church more than any other; we cannot deny urgency of the message, “He that hath an ear, let him HEAR WHAT THE SPIRIT SAITH UNTO THE CHURCHES” [Revelation 3:22]

2.  The central characters in the PARABLE are the TEN VIRGINS, “Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto TEN VIRGINS, which TOOK THEIR LAMPS, and went forth TO MEET THE BRIDEGROOM” [Matthew 25:1] The TEN VIRGINS, represent the Church, the congregation of SAINTS born and cleansed by the WORD from corruption that is in the world, “Being BORN AGAIN, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the WORD OF GOD, which liveth and abideth for ever” [1 Peter 1:23] They took their LAMPS, symbolizing their profession of FAITH to meet the BRIDEGROOM, which here is the Lord Jesus Christ. Here is the twist in the story, as they went forth to meet the BRIDEGROOM with LAMPS burning, we are told five were WISE and five, 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” [Matthew 25:3-4] LAMPS illustrate FAITH, OIL is LOVE of God that keeps our LAMPS aflame. All TEN VIRGINS started out with their LAMPS burning but five we were told were FOOLISH and took no OIL with them. Without OIL, which is LOVE of God, FAITH has no durable insurance against vagaries of this world. The best of men may falter and go to sleep, LOVE never sleeps or stumble. Remember the pulsating LOVE of Christ we had at the beginning, the Lord will have nothing short of that, “Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because THOU HAST LEFT THY FIRST LOVE” [Revelation 2:4]

3. Perhaps the part of the PARABLE that affects us most is Verse 5, where the Lord made clear the CHURCH SLEPT, “While the BRIDEGROOM TARRIED, they ALL SLUMBERED and SLEPT” [Matthew 25:5] By laying emphasis on the BRIDEGROOM’S delay, the Lord shifted the story far ahead to a time when “ALL SLUMBERED AND SLEPT”. For His immediate audience, it meant His Coming would be fulfilled after they were long gone. For us, it speaks of a time of foreboding darkness, the type that lulled both WISE and FOOLISH VIRGINS to SLEEP. That season is here, as it is written: “For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, IF IT WERE POSSIBLE, they shall DECEIVE THE VERY ELECT” [Matthew 24:24] Contrary to popular opinion, SLEEP is not inertia, it is a paradigm shift; transformation from one level of reality to another. For example, we run, eat, buy stuffs, get rich and even SLEEP in our dreams! When Jesus said, “ALL SLUMBERED AND SLEPT”, He referred to this SLEEPY LUKEWARM CHURCH. We claim to be AWAKE and burning for the Lord, where is the OIL? We have the riches of this world but our LAMPS are fast going out when we need them most, “Because thou sayest, IAM RICH, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art WRETCHED, and MISERABLE, and POOR, and BLIND, and NAKED” [Revelation 3:17]
4. The MIDNIGHT CRY roused the VIRGINS from SLEEP, “And at MIDNIGHT HOUR there was a CRY made, Behold, the BRIDEGROOM COMETH; go ye out to meet him” [Matthew 25:6] The Lord obviously kept some aside and awake, as He did in the days of Elijah, 1 Kings 19:118 to sound the alarm. The MIDNIGHT CRY is the final call to the Church to TRIM THE LAMPS, “Then all those VIRGINS AROSE, and TRIMMED THEIR LAMPS” [Matthew 25:7] As aforesaid, LAMPS represents our FAITH, “TRIMMING THE LAMPS” means pruning dead weights and whatsoever does not answer to FAITH in our lives [Hebrews 12:1-2] This the TEN VIRGINS did yet FOOLISH could not set their LAMPS on fire because they had no OIL. They did not take OIL with them, not because they forgot; it was something worse, they trusted in their ACCESS to who “SELL OIL”. When a VIRGIN so much as give ear to another, she is defiled, “For the LORD thy God is a consuming fire, even a JEALOUS GOD” [Deuteronomy 4:24] Strange doctrines, traditions, customs and crass materialism peddled through the ages have raised an army of FOOLISH VIRGINS, who know where to “BUY” what they cannot have from God. This is the MIDNIGHT CRY, let us all return to Christ, our FIRST LOVE. He is at the door, it is too late in the day to go out to “BUY”, “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” [Matthew 25:10]