The Ten Virgins, Part 1

Tonight as we embark on another parable of our Lord, parable of the Ten Virgins in Matthew chapter 25, let me read it for you, and then we will look at it together.

It says, then the kingdom of heaven will be comparable to ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom, and five of them were foolish, and five were prudent. For when the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them, but the Prudent took oil in flasks along with their lamps. Now while the bridecum was delaying, they all got drowsy and began to sleep. But at midnight there was a shout, behold, the bridegroom, come out to meet him. Then all those virgins rose and trimmed their lamps.

And the foolish said to the Prudent, give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out. But the prudent answered saying, no, there will not be enough for us. and you too, go instead to the dealers and buy some for yourselves. And while they were going away to make the purchase, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the wedding feast, and the door was shut. And later the other virgins also came saying, Lord, Lord, open up for us. But he answered and said, truly I say to you, I do not know you.

Be on the alert then, for you do not know. the day nor the hour. Tonight, I want to, let me give you the instruction concerning the parable.

Two things I want you to see, very simply, the wedding and the warning. The wedding and the warning. Remember, a parable is an earthly story with heavenly significance. You can remember that, right? We've been talking about it for weeks. It's all it is. Earthly story with heavenly significance. So you understand heaven from an earthly point of view. And so Christ when he speaks to something very common to these people. They know all about a Jewish wedding. They've seen them. They've been a part of them.

They know about the Jewish wedding. So I want to talk to you a little bit about the wedding because you need to understand the Jewish concept of the wedding to understand what's happening with these bridesmaids, with this bridegroom, and why they have these torches and why he comes in the middle of the night and they've got to be ready. And five are ready. And five were not. Christ wants to emphasize the fact of preparedness, of readiness, because of the suddenness and the unexpectedness of his return.

Remember, this is the Olivet discourse. That is, the discourse given by Christ on the Mount of Olives shortly before or right before he was to be crucified. He wanted his men to understand his return. They asked a question, a very simple question. He spends a long time giving them an answer because people, people need to be ready. And for the most part, they won't be. So let's look at the wedding together.

And eight things I want you to see. First thing, and we'll go quickly, don't worry, the arrangement, the arrangement.

In those days, it was very important to understand that the fathers made an arrangement. They made a covenant with one another. And that began the engagement period. Okay? Two fathers would get together and they would make a covenant, one with another, and that this, my son, would marry your daughter. That's the way they did it. in those days. And they would sign an official contract. And that began what was called the betrothal period. And that betrothal period would last for a pretty long length of time.

It wouldn't last for a couple of months. It would last for probably at least a year, maybe two, maybe even three years. It would last a long time. It would give the young man the opportunity to, you know, build his home or to add on to his father's home so he'd have a place for his wife to begin to cultivate a field, to show that he was worthy to be married, that he could provide for his wife, and the father of the bride would look and be able to observe this and see this, and they would begin to engage in an official ceremony of the betrothal period.

And they would do this before friends and family, and they would make binding vows to one another. If that betrothal was broken, that couple then would be divorced. That's why we read about that in Matthew chapter 1, verses 18 and 19 with Mary and Joseph, before they were officially, quote, married in the true sense of the word, where they would consummate that marriage. They were in the betrothal period. And Joseph was thinking about divorcing Mary because she was with child. You know that story?

And so they went through the betrothal period to then ultimately the wedding period. And that wedding was a huge celebration. The bridegroom would take his bride to come and live with him. And this was accompanied by a huge celebration. And this is the element of the parable where Jesus talks to his men. This is what he's talking about. He's not talking about the engagement. He's not talking about the patrolville. He's talking specifically about the wedding celebration. Where the bridegroom would come, receive the bride, she'd have to be ready because she never knew when he was going to come.

She always had to be ready for his coming. These bridesmaids had to be ready. And he would show up. He'd say, I'm here. It's time to get married, and he would take his bride with him to his home. And there would be a long, huge celebration through the village or through that town. And usually happened at night, and that's why they had torches, because people were off of work at night. Okay? And they could all be a part of a huge celebration. And that's what Christ is talking about in Matthew 25, verses 1 to 13.

We move from the arrangement to the anticipation. You can imagine the anticipation that this bridegroom would have, as well as the bride, as well as the bridesmaids, that this is going to come. We don't know when it's going to happen, but we just know it's going to happen. They anticipated the fact where they would consummate their marriage. And so what they did was begin to wait. And so the wedding celebration started when the bridegroom would arrive at the bride's home because she was waiting for him.

Then they would go through the village, they would sing, they would talk, there'd be a great celebration. Because remember, in those days, they didn't get out much. There wasn't much to do. I mean, where are you going to go? I mean, the biggest event of the day was a wedding celebration. It was a great thing. Not like it is today, but in those days, it was a big, big event. He would come, the procession would go through the village, and then they would have the celebration. Usually lasting seven days.

At the end of those seven days, the bride and the bridegroom would consummate their marriage. Number three, the thing in what you see is the attendance, the attendance.

They're removed from the arrangement to the anticipation to the attendants. Who are these ten virgins? You will note that these attendants have torches. These torches were on long wooden poles with mesh lining at the end where they would put claws in and they would carry a flask of oil with them and they would put the oil on the rag, light the rag, and that would be their light at night. That would be their torch. It was a lot like those soldiers who came to get Christ in the Garden of Gassimini.

They'd have these kind of torches when they came to the garden to get Christ on the eve of the crucifixion. These were ten virgins. These were young ladies, unmarried ladies, all virgins. Most of the time, these people were friends of the bride, very close, intimate friends of the bride. They could be cousins, they could be sisters, but they were close intimate friends of the bride. And because they got married at such a young age in those days, most of them were all young. And so it accentuate the fact that all of them were virgins.

But no, no. When we refer to these ten virgins, there were five that were wise, and there were five that were foolish. Five that were prudent, five that were foolish. That's important to understand, as Christ begins to explain to us, the importance of preparedness. There were five who were true. there were five who were false. There were five who were ready and prepared, and there were five who were not ready and prepared, although on the outside they all looked the same. They all had the same bridesmaid dresses on.

They all had the torch, the pole, right? So on the outside, they all looked the same. But when push came to shove, when they had to be ready, only five, were prepared and the other five were not prepared. That's important. There are people today who say they are prepared for the return of Christ. There are people today who are anticipating the return of Christ. There are people today who might look like everyone else who claims to anticipate the return of Christ. The presence of these virgins implies their interest in the bridegroom's arrival.

And yet, there was a problem. Five were not prepared, and five were. You see, we come to church week after week. We don't know who's prepared and who's not. Only God does, right? Only God knows who's truly prepared to meet him. We don't know. We preach the gospel. We teach people the truth. We encourage people to give their life to Christ. We encourage people to examine their lives and see whether or not there in the faith. But we don't know if you are truly prepared or not. Only God knows your heart.

God looks on the inner man. God looks on the heart. We look on the outside, right? But God looks on the heart. The wisdom or the foolishness manifests itself. Listen, in how prepared you are for the return of Christ. Whether you are a wise virgin or a foolish virgin, all depends on how prepared you are for the return of Christ. Look what it says down in verses 3 and 4. It says this. For when the foolish took their lamps and lamps, they took no oil with them. But the prudent took oil in flasks along with their lamps.

The foolish had no oil, but the wise, the prudent, they did have oil. Meaning that the attachment of these five virgins was superficial, that is, of the foolish virgins, versus the realism of those who were wise and had the oil. The question comes, what is the oil? Some people believe it's the Holy Spirit, symbolic of the Spirit of God. That could very well be. Others believe it deals with saving grace. That very well could be as well. Because these people understood the inner truth of the gospel.

They knew the truth of what it meant to be totally, fully, completely prepared for the return of the bridegroom. The others were outwardly prepared. These wise ones were inwardly prepared. It's a reminder back in Matthew 22 of the man who came to the feast, to the wedding hall, when a man was sowing a feast for his son. And it says in verse number 10, and those slaves went out into the streets and gathered together all they found, both evil and good, and the wedding hall was filled with dinner guests.

But when the king came in to look over the dinner guests, he saw there a man not dressed in wedding clothes and said to him, Friend, how did you come in here without wedding clothes? And he was speechless. Then the king said to the servants, bind him hand and the foot and cast him to the outer darkness in that place there should be weeping and gnashing of teeth from the air called but few are chosen this oil represents the preparedness of these people when the bridegroom arrives and the only way you can be prepared is if you've been saved by the grace of jesus christ our lord that's the only way paul told timothy there are some people who have a form of godliness but without its power.

We live in a society that has all kinds of forms of godliness. But in reality, there is no power behind that because they look a certain way on the outside. They dress a certain way, they act a certain way. They even do certain things on the outside. But on the inside, there is no interchange. There has been no saving grace. The foolish virgins were like that. They were committed to Christ intellectually. They were committed to Christ socially. They were committed to Christ religiously. There are a lot of people I know who are not saved, who know a lot about the Bible, and know a lot about Jesus Christ.

There are a lot of people I know who are not born again who want to socialize with Christians. There are people that I know who have a great religious exterior because they do religious things. But they've never been born again. They've never been transformed by the spirit's work in their lives. And that's what these five foolish virgins were like. Their faith was dead. They had no light, they had no life. They had everything external, nothing internal. The Bible says in verse number five, now while the bridegroom was delayed, they all got drowsy and began to sleep.

And that's very good. Why? Because it wasn't just the five foolish ones who went to sleep, but they all went to sleep. Every single one of them. Now, there's nothing wrong with sleeping. Why? I mean, because the bridegroom. groom delayed his coming. Christ was emphasizing the fact that even though you've seen the signs of the times, even though you see the signs in the sky, you do not know when I'm going to return. And so you will still be doing the normal things you always do. You'll eat, you'll sleep, you'll drink, and these people fell asleep because the bridegroom delayed his coming.

He delayed it for a certain time. So much so, he didn't come till midnight. That's what. why they were sleeping. They weren't up, going to stay up to midnight. Who would come in midnight? What bridegroom would come for his bride in the middle of the night? Right? He either come early in the evening or wait to the next day. So what did they do? They went to sleep. Not a problem going to sleep. The problem comes when you awake and you're not prepared. You see, the five wise virgins went to sleep and they slept soundly because they were prepared.

For when the bridegroom would arrive, they would get up, they would trim their lamps, light their torches, and they be ready. The five foolish ones, they weren't ready. They just went to sleep. So, it says very significantly, that Christ is going to return in the midst of carrying on our normal activities, no matter what they may be. And it says in verse number six, these words, but at midnight there was a shout, Behold, the bridegroom, come out to meet him. Number four, the arrival of the bridegroom.

The arrival. Here he comes. The bridegroom is here. He's come to get his bride. It's time to begin the procession. It's time to begin the celebration. Are you ready? Well, not everybody was ready. The point our Lord wants to make is that he's going to return at an unexpected time. It's a reiteration of what he's already covered in verses 36 to 50 of the previous chapter. He's going to come at an unexpected time. When you least, expect him he's going to return just like when these virgins went to sleep because they were tired it was the middle of the night all of a sudden he's here arise the bridegroom comes and christ is emphasizing you don't know the day nor will you ever know the hour in fact the only thing you know for certain he's going to come at the hour you least expect him and the virgins these bridesmates they would least expect him.

That is the bridegroom to come at midnight, but he did. Came in the middle of the night. Second Peter 3.10, the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night.

Revelation 3.3, if you will not watch, I will come to you as a thief. Revelation 1615, behold, I am coming as a thief. Suddenly, but most importantly, unexpectedly. Then comes the awakening. Verse number seven. Then all those versions rose and trimmed their lamps. They awoke. They arose. And they began to trim their lamps. They got ready. And so the five wise bridesmaids who had their oil, they put their oil on their lamp. They lit their lamp. They're ready to go in the middle of the night. But the five foolish bridesmaids, they would light their cloth.

But it would smoke. But it would smooth. smolder, it would go out. There was no oil. There was nothing to keep their torches lit. They were unprepared for the coming of the bridegroom. So what did they do? They make an appeal. Here's their appeal. Verse number eight, and the fully said to the prudent, give us some of your oil for our lamps are going out. You see, they tried to light them and they were unable to keep them lit. So they went to the five wise ones and said, give us some of your oil because our lamps are going out.

We need help. We need you to help us. Problem with that is, is your salvation is non-transferable. You can't transfer your salvation to somebody else. Just because your mom and dad are saved doesn't mean you're going to be saved. Just because your brother is saved doesn't mean your sister's going to be saved. Right? Why? Because you have to make that decision. You have to be prepared for the return of the Lord. Lord. These wise virgins didn't give oil to the foolish ones. It's not because they were selfish.

It's because the unbeliever can't receive the believer's salvation because every person is accountable for themselves before God. Every one of them is. So verse number seven comes the answer. It says this. Verse number nine, it says this, but the prudent answer is saying, no, there will not be enough for us and you too. Go and said to the dealers and buy some for yourselves. You've got to get it yourself. We can't give you what we have. You have got to go and receive it and buy it yourself. Now we know that salvation is a free gift of God.

We know that. But we also know that Isaiah 551 says whoever is thirsty, come to the waters and you who have no money. Buy and eat. Come. Buy wine, milk, without money and without cost. We know that there's a transaction made in salvation. For what shall I man give in exchange for his soul. It's the giving of my life away to receive the Christ's life. And they could not help them. The wise versions could not help the foolish ones. You have got to go and get it yourself. We can't give it to you. You have got to go and obtain it for yourselves.

So what did they do? It says this, and while they were going away to make the purchase, the bridegroom came, and those who already went in with him into the wedding feast. and the door was shut. The five foolish bridesmaids said, okay, where do we go? You got to go down to the local store and you got to get your own oil. Okay, we're going to go, man, let's go, guys. Okay, they take off, man, they're going down to the store, and they're going out. And they get their oil, they come back, and guess what?

It's too late. Did they want the oil? Probably. Were they sincere? Probably. But it was too late. It was too late. The door was shut. Number eight, this is called the abandoning. The abandoning. Can you imagine the sheer terror of those banging on the door? And later the other virgins also came saying, Lord, Lord, open up for us. Open the door, Lord. Let us in. We're dressed. We're ready to go. But he answered and said, I do not know. you. I'm sorry. I don't know you. The door to the kingdom was shut.

Just like those people in the floodwaters in Noah's day. Noah opened the door. Let us in. We're ready to repent. We're ready to get right with your God. We'll do exactly what you said. Noah, let us in. And could you imagine Noah hearing the cries and screams of the hundreds of people outside of his boat? And Noah sitting in there listening to the screams of all those people, and oh, if he could, he would open that door. But God shut it, because the long-suffering of God comes to an end, isn't it?

There is a time when God shuts the door, and there is no more chances. The door of the kingdom is open now, though, isn't it? It's open today. Anybody can go into the door of the kingdom if they give their life to Christ. But yet the church is filled with people who aren't ready. That's why Christ said in Luke 13 strive to enter in at the narrow gate. For many I say to you will seek to enter in and shall not be able. When once the master of the house has risen up and has shut the door and you begin to stand outside and knock at the door saying, Lord, Lord, open unto us.

He shall answer and say in to you, I know not from where you are. Then shall you begin to say, we have eaten and we have drunk. in thy presence as thou has taught us in the streets. Lord, we have done everything you said, everything you said. But he shall say to them, I tell you, I know you not from where you are. Depart from me all you workers of iniquity. And there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. When God shuts the door, there are no more chances. So while the door is open, now is your chance.

You've got to be prepared. You've got to be ready. And Christ said, to these people, I don't know you. Can you imagine that? Can you imagine the devastation that would be? That is going to happen to countless number of people across this country. They go to church every week. They pray to God every day. They take their Bibles with them to church. They sing songs in church. They even try to live the best life they possibly can. And you would probably think that that person, sure enough, is going to go to heaven when they die.

But they have never appropriated the work of Christ at Calvary on their behalf. And they have never given their life to Jesus Christ. Yet they did to go into heaven. And then they'll die. And they'll say, Lord, Lord, did I not go to Jesus? church in your name? Did I not raise my children in church? Lord, did I not tell people about Jesus? Lord, did I not pray to you every day? Lord, did I not do for you the things you wanted me to do? For him to say, I'm sorry. I don't know who you are. Depart from me.

That is the greatest tragedy I can ever think of. And my prayer is that nobody in this room would ever experience that. Let's pray. "'I'm sorry.'