Matthew
25:10 But while they were going away to buy, the
bridegroom came, and those who were prepared went in with Him to the marriage
feast; and the door was shut.” QAB
Religion is defined by human beings as an
institution to express belief in a divine power. The premise of that definition
sounds very good and appears to convey the very heart desire or intention of
humanity. The problem with the religion in Jerusalem at the time our Lord
walked there and today also is not in most cases the individuals seeking to
meet the true God, but it was then and is now the institutions that have become
rigid, politically correct, greedy for gain, ritualistic, and power hungry. The
Jews had corrupted pure worship during the time of the Scribes and Pharisees.
Today many religious institutions have corrupted the
simple proclamation of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Many of the large historical
religious institutions have turned from the faith as we saw in our Lord’s words
from Matthew Chapter 24 warning of the skandalizo to come and it is now here.
Many of these institutions deny the bodily resurrection of the Lord Jesus
Christ, His virgin birth, His miracles, and even many deny He is coming again
in great power and glory and yet these institutions with their people still
believe they will go to Heaven. Someone made a statement that says, “Religion
is what man tries to do to get to God”, but Jesus Christ’s birth, sinless life,
shed blood, death, burial, and resurrection from the dead is what God has done
for man and his sin.
This parable of the wise and foolish virgins our
Lord spoke is a continuation from the end of Matthew Chapter 24 where He is
painting pictures to show a distinction between those who are regenerated and born
again and those who merely have religion. In Matthew Chapter 25:1 the passage
says that all ten of the virgins “took their lamps.” The taking of the lamps
illustrate that all ten had made a verbal profession of faith in Jesus Christ
at some point in time in their lives when they were young or older by walking
an aisle, signing a card, being baptized and joining a Church.
Matthew 25:3 says the foolish virgins took no oil in
their lamps. Oil in many instances in the Old Testament is a picture of God the
Holy Spirit. King David said in Psalms 23:5, “You anoint my head with oil; my
cup runs over.” The taking of no oil by the foolish virgins represents them not
having God the Holy Spirit which makes them merely religious. They knew
something dynamic was missing in their daily walk, but they instead counted on
their Church membership and Church work to count for them in the end, even
though they knew they were void of the power of God daily and were unsure if
they had been baptized into Christ mystical body by the Holy Spirit. The Lord
Jesus Christ was never real to them.
Back in Matthew Chapter 23 we witness our Lord cut
down the religious Jews with 8 woe’s against their multitude of religious
activity void of a real and true relationship with YAHWEH. Unlike King David
who was a man after God’s own heart these religious Jews were more concerned
with dotting every ritual I and crossing every ritual T and as our Lord said to
them, “You have neglected the weightier matters of the law: judgment and
mercy and faith.” The following expounds these three words: Judgment meaning
justice (specifically Divine Law) and mercy meaning active human or Divine
compassion and faith meaning moral conviction or the truthfulness of God.
In Matthew 25:6 the Lord Jesus arrives and all ten
virgins were to go out to meet Him. In Matthew 25:7 they all “trimmed their lamps”
which represent them putting things in order and examining themselves and in so
doing in Matthew 25:8 the foolish virgins realize they lack the reality of
personal relationship that the wise virgins manifested. The wise virgins who
brought oil illustrates their receiving the gift of God the Holy Spirit and
were always prepared to meet their God for He had not left them as orphans but
instead manifested Himself to them and made His home with them daily. Therefore,
the foolish virgins tried to receive from the wise some special prayer or
laying on of hands so that the truth and sincerity of their worship and
devotion to the Lord Jesus Christ might be exported or transferred to them
somehow, but it can only be individually received through repentance and faith
and receiving the gift of the Holy Spirit.
In Matthew Chapter 25:9 the wise virgins say to them
go and pray to God perhaps He will be merciful in this late hour and grant you
the gift of the Holy Spirit that you may then be ready to meet the Lord Jesus
Christ. All of those who will be like the foolish virgins void of the same
nature and character of the Lord Jesus Christ through regeneration and new
birth as death is near will surely know it and be anxious and desperate at that
time hurrying here and there trying to get some last minute miracle to ease,
sooth, and quiet their conscience seeking peace in the end when they spent much
of their days of strength running after the health, wealth, and prosperity
pimps who never purpose then to do them any good and now are nowhere around. Our
Lord receives His own and immediately shuts the door behind Him exactly as He
did when Noah went into the Ark.
Genesis
7:16 And they that entered, male and female of all flesh, went in as God had commanded
[Noah]; and the Lord shut him in {and} closed [the door] round about him. QAB
In Matthew 25:11-12 we see the foolish virgins
bringing their religious works, the miracles they supposed they had done, and
the many Prophetic revelations they assumed they received from God to the door
and knocking seeking to gain entrance and even calling Jesus Lord, Lord but their
access is denied. Why He denied them entrance is simple He said to them, “I do
not know you.” He is God He knows everyone down to the number of hairs upon
their heads so what does He mean when He says, “I do not know you.” He means
you are not a partaker of My Divine Nature through regeneration and new birth
and those are the only souls I know the ones that have My Nature. You are they
who followed Me when your bellies were full, but never took up your cross daily
and desired to be My disciple, but instead you loved your sin and never knew or
loved Me.
Psalm
1:6 For the Lord knows {and} is fully acquainted with the way of the righteous,
but the way of the ungodly [those living outside God's will] shall perish (end
in ruin and come to nought). QAB
2
Timothy 2:19 But the firm foundation of (laid by) God stands, sure {and}
unshaken, bearing this seal (inscription): The Lord knows those who are His,
and, Let everyone who names [himself by] the name of the Lord give up all
iniquity {and} stand aloof from it. QAB
The door of grace remains wide open right now for
anyone desiring to have their sin taken away to come and drink of the water of
life freely and turn from false spirituality, the miracle chasing, and the
supposing that somehow gain is godliness, and receive Jesus Christ for who He is
Lord, Master, and Savior and make Him the King of your heart (see the article
entitled “The King of Hearts”, http://www.faithwriters.com/article-details.php?id=85059).
However, there is coming a day, an hour, a minute, and finally the last second
for everyone on this earth before death takes place and the real you (your
soul) leaves your body to enter eternity and at that moment the door of grace
will be shut forever.
Revelation
22:14-15 Blessed (happy and to be envied) are those who cleanse their garments,
that they may have the authority {and} right to [approach] the tree of life and
to enter through the gates into the city. [But] without are the dogs and those
who practice sorceries (magic arts) and impurity [the lewd, adulterers] and the
murderers and idolaters and everyone who loves and deals in falsehood (untruth,
error, deception, cheating). QAB
“Wisdom is the right use of knowledge. To know is
not to be wise. Many men know a great deal, and are all the greater fools for
it. There is no fool so great a fool as a knowing fool. But to know how to use
knowledge is to have wisdom.” Charles Spurgeon 1834-1892
“So many, when they shall see him coming, at death
or the judgment, will begin, like the foolish virgins, to be active, and to
prepare to die; but it will be too late. They that are ready will enter in, and
Heaven will be closed forever against all others.” Albert Barnes 1798-1870
“Those that disobey the commandments of God do so
foolishly for themselves. Sin is folly, and sinners are the greatest fools.” “The day is coming, when carnal hypocrites
would gladly be found in the condition of true Christians. Those who now hate
the strictness of Christianity, will, at death and judgment, wish for the solid
comforts of it. Those who care not to live the life, yet would die the death,
of the righteous.” Matthew Henry 1662-1714
If
you do not know the Lord Jesus Christ and His amazing healing power, pray this
from your heart to the Lord Jesus Christ (you speaking directly to Him), Dear
Lord Jesus, I confess to You that I am a sinner and I need Your forgiveness. I
believe You shed Your Blood and died for my sins. I believe that You rose from
the dead proving that You alone are God. I repent of my sins. I want to turn
from my sins. I ask You Dear Lord Jesus to come into my heart and take control
of my life. I want You to be my Lord, Savior, and my God. Amen...
Sincerely in Christ,
Clifford D. Tate, Sr.
Author of “Silent Assassins of the Soul - Are you
Broken by Pornography and Masturbation? You can be Restored by the Lord Jesus
Christ and brought into Deliverance, Freedom, and Victory! A Guide for Men and
Women in the Enemy’s Crosshairs” e-book available now @ Amazon Kindle, @ Apple
I Bookstore for IPod, Barnes and Noble for Nook, Reader Store for Sony Reader,
Kobo, Copia, Gardners, Baker and Taylor, and eBookPie…
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