Our Lord, in Matthew 25, sets forth in these 13 verses
the state of things concerning His Kingdom. He's talking about
the Kingdom of Heaven. He sets forth the state of things
in this world concerning, first of all, how His Kingdom is, has
been, shall be prior to the day of his second coming. And secondly,
he speaks in the midst of this parable of the state of his kingdom
at the second coming. And then thirdly, he finishes,
concludes this parable concerning how things are, how they shall
be in the day of judgment. I want all of us to understand
exactly what he's talking about here. He's talking about his
kingdom in this world made up of all the individual churches
where the gospel is truly preached. Now we don't have to worry, we're
not debating whether or not the truth is being preached in places
where the gospel is not preached. It's not. And that's not what
he's talking about. What he's talking about is the
state of things where the gospel is preached. So now let's consider
first the state of his kingdom prior to the day of his second
coming. Look at verses 1 and 2. Then
shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins which
took their lamps and went forth to meet the bridegroom. And five
of them were wise and five were foolish. Now, we realize from
these two verses that within the visible church, the church
as it's beheld, like we're looking at everyone right here. Right
now, there's two types of people according to these scriptures.
There's two types of people in every place where the gospel
is preached. They're referred to, first of
all, as wise virgins and there's those referred to as foolish
virgins. Wheat and tares, sheep and goats,
hypocrites and true, living and dead. Now that's what this book
declares. And this truth is also set forth,
hold your place right there, just turn back to Matthew 13.
This is what the Lord said, Matthew 13, verse 47-48. Matthew 13,
47, again the kingdom of heaven. Again, it's not something that
will be, not in glory, he's talking about right here, right now.
The kingdom of heaven, this is what's happening today. The kingdom of heaven is like
unto a net that was cast into the sea and gathered of every
kind, which when it was full they drew to shore and set down
and gathered the good into vessels, but cast the bad Now, the scripture
declares that in the kingdom of heaven, a great net, and as
many brought into the visible church, into the openness to
be seen, it's gathered, it's collected, what it says of every
kind, every nature, of each sort, There's going to be all kinds
that's going to be brought in. Now all these fish are going
to be brought in. The scripture declares that the good, the excellent,
the pure, those that are constituted from the definition of that word
to answer their purpose for which they were created. That's why
it's good. There'll be the good and then
the bad, the unfit, the worthless, the opposed. Now, in our passage
here, The scripture declares the kingdom of heaven be likened
unto ten virgins. It says that of these two groups,
there's wise virgins and there's foolish virgins. But they're
all referred to as being virgins. Now what that's saying is that
both groups appear outwardly to possess the same characteristics. They both profess to possess
a knowledge and a relationship of being espoused to the bridegroom. They both say that. I'm believers. Everybody says the same thing.
They're virgins. They're pure before God. That's
what they're saying. And the scripture says in verses
3 and 4 this about them, they that were foolish took their
lamps and took no oil with them. But the wise took oil in their
vessels with their lamps. Now, they took. This is the first
thing I know. I'll tell you about what their
lamps set forth, but here's what they took. They took something. That word means to lay hold of
for future use. at a time when it will be needful
to examine yourself, to see, am I in the faith? I want to
hold on. I mean, you come in a wreck or something
like that and all of a sudden you think, I'm dying, I'm bleeding,
I'm hurting, I'm blacking out. Where are you going to go? Where
are you going to grab hold of something? Do I know the Lord
or no? Am I His or am I not? They took,
they laid hold of the lamps. Now those lamps set forth what
they declared they believed. Their profession of Christ, that
was their lamp. That was the outward declaration
of their profession of hope in the Messiah. And both groups,
wise and foolish, professed faith in Christ. But there was a big
difference according to these scriptures right here. The lamps
of the five wise virgins had something in it. It said that
there was some oil in it. What was the oil? Well, that
oil set forth the life and the love of Christ in the soul. It was the hope of glory. It was the Spirit of God. There
was life there. One by which the light of the
world, the Lord Jesus Christ, is revealed and known. And these
five virgins that had oil in their lamps, they walked before
God by faith. They believed God. They walked.
They were led by the Spirit of God. But the foolish, This is
what it says, they were foolish, verse 3, they took the lamps,
they had a lamp, but there was no oil in the lamp. It was a lamp, it was a profession,
they said I got a light, but there was nothing in it. It was
empty. They had a profession. They claimed outwardly to be
awaiting the bridegroom. In reality, they walked in darkness,
in unbelief. They didn't have any oil. They had their doctrine right. They knew the five points of
Calvinism. They could make a good argument
for it. They knew the difference. I told
you about my daughter Becca. She grew up and she was 18 years
old. She grew up, I mean, she was
an infant. There was never a time that she
wasn't sitting under the sound of the gospel. And told me one
day at 18 years old, she said, Dad, I want to be baptized. I've
told you this story, but it fits perfectly. I want to use it again.
And she said, I know what you're saying. I've heard what you're
saying. I know the five points of Calvinism
and I can make an argument between Arminianism and Calvinism. I
know that free will, Arminianism is wrong. I know the Bible doesn't
teach that. I know, and I know by five points,
total depravity, unconditional election, particular redemption,
limited atonement, irresistible grace, perseverance of the saints.
I know the five points. I understand them. I know them.
I got it. I got it. I got it. I just didn't
have a heart for it. It just didn't matter. I understood
it. I had it up here. That was these
foolish virgins. They knew it up here. They had
their doctrine downright. You didn't have to worry whether
or not they could tell you five points of Calvinism. But they
didn't have the oil of God's Spirit. There was no love. There was no love for the gospel.
There was no hungering, thirsting after righteousness. And nobody
else knew it. They didn't even know it. They
were blind. You can understand something
intellectually. I told her that night, Becca,
I understand. I understand communism. I understand it. Work as hard
as you can, give all your money to the government and the government
will take it and waste it. You know, I understand it. I
just don't have a heart for it. I'm a capitalist. I understand
it. She understood here. But here,
that was the foolish virgins. She was sitting under the gospel.
Look at Matthew 6. In light of what I just told
you, having an intellectual understanding of the gospel. But I mean no
living, lively heart and love, love for the truth. This is my
life, I want to hear it. My brethren, this is the kingdom
of God. This is the kingdom of heaven.
Look at Matthew 6. Verse 22-23, the light of the
body is the eye. What that's saying is, humanly
speaking, the light of the body is the eye. Without this, I can't
see you. The light of the body is the
eye. If therefore thine eye be single, if it's healthy, the
whole body shall be full of light. But if thine eye be evil, thy
whole body shall be full of darkness. then he applies that, you know,
if therefore the light that is in thee spiritually is darkness. If the light of the head knowledge
of the truth, and believe me I've witnessed it, I just told
you, I've witnessed it. I understand that. I mean it
was such a marvelous illustration, it was my own child that told
me this. But if the light that is in thee It's darkness and
it's just an understanding. How much do you think Judas knew?
He walked with the Lord three years. He heard the Lord preach. He heard the gospel. He saw the
miracles. You think he believed that Christ
could do miracles? Yeah, he believed that. He saw
him. You think he could take five loaves and two fish and
feed 5,000 men plus the women and children? Yeah, he saw him.
You think he knew he could walk on water? Yeah, he saw him. He
watched him. You think he knew the truth of
the gospel here? Yes. Preached it. But did he have a heart for it?
There was no oil there. He knew all the right things,
Fred. But there was no life there.
There was no life there. And it becomes evident. It'll get out. It'll get out. So if the light that is in thee
is darkness, just a head understanding, how great is that darkness? Why? Because you're saying outwardly,
you understand with the head, the only truth that there is. You understand it here, but there's
no heart for it. So the wise, they were truly
walking by faith, possessors of the oil of God's spirit, the
spirit that the foolish cared nothing for. They saw no need,
they were blind and unaware of their own state. And the scripture
says in verse 5, while the bridegroom tarried, they all slumbered and
slept. Now this was a real amazing awakening
truth. A truth that I truly believe
I understood, but it really became vividly alive to me. Both the
wise and the foolish. Those who are wise to their salvation,
truly sensible to their need of Christ, wise to trust Him
by faith, look to Him for mercy and righteousness, pardon, justification
before God, wise to cast themselves totally upon Him. Even they were
said to fall into the temptation of slumbering and sleep. Now you know this scripture.
That's in Song of Solomon. I'll read it to you. It's Solomon,
the Shulamite, when she She was approached by the Lord. Psalm
5 verse 2. Here's what she said. I sleep. I feel myself drowsy. I feel
myself drowsy. Spiritually drowsy. But my heart
waketh. Let me ask you this truly. Now
let's just don't raise your hands for nothing, but just truly.
How many here have ever felt themselves, at times, so insensitive,
so insensitive to Christ. And knew it, you knew it, you
knew it. Just so weary, weary, tired, spiritually, you know. Someone might say, I tell you,
I've never felt like that. Well, you're the first one I've
ever met. Because I don't know one that's
not like that. I sleep, but I know my heart's
awake. It's the voice of my beloved
that knocketh, saying, open to me, my sister, my love, my dove,
my undefiled. For my head is filled with dew,
and my locks with the drops of the night. Now that should just
arrest my heart, Pat. I should just think, oh, Lord,
thank you. And I know that. And I loathe
myself when I think about how much I know. I know of this and then immediately
can ask myself, can I deem myself a child? Knowing this. And listen to the excuse. Listen
to the flimsy excuse. I put off my coat. How shall
I put it on? I've washed my feet. How shall
I defile them? The Lord knows how to awaken
His people. But the Scripture says, while
the bridegroom tarried, right now, while he's tarrying, he's
gone away, he's ascended up into glory. And right now he's tarrying,
returning. He's tarrying to come back. He's coming back, I know he's
coming back. But while he's tarrying, the
Scripture says, While the bridegroom tarried, they all slumbered and
slept. I know we're insensitive. We find ourselves. But a believer
realizes that. And immediately, he'll cast himself
upon the Lord. Lord, forgive me for that. I'm
so sorry. I'm so sorry. God have mercy
on me. And the foolish, obviously not
in their own estimation of themselves, but foolish nonetheless, are
here revealed to be walking in total blindness. Now theirs is
asleep truly of death. They have no awe, there's no
spirit, there's no life, there's no love for Christ. They're slumbering
in the realization of their lack. of life. They think they have
it. That heart that is so deceitful
above all things, thinking and realizing to themselves that
their knowledge of the gospel. I've sat under what I know. I can hear what this man is saying
and I can see it in this book. But there's no love for it. There's
no desire for it. It's a take it or leave it. They think that their knowledge,
their natural knowledge and their acts will answer for them in
that day, that they'll be accepted of God on their own merit. I
know this is so. I know this is so. Oh, the deception
of that carnal heart, deceitful above all things. This is the
state of the kingdom of heaven right now. Right now. Secondly,
let's consider the state of Christ's kingdom at His second coming. Now let's remember, this is the
true church. This is the way the true church,
how it's made up. There's some wise and some foolish,
some wheat and some tares, and the scripture declares In Luke
12, 40, Be ye therefore ready also, for the Son of Man cometh
at an hour when you think not. Let me tell you what a believer's
thinking right now. Let me tell you what you're thinking right
now. Lord, don't leave me to myself. Lord, if I've never trusted
you before tonight, Lord, save me. Lord, have mercy on my soul. God, don't leave me to myself.
That's the heart of a believer. Every time the scriptures warns
him and gives warnings, examine yourself if you be in the faith,
you know. Look at verse 6. And at midnight,
in a time when you think not, middle of the night, everything
dark, there was a cry made, behold, the bridegroom cometh. Go ye
out to meet him. Go ye out, and everyone will.
We're all going to meet him. Go out, you know. I tell you,
that event is going to commence with a trump. Behold, trump of
God's going to sound. The dead in the grave are going
to hear. Everybody's going to hear. Everybody
on earth is going to hear. Everybody's going to behold the
bridegroom cometh. In that day, let me tell you
what's going to be going on. Everything that's going on right
now. Businesses are still going to be running, and people are
going to be getting married, and they're going to be going
on vacations. Everything that's happening now is what it's going
to be like in the day of the Lord's return. And the believers
will be ready, going about their business, ready, waiting. The
world's going to be in growth with its own cares. Churches
will be just like they are, and there'll be business as usual. When the Lord comes, and the
scripture says, when that cry went out at midnight, behold,
the bridegroom cometh. Go out to meet him. It says,
verse 7, then all those virgins rose and trimmed their lamps. All the virgins, the wise and
the unwise, that's all of them. All those virgins got up, rose
and trimmed their lamps. Up until now, so much appears
to be the same. right up to the time of the Lord's
return. And now all rise and they get
their lamps, they're trimming them up. There's a definition
in that trimming up. It's not just to cut the wick. What it means is they're going
to get their lamp in order, they're going to arrange it, but it means
more than anything else to garnish it, polish it. Make it look nice. Let's get this thing fixed. Let's get it right. And it's
just making our profession ready. And the wise rose out of their
slumbering frame. They were all slumbering, Scripture
says, and now they're vividly awake and truly ready. They have oil. They had oil in
their lamps. Oil was in that life was there.
I sleep. But my soul, my heart is awake. God's people see the slumber,
but they're awake spiritually. They really are. And they're
ready to meet the bridegroom. They're alive. They've been kept
by the power of God through faith unto the day of redemption. Right
now, if the Lord came right now, they'd be ready. They're ready.
They're convinced. The Lord put away their guilt.
They're convinced. They're convinced that His righteousness
robes them. They stand complete in Him, and
they trust Him, and they love Him. They do have a heart for
Christ. And the foolish, they arose too,
waking now to the seriousness of the hour, knowing now that
they're going to meet God. Now they know. Now then, they
try with all their might to trim the lamp and make it presentable,
cause it to appear genuine. Now, there's a shocking realization. They know now. Now they know.
I don't know Him. I don't know Him. I don't have
a love for Him. I have no love for Him. It's
not that I'm merely sleepy. They all found themselves in
that sleepy, slumbering state. But the wise were alive and realized
their slumbering state, their life. These other were sleeping
in death. It was a shocking realization.
They have no oil, no Holy Spirit, no life, no joy, no peace, no
mediator, no advocate, no hope. And they do the only thing that
they know to do. Now, I want you to look at something.
They do the only thing they know to do. Verse 8. The foolish said
unto the wise, give us of your oil, for our lamps are gone out. Yeah, in their understanding
now. Their lamp never was lit. Verse
3 said they never had any oil. That's what it said. They had
no oil. They never had. That lamp was never burning.
Now it's gone out in their eyes even. In the time of grace, they
saw no need of Christ. They saw no need to come to Him.
All they knew was to look to the arm of their flesh. They
looked to their understanding of the five points. They knew
that they could see in these scriptures. I had someone tell
me this. They said, I know that what you're
saying is in the Bible. But I really don't care. I know I can see it. It was 2
Thessalonians 2.13. that I read to him. He said,
I see that. I see what you're saying is so, and I know that
exactly what you're saying is exactly what that scripture says.
We're bound to give thanks to God for you, brethren, beloved
of the Lord. For God hath from the beginning
chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the spirit
and belief of the truth. He said, I see that. I know it's
in the Bible. But I don't care. I have no heart
for it. I have no heart to bow to that. No thanks. They had their best effort. They had no oil. They had a lamp. They had a lamp. They had a hope. But it was a false hope. There
was no life in it. There was no truth in it. They
thought that their works would answer. They thought that their
knowledge, their head knowledge of understanding of the doctrine
without a love for Christ, without a possession of Christ, would
surely burn bright enough to reveal to the Lord that they
were worthy. We prophesied in your name, we
tithed, we did this, we cast out devils. I never knew you. And now the foolish instead of
coming to Christ. Now listen, here's the amazing
thing. This is what was vividly brought back. When the bridegroom was announced,
behold the bridegroom cometh. Now let me tell you something.
We're going over these scriptures right here and I'll be quickly
wrapping this up now, but what we're looking at right here,
You know how long it's going to take for all of this to take
place? Behold, the bridegroom cometh, and all the virgins arise,
and they're all trimming up, and the foolish said to the wife,
give us your oil. Now we realize, you know how
long it's going to be? The twinkling of an eye. It's
going to be over. It's going to be over. All of
this that we're reading right here, before you even know what
happened, What they do is they appeal, and this is all they
know to do. This is all the one that has
no oil in his lamp. This is all he knows to do, is
to appeal to the flesh. And they come unto the wise and
say, give us of your oil. Instead of going to Christ, they
come to the wise because now they realize something. We're
lifeless. Our lamps are not burning. And
the wise answered, saying, Not so, lest there be not enough
for us and you. But go ye rather to them that
sell, and buy for yourselves. Now, it wasn't that the wise
were just maliciously failing to show mercy. What it is, they
spoke from a realization and a consciousness of their own
inability. I can't give you oil. How am I going to give you life? I don't have the power. Can you
imagine someone asking the believer, give me of the Spirit of God. Grant to me the grace of God. Give us of your oil. Impart righteousness
to me before God. And a believer knows what he
is. I'm a sinner saved by the grace
of God. The wise only possessed that
which was given them. A gift from God that could never
be taken from them, never removed from them, not so, lest there
be not enough for us. What the wise possessed was exactly
what was required of before God. Christ, give us of your... I can't do
that. And the wise, when they asked
for oil, the wise repeated what was told them. What was told
them? Isaiah 55 verses 1 to 3. Hold everyone that thirsteth. Come ye to the waters, he that
hath no money. Come ye buy and eat, yea, come
buy wine and milk without money, without price. Wherefore do you
spend money for that which is not bread, and labor for that
which satisfies not? Hearken diligently unto me, eat
ye that which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness. Incline your ear and come unto
me, here, and your soul shall live. And I will make an everlasting
covenant with you, even the sure mercies of David. The only place
of obtaining the oil is Christ. Come unto me, come
unto me, ye that labor heavy laden, I'll give you rest. And
then lastly, the end of the kingdom in the day of God's judgment.
The scripture says in verse 10, while they went to buy, The bridegroom
came, and like I said, it's all just one twinkle of an eye. The bridegroom came, they that
were ready went in with him to the marriage, and the door was
shut. I can't even imagine how frantic
that time will be for those in the vivid realization, now I
know. Now I know. Now I know. Too late. And the thing is, they
still had no heart to come to Him. They wouldn't come before
and they won't come now. What's it going to take for a
man to come to Christ for life? It's going to take life. I can
tell you what it's going to take. God's going to have to give him
life before that man will come. He's not going to come for life,
he's going to come because of it. God's going to give him life
and he's going to come. The bridegroom came and they
that were ready went in with him. Oh, what sweet words. They
went in with him to the marriage. They were ready. They were found
in Christ from before the foundation of the world in electing grace,
predestinated to the adoption of sons by Jesus Christ unto
the Lord God, redeemed and washed with His precious blood, regenerated
by His Spirit, kept by the power of God. Their lamps were burning
with the oil of God's providing. Walking by faith in Christ, robed
in His righteousness, they went in with Him to the marriage.
They heard this announcement right there as they were entering
in. Revelation chapter 19, verse
7. Let us be glad and rejoice, give
honor to Him. For the marriage of the Lamb
has come, His wife has made herself ready. To her it was granted
that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white,
for the fine linen is the righteousness of the saints. And He saith unto
me, Write, Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage
supper of the Lamb. And He saith unto me, These are
the true sayings of God. The Scripture says, and the door was shut. All the
sheep are in. All that Almighty God everlastingly
loved and chose, Christ redeemed, like the door in the ark, and
God shut the door. And there's no opening it. God's
people have entered into the Kingdom, prepared for them from
the foundation of the world, securely found, in the presence
of Him who has everlastingly loved them. Verse 11 says, Afterwards came
also the other virgins, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us. After the bridegroom had come,
they were shut. They come back. They try to make
their case. I was, when I read the two titles,
Lord, Lord, same title, same word, Lord, Lord, I looked it
up. I just wanted to know, I wanted
to know exactly what they meant. You know how it is, you look
at words and one word means something else. I wanted to know exactly
what that word meant. And I looked it up. And here's
the first meaning of that word Lord. Sovereign. Sovereign. Now I know. Now I know that you rule in the
army of heaven and among the inhabitants of earth. Now I know.
Sovereign Prince Chief. That's what it means. Lord, Lord,
would you open the door? And the scripture says in verse
12, He answered and said, Verily I say unto you, I know you not. I know you not. Four words that
will sink a man to hell, the lowest hell, to hear those words,
I know you not. And the scripture declares in
verse 13, watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor
the hour, wherein the Son of Man cometh. Be vigilant. That's what he's saying. Be watchful. Be spiritually alert. Stay under
the sound of the Gospel. Search the Scriptures and see
if these things be so. Seek the Lord while He may be
found. You know what I'm doing? I'm
just quoting Scripture. That's what I'm doing. Resist by faith the wiles of
Satan, for you know neither the day nor the hour. You that know
him, you that love him, you that trust him, I'm gonna exhort you
to do what I exhort myself to do right now, thank him. Lord,
thank you. Thank you for giving me a heart
to trust you. Lord, forgive me where I failed
you. Lord, forgive me for I've not walked as I ought. I want
to say like Peter said. He asked him, he said, Peter,
lovest thou me more than these? He said, Lord, you know all things. You know that I love you. And
I pray even as I say this, Lord, don't leave me to myself. Don't
leave me. Lord, please don't leave me to
myself. Lord, save me by your grace. He that cometh to me,
I will in no wise cast out. Say, Lord, I come, I come, I
come again. You know, when somebody says,
I came to the Lord, you know, back when I was 17, I tell you
what a believer says, I come to the Lord right now. Today
is the day of salvation. I pray God bless this to our
hearts and arrest our hearts and enliven us again, revive
us again for Christ's sake and our eternal good.