Let's take our Bibles and turn
with me to the gospel according to Matthew. Matthew chapter 25. I'm going
to be dealing this morning with the first 13 verses of Matthew
25. This is a parable that was spoken
by our Lord, and as He spoke these words, I think we would
do well to give heed to that which He says. From His words, all questions,
all doubts ought to be dispelled. From His words in this parable,
we are told something of the kingdom of heaven before the return of our Lord. I looked at that first verse
in Matthew 25, verse 1, and the Lord said in verse 1, Then shall
the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins then. Now, to get an understanding
of what he said, I plan to preach through the first thirteen verses.
If I make it through that okay. If I come to a point and I run
out of time, then Lord willing, I'll just finish it tonight and
what I had prepared tonight will go somewhere else. But I want
us to look at something because I think this is very, very important
that we understand, as the Spirit of God would give us some understanding
on what our Lord is saying. He said, the kingdom of heaven. Now, to understand what He is
saying, turn back to Matthew 24. Let's look at what His disciples
had just asked Him, and from this passage right here, and
I'll just look at a couple passages coming up to 25. Our Lord was
asked by His disciples, it says in Matthew 24, verse 3, As He
sat upon the Mount of Olives, the disciples came unto Him privately,
saying, Tell us, when shall these things be, and what shall be
the sign of thy coming and of the end of the world. What is
it going to be like, Lord? You are the One. You are the
One who has the words of eternal life. Lord, we know. We know. You're the Christ. That's what Peter told Him. Whatever
these other people, whoever these other people say You are, we
know You're the Christ. And the Lord told them. He said,
Peter, flesh and blood didn't reveal that to you, but my Father
which is in heaven. He told you that. He revealed
that. And they ask Him, Lord, what's it going to be like? What
is it going to be like before You're coming? What's going to
be the sign of the end of the age? Well, He said, look in verse
11, that same chapter, 24-11, He said, well, many false prophets
are going to arise and are going to deceive many. the way it is. He said, men are going to be
standing in pulpits and they are going to be lying. They are
liars. They are false prophets. Paul the Apostle said, if a man
speaks not according to this Word, this Word right here, if
a man sets forth any other gospel except the gospel that we've
proclaimed to you. Let that man be accursed. He's
anathema. He's a liar. So I say on the
authority of the Word of God, if any man stands in a pulpit
and does not proclaim Almighty God, Sovereign, Electing, Predestinating,
Saving God, God Almighty that saves a man apart from any works
of righteousness, Unless a man proclaims salvation to be by
sovereign grace, unless a man proclaims Almighty God that elected
a people from the foundation of the world, Ephesians 1, that
elected them in His Son, that considered them in His Son, that
chose them in Christ, unless a man sets forth Almighty God,
that chose a people in His Son, unless a man sets forth, that
the Lord Jesus Christ, who said, I lay down my life for the sheep. The Lord Jesus Christ, it said
in John 17, I pray not for the world. I pray not for the world.
I pray for those that You gave Me out of the world. That's John
17, verse 9, I think. It's in John 17. Unless a man
sets forth, the Lord Jesus Christ, the surety of the sheep, the
Redeemer, that God elected a people, that Christ redeemed those people,
and the Spirit of God that calls those people out. My sheep hear
my voice and follow me. They won't follow anyone else.
They'll follow me unless a man sets forth the gospel of free
and sovereign grace. He's a false prophet. False prophet. That ends it right there. Unless
Paul says, a man preaches this gospel that we preach to you.
He's anathema. What's it going to be like, Lord,
before You come? Well, he said, many false prophets
are going to be in this world. And secondly, he says, in this
gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for
a witness unto all nations, then shall the end come." This gospel,
now this is a key statement that he made, listen, this gospel
of the kingdom, this gospel of the kingdom, what's it going
to be like, Lord? Look in verse 24, "...there shall
arise false Christs, false prophets, and shall show great signs and
wonders, insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive
the very elect." He said, there's going to be folks, and there's
going to be some stuff that's going to be done, and it's going
to be wonders, and there's going to be some miracle-looking stuff,
and signs. If it was possible, even the
very elect would be deceived. Surely, you don't think, Marvin,
that all of these miracle things that are being done, and signs,
and wonders, Surely you don't think that that's not real. Well,
I'll tell you this. Listen to what a man says. If
a man's message is not consistent with this Scripture right here,
what is the sign? What is the sign whether or not
a man is preaching the truth? Is it consistent with this Word?
If it's not, leave it alone. Leave it alone. You say, well,
I tell you, now wait a minute now. If his message is not consistent
with this gospel, this message right here, leave it alone. What's it going to be like, Lord?
Look in verse 36. He said, But of that day and
hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my
Father only. What's it going to be like? Nobody's
going to know. Anytime you hear someone say,
well, the Lord has shown me. I've seen where the Lord is coming
back on XYZ day. This is it right here. The Lord
said, that day and hour no man knoweth but the angels, not even
the angels in heaven, My Father only. Look at verse 42. Watch.
Be watchful. Therefore, for ye know not what
hour your Lord doth come. In an hour that you think not.
Let me ask you something. Now, let's be honest about it.
Is there anybody here that really thinks? Now, we're here, it's
10.30. Is there anybody here that thinks that today's the
day the Lord's coming back? Now, really, I mean, is this
the day? Do you think? Have you stopped
and thought about it? Is today the day? Do you really
believe it's the last time that you may ever hear the gospel?
This may be it. This may be the last time. I
was thinking as Brother Scott was reading, Just then, in commenting
on those Scriptures, I thought to myself, how much do you think
that someone that has passed from this life, that didn't believe
the Gospel, didn't trust Christ, cast themselves upon the mercy
of Almighty God, if they could hear that one more time? You
know, I know that's an improbability. I understand that. But if you
knew, if you knew it, this is the last time you're ever going
to hear the Gospel. Last time you'll ever hear the message
of free grace, do you really believe that today's the day?
Do you really, really think there's not going to be an evening service
tonight if the Lord comes back? There won't be one. Do you really
believe that today's the day? This is the last time. This is
the last time. Today's the day. Do you believe
that? He said, well, I hadn't really thought about it. He said
it would be a day just like today. And the day that you think not,
that's when He's coming. What's it going to be like? What's
it going to be like, Lord? Verse 25, "...then shall the
kingdom of heaven..." Now, I want to just stop just a minute here
and just look at that right there. The kingdom of heaven. What is
he talking about when he says, the kingdom of heaven? I've heard
that. The kingdom of heaven is like... The kingdom of heaven. Whatever
I know about this kingdom right here, I know, number one, that
it is not of this earth. I know that. John 18, 36, the
Lord said, My kingdom is not of this world. It's not that His kingdom is
not in the world, but it's not of the world. That's what he
said in John 17, his kingdom. What is he talking
about when he says the kingdom of heaven? I'll tell you exactly
what he's saying. He's talking about that place
where he himself sovereignly rules and resides, where he has
chosen The Lord is speaking of His people, the bride, the church,
the believers, the elect. In John 18, verse 36, the Lord
said, If My kingdom were of this world, then would My servants
fight that I should not be delivered to the Jews. But now is My kingdom
not from hence. Listen, where the King is, there
is the kingdom. He said, where two or three are
gathered in My name, I am in the midst of you. The kingdom
of God is where God Almighty sovereignly rules and is pleased
to manifest Himself in the preaching and the proclamation of Christ,
the gospel of free grace. It's where He has been pleased
to maintain and provide for His people. That's where His kingdom
is. The kingdom of heaven. Where
He is. Turn with me to Revelation chapter
1. Revelation 1. I was looking at this a while
ago and I thought, oh my. Revelation chapter
1, verse 10. I was in the Spirit on the Lord's
day, and I heard behind me a great voice of a trumpet saying, I
am Alpha and Omega, the first and the last. What thou seest,
write in a book, and send it to the seven churches which in
Asia, Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamos, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia,
Laodicea. I turned, verse 12, to see the
voice that spake to me, and behold, I saw seven golden candlesticks,
and in the midst of the seven candlesticks one likened to the
Son of Man, clothed with a garment down to the foot, a girt about
the paps, run across the chest there with a golden girdle, head
and hair as white as wool, as white as snow, his eyes were
as a flame of fire, and his feet likened to fine brass as it burned
in the furnace, his voice as the sound of In verse 20, he
says, the mystery. He had also seven stars in his
hand. And in verse 20, he says, the
mystery of the seven stars which thou sawest in my right hand
and the seven golden candlesticks. The seven stars are the angels
of the seven churches, the pastors. The seven candlesticks which
thou sawest are the seven churches. The point I make is this. The
Lord is in the midst of that place where He has purposed to
raise up a hearing of Himself. That's where He is. That's the
Kingdom of Heaven. Now, turn back to Matthew 21,
and then I'll go on from here. Matthew 21, verse 42, the Lord
speaking, and you remember this, where was the Lord pleased to
send His gospel. Where did God send it? To the
Jews. Okay? Verse 42 of Matthew 21,
Jesus saith unto them, Did ye never read in the Scriptures
the stone? Who is that? That's the Lord
Jesus Christ, which the builders rejected. The same is become
the head of the corner. This is the Lord's doing. and
it is marvelous in our eyes. Therefore say I unto you, the
kingdom of God shall be taken from you and given to a nation
bringing forth the fruits thereof." The kingdom of God is going to
be taken from you. What is the kingdom of God? The
kingdom of heaven. It is that place where Almighty
God is pleased to manifest Himself. That's where it is. The Kingdom
of God. It's not of this world. It's
heavenly. It's spiritual. That's what the
Lord told. He said, My Kingdom, not of this
world. It is where He resides with His people. He's the King
to provide for, to keep, to manifest Himself, to maintain. Back in
Matthew 25, The Lord said in Matthew 25, verse 1, "...then
shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins which
took their lamps and went forth to meet the bridegroom." Don't be concerned. Don't be
concerned about, you know, I know what men say, you know, well,
it doesn't matter what you believe as long as you believe something,
you know, as long as you're sincere. Don't be concerned about diverse
and miscellaneous places where the gospel is not proclaimed.
It is obvious that the Lord has not maintained it, not raised
it up. If it's not according to this
Scripture, somebody says, boy, you're hammering on a lot of
people. Listen, it's not us against them. Is it, has God Almighty
aligned me with Him, with Himself? The Kingdom of Heaven. What's
it going to be like, Lord? The Kingdom of Heaven is going
to be. Then, then shall the Kingdom
of Heaven be likened unto ten virgins. What is it like? That place where God Almighty
has been pleased to raise up His voice. This is the way that
place is going to be. I'm talking about Katie Baptist
Church right now. That place where God has raised
him up, 13th Street Baptist Church. Lantana Grace Baptist Church.
What's it going to be like, Lord? He says, this is what it's going
to be like. The Kingdom of Heaven. That place where God has manifested
Himself is going to be like ten virgins took their lamps. Now,
I want to speak of three things this morning concerning these
ten virgins and their relationship to the bridegroom. I want to
look at, first of all, the difference between these ten virgins. The
Lord describes five wise and five foolish. Secondly, the actions
of the wise and foolish. How do they act? And thirdly,
the final state of both the wise and the foolish. Now, understand
something. This is not just a story. This
is not just a fairy tale. This is not just a good, you
know, bedtime little saying that we might be able to just pass
off. The Lord of Glory said this is the way that it shall be. This is the way it's going to
be. He who is absolute holiness,
God Almighty, omnipotent, omniscient God, God said this. This is the
way. First of all, what's the difference
between these five? He said, verse 2, five of them
were wise and five of them were foolish. Well, while considering
the difference between these wise and foolish, let's keep
in mind, first of all, some outward similarities. They're referred
to, first of all, as virgins. Well, obviously, there must be
a difference because the Lord said five of them were wise and
five of them were foolish. Turn back to Matthew 13 and look
at this parable that He spoke here. Matthew 13, verse 24. Another parable. And you remember the disciples
asked Him one time, they said, Lord, why do you speak in parables?
Why do you do that? He said, the reason I do it,
He says, because under you it's given to know of the Kingdom
of Heaven. And He said, and under them it's
not. Why did He do this? Well, He said, because this is
why He chose to do it. Another parable, verse 24, put
He forth unto them, saying, The Kingdom of Heaven is likened
unto a man which sowed good seed in the field. The kingdom of
heaven, that place where God has been pleased to raise up
His Word, raise up His Gospel. While men slept, His enemy came
and sowed tares among the wheat. That word, tares, right there,
it's a plant that appears to be, it looks like wheat, but
it's not wheat. The Jews called it bastard wheat,
illegitimate. wheat, tares. It looks very similar. But he
said he sowed tares among the wheat and went his way. When
the blade was sprung up, brought forth fruit, then appeared the
tares also. So the servants of the householder
came and said unto him, Sir, didst thou not sow good seed,
and I feel, from whence then hath it tares? He said unto them,
An enemy hath done this. The servants said unto him, Wilt
thou then that we go and gather them up? And he said, Nay, lest
ye gather up the tares, ye root up also the wheat with them.
Let both grow together unto the harvest, and in the time of harvest
I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares,
and bind them in bundles to burn them, but gather the wheat unto
My barn." The Lord said, this is the way that it is. In that
place where God Almighty has raised up His Word, there are
some, He said, who are truly wheat. They are believers. But
then there are some that are not. And they appear as though
that they are. He said this is the way that
it is. In that place that God has not
raised up His Word, there is no truth preached. It is not
consistent with this Word. It is imperative that you understand
He is talking about His kingdom, that place where He Himself as
the King resides, where His Word is set forth, where His Son is
set forth. He says, "...the kingdom of heaven, like ten virgins,
took their lamps, went forth to meet the bridegroom, five
wise and five foolish. Only the Lord Himself sows good
seed. The enemy sows tares, that which
resembles that wheat. Tares, sons of the evil one. Who has done this? The evil one.
They both possessed lamps. Verse 1 says, these virgins took
their lamps and went forth to meet the bridegroom. What are
these lamps? He said, this is the way it is.
Lamps. Well, this lamp, that word lamp
right there, The light by which you walk. That's what it means. They took their lamps. The light
by which you walk. Some obviously walked savingly
by the light Himself, the Lord Jesus Christ who is the light,
walked by His Word, walked by His guidance in the Spirit of
God and by the light of His presence. And the others, obviously, possessed
a lamp. They possessed a lamp. The Scripture
says these ten virgins, they took their lamps. But obviously
there was something about their lamp that was inconsistent with
Scripture. Matthew 6. We've read this before,
but this is the way. Matthew 6, verse 22. said, the light of the body is
the eye. The light of the body is the
eye. If therefore thine eye is single,
thy whole body shall be full of light. But if thine eye be
evil, the whole body shall be full of darkness. If therefore
the light that is in thee is darkness, How great is that darkness? What is he saying? If the spiritual
knowledge... Okay, now when I say the spiritual
knowledge, I'm talking about either the light of God's revelation
or the knowledge of darkness. Some men claim to know Him, to
trust Him, to walk in Him, to believe Him. But what they've
done is they have equated themselves to have been the one that has
grasped hold by their free will and by their efforts and by their
keeping the law and by them doing all their good works. They themselves
see themselves as having been obedient. That's what Paul the
Apostle said before. He said, before the Lord revealed
Himself to me, he said, I saw myself as one that kept the law.
Before the law, I was blameless. Rich young ruler came to the
Lord one day. Good Master, what must I do to
inherit eternal life? What saith the Scriptures? And
he began to name off his Ten Commandments. And what did he
say? He said, I've kept all my youth up. Kept every one of them. I've never broken a law. Never. Man by nature. The light that a man has by nature,
the Scripture says, is darkness. And if the light that's in you
is darkness, how great is that darkness! Ten virgins took their
lamps, the light in which they walked, and they went forth to
meet the bridegroom. I'll tell you this, every man by nature says, Oh, I'm following
Christ. I follow the Lord. I'm seeking
after Him. I'm walking after Him. I'm walking
in Him. They both went forth to meet
the bridegroom, some in the exercise of faith, true, saving faith
in Him and in His coming and in love toward Him, longing to
see Him, waiting for Him, hungering and thirsting after Him, some
truly, and others in a way of mere outward profession. Paul
says in 2 Timothy, 3, 5, having a form of godliness, but denying
the power thereof. Now listen, y'all. This is the
way it is. This is the way it is. You say,
well, it feels like you're stressing the point a little bit too much.
These words are from our Lord. What's it going to be like, Lord?
He said, then shall the kingdom of heaven. This is the way it's
going to be. While they appeared to be similarities between the
two groups, the Lord made a great distinction. He said in verse
2, five of them were wise and five of them were foolish. One
group was wise or prudent and sensible and made that way by
God's grace. Not wise in their own conceits,
not wise in the things of the world, but wise, the Scripture
speaks of as unto salvation. Wise. Sensible by God's grace
and power to reveal to them their need of Christ. To make them
a beggar before Almighty God. Wise to trust Him for righteousness
and justification. to cast themselves upon His mercy,
totally upon Him for pardon of sin. Wise. Men and women that
know Him are wise, but they are made so by the Lord Jesus Christ
who has made unto us the wisdom of God. Not because we are wise
in ourselves. Not because we have the ability
to make ourselves wise. Leave any man to himself. And
that man is absolutely dead and has no capability. The other
group was foolish. Foolish means dull or stupid,
heedless, heart-scorned or morally worthless. They were foolish. Obviously, not in their own estimation
of themselves, they didn't see themselves to be foolish. But
in this thing of salvation, in this thing of God being satisfied
and Christ Jesus being God's substitute, they built their
hopes on different things like their birth privileges and free
will and on their own righteousness to perform acts worthy of acceptance
before God. Or even thinking that Almighty
God would be merciful and would extend mercy to any man without
exception. And somehow he'd just find it
within his heart. Well, I'm just going to overlook
sin. Men, tell folks today, what will
it take for you to be saved? They said, just give your heart
to Jesus. Give your heart to Jesus. Walk
down an aisle. I'll stand down here at the front,
which I won't. Come down here and shake the
preacher's hand. I pray this sinner's prayer. Now let me ask
you something. You tell me how that right there
is going to satisfy the justice of Almighty God. They say, yes,
but wait a minute. The Lord died on the cross and
paid everybody's debt. Huh? Therefore, since He paid
everybody's debt, All I have to do to make it effectual is
give my heart to Him and then salvation will be complete. Well, then that was salvation
by your works then. Salvation is not by works. Well,
it's not really by works, you see. God wants to be merciful
and He died to save everyone and paid their debt. Then if
He paid everybody's debt, then everybody's debt's paid. If God
sends one man to hell, if Christ paid for everybody's debt, then
God's not just. If He sends anybody to hell,
since Christ paid for all the debts. Man's gospel does not make sense.
It does not satisfy God's justice. It makes God to be a beggar.
They're foolish. Five wise and five foolish. The Scripture says in verse 4
that the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps while
the bridegroom tarried. They all slumbered and slept. The wise took oil in their vessels. Now, the foolish took their lamp,
their profession of hope and light in which they walked, but
they took no oil with them. Because the Scripture says that
the wise took oil in their vessels. In a few minutes, we're going
to see where the foolish didn't have any oil in their vessels. What's it going to be like, Lord?
This is the way it's going to be. There was no possession, you
see, for the foolish of the Spirit of God who is the oil of gladness,
that anointing which teaches all things concerning Christ,
The foolish were unconcerned as to their need for the oil
of God's grace that would fill them, maintain them, keep them.
They didn't ask for oil at this time. They made light of it,
without a doubt, and even denied that it was necessary. But the
wise, the Scripture says in that fourth verse, took oil in their
vessels. Now that word oil right there
Olive oil. That's what it means. Olive oil.
They took oil. Olive oil is a picture here of
the Lord Jesus Christ. That oil is produced by taking
the olive, crushing it, bruising it. It's a picture of our Lord
upon whom the guilt of all His elect was laid, placed on Him. He was made to be sin. He was made to be sin. As we've
heard before, not a resemblance, not pretend like He was made
to be sin. Made. All the guilt of all the
elect from all of time, the Lord laid on Him, the Lord Jesus Christ,
all of the guilt of His elect. He laid down His life for the
sheep. For the sheep. And the Lord God
of heaven in absolute wrath spewed out that which was due all those
for whom Christ was dying. He was innocent in Himself, crushed
under the judgment of Almighty God. The oil. It's a picture. of Christ. They took, verse 4 says, oil
in their vessels. A picture of the presence of
Christ in you, the hope of glory. Christ Himself. These wise were
enlightened by the Spirit of God as to their need of God Almighty
in the person of the Lord Jesus Christ. Christ Himself, who is
the Omnipotent God, who dwells in the highest heavens, who dwells
in the Father and the Father in Him in whom all fullness dwells,
dwells within His people as a King does in His palace to rule and
protect and provide. He deals within the heart. Ephesians
3.17, that Christ, Paul says, may dwell in your heart by faith. at heart of His providing. He
said, I'll remove a heart of stone. I'll give you a heart
of flesh. He's there. He's wise. They had oil, the Scripture says,
in their vessels. That vessel. That place where
the Lord has been pleased to maintain Himself and indwell.
The vessel. The oil of grace was not natural. to the wise virgins, it was freely
given by God Almighty, powerfully wrought within, making them wise
in the Lord Jesus Christ. Wise. And the Scripture says that these
wise that had oil in their vessels, a picture of themselves, had their lamp, and that was
the lamp by which they walked. While the bridegroom tarried, they all slumbered and slept. The bridegroom tarried not as
far as God's timing. The Lord said back in verse 24,
He says, of the day and hour no man knows but My Father, not
the angels. He tarried. His time had not
come. All of His elect must be gathered
in. God has got a people. When is
He going to come back? When He is pleased to come back.
When all that He has eternally loved shall be brought into the
fold. Remember when the Lord told His
disciples, He said, I have sheep that are not of this fold. They
must. Them I must gather. I must have. They must. I will
get them. They all slumbered. While the
bridegroom tarries, they all, how many? All ten of them. all
ten slumbered and slept. Song of Solomon. I'm just going
to read this to you. Chapter 5 and verse 2. This is
the bride. We're looking at Song of Solomon,
the book, but I want to just read from this passage. Song
of Solomon 5-2. This is the bride saying, she
says, I sleep, but my heart waketh. I sleep, but my heart waketh.
That word sleep right there in the Song of Solomon means to
slumber as if your eyes are open. I realize this. God's people
in themselves and because of the presence of sin, there is
a sense in which it appears as though that even the believers
themselves, it appears as though that there are times when there
is indifference toward Christ. Is that not the way it is with
you? Even that time, because of the presence of sin, that
there seems to be anxious care for the world, and even it appears
as though that we are wearied in good things, in well-doing. But the Scripture says, Song
of Solomon, I sleep, but my heart is awake. The foolish, on the
other hand, slumbered in great carnal security in themselves
and rested in their external possession only. The wise, though
they nodded or slumbered because of the frailty of their flesh,
they are children of the day and not of the night, and though
they sleep, their heart, as we just read, is awake. They slumber. They nod. I understand that. But they nod. The Scripture reveals
with grace within, within their vessel. I'm going to have to
stop right there. I'm just out of time. Lord willing,
I'm going to pick this up tonight on the coming of our Lord and
what is it like. Five wise and five foolish. What
are the similarities? What are the differences? How
do they act? How does the Lord describe them to be? Pat, why
don't you come this time? Let's stand and sing hymn number
175.