1 “At that time the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. 2 Five of them were foolish and five were wise. 3 The foolish ones took their lamps but did not take any oil with them. 4 The wise ones, however, took oil in jars along with their lamps. 5 The bridegroom was a long time in coming, and they all became drowsy and fell asleep. 6 “At midnight the cry rang out: ‘Here’s the bridegroom! Come out to meet him!’ 7 “Then all the virgins woke up and trimmed their lamps. 8 The foolish ones said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil; our lamps are going out.’ 9 “‘No,’ they replied, ‘there may not be enough for both us and you. Instead, go to those who sell oil and buy some for yourselves.’ 10 “But while they were on their way to buy the oil, the bridegroom arrived. The virgins who were ready went in with him to the wedding banquet. And the door was shut. 11 “Later the others also came. ‘Lord, Lord,’ they said, ‘open the door for us!’ 12 “But he replied, ‘Truly I tell you, I don’t know you.’ 13 “Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour. (Matthew 25:1-13)
Who is the bridegroom here? The Lord Jesus is the head of the church, and the church is the body of Christ. The bridegroom is the Lord Jesus, and who are the virgins? The virgins are Christians. Here it is about Christians waiting and preparing for the second coming of Lord Jesus. Here it says that the foolish virgins took their lamps but did not take any oil with them, while the wise took their lamps with oil in their jars. That is to say, the foolish did not prepare themselves in advance, while the wise prepared themselves in advance to welcome the arrival of the bridegroom. Here it says that the bridegroom’s arrival will be delayed. He will come at midnight, and the time of his coming is unexpected, so we must prepare ourselves now. This parable shows that the Lord knows the five wise virgins, but not the five foolish virgins. Knowing represents an intimate relationship, that is, the five wise virgins have an intimate relationship with the Lord, while the foolish virgins do not have an intimate relationship with the Lord. In the Bible, oil represents the Holy Spirit, the presence of the Holy Spirit, and the presence of the Lord.
You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. (Psalm 23:5)
The oil here represents the Holy Spirit. To anoint my head with oil is to anoint my head with the Holy Spirit.
24 “Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25 The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. 26 But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. 27 The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.” (Matthew 7:24-27)
Here it says that the wise are those who listen to the Lord’s words and obey, just like building a house on a rock. This rock is the Lord Jesus, that is they have an intimate relationship with the Lord. Those who do not listen to the Lord’s words are foolish, just like building a house on the sand.
We must be wise virgins, holding lamps with oil. Always obey the Lord and seek the presence of the Holy Spirit and the Lord. The Lord Jesus wants us to be alert because we don’t know when he will come. The coming of the Lord Jesus is unexpected, so we must prepare in advance and be ready to welcome the Lord’s return at any time.
May God bless you and your family.🙏😀
