The parable of the ten virgins illustrates that true Christian profession is marked by genuine faith and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, not merely outward adherence. While all ten virgins outwardly prepared for the bridegroom's coming, only the wise, who had oil (representing the Holy Spirit), were ready when he arrived. The sermon refutes the idea that the foolish virgins represent Christians who have failed to reach a higher spiritual standard, asserting instead that they represent empty professors without true salvation. The core lesson is that salvation is by grace through faith alone, and genuine believers will exhibit fruit and possess the Holy Spirit, urging listeners to ensure their faith is real and to watch for the Lord's return.
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Beloved radio, friends, we greet you in the precious name of the Lord Jesus, and we count it a privilege, but also a very great responsibility, to bring before you the truth of God. We continue and we conclude our meditation of the week from the parable of the Lord Jesus regarding the ten virgins. Again, we would read the story from Matthew chapter twenty-five, beginning at verse one. Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins which took their lamps. They went forth to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were wise, five foolish.
They that were foolish took their lamps and took no oil with them. But the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps. While the bridegroom tarried they all slumbered and slept. and at midnight there was a cry made. Behold the bridegroom cometh, go ye out to meet him. Then all those virgins arose and trimmed their lamps, and the foolish said unto the wise, Give us of your oil, for our lamps have gone out. But 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.
While they went to buy, the bridegroom came. They that were ready went in with him to the marriage, and the door was shut. After it came also the other virgins, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us. But he answered and said, Verily I say unto you, I never knew you. Watch therefore for ye know neither the day nor the hour, wherein the Son of Man cometh. May God bless the reading and the hearing of this section from His precious word. May the Holy Spirit be our teacher. I humbly but earnestly pray that He will be the revealer of the truth we are emphasizing relative to the coming again of our Lord Jesus, the bridegroom.
We come in our parable to the closing meditation. May I remind you again what happened in the story when the bridegroom came, and the wise virgins entered into the marriage. We read that the door was shut. And we read in verse eleven and twelve, afterward, when the door was shut, afterward came also the other virgins, the foolish ones, saying, Lord, Lord, open unto us. But he answered and said, Verily I say unto you, I know you not. Now I would be very careful and prayerful and faithful to mention something that is very important regarding this parable.
There are some Bible teachers who declare in interpreting this parable that the wise virgins are Christians who have received the fullness of the Spirit of God and attained to a very high standard of holiness. so fully surrendered to the Lord and separated from the world in such a high degree that they alone will enter to the marriage. They declare that the foolish versions are Christians who have not attained to such a higher life, sometimes they call it the second blessing, and they say because of their failure to be such They, the foolish virgins, must go through the tribulation period for purging.
This is absolute nonsense, my friend. In other words, they claim all the ten virgins are saved. But the foolish virgins do not represent real Christians. And that is very clearly proved when the Lord says to them in our verse, I know you not. Can anyone be deceived? to think that the Blessed Lord would even tell any Christian, no matter how weak or feeble, would he ever say to one who is under his precious blood, trusting him as their Savior, I never knew you. Such teaching denies one of the greatest truths of this age, the grace of God, for salvation is by grace plus nothing.
For we are saved by grace, through faith, That not of yourselves, it is the gift of God, not of works, lest any man should boast, writes the Apostle Paul in Ephesians chapter two, verses eight and nine. Please let me emphasize the fact which the parable reveals. Under this picture of ten virgins, it represents the Christian profession, comprised of what is true and also what is false. They both profess alike to be going out to meet the bridegroom. Is it necessary for any observant Christian to be reminded that today in the world we have both true Christians, real born again, and also we have many who are but empty professors of Christianity, without any evidence of genuine reality?
May I take the words of the Savior and bring them before your heart and conscience, as we read them in chapter fifteen of the Gospel of John, where the Lord Jesus says, By their fruits, or I think it's in the Gospel of Matthew, if I may be reminded, perhaps in chapter seven, By their fruits ye shall know them. Now it is very evident, and I say this very carefully and advisedly, that when anyone is born again, Genuinely, there will be some evidence of true life in Christ. The evidence may not be as strong as it should be, but I believe, and from the words of the Lord Jesus, if they are truly His, there will be fruit.
Just a word of encouragement and exhortation to my fellow believers, please. You and I will confess that the Lord Jesus is our Savior. Let us remind our hearts We should make the evidence very clear to those around us. One has well written the words, I quote them, "'Tis a grand thing to be saved and to know it, but it is better to be saved and show it.'" Yes, my beloved, let us be faithful to show it. But let me repeat the premise, though. Salvation is by grace from the very start to the finish. That is the teaching of the Word of God. Let me quote the words of Paul in Philippians one, verse six.
Paul writing to the Philippian Christians to say, Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will finish or perform it until the day of Jesus Christ. God's great salvation is given to all who believe on the Lord Jesus, and they are justified by faith in the person and the work of the Savior. That one is saved from the penalty. and the power and the presence of sin. But let me emphatically declare with the words of Jonah these words. When Jonah finished his prayer from the belly of the great fish, he declared salvation is of the Lord. And that salvation which is of the Lord is never a work that is done by man on the behalf of God, but it is a work that is done entirely by God on the behalf of a believing sinner.
Who will put his or her faith in the finished redemptive work of Christ? And God promises to give, and He does give to that believing sinner, eternal life. Now we have the promise to bring that one to eternal glory. My beloved salvation from beginning to the end is of God and by grace alone plus nothing. Now my beloved friend, listen. What is the ground of your salvation? Are you a foolish version, not knowing the Lord? Oh, my beloved, may I say to you, do not go on further, procrastinating that you have a lamp, an empty profession.
Do you have the genuine reality? Are you born again? Is Christ dwelling in your heart as your Lord and your Savior? Let the closing words of our Savior in our parable be applied. For he applies the whole parable in the closing words of verse thirteen. The solemnity of making sure. Watch therefore. For ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of Man cometh. My beloved, these are the closing words of admonition for all of us. Are you and I watching for the Lord to come?
Are you and I waiting for the Lord to come? May I quote the words of the dear Apostle Paul as he wrote them to the Thessalonians long ago? Blessed words in chapter one of the Thessalonian epistles, where thus in chapter one they had believed the gospel, and the Apostle writes, You turned to God from idols to serve the living and the true God? and to wait for His Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead, even Jesus, our deliverer from the after come. Oh, my beloved friend, the Lord Jesus Christ gave Himself for your sins and for mine, that He might bring us to God through faith in His precious atoning work at Calvary.
And when one thus receives Him as Savior, again may we say, The wise virgins have oil in their lamps, that which represents the person and the work of the Holy Spirit, having operated within their souls. May I repeat, with no apology for the repetition, you cannot be a saved person without possessing the Holy Spirit. Upon believing, Paul writing to the Ephesians, we have noted it, upon believing, Ye were sealed with that Holy Spirit of promise. My beloved, I beg of my listener, make sure that you are a genuine believer.
Make sure that you are born again. Make sure that your soul is resting by faith only upon Christ. Please let me note again what happened to these virgins at the end of the story. The wise went in with the bridegroom to the marriage. The foolish were shut out. All of the wise went in. All of the foolish were kept out. Now to which classification do you belong, my friend? The Lord is coming. Let me repeat the words of the Lord Jesus in our text that closes the chapter, the section. For ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of Man cometh.
I've had people tell me, I know Christian people have told me, they could tell me the year is coming. Well, it never worked out when they told me. But here the Lord says, you don't even know the day. You don't even know the hour. Now the whole question revolves around this point. My sinner friend, are you ready? And if not, would you get ready today? Come to the Lord Jesus. repenting of your sins, confessing your sinfulness, acknowledge that he is the only Savior who died to save you from your sins. Receive him by faith into your heart and say, Into my heart, into my heart, come Lord Jesus today.
Father, in the name of the Lord Jesus, may our foolish virgin be transferred today by the Spirit to a wise one. In Jesus' name for his glory, amen.