Matt 25:1-10 relegates your post to being out there in la la land to put it nicely.
Matt. 25:1...........10 “And while they were going away to make the purchase, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the wedding feast; and the door was shut. 11 “And later the other virgins also came, saying, ‘ Lord, lord, open up for us.’ 12 “But he answered and said, ‘Truly I say to you, I do not know you.’ 13 “ Be on the alert then, for you do not know the day nor the hour.
Dear jamesalbright,
The Parable on the Ten Virgins teaches the pathway to salvation using the Marriage analogy. It teaches exactly what I have been presenting to you in my other posts.
Here is its meaning:
Mat 25:1 Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto TEN virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom.
The parable begins by showing us
Ten Virgins. The spiritual term Virgins symbolizes all believers who have been
called out from the world.
2Cor 11:2 For I am jealous over you with godly jealousy: for I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ.
When the parable begins, all Ten Virgins have received the Early Rain of the Spirit,
but not the Latter Rain. The number TEN represents
completeness. During the parable, all Ten Virgins will be shown to have been made “worse than the first” (
Mat 12:43-45). This devolution of their spiritual nature will
complete their carnality and they will become a Man of Sin.
The lamp which all Ten Virgins carry represents the Word of God (Christ/Truth) and the light which the lamp gives off represents the Law:
Psa 119:105 Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.
Prov 6:23 For the commandment is a lamp; and the law is light; and reproofs of instruction are the way of life:
With the light of the Law lighting the pathway, all Ten Virgins will be led to Christ.
Gal 3:24 Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith.
Mat 25:2 And FIVE of them were Wise, and FIVE were Foolish.
The parable continues with two additional symbols: FIVE Wise Virgins and FIVE Foolish Virgins.
The number Five is a symbol for how we relate to God.
There are two ways by which mankind can approach God; one is by our own works and the other way is by Faith.
The
Five Foolish Virgins represent those who have been called out but have
not been chosen to be saints. They will only approach Christ by their own works in this age. They will remain under the Law until their physical deaths.
The
Five Wise Virgins represent those who have been called out and
chosen to be saints. They will for a time approach Christ by their own works alongside the Five Foolish Virgins but they will eventually change their approach to Faith.
The number of days the Five Wise Virgins will spend under the Law will be “shortened” because they will be harvested into the Kingdom of Heaven
EARLY. They are the
First Fruits of Christ’s harvest of mankind. The Five Wise Virgins are the only ones who will be saved in this present age.
Mat 24:22 And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect's sake those days shall be shortened.
The parable continues with:
Mat 25:3 They that were foolish took their lamps, and took no oil with them: 4 But the wise took oil in flasks with their lamps. 5 While the bridegroom tarried, they all slumbered and slept.
While all Ten Virgins wait for the Bridegroom to come a second time (the first time was when the betrothal was made at the Early Rain), they all
slumber & sleep and
do not keep watch. The phrase “slumbered and slept” represents the time when all Ten Virgins are spiritually blind and spiritually dead. At this time, the Wise Virgins are spiritually no different from the Foolish Virgins. As a result of this worsened spiritual state, they have
all become a Man of Sin (
2Thes 2:1-4).
However, verse 4 tells us that the Five Wise Virgins
carry an extra flask of oil. This extra oil represents the anointing of the Latter Rain of the Spirit. This extra oil will fill their lamps with the Spirit of the Law and will light their way under the New Covenant of Grace through faith.
Mat 25:6 And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him. 7 Then all those virgins arose, and trimmed their lamps. 8 And the foolish said unto the wise, give us of your oil; for our lamps are gone out. 9 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.
Midnight represents the darkest part of a called out believer’s spiritual blindness when they are under the full measure of Satan’s influence and have become a Man of Sin. When the call goes out to announce the Bridegroom’s approach, all Ten Virgins hear the call and trim their lamps. This is the same
call that was made by John the Baptist to the Nation of Israel and is the same call being made now by
converted Elect believers. The purpose of the call is to tell the Wise Virgins to
repent from their works and to make the pathway
straight for the Lord to travel. With their repentance and extra oil, the Wise Virgins are “ready” for the return of the Bridegroom and the Marriage of the Lamb.
Note: This time of waiting for the Bridegroom to return was “typed” by the 120 Jewish Elect who waited in the upper room. Then, on the Day of Pentecost, they received the Latter Rain of the Spirit and were made ready for the Marriage of the Lamb (
Acts 1:12-15). After their spiritual blindness was healed, the Bridegroom returned and took them to the wedding.
When the Ten Virgins hear
“the voice of one crying in the wilderness” (Luke 3:4) and
“come out of her my people” (Rev 18:4), they all rise up from their slumber and trim their lamps. However, since the Foolish Virgins do not have any extra oil, they are not ready for the Bridegroom to arrive. As their lamps begin to go out, they have to
turn back to buy more. When the Bridegroom arrives, the Wise Virgins (who have the extra oil) are the only ones there to meet Christ. The Latter Rain of the Spirit (extra Oil) has made them an acceptable chaste virgin again. The Wise Virgins will then travel with the Bridegroom to the wedding where they will be born again as a child of God.
Rev 19:7 Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the Marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready. 8 And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints. 9 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.
Since the Foolish Virgins are forced to “turn back”, they will remain under the Law and will die in their sins.
This time of turning back is presented in
John 6:66 when some of Christ’s disciples turned back from following Christ after hearing the cry of John the Baptist.
John 6:66 From that time many of his disciples went back, and walked no more with him.
They, too, lacked the extra oil for their lamps.
The Five Foolish Virgins simply were
not chosen from the foundation of the world to be included in the harvest of First Fruits. Without the extra oil, they had no choice but to turn back.
CONTINUED ON THE NEXT POST...