This is the audio from Sunday morning’s teaching. It is different from the notes but I believe exactly what the Lord wanted delivered Sunday morning.
This is Friday Night’s teaching it goes along with the notes and is Holy Spirit driven as well!
This week, I’m taking a break from the expository preaching from the book of Acts to share one of the main reasons I believe understanding the role of the Holy Spirit is so important right now. Jesus told a parable that isn’t often taught because many people didn’t fully grasp its meaning. It’s a parable about the end times, but I won’t go into too much detail about the end times itself—just about preparing for the future and why the Holy Spirit is so essential. So, with that, let’s look at Matthew 25: 1-13
Then (at that time) the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom. 2 Five of them were foolish, and five were wise. 3 For when the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them, 4 but the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps. 5 As the bridegroom was delayed, they all became drowsy and slept. 6 But at midnight there was a cry, ‘Here is the bridegroom! Come out to meet him.’ 7 Then all those virgins rose and trimmed their lamps. 8 And the foolish said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ 9 But the wise answered, saying, ‘Since there will not be enough for us and for you, go rather to the dealers and buy for yourselves.’ 10 And while they were going to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the marriage feast, and the door was shut. 11 Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, ‘Lord, lord, open to us.’ 12 But he answered, ‘Truly, I say to you, I do not know you.’ 13 Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour.
Jesus spends most of chapter 24 talking about the end times, and then we begin chapter 25 with him stating this is what the kingdom of heaven is going to look like at this time.
In this parable, he does not mention the bride. The church is considered as the 10 virgins, both the five wise and the five foolish.
He is saying that in the last days, the kingdom of God will look like this: it will be like 10 virgins waiting for the bridegroom — five of them will be wise, and five will be foolish. This represents the church. I don’t think Jesus is saying that 50% of churches are wise and 50% are foolish. He’s just giving us an example. I also don’t believe he’s saying that this happens within a few days before Christ returns or even a few months or years. It’s just at the end of the age, as Peter said 2000 years ago, in the last days — this is what was prophesied about the Holy Spirit being poured out from the book of Joel. This happens at the end of the age, not necessarily just before Christ returns.
We are always living in the last days, and we don’t know exactly when Christ will return. I believe we should live each day as if Jesus could return tomorrow. But I believe that because of what God wants to do right now, He sees the church’s current state. And when I say church, I mean the whole church, the universal church.
We see that all 10 of the virgins had lamps. The scripture tells us in Psalm 119:105.
“Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.”
It’s interesting that both the wise and the foolish knew the word of God and had studied it. The only difference between them was the oil.
Throughout scripture, anointing oil is often used as a symbol of the Holy Spirit. There are several references in the Old Testament, but let me share with you a couple from the New Testament so you can understand what Jesus was referring to.
2 Corinthians 1:21,22
And it is God who establishes us with you in Christ, and has anointed us, 22 and who has also put his seal on us and given us his Spirit in our hearts as a guarantee.
God has both established us, anointed us and sealed us through the Holy Spirit.
Then in Acts 10:38 Peter is explaining where Jesus’ power came from
“…God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him.”
Then John is comparing those who have abandoned the faith and are even using their gifts deceptively, to those who have remained in the strength and power of the Lord.
1 John 2:20,21
But you have been anointed by the Holy One, and you all have knowledge. 21 I write to you, not because you do not know the truth, but because you know it, and because no lie is of the truth.
So we see once again the balance of the Word and the Spirit; the word being the lamp and the Spirit, which is the anointing oil.
Both had lamps and oil. The wise virgins understood they needed more oil to be prepared for the bridegroom’s arrival. The foolish virgins failed to renew their oil and let it burn out.
But notice their condition. They were waiting for the bridegroom to arrive and grew tired, so they all fell asleep. The church is asleep. Those filled with oil and those with limited oil are all in the same condition — all asleep.
How many times have we all heard it? Jesus is coming back tomorrow, in 1982, 1992, 2000, or even 2028. It’s easy to grow weary. Paul gives us instructions.
Galatians 6:9,10
And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. 10 So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith.
It is easy for us to grow weary with all the things happening in the world. Every time we turn around, there’s more bad news, more trouble, more friends or family members going through difficult times, or another bill that needs to be paid. We face struggles at home, in our community, and around the world. It is easy to grow weary. That is why Paul instructs us in Ephesians 5:18. (NLT)
Don’t be drunk with wine, because that will ruin your life. Instead, be filled with the Holy Spirit,
And as I said a couple weeks ago, this is written as a command, not as request.
It’s so easy to become weary from all the battles. But some also drift asleep because they aren’t in the Word, aren’t in prayer, and aren’t daily nurturing that relationship with the Lord — an intimacy where He is the most important relationship in their lives, and what He has to say is the most vital information they need every day.
But then again, some have been in the Word and have been in prayer, but something else has caused them to fall asleep. They have allowed all the demands of daily living, even good things like work, family, sports, hobbies, and entertainment, to cause us to fall asleep to the needs around us. The people who need Jesus, the people who need prayer, and the people who need the love, joy, and peace that we know—these are the ones who have fallen asleep to the father’s heart for those around us. They do all the necessary things to keep relationships alive but have perhaps fallen asleep to the Father’s heart, much like the church at Ephesus that Jesus spoke about in Revelation 2:2-4.
I know your works, your toil and your patient endurance, and how you cannot bear with those who are evil, but have tested those who call themselves apostles and are not, and found them to be false. 3 I know you are enduring patiently and bearing up for my name’s sake, and you have not grown weary. 4 But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first.
There are those proclaiming, behold, the bridegroom is coming. They shout to awaken the church, full of excitement and life in the presence of the bridegroom as they anticipate his arrival. I believe it is those who are awake and full of the anointing making this midnight cry to wake the rest of the church. To me, this midnight cry allows the gifts and fruit to flow through us so all might see who Jesus is. It is loving on people through Jesus’ eyes so all might see the real Jesus. It is having the boldness to not be afraid to do what the Holy Spirit asks, to speak, to pray, to believe!
And when they all awaken, those who are prepared, even if they had fallen asleep, are ready to enter with the bridegroom. They are full of the Spirit, full of the Word, and ready to join the bridegroom. Then those who were unprepared, who had the Word but not the fullness of the Spirit, had to run and buy some oil. No, I’m not going to go down the road of whether they were saved or not. That’s a whole different discussion. But I will say this: we need to be the ones crying out to the world and the church, the bridegroom is coming. We don’t know when Jesus will return, but we need to live each day as if today is the day. We need to show a broken world and the church in malaise; there is life and power in the Word and the Spirit. Or at the very least, we need to be the ones full of both the Word and the Spirit, and ready when the bridegroom comes or once again, living each day as if he is, to awaken and enter in with him.
We always need to be ready. The question is will we be ready and asleep, having missed reaching the broken and the hurting, having our gifts, having the word, yet not using them just asleep in the light?
Or are we going to be the ones who proclaim through words and actions, by the anointing of the Holy Spirit, that God is alive and well, Jesus Christ died on the cross and rose again because He loves people.
As we examine more of the book of Acts, we will see that a major sign of the power received from the Holy Spirit’s infilling was boldness in proclaiming who God is, what Jesus did, and what He can still do today.
I believe this is why the Holy Spirit guides us on this path. We have been faithful to grow in love. We’ve been faithful to grow in the Word. Because of His Place, our coffee shop, the daycare, Vacation Bible School, and Celebrate Recovery, we have been faithful to reach out into the community. And we have done this by standing on the Word of God.
Many of us have been filled with the Holy Spirit, but the Lord is saying it is now time to be filled again. Church, don’t let yourself grow dry; be filled daily with the Holy Spirit. I believe the Lord wants us to be bold, strong, courageous, and to flow in the gifts and the fruit of the Spirit to reach out to our communities, our families, and everyone we know. This way, the world will know there’s a God in heaven and that He loves them so much that He sent His Son to die on a cross. He rose again so that we might know we will never die, but live forever with Him.