The Foolish Virgins
“Then the Kingdom of Heaven will be like ten bridesmaids who took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish, and five were wise. The five who were foolish didn’t take enough olive oil for their lamps, but the other five were wise enough to take along extra oil. When the bridegroom was delayed, they all became drowsy and fell asleep. “At midnight they were roused by the shout, ‘Look, the bridegroom is coming! Come out and meet him!’ “All the bridesmaids got up and prepared their lamps. Then the five foolish ones asked the others, ‘Please give us some of your oil because our lamps are going out.’ “But the others replied, ‘We don’t have enough for all of us. Go to a shop and buy some for yourselves.’ “But while they were gone to buy oil, the bridegroom came. Then those who were ready went in with him to the marriage feast, and the door was locked. Later, when the other five bridesmaids returned, they stood outside, calling, ‘Lord! Lord! Open the door for us!’ “But he called back, ‘Believe me, I don’t know you!’ “So you, too, must keep watch! For you do not know the day or hour of my return.” (Matthew 25:1-13)
How can you be a virgin and still be foolish?
A virgin by definition is one who has not had sexual intercourse or an absolutely chaste young woman.
Chaste can be defined as pure in thought and act, implying that being a virgin is more than abstaining from sex.
A virgin in this parable is a believer in Christ when they are pure and chaste; faithful to their Heavenly Bridegroom.
A foolish virgin today would be a young girl who stained her virginity either mentally or physically before marriage. We can see this happening to children through music, movies and video games, often leading them into mental defilement and physical deflowering of their chaste youth.
The parable foolish virgins are the ones who had oil in their lamps at one time. They were faithful to the Bridegroom for a season. They prepared themselves for the wedding through the customary rituals at the betrothal. They loved the Lord and believed in Him, and still loved Him, wanting to buy oil at the last minute to be able to go meet Him at His coming.
Jesus, speaking to the seven churches in the book of Revelation, takes issue with the church at Laodicea. They had lost their first love, while becoming lukewarm. Jesus counselled them to “buy from me gold refined in the fire, so you can become rich; and white clothes to wear, so you can cover your shameful nakedness; and salve to put on your eyes, so you can see.”
Not everyone is a Christian because they say they are a Christian
The world is around 1/3 Christian, according to different surveys. We all know that most of these are not chaste or pure Christians. Paul said that not all Abraham’s children are really the children of Abraham. The heart is involved with being a Christian and with being a child of Abraham. Only God knows how many hearts are truly wise virgins and ready for His return. We have to leave that to God to know who is wise and who is foolish, and refuse to judge on the basis of outward appearances and behavior. When Elijah complained that no one believed his message, he was told by God that He had reserved seven thousand souls who had not bowed to Baal. I’m sure God knows exactly who are wise and foolish today.
The foolish are still Christians
The foolish are believers in the Bridegroom. They know He is going to return. They see the signs pointing to His coming. They have wedding garments on, but they are stained. They have oil in their lamps, but not enough. They attend church, but without heart interaction with the Holy Spirit. They sing the songs, without being moved toward God. They give in the offerings, without real compassion for the need. The rest of the week they partake of the things that disagree with the teaching of the Bridegroom, but also do some of the things that please the Bridegroom. They are the Lukewarm of Revelation chapter three.
The Rapture and the Tribulation Saints
I believe that the wise virgins will be the ones who go in the Rapture of the church. The foolish virgins will be the ones who will have to prove their belief in the Bridegroom during the Tribulation, together with many unbelievers who will be converted during that time.
Paul teaches that Christ is the Husband and the Church is the Bride, or a Chaste Virgin
In II Corinthians 11:2, Apostle Paul wrote: “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 church is dedicated to her Lord she will cry out with the Holy Spirit for the Bridegroom to return
This perfect unity of the Bride and the Spirit has been written in the Book of Revelation 22:17 saying, “And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely.”
The oil represents the Holy Spirit. Christians need the Holy Spirit in their lives to be able to stay close to Christ, and to keep their distance from the world’s enticements that destroy the soul and stain the wedding garments of the New Birth.
The foolish virgins will be those who are left behind at the Rapture. They will have to choose whether they will accept the Mark of the Beast, or be killed for their testimony of Christ. They don’t have enough oil in their lamps to keep their garments free from stains and their spiritual virginity undefiled. They have allowed the cares and desires of this world to choke the Word of God in their hearts and they have become unfruitful, while their oil supply dwindles toward empty.
Rapture is Duplication of Christ’s Resurrection
The Rapture is a duplication of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ from the grave. The power of His Father, through the Holy Spirit, caused the earth to quake and the stone to roll away and the body of Jesus to transform from mortal to immortal. It will take a full supply of Holy Ghost oil to enable these human bodies to be caught up to meet the Lord in the air, defying all laws of physics.
Partial fillings of oil will not make a Rapture happen, but will only make one aware that He is about to return and that you are not fully prepared to meet Him. Partial fillings will not guarantee your willingness to give your life in the Tribulation, nor empower you to refuse the Mark of the Beast. Your very soul will be tried beyond anything that you can imagine, hopefully bringing you to full repentance, before you will be able to lay down your life for Christ.
Consider what Hitler did to the Jews, and what ISIS is doing to those who they are trying to force to convert to their radical Islamic faith. Then imagine what Hitler and ISIS would do if there were no chaste Christians left on earth. Even Laban knew that God had blessed him because of Jacob being in his life. How much more will those left behind realize that many of their blessings were because of the prayers of chaste virgins?
If you have been Born Again and understand what it means to be filled with the Holy Spirit, where will you find yourself at the Last Trumpet? Wise, and caught up at the Marriage Supper of the Lamb? Or foolish, and forced to stand against the devil himself, incarnated in the Antichrist, while you scramble to rededicate yourself to your Bridegroom?
No guarantee of Heaven, by waiting until the Tribulation
“If thou hast run with the footmen, and they have wearied thee, then how canst thou contend with horses? and if in the land of peace, wherein thou trustedst, they wearied thee, then how wilt thou do in the swelling of Jordan?” Jeremiah 12:5 KJV
Today is the day of Salvation…..today is the time to repent and do your first works….Jesus is coming soon….Will you be ready to meet the Bridegroom as wise or foolish?