Introduction

Good morning. I hope you're all feeling as blessed as I am to be here together in the house of the Lord. Now, I've got something I'm excited to share with you today. We're going to take a good, hard look at a passage from the book of Matthew, chapter 25, verses 1-13. But before we get to that, I've got a quote I want to share with you.

It's from a man who's had a big impact on my own faith journey, a man by the name of A.W. Tozer. "What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us." Now, you may have heard this before, or it may be new. Either way, think about it with me for a moment…

What is Tozer saying? It's not about what we do, or what we say, or even what we believe. It's about how we think about God. Let that consideration simply sit with you as we look at our scripture today.

Let Your Light Shine

When we consider the parable of the ten virgins, we can't help but notice the emphasis on the lamps. These lamps are not just ordinary lamps; they are symbolic. They represent the light of our faith, our relationship with God. In the same way that a lamp needs oil to burn brightly, our faith needs the oil of God's grace, His love, and His word to shine brightly in a dark world.

The five wise virgins in the parable were prepared. They had enough oil for their lamps. They were ready to meet the bridegroom. This readiness didn't just happen. It was the result of intentional preparation, of understanding the importance of being ready for the bridegroom's arrival.

In our lives, being ready for the arrival of Jesus, our bridegroom, means living our faith in a way that shines brightly for all to see. It means being filled with the oil of God's grace, His love, and His word. It means living in a way that reflects the light of Jesus to a world in need of His hope and salvation.

Now, let's consider the foolish virgins. They had lamps, but they didn't have enough oil. They weren't ready for the bridegroom's arrival. When the cry came out that the bridegroom was coming, they were left scrambling, trying to find oil for their lamps. But it was too late. The bridegroom arrived, and they were left outside, their lamps dim and their opportunity missed.

This is a sobering reminder for us. We can't afford to be like the foolish virgins, unprepared for Jesus' return. We can't afford to let our lamps run dry, our faith dim. We need to be continually filled with the oil of God's grace, His love, and His word. We need to be ready, always, for the return of our bridegroom, Jesus.

The parable also shows the importance of personal responsibility in our faith journey. The wise virgins couldn't share their oil with the foolish ones. Each virgin needed to have her own oil. In the same way, each of us is responsible for our own faith. We can't rely on the faith of others. We can't borrow their oil. We need to have our own relationship with God, our own faith that is nurtured and grown through personal prayer, study of God's word, and living out our faith in our daily lives.

Finally, the parable reminds us of the urgency of being ready for Jesus' return. The foolish virgins thought they had more time. They thought they could wait until the last minute to get their oil. But they were wrong. The bridegroom came at an unexpected hour, and they were not ready.

We don't know when Jesus will return. But we do know that He will return. And we need to be ready. We need to keep our lamps burning brightly, filled with the oil of God's grace, His love, and His word. We need to live our faith in a way that shines brightly in a dark world, ready to meet our bridegroom, Jesus.

Consequences of Hiding Your Light

Let’s focus on the light of the lamps in this parable ... View this full PRO sermon free with PRO