Being a virgin and a fool by Mike Bamiloye
Matthew 25:1-5
1 “Then the kingdom of heaven shall be likened to ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom.
2 “Now five of them were wise, and five were foolish.
3 “Those who were foolish took their lamps and took no oil with them,
4 “but the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps.
5 “But while the bridegroom was delayed, they all slumbered and slept.
Most of us have known this story from our Nursery school days, and many of us are familiar with this parable of Jesus since the days of our children Sunday School: “The Parable of the Ten Virgins”. And many times whenever we talk about this parable, we liken it to the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. And this is true. However, there is a striking truth the Lord showed me while going through this passage again.
ONE CAN BE A VIRGIN AND STILL END UP BEING A FOOL…A BIG FOOL.
The ten ladies were virgins, who had kept themselves from being messed up by the immoral society of this time. In the school, they had kept themselves from being polluted in fornications and the “funs” of the youths. They probably resisted the advances of various boys and they never spoilt themselves during the various Valentine seasons they had witnessed. They had kept themselves from sexual immorality, so, they were all VIRGINS.
That was the similitude of the ladies in the Parable of the Ten Virgins. They were christians, in addition. They knew the Lord and they were all waiting for Him. They loved Him, so they had decided to wait for Him.
They all took their Lamps. Both the Wise and the Foolish were carrying their lamps to meet the Bridegroom who was coming, just as the Wise and the Foolish Virgins are still carrying their various lamps awaiting the soon-coming King presently.
What made a huge difference between the Virgins? What made the foolish Virgins Foolish and the wise Virgins Wise? What separated them from each other?
THE OIL!
The Wise were carrying extra Oil in THEIR VESSELS, while the Foolish did not carry any extra Oil in their Vessels, except the one in their individual lamps.
Matthew 25:6-9
6 “And at midnight a cry was heard: ‘Behold, the bridegroom is coming; go out to meet him!’
7 “Then all those virgins arose 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, ‘No, lest there should not be enough for us and you; but go rather to those who sell, and buy for yourselves.’
By the time, the Bridegroom came back, and they were all trimming their lamps, the Foolish found out that their lamps were burning low and light going out and their was no oil in their lamp any more.
THAT WAS WHEN THEY DISCOVERED THEY WERE FOOLISH.
All along, they had taken care of their lamps without taken care of the OIL. They were Virgins because they knew no man before and had not committed sexual immorality before,
BUT THEIR VESSELS HAD NO EXTRA OIL TO KEEP THEIR LAMPS BURNING.
Their Vessels were empty.
Their lamps could not burn for long.
Their lamps had no perpetual light to shine to the world.
The most frightening part of this passage is the end part of the story:
Matthew 25:10-12
10 “And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the wedding; and the door was shut.
11 “Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, ‘Lord, Lord, open to us!’
12 “But he answered and said, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, I do not know you.’
The Bridegroom declaring to the Virgins who had waited for Him: “I do not know you!” and locking them out of His presence. But they were Virgins too! They too had not known any man too! They had kept themselves from sexual immorality too! They too had the Lamps and they were wearing the Wedding Garments too! But one thing was Missing: THE OIL! And that MISSING THING made them Foolish. Absence of OIL made them missed seeing the Bridegroom they had waiteed for all along. THE OIL!
What the Bridegroom said to them, was it not similar to what Jesus said He would say to some people in Matthew 7:22-23
Matthew 7:22-23
22 “Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’
23 “And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’
What iniquities were these Virgins involved in? Why was their OIL drained in their vessels?
I discovered that one could be a Virgin and still be in serious immorality.
One could be a Virgin and still be morally loosed.
One could be a Virgin and still be involved in sexual immorality.
Pornography! Filthy Imagination! Masturbation! Caressing! Foundling! Sexual Fantasies!
All these could drain the OIL in a LADY OR YOUNG MAN who had never involved in actual SEXUAL fornication before.
Apart from these: one could keep him or herself from sexual immorality and still got his OIL drained with a lot of carnality.
Of what use to the Kingodm of God is a Virgin lady who fight all the time with all her colleagues, a lady who can not be refered to as a good christian. Of what use to the Kingdom of God is a young man who had never involved in sexual immorality before, but full of ego and pride and very very untrustworthy; a man you can never trust with your money. He never fulfilled promises. On several occassions he had lied on several things, BUT HE IS A VIRGIN!
What is the OIL that is missing in the Vessels of these people?
The Fullness of the Spirit of God! The Presence of the Holy Spirit of God! The Power of the Holy Spirit! The Anointing of God!
AND A VIRGIN IN THE LORD’S PRESENCE IS A CHILD OF GOD WHO HAS GIVEN HIS LIFE TO THE LORD JESUS CHRIST. WHO IS WAITING FOR HIS COMING.
Therefore, one cold be a.child of God, waiting for His coming, BUT IF ONE IS CARELESS WITH HIS SPIRITUAL LIFE AND THE OIL IS DRAINED FROM THE VESSEL, ONE COULD STILL MISS HIS APPEARANCE.
When the Spirit of God departed from King Saul, the OIL drained off and an evil spirit took over him.
When the Spirit of God departed from Samson, when Delidlah had shaven off his locks, he became weak and powerless and the enemies overran him.
One could be a Virgin and still lose the OIL and became an enemy of God.
These are the examples of THE VIRGINS THAT ARE FOOLS.
MIKE BAMILOYE
#mikebamiloyedevotionals
mikegloria.blogspot.com
