Ready or Not: The Parable of The Ten Virgins from Matthew 25:1-13
📖 Scripture:
“At that time, the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish, and five were wise. The foolish ones took their lamps but did not take along oil. But the wise took oil in flasks along with their lamps.”
– Matthew 25:1–4
🔎 Examination:
The parable of the ten virgins is one of the most sobering teachings in all of Scripture. It dismantles universalism, demolishes superficial religion, exposes counterfeit conversions, and confronts the tragic delusion that external forms of “Christianity” guarantee eternal life. King Jesus is not warning pagans in this passage—He is warning anyone who thinks they are waiting for Him. That alone should freeze the spine and awaken the soul.
In the parable, everyone has a lamp. Everyone goes out to meet the bridegroom. Everyone falls asleep. Everyone expects to be included in the wedding celebration. Everyone participates in the same outward activities and looks the part. The one discriminating factor separating the wise from the foolish… prepared vs. not… is THE OIL… not appearance, effort, or participation.
This passage is ABSOLUTELY NOT a biblical endorsement for polygamy. It’s the decisive difference and discernment regarding the kind of oil possessed. The wise (biblical wisdom always translates to skillful living and honorable conduct to the glory of God) carry the oil of the imputed righteousness of Christ—grace-applied, Spirit-wrought, supernatural life that cannot be counterfeited. The foolish (biblical folly always translates to selfish, crooked, broken, and unskilled living as the byproduct of depravity in sin) possess the oil of inadequate, insufficient, wanting, deficient, filthy self-righteousness, i.e., morality, entitlement, religiosity, sentimentality, sacraments, traditions, and external performance.
This parable directly contradicts the DEADLY deception that “self-identifying” and calling oneself “Christian,” attending services, affirming biblical doctrines, or participating in religious rituals is a personal guarantee of salvation. The foolish ones in the parable represent the vast multitude who admire a pseudobiblical “personal” Jesus… agree with Him… quote Him (out of ignorance and context), even serve and do “great miracles” in His name—yet remain dead in sin because they lack the imputed oil of Christ’s righteousness through supernatural regeneration. Their lamps might shine brightly and briefly with the fuel of synthetic religion, but they possess nothing that endures the night… and rather than surrendering and seeking His righteousness by dying to self… they try to borrow and buy from others. Here’s what we read in Matthew 25:10-12:
“But while they were on their way to buy it, the bridegroom arrived. Those who were ready went in with him to the wedding banquet, and the door was shut. Later, the others returned and said, ‘Lord, lord, open the door for us!’ But he replied, ‘Truly I tell you, I do not know you.’”
King Jesus does not say they lacked “enough” oil; they lacked the right kind. This is the fatal mistake of presumptive and works-based religions: thinking that the right prayer, the right ceremonies and rituals, more effort, deeper sincerity, moral striving, the right religious recipe or formula, compensate for spiritual death or substitute for supernatural rebirth. The self-righteous assume they can simply “top off” whenever convenient—pray more, attend more, try harder, reform behavior, or muster intense emotion “as needed.” But the deficiency is qualitative, not quantitative. An infinite supply of self-righteousness cannot substitute for one drop of Christ’s unending, inexhaustible, perfect, and IMPUTED righteousness.
Sunday’s SERMON rightly emphasized that the issue is not the amount, but the nature of the oil. The wise have oil that never runs out because it does not originate from man. It flows from the eternal Son who fulfilled the law, bore sin, conquered death, and now clothes His saints in His perfect obedience and righteousness. As Revelation 19:7-8 reveals, “Let us rejoice and be glad and give Him the glory. For the marriage of the Lamb has come, and His bride has made herself ready. She was given clothing of fine linen, bright and pure.” This oil is not earned, purchased with gold or silver, inherited, or manufactured. It has been purchased with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or spot. The imputed righteousness of Christ is given by grace alone, received through faith alone, secured in Christ alone, grounded in Scripture alone, and directed to the glory of God alone.
The foolish virgins “believed” in the bridegroom, but belief is no substitute for regeneration. They exhibited religious interest, moral effort, and communal participation, but none of these equate to regenerate spiritual life. King Jesus’ WARNING targets those who assume that sincerity is salvation, that casual participation equals union, and that self-identification establishes legitimacy. But the parable reveals that vessels without true oil have no light and no life. They will hear, “Truly I tell you, I do not know you.”
When the announcement rings out—when Christ returns in unmistakable glory—panic seizes the foolish. Unlike the wise, they had no interest in Him; they were not eagerly awaiting Him. They realize too late that they cannot borrow oil. They cannot borrow imputed righteousness. They cannot borrow or buy regeneration. They cannot borrow or buy a temporary relationship with Christ. They cannot borrow or buy supernatural baptism, identification, union, obedience, or Holy Spirit-generated life. Salvation has never been transferable. God has no grandchildren (John 1:13). No one enters the Kingdom through association, proximity, or borrowed virtue. The foolish discover too late that heaven’s door (King Jesus) closes on those who reject Him as the only way, the only truth, and the only life… those who attempt to enter by the merit of their filthy rags (Isa 64:6).
King Jesus’ chilling words—“Truly, I tell you, I do not know you”—reveal the ultimate issue. They were acquainted with the idea of Jesus, familiar with the teachings of Jesus, and even active among the people of Jesus. But they were strangers to Jesus Himself. Not because He withheld Himself from them, but because they refused Him as King in favor of their own sovereign rule and righteousness.
Additionally, the parable exposes the false teachings of Mormon theology, Roman Catholic sacramentalism, progressive pseudo-Christianity, moralistic self-help religion, and all systems that teach salvation by religion rather than regeneration. Every gospel that adds to or subtracts from the perfect and wholly sufficient righteousness of Christ is a lamp without oil.
Advent is no sentimental remembrance of “Baby Jesus.” Advent is a THUNDEROUS CALL to objective self-examination by the standard of God’s WORD. Are we… are you eagerly awaiting the Christ of Scripture or a counterfeit antichrist who accommodates our sin, affirms our preferences, and demands nothing? Is your lamp filled with the imputed righteousness of Christ or with the toxic fumes of self-made religion?
The wise understand that readiness is not found in personal perfection but imputed perfection—possession of the imputed righteousness of Christ and evidence of the Holy Spirit’s sanctifying work/fruit. Readiness is not frantic striving and busyness but sabbath rest in baptism/identity. The elect are ready because the Bridegroom has made us His own by the shedding of His blood for His Bride.
The return of Christ will expose every counterfeit. Lamps that once seemed bright in the daylight of religious activity will be extinguished and exposed in the darkness of divine judgment. Only those with the inexhaustible righteousness of Christ will enter the wedding banquet.
Advent looks back to Christ’s first coming while simultaneously looking forward to His second. The Bridegroom delays according to divine wisdom, not human expectation. When He comes, the question will not be, “Did you admire Me?” but “Were you truly Mine?” The answer comes in what kind of oil fills the lamps of our lives.
🤺 Action:
Test your oil – “Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith.” (2 Cor 13:5) What righteousness are you relying on for entrance into heaven—Christ’s or your own?
Expose counterfeit readiness – “Test all things; hold fast to what is good.” (1 Thess 5:21) Are your spiritual activities rooted in devotion, adoration, and union with Christ or external religious habits?
Examine your expectation – “Search me, O God…” (Ps 139:23–24) Are you eagerly awaiting the returning King in the present, or assuming you’re ready because of past rituals and experiences?
Confront self-righteousness – “Let us examine and test our ways, and turn back to the LORD.” (Lam 3:40) Where do you trust personal effort instead of Christ’s finished work?
🧠Reflection:
Sunday's SERMON revealed that readiness for Christ’s return is not measured by externals: enthusiasm, ritual, or casual affiliation. It is measured by baptismal identity & union—true, supernatural union with the crucified and risen King. The wise carry the oil of His imputed righteousness; the foolish carry the empty shell of religious appearance. Advent compels us to invite the ETERNAL LOGOS, the WORD of GOD, to examine the contents of our lamps/lives, not to admire the beauty of their design. Look to Christ alone—His righteousness, His work, His life—and walk as one eagerly awaiting the Bridegroom whose return will vindicate His saints and expose every counterfeit hope.
Consider making Psalm 139:23-24 your prayer this Advent season,
Search me, O God, and know my heart;
Test me and know my discord.
See if there is any offensive way in me;
Lead me in the way everlasting!
Blessings & love,
Kevin M. Kelley
Pastor
Click the following link for a short video of today’s devotional:
https://youtube.com/shorts/l4S-uHWnMyg?feature=share
Click >>HERE<< for this past Sunday’s sermon!
Comments