Parable of Ten Bridesmaids
The Bible says that Jesus died on the cross and came back alive. After that, he went up to heaven to be with God. Before he went to heaven, he said that someday he would return. He would return to the earth and get all the people who loved and obeyed him. He would take them back with him so they could live in heaven too.
So Jesus will come back someday and take us to heaven. When do you think that will happen? Could it be today? Could it be tomorrow? Could it be 20 years from now? No one can answer that question. No one knows when Jesus will come back to the earth.
No one knows when Jesus is coming back, but there is something we do know. Jesus said to get ready. How do we get ready for Jesus to come back? We get ready for Jesus by obeying God and by loving him. Are you ready?
In the bible, we read about a time when Jesus was teaching people to get ready for when he comes back. To help them understand about getting ready, he told a parable. A parable is a story that helps people to understand something very important. Here is the parable:
Once there was a big wedding. The wedding was so big that there were 10 bridesmaids. The bridesmaids all helped the bride get ready for the wedding. Weddings back then started at night. Everyone knew that sometimes during the night, the groom would come to the bride’s house and call out for her. The bridesmaids would hold up their oil lamps so that the bride and groom could see each other. The groom would be so happy to see his beautiful bride!
Everyone would keep holding up their lamps so that everyone could walk down the streets all the way to the groom’s house. Then there would be dancing, eating, and lots of fun celebrations at the wedding.
In Jesus’ parable, he told what happened when the ten bridesmaids helped the bride get ready for the wedding. Five of the bridesmaids were wise. They knew that sometimes the groom would wait long before he came to get the bride. So the wise bridesmaids brought extra oil for their lamps. They wanted to be ready even if the groom came very late in the night.
The five other bridesmaids were foolish. They did not think about bringing extra oil.
After the bridesmaids got the bride ready, they waited for the groom to come. They kept their lamps lit so they would be ready when he came. As time passed, the bride and all the bridesmaids got sleepy and fell asleep.
Then someone shouted, “Here’s the bridegroom, come outside and meet him!”
The bride and all of the bridesmaids woke up. They fixed their lamps to make them nice and bright. The five foolish girls noticed that their lamps had run out of oil and had burned out. They asked the wise girls for oil, but there was enough for them to have some too.
The foolish girls had to go and try to find more oil for the lamps. They did not get to go out with the bride to meet the bridegroom. They did not get to walk down the streets to the wedding feast with all of their friends. They were too busy trying to find oil.
When the wise bridesmaids and everyone else arrived at the groom’s house, they went inside and began the celebrations. The groom shut the door and locked it so no strangers could get inside. The foolish bridesmaids were not allowed in when they came to the door. The groom didn’t even know who they were!
This parable explains how it will be when Jesus comes again. We do not know the day or the time when Jesus will come back. We should always love God and obey him so we will be ready whenever he comes. We want to be ready to go with Jesus to heaven. Are you ready?
Scripture Reference: Matthew 25:1-13
Bible Verse of the Day
1 Peter 3:3-4 NIV
Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as braided hair and the wearing of gold jewelry and fine clothes. Instead, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God’s sight.
Those who seek Him
Written by Dan
It has been my observation that David paints an amazing picture of how to approach God. He is specific; we are to have clean hands, a pure heart, and we are to focus on Him alone with no other distractions or adulations. When we do this, then our capacity to trust Jesus and hear his guidance is magnified. How does he speak? I think the one true living God speaks through two pillars — nature and revelation.
The universe was not created to be unmitigated disorder. Rather, the earth was created into the most proper shape and size for us by God’s infinite wisdom. God’s revelation, his logos in action, his truth in activities; is his wisdom personified and exemplified in the creation of all that we know.
Psalms 24: 1-6 says — The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it; for he established it on the waters. Who may ascend the mountain of the Lord? Who may stand in his holy place? The one who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not trust in an idol or swear by a false god. They will receive blessing [direction] from the Lord and vindication from God their Savior. Such is the generation of those who seek him, who seek [his] face, the God of Jacob (NIV).
When I think of this creation, built in the framework of God’s wisdom, I immediately become aware that he made nothing in vain. There is no waste, God intended everything I can see, feel, smell, touch or hear to achieve some endgame; it was designed to display his intention and grace for us. It should also be observed; we are created to reflect God’s goodness, we are not made in vain, we have purpose, we are created to serve his use and benefit, we are the perfect habitation for his Holy Spirit, and this is the cool part — all of this was planned for us before creation, long before anything was existent – he planned us.
Psalms 104: 19-32 (paraphrased) says – You made the moon to mark the seasons, and mark when the sun goes down. You bring darkness, it becomes night, and all the beasts of the forest prowl. … People go out to their work in the daylight; they labor until the evening moon rises. How many are your works. In wisdom you made them all; the earth is full of your creatures. All creatures look to you for their food at the proper time. When you give it to them, they gather it up; when you open your hand, they are satisfied with good things. When you hide your face, they are terrified; when you take away their breath, they die and return to the dust. May the glory of the Lord endure forever; may the Lord rejoice in his works—You look at the earth and it trembles; you touch the mountains and they smoke (NIV).
So, I wonder, how do we approach God? This is what I think – God reveals the path through the light of His creation and His revelation. The work of God’s creation overwhelmingly proves to me that He is the one true living God. This created beauty draws us into His presence. There is more. His revealed Word is absolute truth, the Word provides our guideposts, the Word draws us into his presence. We should note – God’s oracles (prophets) stomp all over any dribble eked out by soothsayers. Just look at the beauty and accuracy of any prophet in scripture. His message is profound and full of wisdom. The soothsayers produce vague platitudes for living, God’s prophets deliver deep pools of wisdom and foresight; their message is pure, considerate, impartial, and full of guidance for our life. (implied in James 4:17)
The soothsayers deliver their platitudes from dens and caverns with a soothing voice and ambiguous serene expressions; their message originates from dark vagueness as if the message is relevant. God delivered his message from the sunlight of Mount Sinai to all of us in distinct and intelligible logic – No darkness. Just Light, Love, and Holy Ground. Who do you think we can trust? Who has your best interest at heart? Do you want vague platitudes or focused instruction? Hmmm. I prefer God’s specificity.
I choose Jesus.
Faith
Things that Matter
Written by Dan
It has been my observation – Paul tells us of the great race we are all engaged in, he often reminds us that every person who is involved in this competition needs to exercise self-control in all our thoughts and actions. We all know that in a human operated Tucson 10K Foot Race, the winner gets a medal. For us Christians, participating in the race that Paul speaks of, the prize is unique – it is imperishable. So then comes the question – what kind of things transition me into a top performer? Perhaps a better question is – what things will cause me to be the most useful to God’s mission here on earth? In a word – the answer is self-control.
In Galatians 5:22 we learn this discipline of self-control is a fruit of the Holy Spirit. This transfers management of “self-control” from me to God’s Spirit. The spiritual power we gain from self-control happens when we respond to the word of God, knowing that greater joy will come through self-control, when we trust the Spirit of God to give us fortitude, and when we embrace God’s glory in his victory over our life. The mechanics of this action is simple — our will yields to his nudge both from his voice and from the scriptures. This is a demonstration of God in us working his plan (implied in Philippians 2:13).
Paul is telling us there are strong urges that we have to manage if we are going to move like a winner and graduate into the crown of righteousness. The urges we have to control are the impulses to do things that will weaken our zeal for God, our earnestness in prayer, our hunger for Scripture, our longing to love, our passion for holiness. How do we resist? We yield to Jesus. Consult often with the Holy Spirit about how to proceed.
Galatians 5:1-12 says — It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery. Mark my words. I, Paul, tell you that if you let yourselves be circumcised, Christ will be of no value to you at all. Again, I declare to every man who lets himself be circumcised that he is obligated to obey the whole law. You who are trying to be justified by the law have been alienated from Christ; you have fallen away from grace. For through the Spirit, we eagerly await by faith the righteousness for which we hope. For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love (NIV).
So, the mature Christian asks, what will improve my prayer life? What will draw me into God’s word? What will strengthen my compassion for others? What will help me grow? This is a call to order, a review of the impulses, habits, and practices of my life that interferes with my hunger for God. Paul brings up circumcision because it is a trip line in our race. People will work extremely hard to impose their definition of spiritual walk on you if you permit them to. They will spend a bunch of time wanting you to conform to their view, so they are comfortable their view is the right view. The larger the crowd believing a given point, the higher the probability the view is the correct view. Huh? This is a fallacy in logic. Think about this. How are laws built on public opinion working out for you?
The deeper truth – We start out in the race, confident, running a good pace. Then we are sidelined by some crazy teacher who throws up a little dust in the air and obscures our view of the goal with a new rule to follow – if we want to be ‘really spiritual’. I am convinced that kind of human objective followed by persuasion and distractions do not come from the Spirit of God. Any time you hear something new, take the time to dig through the word, looking for evidence that the message aligns with things the Holy Spirit has already stated. We are wise to avoid the ideas that pull you into confusion, whatever that may be, so we can avoid the trip wire (see Gal 5). Our self-control should focus us squarely on the things that matter.
I choose Jesus.
Shalom Talk 