“And five of them were wise, and five were foolish. They that were foolish took their lamps, and took no oil with them…”
Matthew 25:2
When the Bridegroom tarries, the lamps of the “five foolish virgins” go out. They lose their inspiration; their lamps no longer shine with the Light of Him. They become stagnant, unable to respond to the exhortations of the Word.
“…our lamps are gone out.”
Matthew 25:8
Lethargy takes hold of hearts where the fire of God’s presence slowly dissipates through neglect and self-reliance. The foolish rely on their own wisdom, their knowledge of the word, and are comfortable with a faith that produces no works. It is a place of great deception.
“But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only,
deceiving your own selves.”
James 1:22
There is no greater deception than to know the word without doing it. The manna that fell had to be eaten on the day it was given.
The Law of the Manna
“And Moses said unto them,
This is the bread which the Lord hath given you to eat.”
Exodus 16:15
The manna is NOT given for us to consider, or to hold in our minds. Without the doing, we are not eating of its sustenance.
“Notwithstanding they hearkened not unto Moses; but some of them left of it until the morning, and it bred worms, and stank: and Moses was wroth with them.”
Exodus 16:20
There is, within the dispensation of God’s word, a snare to those who hear without obedience. They come to disregard the authority of the Word, placing themselves above its dictates and making themselves to be their own lords.
The five foolish virgins relied upon themselves. They did not miss the oil of His Spirit; their confidence was in something else. When their lamps were empty, the Bridegroom came.
His verdict on them is frightening and eternal.
“But He answered and said,
Verily I say unto you, I know you not.”
Matthew 25:12
The strength of our relationship with Jesus is revealed as He tarries. Time exposes truth. A stagnant, lukewarm heart that feels no intrinsic need to make Him known evidences a life that has lost the pulse of His dynamic wonder. It was the anointing of the Holy Spirit that produced lives filled with His overflowing wonder.
“For we cannot but speak the things
which we have seen and heard.”
Acts 4:20
Those who have seen little have little to say. Those who have eaten His Word through the medium of obedience live to make Him known. Christ, being the light of the world, shines radiantly through the lives of those in whom His fire burns.
The Provisions of the Lord
“And wine that maketh glad the heart of man, and oil to make his face to shine, and bread which strengtheneth man’s heart.”
Psalm 104:15
Related Post: The Coming One – The Day of the Lord
“Where there is no fuel,
a fire goes out…”
Proverbs 26:20 (CEV)
Brian Troxel
