The Wise Virgins Are About to Awake and DO Something. Any Guesses What That Might Be?

[Gideons300]

We pretty much all know about the wise and foolish virgins. What did they have in common right before the end? They all slept. Funny thing about sleeping virgins. When they are sleeping, you cannot really tell the wise ones from the foolish ones. What else do they have in common? They all were awakened.

The difference between them manifested itself in what they did once they were awakened, amen? What did the wise virgins do? With the oil they possessed, which was not yet lit, they lit their lamps!

Do we not see concerning these wise virgins, destined for Heaven? They were indeed virgins. They indeed did have the Holy Spirit within them. BUT..... one thing remained. They were producing no light. They had their lamp. They had their oil. But they never realized that they must light their lamp.

Look, guys. We have tried to walk as new creatures but without our new creature ever being activated. We believe with our heads that we are new creatures, that the old us is done and gone. But then we spend our entire walk unsuccessfully trying to walk like nee creatures, with sin under our feet. We try as hard as we can to kill our old nature, when the truth is, it is already dead!

The Bible tells us to awake to righteousness and sin not. Oh, I pray we see, the way to do that is to LIGHT OUR LAMP! And how is that done? We combine the blood of the Lamb with the word of OUR testimony.

By faith, we finally stand up against the accusations and temptations of the enemy and boldly say "No more." We do as we have been instructed to do and reckon..... add it to our spiritual bank account.... that the old us does not need to die. It DIED! We stand on truth that no matter what we may look like at this present moment, inside, at our core? We ARE new. We ARE pure. Please understand here. That does not mean that we are all of a sudden clothed with all sorts of spiritual fruits. That comes as we abide...remain.... in Him by faith. Being free from sin is NOT perfection. It is simply that we, as lumps of clay, have finally, by our confession as to who we are, centered ourselves on God' potter wheel. Ready to see how amazing your potter is? Me to, brothers and sisters, me too.


It is God's job to take the lumps of clay we are and fashion us into beautiful servants OUTWARDLY, but inwardly? Brand new. Sin free. But this part is critical. It is only as we believe this to be true that the change occurs. Why? Because it is "according to our faith be it unto us". As long as we believe the lie we have been fed that we are NOT new, we are not fully centered on the potters wheel.

Awaking to righteousness and sinning not is not a task we try our best to do. We will fail!! We awake to righteousness by BELIEVING we really are righteous, right now, this very minute. And do you know what comes with that? The sinning not part is ours too. The power of God is found in our walking in our new creature, but until we put it on by faith alone, our only choice is to a) remain asleep or. b) try to act righteous and sin not by our effort. Good luck with that! LOL

We are the people destined to be called "the restorer of the paths to dwell in". All the promises of God are ours and they are MIND BLOWING..... but.... BUT.... until we put off our old nature by faith, reckon that that guy is not longer us, and by faith put on our new nature, like a soft clean robe draping over us, we will remain stuck in the mud.

It is time to put our God to the test and to simply believe Him and what He has declared over us, His children. I am crucified with Christ, nevertheless I live. YOU are crucified, with Christ, never the less you live. And this part is key. And the life we now live, we live by the faith of tge Son of God, who loved us and gave Himself for us. Glory!

We are about to fully understand what being born again actually means. Prepare to have your mind blown.

blessings.

Gids

 

[SeventyOne]

Not understanding the comparison. As both the wise and foolish virgins slept, their lamps were still lit and producing light. It says of the wise that they trimmed their lamps, an action taken only when the lamp is already lit, and the foolish complained they needed oil because their lamps were going out, not that they were already out. At no point in the parable was any lamp extinguished and then lit again, wise or foolish.

 

[Gideons300]

Not understanding the comparison. As both the wise and foolish virgins slept, their lamps were still lit and producing light. It says of the wise that they trimmed their lamps, an action taken only when the lamp is already lit, and the foolish complained they needed oil because their lamps were going out, not that they were already out. At no point in the parable was any lamp extinguished and then lit again, wise or foolish.

Perhaps at one time. lamps were lit. But when the master's coming was delayed, they slumbered and slept. Lamps not trimmed go out.

However, this is hot a theological study on whether or not the lamps were out or not. It is a study on being prepared to meet the master who approaches. So either way, they slumbered and were not prepared for the master's coming.

The key point must not be lost here. Lit or trimmed, we need to awake and our lamps need to be adjusted. The question is, are we willing to identify with sleeping saints, for only when we do can we awake to righteousness and sin not. And it is at that point when we finslly must face exactly HOW that can be accomplished.

We can go back to sleep, trusting that God will make sure we are ready regardless, we can get more serious about walking pure and holy through our own efforts, or we can acknowledge we need a miracle in order to truly be prepared to meet Him and not be lulled into a false sense of security.

blessings,

Gideon

 

[Al Touthentop]

We pretty much all know about the wise and foolish virgins. What did they have in common right before the end? They all slept. Funny thing about sleeping virgins. When they are sleeping, you cannot really tell the wise ones from the foolish ones. What else do they have in common? They all were awakened.

And the wise virgins were prepared while the foolish were not.

The difference between them manifested itself in what they did once they were awakened, amen? What did the wise virgins do? With the oil they possessed, which was not yet lit, they lit their lamps!

It says they trimmed them, not that they lit them. Trimming a lamp prevents the wick from producing smoke.

Matthew 25
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.’ 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.’

Do we not see concerning these wise virgins, destined for Heaven? They were indeed virgins. They indeed did have the Holy Spirit within them. BUT..... one thing remained. They were producing no light. They had their lamp. They had their oil. But they never realized that they must light their lamp.

Where do we see them confused about what they must do? The wise knew exactly what do do. Their lamps were burning and trimmed and full of oil.

Look, guys. We have tried to walk as new creatures but without our new creature ever being activated. We believe with our heads that we are new creatures, that the old us is done and gone. But then we spend our entire walk unsuccessfully trying to walk like nee creatures, with sin under our feet. We try as hard as we can to kill our old nature, when the truth is, it is already dead!

It is God's job to take the lumps of clay we are and fashion us into beautiful servants OUTWARDLY, but inwardly? Brand new. Sin free. But this part is critical. It is only as we believe this to be true that the change occurs. Why? Because it is "according to our faith be it unto us". As long as we believe the lie we have been fed that we are NOT new, we are not fully centered on the potters wheel.

According to our living faith - faith which includes obedience.

Awaking to righteousness and sinning not is not a task we try our best to do. We will fail!! We awake to righteousness by BELIEVING we really are righteous, right now, this very minute. And do you know what comes with that? The sinning not part is ours too. The power of God is found in our walking in our new creature, but until we put it on by faith alone, our only choice is to a) remain asleep or. b) try to act righteous and sin not by our effort. Good luck with that! LOL

It better be with our effort. Without our own effort there is nothing accomplished. Our submission to God's will requires our active participation. I know you're implying that but you seem to also be saying that it is mere thinking (faith alone) that gets the job done. Most of the times that word faith is used in the bible it's talking about "the faith" or the system of faith that Christ established, not just the thoughts we have in our heads.

We are about to fully understand what being born again actually means. Prepare to have your mind blown.

We ought to know before we're born again what it means because Jesus said it was important, before you entered into the new covenant to understand just what it was you were getting into.

26 “If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple. 27 And whoever does not bear his cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple. 28 For which of you, intending to build a tower, does not sit down first and count the cost, whether he has enough to finish it— 29 lest, after he has laid the foundation, and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him, 30 saying, ‘This man began to build and was not able to finish’? 31 Or what king, going to make war against another king, does not sit down first and consider whether he is able with ten thousand to meet him who comes against him with twenty thousand? 32 Or else, while the other is still a great way off, he sends a delegation and asks conditions of peace. 33 So likewise, whoever of you does not forsake all that he has cannot be My disciple.


And what does it mean to become a disciple? It means to be created anew, like a child, innocent and blameless.

2 Then Jesus called a little child to Him, set him in the midst of them, 3 and said, “Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven. 4 Therefore whoever humbles himself as this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.

When we're born again, the slate is wiped clean and we move into a new phase in our life where our past is of no consequence. We begin by counting the cost and participating in the first resurrection. We do have to participate just as we have to abide or remain in Christ until death.

 

[SeventyOne]

Perhaps at one time. lamps were lit. But when the master's coming was delayed, they slumbered and slept. Lamps not trimmed go out.

However, this is hot a theological study on whether or not the lamps were out or not. It is a study on being prepared to meet the master who approaches. So either way, they slumbered and were not prepared for the master's coming.

The key point must not be lost here. Lit or trimmed, we need to awake and our lamps need to be adjusted. The question is, are we willing to identify with sleeping saints, for only when we do can we awake to righteousness and sin not. And it is at that point when we finslly must face exactly HOW that can be accomplished.

We can go back to sleep, trusting that God will make sure we are ready regardless, we can get more serious about walking pure and holy through our own efforts, or we can acknowledge we need a miracle in order to truly be prepared to meet Him and not be lulled into a false sense of security.

blessings,

Gideon

It does make a difference if you are handling the Word incorrectly. How does one take your admonition seriously when you are playing loosely with scripture in the process of making your point?

Besides, you are using this parable to make a point concerning the conduct of the Church, but when the bridegroom was behind the shut door for the marriage feast, the bride is there with him already. The Church is the bride. These 10 virgins are not members of the Church.

 

[Al Touthentop]

It does make a difference if you are handling the Word incorrectly. How does one take your admonition seriously when you are playing loosely with scripture in the process of making your point?

Besides, you are using this parable to make a point concerning the conduct of the Church, but when the bridegroom was behind the shut door for the marriage feast, the bride is there with him already. The Church is the bride. These 10 virgins are not members of the Church.

All of the virgins were betrothed to the bridegroom. They most definitely were all members of the church.

 

[friend of]

I'm wondering how the parable of the 10 virgins interfaces with Matthew 12:20


"A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out. In faithfulness he will bring forth justice;"

If it does at all...

 

[GaveMeJoy]

We pretty much all know about the wise and foolish virgins. What did they have in common right before the end? They all slept. Funny thing about sleeping virgins. When they are sleeping, you cannot really tell the wise ones from the foolish ones. What else do they have in common? They all were awakened.

The difference between them manifested itself in what they did once they were awakened, amen? What did the wise virgins do? With the oil they possessed, which was not yet lit, they lit their lamps!

Do we not see concerning these wise virgins, destined for Heaven? They were indeed virgins. They indeed did have the Holy Spirit within them. BUT..... one thing remained. They were producing no light. They had their lamp. They had their oil. But they never realized that they must light their lamp.

Look, guys. We have tried to walk as new creatures but without our new creature ever being activated. We believe with our heads that we are new creatures, that the old us is done and gone. But then we spend our entire walk unsuccessfully trying to walk like nee creatures, with sin under our feet. We try as hard as we can to kill our old nature, when the truth is, it is already dead!

The Bible tells us to awake to righteousness and sin not. Oh, I pray we see, the way to do that is to LIGHT OUR LAMP! And how is that done? We combine the blood of the Lamb with the word of OUR testimony.

By faith, we finally stand up against the accusations and temptations of the enemy and boldly say "No more." We do as we have been instructed to do and reckon..... add it to our spiritual bank account.... that the old us does not need to die. It DIED! We stand on truth that no matter what we may look like at this present moment, inside, at our core? We ARE new. We ARE pure. Please understand here. That does not mean that we are all of a sudden clothed with all sorts of spiritual fruits. That comes as we abide...remain.... in Him by faith. Being free from sin is NOT perfection. It is simply that we, as lumps of clay, have finally, by our confession as to who we are, centered ourselves on God' potter wheel. Ready to see how amazing your potter is? Me to, brothers and sisters, me too.


It is God's job to take the lumps of clay we are and fashion us into beautiful servants OUTWARDLY, but inwardly? Brand new. Sin free. But this part is critical. It is only as we believe this to be true that the change occurs. Why? Because it is "according to our faith be it unto us". As long as we believe the lie we have been fed that we are NOT new, we are not fully centered on the potters wheel.

Awaking to righteousness and sinning not is not a task we try our best to do. We will fail!! We awake to righteousness by BELIEVING we really are righteous, right now, this very minute. And do you know what comes with that? The sinning not part is ours too. The power of God is found in our walking in our new creature, but until we put it on by faith alone, our only choice is to a) remain asleep or. b) try to act righteous and sin not by our effort. Good luck with that! LOL

We are the people destined to be called "the restorer of the paths to dwell in". All the promises of God are ours and they are MIND BLOWING..... but.... BUT.... until we put off our old nature by faith, reckon that that guy is not longer us, and by faith put on our new nature, like a soft clean robe draping over us, we will remain stuck in the mud.

It is time to put our God to the test and to simply believe Him and what He has declared over us, His children. I am crucified with Christ, nevertheless I live. YOU are crucified, with Christ, never the less you live. And this part is key. And the life we now live, we live by the faith of tge Son of God, who loved us and gave Himself for us. Glory!

We are about to fully understand what being born again actually means. Prepare to have your mind blown.

blessings.

Gids

Love this.

Quick question: how do you Reconcile the fact that every man sins virtually every day no matter what, even the most pious and Christ seeker?

 

[JIMINZ]

Love this.

Quick question: how do you Reconcile the fact that every man sins virtually every day no matter what, even the most pious and Christ seeker?

No reconciliation needed here, just believe what Scripture has to say in answer to your question.

Gal. 5:16
This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh.

Gal. 5:25
If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.

1Jn. 3:4
Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law.

Rom. 4:15
Because the law worketh wrath: for where no law is, there is no transgression.

Rom. 7:4
Wherefore, my brethren, ye also are become dead to the law by the body of Christ; that ye should be married to another, even to him who is raised from the dead, that we should bring forth fruit unto God.

Gal. 2:19
For I through the law am dead to the law, that I might live unto God.

 

[GaveMeJoy]

No reconciliation needed here, just believe what Scripture has to say in answer to your question.

Gal. 5:16
This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh.

Gal. 5:25
If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.

1Jn. 3:4
Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law.

Rom. 4:15
Because the law worketh wrath: for where no law is, there is no transgression.

Rom. 7:4
Wherefore, my brethren, ye also are become dead to the law by the body of Christ; that ye should be married to another, even to him who is raised from the dead, that we should bring forth fruit unto God.

Gal. 2:19
For I through the law am dead to the law, that I might live unto God.

The only way to reconcile the verses in Galatians with the fact that everyone sins daily is that it’s impossible to walk in the spirit for an entire day or two because no one does.

 

[prodromos]

When the parable says they fell asleep, it means they died. They awake on the last day.
The difference between the wise virgins and the foolish virgins is the wise virgins had gathered oil from their good works while alive.

Jesus spoke 3 parables back to back in Matthew 25 in order to teach one particular lesson, the wise and foolish bridesmaids, the talents, and the sheep and the goats. You cannot interpret the one parable outside of the context of the other two.

 

[Gideons300]

It amazes.... and saddens me.... the excuses we all make for not walking pleasing to the one who died for us

We are those who have a name,e that we liveth but we are dead.

We are those healed only slightly, with the nerve to say "peace, peace" to a world desperate for it, when unfortunately they see our blindness, our religious charade. our total lack of peace, and want nothing to do with our shallow offerings. and who can blame them. Well is it spoken that we, His own childrem, have blasphemed His Holy name before them wherever we have gone.

We are those who loved drawing near to Him with our heads, but our hearts? They are OURS Lord, leave them alone.

We are a people who have forgotten how to blush, who use God's word to justify our lack of commitment, our lqck of obedience, our lack of hunger for the victory He clearly has promised us but who refuse to fall on our faces and admit we know noting about how to bring every one of our actions.... oh, yeah, AND every thought into obedience to our master.

We scramble to try to justify our lukewarmness, ignoring what God had clearly promised in favor of what we have seen in others and yes, in our own walks.

Our prayer closets are empty. Our hearts are empty. Our bellies are full of what this world has to offer us. Shame on us, our lack of vision, our lukewarm defense that somehow, even though the church of the book of Acts overturned the entire world in one generation, we possess the same God they did.

Perhaps so, but one thing is certain. We are not possessed in the same way that they were. All that is about to change, but a whole lot of tears and pain is standing in our way. We can go voluntarily, hating what we have become, or we can have our blindness and lukewarmess and contentment without Godliness shaken out of us. Our choice, but may I suggest it will please our God far more if we opt for option number one?

blessings,

Gids

 

[Gideons300]

All of the virgins were betrothed to the bridegroom. They most definitely were all members of the church.

Amen. Please explain to me why they were found beating on the now closed door to Heaven. There is a lesson there if we are open to learning it.

Gids

 

[prodromos]

Amen. Please explain to me why they were found beating on the now closed door to Heaven. There is a lesson there if we are open to learning it.

Gids

Same reason the servant with the one talent was cast into outer darkness and the goats were sent into the eternal fire.
No good works.
Their faith was dead.

 

[bmjackson]

The difference was nothing to do with lighting lamps or trimming wicks. It was the assumption made at the beginning. Half the virgins expected the bridegroom to come at the usual allotted time. The wise ones did not place any restrictions on him. They gave him freedom to come as he pleased, which is submission to his authority.

Only those who are in obedience to the light they have already been given will receive more light.

 

[Gideons300]

Same reason the servant with the one talent was cast into outer darkness and the goats were sent into the eternal fire.
No good works.
Their faith was dead.

Which places us on the slippery slope of how many works are required? Do it have to do with which church one believes to be the true church?

The truth is there is but one way to see works come from us. Let God dwell in us and cause us to will and to do of His good pleasure. Of course, if that is true, and it is, it should drive us to our knees seeking His face to "do it for us", but therein lies the rub, doesn't it? To do that, we must actually hate our life, and finally hand over the ownership of US to our God.

blessings,

Gideon

 

[Gideons300]

Love this.

Quick question: how do you Reconcile the fact that every man sins virtually every day no matter what, even the most pious and Christ seeker?

My dear brother, what you just shared is a perfect picture of our current understanding of Christianity. We judge with our eyes what we see from others. We look at our own lives and see real holiness as simply an illusion, an impossible goal no one can hit.

Yet does God not promise that our shields of faith actually work? Has He not clearly told us that we are to count it all joy when tempted because He will not allow us to be tempted above our ability to resist?

The real problem is hardened hearts, where we are not desperate to get freed from the grip of sins that now have us and continue to harden us toward Him.

How do we escape Romans 7 and find the joy of victory in Romans 8? We cry out as wretched men with all that is within us.

blessings,

Gids

 

[GaveMeJoy]

My dear brother, what you just shared is a perfect picture of our current understanding of Christianity. We judge with our eyes what we see from others. We look at our own lives and see real holiness as simply an illusion, an impossible goal no one can hit.

Yet does God not promise that our shields of faith actually work? Has He not clearly told us that we are to count it all joy when tempted because He will not allow us to be tempted above our ability to resist?

The real problem is hardened hearts, where we are not desperate to get freed from the grip of sins that now have us and continue to harden us toward Him.

How do we escape Romans 7 and find the joy of victory in Romans 8? We cry out as wretched men with all that is within us.

blessings,

Gids

That doesn’t answer my question at all.

it’s difficult to understand all the verses that talk about not sinning, when everyone sins and “he who says he is without sin is a liar and the truth is not in him.”


It’s fun to wax poetic about being free from sin and quote verses that talk about resisting temptation, but what does it MEAN in real life? I believe all these verses are referring to our freedom from the consequences of sin because Christ paid the price, and us no longer being identified with and defined by our sin because we have our identity in Christ. This is the only way to look at these verses because all men sin daily, period. No matter how much you focus and meditate on freedom in Christ and overcoming sin, you WILL sin, until you die and are raised in a new body.

 

[bmjackson]

I don't sin.

 

[Lost4words]

Interpretation, interpretation, interpretation