In the parable of the ten virgins, two parties are differentiated by the possession of a non-transferable asset. The asset is defined, allegorically, by certain qualities:
It provides illumination
It produces an outward signal, and
It cannot be spontaneously produced.
Though this asset is held by only half of the virgins (whom we are told represent the claimants to the Kingdom of Heaven just before Christ returns to reign on earth), the parable demonstrates that all who want to be admitted to the marriage—or all who want to be worthy of Christ's return—must have this asset.
Despite the inability to transfer this asset between persons, the parable is emphatic on the following point: when it is too late to obtain the asset for themselves, those who do not have it want it from those who do.
Consider the plea of the unprepared as Christ described in scripture:
"The kingdom of heaven is like what happened one night when ten young women took their oil lamps and went to a wedding to meet the groom. Five of them were foolish and five were wise. The foolish ones took their lamps, but no extra oil. The ones who were wise took along extra oil for their lamps. "The groom was late arriving, and the young women became drowsy and fell asleep. Then in the middle of the night someone shouted, 'Here's the groom! Come to meet him!' "When the women got up and started getting their lamps ready, the foolish ones said to the others, 'Let us have some of your oil! Our lamps are going out.' "Those who were wise answered, 'There's not enough oil for all of us! Go and buy some for yourselves.' "While the foolish ones were on their way to get some oil, the groom arrived. The five who were ready went into the wedding, and the doors were closed. Later the others returned and shouted, 'Sir, sir! Open the door for us!' "But the groom replied, 'You don't even know me!' "So, my disciples, always be ready!" (Matt. 25:1 – 13, CEV, italics indicate applied JST changes).
It is important to note the circumstance that warranted the sudden demand for the non-transferable asset was an unanticipatedly extended period of time wherein the initial asset provisioning by the foolish virgins was exhausted and, in a state of ease and repose, was not replenished.
With these principles outlined, and in light of the state of affairs of the world in this late hour, might I suggest what this precious asset could be?
As a subtle but weighty gift of the spirit, the feeling of security is the asset truly possessed by only a few in these days but selfishly demanded by all the rest.
Paul warned that selfishness would be the hallmark of men's hearts in our day. He said: "You can be certain that in the last days there will be some very hard times. People will love only themselves and money" (2 Tim. 3:1 – 2, CEV). This selfishness wraps itself as a serpent upon its prey—the liberty of our fellow man:
It sows distrust of those who do not comply to its demands,
It mandates an outward signal, and
It desires immediate results.
Because of this selfishness, the unprepared rush to the wise and demand that they do something to give them the security they lack. Having been lulled into state of inaction and peace for so long, the hearts of the unprepared fail them as they cannot find that inner guiding peace that brings them safely through the darkness of turmoil.
Half the kingdom (the church) will not be able to obtain a feeling of security because half the kingdom will have neglected the practice of going directly to God for guidance. No, the parable does not say that the virgins will follow one lamp (or twelve, or fifteen) to the marriage, that they can merely look to the light of another and make it; each virgin—each member of the kingdom—must have her own light.
What does this look like in practice? Here is an anecdote from my own life that suits every particular of the above application of the parable to our times:
When the pandemic first started to ramp up in the first few months of 2020 and the government began to shut the world economy down, I began to panic. I had received some providential inheritance money shortly before that and I wondered if the Lord was providing a way of escape for us (surely for a bug out van!). The pressure of the timing of the combined circumstances weighed upon my mind until I felt almost paralyzed in my mind. What did he want me to buy? In this critical juncture, I decided that I could not lean upon the arm of flesh to figure this out but that I needed to know what God wanted me to do. So I inquired of him on the 25th of March, 2020, and he said the following to me in part (spoiler: no purchases were advised):
"Verily, there is nothing worth more than the oil of faith and revelation to the children of men, and more especially to those who profess to know my name and who have been told to watch but who know not my name and have not watched; and behold, this oil cannot be bought with money. Therefore seek not after those things that doth canker and that moth doth corrupt, but seek ye first the Kingdom of God and all these things shall be added unto you.... Behold, I say unto you, trust not in the arm of flesh, neither give ye heed to the voices of men, for verily they shall cause their own hearts to fail...."
O the sweetness and the peace that only the voice of the good shepherd can afford! Nothing can replace the feeling of security it brings, and no one can impart it to another who lacks it except God himself.
Could God have directed me to buy something needful? Of course. He may require purchases and physical preparations of any of us. In this particular moment he did not require it of me; what provided my feeling of security came simply by hearing him.
May we all repent and be worthy of God's guiding influence.
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