Text: Matthew 25:1-13
Title:  “Christ, the Coming Bridegroom”

Intro.: The Bible says, “But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in.” (Matt. 23:13)
    The parable of the wedding dinner in Matt. 22 was one of at least 7 in number.  Jesus uses these parables to drive home certain facts concerning His Messianic Kingdom.  The first three, the parables of the two sons (21:28-32), the wicked husbandman (21:33-41), and the marriage dinner (Matt. 22), were directed at the authorized religious leaders who had challenged Jesus authority. The other 4 are the parables of the budding fig tree (24:32-35), the faithful & unfaithful servants (24:43-51), the 10 virgins (25:1-13), and the talents (25:14-30).  These parables present a picture of a future kingdom associated with the glorious return of Christ.
    The Gospels teach us that the millennial kingdom of O.T. prophecy, which was announced in Jesus’ early ministry as “at hand,” was not established because of Jewish unbelief, and its arrival is now set definitely at the second coming of Christ the King.  The rejection of Israel’s Messiah by the unbelieving leaders of Israel—an infection which finally spread throughout the nation—had effectively shut the door to the kingdom offered by God during Christ’s earthly ministry.
The Bible says, “But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in.” 
    We are going to consider the parable of the ten virgins because it is based on the Middle-Eastern wedding dinner and goes hand in hand with the parable of the wedding banquet.

 Matt. 25:1-13 – “Christ, the Coming Bridegroom” – prayer

 Note: Correct interpretation demands that we know who is speaking and who is being spoken to. Notice that the first verse of chapt. 25 does not reveal either of these.  So we have to back up until we discover their identities (24:1, 3-4).
    Second, notice the language of v1, “Then (“at that time”) shall.” Now we look back to see what the “then” is (24:50-51).  This is a reference to the end of the Trib. Period, right before the millennial kingdom.
    Third, we want to know the subject of this parable—kingdom of Heaven.
    Fourth, we want to know why the ten virgins did what they did—the Bridegroom is coming!! (Why do we do what we do?—the Bridegroom is coming!)

I. JESUS REVELATION OF THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN (v1)
   A. Liken unto (“illustrated by”) Ten Virgins (representing the Nation of Israel) (virgins are physically pure & spiritually undefiled by idols)
         1. Who took their lamps
              a. Small, hand-held torches on rods
         2. Went forth to meet (“of two parties from opposite directions, i.e., meeting & returning with”) the Bridegroom
              a. They had a purpose in life, be ready to meet the BG
              b. They had a Person who was the center of their purpose

 II. JESUS’ PARABLE OF THE PRE-NUPTUALS
      A. The Participants
           1. Ten virgins (v1ff)
                a. Representing the Nation of Israel

 Note: The number "10" was taken notice of, and used among the Jews. It took 10, not 9, to make a congregation of them. And wherever there were 10 persons in a place, they were obliged to build a synagogue

           2. The Bridegroom (v1ff)
                a. Has been identified as the King’s/God’s Son in Matt. 22:2
           3. The Lord (v11)
                a. Sovereign Master/Deity
           4. The Son of Man
                a. A Messianic title of Jesus Christ; humanity

III. CHRIST, THE BRIDEGROOM
       A. Christ, the Coming Bridegroom (v1)

 Note: Historically middle-eastern marriages were arranged by the parents. At some agreed upon time, the young man & his family went to the young lady’s house for the espousal.  This was more serious than present day engagements. It could only be broken by a writ of divorce. Then the young man/ Bridegroom would return to his father’s house to build a dwelling for him and his bride. A first invitation was sent at this time, though the marriage did not happen for a year. As the wedding day approaches a second invitation is sent for the guests to assemble to greet the Bridegroom as He comes for His bride, and then to accompany them back to the Bridegroom’s father’s house for the wedding dinner. (Jn. 14:1-3)

       B. Christ, the Tarring (“to linger, delay”) Bridegroom (v5)
            1. He is preparing a place for you (Jn. 14:2)
            2. He is waiting for the fulness of time to return (Gal. 4:4)

      C. Christ, the Sure-Coming Bridegroom (v6)
            1. At midnight (“once, one time,” “in the midst,” then “night”; metaph. “the time when work ceases,” “the time of death,” “the time for deeds of sin and shame,” “the time of moral stupidity and darkness,” “the time when the weary and also the drunken give themselves up to slumber”)
                a. This is a reference to the second coming of Christ at the end of the Tribulation Period

      D. Christ, the Bridegroom Who Came (v10)
           1. Rev. 19:11-16

      E. Christ, the Bridegroom Who was the Lord (v11-12)
           1. Lord, the Sovereign Master (v11)
               a. Man’s only hope
           2. Lord, the Responding Master (v12)
               a. He answered and said
           3. Lord, the Omniscient Master
               a. “I know you”!
           4. Lord, the Truthful Master
               a. “No.”

      F. Christ, the Bridegroom Who was the Promised Messiah (v13)
          1. Son of Man is a messianic title of Jesus Christ
          2. Christ was the only One to use this title of Himself

     G. Christ, the Bridegroom Who was the Son of Man (v13)
          1. A messianic title of the Christ
              a. Used 81 times in the Gospels, always of Christ. Also used once in Acts and twice in Revelation
          2. A returning title of Christ (“cometh”) 

IV. THE TEN VIRGINS (v1ff)
      A. All Ten Represented the Nation of Israel (v1-4)
           1. They were all knowledgeable about the O.T. prophecies
               a. Five of them were wise (v2) (wisdom is the godly use of knowledge) or saved
                   1) Took their lamps and a vessel of extra oil

Note: In one hand they carried the lamp, which was a brazen, shallow dish attached to the top of a pole. In the dish were placed pieces of cloth (wick), olive oil and pitch. This was lit and became a torch.  In the other hand they carried a vessel of oil to replenish the lamp as it burned low.

                 b. Five of them were foolish (v2) (from the Greek word that we get “morons”).  They had knowledge from the O.T., but not the wisdom to believe it and follow it. They were unconverted.
                     1) Took their lamps, but no vessel with extra oil
                     2) Not only were they foolish regarding salv., but that led to them being foolish about life.
          2. They were all guilty of slumbering (“became careless”) and sleeping (“dropped off to sleep”), while waiting for the Bridegroom’s appearance (v5)
Paul in 1 Tim. 3:15 wrote, “But if I tarry long, that thou (pastor Timothy) mayest know how thou (Timothy) oughtest to behave thyself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the Truth.”
         3. All the virgins thought they were prepared (v6)
             a. To meet the Bridegroom
             b. When the call came, they all arose and trimmed their lamps (v7)
         4. But the morons discovered their folly (v8)
             a. Their lamps had gone out
                 1) Their purpose was to bring glory to (“make known”) the bridal procession with their presence & their lamps
             b. They had neglected to bring extra oil
             c. They thought they could just mooch off the wise
          5. But the wise had made advance preparation for themselves (v9)
              a. Notice the preparation is an individual decision
              b. Notice the wisdom of the situation
                  1) "We can’t"
                       a) Share our oil with you
                       b) Because then there would not be enough for either of us
              c. Notice the greater purpose
                   1) And all of us would fail in our responsibility
              d. Here is our recommendation
                   1) Go to the oil seller
                    2) Buy what you need

V. WHAT DOES THE OIL REPRESENT?
      A. The Oil Represents Oil!

      B. The Oil Does Not Represent the Holy Spirit
           1. Nowhere in Scripture is the Holy Spirit called “oil”
           2. Nowhere in Scripture is oil said to be a type of the Holy Spirit
           3. The O.T. saints were not permanently filled with the Spirit
           4. The Holy Spirit is not carried around in a container (v4)
           5. The Holy Spirit is not “transferred” from one person to another (v8)
           6. The Holy Spirit does not burn down and go out (v8)
           7. The Holy Spirit is not sold by another party (v9)
           8. The Holy Spirit is not bought by any party (v9)

Note from a trusted source on the Internet: “Oil is a widely understood symbol of the Holy Spirit and thus does not require a detailed explanation, but one scripture will suffice to link the Holy Spirit and oil directly.” What they do is equate the anointing with oil as if it was a filling with the Holy Spirit. 

VI. WHAT THE WISE VIRGINS ENJOYED (10)
      A. The Presence of the Bridegroom
           1. Were in the bridal procession with Christ
           2. Went into the marriage supper with Christ

      B. The Blessings of Obedience (“ready”)
           1. They had made their preparation while there was still time
               a. Salvation in Christ

     C. The Separation from Morons
          1. The door to the millennial kingdom was shut by God!

VII. WHAT THE FOOLISH VIRGINS LOST (v11)
     A. They Lost all Their Excuses
          1. “Lord, Lord” was all they could say

     B. They Lost all Hope (“open to us”)
          1. The most expected event in the Jewish prophetic calendar & they cannot get it because they were not prepared! (Gen. 6:16)

VIII. THE FINAL WORDS OF THE BRIDEGROOM (v12-13)
     A. He Answered & Said
          1. The words of the omniscient God
              a. I say unto you--you who are unprepared
                 1) “I know (“to have regard for you”) you not.”
                 2) Previously Christ told the same crowd, “I never knew you.” (in the O.T. economy)
“Not every one that saith unto Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of My Father which is in heaven.  Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Thy Name? and in Thy Name have cast out devils? and in Thy Name done many wonderful works?’  And then will I profess unto them, ‘I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity’.”  (Matt. 7:21-23)

Concl.: This passage was a dire warning to the O.T. Jews living during the earthly ministry of Christ.  Despite approximately 1500 yrs. of history; despite God’s mercy, grace and longsuffering; despite the warnings of all the prophets, the Jews, for the most part, will remain deaf, dumb and blind until the 2^nd coming of Christ. A sad legacy at best!
    The interpretation of this passage is not for believers, except to wake us up to the truth that the remaining time is short. No door will be shut in your face; no words of doom will assault your ears, for you are safe and secure in Christ.  Yes, at the Bema Seat you will give an account, not of your salvation, but of your Christ-life.  But are you prepared for that?  You still have time to prepare and repent, but will you?

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