For years parents from all walks have taught their children about Christmas and the Santa figure, and that he comes to bring them gifts once they fall asleep. So, children in hope that Santa come and bring their desired gifts will before midnight Christmas eve go to sleep. Parents teach their kids to wait and hope on something that has become a fair tale and so they buy the gifts and dress like the red guy and distribute the gifts. We grow up with hopes and dreams that have the potential of never coming out to being true. It is not until we come to know God that we learn that he unlike the guy in red really makes dreams come out to be true. God fulfills his promises to his servants (2Pt3:9) that wait for him. The psalmist thought to himself that God has not and will not forget about what he has promised to him (ps77:7-9). Psalms 27:14 tells us to wait on the Lord, to be strong and take heart, because he had experienced God’s deliverance. So, live has things that we can wait for but have the possibility of never coming out, and it is up to us to decide to either continue to wait or not. But, live also have a God that if we decide to wait on him, he is sure to make them come out true.
Matthew 25:1-5
“At that time the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. 2 Five of them were foolish and five were wise. 3 The foolish ones took their lamps but did not take any oil with them. 4 The wise ones, however, took oil in jars along with their lamps. 5 The bridegroom was a long time in coming, and they all became drowsy and fell asleep.
6 “At midnight the cry rang out: ‘Here’s the bridegroom! Come out to meet him!’
Now, the kingdom of heaven Jesus compared it to ten virgins who like people today were waiting on something; the bridegroom, and their expectation of him coming was a sure thing; like our waiting on God and Christ’s return. But, something altered their waiting, their lanterns oil was wasting and five them did not have reserves. When ones faith is coming down to what looks like its end, a system of back up or serves needs to be in place else, like the psalmist says that our hand will stretch out to other places. God is in the business of rescuing his people. His saving plan did not end at the cross, it only began there. The Psalmist says that God is the one who saves (ps68:20, 55:16) and that from him comes our escape. So, we need to make sure that we have extra support to our faith; and this is with people of faith. These five virgins who were not wise are a symbol of those who like to live on their daily bread and think not on tomorrow; tomorrow can only get worse. Tiredness comes to all and we all fall asleep at one time or another, but the scriptures tell us that those who wait on the Lord will renew their strengths (Is40:31) and soar like eagles. Now, the message of this parable of the ten virgins deals with the coming of Christ and those who wait with reserves to make sure that they do not miss his redemption. And the purpose of the reserves is to make sure that we do not miss God’s saving power.