Will you and I be prepared someday to meet the Lord?

In Matthew chapter 24, many prophecies were given which were to be fulfilled as the time of the Second Coming approached.  Chapter 25 continues with instructions on how they were to prepare personally for the Second Coming.  The Savior uses the Parable of the Ten Virgins to teach them.  Verse 1 “Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom.”  When the Son of man returns in judgment, the church will be like ten virgins coming to a wedding ceremony.  The coming of Jesus the bridegroom – to receive his church, is often presented like a marriage – with the Church (body of believers) represented as His spouse or bride.  In the Greek the term “virgin” would imply clean vessels, purity by way of being covered by faith in Christ’s blood.  I need to point out in the story that these ten virgins – or maidens – were not brides – but part of the wedding procession.  Verses 2-4 “And five of them were wise, and five were foolish.  They that were foolish took their lamps, and took no oil with them: But the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps.”  Now, throughout scripture oil is often pictured as the Holy Spirit, which is one reason in the Old Testament Levitical priesthood ordinations were accompanied by literally pouring olive oil over the head of the High Priest.  So, half of these virgins possessed oil to fortify their torches – lighting the procession way for the groom and His bride – and the other half did not.

Verses 5-6 “While the bridegroom tarried, they all slu