Trust in the Lord, and do good; so shall you dwell in the land, and verily you shall be fed” (Psalm 37:3).
When we look around us today we see much evil prospering in our world and many in our world are opposed to our God and all those who call on His Name. It can be discouraging at times but the Lord has shown us the way through the darkness of our current world. We are to place our trust in Him and His Word and live our lives as a witness to His Goodness and Mercy. By placing our faith in our Savior the Holy Spirit will lead us through to victory.
“Delight yourself also in the Lord: and He shall give you the desires of your heart” (verse 4).
When we delight ourselves in the Lord and His ways our desires will line up with His Word and His will for us. Following the Lord results in a life of “joy unspeakable and full of Glory.” Our world is headed in the wrong direction. The Bible makes it clear that evil will abound as we approach the Glorious Day of His soon return. Living in the joy of the Lord will strengthen us against this tide of evil that we experience today, and is a powerful witness to those do in need of the Salvation the Lord graciously provides to whosoever will come His way.
“Commit your way unto the Lord; trust also in Him; and He shall bring it to pass” (verse 5).
The Lord is telling us that if we trust Him and commit our way to Him He will bring us through all we see going on around us in this world. These are troubled times and we need an anchor for our soul. That anchor is the Cross. We are to place our faith in Christ and Him crucified and the Holy Spirit will guide us through to victory.
“Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him… (verse 7a)
We rest in the Lord by faith – faith in His finished work at the Cross. This is our answer in navigating the evil we see all around us. We are to trust Him and walk in His Ways doing good to those we come across in this life. We are to delight in our great God and come to Him with thanksgiving for all He has done for us and the care He shows us each and every day. As we commit to follow Him each day, we become strong- “Strong in the Lord, and the power of His Might.” The Lord knows all our days, watches over us as we walk through each one, and has promised to bring us through to our wonderful inheritance and into in His presence forever.
“The Lord knows the days of the upright: and their inheritance shall be for ever” (verse 18).
Always Remember,
God Loves You!
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Here I Am, Lord – Tom Quinn Ministries – tqministries.com 2025
“The Father loves the Son, and has given all things into His hand” (John 3:35).
Our introductory verse is, of course. speaking of the Lord Jesus Christ and is referencing the Plan of God for Salvation. The Father sent the Son to redeem mankind. We are lost and are prisoners of our sin nature. We cannot lift ourselves out of this fallen state. The Lord of Glory became man to save us from ourselves. He paid the sin debt owed to God which opened the way for fellowship with the Lord. By coming to the Lord in repentance and faith we are born spiritually. In other words, a path is opened, in that, “Newness of Life” through our born again experience is the result.
“He who believes on the Son has Everlasting Life…” ( John 2:36a).
By our faith in the Lord Jesus and His sacrificial death at Calvary, we have Everlasting Life. This is our way to God – the only way. There is no other way to come to the Lord. We must be born spiritually. Once we come to Him and are born again, the Holy Spirit comes to live within us forever. He will guide us and help us throughout our lives.
“And he who believes not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abides in Him” ( John 3:26b,c).
We cannot have our sins forgiven and know God accept by coming His way. Should we choose not to come His way we will experience the wrath of God. There is no other way to be saved. God cannot allow us to come into His presence and abide with Him if we do not have His Spirit living within us. We will die in our sins and suffer a eternity away from the presence of God if we do not come to Him in repentance and faith. Calvary stands as a beacon of hope for those who realize their lost state, and a dire warning of the judgment to come for those that refuse the Mercy and Grace of God.
Are you saved from wrath today? If you realize your need and come to the Lord, you have been saved from wrath. If you have not yet come to the Lord, you have been shown the way of Salvation today. If you choose to not come the Lord’s way, or decide to delay your response to this question, you have, in effect, already answered and will be one heartbeat away from an eternity separated from the love God has shown us and the Salvation He has provided. By not coming to the God Who loves you and died on cruel Cross as proof of that love, you are in rebellion against God. He calls out today in Mercy and Grace. For those that do not come His way, either death or His soon return will result in a eternity in the Lake of Fire. The Lord calls out to all those in the world today that they not perish. Here Him today and live!
” For God so loved the world that He gave His only Begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him should not perish, but have Everlasting Life ” (John 3:16).
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Here I Am, Lord – Tom Quinn Ministries – tqministries.com 2025
“And He (Jesus) spoke this Parable unto certain which trusted in themselves that they were righteous and despised others:” (Luke 18:9)
The Lord is teaching here on self-righteousness. Self-righteousness can only lead to a works based righteousness and/or a relative righteousness as we will see in this Parable. The Lord is looking for those that will come to Him, knowing that, in ourselves dwells no good thing and that we must approach Him in repentance for our sinful lives and in faith for His provision of Salvation.
“Two men went up into the Temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a Publican” (Luke 18:10).
Two men went up to pray but the Lord would only hear one of these men. The Pharisee was a fundamentalist who professed faith in the Bible and its teachings. The Publican was a tax collector and hated by the Israel of that day. Publicans were considered traitors, and for that reason, they considered Salvation an impossibility for them.
“The Pharisee stood thus and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank you, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this Publican. I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess” (Luke 18:11,12).
The Pharisee compared himself with others including the Publican. This is relative righteousness. He was placing himself in a superior position to others. He also believed in a works righteousness holding up his fasting and tithing as things that would gain him favor and acceptance with God. In his prayer, he asked for nothing, and received nothing.
“And the Publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto Heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner” (Luke 18:13).
The Publicans prayer was heard, and answered, by the Lord because he approached the Lord appealing to the Lord’s Mercy and not on any worth within himself. Today, we can know that all those who approach the Lord in this way will always find that the Lord is ready to forgive and bless them with spiritual birth. The Publican here was looking to the sacrificial system in place at the time. Today, we look to the One who came and sacrificed His life on the Cross for the sins of mankind.
“I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for who exalts himself shall be abased; and he who humbles himself shall be exalted” (Luke 18:14).
Justification is a work of God by which we are made right with the Lord. It is a work of Grace received by faith in Christ and Him crucified. The prayers of the Pharisee were not received by the Lord because he approached the Lord in self-righteousness with a works mentality. Because he depended on his self- righteousness, he was not justified, but lost. He asked for nothing and received nothing from the Lord.
We are to humble ourselves before the Lord. We are saved by Grace as we come to the Lord in repentance and faith in Christ and His sacrificial death at Calvary. If we ask for mercy, the result will be that we will receive God’s mercy in our lives. Regarding our Sanctification, it also comes strictly by faith. Works has no place. Sanctification is the Holy Spirit’s work in our lives. We are called to do good works, but they will not gain us anything with the Lord regarding our walk with Him. We must approach the Lord just as the Publican in this Parable did. If we ask for God’s goodness and mercy in our lives, we will receive what we asked for from the Lord. Everything we receive from the Lord in this life comes by faith in His Mercy and Grace.
“For by Grace (the Goodness of God) are you saved through faith (in Christ and Him crucified); and that not of yourselves (it’s all of, and through, the Lord): it is the gift of God (through Calvary): not of works (Salvation cannot be earned by works), lest any man should boast (in our own abilities)” (Ephesians 2:8,9 commentary mine).
Always Remember,
God Loves You!
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Here I Am, Lord – Tom Quinn Ministries – tqministries.com 2025
“Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of Grace, that we may obtain Mercy, and find Grace to help in our time of need” (Hebrews 4:16).
In our introductory verse, we are told to come boldly to the throne of Grace. I don’t know about you, but when I first became a Christian and read this verse, particularly that we are to come boldly; I was taken aback. I was a sinner who heard the Gosoel and realized my lost state. I repented of my sins, the life I had lived, and looked to the Lord’s Mercy and Grace through the atoning work of Christ at the Cross. Coming boldly sounded to forward of me considering my previous lost state. However, I came to realize that I was looking at myself and not at what the Lord had actually done for us in His provision of Salvation.
When we come to the Lord we are washed and made clean by the Blood of Jesus. We are sanctified and set apart unto the Lord. And we are declared not guilty by being “justified in the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ.” Due to our fallen nature, even after we come to the Lord, it is difficult to not look at our own failings as we attempt to walk out our Christian lives. As we walk with the Lord, we realize that we will never walk before the Lord in sinless perfection. It’s a journey of faith and it starts with us realizing that the only way we can come “boldly” is by what Jesus accomplished for us at the Cross. We have an imputed Righteousness provided for us as we come by faith in Christ and His atoning work at the Cross.
This puts this verse in a totally different light. We come boldly because of what He did for us. The door to the throne is open only through His Mercy and Grace in our lives. The Lord wants a relationship with us. We have a continued and growing relationship with the Lord by reading the Bible and through our time of prayer with Him. The Lord, in this verse, is encouraging us through His mercy and Grace in our lives to not let our own failings impede us, but to bring all our need to Him as we seek Him each day.
I believe the Holy Spirit is showing us that the door us open wide and we need not hold back in seeking the Lord. We are not to look at ourselves, but to Him. It’s His designed roadway to fellowship and help. A roadway lined with His Mercy and Grace. We are not to draw back due to our failures, but we are encouraged to come boldly into His presence.
As I walk with the Lord on this journey of faith; I realize more and more how dependent I am on the Lord. We are to bring everything to the Lord that we are faced with in this life. I believe that the Lord is encouraging us to do just that in this verse. We are to come with confidence believing that the Lord hears us and will answer. We serve a wonderful God Who loves us and seeks to both forgive us of our failings, and help us through our difficulties. Our closing verse encourages us to come boldly and with confidence to the Lord, all due to what Christ accomplished at Calvary.
“In Whom (Christ) we have boldness (all due to the Cross) and access (to the throne of God) with confidence by the faith of Him (again, points to Calvary)” (Ephesians 3:12 commentary mine).
Always Remember,
God Loves You!
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Here I Am, Lord – Tom Quinn Ministries – tqministries.com 2025
“And the Syrians had gone out by companies, and had brought away captive out of the land of Israel a little maid; and she waited on Naaman’s wife. And she said unto her mistress, Would God my lord were with the prophet who is in Samaria! For he would recover him of his leprosy” (2 Kings 5:2,3).
The Bible tells us that Naaman was “captain of the host of the king of Syria.” He was a highly respected and an honorable man, a mighty man of valor. And the Lord had used him to bring deliverance to Syria. However, Naaman had leprosy. Our introductory verse tells us that a little captive Jewish maid was instrumental in Naaman’s healing of his leprosy by directing him to the God of Israel through His prophet Elisha. As the account in 2 Kings tells us, Naaman was delivered from his leprosy after the Lord dealt with his pride. Naaman’s healing was a manifestation of the Grace of God in this heathen captain’s life, and a testimony to God’s goodness.
The little maid who remains nameless in Scripture remained faithful to the Lord even after being taken captive and brought to Syria. Her consecration to the Lord would cause her to seek to live for the Lord no matter the circumstances. When the circumstances presented themselves, she lead others to the Lord evidenced by her words to her mistress regarding Naaman’s leprosy.
This little maid could have blamed God for her circumstances having been uprooted from her family and transported to a land of idol worshippers. But she did not lose faith in the Lord. She did not second guess God and complain about what had happened to her, She continued on in faith leaving her life and circumstances in God’s hands. What a witness to those heathen around her. She pointed them to the one true God – the God of all Grace.
We too, will face circumstances that we don’t understand. We must leave these in the Lord’s hands and seek to learn the lesson that the Lord is teaching us. We must not complain or become bitter. The Word tells us that we were “bought with a price” and that price was the sacrificial death of the Son of God. His love for us in that one incredible event should show us that He cares for us, and will watch over us all our days. Nothing comes into our lives that the Lord does not allow.
The result of what the little maid did not only resulted in the healing of Naaman, but it brought peace between Syria and Israel for a period of time. Most importantly, it was a witness to a idol worshipping country to the way to Salvation through the God of Israel. We too, are witnesses before those that are so in need of the mercy and Grace of our God. May our witness before them be like the witness of this little maid.
Through her witness, Naaman was healed of his leprosy and he had an encounter with the Living God. In the end, this “captain of the host of the king of Syria” would be a witness to the greatness of our God to Syria. The following are Naaman’s words to Elisha after his healing, in which, he acknowledges the Lord of Glory and sought to bless His servant Elisha for all the Lord had done for him:
“And he returned to the man of God, he and all his company, and came, and stood before him: and he said Behold, now I know that there is no God in all the Earth, but in Israel: now therefore, I pray you, take a blessing of your servant” ( 2 Kings 5:15).
Always Remember,
God Loves You!
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Here I Am, Lord – Tom Quinn Ministries – tqministries.com 2025
“For I (the Apostle Paul) determined not to know any thing among you, save Jesus Christ, and Him crucified” (1 Corinthians 2:2).
The Apostle Paul, in his first letter to the church at Corinth, tells them that what they need to know regarding their Salvation is found exclusively in Christ and His sacrificial death at Calvary. The Gospel is not hard to understand; it is Christ and Him crucified. A child can understand it.
A searching heart will find the answer for their quest for God in the simplicity of the Gospel message. We are sinners prior to coming to the Lord and in need of a savior. We cannot save ourselves. We must come to the Lord in repentance for our sinful lives and accept the provision that He has graciously provided. That’s it!
The Father sent His Son to die on a cruel Cross that are sins might be atoned for. Our faith in Christ and what He accomplished at the Cross results in a imputed Righteousness and the promise of Eternal Life in the presence of the Lord. Our Salvation is a work of God and a free gift to whosoever will come to the Lord in repentance and faith.
There is a simplicity not only to the Gospel message, but also to the Christian life of faith that we walk in once we come to the Lord. We are to continue to place our faith in Christ and Him crucified and the Holy Spirit will help us to walk out a life pleasing to the Lord. The Father, in His Wisdom, provided a plan that would result in forgiveness for our sins and a life of faith walked out in victory.
As has been said, there is a simplicity to the Gospel. We come just as we are and receive of the Lord both forgiveness and “Newness of Life.” The life we receive and walk in is the Life of God. It is “Christ in us, the hope of glory.” We believe and we receive. It is not about doing (although a true conversion will result in us doing good works), but it is all about believing.
The Gospel cost the Lord much in the death of His Son. He has shown us the way, which is by faith in Christ and His sacrificial death on the Cross. Christ is the source of everything we receive from the Lord, and the Cross is the means by which all that God has for us comes to us, the following closing verse says it well:
“…Christ the Power of God, and the Wisdom of God” (1 Corinthians 1:24).
Always Remember,
God Loves You!
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Here I Am, Lord – Tom Quinn Ministries – tqministries.com 2025
“In My Father’s House are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto Myself” (John 14:2,3).
The Lord, just prior to His crucifixion, gave the Apostles, and us, this Promise. He will return for His church prior to the judgment that awaits this world. That judgment is called the Great Tribulation and will bring great destruction on the Earth. It is the time of God’s judgment on a world that has rejected His gracious offer of Salvation and Eternal Life in His Presence. The church will be Raptured ahead of this 7 year period and will be in Heaven with the Lord.
“For God has not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain Salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Thessalonians 5:9).
Judgment comes to those that have not come by faith in the Lord and have turned their back on all the Lord offers. The church will not go through this judgment because their sin was judged at the Cross. The Lord has not appointed the church, His living body of believers, to wrath. Jesus paid the penalty for the sins of all those who place their faith in His sacrificial death at Calvary. The wrath of God will come to all those who have not come His way. His coming for us is the next prophetic event on the calendar and could happen at any moment at the last “Trump of God.”
“For the Lord Himself shall descend from Heaven with a shout, with the Trump of God: and the dead in Christ will rise first: then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one another with these words” (1 Thessalonians 4:16-18).
We can know that, prior to the Great Tribulation, the Lord will come for us just as he promised. This is the Rapture of the church. When He comes for us we will be caught up to meet Him in the air. He will not come all the way to Earth at this time. The Second Coming will see Him come back to Earth at the Mount of Olivet in great Glory. We are encouraged and comforted to know that what the Lord has promised will come about exactly as He has said. It is called the “Blessed Hope.”
“Looking for that Blessed Hope, and the Glorious appearing of the Great God and our Savior Jesus Christ” (Titus 2:13).
Our Lord’s return is a sure hope for all those who call upon His Name. We are in the last days now with all the signs of His soon return happening all around us. The Rapture will happen “in a moment, in the blink of an eye.” Those left behind will have to go through the worst time in the history of the world. Today is the Day of Salvation. The Lord has forewarned us regarding what is soon to come. Our closing verse, from the Gospel of Matthew, is a warning regarding the coming of a time of intense distress never equaled in the history of God’s dealings with this world.
“For there will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be” (Matthew 24:21).
Always Remember,
God Loves You!
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Here I Am, Lord – Tom Quinn Ministries – tqministries.com 2025
“There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death” (Proverbs 14:12).
There are those today who live a good moral life. They are good to their families and try to live a good ethical life. If they see someone in need, they are there for them. They have been successful in all they have done and consider themselves on the right path. Everything has worked out for them in business and in their personal lives. There have been difficulties that have come into their lives but they have come through them still standing and still trusting in their own ability to weather the storms of life. They are proud regarding all they have accomplished in life and believe that they have it all figured out. They believe that they can handle anything that might come against them in the life that they have built. If you ask them if they believe in God, they may answer in the affirmative, but the Lord is far from their thoughts and their faith is in themselves.
Those that approach life in this manner are on very dangerous ground. The drug addict knows that they are not on the right path. The alcoholic knows that they are not living the life that they should. But the moral and ethical individual does not see that although a good moral life is something that is commendable, it is not enough. They see no warning signs in their life like the drug addict or alcoholic might see. Seemingly, everything is going along fine. In their mind there is no need to fix anything – there life seems blessed. But, is it in light of eternity? Jesus gave us the answer for those traveling this path in the following verse:
“Jesus answered, ‘Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water (natural birth) and the Spirit (spiritual birth brought about by God), he cannot enter the Kingdom of God (speaks of Salvation)” (John 3:5).
Once we place eternity in sight, the answer comes into clear view. Again, these individuals, whoever they might be, are on dangerous ground. We are only one heartbeat away from eternity. We do not know when our soul will be required of us. We will all stand before the Lord and give account for ourselves. For those of us that know the Lord, we will be welcomed into the very Presence of the Lord for eternity. But what happens to those that have lived their lives without the Lord relying on their own ability. Well, they will be judged by how they lived their lives.
We do not want to be judged by our works, by what we have accomplished in our own strength in our lives. The Bible says that “There is none good, no not one” and “For all have sinned, and come short of the Glory of God.” Good works and living a good life, although admirable, will not gain us Heaven. Well, what is the standard that the Lord requires? It’s perfection, and that is something that is impossible for anyone to attain. So, what is the answer?
The Lord, in His Mercy and Grace, made a way for all those who realize that, in ourselves, we can not measure up to what the Lord requires. In fact, the Bible tells us that we are “dead in our treaspases and sins” prior to coming to Him in repentance and faith. We must place our faith in the only perfect Man, the God Man, and His sacrificial death at Calvary.
We cannot live a life pleasing to the Lord without the Lord. It’s that simple, Jesus paid the price for our sins at Calvary and living a life without Him is sin no matter how moral. By placing our faith in Christ and Him crucified we are born again and walk in “Newness of Life.”
Is it enough to live a good moral life? I think we’ve shown that it is not. There is great danger for those traveling this path. The Gospel is the answer for those who realize this. I pray that any that might be going this way of living a life in their own strength without God would turn to Him. His love extends to all those who will come His way. He stands ready to forgive and offer them a Salvation that will result in an eternity in His Presence.
“That if you shall confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus, and shall believe in your heart that God has raised Him fromthe dead, you shall be saved” (Romans 10:9).
If you have been traveling along life’s road without the Lord, the links below will explain the Gospel and provide you with The Sinner’s Prayer that has been prayed by millions. Today is the Day of Salvation! Won’t you come home to the Lord today?
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Here I Am, Lord – Tom Quinn Ministries – tqministries.com 2025
Our Future Is Determined by the Lives We Live Today
“And he said unto me (John), Seal not the sayings of the Prophecy of this Book: for the time is at hand” (Revelation 22:10).
The “Prophecy of this book” in our introductory verse is talking about the fulfillment of all the Apostle John was shown regarding the future. We are currently at the end of the church age with the Rapture of the church the next prophetic event to take place. In this verse the Apostle, in his vision, is seemingly talking to one of the prophets of the Old Testament. “The time is at hand” is a reference to all the events identified in the Book of Revelation which will be fulfilled exactly as they have been revealed and prophesized by the Lord.
He who is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he who is Righteous, let him be Righteous still: an he who is holy, let him be holy still” (Revelation 22:11).
This verse identifies two different paths of life. The former, represents those who choose not to come the Lord’s way and will result in living a sinful “unjust” life. The Bible defines a “filthy” life as one of spiritual defilement, depravity, and corruption related to sin. This will be the lifestyle with those who reject God’s way and chart their own course. The later path of life described in this verse is the result of one’s repentance and faith in the Lord’s gracious provision, that is, Jesus Christ and his sacrificial death at Calvary. The former will result in an eternity of suffering away from the presence of God. The later will bring us into the presence of God for eternity as the sons and daughters of God. The way we live are lives today is determining our destiny in the future. The Lord has given us freedom to chose our path in this life. There is a fork in this path of life and we must choose today which of the two paths we will chose.
“And behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with Me, to give to every man according as his work shall be” (Revelation 22:12).
When the Lord comes, we will be judged by the path we have chosen. This will seal our fate as to where we will be for eternity. The verse is expressing the suddenness of his Coming and not the time of his Coming. It’s been nearly two thousand years since His first advent and the writing of this Book of Revelation. The Lord’s Second Coming for His church is the next prophetic event on the horizon. The Lord makes it clear in His Word that those that come His way will be blessed. The Lord calls out to all those on the earth today with an invitation to the blessedness of knowing the One true God. The Holy Spirit calls out today to whosoever is thirsty and whosoever realizes their lost state that they might come to the One that loves us and died on a cruel Cross that we might be with Him for eternity.
“And the Spirit and the Bride say, Come. And let who is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take of the water of Life freely” (Revelation 22:17a)
Always Remember,
God Loves You!
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Here I Am, Lord – Tom Quinn Ministries – tqministries.com 2025
“Then shall the Kingdom of Heaven be likened unto ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the Bridegroom. And five of them were wise, and five were foolish” (Matthew 25:1,2).
Jesus gave this parable right after the Parable of the Faithful and Unfaithful Servant. He had also just given the prophecies regarding the destruction of the Temple, and the signs of the end times. Just as the Romans destroyed the Temple in AD 70, the signs of the end times He gave us will come about just as He said they would. In this Parable of the Ten Virgins, the Lord is teaching on the Rapture of the church.
The ten virgins represent those in the church. The lamps represent the light of the Gospel which is Christ and Him crucified. The Bridegroom going forth to meet the virgins represents Christ’s coming in the Rapture for His church. All ten had lamps, but five were wise and five were foolish.
“They who were foolish took their lamps, and took no oil with them” (V3).
These foolish virgins were religious but not born again. The oil represents the Holy Spirit Who brings us Salvation and “Newness of Life” by way of our repentance and faith in Christ and Him crucified. We cannot be saved by what we do. All our efforts are in vain if we have not been born spiritually.
“But the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps” (V4).
As has been said, we need a continual flow of the Holy Spirit within our hearts. We must place our faith in Christ and His sacrificial death on Calvary daily to have the ongoing help of the Holy Spirit (Romans 8:2). The Holy Spirit works in no other way. Our Christian life is one of faith in the proper object – Christ and Him crucified.
“While the Bridegroom tarried they all slumbered and slept. And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the Bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him” (V5,6).
There is no negative conotation here. We are to go about our daily lives as we should with the expectation that the Lord could return at any moment. Though he tarries, we are to live our lives by faith in the power of the Holy Spirit with that anticipation. This verse speaks of our “Blessed Hope” – the Rapture of the church.
“Then all the virgins arose and trimmed their lamps. And the foolish said unto the wise, Give us of your oil; for our lamps are gone out” (V7,8).
The foolish virgins had approached the Lord by a false way. The correct way (represented here by the lamp), is by faith in Christ and His sacrificial death at Calvary. The Holy Spirit (oil) will work in our lives to keep us on the right path. The foolish virgins in this parable represent those who are trusting in religion, what they do, to gain acceptance from the Lord. We cannot depend on our church, denomination, pastor, or anything else. We must go the way prescribed by the Lord. What is the work God requires? We are to believe in the One He sent Who payed the price for our sins and opened the way to Heaven through the born again experience.
“But the wise answered, saying, not so, lest there be not enough for us and you: but go yourself rather to them who sell, and buy for yourselves” (V9).
We must go to the Lord ourselves to receive of Him. The Lord is gracious and will freely give to all those who seek to walk with Him, but we must seek Him, and once we come to Him, remain in His way. We cannot seek from others what only the Lord can provide.
“And while they went to buy, the Bridegroom came; and they who were ready went in with Him to the marriage: and door was shut” (V10).
We are not promised tomorrow. The Scriptures tell us that today is the Day of Salvation. The coming of the Bridegroom took the five foolish virgins by surprise. They were not ready and they suffered great loss. This is a stern warning to the church of our day. The signs are all around us of the Lord’s soon return.
“Afterward, came also the other virgins, saying Lord, Lord, open to us. But He answered and said, Verily, I say unto you, I know you not” (V11,12).
We must be ready at all times for the Lord’s return. As has been stated; there are many in churches today that are religious but have never been born again. There are also those who have been born again who have either lost their way or become lax in their walk with the Lord. Whoever these might be, they do not realize the lateness of the hour. If we have been born again we will go in the Rapture, but we do not want to be ashamed at the Lord’s Coming and have to stand before Him knowing that we had not served Him with all our heart in the life He has blessed us with. He died a horrible sacrificial death that we might have Eternal Life with Him.
We owe the Lord are very lives and His great love for us should spur us on to serve Him with all our heart. Again, the way, the only way, is faith in Christ and Him crucified on a daily basis with the Holy Spirit then providing the “oil” to keep us and give us victory in our lives. The Lord closes this parable with the following warning:
“Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of Man cometh” (V13).
We are born again into a spiritual relationship with the Lord. And just like a natural relationship is must be maintained. The Lord has chosen to make faith the coin of the Kingdom. We are to walk by faith not sight. This is the requirement for a continued relationship with the Lord as we walk out this life. Some would argue that the “foolish virgins” were all unsaved, but we have many warnings in the Word of God regarding the possibility that if we turn away from having our faith in Christ and Him crucified we could be cutoff, or lost. Admittedly, this would not come about quickly, or easily for the Lord is patient and longsuffering with us. But whatever the condition of the five foolish virgins was, the fact is that the Lord said to them “I know you not.” I’ll close with a warning from the Lord Himself just prior to His crucifixion, He gave this warning to the Apostles who had been with Him throughout the entirety of His ministry.
“I Am the True Vine, and My Father is the Husbandman. Every branch (Believer) in Me (having Salvation) that beareth not fruit (by the oil of the Holy Spirit) He (the Father) takes away (loses his Salvation). (John 15:1,2 commentary mine)
Always Remember,
God Loves You!
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