"Five of them were foolish and five were wise."
Matthew 25:2 (NIV)
The line in this parable is drawn before anything dramatic happens. It is not drawn at midnight or when the lamps go out. It is drawn at the point of preparation before the wait begins. The ready five and the unready five looked identical until it mattered.
The Greek word Matthew uses for wise here is phronimos. It appears in Matthew 7:24 for the man who built on the rock. The word does not mean brilliant or especially devout. It means someone whose preparation is concrete rather than merely assumed.
In John 15:5, Jesus makes the nature of that preparation plain. He is the vine and His people are the branches. Apart from Him, they produce nothing of any lasting value. The oil grows in the daily returning to the One who sustains all things.
We know what it is to be present without being rooted. We have been in seasons where we showed up but did not stay close. The lamp was in our hands but the flask was running low. The parable does not condemn that, but it names it plainly.
No one can give you what only grows in your own time with Christ. The wise virgins were right to refuse sharing their oil. It cannot actually be transferred from one person to another. What grows in the Bridegroom's presence can only grow in your own closeness to Him.
Godseekers, the oil is not something you acquire once and carry forever. It is sustained by the same thing that produced it in the first place. The branch that remains in Christ bears fruit without straining for it. Stay in Him today because you were made to abide in Him.
Prayer
Heavenly Father, You are the source of every good thing that grows in us. Thank You that the oil is not something we have to manufacture on our own strength. Forgive us for the seasons we assumed our flask was full without checking. We want what only grows in genuine closeness to You. In Jesus' name, Amen.
Personal Reflection
- When you are honest with yourself, is the time you spend with Christ something you are actively protecting, or something you keep meaning to get back to?
- What might it look like for your church community to move together from a culture of attendance into a culture of genuine abiding?
Step of Faith
Today, read John 15:1-8 slowly and out loud. After you finish, sit quietly for two minutes and let one phrase from the passage stay with you before you move on with your day.
