Kingdom Parables - Spiritual Readiness (Daily Devotional)

Shalom and thank you for joining us once again for Living Supernaturally, a time where we look into God’s word to meditate on it. This entire week, we have been looking at the kingdom parables- parables that Jesus taught and spoke about to tell people about the kingdom of God. We have been looking at spiritual truths that we can learn from the parables that Jesus taught. In our devotion today, we are going to be looking at yet another familiar parable which is the parable of the ten virgins which we read in Mathew chapter 25. We know that Jesus tells the story of 10 virgins who are waiting for the bridegroom to arrive for a wedding feast. Five of them were wise and did bring extra oil for their lamps whereas the other five who were foolish did not. When the bridegroom was delayed, we read that all ten of them slept and at midnight, when they heard the call of the bridegroom, they get up and the five wise virgins lit their lamps and joined the celebration with the bridegroom. But the foolish virgins ran out of oil and missed out because they went away to buy more. The door was shut and they were denied that entry. What can we meditate on from this parable? Just as the virgins were waiting for the bridegroom, we are waiting for Jesus, our heavenly bridegroom who will return to establish His eternal kingdom. This parable emphasizes that the return of Jesus will be sudden and unexpected and so we must be ready at all times. Mathew chapter 25, verse 13 warns us and says, ‘Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour in which the Son of Man is coming.’ We see that the wise virgins kept their lamps burning because of the extra oil, they were expectant and were looking forward to the bridegroom’s coming in faith. Whereas the foolish virgin who neglected to bring that extra oil are likened to those who maybe careless or complacent about their spiritual walk. Those who are spiritually prepared actively will continue to pursue God, living by His word and they are the ones who are going to be welcomed into His kingdom. To be a part of the kingdom of God, it requires individual as well as personal surrender and readiness. Each person must respond to Jesus personally to enter into that kingdom and that is what the scripture talks about how we should be watching and ready. We also do see that the virgins joyfully entered the wedding feast. It is a picture of eternal joy and fellowship that awaits every believer into God’s kingdom. Those who remain faithful and experience the fullness of God’s presence do enter with eternal joy in the kingdom. This parable reminds us that the kingdom of God is both a present calling as well as a future home. It calls us to live watchfully, carefully, waling closely with Christ and ensuring that our hearts are prepared in His return. Let’s pray together, Heavenly Father, as we await your return, help us to be like the wise virgins, to be ready, expectant and to be waiting for you, to live our lives in faith and continue living by your word. We look forward to joyfully enter into your kingdom, in Jesus’ name we pray, Amen. Thank you for tuning in to Living Supernaturally, for more resources to strengthen your spiritual walk, please visit apcwo.org.