Awakening to Spiritual Readiness: Anticipating Christ's Return with Vigilant Faith | Matthew 25:1-13 | Pastor Hunter Deel

Are you equipped with the lamp oil of faith, ready for the unanticipated moment when Christ returns? Pastor Hunter, with thoughtful contributions from Pastor John Piper, joins us to dissect the profound parable of the ten virgins, prompting a soul-searching examination of our spiritual readiness. We're not just discussing theology; we're confronting life's ultimate reality check. As we navigate through the parable's depths, we're invited to scrutinize the authenticity of our own faith and the presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives, emphasizing the critical personal journey towards readiness.

The gravity of personal spiritual responsibility is at the core of this episode. Through Pastor Hunter's guidance and Pastor Piper's insights, we discover that readiness for Christ’s return isn't about the outward display of religiosity but a deep, inward preparation that cannot be borrowed or assumed. The conversation bravely tackles the tough questions about the nature of our faith and church involvement, steering us toward a transformative relationship with the divine, rooted in worship and genuine affection. Prepare to be challenged and inspired as we consider what it truly means to live in anticipation of the bridegroom's arrival.

In this final call to action, your heart might recognize the tug of something greater, urging you to pivot from worldly distractions towards the joyous anticipation of Christ's return. If you've been wrestling with the tension between earthly pursuits and heavenly focus, you're not alone. This episode extends a warm invitation to explore and deepen your relationship with Jesus. For those in the Richmond, Kentucky area, the doors of Real Life Community Church are open, welcoming you into a community ready to support and celebrate your spiritual journey.

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:04

The following resource is brought to you by Real Life Community Church in Richmond, Kentucky. We hope you're both challenged and encouraged by this message.

Speaker 2: 0:15

A privilege to have one of our other elders bring the word to you. Pastor Hunter has been preparing diligently to continue our Matthew series today. It's an incredibly intense word. It reminds us that Jesus is coming again. Yes, by the way, sorry, ron, if 4th to 6th graders can follow Pastor Ron out the back door for your class please, but it reminds us that Jesus is coming again. Did anybody after the message last week? I hope you thought about that some this week. But it reminds us also that you and I need to be ready. We need to be ready.

Speaker 2: 0:59

So, pastor Hunter, I'm going to ask you to come up. I want to pray for you and then I'll invite you guys to stand for the reading of the word. Let's pray, father in heaven, thank you for this man of God and just, lord, what you're doing in his life, day by day, he's growing in wisdom and and, lord, knowledge of the word and just a heart for you. Thank you that you are the treasure of his life. And today, lord, this is a tough passage to preach. So, lord, I just pray that you'll prepare our hearts to to receive the word. Thank you that it never comes back void and we just pray that you would give Hunter that which makes preaching easy, namely the anointing of the Holy Spirit. We just pray these things, we pray even so. Come quickly, lord Jesus, amen.

Speaker 3: 1:56

As Pastor Chris said, this was an incredibly difficult text to prepare for, one that has been the most I've ever had the privilege to preach on. Thank you for the opportunity. Pastor Ben and I was sitting in a meeting with Chris and he goes I want you to preach Matthew 25, verse one and through 13. I was like, all right, oh yeah, I do that. Didn't know what it said at the time. So when I read it the first time, it is a pastor's dream 13 verses, easy, take walk, three main points. Didn't really even have to name on myself the foolish, the wise and be ready for Christ to return. Then I started reading some more and I was like I have to throw myself through this text before I can tell any of you all about it. Something that seems so easy is not easy at all. So my goal today is not make you doubt whether you're saved or not. It's not my goal. My goal is to make people who have been sitting in churches all their life realize if they have the Holy Spirit in their hearts or they're just trying to please themselves. And then, if you do truly have the Holy Spirit, I want you to realize that something great is coming for you. So please stand for the reading of the Word of God.

Speaker 3: 3:35

I'm starting in Matthew 25, verse one, going through 13. As we read this, I want you to focus on the foolish and then the wise and see the differences and the similarities. Then the kingdom of heaven will be like 10 virgins who took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish and five of them were wise. For when the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them, but the wise took flasks of oil with them. As the bridegroom was delayed, they all became drowsy and slept. But at midnight there was a cry here is the bridegroom, come out to meet him. Then all those virgins rose and trimmed their lamps and the foolish said to the wise give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out. But the wise answered saying since there will not be enough for us and for you, go rather to the dealers and buy for yourself. And while they were going to buy, the bridegroom came and those who were ready went in with him to the marriage feast and the doors shut. Afterwards the other virgins came also saying Lord, lord, open to us. But he answered truly, I say to you, I do not know you Watch, therefore you neither. You know, neither the day or the hour. Let's pray, heavenly Father. God, will you read your word and please open our hearts to it. If there is one in this room who does not know you but has been going to church for 25 years, who has been baptized, who's led prayer meetings, god, I pray that you reveal to them the lack of oil in their hearts. God, and for the believer, I pray that you ensure them that they have oil on their hearts and let them be excited for the wedding feast. In Jesus' name, we pray Amen.

Speaker 3: 5:50

In Matthew 28, I'm sorry, matthew 24, verse 8, pastor Chris just preached on this last week. We see Christ say here all these are, but the beginning of the birth pains. Pastor Chris did a great job explaining what birth pains were, as he was very uncomfortable in doing so. But go back and listen to that sermon because it is one of the best Matthew 24 sermons I've heard. Sorry, ben, but it is one that describes what the birth pains are. But then we head into Matthew 25 and we see him say the kingdom of heaven will be alike. So we were talking about this future state Last week. We talked about the beginning of the birth pains, but now we are talking about the ending of the birth pains, the final labor. We learn from this parable that this future state is the day of the Lord, also known as the wedding feast. So I want you to be aware that this parable was set on the last days of the last days. These bridesmaids, they are waiting for something and they're watching for the groom and they're expecting him to finally usher them into the wedding feast. For true Christians, this is something to wait and excitement about and to long for with a sense of urgency.

Speaker 3: 7:40

When I was getting married, as that day drew closer and closer, my anxiety grew higher and higher. But I saw people around me make sure that that day was special. I saw the work. My wife had me do crazy things like stuffing bird seeds and bags for people to throw at me. I never understood that, but the work intensified. We prepared for the day. I have no greater memory than my wedding day, the time that I got to marry the love of my life. But what I do remember is how hard people worked to make sure that that day was special and that the reception was special.

Speaker 3: 8:32

Also, again, pastor Chris described the birth pains and the labor and as I watched my wife go through those things, pastor Chris is right men do suffer some sort of birth pain, but it's not to any degree of what I watched my wife go through. But as I watched her wake up from six weeks pregnant to nine months, being sick every day, to finally the day that she called me and I was almost in Paris, kentucky, and she said, hey, my water broke and I made it from Paris to Richmond in 15 minutes, and as I saw her give birth to both of our daughters, that the labor was worth something, that the labor meant that I get to hold two of the best things in my life, I can assure you of one thing that the day of the Lord will be so much more exciting, so much more joyful, so much more fulfilling than either one of those days. We should look at it in this light. If we are truly in Christ, now you can be sitting here thanking to yourself. Pastor Chris said if you are truly in Christ, now Pastor Hunter said, you are truly in Christ. What is this getting to you? Well, this parable is going to prepare us for this. If we are truly in Christ, and this parable is to prepare for this day.

Speaker 3: 9:56

And in my opinion, this is one of the scariest texts in the Bible because it's not talking to the world. It's talking to you all, people who sit in churches all around the world who go to Sundays. Put on their Sunday best. They come here. It's talking to people who profess to be saved. It's talking to people in churches and if you claim to be a Christian, this message is for you. Now, I'm not saying that if this is your first time here, if you don't claim to be a Christian, that this message isn't for you. What I'm saying is that you are more than welcome to eavesdrop because there will be a gospel call at the end that I pray to God you accept.

Speaker 3: 10:50

But before I jump into the points here, I want to give a little history of why the parable is set up the way it is. Weddings of the time. A wedding would happen and then the groom would go away and he would get his house ready for the bridal party and once he was done, he would come back to get the wedding party and take them to the feast. So these bridesmaids in the parable are waiting in anticipation for the return of the groom they are looking for. In this passage there are three things I want to discuss the foolish, the wise and to be ready, for we do not know the day or the hour of the groom's return. Just jumping in first. To the foolish what do we see them have? We see both sets of virgins have lamps. But to the foolish, they have a lamp. The lamp is a symbol of a profession to be a Christian, and the foolish have this down, but inside their lamps they have no oil. The oil here is representing the Holy Spirit. Do you see what they would be called foolish? It's like buying a flashlight off Amazon and not buying batteries for it. Right, the lamp is useless.

Speaker 3: 12:20

When you look at the translation of the word foolish, the direct translation for the word is comes out to stupid, to stupid. I can just see now. I buy a car off Carvana and I have it parked in my driveway two days before a vacation and I do everything I need to do Drain the oil, look at the spark plugs, look, check the tires, wax it, clean it, make it shiny, make it nice, Put the luggage in the car, put my kids in the car, buckle the seatbelt. My wife gets in the car buckles her seatbelt, I buckle my seatbelt and I put the key in the ignition and I turn it and it doesn't start. I didn't put any gas in it. I can just man, I can close my eyes. I can close my eyes and I can just feel her head turn and what it means. Like stupid. I can just sense it and this does sound foolish. Do not check if the car had gas.

Speaker 3: 13:37

The lamp is nothing more than an accessory to them. Look everybody, I have a lamp. Look how great my lamp is. I shined it. It's a lot better than Ben's lamp. His has rust on it. My lamp is huge. Look at it.

Speaker 3: 14:01

There are so-called Christians out there who don't have the Holy Spirit, but only a title, and they label themselves as believers in Christ. Sadly, they've done one of the scariest things I can absolutely think of and that's deceived themselves. Because in verse 5 we see this we see the foolish go to sleep along with the wise. So whenever I look at this, I don't see that sleeping is necessarily a bad thing in the parable. I see it as comfort. I see them being relaxed that they are ready for the bridegroom to return. I see that they have a mindset that they are okay for when this day happens. Sleeping here shows me that they truly think they have everything they need for that groom's return. But sadly they have believed a lie that is on their hearts. The lie is I have a lamp. I profess to be a Christian. I go to Bible study. I go to Wednesday night church. I have a collection of Bibles at home. I've read the Bible on a Bible reading plan for years. I know what it says, but they weren't ready because they didn't have oil in the lamp. I associate with other Christians so I'm ready for the return of the groom.

Speaker 3: 15:59

To everyone's surprise, there was a cry in the night. Here is the bridegroom come out to meet him. So they jumped up and they do what everyone else would do with a lamp At midnight they try to light it and, to the shock on their face, their oil is not existent. Their lamp is starting to light. Because if you buy a new lamp and you light the wick and there is no oil in it, it lights for a minute. The wax will burn and it will burn off and stay on the fire for a couple of minutes. It gets black, hard and crusty and it's not usable again. My mom and dad used to have tiki torches around the pool. They would burn it until the store bought oil was gone and then we would set it on fire again, and now the wicks are unusable. I'm pretty sure the dogs chewed them up. After that they realized as the flames started dribbling down and it started turning black and getting hard.

Speaker 3: 17:12

They looked at verse 8 and said the foolish says to the wise give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out. Here's the thing. No one can share with you. Their measure of the holy spirit. No one can go haves these on your salvation. This is something you have to work out. This is something you have to deal with. The apostle Paul says work out your salvation in fear and trembling. You can't make it on your mom's faith or your dad's or your brother's and we're in the south and Dina said this on the podcast I don't care how long your granddaddy's been a pastor. You won't make it on his faith either. You have to have your own encounter with a dude who gives out the oil. It's what it is. You don't have your own encounter, but you only have tradition. It's a dangerous place to be.

Speaker 3: 18:40

They go out to try to buy some oil and the grooming turns and those who were ready went with them. The ones who had oil on their lamps were able to go, and the moment they wanted to see they come back after going into town and they see that those people are already gone and I'm sure that there's a road or something. I don't know, we don't get the detail in the parable, but I can just imagine coming back from here and looking down the road and seeing lamps off in a distance, realizing I am too late the moment they wanted to see, but because of their ill preparation they missed it on their own accord. They panicked. I'm sure there's a sense of panic. They go and find the house and they knock on the door saying Lord, lord, let us have.

Speaker 3: 19:53

And he replied depart from me, I do not know you. We also see this in Matthew 7, where he tells people who have done mighty works in the name of Jesus. He tells them depart from me, you, workers of lawlessness, for I have never knew you. It's not enough to hold disappearance on the outside. It's not enough to act Christ-like when you're around people at church If you don't have Christ in your heart, where he actually changes the very nature of your being, then you are in danger of being left in the dark, without oil in your lamp, and then, when it comes to the day of judgment, you will receive the wrath of God. That's the danger, and I would do you this service if I didn't tell you this danger today.

Speaker 3: 21:09

I took many looks at this parable. Should I just focus on the why? Should I just focus on the foolish, or should I just focus on the day of his return? I would do you a disservice if I didn't tell you the meaning of this parable Is be ready, because people out there don't have oil in their lamps. But they bought lamps, they have them and they missed out on everything that they thought they were going to be a part of. They deceived themselves. Now you're thinking, man, I did not expect this when I showed up to church today. If you don't have oil, I'm gonna tell you in a minute how you can get it. If you do have oil, congratulations.

Speaker 3: 21:56

This whole next part's for you. Now I spend more time focusing on the foolish because the parable, I feel like, is directed more towards them. I see more verses about them, I see what happens when they don't make it. But I do want to spend a time to talk about the why's, because my hope is today Pastor Chris's hope is today that most of you all have oil in your lamps. I hope all of you have oil in your lamps.

Speaker 3: 22:27

So the why's they also have lamps, but the difference is they had oil in their lamp. They had oil to bring to them. The lamp was not a mere accessory, it was a tool To them. They could see and follow the bridegroom. With this Right, with the Holy Spirit, we can see and follow the bridegroom and the Holy Spirit directs us in the ways that we should go. And then, while they slept, they were confident in the faith that they had in the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit resided in their hearts and when ever the groom would turn, they would be ready because they knew they had what it took to power their lamps.

Speaker 3: 23:17

When they heard the cry that the bridegroom was returning, they hopped into action. They lit their lamp and, as they knew it would, the flames stayed there. Their salvation held true. Everything that they thought would happen happened because they knew they had oil with them. And when their companion asked if they could borrow the oil, they knew they couldn't share, just like I know I can't share mine. If you come and ask for me, brother, can I have some of the Holy Spirit, some of what's yours that resides in your heart, the only answer I can give you is a very sad no, because I only have enough for me. But I can do what these wise bridesmaids did and I can put you on a path to go find the person who can give you the oil. That's what I'm telling you today. There was a person out here who can give you oil, because when the bridegroom returns, that train stops. When the wedding feast happens, I don't need to go buy oil, and when the door shut, I don't care. If you go find the oil somewhere. It's too late because the Lord doesn't know you and while they go to get the oil and the bride, the wise ones are left alone.

Speaker 3: 25:18

The bridegroom returns, the moment you longed for us finally here. I am so tired of watching those late TBN specials. It's like please buy these food that will last you 24 years in a bunker. Gosh, because the wise was brought into the wedding feast. It's not scary. They try to sell you things that are scary because you buy on reactions of fear. But Christ's return is something we long for. Christ's return is something that's not scary, because you've been preparing for this moment Ever since you got a lamp. There was no doubt that this moment would come, and finally it is there for these bridesmaids, and they are now rejoicing with Christ.

Speaker 3: 26:19

You were just imagine you were at the wedding feast, communing with him in fullness. We come and we get an ounce of his presence and we go nuts. We are finally having the Adam and Eve moment, where we are walking in the cool of the garden with the Creator of everything. Why are you terrified of that? Because it has been mistalked about forever that there is going to be this time where you have to run hide. But this is a time to celebrate. This is a time to long for. This is a time that I hope comes today, this very second, and it didn't happen this second. I hope it comes next second and the next second, because if that's not what you're longing for, then what are you longing for?

Speaker 3: 27:14

He told his disciples to be ready for iron coming back, and I'm taking as many people as I can with me. Finally, we rejoice at the reception with the groom who went to prepare a place for us. This is why we eagerly await his return today To the wise don't grow weary, because this day is coming soon. I'm pretty sure there's a song that says this he will roll the clouds away and oh, what a glorious day. Be ready, be ready. And now, if you're sitting here with fear, it might tell you something. Finally, as no one knows the day or the hour, we have to be prepared for this, because we don't know when we will hear the cry that the bridegroom is returning. Awake and get ready, arise, trim your lamps and be ready.

Speaker 3: 28:31

So how does one know if they're ready for the return of Christ? Simple as Pastor John on a Piper. If you listen to his podcast, he puts it in a very clear way your actions have to have substance when they are not just empty phrases. But the Holy Spirit is what causes you to believe what you believe, say what you are saying and also do the acts that you are doing, then this is the evidence you believe the gospel. This is evidence that you have the Holy Spirit. Is because you're not doing this for man-centered pleasure, but you're doing this because the Holy Spirit has given you the power to do it. Pastor Chris sent out. I think it was Friday morning an article that said seven mistakes that young pastors make. So I make sure to write them down, so I don't make them, and I use the word gospel here. So in this it says don't overuse the word gospel, don't make it too simple, but tell them what it means.

Speaker 3: 29:47

1 Corinthians 15, verse 1. Anytime anybody asks what the gospel is, it's how to say 1 Corinthians 15, verse 1 and following. Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel. I preach to you what you received and what you stand and by which you are being saved If you hold fast to the words I preach to you, unless you believed in vain, for I delivered to you as first importance. But I also received that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the scriptures and that he appeared to Cephas in the 12, then he appeared to more than 500 at one time.

Speaker 3: 30:33

We believe in Christ, that he lived, that he died and that he rose again and that he is still living, seated next to the Father on his right side. If you look at the top, it says unless you believe in vain. You can not only acknowledge this truth, but you have to follow this, you have to live this. I know Christ has rose from the dead. I know Christ is who he said he is. I follow him. I believe in him. He is my God, he is my Savior. He's the only way that I am made whole and he is the only way that I am redeemed. He is the only way that I am made righteous in front of a holy God.

Speaker 3: 31:28

Now you could be saying now I know I have some substance, but I have some bad days. Those sets of parents are here, my wife's here, my two best friends are sitting here. I have bad days and they will amen, jump up, testify Real quick. I am not perfect, but I know he is the only way that I am redeemed. I know that I have my bad days and that I get weary, but I know, at the end of those days, I know where my faith is. It's not myself, ultimately, I can't do anything, but it's in Christ, in Christ alone. If you've never experienced that and Christ is pulling at your heart, drawing your heart into him, then today you will be able to see that today is the day of salvation. Today is the day of salvation. I encourage you to come down, believe in the gospel, turn away from your sins and follow him in action all the days of your life.

Speaker 3: 32:54

Dana, if you've come up and play, ultimately at the end you have to know do I do this for some power stance? Pastors come in and they take the job because it makes them feel and look important. Do you come to church because you have a community here only, or that you come to worship a holy God? These are things you have to ask yourself. What is your motives for these things? That revolved around self or is it revolved around God? Again, I would do you a disservice if I didn't make a call.

Speaker 3: 33:45

And for the wise he's coming soon. Be ready and long for the day, because it's not a scary day. It's a day of rejoicing, a day of love and a day of reconciliation. Let's pray and then, after we're done praying, we will have time of altar where our elders will be appear to pray for you. Questions. You're like listen, I I don't know what to do, but I know that I, in my heart, know that I have said I'm a Christian, but my heart has been revolved around man and not around Christ, and I know that through today I have Been drawn to the Holy Spirit, but Christ is calling my name. I Don't know how to act upon it or we can help you with that.

Speaker 3: 34:48

If you need prayer for anything else, we can do that for you too. Let's pray, heavenly Father, god, thank you so much. For the ones who believe in you today, I pray that you don't give them a spirit of fear, to give them a spirit of rejoicing for and longing for the return of the King. For the ones who don't Follow you today, I pray that you call their hearts gone, wrap them in your arms and revive them with the Holy Spirit. Jesus, name of cream.

Speaker 1: 35:33

Thank you for listening. If you'd like to know more about how you can have a relationship with Jesus Christ, or if you have questions about our church, you can email us at info at myrealchurchorg. Real life community church is located at 335 Glendon Avenue in Richmond, kentucky. We invite you to join us for worship Sunday at 10 45 am or Wednesday at 7 pm. Visit us online at myrealchurchorg.