Prepare Ye for the Bridegroom Cometh

Prepare Ye for the Bridegroom Cometh.

Oct. 2010

On a certain occasion Jesus left the temple at Jerusalem and walk to the Mount of Olives. His disciples followed him there to talk to him about the buildings on the temple mound and to ask a few questions about his stunning prophecies about the demise of the temple.

Jesus began the single most comprehensive prophecy about the future of Israel and His second coming ever given.

Among his prophecies were several parables designed to help us understand the things he taught and to show how to prepare for those days.

One such parable is found in Matthew 25:1-12:

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.
They that were foolish took their lamps, and took no oil with them:
But the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps.
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.
Then all those virgins arose, and trimmed their lamps.
And the foolish said unto the wise, Give us of your oil; for our lamps are gone out.
But the wise answered, saying, Not so; lest there be not enough for us and you: but go ye rather to them that sell, and buy for yourselves.
And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came; and they that were ready went in with him to the marriage: and the door was shut.
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.

In a revelation given to Joseph Smith in Kirtland Ohio in 1831, at a time when the members of the church were numbering around 2000 and were struggling to understand their new identity, the Lord warns of the deceptions of Satan and makes it clear that the Saints are to look to the Lord and his appointed servants. In section 45 Jesus recounts the very thing He told his apostle on the Mount of Olives and more. After painting a very bleak picture of the destruction of the wicked through natural disaster, war, plagues and famine he promises the protection and preservation of the righteous with this charge in verses 56 and 57:

And at that day, when I shall come in my glory, shall the parable be fulfilled which I spake concerning the ten virgins.
For they that are wise and have received the truth, and have taken the Holy Spirit for their guide, and have not been deceived–verily I say unto you, they shall not be hewn down and cast into the fire, but shall abide the day.

Here it is clear that those who survive the spiritual and physical attacked launched by Lucifer and his hoards do so by the inspiration and power of the Holy Spirit. The oil in the lamps and the vessels represent the Holy Ghost.

They survive because they know what to do, where to go and how to act. They are able to discern the devils and the doers of evil. They are not caught in a snare or enticed on to forbidden paths. They know the will of the Lord for them and have the power to do it. All others are overcome, and shut out.

How do we gain this important relationship with the Holy Ghost?

The answer is simple. We start by doing what we know to do now. Each of us knows of several things that we should be doing, or changes that we should make. Why do we not just go ahead, and make those changes? Why do we procrastinate?

The answer is that we do not now suffer the consequences. We face no immediate danger. Disaster has not come upon us.

Just as the five foolish virgins we slumber in our relative ease and complacency thinking that somehow all will be well, everything will work out. But little do we know, the bridegroom is even now on his way.

I’ve often wondered: Why couldn’t we shape up at the last minute and make it into the wedding anyway? Especially if we have become aware of our lack and desire to correct it?

Perhaps we fail to see that the Lord gives everyone equal opportunity to prepare and he seeks those who hear his voice while it is called today, and freely give heed to his voice. These are the faithful with whom He will share the kingdom. The last minute repenters are not reliable and therefor not accepted. They repent out of fear of missing out, not out of love for the Master.

Spencer W. Kimball explained:

“I believe that the Ten Virgins represent the people of the Church of Jesus Christ and not the rank and file of the world. All of the virgins, wise and foolish, had accepted the invitation to the wedding supper; they had knowledge of the program and had been warned of the important day to come. They were not the gentiles or the heathens or the pagans, nor were they necessarily corrupt and reprobate, but they were knowing people who were foolishly unprepared for the vital happenings that were to affect their eternal lives.

“They had the saving, exalting gospel, but it had not been made the center of their lives. They knew the way but have only a small measure of loyalty and devotion. I ask you: What value is a car without an engine, a cup without water, a table without food, a lamp without oil?

“Rushing for their lamps to light their way through the blackness, half of them found them empty. They had cheated themselves. They were fools, these five unprepared virgins. Apparently, the bridegroom had tarried for reasons that were sufficient and good. Time had passed, and he had not come. They had heard of his coming for so long, so many times, that the statement seemingly became meaningless to them. Would he ever come? So long had it been since they began expecting him that they were rationalizing that he would never appear. Perhaps it was a myth.

“Hundreds of thousands of us today are in this position. Confidence has been dulled and patience worn thin. It is so hard to wait and be prepared always. But we cannot allow ourselves to slumber. The Lord has given us this parable as a special warning.

“...At midnight! Precisely at the darkest hour, when least expected, the bridegroom came. When the world is full of tribulation and help is needed, but it seems the time must be past and hope is vain, then Christ will come. The midnights of life are the times when heaven comes... But when the cry sounds, there is no time for preparation...”

There is another point to be made from this parable. The lamps are the instruments in the hands of those who are filled with the Holy Ghost to give light to the path of those seeking to take part in the wedding feast. Just as the lamps gave light by means of the oil, so the priesthood has power by reason of the Holy Ghost.

Our ability to act with power in the name of Christ for the benefit of our families and our friends depends upon our reserves of oil. When tragedy strikes, will we be a light for others to gather to, or will be standing in darkness, our lights burned out because we slumbered, lulled away by the enticings of the world.

Today is a day to choose. The coming of the Lord is near, and who will abide the day? Those who have taken the Holy Spirit for their guide.

Now, each day we are faced with choices from a very demanding world. Satan has so arranged things that if we do not deliberately choose to follow the Spirit, he will see to it that all of our time is spent in just surviving. He overloads us with more that we can do so that we are too busy to do the right things.

In this information age there is far more available than we have the time to learn. There is far more to see than we have time to see. There is far more to do than we have time to do. Information is bundled, compressed, zipped and downloaded. It comes on DVDs, DCs, flash drives, SD and HD cards. It’s stored on our computers, iPods and cell phones. We can be reached anywhere, anytime for any reason by anyone. It is demanding, unapologetic and relentless.

God did not intend for us to be so busy. He did not design that we should live out our lives punching keys, answering phones, working for a paycheck and paying a mortgage. While these things are a necessary part of our temporal existence, it was never intended that they become the focus of it. These cares of the world will drain our lamps and leave our vessels empty. We must learn that when it comes to the cares of the world, enough is enough, and we can be happy with sufficient for our needs.

Our lamps and vessels are filled with the sweet oil of the Spirit by doing those things that we already know we should be doing. Such as, studying and pondering the scriptures daily. Offering our personal and family and companionship prayers. Fasting. Attending our meetings and serving in the kingdom. Attending the temple. And one of the most important, repenting and partaking of the sacrament. These are the necessary things. The cares of the world are not.

If we are to be prepared for the coming of our Lord, wether while living or in death, we must give attention to the lamp filling activities of living the gospel of Jesus Christ and crowd out of our lives those worldly cares that choke the supply line of Holy Oil, the Spirit of God.