Cultivating the Oil of Intimacy: Encountering the Bridegroom God
I. THE CONTEXT OF THE PARABLE OF THE WISE AND FOOLISH VIRGINS (MT. 25:1-13)
A. In Mt. 24-25, Jesus taught on the End-Times (Mt. 24:3-44) then applied it in 3 parables to those He called to
leadership (Mt. 24:45- 25:30) before describing His final judgment (Mt. 25:31-46). These two chapters are “one
teaching” that is focused on preparing leaders for the End-Times.
1. Parable #1: Jesus’ delay is shorter than expected. The parable of the wise and evil servants in Mt. 24:45-51
describes two types of people in positions of leadership in the structures of His Kingdom. In this parable, the Lord
came sooner than expected.
2. Parable #2: Jesus’ delay is longer than expected. The parable of the wise and foolish virgins in Mt. 25:1-13
emphasizes connecting with the Spirit as we cultivate intimacy with Jesus as the Bridegroom God. In this parable,
the Lord came later than expected.
3. Parable #3: Jesus’ delay is harder than expected. The parable of the faithful steward in Mt. 25:14-30
focuses on being faithful in our ministry assignment especially in the times it seems small and hard (Mt. 25:21, 24).
The majority have a small ministry assignment.
B. In Mt. 24-25, Jesus was preparing the Church to walk in great victory during the Tribulation. The Church is raptured
at the end of the Tribulation. We are not absent for the Tribulation but partner with Jesus to release it on the Antichrist
through prayer as Moses released judgment on Pharaoh.
29 Immediately after the Tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light…31 He
will send His angels with…and they will gather together (Rapture) His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven
to the other. (Mt. 24:29-31)
C. In Mt. 24:37-41, Jesus taught that the nations will be surprised and unprepared, and prophesied of the great
death toll by comparing it to Noah’s flood that took them “all” away in death (v. 39).
37 As the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. 38 For as in the days before the flood, they
were eating and drinking…until the day that Noah entered the ark, 39 and did not know until the flood came and took
them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. 40 Then two men will be in the field: one will be taken and
the other left. 41 Two women will be grinding at the mill: one will be taken and the other left. (Mt. 24:37-41)
D. Jesus prophesied again of the great death toll that will occur in the End-Times in Rev. 6:8; 9:15.
8 Power was given to them over ¼ of the earth, to kill with sword, with hunger… (Rev. 6:8)
E. The disciples asked, “Where will these be taken?” They will be “taken in death” as indicated by them being in the place
where the birds of prey (vultures or eagles) gather over their dead bodies.
36 Two men will be in the field: one will be taken and the other left. 37 They answered and said to Him, "Where, Lord?"
So He said to them, "Wherever the body (dead body NIV) is, there the eagles (vultures NAS/NIV) will be gathered."
(Lk. 17:36-37)
F. At the Armageddon Campaign, birds will eat the flesh of wicked men of war (Ezek. 39:17-20).
17 An angel…saying to the birds…, "Gather together…18 that you may eat…the flesh of mighty men…"
21 The rest were killed…the birds were filled with their flesh. (Rev. 19:17-21)
G. Jesus’ main advice for the End-Times is to watch or develop a heart connection with the Spirit.
42 Watch therefore, for you do not know what hour your Lord is coming. 43 But know this, that if the master of
the house had known what hour the thief would come, he would have watched and not allowed his house (place
of inheritance) to be broken into. (Mt. 24:42-43)
H. To watch is to sustain a lifestyle of encountering Jesus. This is essential in hindering Satan from stealing our
inheritance. Our primary inheritance is our heart connection with Jesus. Satan seeks to steal this part of one’s inheritance
as the way to also take their inheritance in ministry, etc.
10 The thief (Satan) does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. (Jn. 10:10)
I. The primary exhortation that Jesus gave for our preparation in the End-Times is not to store up food or guns
but to watch (Mt. 24:42-43; 25:13; Mk. 13:33-38; Lk 21:36; 1 Thes. 5:2-4, 6; Rev. 3:3; 16:15). To watch in light of
End-Time calamities seems impractical to some, however, if we do this then we will receive instruction, strength and
courage to face everything else.
J. In Mt. 24:45-51, Jesus spoke of leaders as those who rule and feed His people. He categorized them into faithful
and wise leaders in contrast to evil ones. In the next two parables, Jesus spoke more specifically of what is involved
in being wise (Mt. 25:1-13) and faithful (Mt. 25:14-30).
45 Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his master made ruler over his household, to give them food… 46
Blessed is that servant…48 But if that evil servant says in his heart, “My master is delaying his coming…” 49 and
begins to beat his fellow servants… (Mt. 24:45-49)
II. KINGDOM LEADERSHIP NEAR AT THE END-OF-THE-AGE: WISE AND FOOLISH
1 Then the Kingdom of heaven shall be likened to ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the Bridegroom.
2 Five of them were wise, and five were foolish. 3 Those who were foolish took their lamps and took no oil with them,
4 but the wise took oil…with their lamps. (Mt. 25:1-4)
A. Virgins: all believers are as virgins before God because of Jesus’ righteousness (2 Cor. 5:17).
2 I betrothed you to one husband…I present you as a chaste virgin to Christ. (2 Cor. 11:2)
B. Lamp: each of these virgins had a lamp which spoke of a ministry that brought God’s light to others (Mt. 5:15-16;
Rev. 1:20; 2:5; 11:3-6; Zech. 4:2; Is. 62:1; John 5:35).
C. Bridegroom: all these ministries had revelation of Jesus as the Bridegroom God. These are ministries who went
out to meet or who encountered Jesus as the Bridegroom God.
17 The Spirit and the Bride say, "Come!" (Rev. 22:17)
D. Then: We ask, “When is then?” The word ‘then’ points back to the end-of-the-age theme just emphasized in
Mt. 24. This is when the Kingdom functions like virgins meeting the Bridegroom.
E. The “oil” speaks of our heart connect with the Holy Spirit as we cultivate our secret life in God.
2 Five of them were wise, and five were foolish. 3 Those who were foolish took their lamps and took no oil with them, 4 but the
wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps (Mt. 25:2-4)
F. Oil in Scripture often symbolizes the ministry of the Holy Spirit.
1. It tenderizes our heart enabling us to feel more of God’s love and desire for us.
2. It enlarges our desire for Him by encountering His desire for us.
3. It illuminates our understanding with revelation of God’s beauty and majesty.
4. It strengthens our identity in being sons before the Father and the Bride before Jesus.
5. It imparts zeal for righteousness which helps us in our struggle with besetting sins.
G. The foolish took their lamps (ministry), but took no oil. In other words, they pursued ministry as their first priority
over getting oil in their relationship with Jesus.
H. The wise ministries took oil in their vessels with their lamps. In other words, they pursued acquiring oil as their first
priority before seeking to expand and network their ministry.
III. USES OF OIL IN THE SCRIPTURE
A. Oil is a picture of the Holy Spirit's presence (2 Cor 1:21; 1 Jn. 2:20, 27) and especially of revelation (Zech 4:11-12).
The Two Witnesses are referred to as the "anointed ones" or in Hebrew as the “sons of oil” (Zech 4:14).
B. Oil was used to fuel lamps (Ex. 25:6; 27:20; 35:8, 14, 28; 39:37; Mt. 25:3-8; Lk. 12:35); as a food (Num. 11:8;
Deut. 7:13; 14:23; 32:13; 1 Kg. 17:12, 14, 16; 2 Kg. 4:2, 6-7; 1 Chr. 12:40; 2 Chr. 2:10, 15; Ezra 3:7; Prov. 21:17;
Jer 31:12; 41:8; Ezek. 16:13, 18-19; Hos. 2:5, 8, 22; Hag. 2:12; Lk. 16:6; Rev. 6:6; as a scented cosmetic on the body
(Ex 25:6; Deut 28:40; Ruth 3:3; 2 Sam 12:20; 14:2; Est 2:12; Ps 23:5; 92:10; 104:15; 141:5; Prov 27:9, 16; Eccl 7:1;
9:8; Ezek 16:9; Mic 6:15; Lk. 7:46); as medicine (Ps. 104:15; 109:18; 141:5; 2 Chron. 28:15; Isa. 1:6; Jer. 8:22; Jn. 9:6;
Mk. 6:13; Lk. 10:34; Jas 5:14; Rev 3:18); to consecrate God’s servants (Gen. 28:18; 35:14; Ex. 29:7, 21ff; Lev. 2:1ff;
8:12; Num. 4:9ff; 1 Sam. 10:1, 6; 16:1, 13-14; 2 Sam. 1:21; 1 Kg. 1:39; 2 Kg. 9:1, 3, 6; Ps 89:20; Isa. 61:1). Oil refers
to supernatural joy (Isa. 61:3; Ps. 45:7; Heb. 1:9) and was a commodity used for financial payment (1 Kg. 5:11;
Ezek. 27:17; Hos. 12:1; Luke 16:6; Rev 18:13).
IV. JESUS EMPHASIZED THE GREAT NEED TO CULTIVATE OIL IN THE END-TIMES
5 While the Bridegroom delayed, they all slept. 6 At midnight a cry was heard: “Behold, the Bridegroom is coming,
go out to meet Him.” 7 Then all those virgins arose and trimmed their lamps. 8 The foolish said to the wise, 'Give us
some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.' (Mt. 25:5-8)
A. At the midnight hour of history, forerunners will cry out with a 3-fold message to the nations. This summarizes the 3-fold
forerunner message of the IHOP Missions Base.
1. First, Jesus is coming in manifest victory and judgment. This has serious consequences.
2. Second, Jesus is coming as a Bridegroom God with deep desire for relationship with us.
3. Third, we must go out to meet Him or to make the necessary effort to position ourselves in worship, obedience,
prayer and the Word with fasting to encounter Jesus.
B. They all slept which speaks of living in context to the natural processes of life. We sustain our intimacy with
Jesus in the midst of the rigors of the routine and mundane with natural dynamics.
V. MINISTRIES RECOGNIZING THEIR LACK OF OIL AND DIMINISHING MINISTRY
A. The foolish ministries recognized their mistake in neglecting oil. They made two statements.
8 The foolish said to the wise, “Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.” 9 The wise answered, “No, lest there
should not be enough for us and you; but go rather to those who sell, and buy for yourselves.” (Mt. 25:8-9)
1. First, they understood that their ministry was going out because it was not fashioned to touch the cry in people
for the deep things of Jesus’ heart. Many ministry lamps will “go out” because they are not able to feed the heart of
God’s people. There will be a significant diminishing of many ministries in the End-Times.
2. Second, they asked for oil from others without knowing that one's secret history in God cannot be given to another.
Spiritual preparedness is not transferable.
B. The wise understood their limitation and acknowledged that their spiritual history in God and their spiritual
preparedness could not be transferred to others. Therefore, they refused opportunities for increase that were not God’s
best for their life in God. Jesus exhorts us to “buy oil” or to engage in the God ordained process of acquiring intimacy
with God. In buying oil, we do not earn it but we “invest ourselves in a costly way” to position ourselves to receive it.
18 I counsel you to buy from Me gold refined in the fire, that you may be rich… (Rev. 3:18)
C. We value our relationship with God enough to invest in it in a costly way as David did.
24 The king (David) said to Araunah, "…I will surely buy it from you for a price; nor will I offer burnt offerings to the
LORD my God with that which costs me nothing." (2 Sam. 24:24)
D. The wise said "No” because they understood their limitations and did not have the ability to give more without
losing their oil. Some ministries have a “messiah complex” with an overestimation of their importance to the success
of God’s Kingdom in their area. Other ministries are addicted to being popular so they cannot pass up an opportunity
to network more or to appear available to everyone. Others are entrenched in the fear of man so they cannot turn
people down.
E. It is essential that we have the ability to say “No” not so that we have more time for entertainment and recreation but
so that we can seek the Lord diligently in the Word. The Lord used Mt. 25:9 to radically shift my ministry in June 1991.
VI. BEING PREPARED FOR THE NEXT WAVE OF THE HOLY SPIRIT
10 While they went to buy, the Bridegroom came (progressive seasons of revival), and those who were ready went in
with Him to the wedding; and the door (of opportunity for usefulness) was shut. 11 Afterward the other virgins came also,
saying, 'Lord, Lord, open to us!' 12 "He answered, 'Assuredly, I say to you, I do not know you.' (Mt. 25:10-12)
A. This passage is NOT a warning to foolish ministries of the perils of losing their salvation. The Lord did not know
or recognize them as those who engaged with Him as the Bridegroom. “I do not know” you describes their lack of intimacy
not their lack of salvation as when Jesus said, “I never knew you!' (Mt. 7:23). Jesus did not refer to them as evil (Mt. 24:48);
wicked and lazy (Mt. 25:26) or cursed (Mt. 25:41).
B. Jesus wants to “know” us in relationship in context to His Bridegroom heart in our private life before He chooses
to anoint us with that message on public platforms. The message of loving Jesus with all our heart is one that requires
we experience in private before the ministry stage.
C. The ancient Jewish custom of that day involved celebrating a wedding over the course of several nights (ideally
7 nights, for a wealthy family). Those who were closest to the couple to be married were invited on the first night and
subsequently each of the following nights. As the Jewish wedding celebration continued over seven days with each
evening highlighting something different, so also God is releasing different “waves of the Spirit” that are building up
to the fullness of the End-Time revival which culminates with the Second Coming. Then comes the grand finale to the
Wedding Supper of the Lamb (Rev. 19:7-9).
D. Only those who were “ready” by being close to the Bridegroom went in to celebrate. Jesus wants us to be a “voice
not an echo” that speaks for the reality of encountering Him as our Bridegroom.
1. Those who were ready went in with Him – place of usefulness in the End-Time revival
2. The others cried out, “Open to us!' – give us a place of usefulness in End-Time revival
E. The foolish virgins said, 'Lord, open to us!' or open a door of opportunity of usefulness for us as you did for the
wise virgins (2 Cor. 2:12; Col. 4:3; Rev. 3:8). Many will miss out on future opportunities to be used in their fullest way.
9 For a great and effective door has opened to me… (1 Cor. 16:9)
F. Jesus’ advice in light of the great amount of work related to the End-Time revival is to watch or to “open our
heart” to develop a heart connection with Jesus as the Bridegroom God.
13 Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor hour in which the Son of Man is coming. (Mt. 25:13)
VII. SUMMARY OF THE LESSONS IN THIS PARABLE
A. The essential point in this parable is that the foolish virgins would needlessly miss out on the first night of the wedding
celebration. The principle is that many ministries will also needlessly miss out on “part of the End-Time revival wedding
celebratory activities”.
B. In this parable the Lord came later than expected. God’s delay is longer than expected causing them to lose their
watchfulness due to three giants that are common to all: mundaneness, pressure and temptations.
C. Sincere ministries can still be spiritually superficial (v. 2-4). We can lose ground that we previously gained in our
heart and/or ministry (v. 8). What we gain in God today (heart reality and ministry impact) is often lost tomorrow. Over
the years, one may develop a larger ministry profile (they are more popular) yet their heart reality and true ministry
impact is decidedly less than it was ten years previously. In this parable, all ten virgin ministries started off with oil and
a shining ministry that brought light to others. Foolish ministries did not take time to sustain the ‘oil of intimacy’ in their
hearts that they had for a season (verse 1).
D. There are some things that we "can't borrow" (v. 8–9). God’s ordained ‘kingdom order’ is that no one can acquire
the ‘oil of intimacy’ for another. Spiritual preparedness is not transferable. This ‘kingdom order’ is based on Jesus’ zeal
for our love.
E. We "can be too late" and thus, miss significant opportunities in God that we cannot regain (v. 10). The ‘shut doors’
are opportunities in various seasons of the Spirit’s End-Time purpose. This is not the shutting of the door of salvation,
but of our full involvement in the End-Time revival.
F. We must be watchful in order to be ready and equipped to fully participate in each ‘night’ of the End-Times revival
(wedding celebration). God is now preparing leaders for the future waves of the Spirit. He insists that only prepared
vessels with spiritual reality lead each wave. In other words, a lifestyle of pursing ever-increasing ministry opportunities
while neglecting intimacy leads to missing the fullness of anointed opportunities (doors of ministry shut).