1. Proving Professing Christians 1 - 13.

25.1. “At that time the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom.

The time referred to in this parable and the next one is the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ for His Church.  Scripture tells us that the church is likened to a bride (Rev. 21:2 and Rev. 21:9) and Jesus Christ as the bridegroom (Mark 2:19 - 20).   As yet the marriage has not taken place (Rev. 19:7-9) so the church is spoken of as virgins and consist of those who have been washed in the blood of the Lamb and made pure and holy by Him.

25.2. Five of the virgins were foolish, and five were wise.The church is divided into two kinds of professing Christians Jesus calls half of them foolish and the other half wise.  Who are these people?  They are all professing to be Christians and part of Christ’s church.

25.3. When the foolish ones took their lamps, they did not take extra olive oil with them.

The five foolish or those who had no common sense only had oil in their lamps, in other words only enough to keep the light burning until the oil gave out, they did not take extra oil with them to refill their lamps. They did not know the hour when the bridegroom would come so they should have made sure they had extra oil with them.  These people we can liken to those who embrace Christianity as a religion and perform all that go with it but have not embraced the fullness. Paul says they have a form godlyness but deny its power or as the New Living Testament puts it “they will act religious, but they will reject the power that could make them godly” (1 Tim. 3:5).  They profess to be Christians and claim to know Him as their Savior.  

25.4. But the wise ones took flasks of olive oil with their lamps.

The wise however took containers with them filled with oil ready to pour into their lamps when the oil they contained run out.   These are those who know Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and Saviour in truth and experience.  They endeavour to make certain that they are ready whatever hour their Lord may come.  

25.5. When the bridegroom was delayed a long time, they all became drowsy and fell asleep. The bridegroom was delayed for a long time and they all became tired of waiting for Him so they fell asleep (1 Thessalonians 5:6; 2 Peter 3:3-4).  The word delayed is used in almost every translation but we must not think that the time of the Lord’s coming will be delayed from God’s point of view for God has appointed the time for this to happen and it will do so at that exact time.  From Paul’s letters we know that the early church lived in expectation of the return of the Lord Jesus Christ any moment but it has not happened yet.   This is what may be considered by human standards as a delay.  The Amplified Bible translates Matthew 24:36 But of that [exact] day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.  

25.6. But at midnight there was a shout, ‘Look, the bridegroom is here! Come out to meet him.’

At midnight the cry went out that the bridegroom had arrived and the invitation given to come and meet Him!   (1 Cor. 15:52).

25.7. Then all the virgins woke up and trimmed their lamps.

At the shout they all woke up and trimmed their lamps to get ready to meet Him.

25.8. The foolish ones said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, because our lamps are going out.’

Because of the delay the inevitable happened the oil in the lamps of the foolish ones run out and they asked the wise to give them some of theirs.  These professing Christians were just not ready for the coming of the Lord.

25.9. ‘No,’ they replied. ‘There won’t be enough for you and for us. Go instead to those who sell oil and buy some for yourselves.’

The wise told them that they only had enough oil to replenish their own lamps there was not enough for everyone.  They would have to go to those who sold oil to get some for themselves.  Believers can share by word what they have received from the Lord Jesus Christ they can tell of their experiences with Him but they cannot part with it and pass it on to others.   No one can live on the experience of another we have to work out our own salvation (Phil. 2:12).

25.10. But while they had gone to buy it, the bridegroom arrived, and those who were ready went inside with him to the wedding banquet. Then the door was shut.   

While they were gone the bridegroom arrived and those who were ready and prepared went inside with Him to the wedding feast. The door was then shut. This reminds us of the time of Noah when he and his family had all enter the ark God shut the door (Gen. 7:16) the opportunity of being saved from the flood had past.  So will it be when the Lord Jesus Christ comes for His church, His own, the day of grace will end the door will be closed and the opportunity of salvation will be gone! (2 Cor. 6:2).

25.11. Later, the other virgins came too, saying, ‘Lord, lord! Let us in!’

A little later the other five returned and stood outside calling for the Lord to let them in.

25.12. But he replied, ‘I tell you the truth, I do not know you!’

He answered them from within that of a truth He did not know them. Jesus Christ knows everyone of those that are truly His own (John 10:14).25.13. Therefore stay alert, because you do not know the day or the hour.In this final verse of the parable the Lord gives the warning that every believer should be, watching, waiting and expecting the Lord’s return for no one knows the hour that He will come again (1 Thess. 5:2; Rev. 16:15).

2. Proving Christian Service 13 - 30.

25.14. "For it is like a man going on a journey, who summoned his slaves and entrusted his property to them.

The man in this parable is the Lord Jesus Christ who gives to His followers the truth concerning the Kingdom of Heaven and the baptism of Holy Spirit (John 14:26).  He dispenses His ministry gifts (Eph. 4:11) and the gifts of the Holy Spirit as He wills (1 Cor. 12:11).  Forty days after His resurrection (Acts 1:3) Jesus Christ returned to heaven having entrusted His disciples with the means to proclaim the Gospel Message (Acts 1:10).

25.15. To one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one, each according to his ability. Then he went on his journey.

As we have seen in 1 Corinthians 12:11 the number of talents (gifts) given to these three men were according to the desire of the man, the Lord Jesus Christ before going away.  Five, two and one respectively.

25.16. The one who had received five talents went off right away and put his money to work and gained five more.

The one who received the most talents, five, immediately put his money to work and doubled it.   This was true of the early disciples after Pentecost they straight away used the gifts given to them to proclaim the Gospel Message and there were added to them 3000 people (Acts 2:41).

25.17. In the same way, the one who had two gained two more.

The second man did not sit down and complain that he had only been given two talents but did exactly the same and double his amount.

25.18. But the one who had received one talent went out and dug a hole in the ground and hid his master's money in it.

The last man with the one talent perhaps was given the greater challenge because he only had one talent.  But it was enough for him to do the same as the other two if he had put it to use. Instead he did an incredible thing, he went and buried it in the ground! (Luke 11:33).

25.19. After a long time, the master of those slaves came and settled his accounts with them.

Like this man the Lord Jesus Christ is coming back and every believer will have to give an account of what they have done with that which He has entrusted them with (2 Cor. 5:10).

25.20 - 21. The one who had received the five talents came and brought five more, saying, 'Sir, you entrusted me with five talents. See, I have gained five more. His master answered, 'Well done, good and faithful slave! You have been faithful in a few things. I will put you in charge of many things. Enter into the joy of your master.'

The man given five talents came and brought the five He had gained with him and received praise from the Lord. It was not for the amount he brought but for his faithfulness to his Lord that he was commended and rewarded and invited to share in the blessedness of His Lord. 

25.22 - 23. The one with the two talents also came and said, 'Sir, you entrusted two talents to me. See, I have gained two more.' His master answered, 'Well done, good and faithful slave! You have been faithful with a few things. I will put you in charge of many things. Enter into the joy of your master.'The second man came and brought his two talents and increase and presented them to the Lord and received the same praise and reward as the man who was given the five talents and invited to enter in to the joy of His Lord.

25. 24 - 25. Then the one who had received the one talent came and said, 'Sir, I knew that you were a hard man, harvesting where you did not sow, and gathering where you did not scatter seed, so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. See, you have what is yours.'

Last of all came the man who was given one talent professing that he knew the Lord to be an harsh man reaping in an harvest from where he had not sown.  He did not know the Lord at all for Jesus Christ is the meek and lowly (Matt. 11: 29) He only gathers fruit from His own seed that has been sown.  The man professed to be afraid of what the Lord might do to him if lost the talent and confessed that because of this he hid it in the ground.

25:26 - 27.  But his master answered, 'Evil and lazy slave! So you knew that I harvest where I didn't sow and gather where I didn't scatter? Then you should have deposited my money with the bankers, and on my return I would have received my money back with interest!

The Lord challenged him with his ungrounded excuses for being a lazy wicked man. If he was really afraid of what the Lord would say and do to him he should have put the money in a bank where it would have gained interest for his Lord.

25.28. Therefore take the talent from him and give it to the one who has ten. 

No praise, no reward for this man but what was given to him was taken off him and given to the man who brought ten talents back to the Lord.

25.29 - 30. For the one who has will be given more, and he will have more than enough. But the one who does not have, even what he has will be taken from him. Now throw this useless servant into outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.'

To those who are faithful to the Lord Jesus Christ and who use that which He has given them to the fulness will be given an abundance.   But the one who is not faithful and therefore brings nothing even the little that he has will be taken away from him.  The unfaithful and unprofitable will be cast out into the dark place where “people will cry and grit their teeth in pain." (CEV)

3. Separating Believers from the Unbelievers 31 - 46.

25.31 - 33. When the Son of Man comes in his glory with all of his angels, he will sit on his royal throne. All the nations will be assembled before him, and he will separate people one from another like a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.  He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.

This separating believers from unbelievers and the true Christian from the false from out of the nations of the world is likened to a shepherd who parts the sheep from the goats. This will take place when Jesus Christ comes with all his angels at the Last Judgment. The only other reference to this time is in  2 Thessalonians 1:7- 10.

25.34. Then the king will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.

He who is the “King of kings and Lord of Lords calls them blessed of His Father because they have been redeemed by the blood of the Lamb.  They have inherited eternal life and are heirs of the kingdom (Titus 3:7; James 2:5) that has been prepared for them before the world was made. These are the sheep.

25.35 - 36. For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me.'

Here the Lord makes known the good works of believers that had been created in them by Him (Eph. 2:10; Titus 2:14). Feeding the hungry giving a cup of cold water to the thirsty, taking care of the stranger, clothing the naked, nursing the sick and visiting those in prison.  All these things Jesus Christ said they had done for Him. 

25.37 - 39. Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or naked and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?'

As far as they were aware they had never seen Him to do these things for Him. 25.40. And the king will answer them, 'I tell you the truth, just as you did it for one of the least of these brothers or sisters of mine, you did it for me.'The King answers them that of a truth every time that they ministered to the least of their brothers and sisters in Him that they did it for Him.

25.41. "Then he will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you accursed, into the eternal fire that has been prepared for the devil and his angels!

To those on the left side, the goats, the foolish virgins, the lazy wicked servants He pronounces the final judgment.  To depart from Him for they are cursed because they have sinned against God and not accepted the way of salvation provided for them through His Son.  They are cast into the lake of fire prepared for the devil and his angels (Rev. 19:20; Rev. 20:15). 

25. 42 - 43. For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink. I was a stranger and you did not receive me as a guest, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.

'He reveals their uncompassionate behaviour in refusing to give aid when He was in need of it (Titus 1:16).

25.44. Then they too will answer, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not give you whatever you needed?'

They ask Him when did they ever see Him in need and deny Him help?  The suggestion here is that if they had seen Him then they would have met His need but no one else's!  

25.45. Then he will answer them, 'I tell you the truth, just as you did not do it for one of the least of these, you did not do it for me.'

His answer to them was in truth they had seen Him in and through those at His right hand, the believers and they did not lift a finger to help them so it was the same as not doing anything to help Him.

25.46. And these will depart into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life."

These unbelievers will go into eternal punishment but the righteous into eternal life.