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August 26, 1914.
A FAMILY PAPER.
Inthe Sabbath School
September 13, 1914.
Lesson XI.
THE TEN VIRGINS.
Bv the Rev. Owen F. Thompson
Golden Text.—Watch therefore, for ye know
nnt the day nor the hour. Matt. 25:13.
" Lesson Text.-Matthew 25:1-13. .
Time-April, A, D, 30. Place.-Olivet.
suitable Psalms,-2, 45, 118:14, 24.
ExDOSition,-The firstlesson from e passage
is that every member of the kingdom is supposed
n be carrying a lamp, Christ always took that
or granted. "He said. Ye are the light of the
world Again, Let your light so shme before
men that they may see your good works and
"lorify your father which is in heaven. Worship
and service are the two things that ought to fill
nn everv Christian's life,
Christ said As long as I am in the world I am
the light of the world, but before he left he told
his people that they must carry the light that
he had kindled within them from his burning
flame It is like lighting out torches from the
sacred flame that never goes out. He tells us
to take the flame and give light to others and
the more we reach and the faster we go the
brighter it grows.
If your clothes catch flre and you run, you are
liable to burn to death, for the flame is fanned
and burns fiercely. It is the same way with a
Christian, The more he travels and the faster
he goes with his burning light that Christ has
kindled, the brighter it grows, but he himself is
not consumed by it. The light of his own
soul on flreserves him like the light of the flre
fly shows it the way in the night.
The next lesson is in the fact that the virgins
carried their lamps when they went forth to
meet the bridegroom.
The bridegroom is Christ. We are the ten virgins.
The light of Christ is shining within us if
we are true Christians, He wants us to take that
light to others but he also wants us to come and
worship. Our lives are to be filledwith worship
and service. We ought to have a bright light
for worship as well as for service.
We ought to have our light ot faith burning
brightly when we come to worship. Worship does
not mean much unless we believe that the one
we worship is deserving of it. In many countries
the heathen people still go to their temples to
worship and sacrifice but they have lost a good
part or all of their faith. They go because they
have been taught to go through the forms. They
do not think there is anything real in the worship.
Then there is the light of love that we ought
to have burning when we come to worship God.
There are some peoples in the world who worship
devils. They worship through fear and not love.
They really believe in the God that they worship
but they worship because they think that is the
way to keep the evil spirit from doing them harm.
They do not worship because they love their God
and want to meet with him.
We ought to come to worship in love. We do
sometimes worship from a sense of duty or
through fear, hut the highest kind of worship is
performed through love and a desire for communion
with God.
Then we ought to have the lamp of purity burning
when we come to worship. In Exodus the
twenty-flfth chapter and fortieth verse, Moses
was told, "And look that thou make them after
the pattern, which was showed thee in the
mount."
God has provided a certain means and manner
of worship and certain matter with which
we are to worship him. He will have his people
use what he has given and use it according to
his directions. This brings in our distinctive
principles such as Psalm singing, worshipping
without the instrument and all the other things
known out that or virgins. in company Waiting to wick bridegroom nope It The Christ. take trom it. was are to of next by a It for them. their not a wise of vessel deceived It all very came. lesson his the directed wisdom lamps was thing they It coming. of bridegroom wise a madr
The oil along wise others passed to so and to from thing with make lamp be thing them with would and used as them for a was foolishness for them. profession feel belonging oil was burn that to all no safe like pour five They good they .when worship. but a virgins of to on lamps with­
false
were the faith
left
them in the dark when the time came for their
light to shine.
It was a very foolish thing for the other five
virgins to go without the vessel of oil. It showed
that they were expecting something to happen
that never could. They were resting on a
false hope. They were like the people who do
not worry about the future because they say
that God is too good to punish sin eternally.
A professing Christian ought, by all means, to
have his lamp fllledwith the Spirit of Christ, By
that [Spirit he gives light. It is a wise Christian
who keeps in constant contact with Christ. You
get the supply from him.
It is a very foolish Christian who forgets all
about Christ, the source of supply, and goes to
sleep spiritually. He wakens up some time to
find that his light is out or sputtering and
that he is far from the source of supply. He is
far from Christ and he has need of the light at
once. Keep your vessel fllled and you will give
light to all about you.
The next lesson is from the call to go out and
meet the bridegroom. The call here was to go
out and meet the bridegroom as he came along
the street with the company to the wedding feast.
The call to us is to go out and meet Christ, but
to meet him in other ways than that.
We can go out to meet him in our fellow men.
If you thought of it as meeting Christ himself,
every time you met any person about you, would
it make any difference in the treatment you gave
them
You can go out and meet with Christ in service.
Christ is always with those who are doing
his work, for he said as he sent them out to
bring the world to him, Lo, I am with you always
all sorts of chains and 'bracelets and pins—all
her fortune. We will tie these bead chains and
gold cords around this stick for the bride.
This second box is the home of the bridegroom's
parents where the wedding feast is to he.
The bridegroom has not yet come home. The
bride is here now with her friends and a number
of wedding guests. All is ready waiting for the
bridegroom.
Here come ten young girls to meet the bridegroom,
each carrying a lamp. The''r lamps are
strange to us—more like bowls with a handle at
one side and a spout at the other. We will use
these little bowls and cloth wicks. They probably
burn olive oil. Five of the girls—we will
call them virgins—are wise. They are always prepared.
Would one of these lamps burn many
hours, Buster "Maybe two," So these careful
virgins say, "We will carry extra oil so we will
be ready if our lamps burn out," But the foolish
virgins are careless. They are too busy thinking
about clothes and fun to prepare. Maybe they
think, "Oh, we can borrow if our lamps burn out.
vVe wont bother getting ready now. Time enough
when we need the oil." So they come along
-with their burning lamps but no extra oil. All
ten virgins have lamps, all burning and giving
light. All ten are happy and waiting for the
bridegroom. No one can tell the difference just
now between the wise and the foolish. But wait
till their lamps burn out.
Some folks say they are God's children. They
go to church with God's children and sing and
pray, give to the poor, are kind and seem to do
good, and are so much like God's children on the
outside that we all think they really are.
But they are like the foolish virgins, they
do not prepare for death. They do not
even unto the end of the world. Christ has no
time to fool away. He says, I must be about my give their hearts to Jesus nor love him. They
Father's busmess. If you are in the same business
say, "I am good enough. I am as good as those
you will always find him on the job and who do love Jesus and do as much good. No one
ready to be a good companion while you work together.
You meet with Christ in his word. You will
meet with Christ very often as you go through
the Bible, Even in the book of Psalms you find
him everywhere, although many think that a new
book is necessary because Christ is not found in
the Psalms enough to satisfy us of the New Testament
times and new enlightenment.
can tell the difference." But if they do not love
Jesus and give him their heart, are they good
enough Ellis "No."
The ten virgins wait for the bridegroom too,
with their lamps burning. He is long in coming,
so they fall asleep.
The bridegroom and his friends are having a
good time in this house at this end of the city.
These clothespins are for the men. These friends
You meet with Christ in prayer. He says for of the bridegroom will go with him to the marriage.
Late at night, almost midnight, the bride­
us to come unto him and to follow him and one
of the best things about Christ is the companionship
that we enjoy as we go along the way together.
You meet with Christ at the communion table.
groom rises to go. So the young men form into
line, and the procession starts, each carrying a
torch. Did you ever see a parade at night, Elmer
This one would be worth seeing, with its torch
This is a special way that we can come to him lights and music. The neighbors look doWn from
and we ought to be preparing all the time for
that meeting. It is a great privilege.
the housetops as the men move along, and the
women cry out on the still night air, "Behold, the
We go to meet with the Lord and Master when bridegroom cometh Go ye out to meet him," the
our work is done here on earth and we go to guests join the procession, but always carrying
be in the Father's house. Christ is the elder a light.
brother in that home. Are you preparing to greet
him there
Suddenly at midnight, those in the bridegroom's
home hear the cry, "Behold, the bridegroom cometh;
go ye out to meet him," The next lesson is from the words "And the
All the virgins
door was shut." These words were spoken particularly
quickly awake and trim their lamps. The wise vir­
Lesson XI. about the ones who had Sept. just gone 13, 1914. in. gins fill their lamps and they are burning bright
It had an LESSON effect on FOR others THE who CHILDREN.
might come after
but all who By vvere Anna there Pritchard went in George. and the door was
shut on them. THE The TEN closed VIRGINS. door shut out Satan
and his angels. Matthew It shut out 25:1-13. unrepentant sinners.
It Ruth, shut out did sin. your It mother shut ever out the prepare suffering for and company
sorrow who and did darkness not come, and and wrong then of this the very world day of
sin. she was Heaven's not ready closed at door all, they shuts walked us in with in all Today the
joy we will that see heaven how has five for foolish God's girls people. missed a wedding
ly. But the foolish virgins who would not prepare,
have no oil and their lamps are gone out.
You can tell the wise from the foolish now. "Give
us of your oil," they beg. But the wise have only
enough oil to keep their own lamps burning, "Go
to them that sell, and buy for yourselves." They
hurry away now to buy oil, only those with
lighted lamps may enter into the wedding. But
The just Christian's because life they is were to be careless a life of and constant did not while the foolish virgins are away, "the bride­
prepare. watchfulness. We are to watch that no opportunity
It for is evening. service be This passed box by. on We the sand are to table watch is
groom came; and they that were ready went in
with him to the marriage; and the door was
that the home we are of in the constant bride. readiness These sticks to leave are the the shut,"
world bride and her the girl joy friends. of his presence Do brides here dress and go well, to Now when it is too late, the foolish virgins return
be Helen with him "In there, best which they is far have," better. These girls
clothe this bride in white and cover her with
with burning lamps. "Lord, Lord, open to
us." But the bridegroom answers, "Verily I say
unto you, I know you not." Too late now to prepare.
Did it pay for the wise virgins to be prepared,
ding." was take time." hard, Yes, be foolish hearts while know to Does Montclair, prepare God's coming, but us will not there Alvin burning They And anyone virgins, away, those children the when if N. is but take did day who James with "Yes, time. J. know shut they not us finds death nor will have the right know they kept when out. "Watch, the find us "No, comes. just love into ready went when hour." We themselves Jesus been of heaven therefore, in must Jesus. and may Get is pretending to bridegroom
loving coming ready. with come have the like Too for him wed­
now any our the late
to ye