We're turning tonight for our Bible reading to Matthew's Gospel, chapter 25. Matthew's Gospel, chapter 25, and we're going to read together from the opening verse of the chapter, one of Christ's parables. It's a very familiar parable, the parable of the 10 virgins. So let me encourage the boys and girls who are with us tonight to follow along with mom or dad. You can follow along by yourself, that's great. And if you're not able to do that, then follow along with your mom or dad and let them keep their finger below the various verses that we're going to read tonight that you can keep along with them as we read these verses together. Matthew chapter 25, I'm going to read from verse one of the chapter. 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 off 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 virgin, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us. But he answered and said, Verily I say unto you, I know you not. Watch therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of Man cometh. Amen, we'll finish at verse 13 tonight and we pray the Lord will bless to our hearts the reading of his own precious and infallible word. It is this parable that I want to consider tonight and if we're looking to take one text, one verse of scripture as our text, it's verse 10. They that were ready, the latter part of the verse, they that were ready went in with him to the marriage and the door was shut. False professors shut out. or when God shuts the door. It's a very solemn passage of Scripture, and I want to come around it tonight as we come to the close of our service this evening. The Bible's open, let's seek the Lord together in a word of prayer. Father, we come into thy presence now and we pray that thou will still our hearts as we come before thee and around thy word, or we come to a very solemn passage of Scripture, We pray, Lord, that thou will still us now in thy presence, that as we meditate upon thy word, thou would speak to us tonight. Lord, speak to every heart. Do a searching work in hearts tonight, for thou art the great searcher of hearts. We pray, Lord, that all who have gathered in this service, all who have gathered in this house tonight, might be ready for the coming of the bridegroom. We pray, pray to that end that thou would remember us for good now. Fill me with thy spirit. Give help in the preaching of the word. Give help in the hearing of the word. We pray, Lord, that we'll, through the scriptures tonight, make many wise unto salvation. We pray in Jesus' precious name. Amen. By all accounts, Eastern weddings were quite the spectacle and involved many days of ceremony and many days of celebration. They were lavish affairs with activities and processions and festivities involving a large number of people and very often at great expense. Part of the custom of an Eastern wedding, especially in biblical times, involved the bridegroom, together with a number of his friends, going to the bride's house in the evening time or at night. Of course, she would have been expecting his arrival. and her bridesmaids would have been watching for the men to approach and to come towards the bride's home. A time of great expectation, a time of great excitement, a time of great eagerness. And when news finally came that the bridegroom was on his way, a number of the bridesmaids, young girls, sometimes numbering ten or more than that, would be sent out to meet them. They would go out to meet the men as they were coming to the bride's house. They would join in with that procession of men, and then they would come with those men back to the bride's house, enter into the place with the groom, and the whole event would have been quite the spectacle. Usually it involved meticulous planning, nothing left to chance, everyone playing their part, and the bride and groom enjoying, therefore, the celebration of it all and the ceremony that joined them as husband and wife. In Matthew chapter 25, our Lord Jesus Christ used that common Eastern scene to teach a very important spiritual truth regarding the kingdom of God. I should point out at this point that Christ told this parable in the context of his teaching about his second coming. In Matthew chapter 24, he outlined events that would precede his glorious return the second time. And in that chapter he speaks of the love of many waxing cold. He references the appearance of false prophets and false Christs. He speaks in that chapter also of the great tribulation and the awful persecution that will befall the church. Now those are not empty words from the Savior. Our Lord Jesus Christ was speaking of things that must surely come to pass, and then when the time is right and those things have been accomplished, He will appear suddenly and in His glory to gather His people unto Himself and to bring the lost to judgment. They were very solemn, very sobering words that Christ was preaching. He concludes that message with a statement in Matthew 24 verse 42, watch therefore for you know not what hour your Lord doth come. The thrust of that entire passage was to press upon his hearers the need to be ready for the coming of the Savior. It was in that context that Christ proceeded to draw lessons from the Eastern wedding and he told the parable of the 10 virgins in Matthew chapter 25. In many ways, the parable is not very hard to understand. In this story, the 10 virgins represent those who are in the visible church, those who profess to be saved. The bridegroom is the Lord Jesus Christ. The lamps are professions, and the oil points to the grace and the presence of the Holy Spirit that is true and part and parcel of true salvation. Furthermore, the fact that some go into the wedding ceremony and into the wedding celebration with the bridegroom, and at the same time some are shut out of that marriage celebration, tells us that while some are genuinely ready for eternity with Christ and will be with Him forever, there are others who are not. And when the bridegroom comes, as a result of their lack of saving grace, their lack of spiritual life, They will be forever shut out of heaven and from the presence of the triune God. For one group, it will be a time of unparalleled joy and happiness when they go into the wedding celebration with the bridegroom, while for the others it will be a time of unparalleled horror and hopelessness. Some will be shut in, while others will be shut out. and shut out forever. In just a few sentences, just a few sentences, our Lord Jesus Christ underscores the absolute importance of making our calling and election sure. For to be wrong on this point, to be wrong on what Christ is dealing with in this parable, to be wrong on this point is to be wrong and lost for all eternity. These are very solemn words, and I come to them tonight because I fear that what Christ describes in this parable has relevance to some in this congregation. It is possible for a person to be a professor of religion, to profess to be saved. It is possible for a person to claim that they know Christ. It is possible for a person to act out the part of a believer, to give the impression that all is well between them and their God. It is relatively easy to pass ourselves off as a Christian. It's possible for someone in this congregation to fool me, or to fool others, or even to fool themselves. into thinking that they are ready for heaven. But the last day, the day when the heavenly bridegroom comes, will tell an altogether different story. And instead of being shut in with Christ, the all-powerful hand of Almighty God will shut you out of heaven. As a non-believer, one who has never known Christ and who has never been known by Christ in that saving way, Matthew 25 is not just a wedding tale. This is not just a story about bad timing or Eastern customs. It's a story that addresses the issue of spiritual hypocrisy and the awful cost of not really knowing Christ as your Savior. And note something very important here. It is the Lord Jesus who told this parable. And by telling this parable and explaining what's taking place here, Christ is emphasizing that He knows all things. He knows how deceptive the human heart can be. He knows how dangerous such a thing is. He knows how real hypocrisy is, and the eternal tragedy of the false professor who, while thinking all is well, comes to understand, comes to discover to their horror at the last that all is not well with them, and they are shut out for all of God's eternity. It's Christ who tells the parable. It is Christ who wants to impress these truths upon our hearts. And so tonight I want to take this parable, this passage in Matthew 25, and simply consider with you the subject, the very sobering subject of false professors shut out. And I have three simple points, three simple headings to outline the message tonight. First of all, there is in this parable a critical distinction, a critical distinction. At first glance, all the virgins mentioned in this story look and act very much the same. All of them had lamps. All of them have gone out to wait for the bridegroom to come. All of them sleep. All of them are awakened when the news comes that the bridegroom is approaching. They had so many similarities, and from a distance it will be very hard to have noted any difference among them. They all look very, very identical. They all appear very, very similar. appearances can be deceptive. And so it proved in this story. For as Christ told this parable, he underscored the fact that while these virgins, all ten of them, had very much in common, there was a very important, and as it turns out in the parable, a very serious distinction between them. Verse 2 states that five of them were wise and five of them were foolish. Now those terms wise and foolish are not speaking of their intellect. It's not speaking about their academic ability, how good they were at school, whether they were wise or foolish at school. It's not talking about their qualifications. It's not talking about their demeanor. There's something far more significant behind these words, this thought of being wise, this thought of being foolish, something far more significant than just academic ability. reason why five of the virgins are described as being foolish is explained in verse 3. They took their lamps, we're told, and took no oil with them. In other words, they lacked the one thing that was needful. What good was a lamp without the oil? We don't use oil lamps today, at least not many people use oil lamps today, but to bring this into a modern context for the boys and girls who are here, what good would a flashlight be without a battery? That's the picture. They took their lamps but without their oil. These five virgins, these five foolish girls might have had the best looking lamps in the world. They might have been the most expensive lamps. They might have been very ornate lamps, lamps that were admired by others. We're not told what kind of lamps they had. It doesn't really matter what kind of lamps they had. The important thing is that without the oil, the lamps were useless. I note in verse 3 that Christ says, they took no oil with them. Seems from that that they didn't care to take any oil. They neglected this. In fact, what's been underscored here with that little statement in verse 3, they took no oil, was that these five foolish virgins did not begin right. They did not begin right. Their problems did not begin when the word came that the bridegroom was on his way. Their problems began because they did not take oil with them. They did not begin right. There was something wrong from the very start. It was that crucial lack of oil that marked the critical distinction between the five wise and the five foolish virgins. They all looked the same. Apart from this vital piece of information, five had oil and five had none. And that detail in this story Five were wise and five were foolish. That detail in this story underscores a number of very, very important spiritual truths. For example, we discover from this statement in verse two, we discover that there are only two classes of people in this world. Some have argued that the 10 virgins in this parable represent Christians. And five, the five foolish, represent Christians who lose their salvation. The passage teaches nothing of the kind. The terms wise and foolish are speaking of the saved and the unsaved. These terms are speaking about those who are converted to Jesus Christ and those who are unconverted. The terms are speaking of those who are righteous and those who are unrighteous. In Matthew chapter 7, our Lord Jesus tells the story, the parable of the two builders. One builds his house upon the sand. He doesn't trouble himself with a foundation. The other builds his house upon the rock and the storm comes and the house that's built upon the sand collapses and creates the fall of it. The house that's built upon the rock stands firm. And Christ talks of those two builders, one being wise and one being foolish. And what he's doing there is describing the two classes of men and women in this world. Those who build for eternity upon Jesus Christ. and those who do not, those who have been made wise unto salvation and those who are still foolish in their sin, those who have been saved, those who are on sea, of those who are in Christ, those who are out of Christ. I understand people follow various religions in our day and generation. You have Protestant and Catholic. You have Muslim and Hindu and Christian. When all is said and done, there are only two classes of people. Whatever other labels people may have for themselves or they have for others, there are only two classes of people in this world, those who are spiritually alive in Jesus Christ and those who are still dead in their sin. That's all. That's all there is. You're either a child of God or you're a child of the devil. You're either in Jesus Christ and saved by grace or you're still in your sin making your way to a lost eternity. You're either saved or you're not, wise or foolish spiritually. We also learn here that these two classes of people will exist together until the end of the world. They will exist together until the end of the world. The wise and foolish virgins were together until the bridegroom came. And as Christ explains in Matthew 13, the wheat and the tares, there's another description of the saved and the lost, the wheat and the tares will be in the world until the end of time. In other words, within the visible church, there will be people who are genuinely saved and there will be people who are not. And it may be very difficult to tell them apart. The unconverted will live alongside the converted until Christ returns. But the most important truth here, the most important truth here is that what distinguishes one group of people from the other is the grace of God in the heart. The oil in the lamp is a picture of God's grace. It's a picture in some way of the indwelling Spirit of God in the life of a believer. Those who have been made wise unto salvation know that grace in their hearts. Christ dwells within us. We have been partakers of the divine nature have been saved by grace. The heart has been changed. The spiritual work has been done. The Spirit has regenerated us. Salvation has been given. Saving grace has been bestowed upon us. And there's life, and there's joy, and there's spiritual reality. A light shines If I can keep with the picture of the parable, a light shines because of the Spirit of God and the presence of Jesus Christ. And the life that we now live is the life of the Son of God who loved us and gave Himself for us. And the child of God has the grace of God because the grace of God has been given to Him in salvation. And He has the Spirit of God. He dwells in Christ and Christ dwells in Him. And it's altogether different. altogether different with the unsaved. The foolish, the unsaved, the unrighteous person knows nothing of the saving grace of God in Jesus Christ. They're still in spiritual darkness. They may profess to be Christian, but that's all it is, just a profession. And it's this that makes the difference. A person may be religious but not have Christ. A person may be moral. A person may be upright in their way of life. They may be decent, they may be hardworking, they may be kind, they may be pleasant to be around, they may profess to be a believer, but if they do not have saving grace in their hearts, if they do not have the Spirit of God, then all they have is a profession, and they are not counted among the Lord's people. My friend, it's a critical distinction. It's what makes the difference. It's what made the difference in this parable. The five foolish virgins had lamps, but they had no oil. And there are people tonight who have professions, but no Christ. And without Christ, you have nothing but an empty lamp. And I tell you tonight, it's a critical distinction. And nothing, nothing can substitute, nothing can replace the Spirit of Christ. Nothing equals the Spirit of Christ or the grace of God. You're either saved or you're not. Perhaps a good time for me to ask the question tonight, do you have the Spirit of Christ? Is Christ dwelling in you? Do you know His saving grace in your life? Paul says in Romans 8 verse 9, if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of His. It's the Spirit, it's the grace of God in Jesus Christ, the salvation that Christ gives, that Christ has purchased, that's what makes the difference. A critical distinction. There is in the parable also a crucial discovery, a crucial discovery. The five foolish virgins continued for a time as if all was well. But in Matthew 25, we have an explanation there that shows to us that their folly, their great lack was finally exposed or discovered. And note the details in this passage. This discovery, the discovery that they had no oil, was made when the bridegroom came. Look at verses six through to eight of the chapter. Notice what is said there. 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 off your oil, for our lamps are gone out. when the news was sounded forth that the bridegroom was coming. Up until that point, the lack of oil went unnoticed. No one knew. No one paid any attention to the reality of the situation with those five foolish virgins. But when the bridegroom appeared, the foolish virgins were forced to face up to the fact that all was not well with them. At that point, when he comes, When the sound of the bridegroom approaching is heard, it's His coming that brings this great problem, this massive difficulty, this great lack. It's His coming that brings that to light. It was His appearing that exposed the foolish virgins as being thoroughly unprepared for that night. It was His arrival. It was his arrival that caused the truth to come out. Prior to this, there was no sense of anything being wrong, no sense of alarm. But when the bridegroom came, the pretense gave way to reality. We are not ready. What's the lesson for us tonight? When Christ comes, and some commentators take this reference of the coming of the bridegroom either to mean Christ's second coming or the moment when death comes and we are called and we are summoned to meet Him. Either way, when Christ comes or when death comes, the true state of every heart, the true state of every person spiritually will be made known. No more hiding, no more pretending, no more disguising, no more hypocrisy. The true state of every heart will be made known. While the bridegroom tarried in this parable, the condition of the five foolish virgins was unknown. But when the bridegroom came, it changed. While Christ tarries, people can pretend. People can mingle with believers. People can attend God's house. They can identify with the church. They can act the part. They can give the impression that they are Christians. But the time will come. The time will come when the truth will come out. I want you to turn back in your Bible to Matthew chapter 7. Christ deals with a similar situation back there, Matthew chapter 7 verse 21. I think it's worthy to note here that he's dealing with something that's very common It's very common because he says, many will say to me in that day, look at verse 21. Not everyone that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven, but he that doeth the will of my father, which is in heaven, many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? And in thy name have cast out devils, and in thy name done many wonderful works. And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you. Depart from me, ye that work iniquity. The day will come. Many, many will say to me in that day, the day of the Lord, the day when the Lord returns, the day of judgment. In that day, up until that time, up until that time, many will take the Lord's name and they will call him Lord, and they will do these works, and they will think all is well between them and God. But when that day comes, their true state of their hearts will be exposed. There's a day when everything will be revealed. There's a day when men will be seen either to be in Christ or out of Christ by the great judge of all the earth. It's a very solemn thing a man or a woman or a young person can pretend now. and can pretend very successfully now and give the impression to all around them that it's well spiritually with them before God. But that lie will be exposed in the day of the great King. I want you to see also here that this discovery followed a time of carelessness and wasted opportunity. Verse 5 tells us that while the bridegroom tarried, all of the virgins slumbered and slept. They knew he was coming. They knew the bridegroom was coming, but they were negligent. The five wise virgins with the oil representing true believers, they were the same. They slept. That's a shame. That's a shame. Where was their zeal for the bridegroom? Where was their watching and waiting for His approaching? Where was their heart for Him? And sadly, so often it is with God's people that while the bridegroom tarries, we sleep. We leave our first love. We're careless. We're negligent. We grow spiritually cold and lethargic and indifferent, and it's a tragedy. Believer, let us guard against that. While the bridegroom tarries, let us guard against spiritual sleepiness. And the five foolish virgins, they were in a worse situation because they had no oil and they slept. While the bridegroom tarried, they had opportunity. They had opportunity to remedy this. But at last, their carelessness was exposed and cost them dearly. and how many tonight are like the five foolish virgins." Time is short. Time is short. Christ is coming. Our days on earth are numbered, and Moses has to pray that in Psalm 90. Teach us to number our days, because we don't like numbering our days. We think we're here forever. We don't want to think about the day of our death, and Moses writes that. as he's journeying through the wilderness, and every time they took up camp, they left corpses behind them, they left grieves behind them. He's faced with death throughout that 40-year period, and yet he has to pray that the Lord would teach the people to number their days. Why? That they might apply their hearts onto wisdom, that they might become wise. Our days are numbered. And there are millions of people tonight. The bridegroom's coming. They need to be saved. Without Christ they will be lost, and yet there are millions of people tonight spending their time, spending their energy, spending their efforts on things that count for nothing. But people take more care of their bodies than they do of their souls. But our bodies are not going to last forever. They think more of recreation than they do salvation. They want pleasure more than they want pardon for their sin. They want plans for life, but they make no plans for eternity. They think about financial things for the future, but they never think about spiritual things for eternity. They write a will. They write a will to leave their temporal possessions to their family. but never ponder their immortal souls and where they will be after death. I tell you, it's an age of spiritual carelessness. Millions, millions are sleepwalking their way into hell. This discovery exposed their absolute emptiness as well. The foolish virgins had nothing to meet their need. Look at verse 7 through to verse 9. Then all the virgins arose and trimmed their lamps, and the foolish said unto the wise, give us off your oil, for our lamps are gone out. And 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. They had no oil, they had taken no oil. And the five wise virgins could give them no oil. They had nothing. They have nothing. There's nothing about the five foolish virgins now but sheer emptiness. It's interesting to note verse seven. It tells us in verse three, and this is Christ's comment in this parable, that they that were foolish took their lamps and took no oil with them. So they took their lamps out to meet the bridegroom, probably to the bride's house, and then when noise is come that the bridegroom's approaching, then they take their lamps. But they have no oil with them because they brought no oil with them. But look at verse 7. These all, all the virgins arose and trimmed their lamps. So the five foolish virgins, when the news has come that the bridegroom is approaching, the five foolish virgins, they take their lamps and they begin to trim the wick. Why? They had taken no oil with them. They had taken no oil with them. They could trim their wicks all night and it would make no difference. They could have trimmed their lamps all night. But that trimming did nothing to change the fact they had no oil with them. They're just tinkering with the lamps. They're just playing with the lamps. But they had no oil and without the oil, the best trimmed lamp in the world. was worthless. What a picture of the false professor. Trimming their lamp, keeping the rules maybe, playing the part, doing their best, behaving like a Christian, but in reality there's nothing there. No evidence of grace, just a lamp, just a profession of salvation. And that really is the question. That really is the question. A person may profess to be saved, but is there evidence of grace in the heart? We are living in an age where many have reduced Christianity to a mere name, just a mere name. There are many who say, I am a Christian. But there is no sign that they really know Christ. No sign that they really know Christ. There's no hunger after Him. There's no desire for His Word. There's no prayer, no real desire for fellowship with Christ. No concept of consecration to Him. No concept of serving Him. There's no change in the life. That is, there's no growing more like Christ. There may be a trimming of the lamp. A trimming of the lamp, but no evidence of spiritual life. And if truth be told, there secretly remains a greater love for the world and the things of the world than there is for Jesus Christ. Let there be no private prayer. Let there be no love for God or others. Let there be no joy in spiritual things. Let there be no concern about sin. Let there be no desire to see the kingdom of God flourish. Let there be no interest In the church that Christ loves and gave himself for, there's nothing but an empty lamp of profession. Christ is not real. Christ is not real. Tell me, does that describe you tonight? You have a name. You have a name for being a Christian, but there's really nothing there. There's no light shining. There was no light coming from the lamps of these Phileas virgins because they had no oil. There was nothing to show, nothing, no evidence. If I change picture a little bit here, there was no fruit of the spirit. Those who have no saving grace have no evidence of saving grace in their lives. They have no good works. The Bible tells us to let our light so shine that our good works may be seen and that our heavenly Father may be glorified, but there can be no good works, no spiritual light shining if there's no oil. This parable is not addressed It's not addressed to open, blatant, wicked, immoral, perverse kind of people. It's addressed to professors of religion, to those who look the part, but they're not truly saved. Crucial discovery. Crucial discovery. We have no oil. crucial discovery for a non-CF person to discover at the last, at the final day, at the day of judgment, I have no Christ. I have no grace. I do not have the Spirit of God. I have no salvation. There is also here in the parable a complete disowning a complete disowning, not just a critical distinction and a crucial discovery. There is a complete disowning. Look at verses 8 to 12. The foolish said unto the wise, give us off 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. Well, 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 virgin, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us. But he answered and said, verily I say unto you, I know you not. There are a number of things to note there. Notice the darkness. Notice the darkness. The five foolish virgins were left in the dark. When the bridegroom came, I want you to think about this. When the bridegroom came, the only light that there was was from the lamps of the five wise virgins. And the men who were coming with the bridegroom, no doubt they had lamps most likely as well. But they go in to the marriage, we're told there in verse 10. They went in with him to the marriage, and the door was shut. And the foolish virgins are on the outside of the door, and they have no oil in their lamps. There's nothing but darkness for them. The foolish virgins are left in the dark. It's an awful thing to be left in spiritual darkness. In fact, you can trace the theme of darkness throughout Scripture, and the onesie a person is likened to one who is in the kingdom of darkness. His foolish mind is darkened, and then he's cast at the last day into utter darkness. It's an awful thing to be in spiritual darkness. It's an awful thing to be in eternal darkness. These five foolish virgins were left in the dark. Look at their disappointment, verse 11. Afterward came also the other virgins, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us. They thought they would be with the bridegrooms while they had gone out to meet him. They thought they would be with him, but the door was shut and it could not be opened. Could not be opened. I want you to think of that picture. There they are on the outside of that door. The marriage supper is taking place in that room, in that building. The door is shut, and the foolish virgins are on the wrong side of the door, and they're shut out from the bridegroom. They're not part of the bridegroom now. They're shut out from the wise virgins. They're not part of that great company, that great society. They're excluded from the wedding celebrations. While others are enjoying what has been provided, what has been prepared for them, the five foolish virgins receive nothing. And what distress, and what despair, and what disappointment must have filled their hearts. Others had entered in. They were excluded. Asahel Nettleton An American preacher once said this, the church is composed in part of hypocrites who will never be admitted to heaven. This solemn truth our Savior has most explicitly taught. He would have us all remember it and take warning. Many who belong to the same church, who profess the same creed, assemble in the same sanctuary, and commune at the same table will never meet in heaven. many who belong to the same church, who profess the same creed, who assemble in the same sanctuary, and sometimes sit and commune at the same table, will never meet in heaven. What's he saying? There are some who profess to be saved who are not truly saved. There's a darkness here. There's a disappointment here. I think the most sobering part is found in verse 12, and it marks a complete disowning. The bridegroom answers. as the five foolish virgins are crying, Lord, Lord, open to us. And now the parable changes from the scene of the wedding and the bridegroom being mentioned to the Lord's name being brought into this, and they're crying, Lord, Lord, open to us. And He answered and said, Verily I say unto you, or truly I say unto you, I know you not. And Christ will make it clear on that great day that you are not His. The language here is the language of union. I know you're not. It's an intimate union that's in focus here in Christ saying, you're not in union with me. You're not my bride. I am not your Savior, I am not your Redeemer, I am not your mediator, I am not your friend, I am not your advocate, I am not your Savior, I am not yours, and you are not mine, and Christ will disown, He will disown the sinner. It's a sobering statement. You find it in Matthew chapter seven, you find it later on in Matthew 25 as well. You may claim, you may claim to own Christ, but Christ knows your heart. My friend tonight, if you die without His saving grace, if you die without His saving grace, He will declare that He never knew you. It will be a day of great disowning. It will be a day that marks an everlasting departure, an everlasting division, an everlasting distress, an everlasting destruction, an everlasting damnation, an everlasting doom. I never knew. The lack of preparation on behalf of the five foolish virgins did not stop the marriage taking place. It just simply meant that they had no part in that. God, by His omnipotent hand, will shut the door and false professors will be shut out. and shall wait forever, disowned to the horrible sentence of a horrible hell that will never end. The five foolish virgins. There are five wise virgins here who represent for us and speak to us of those who are saved, those who have grace, those who do know the Spirit of Christ, And there's the gospel. There is mercy with the Lord. You can be saved. The Lord Jesus Christ is a glorious Savior. The Spirit of God, the Spirit of God is able to take a vile, hell-deserving sinner and save that person by God's grace. That shuts me up into the truth that we all, every single one of us, need Jesus Christ as our Savior. In this congregation tonight there are some who are wise. Wise in the sense that we have been saved by grace. We have been made wise onto salvation for all of us are born in a state of spiritual foolishness. Some here know Christ as their Savior. There was a time, a point in life when we trusted Christ as our Savior. We've been born again of the Spirit of God. But there are some who are not, and you need Christ. No one else can save you. no one else can meet the need of your soul, and I plead with you tonight, do not pretend it all is well and think that you can get by just by pretending. And you know in your heart of hearts it's not real. You know in your mind, you know in your soul that what you profess is just empty. Christianity is real. Christ is real. Salvation is real. The Spirit of God is real. Grace is real. Pardon is real. The new birth is real. The new life in Christ is real. It's Christ you need. And I pray tonight you'll come to Him, forsaking your sin, trusting Christ, forsaking all other hope and all other trust and all other confidence and putting your entire trust and faith in Christ alone for salvation. And when the noise and the news comes, the bridegroom is coming. It's well with your soul. And you enter into that married supper of the Lamb, and you shall be forever with the Lord. May the Lord save you tonight for Jesus' sake. It's binary word of prayer. Father, we thank Thee for Thy presence. We thank Thee for Thy Word tonight. O God, I pray that I will take Thy Word and apply it to hearts. Lord, I knowest the hearts of all who have gathered here tonight from the pulpit to the pew. Lord, do a searching work. There are some here who are not truly saved. Lord, have mercy on them. Save them by Thy grace. Take thy word tonight, Lord, and apply it with power to their hearts. And I pray that Christ, the great heavenly bridegroom, might have all the glory and all the honor. Bless the boys and girls who are here, Lord. Oh, Father, save them, we pray. The young people, too, have mercy on them. And all who have gathered in this service, all who have watched online as well. Lord, let thy word find a resting place in every heart. may it bring forth fruit for thy glory. We pray in thy name and for thy sake. Amen.