In this sermon, the preacher focuses on the parable of the ten virgins from Matthew 25. He emphasizes the importance of being prepared for the coming of the bridegroom, which represents the return of Jesus. The parable teaches that some were wise and prepared with oil for their lamps, while others were foolish and did not have enough oil. The preacher urges the audience to understand the central truth of the parable, which is that they should be watchful and ready for the return of Jesus, as no one knows the exact day or hour.

Thank you for coming out on this night, and the atmosphere that's here tonight is so beautiful. I think if you just had a little encouragement, you'd take off, wouldn't you? And go to be with this wonderful Lord Jesus. He is coming soon. Oh, so soon. He's coming. Do you believe that? Yes. Yes, wonderful Jesus, wonderful Jesus. Thank you for what you have done in each one of our hearts and lives. Thank you for your presence with us here now. Jesus, just get your will done, fulfill your whole purpose in bringing us together tonight. And as we open this sacred book, will you please open up its treasures to us? In Jesus' sacred name we ask it, amen. And everybody says, amen. Thank you, Brother Cuisenberry, it's nice to be with you and Sister Cuisenberry tonight. Open your Bibles to this wonderful 25th chapter of Matthew. I've been waiting on the Lord, and I feel his word to us tonight is this parable of the ten virgins. Let's read it. Matthew 25, beginning with the first verse. Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins which took their lamps and went forth to meet the bridegroom. 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. 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, our lamps are gone out. But the wise answered, saying, Not so, lest there be not enough for us in 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. Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of Man cometh. There are a lot of interpretations of this parable, but there's in every parable a simple proof. And if we get the central proof, we'll hear what the Lord wants to say to us. There is this word that I want you to carry out of this meeting tonight. I want you to, I want you to hold it in your mind. I want you to think about it, eat it, drink it, meditate on it, live by it, live in it. The bridegroom is coming. The bridegroom is coming. Say it, everybody. The bridegroom is coming. Oh, thank you, brother. Thank you. We heard that. Yes, the bridegroom is coming. Tell everybody that you know. And let the whole world know it. Let everybody hear it. The bridegroom is coming, and he's coming very soon. This is no fable either. It's no fable. What, what glory is true? And then there are those who say, but it, this is only a parable. A parable is a story that's thrown alongside of truth to clarify the truth. But this is one of the Lord's parables, and he used it. And there was a truth that he wanted us to get, or he wouldn't have used the parable and used parable form. Jesus always used the simplest language when he spoke. There's no complicated terms in any of his messages, in any of the four Gospels, in any of his truth, but simple language and, and small words. He wanted us to hear what he said, and he spoke the language of the people. Simple truth, but oh, how meaningful and profound. Proof that we must have the Holy Spirit to open to us and reveal it to us and illuminate that truth. But he gave it in just as simple a message and word as possible. So carry that with you. Greet each other with the truth. The Bridegroom is coming. Instead of saying, good morning, how are you? The Bridegroom is coming. Until it rings in every part of our being in this hour, because we, we really are right on the verge of the coming of the Bridegroom. I believe he could come any time now. He really could. He really could. And one of these days it's going to happen. It's going to happen. All right. In this parable, the Bridegroom is, is absent, but everybody knows he's coming. He, he is such a Bridegroom as to make every, make it available to everyone to be ready for his coming. He's such a Bridegroom as this. In speaking to these disciples to whom he's giving this message, they ask him questions. I wish they had asked him more questions. There, there, there are things that Jesus taught, things that he said, truths, that if those disciples had ears to hear, oh, I wish they had asked him many more questions. They said, when shall these things be? This is part of the Olivet Discourse. And what shall be the sign of thy coming in the 24th chapter? What shall be the end of the world? And Jesus told them there would be certain signs, and they could know, they could know the time of his return. Today he's doing everything that he can do to alert our hearts, to awaken us, to let us know that he's coming. Every newspaper, every television report, news report, every time you turn on the radio, you don't listen but a very few minutes until the message is there and it's plain and it's being thundered at us from every billboard. Not just saying Jesus is coming soon, but he told us all the signs to look for when you see these things, these things, and a lot of it isn't very pleasant, it isn't very holy, it isn't very righteous. But when you see these things, look up, lift up your voice, your redemption draweth nigh. And that's just heralded at us from every direction. The Bridegroom, the Bridegroom is coming. I think it is always wisdom to look at the Bridegroom, talk about him. He's the one who's coming. And before we get into all that he says and so on, let's look at who's saying it. There never was a Bridegroom like this Bridegroom. Ooh, ooh. Now I'm just about getting ready to shout. There never was a Bridegroom like this Bridegroom. Never, ever. He's a Lamb, he's a Redeemer, he's a High Priest Bridegroom. He is all your heart could ever ask for. He is all human need could ever cry for. He left all. He gave all. He is all that you could ever dream about or desire or long for. And he promises us in the end, in the end, every dream you ever have had concerning a Bridegroom, he will satisfy. Every thought, every desire, I can prove that to you in the Scriptures. When the Bride comes into his presence, it says, he himself shall feed. And this is not he's going to pass out some kind of food. He himself is the food of the Bride. From all times he's the bread of life. And the marriage supper of the Lamb begins in our hearts and lives the day we begin to feed on Jesus. Say his name everybody. Praise the Lord. Praise the Lord. This is a marriage that death will never dissolve. This Bridegroom's bride will never ever be a mourning widow, but it's forever and ever and ever. And we don't even have to say until death do us part. There is no death. There is no parting. But throughout the countless ages of eternity, she's his and he is hers forever and ever. I love what John the Revelator says, I heard as it were the voice of a great multitude, and as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of mighty thunderings, saying, Alleluia for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth. Let us be glad and rejoice and give honor to him, for the marriage of the Lamb has come at last, and his wife hath made herself ready. Do you know God has been preparing for the marriage of his Son since before the foundations of the world were laid? He's been preparing for this wedding. This is what the whole Bible is all about. From the time this man was created, before he was created, when it was in the heart of God, before the foundations of the world was laid, it was ordained that this Son of God should have a bride. So way back there, God began to plan the wedding. Oh, there'll never be a wedding like that one. Wasn't it lovely to see Prince Charles and Lady Diane? She looked like a lady, didn't she? And it was beautiful. They were so handsome, so royal, so in love. A storybook, that's a storybook wedding compared to the one we're headed for. All right, suppose on her wedding day she had awakened and realized it was her wedding day, but she hadn't made preparation for it. She hadn't made any preparation for it, and she really was not ready to be united to this prince in marriage. Suppose that had happened. Had she not fully prepared, had she not made ready, the whole world would have rejected her and said, she's not worthy of such a bridegroom. Right? All right, this is what happens here. Ten virgins are called, and there's a reason why the number ten is used, there's a reason why it's not five or six or eight or ten, the number, or seven. Ten is, the number ten is the number of completion. Seven is the number of perfection. But ten is the number of completion. And the bride is going to be a complete bride. She is going to be everything his heart desires. She is going to be all that the Father ordained the bride should be. She's going to be that. Should Jesus tarry, it will only be because there are some tracings, some etchings yet to be made on the bride. Jesus won't come because the Jews have gone back to Jerusalem. That's not what's going to bring him. It doesn't matter how many Jews go to Jerusalem or how many Jews stay out of Jerusalem. This is part of the last hour tapestry and all that's going on. But the thing that's going to bring Jesus back is his wife hath made herself ready. And when she's ready, he's coming. He's coming. And God started this preparation before the foundations of the world were laid. And he's working. The Father is working. This marvelous bridegroom, this wonderful Son of God, oh, what preparation he has made. You know, there are many novels written and fairy tales about some prince, wealthy, handsome, beautiful prince, who left his royal estate and went off into some foreign country and out into some village and adorned himself with the dress of the common people because there was some little village girl that he was trying to woo out there. And so he laid aside his true identity to win her and raise her out of that estate that he found her in and make her his queen. Well, there's a lot of that in novels and fiction and so on. But how many of you ever heard that fact is more wonderful than fiction? And this is a fact. This is a fact of this royal prince, the bridegroom. Just think of who he is and think of what he has done. Think of the journey that he took from a foreign land. He certainly did. And the distance that he traveled. Who can tell how far the world traveled to become flesh and to be clothed with human nature? Who can tell how far the summer speaks of the nine months by the way traveling out of the bosom of the Heavenly Father to lie on the bosom of a little 15-year-old girl? This is God. God did this. Out of the bosom of eternity, God, almighty God, gave up all and left the bosom of eternity, the bosom of the Father, to lie on the bosom of a little 15-year-old girl. History tells us Mary was 15 years old. God trusting his wonderful son to the arms of a 15-year-old girl. Oh, what faith! What trust! What purpose! What a bridegroom! What a bridegroom! And talking about he's the God of the eternal ages. I love everything about the Incarnation, everything about it. It was my privilege to, for 25 years at Bethel, it was my privilege to give the Christmas message every year for 25 years, and in 25 years I never gave the same message the second time. And there's so much in the Incarnation, there's so much of the coming of this marvelous Christ to us. Our bridegroom, this is who he really is, but oh how he disguised himself to come to us. And there's so much in the Incarnation, so much to talk about. The eternal God of the ages. Talk about laying aside his royal robes, he became nothing more than a little eensy weeny tiny seed in a virgin's womb. This is our God, our God, on his way to us, coming to get us, coming to purchase us, coming to redeem us, coming to redeem us. And all that, he, he, one thing he prayed before he went to Calvary, that God would give him back the glory that he had with the Father before the world was. And he gave up all that glory he had with the Father before the world was to come down here to a feeding trough in a cow stable. Talk about facts being more wonderful than fiction. This is a fact. God! You can understand, I can understand a little bit of why the Jews wouldn't receive him as their Messiah. They were looking for a deliverer to deliver them from Egypt, deliver them from Roman bondage, deliver them. And here's a little tiny baby lying in a feeding trough in a cow stable? And we are to believe this is our Messiah lying in a feeding trough? A baby? Can't talk, can't walk, can't see? This is our Messiah? Come to us! He had to come where we were. I'm not really preaching a Christmas message tonight, but I'd love to tell you why, why he was born in a stable, why he laid in a cow's feeding trough. There's a reason why, why he was found in that manger. There's a reason why. There's a reason why for everything God does. Every stroke of his pen, everything that he does, there's a reason for it. Hallelujah! Gave up 10,000 times, 10,000 angels, singing his praise and worshiping and adoring him. He gave that up and came to a mob that crucified him and hung him on a tree. Do you think we should weep and quarrel and complain because of what we have to give up? Please say something. Oh, what a bridegroom! Well, that's the bridegroom in his humiliation, isn't it? All right, that's the bridegroom in his humiliation. He's not going to stay there forever, but I'm just telling you the trip that he took to come where we were. This prince that came and disguised himself. If that isn't a disguise of who he really is, who he really is, and came where we were to dress in our clothes human nature, took on him human nature. The Word became flesh and dwelt among us. A little tiny baby. Sometimes when people say they're afraid of God, they're afraid of him, they're afraid to receive this baptism in the Holy Ghost, they're afraid of the power of God. God told me, you tell them that's why I came to Earth, a little tiny baby, because nobody's afraid of a baby. And they don't have to be any more afraid of my power and this wonderful power of God in the baptism of the Holy Ghost coming upon you. You don't have to be any more afraid of that than a little tiny baby. He won't hurt us, he'll only heal us. Amen. He'll only mend, mend our wounds. And then he says, if you will only come. He has promised, he has promised to heal, to mend, to salvage, to rescue, to do for us everything that we needed. And we needed everything. We needed everything. When he found us, every one of us were deep in debt. Right? We owed such a debt. He took it and paid it all. Didn't he? We were under sentence of death. What did he do? Died for us. I'll take your death. I'll take your death and he died for us. If there's a sinner here tonight, honey, if you accept his death for you, he'll save you, he'll redeem you, he'll forgive you. But if you don't accept his death for you, you have to die for your own sins. He died. He died for us. We were lost, oh so lost, clad in rags. And he took off his royal robes so he could clothe us and attire us in a robe of righteousness, a robe of righteousness that the angels will marvel at. They'll just marvel at it. The bride clothed in pure white linen, which is the righteousnesses of the saints. Hallelujah! We needed to be washed. And he poured out his own blood because the sin was so deep that nothing else would reach it. It took his precious blood to reach the depths of sin and cleanse out our wound. But he did. He did. And then finally to winter, he agonizes with a broken heart in Gethsemane. And then he says, Father, if she'll only come, I'll endow her with all my goods. Everything that I inherit from the Father will be hers. Honey, you are millionaires! Oh, you sure act like you're thrilled. Multimillionaires! Multimillionaires endowed, endowed heirs of God and joint heirs with Jesus Christ of all that he inherits with the Father. I'm so glad, I'm so glad that says we're heirs of God. You know, the singing book says we're heirs of the things of God. I've got a mansion, a heart, and a crown. And then somebody wants to make it a heap, big harp, and they sing, put her hats and frowns and springs. What are you going to do with a harp like that? You couldn't even reach it. But that's different. Yeah, but that's the singing book. But, yeah, but he doesn't say that we're heirs of the things of God, but we're heirs of God, his life, his nature, his glory, his power, his wealth. Oh, but he is heirs of himself. Well, shout now. And join theirs with Jesus Christ. Honey, we're going to sit there on the throne like him! Of him! Like him! What he is! Wake up! What he is! What he is! A bride! Worthy! Oh, such a bride, girl! One! She has to be one with him. She has to be worthy of him. And this is why it takes our whole lifetime for him to work in us. Work on us! I'm far from perfect yet. What about you? Yes. Yes, it takes a whole lifetime for him to work on us and work in us. Oh, I don't want him to stop. I don't want him to take a recess, but just keep on. Yes. Amen. Working with us. Hallelujah. This lover divine. Well, they say he's the fairest of ten thousand. What do you say? He's the prince, like this, of all the kings of the earth. He's the prince. He's of all the kings of the earth. He's the prince. That means he's the fairest, he's the youngest. Everything about him. He's the prince of them all. None can compare with this bridegroom. Perfect in every detail. A bridegroom without spot? No bride in here can say that about her bridegroom. He's pretty wonderful, but she can't say he's without spot. No, he isn't, sister. No, you hold his hand, but he's not without spot. If he was without spot, he'd have left us today. The first one that gets ready, they're gone. He won't keep us here one moment after we're ready. He won't let us stay here to be spoiled. He'll get us out of here just as soon as he can, but we're all here. What does that say? Not ready yet. We're not ready yet. He's still working on us. Still working on us. Ah, hallelujah. How precious. How precious. There were ten of these virgins, and only five of them made it. That's the sad part. Only five of them made it. They all received the same invitation. They all had the same truth. They all knew there was a bridegroom. They all knew the bridegroom was coming. They all knew they had to make preparations. They all knew they had to be ready. They all sat under the same truth. They all knew that. All ten of them. All ten of them. And all ten of them, in the beginning, started out. But he that endures to the end shall be saved. They all, ten, started out together. Now, I want you to see that what happens to these ten, the whole ten, it has absolutely nothing to do with works. It has absolutely nothing whatsoever to do with our service for the Lord. Nothing whatsoever. The whole parable is a parable of relationship to the bridegroom. There's a difference between our works and our relationship to the bridegroom. She is the whole thought here is dealing with the bride, with the bride, and it's a bridal relationship, and nothing, nothing to do. We are rewarded for works, but we're not united to the bridegroom because of our works, but because of our relationship. And so they all had this hope of meeting the bridegroom, but their attitudes were so different. They all went out to meet him. They all had lamps. You have to have a lamp. And they went out to meet the bridegroom. I've seen these lamps. In fact, it was my privilege to attend. The first time I went to Israel, it was Palestine then, 40 years ago. And in Palestine, this Ramallah that is much in the news today, that's on the Arab side, that is one of the most colorful villages in Palestine. The women there will work on their wedding garment for a whole lifetime, embroidering it and getting it ready. Isn't that a beautiful symbol? But as young girls, they start embroidering and working on their wedding gown. A whole lifetime they're working on it. And it was my privilege to attend a wedding of a wealthy, had to do with wealthy people in the village of Ramallah. And I saw this whole thing just as it is in the Scriptures. Before I went over there, I prayed, Lord, please let me attend a wedding. There's one thing I ask that you let me attend an Eastern wedding. And he just arranged that for me, arranged for a couple to get married. So I can see that wedding. And most Eastern weddings are at night. They're at night. And you get that? Most of them are at night. They're at night. And so they have to have these lamps, these lamps. And it's a long, they're just a long, straight pole. And up at the top of this pole is like a bowl. And that's where the oil is carried, in that bowl. And then they put a wick, we call it a wick, it's usual, they just use rags usually, and put a rag in there and light that rag. And it burns as long as there's oil in that lamp. It burns. And of course they're not too, those bowls aren't too big. And the bridegroom tarried. And they know there's a possibility of this. So they have to carry an extra supply of oil with them. And they keep replenishing the oil that's in that bowl. And so they carry this extra, extra vessel of extra oil and keep the supply. And so five of these virgins carried the extra supply of oil with them. You have to have abundance supply. Five of them carried that extra supply and the foolishness didn't take any of that extra oil with them. And that's where they got caught. Now they knew they had to have extra oil. They knew that. They, they, they, all of them knew the truth. All of them knew that they knew the wedding would be at night. And we keep talking about the midnight hour, the midnight hour when Jesus will come. And they knew they had to have plenty of oil. They knew that. They knew that they had to have light because it was going to be night and they would have to have this and they had to prepare. And if they didn't prepare, that reflects on their relationship to the bridegroom. They didn't honor his word that he was coming that night, that the marriage was going to take place that night. It reflects on what they think of his word. And that's what I said, suppose Princess Diane hadn't prepared, the whole world would have.