Mike Bickle emphasizes the necessity of cultivating intimacy with God through the metaphor of oil in the parable of the wise and foolish virgins from Matthew 25. He explains that oil represents the empowering presence of the Holy Spirit, which is essential for fulfilling the first and second commandments. Bickle warns against the dangers of neglecting this connection, as many ministries may falter without the necessary spiritual fuel. He encourages believers to prioritize their relationship with God, asserting that true wisdom lies in being energized by the Spirit to effectively love God and others. Ultimately, he calls for a watchful heart, attentive to the movements of the Holy Spirit, especially in the context of the end times.

Thank you, Justin. Okay, let's turn to Matthew chapter 25. This is one of the real highlight chapters in the Word of God on the first commandment, on growing in intimacy with God and empowering our heart, getting our heart empowered for the long haul walking in the first commandment. Father, we thank you for the Word of God. We ask you for your blessing upon it even now, in Jesus' name, amen. Revelation, not revelation, Roman numeral one. Roman numeral one. Here on this 12th session of the first commandment course, it's our final course, we're talking about the parable of the wise and the foolish virgins in Matthew chapter 25. Now that's the classic chapter. If this is a new chapter to you, this is the classic parable in which Jesus exhorts us to the value of getting oil. And oil speaks of the presence of the Holy Spirit touching our heart and the strengthening of our spirit, the connection of our heart to the Holy Spirit. This is so we're energized so we can do the first and the second commandment. Now getting oil is not the same thing as the first commandment. I mean there is a love dimension to getting oil, but getting oil is an exhortation to get our spirits energized. And the implication is without an energized spirit, we can't do the first commandment and therefore we definitely can't do the second commandment. Because some people confuse the process of getting oil, sitting before the Lord as their first commandment time and it isn't. That is your humility time. That's when you say, Lord I'm weak and broken. Without being energized, I can't walk out the first commandment and I'm acknowledging that and I'm reflecting it in my schedule. That's why I'm sitting before you. And so the idea that I hear regularly, I'm in the prayer room, that's my first commandment time, but now I got to go out of the prayer room to do my second commandment time completely a wrong concept. In the prayer room for the intimacy, you're getting your spirit energized so that when you leave the prayer room you can do the first commandment and the second commandment. Yes, you do say I love you in the process, but the first commandment is far more than the whispers of I love you in your heart being energized. The first commandment is really maintained in the triggers of real life outside of a personal prayer time. That's where the first commandment is tested. That's where it's manifest and that's where it grows. And so I don't want, the reason I'm saying this because some people feel guilty in an inappropriate way because they need to get their spirit energized and they think if I'm really loving, I'll forget the getting energized part and I'll go out in love. That's like saying I'm not going to bother putting gas in my car. I'm just going to drive. And the driving of the car is where the first and the commandment are. The getting the gas is called humility. It's called I need help if I'm really going to walk this out. And so in Matthew chapter 25, that's the the real classic chapter in the Bible, the parable that is calling us to have our spirits energized by the Holy Spirit and to have a heart connect so we can walk out the two great commandments. Now the context, very important. I mean this is a magnificent passage, Matthew 24 and 25. It's Jesus's final teaching. He's speaking to the twelve, I mean besides the upper room. Here he is still, he's out in the city at the Mount of Olives right there in the city of Jerusalem and he gives his final teaching right there and it's about the end times, Matthew 24. But then Matthew 25 he applies the end time teaching particularly to leadership. Now it applies to everybody but in its context he's applying it to training leaders that will function in an appropriate and a godly way and in a victorious way in the context of the end times. Matthew 24 is all about the end times. Matthew 24, Jesus says what's going to happen. Matthew 25 is what we're going to do in our personal lives because of what is happening in the end times. So Matthew 24, what's going to happen in the in the nations. Matthew 25, what are you going to do about it personally in your walk with God. So the two chapters go together. It's one teaching and we end up getting confused in these chapters if we separate them from one another. Now it's okay to study them separate but understand in any one of these three parables in Matthew 24 and 25 you must link it back to the end time topic because that's what Jesus is talking about in Matthew 24. And it's been, these teachings have been relevant for two thousand years since Jesus gave them. But they have their greatest relevance in the generation he returns. These were teaching specifically for the unique dynamics of the end times. So these parables were tailor made I believe for this generation. So you, my point being you want to take these in a special priority and with a special seriousness for these, for this hour of history. Again it's two chapters but it's one teaching that Jesus is giving. In parable one Jesus is, is telling them that his delay may be shorter than they expect. Parable two, his delay may be longer than some expect. In parable three the delay may be harder than some people expect. So to some people the delay will be shorter. It will surprise them. To others the delay will be longer and they'll be tempted with burnout and, and worn out. And, and others the, the delay is harder and that's what these three parables and you can read the descriptions of those parables with a little bit more detail on your own. Okay let's go to paragraph B. In the end times particularly right here in Matthew 24 and 25 this is a classic example that in the end times the Holy Spirit will emphasize three specific aspects of Jesus's personality and Jesus's ministry. Now he's gonna, he's going to release revelation on all the facets of Jesus that's revealed in the Bible but there's three particular ones that the Bible identifies as, as having a heightened focus in the generation the Lord returns. That being Jesus as bridegroom, king and judge. Now he's always been a bridegroom. He's always been a king and he's always, he always is the judge. I mean from his ministry, his earthly ministry from the cross and resurrection he's always had these three ministries. But there's one generation where he will function in these three in a manifest way, in a heightened way, in a way far beyond any other generation in history. And in Matthew 24 and 25 Jesus reveals himself bridegroom, king and judge. We're going to find out tomorrow as we do the book of Revelation Matthew 19. He reveals himself bridegroom, king and judge. It's the same thing. Matthew 24 and 25 tonight and then tomorrow night in the book of Revelation series it just so happens those are the two premier chapters. One of the gospels, one in Revelation where Jesus shows himself bridegroom, king and judge. So those chapters they actually parallel each other and they're really good to study together. Okay what's the context of Matthew 24 is paragraph c, the tribulation. Jesus is talking about he says in Matthew 24 verse 29, immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun and the moon will be darkened. Verse 31 he'll send forth his angels and he will rapture the elect. He will gather the elect and this is after the tribulation of those days because as you know we are here for the tribulation. Matter of fact through the prayers of the saints we are releasing the tribulation. The tribulation is not something done to us but rather something released through us through prayers because the tribulation is something that is inflicted on the antichrist by the praying church under Jesus's leadership. And so the saints are here and that's a new point to some folks but those of you that have been around here for more than a week you've heard it a handful of times. So that's not new to you but the point I want to focus on is that the context is the tribulation judgments, the difficulties, the stress that's going around in the nation in paragraph d in context to the tribulation the advice that Jesus gives the most is this simple word watch. Now this almost sounds overly simplistic like you might you know when I first began to connect with this idea I was a little bit thrown off by it. I go now Jesus you know I was a young pastor when I this first I connect with this idea I go here we are you're teaching us about the tribulation and the main exhortation you have he gives it several times and he gives it in other teachings when he's talking about the end times. Matter of fact he gives it in the book of revelation several times Jesus himself does. He says this same word not only in Matthew 25 in these parables but also in revelation and in other end time teachings where Jesus is speaking he says watch therefore. He says it over and over. Matter of fact in paragraph d I give a bunch of verses and it's like Jesus isn't that a little simplistic? The judgments of God are shaking the nation. The antichrist is raging in his persecutions against the church. All these these pressures are taking the glory of God's being poured out the greatest end time revival history and the main thing you have to say is watch. I mean one guy would think Jesus would say store up water, store up food, store up guns, get your cave out of the wilderness. No he doesn't say anything like that. Another guy would think he might have some other advice. He gives this seemingly oversimplistic pastoral advice. Watch. Like that's it? You do that. You get connected to the Holy Spirit in a fresh, in a vibrant way and then all the information you will need will come to you as you stay in the Word. He's saying this because if you stay connected to the Word, to the Holy Spirit, if you watch and you keep an open Bible because watching involves looking at the Bible too. It involves connecting in your heart with the Holy Spirit and it involves look with an open Bible. Are you telling me Jesus if I stay connected to you and keep my Bible open which I mean by that you're reading it. That's what I mean. I don't mean just keep your Bible open somewhere. I mean you're reading it. You're watching. You're searching out the holy transcript of God's heart. That's what the Bible is. It's the holy transcript of God's soul. You're studying what the Bible says. You're connecting to the Holy Spirit. You have a watchful spirit. Your heart is attentive. That's what it means to watch. An attentive heart. You're paying attention to the Holy Spirit's movement on your heart. We call that fellowshipping with the Holy Spirit. So you're watching the movements of the Holy Spirit in your own heart. You're watching the signs of the times. An anointed observer. You're paying attention with the eyes of faith what's happening in the community. In the society. And you're watching what the Word of God says. So you're watching internal the movements of the Spirit. You're paying attention to what he's whispering. You're watching external in terms of what's happening in society. An anointed an anointed observer. And you're watching the Word of God. Those three components are involved in this word watch. So you're an anointed observer of the Word. An anointed observer of society. An anointed observer of the movings of the Spirit on your own heart. So that's what watching. Watching's a huge word. And after you watch you respond with prayer. You respond with simple prayers like I love you. Help me. Tell me what you really mean by this verse. I don't get it. The simple prayers. I'm not talking about you know real fancy prayers. Just simple prayers like okay I'm watching. I'm watching the movements of the Spirit of my heart. I'm watching society. I'm watching the Word of God. I'm watching. I have an attentive watchful heart. And I'm responding in prayer with some I love you's. I love you's. I love you's. And help help help help. And what about this? And what about that? Simple dialogue with the Spirit while you're watching. If you do that. Here's what Jesus is saying. If you get connected to me that way you'll have all the information you need on time. And you'll have all the courage you need to walk out the information I give you. But if you don't watch you'll get the wrong information and you won't have courage. You'll have fear. But if you do watch your heart will you will get direction. And your heart will be empowered where you won't yield to compromise. This is the hugest exhortation. Watch therefore. Again in my early days of pastoring I thought Jesus you're not. I mean I know you mean well but this is a little simplistic. I mean come on. The most difficult troublesome and glorious hour in history because of the greatest revival. That's really all you have to say is your main point is watch. He goes yes. And I know a lot more than you know. And if you do what I tell you you will be surprised. You'll have the right direction and the courage to obey it. And you'll have the anointing to operate in ministry. As well you'll have the whole deal. Beloved whatever you do in the generation the Lord returns do not neglect watching. That's the in the book of Revelation He says it several times. You better watch. You better be in the place to have your spirit energized. Again watching is not synonymous with the first commandment. It is the gasoline for the car for the engine. The first commandment is what we do with that fuel. So in a place of humility you must say I need fuel. I need oil in the engine so to speak. I cannot go out and about in such perilous times and such glorious times without a fresh anointing of the Spirit. And people that seek to be about this without taking time to connect with God in the end of the day even though they might have real good motives for being out there doing so much. At the end of the day they're arrogant before God. Because they think they can pull it off without taking time to watch. They think they can do this thing right disconnected from the vine. That the branch somehow will bear fruit. And Jesus says in this one time in history I promise you you better be connected. And that's a statement of humility. If you really want to be of use to others stay connected. My point being don't let anybody come by and talk you out of your stay connected time. Telling you well hey what about love? What about loving God? Loving people say that's why I'm here because I'm humble enough to know I can't walk love out without an empowering. That's what this parable is all about. Okay uh top of page two. And by the way on the internet I this is a four page handout on the internet. I have about a 10 page 8 or 10 something like that. A lot more detail to this. For those of you that are saying hey I want to really get into this uh chapter. And you really need to. If you're living in Matthew 24 generation which is the end times. Which I believe you are. You really want the three parables of this teaching. You really want these to be something that you are overly familiar with. Not kind of like now what are those parables again? I get mixed up which are which. You really want to know these three parables. This is Jesus preparing the end time church with his wisdom. And so as teachers many of you will be teachers. Some of you are teachers now. Whether you teach one on ten or one on a thousand. It doesn't matter. You're teachers. You want to teach these three parables over and over and over again. You want to be experts. Whatever that means. On these three parables. I mean you want to go deep on these three. You don't want to be uh unfamiliar with the three parables that were given particularly for the glory and the crisis of the generation the Lord returns. Okay top of page two. We're going to look. Now Jesus is going to define what wise leadership is. He says now this is what wisdom is. I'm going to tell you. He's going to give 13 verses. And many sincere leaders. He's talking to leaders specifically. Although it applies to everybody of course. Many sincere leaders. They do not take time to be wise. According to Jesus's definition. They are. Their activity outruns their resource in God. And though that looks noble. At the end of the day it's presumptuous and it's proud. To get activity that outruns our resource. The reality of the strengthening of our heart. At the end of the day it is presumptuous. To think we could do it in a hostile time in history without a extra strengthening of our spirit. It says in Matthew 25 verse 1 1 and 2. Then the kingdom of heaven shall be likened to 10 virgins who took their lamps. They went out to meet the bridegroom. Five of these virgins were wise and five were foolish. So he lays it out. First of all he likens these 10 ministries to virgins. All of them. Now this is the gift of salvation. Every one of these are believers that have been made clean by the blood of Jesus. I don't care what you have done before God because of Jesus. He has cleansed you as a chaste. Which happened yesterday? If you will receive the gift of salvation he will receive you in bright cleanness as a gift. You will stand before him with that kind of confidence. Wow that is an awesome truth. So Jesus says tap into lay hold of who you are before me. But the point I'm making here these are all believers. Point two paragraph b. They all have lamps. Lamps in the new testament one that's used symbolically speaks of ministries. Lamp you're shining the light for others on the pathway. Whether it's dark you're bringing the light for others. Your lamp is shining. So they all have functioning ministries. They have an anointing that's helping other people. All 10 of them. So they're starting off well. Paragraph c. They go out to meet the bridegroom. They all have revelation of Jesus as bridegroom. They not only go to the bridegroom conferences they teach at them and lead worship at them. These are guys and gals that are connected to Jesus in the bridegroom revelation. Now much of the body of Christ around the world is not connected to Jesus that way. They see him as savior which is fantastic. They see him as healer. Heal their body even their heart. That's awesome. They see him as provider. He gives them money every now and then. Cool. But they don't see him as bridegroom as one who has deep desire for them personally. Well these guys these 10 ministries men and women they're not only born-again believers, virgins. Not only do they have anointed lamps that bring light. They have revelation of the heart of God. Again they don't just go to the conference, the bridegroom conferences. They don't just write the bridegroom songs. They sing them and they teach at the conferences. They're really into this reality of Jesus's heart. My point is it's people like you. People like me. We're going for it. Then paragraph d. Jesus said then. That's the very first word. It says then the kingdom will be likened to 10 virgins. So the question you ask is when is then? You know then what are you talking when? Well you go to the verse before. The word then points back to Matthew 24. In the end times then the kingdom of God will function this way. Now interesting for 2,000 years of church history never has the Holy Spirit universally emphasized the revelation of Jesus as a bridegroom. It's never happened. There's always been a few guys and gals throughout 2,000 years. A little bit over here. A little bit over there who saw this revelation of Jesus the bridegroom. In other words the burning heart of God. His desire for us. But there's one generation history where all the ministries before Jesus returns will have this revelation. So already you know you've got a task to do because you look across the body of Christ and you think man so many don't have it. But one thing we know they're all going to have it before Jesus returns. So we got a big task ahead of us as well as many other ministries. We're all in this together to get the bridegroom message out because there's one generation history where the whole body of Christ will understand that this revelation. And as a as a bride the spirit of the bride will be at intercession saying come Lord Jesus. We'll be crying out to Jesus with bridal revelation. So we have the context. They're all virgins, born again believers. They all have ministries lamps. They all have the a deep revelation of Jesus the bridegroom. And we know this context has particular I mean this parable has particular application then. When is then? In the generation the Lord returns. That's when this parable really has a special application. Though I must repeat over and over it's had an application for 2,000 years. But a very intense one and a in a unique application in terms of its emphasis of the generation the Lord returns. Okay let's go to Roman number three. Just to repeat it he says five of them were wise and five of them were foolish. Now he goes on to describe what he means. He describes he defines wisdom and folly in verse three and four. Those who were foolish they took their lamps but took no oil. Verse four they did it the other way around. They took their oil in their lamps. Now again paragraph a oil speaks of the spirit's presence in our heart. It speaks of the Holy Spirit's presence energizing our heart. Oil is not the same thing as I love you God. There's a lot of I love you God in the process of getting oil. I mean we're talking to them all the all the time. We're talking to the Lord. We're interacting with the Holy Spirit. So yes there's an I love you part. But I don't want you to departmentalize oil as your I love you time. Because oil is the time where you're opening the word. Oil is the time you're feeling the energy of the spirit is present. Oil is the time where your heart is becoming softened. It's it's the lubricant of the Holy Spirit making your heart the opposite of brittle. It's pliable. It's flexible. It's moving in rhythm with the Holy Spirit. It tenderizes us. We feel more of God which means we're energized. I tell you when you feel more of God you'll love way better. Not that we get to wait till we feel more before we start loving. We love now but I tell you you're a lot more successful in love. All of us are when we feel his presence. And so I give some definition some application to what the oil means. It's your personal encounter with the Holy Spirit which is your strengthening. You're energizing. It's your supply. You can read the rest of that on your own. Paragraph B. Now let's look at the foolish. What is the definition of being foolish? Foolish means they took no oil. They took their lamps but no oil. Now notice when they walked out the door the number one thing on their mind was getting their ministry bigger. Their lamps was their focus. Their ministry was their focus. Their connect with God they it faded into the background. They put their lamps as their priority. Their ministry growing was their priority. The connecting with the Holy Spirit faded into the background. Now we know in verse 1 the oil was working. The lamps were burning. But in verse 3 they were neglecting their connection time with God. And here's the problem or the temptation the challenge with anointed ministry. When you get a little bit of anointing of God presence on your ministry the demand increases. And when the demand increases the guy or the gal they kind of like well everyone's knocking on my door. I better. I mean everybody needs me and they all want me. I mean it's the blessing of the Lord. And the Lord says watch it. Watch it. Watch it. It's my presence. My presence on you. If you get out there and you lose your connect the very blessing of God in one season sets you up for failure in the next season. When we have the blessing of God on our ministry we have to, have to, have to maintain the reality that the reason the oil is flowing is because we're connected because we're taking time to get connected. You don't get connected on the run. You get connected to the Spirit. It's a renewing thing that happens regularly. Not necessarily every day all day. That's not what I mean. But, but on a regular basis we take time to get reconnected. And the reconnecting process is normally very slight and subtle. Like some about somebody may say well did you get reconnected? How was your prayer line? Oh it's kind of a little bit boring today to be honest. But the connection could still be happening. So don't get caught up in measuring. You know if you cried for an hour you really got connected. And if you sit a little bit bored you didn't get connected at all. It you get before the Lord and the connection is taking place and sometimes you discern it real powerful and sometimes you feel like yucky but it's still connecting. It still works. We don't have to measure it to know that it's working. If we sit there before the Lord with an honest heart it is taking place. Paragraph C. Now look at verse 4. It's exactly the opposite. The wise took their oil first and their lamp second. Their first priority was being energized in their spirit. And now this isn't a statement of selfishness. This is a statement of humility. They said I don't care how good looking my car is, how much power it has in the engine. If it has no fuel it's going to be a real hassle pushing that car uphill. And a lot of folks they think the further they drive the car the better regardless if there's fuel in it or not. There comes a time where you're pushing the car outside. And having done that a few times in the natural you don't want to get in that position in your ministry. So getting oil I just want to impress you is about humility and taking yourself seriously. Your weakness and taking your needs seriously. It's not about selfishness. Don't let the vast amounts of people who don't get oil, they don't value the getting of oil and they will accuse you of selfishness because they have no personal experience of the need of oil. Because they've already concluded to live without it. They're happy to just push their car all the time. Which more times than not they quit pushing it and they just become spiritual couch potatoes. And they just sit on the couch and watch tv and entertain. They don't even get to do a ministry anymore. They talk about the old days because you can't push that car very many years until you get tired. And you just decide you know what it's a season where I'm burnt out. Well anybody's going to get burnt out if you push the car on the outside. So a lot of folks will come talk to you. They have they don't have oil in their life. They don't see the value. They see you pursuing it and they will accuse you of being selfish instead of honoring you as being humble. Now the point isn't to get them to honor you. That's not the point. The point is don't be swayed by oilless people who are charging you and and accusing you because you're getting oil. Just say I love you. God loves you. I'm a weak person. I need gas in the car. I love you. You don't have to be defensive. You don't have to argue. You don't have to fight. You don't have to send emails. You don't have to have restoration meetings. You haven't did nothing. Blow them a kiss and say I am so weak and so fragile without gas this car is really a burden to push. Like what are you talking about? That one of those Kansas City things they told you? Well I heard some guy in Kansas City tell me but it's really a Bible thing. I mean it's not just John 15 I mean uh Matthew 25. It's really John 15 abiding in the vine. That's the principle. The principle of oil is stay connected to the vine. So paragraph c and there's there's more people doing this. It's it's really wonderful. We need to see more and more but I'm watching more in the last 10 years guys and gals that as their ministry grows instead of doubling up their networking to make sure it doubles and triples yet one more time they make sure they're got a connect with the spirit. They pull back from the increase to make sure they're connected. It's brilliant. I'm watching more and more people not just here but around the around the nations valuing this reality. It's a it's a it's in itself a sign of the time that this kind of wisdom is in the body of Christ. Top of page three. So the story continues. Now while the bridegroom delayed they all slept and at the midnight hour a cry was heard and here's the cry behold the bridegroom is coming. Go out to meet him. Then all those virgins all 10 of them they rose trim their lamp which means they you know they cut the bad part of the wick off so you know they kind of you know cut it off and threw it away so it would burn brighter. So what's happening in this passage? In verse 6 which is paragraph a at the midnight hour of history because at verse 6 is at midnight a cry is going to be heard. Now this is the cry of the forerunner. This is the nameless faceless voice crying in the wilderness. Behold the bridegroom's coming. Go out to meet him. Now this is a threefold message. This is a threefold message that the that the forerunners are are proclaiming. Number one he's coming. The message that he's coming which means he's going to intervene in power. It's the message of revival because for him to come means there's going to be a manifestation of victory and power that we call that revival or there's going to be the releasing of judgments against the wicked who resist him. Either way whether it's the positive revival or the negative judgments which are all about love at the end and the whole process is all about love not just at the end. The the message that Jesus is coming there's a major breakthrough of Jesus coming around the corner. That's the message. Now I'm still in paragraph b. In the end times Jesus is going to come to us in progressive waves of revival. You know in revelation 22 verse 17 the famous verse the spirit and the bride say come. Jesus comes to us several ways. First he comes to our heart. That's called renewal. Our heart gets that's intimacy. He comes to our heart. He comes near us is a better way to say it. He comes near us in a personal way. Jesus come. He comes near us. Wow my heart feels built up. The second way Jesus come to us our geographic area we call that revival. The breakthrough of revival. And then eventually he comes for us in the sky. So when we pray Jesus come we're really we have three different things. Come near my heart, come to my region or my nation and come for all of us in the sky at the rapture. So the the cry Jesus come really is a threefold cry. But in this particular case with the forerunners preach he's coming. In other words there's going to come breakthrough. The greatest revival in history is going to happen. Now this coming of Jesus is he's going to come in progressive waves of revival. What I mean by that he'll release a wave of the spirit. I'm just I'm not prophesying. If I if it ends up accurate it's accidental. But in the next two or three years there might be a wave of the spirit breaking sovereignly across our nation. Like wow. Then the wave lifts. Does it mean God's mad? It's just the Lord's wisdom. He sends a wave of revival for a year or two or three across the nation. Then he lifts his hand and he lets the body of Christ build and get things in order and and then assimilate all that that wave of revival was about. They learn the message. They implement the godliness in their lives. They build churches and ministries and families and marriages based on how the Lord visited in that presence. Then a few years pass then another wave comes but it's a different wave and it's even sometimes a stronger wave. And then it lifts and then we you know apply it to our life in all of our ministries and families etc marriage etc. Then a few years later the next wave comes and church history is a series of waves of revival through history. Now the closer we get to the coming of the Lord the waves are coming and they're getting bigger and more frequent. There are again I have no way of knowing five or ten totally made up numbers so please don't quote that five or ten major waves of the spirit that might come before the Lord returns. There's a there's a number of waves that are yet to come before the Lord appears in my opinion before he appears in the sky. Maybe more maybe less. I don't know the point I'm making is there's a series of them. So our first message is he's coming. He's coming. The breakthrough's coming. Get ready the breakthrough's coming. The glory of God's about to break into our nation. Message number two paragraph c. He's not just coming for breakthrough. He's coming as a bridegroom. He's coming as a God of desire and a God of jealousy. He's not just coming with tenderness. He's coming with jealousy. He's coming as a bridegroom. He's not just coming with power. That's the coming. He's coming with desire. They're going whoa that's different. A wave of power is one thing but when Jesus manifests his desire behind the power his tender desire for you and his jealousy about you about your life. I want all of you like whoa okay he's a bridegroom be warned. This isn't just a little renewal season. He's coming as a bridegroom full of desire. So that's what the forerunner says. He's a bridegroom. Paragraph d. The third message go meet him. In other words make the necessary efforts in your personal life to position yourself to encounter him. Go out to meet him. That's what I'm really telling you tonight. This message I'm saying go out to meet him. Go out to meet him means you're going to engage in the necessary effort and process to encounter him. That's what the prayer room is about. It's what your personal life in God's about. You're going you're going to exert effort. Some people have a real bad at wrong idea. Well if the Lord wants to touch me he knows where I'm at. The Lord says well if you're hungry for me you know where I'm at. But I know a lot of Christians. If the Lord wants to touch me he knows where I'm at and they go about their business. The Lord says no I only give at the heart level based on hunger. If you hunger I give more. If you stay hungry I give even more. And hunger begets more hunger. Come after me but I want you to exert your way yourself before me in a costly way. And when I mean exert yourself I don't mean the the uh the mode of energy you're exerting in the when the moment you're praying. But I mean it takes effort. You get your schedule. You gotta sort it out. Then you gotta press through a wandering mind. Then all the phone calls and everybody distractions. Everybody wants you to the guilt. You gotta get rid of the guilt. And then you don't understand the bible. So you gotta learn the bible. So when you're sitting there it makes sense. Now I didn't I don't know all that stuff because I read that in a book. I just want you to know. You know I've been doing this for some years and some of you that are about 20 think man that guy just had it he just knows the bible. Man I was so confused when I was 20 years old. I used to sit there I mean this for real. Go Jesus I love you. The bible is so boring. So confusing. Holy spirit I do believe in you. I have not seen any evidence of you in a long time but they say you're here somewhere. No I'm not joking. And I said lord if I remember saying this if you would make the bible easy you would really go a long way. I know it's too late you already wrote it but if you would have made it easy. Now that sounds cute and corny but I that was real. I was like why did you write so confusing. I know it's too late it's 2,000 years later but you should have written this simpler. I remember when I was 18 19 20 I was really going hard for God. I was going I was trying to spend you know an hour or two a day and sometimes more sometimes less trying to sit before him and the bible was so boring and prayer was so boring and everything was oppressive and I felt guilty all the time. Does anybody relate to what I'm talking about? Okay I'm in the right place. Okay it really does change. It really does change. I promise you it changes. Stay with it. Exert the effort and I don't mean again I'm going to talk about when you're there for that for the hour that you're just you know you know steaming with the energy and heat pouring out of you because you're I mean it takes effort to get there. It takes effort to tell your friends no. It takes effort to get your schedule. It takes effort to turn the phone off. It takes effort to focus a little bit. It takes effort to learn the bible so when you're there you can focus. You think effort not to get up and go to the coffee shop back and forth three times. It gets effort to journal a little bit. All this takes effort and then you gotta get through the guilt and then the devil bombards you with anxiety. Just just leave it. I'm just trying to have an oil time. Why does the whole world's against me right now? Well it's normal. It really is how it is for all of us but it really will change. I want to assure you you stay with it. It really really will change in a little bit of time. Somebody says I'll answer the question. How long is a little bit of time? Okay sometimes longer sometimes shorter but it will change. Okay paragraph E. They all slept. It says there in verse 5. They all slept and all the virgins arose and trimmed their lamps. Well again the cutting off of the wick and the cleaning up the the lamps etc. Now the important part to understand is in this parable some parable sleeping is bad. Sleeping is the opposite of being awake in the spirit. In this parable the the uh the affirmation is on getting oil or not having oil. The exhortation I mean is on getting oil or not getting oil. It's not on sleeping or waking. So don't bring the the other parable into this one because the the the issue if you're doing good or bad is if you're getting oil. Here they all slept. Even the ten I mean even the wise ones slept. The sleeping is is really critical. That's why I'm pointing it out. It means we have to cultivate oil in the context in the midst of the natural processes of life. We all have to mow the lawn, exercise, watch our diet, pay taxes, do the laundry, manage relationships. If life left everything left me God would be awesome. If I never got hungry, never got moody, everybody was happy, the money was always there, the government left me alone, the neighbor's dog didn't bark, everything. I would soar. What's never gonna happen that way in this age. All of us get oil in the midst of the natural They had to sleep. They had to trim the lamps. They had to do the natural stuff. That's what this means. It's not negative and so in the midst of the rigors of the routine mundane life. See we get this romantic notion. We get rid of the routine of life and then we would be closer to to God than Moses and Elijah combined. That's not that's not how it works because they had the same rigors. They had to sleep. They had to trim their lamps. They had to do all the stuff. They don't take care of their body, but a few years go by your body does funny things to you. Don't take care of relationships. Funny things happen. Don't do the money thing right. Funnier things happen. We have to do all this stuff. Organization, taxes, responsibility, showing up when we say being having a headache when you do the whole bit. We've got to manage the getting of oil in context to real life in a fallen world, but Jesus sees it and it counts to him. If we do this, it really matters to him. If we press and then we don't have to feel like we're connecting, but he wants us to reach for the oil. Okay, let's go to our Roman numeral five, verse eight, Matthew chapter 25, verse eight. So the foolish said to the wise, give us some of your oil for our lamps are going out. But the wise said, no, lest there should not be enough for us and for you, but rather go to those who sell and buy oil for yourself. Very, very important passage. Number one, I want to make clear this. This is a, this is a, uh, just a, I'm prophesying, but it's just logical prophecy. How's that? Is there such a thing? This is a logical prophecy, but according to this verse, verse eight, many lamps are going to go out. Many ministries around the world that exists today will not exist in 10 or 20 years. Many ministries that are going today that are big and thriving, their lamps are going to go out because what can draw a crowd today won't move anybody in 10 or 20 years. Because what draw a crowd today, especially the Western world, if you tell people they could kind of do what they want to do and you promise them more money and an easier lifestyle, you get crowds. But 10 and 20 and 30 years from now, you tell them life is easy. I promise you more money. Do what you want. Everything works. They're going to say, where, what delusion are you living in? And there will be so much sin breaking out and demonic activity. And the glory of God will be at such a level that the spirit of the people will demand something that has reality and substance in it. You can get by and have a real big ministry on cotton candy right now. Again, just tell people what they want to hear. Tell them everything's gonna be great. You're gonna get a lot of money. You have lots of friends. You're gonna be real anointed. You're gonna be great. You're gonna be great. Go. Yeah, I'll come. I'll come. I'll bring my friends in here that over and over by the tapes. I guess they're CDs now. But in a few years, there's going to be so many people in addiction and bondage to demons and so many crisis and the glory of God is going to be poured out in the revelation of Jesus at such a level. The spirit of the people will be so hungry for reality that the cotton candy ministries will go out and there's plenty of them in the land today. Those lamps are going out. I just prophesy it to you and but it's an obvious prophecy. It doesn't really take a whole lot of discernment to say that. So they said, hey, our ministry went out, our lamp went out. How about give us your oil? In other words, the oil is your personal life in God. The oil is your secret history in God. Did you know every one of us have a secret history in God that nobody knows about? And I'm not talking about a dark history. I'm talking about you have responses to God in the last months and years that are in God's book that are part of your story with him that nobody knows the way you and God talk from your heart. That oil is your personal secret history in God. I can't lay hands on you and give you my history in God. You can't lay hands on me and give me your history in God. Now we can pray and the Holy Spirit can kind of renew somebody for a moment. But if they don't get the oil themselves, they will, it won't happen. You can have ministry in a prayer time and get a little bit of encouragement, a little jump start. But if you're going to get oil, you have to get it in your own dialogue with God. Nobody can give you their oil. It's a completely wrong idea. I can't lay hands on you and give you five or ten years of walking with God and you can't do it to me or anyone else. You can only get it in the interaction of your own heart with the Lord. So they go, no, no, we can't. Now this is one of the most powerful words the wise will ever say. They go, no. And the foolish go, what do you mean no? Now you're like anointed and things are going great. What do you mean no? You can't say no because I got a legitimate need and I think you're awesome. The answer is still no. And the reason the answer is no, I don't have enough strength and resource to give out all day without connecting because I don't have oil myself. I don't have self-replenishing oil. I get oil the way I'm telling you to get oil. I take time to go get it. I don't have it in and of myself. I get it day by day. I don't have enough time. I don't have enough strength. I don't have enough emotional stability. I, I don't have enough within myself to maintain it. If I give it all away, I'm too weak and a beloved, that's a statement of humility and they will go bah humbug. How dare you tell me no. And how dare you say you're a loving Christian? You just told me no. And then where every, every believer has to figure out is that are you in a walk with God or are you on a popularity contest? And a whole lot of folks, all of us by nature, by nature, our first response is to be on a popularity contest. We don't know it, but when we say no three times and they go, how dare you? We go, ouch. Okay. Okay. Lord goes, Oh, I guess you gave up that awful quick. You must protect your time to encounter God. Jesus said when the untimely and the end times unfold the greatest crisis of revival history, you better watch. You better watch. It's the one exhortation. He said over and over, you better stay connected. Yeah, but they're mad at me. I got to go make sure I'm doing everything everybody wants me to do. Well, if your big life vision is to keep everybody happy with you and to be spiritually thin and superficial, go for it. If your life vision is to have depth and reality, you're going to have to lose the personality contest. Occasionally, you really are going to have to. And more than occasionally that answer. No. Oh, I tell you that. No, I've, I've had that dagger in my heart a thousand times over the years. No. What can I sit in there and I'm just so managing. Are they mad? Am I glad? Are they here? Are they there? I can't even pray because that no is reverberating inside of me. So just stay with the little guy. You'll get used to it. Just stay with it. That no is huge right there. But the wise have to say it or they will never stay wise. They will become one of the foolish. But if you're easily moved by guilt and the need to look right by in front of everybody's eyes, that no will be a cross that will crucify you a thousand times. And we actually, we're all like that. We want to look good and we want everybody to like us. And that no is a cross, but we have to say it if we want to have spiritual depth. Paragraph C, Jesus exhorts us. Now here he says, go buy the oil in verse nine. He said the same thing in the book of Revelation. He goes, go buy the oil, go buy it. Now he doesn't really mean go earn it. What he means by buy it. You're to go in the God prescribed way to acquire it. And the way we acquire it is by, we take some time, we turn our phone off, we turn our things off, whatever. And we sit there and we face our barrenness, our guilt, our all the things we have to line up right. We, there's a price we pay to settle our spirit and to talk to him with an open Bible. There's yet, it is costly. It is an investment that costs us. And that's what love's about. Jesus is not saying pay the price. He's saying, invest your soul in love because you want me, but it will cost you. It really will cost you. Now, I remember the time. I don't tell the story often, but, uh, where this no was the big issue of my life. I had been, I was in my mid thirties. So almost 20 years ago, I was traveling with a real famous guy. And, you know, he was an old guy in his fifties. I was a young guy. I was just in my early thirties. And he said, I wanted to take you and we're going to travel around the world. And the Holy Spirit told him to. So he went to all these big conferences, all, I mean, you know, in Germany and England and Australia, New Zealand, these five and 10,000 member conferences all around the world. And he said, the Lord told me to break you. So I went with him for a few years and had all these big conferences and all this kind of fanfare was happening. And I was there and I trick and I did this for about three years, lots of doors were opening and lots of new relationships were established. And just a whole lot of buzz was going on about the things that were, that we were doing. And so the Holy Spirit spoke to me and he said, I want you verse nine to tell him no. And I said, okay. So I met with him. His name is John, John Wimber. And I said, John, I remember sitting in the car, the van when I had this, this very significant conversation, almost 20 years ago, I said, John, I can't travel anymore. Cause we did like one or two conferences a month. I mean, worldwide, these big, huge ones all around the world, just, you know, South Africa, just everywhere, just wherever the Western world was. And I did maybe one or two a month and maybe a month I wouldn't do it. And then one or two or three, the next it was such an irrigorous pace. And I said, John, I said, the van, I said, I can't do any more conferences. He says, well, I've got you signed up. You're already in the brochures for about five or six of them. I go, I'll go, I'll keep my word, but I would like you to free me, man. If you don't free me, I'll keep my word, but I'm not taking any more. He says, okay. He goes, no, I'll free. He goes, what's the problem? I go, I'm backslidden. He goes, he thought he, I, he, I met, I was in some scandalous kind of something going on. He goes, what? I go, no, no, I don't mean that way. I mean, I'm backslidden. I said, when I pray and read the word, I don't weep anymore. And I said, for several years, however many most days when I quieted my heart, I would feel this presence and I would weep. I haven't wept in prayer in a year. And he said, okay, I appreciate that. Is that it? I go, yeah. He goes, that's backslidden to me. And I am not living this way all of my days. I won't do this. He goes, good. I appreciate that. He goes, that's a, that's cool. I free you. He goes, huh? I like that. And he freed me and I went back home and canceled everything and just buried myself in the Lord's presence. And of course I had a big church of, you know, about 3000 people. So I had a lot at home, but at home and the road and back to the, oh, it was just chaotic. And my commitment to my family and all of these things, I had to just cut a whole bunch of things off. And I began to spend long hours again with the Lord. And this was like 91. And only the Lord knew that I hop was going to start six or seven years later, whatever the whole process of the I hop. Cause we, things were stirring for a year or two before I hop actually started. My point is there are significant times where you must say no. And there's thousands of little times you have to say no, or you won't end up with oil at the end. Top of page four. I'll just go through this real brief and then West hall will come up and pray for the student says the semester is over. It says now while they went to buy, while the foolish ones went to buy. In other words, they went on the process of connecting with the spirit. They said, you know, it's going to take a little while, doesn't take years, but it takes a little bit of while they went to buy. They were engaged in the process of getting their history with God up to date. And the Lord wants some of you in the process of buying. He wants you to get your history to in God, your secret history got up to date. And then he wants us to maintain this. Well, anyway, the bride group came. Now this isn't the second coming in the sky. This is one of the waves of revival broke out. And those who were ready, the wise ones, the ones that were connected to God's heart, they went into the wedding. But then after that the door was shut. And afterwards, these wise virgins came go, Hey, open up the door for us. And the Lord says, assuredly, I say to you, I do not know you. Now this passage paragraph a is not about them losing their salvation. Now some commentators will read it. They'll say, see, they lost their salvation. He's not saying I never knew you. He's not saying you're evil. You're wicked. Like he says, and I have it all written out here three or four other times. This is your evil. You're wicked. He says that to unbelievers. He's saying, I don't have intimacy with you. I don't know you. I don't know you in the way I need to know you for this season of revival. Now, the key to understanding this passage is the ancient custom in Israel for the wedding feast. A wedding feast would ideally go for seven nights. If they had the family had enough money, the first, every night they would have a feast and the big, and the big one was the last one. The first night were the people closest to the couple. Then the second night they were invited. The people that got invited the first night were invited every single night. So the first night was the small number, the second night, a little bit bigger, nice feast. Third night feast again, a little bit bigger group. Fourth night, fifth night, but only those that were the closest were invited to the celebration in those early nights of the week. And in the same way, the Holy Spirit's releasing waves of revival, this wedding celebration that's going to crescendo to the great wedding supper in the sky. The great marriage supper of the lamb is the final one, the great one. But there's a buildup between now and then. And the Lord is saying, I will open a door. I want to use you. I want you and me to celebrate in this revival because I want you to communicate to the people these things about my heart. But these other ministries, these foolish ones, they go, hey, we want to be anointed in this revival right now. And the Lord says, I don't even know you in the bridegroom intimacy. What would you do if you preached it or sang it or let it? We don't know each other this way. Yes. You know me as healer. You know me as forgiver. You know me as provider. You don't know me in this way. No, go sit and learn and receive because we all sit and learn to receive our whole life. And billions of years from now, we'll be sitting, learning and receiving. So we never grow out of that. But he's saying, no, I don't know you right now at this. So I'm telling the Lord is the waves of the spirit mount up in the years leading to the coming of the Lord. Lord, I want to know you in every wave of the spirit. I want to I want the truth. And that doesn't mean that he will use me in a main way in every move of the spirit. But I want to be ready so the door of opportunity can be open so that in truth I would know him and I would be communicating to others that which me and the Lord had in reality in my private life. That's what he's saying. And then he ends paragraph G. He says, now, therefore, watch. He goes right back to that parable. Go watch. Go have an attentive, watchful heart with an open Bible and let your heart connect to me. Amen and amen. For more free downloads from Mike Bickle, please visit mikebickle.com.