Awake and AttentiveSample

A Heart Filled With the Holy Spirit

In Matthew 25, God addresses us, the church, first, showing us how we should prepare for Christ's second coming. Just as Christ came, He will return a second time. But this passage also speaks to the Jews; it warns them that salvation will not only be for them, but also for the Gentiles. It reminds them that the message of Jesus is not for some, but for all.

The story tells us that the bridegroom was late in coming. How many times have we felt that God is late in our situation?

Perhaps you feel this way in your finances, in your work, in your family, in your health. But I want to remind you, my friend, that God always comes, even if it is not at the moment we are waiting for. As Isaiah said, it's time to get up, shake off the dust, get out and get moving toward the new thing that God is already doing.

The oil in this story has a double meaning:

1. It refers to the anointing of the Holy Spirit.

It is important for us to understand that being filled with the Holy Spirit is not an event, but that it must happen every day in our lives. We need to pray to the Lord daily asking Him to fill us with His Spirit, without whom our lamp cannot shine, without whom our life will be empty.

The Holy Spirit is the advantage of our faith, who comforts us, who teaches us and shows us all the truth, who lifts our face, strengthens our weaknesses, and opens the way for us to enter into what God has prepared for us.

2. It refers to the provision for lamps.

It is our responsibility to bring the provision so that the church can shine. Our generosity and obedience are extremely important so that we, as a church, can shine in society, fulfill the vision, and make a difference.

David had a dream of building a temple, and God told him that it would not be him, but his son who would do it. When he heard this, he didn't react by saying "Let him get his own oil to finish the temple!"

No! David prepared the oil so that his son Solomon and the next generation could build what God put in his heart. And that's our role as a church, to have oil so that the next generation can go beyond and accomplish much more than we did.

Let us not despair if things are not born in our time because what is important is that they are born in God's time.