Morgan County republican. (Versailles, Mo.) 1906-1914, 1910-09-29
THE WISE AND
FOOLISH VIRGINS
Sshsel Lss,s. iss OF. Z. isi
Specially Arranged for This Paper

PI;ACE-on the Mount of olives.
overlooking Jerusalem. on his way to
Bethany.
suggestion and Practical Thought.
This Is one OF the most beautiful and
touching of the parallels. Poetry.
painting and the drama have combined
to give 1t an exceptional hold on the
Christian imagination. The weird
pathos of the story Is u~nspeakable.
The occasion is so happy. the agents
so Interesting, the issue so tragic. The
story Is n picture of an oriental wed.
ding. Among those friends Of the bride
Who waited to join the procession were
ten virgins. While they were waiting,
the time OF the procession being ever
unknown. they became drowsy n
slept In peace, knowing that the shouts
n cries of the coming crowd would
awaken them in time. They had no
anxiety; the wise, because they had
faith and were prepared; the foolish.
by false security and by ignoring he
future.
The ten virgins had to walt till about
midnight, when through the still air
came shrill and clear those peculiar
shrill. quavering cries of Joy. called
Zugaret, which are heard throughout
the east on occasions Of special re-
joicing. tSee Rev. 1861" And they
heard the cry: Behold, the bridegroom
cometh; go ye out to meet him.
The wise virgins trimmed and re.
plenished their lamps with the oil
which they had the f~orethought to
bring with them.
The foolish found their lamps burned
out, but they had been too careless
to bring extra oil with them. They
begged oil of the wise, but they had
none left: and advised the foolish to
go to the source of supply where they
should have zone earlier. While they
were gone, the procession reached its
destination; those who were ready
went In to the marriage festival. And
the door was shut. Like Esau the
foolish virgins came too late for the
blessing, They had thrown away their
opportunity.
TIT Lord was 500 to depart by the
wey of the cross. But he promised to
return. lie came back In the resur'
r%ection. He came In the coming OF
!, the Spirit of the day Of Pentecost. lie
, came at the destruction OF Jerusalem
a He Is coming In glory at the last day
when his kingdom shall come and his
will be done on earth as 1t Is In heav
en-.
J, Every crisis of our lives, every open
@ Ing OF opportunity. every crisis Of the
world or the church may be called iI
its degree a coming Of the Lord whose
providence Is over all. % The com
ing Is something Of the greatest value
and blessing. 1t is like the wedding
festival, full OF the best Of life. Ever
In the subordinate comings and crlse!
Of our lives, there Is always a door, a,
invitation, to something better thar
We have had. Even death Is n gate t
heaven. (2) The time of the coming
Is always unknown. for ye know Meth
er the day nor the hour wherein tn
Son Of man cometh.
In What Way Are We to Watch
The company of watchers was divide
into two classes. the wise and tn
foolish. The equality Of numbers ha
no bearing on the proportion OF pei
sons In real life who are wise @
foolish.
The lamps signify tho outward pre-
f~ession. and the possibilities. All ha
some light. they had religious feeling
they were moved by the influences
tho Holy Spirit.
The oil Is tho spiritual life, tn
heart. which Is the source Of the fam
the visible manifestations OF tn
Christian spirit. But this signi1canc
was shown only by the burning lam
Those who took vessels of oil. a pc
manent supply, we're those who ha
the living reality of that which the
professed. who put into practise. I'M
character, that which shone forth fro
IL their lamps.
m Those who took no supply Of c
-, had a surface feeling, like the See
sown on rocky soil, which sprang |
quickly and endured till persecution
trouble arose (Matt. 1876, G. 20. 81
. Watchfulness consists In being pr
H. pared for every emergency. and eve
IN duty. as the wise virgins watched
10 having their lamps continually bur
IN ing, and a full supply of oil to ke'
them burning.
And the Door Was Shut.-The oppt
tunity came, and the gift In Its hal
was gained or lost, There came
OF time when 1t was too late to chang
he This is a fact of nature. as well as