‘I gave my life to Christ when I came to your church and saw “okoto” (a nickname meaning snail).’ The nickname had been given to a notorious young man who was a skillful dancer. The testimony was told to me by a young lady who had been school mates with the troublesome young man in high school. The testimony of his transformation inspired her decision for Christ. As far as she was concerned, whoever could change the young man’s life must be real. It was beyond her imagination that he would become a sober, well-behaved gentleman, who not only had renounced his former conduct but was now a devoted servant of Jesus Christ.

The testimony of a changed life remains the loudest proof of Faith. We are definitely not saved by our good works, but we are saved into good works as a fruit of our changed nature and not a product of human effort which is doomed to fail (Ephesians 2:8-10). As much as Faith in the redemptive work of Christ is the basis for salvation, the idea of a saved life without the effect of character transformation and moral purity is preposterous. It is difficult to believe in the veracity of the claims of a religious message without its ability to change a life. Accepting the message of the cross is, therefore, deemed as wisdom and it is wisdom that transcends the limitations of human ability (1 Corinthians 1:18-21, 2 Timothy 3:15). The resultant transformation from this wisdom makes the idea of a ‘foolish virgin’ paradoxical.

The Lord Jesus Christ, however, taught about ten virgins out of which five were wise and five were foolish. Purity, therefore, may be a result of wisdom towards salvation, but not necessarily in all circumstances. Virginity here represents the moral purity of the young ladies who escorted the bridegroom to the home of his bride on behalf of the bride in a wedding procession in Bible days. Due to carelessness, their lack of readiness shut them out of a wedding ceremony they had long prepared for. What was missing was ‘timely and adequate preparation’.

Procrastination is a terrible problem in spiritual things. Postponing the spiritual disciplines of prayer, Bible study, worship and fasting leads to lack of readiness at the hour of need. The resultant neglect of these things lead to a lack of oil in our lamps. The human spirit is the lamp of the Lord (Proverbs 10:27). Oil is a symbol of the Holy Spirit and it is spending time in fellowship with the Lord through those spiritual disciplines that we renew oil. As we expect special visitations of our bridegroom, the Lord Jesus, our lamps must not be found empty or in short of adequate oil. We must not miss divine timing. Ultimately, we must be ready for the return of the Lord Jesus.

When it comes to spiritual things, the height of wisdom is to ensure that we rely on the anointing and therefore keep our lamps burning at all times. The imperative of this is that it keeps us fruitful and in sync with the Will of God for our lives. Purity isn’t enough nor is moral chastity the ‘all in all’ in our faith. We must know that our spiritual lives and ministries are dependent on the anointing of the Holy Spirit. We must never forget to keep our knees bent and our eyes open to the pages of the Holy writ. When the bridegroom comes, may He find us ready for the journey. Amen.

Victor Adeyemi