Mrs Seaton's Letter

The Foolish Girls

You know the best stories ever told are those told by the Lord Jesus Christ. These stories are called Parables. Remember what a parable is. It is an earthly story with a heavenly meaning. That is one of the reasons why Jesus’ stories are the best, because they give us heavenly meanings; but the best reason of all is because they were told by Jesus himself, The Son of God. Here is one of the last parables that Jesus told, before He went to die on the Cross.

There was once ten young girls, and they were invited to a wedding. Five of them were foolish, and five of them were wise. They all went off together to the wedding, and because it was night, they all took lamps with them. ‘The foolish ones, however, did not take any oil for their lamps.

They all waited, and waited. But the wedding party was very late in arriving, and the young girls became sleepy. Just about midnight, someone called out, “The bridegroom is coming go out to meet him!” The young women got up and fixed their lamps, so that they would be ready to join the wedding procession. As they did this, however, the foolish girls discovered that their oil was finished. “What shall we do?” they cried. They turned to their friends and said, “Please give us some of your oil for our lamps.” “We cannot give you any of our oil,” the other girls said, “we only have enough for ourselves; you had better go and buy some.”

The foolish ones had to leave right away to try and buy some oil, but while they were away, the wedding party came, and the wise ones joined the party on the way to the bridegroom’s house.

When all the guests were inside, the door was closed. The foolish ones arrived later on. They knocked, and knocked at the door, and called out – “Open to us!” But the bridegroom would not let them in. They had come too late.

Jesus told this story to let us all know that we must all be ready when He comes again into this world. It is an earthly story, but that is the heavenly meaning: when Jesus comes to this world again, we must be ready to meet him.

How then can we be ready for Jesus coming? First of all , we must trust in Him for our salvation for ever and ever; and then, we must try and live for Him every day, and obey all that He tells us to do in His Word, the Bible. In that way, we will be like the wise one who were ready when the bridegroom came, and went into the wedding with him.

This is the picture of a lamp, boys and girls, like the girls in the parable had. The oil was poured into the bottom of the lamp, and a “wick” stuck out through the top. When a light was put to the wick, then the lamp burned brightly – so long as there was oil inside. The wise girls were ready, your remember, because they had oil in their lamps.

Here are some words from a hymn.