Plant Love

Blog #112 March 10, 2026

Matthew 25:5-11
25:5 And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him.
25:6 Then all those virgins arose, and trimmed their lamps.
25:7 And the foolish said unto the wise, Give us of your oil; for our lamps are gone out. 25:8 But the wise answered, saying, Lest there be not enough for us and you, go ye rather to them that sell, and buy for yourselves.
25:9 And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came; and they that were ready went in with him to the marriage; and the door was shut.
25:10 Afterward came also the other virgins, saying, Lord, Lord, open unto us.
25:11 But he answered and said, Verily I say unto you, Ye know me not.

I have taught the parable of the ten virgins almost as many times as it has been taught to me and the truth it brings us is indeed noteworthy. Five of the virgins had oil sufficient for meeting with the bridegroom. Five did not. They rushed off to gain the necessary oil, missed the bridegroom, and were locked out of the wedding. They were deemed unworthy for not being diligent to the fullness of their duty. Though this truth is of great importance in the life and growth of the believer, I believe there is more to be learned.

First let us consider who by Jewish tradition, the ten virgins are. They were bridesmaids and attendants to the Bride of Christ, which is the personification of Christ Church in the last days. Their duty was to protect and tend to the Bride until the Bridegroom came to claim her as his wife. Traditionally this ritual occurred before sunrise on the day of the wedding. Such was the need for the lamps that they might light the way and lead the Groom to his Bride. Further the legends claim that as a Bride was required to be pure so were her attendants. Their purity had to be absolute for it was their presence and their purity that would confuse the evil spirits seeking to steal away from the bride the innocence she reserved for her groom. In essence their purity honored and protected the innocence of the bride. If they were less that absolutely pure their presence would be of no use to the bride or the groom.

Titus 1:15-16
1:15 Unto the pure, let all things be pure; but unto them who are defiled and unbelieving, nothing is pure; but even their mind and conscience is defiled.
1:16 They profess that they know God; but in works they deny him, being abominable, and disobedient, and unto every good work reprobate.

As I pondered this scene and allowed it to progress in my mind the ending seemed harsher than it should be. Yes, five of them failed in their diligence and because of the fault they were denied the wedding in the same way the people of Noah's time were denied the Ark.

Genesis 8:38 And they went unto Noah, into the ark, two and two of all flesh, wherein is the breath of life; and they that went in, went in male and female of all flesh, as God had commanded him, and the Lord shut him in.

I find this same judgment applied to five of the virgins rather harsh considering that the people of Noah's time listened to God's warning some one hundred and twenty years. The shear depth of their knowledge warranted their punishment of being shut out of the ark. The Virgins were given mere minutes to reply to the call of the groom coming and were judged as insufficient because of one infraction. Again this just doesn't seek fair. Even by the words of Christ it is unfair. In Matthew, Christ taught Peter of the need to be forgiving if for no other reason than to reflect the forgiving nature of God.

Matthew 18:21-22
18:21 Then came Peter to him and said, Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? Till seven times?
18:22 Jesus said unto him, I say not unto thee, until seven times; but, until seventy times seven.

In the Gospel of Luke Christ repeated His admonishment to His disciples of the need to be actively forgiving of the people around him.

Luke 17:4 And if he trespass against you seven times in a day, and seven times in a day turn to you again, saying, I repent; you shall forgive him.

As my God is a perfect God and I believe absolutely in His promises and the love He has for His children, there must be something more in a symbolic way that God seeks to teach His children. So again I pondered this parable and sought for anything I might have over looked. I found my first clue in a verse that was given to us as part of a revelation that speaks to us of God's loyalty and His fairness in the judgments He offers.

DC 45:10b And at that day when I shall come in my glory, shall the parable be fulfilled which I spake concerning the ten virgins; for they that are wise and have received the truth, and have taken the Holy Spirit for their guide, and have not been deceived, verily I say unto you,
As I again pondered the parable, I recognized more fully the picture painted. I saw the characters, all ten of them, as epitomes of purity. According to the word of God, in their virginity grew a purity of heart that testified of God and the ways of God.

1 Corinthians 7:34 There is a difference also, between a wife and a virgin. The unmarried woman careth for the things of the Lord, that she may be holy both in body and in spirit; but she that is married careth for the things of the world, how she may please her husband.

As I looked to the painting with God's eyes I saw Him portraying for us the churches of the world and the purity of righteousness they profess to the Father. In that let us look to the churches of the world and find in them the righteousness God seeks for them to attain if they are to be the church of Christ. You will find that most fall short in their understanding of what God needs for His Church to birth an offspring that can become His Kingdom.

Revelation 12
12:1 And there appeared a great sign in heaven, in the likeness of things on the earth; a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars.
12:2 And the woman being with child, cried, travailing in birth, and pained to be delivered.
12:3 And she brought forth a man child, who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron; and her child was caught up unto God and his throne.

In most Scripture oil is a healing agent that is considered to represent righteousness. In this simple parable five of the virgins have the necessary righteousness; five do not. What is the righteousness they miss? Even after the infraction is dealt with all are still recognized as virgins, all are still pure. What is that righteousness that five lack and why are they judged so quickly for it?

Looking out on the world today I see many churches and many different ways to worship God. I see doctrines, I see ordinances, and I see Priesthood. Doctrines vary church to church even congregation to congregation. But, basically all agree that the path to the Father travels through Jesus Christ our savior. Ordinances are God reaching out to His children and us answering Him with faith and obedience. But Priesthoods and the way they serve has become so drastically different from God's design that in many cases, they seem to be attempting to replace God in the hearts of His people. As I sought out proof for this suspicion, it got downright scary.

1 Peter 2:5 Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.

By the laws of Moses, Priesthood were given Ten Commandments that they proceeded to translate and interpret into a book of rules for those that wanted the world to believe that they were faithful to God. It made their faith something that required no thought. The process was so simple that it made a belief in God both remedial and trite: "Do these things, at there given time, or you will live a miserable life. Consider if you will what that did for the church in the life of the people of Israel and the life of the people in general. As teachers, purveyors, and judges of the law in the face of the people the Priesthood held the people and God's church in bondage to fear. Their fear of the Priesthood replaced their love for the Father The ways of man replaced the ways of God and the Path to the Kingdom was lost.

In Christ the fullness of God's Church and His Priesthood were resurrected. God's children were freed from bondage to the unfair judgments of man. In Christ the Priesthood would no longer be set apart and above God's children. In fact Priesthood now stands responsible before God for the hearts and minds of His children. We no longer police the people. We are to bring them to a faith in God, lift them up, and teach them how to live in purity through the Holy Spirit. God's people are to be a testimony before the world of the ways of God and the love God has for His children. And in that the greatest testimony we find is the power of love. It is the foundation for all that we build in God. Without it our efforts will fail.

Luke 10:28 And he answering, said, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbor as thyself.

The humble simplicity of this verse is the authority that creates the relationship between God and us we seek. Oneness is based on the love we have for each other. If the love we give is not answered with the love we seek, oneness becomes a hollow lie. Consider your children and the love you profess for them. Ask yourself, will they ever be able truly understand and act upon all the compassion and charity within them if they fear retribution. Or would they be quicker to learn the righteousness of the Kingdom because they experienced our love for them in times of joy as well as sorrow. The oneness of love is both vital and enduring. It gives all involved not only the strength they need, but allows us a testimony of what is meant by the true love of God. Priesthood that accepts the true strength that love brings to their ministry become an invaluable asset to God, the people of God, and the Kingdom God.

1 John 4:18 There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear; because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love.

God through Christ seeks to free us from a belief that brings us little more than just something else to fear, but for some reason mankind seems to be determined to create for each other a God of fear and a reason to be afraid. God wants to do away with fear, cease to give the world a reason to be bitter and downtrodden. It is God's Priesthood that are called to bring the Gospel of the Kingdom to all who will accept it, lift them up in the knowledge of a loving Father, create within them the need to grow in God's Spirit, and create with them a society of one heart and one mind that can be a living testimony of God and His grace.

Hebrews 12:12-16
12 Wherefore lift up the hands, which hang down, and strengthen the feeble knees13 And make straight paths for your feet, lest that which is lame be turned out of the way; but let it rather be healed.
14 Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord; 15 Looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled;
16 Lest there be any fornicator, or profane person, as Esau, who for one morsel of meat sold his birthright.

Let us open our hearts to the strife that is alive in this world. In every corner of this world there are people pure in their love of mankind and anxious to become part of something that is truly Godly, but like the five foolish virgins their oil is run low. They need help that is just not available to them in the world today. In God and in the fullness of God's word are people called to serve His children in their needs. In the purity of God's servant Priesthood is enough oil of righteousness to trim the lamps of all those in need. I am convinced that if those called to this labor allow their hearts to be caught up in purity of their labor the ways of those who seek God will find both Him and His Kingdom.

Plant Love and Harvest Joy 
FRED