The Gospel of Matthew Study Help (Matthew 25:1-30)

Jesus’ Private ministry

Questions to be answered in this study

1. What is the chiastic form of teaching Jesus uses as He reviews what we have covered in the past six weeks?
2. What is the purpose of the Judgment Seat of Christ?
3. What is the purpose of the Great White Throne Judgment?
4. When will the Great White throne Judgment take place?
5. How is the coming of the Lord different from the second coming of the Lord?
6. Who does the five virgins in the parable who had no oil for their lamps represent?
7. When does the Judgment Seat of Christ occur?
8. What was the value of a talent?
9. What is the main point that Jesus makes concerning the parable of the ten virgins?
10. The Bible tells us the words we want to hear the Lord say when He returns; what are they?

Questions on this study

We today are entering chapter 25 of our study of Matthew, and we are only halfway through the Olivet Discourse. As we go forward, Jesus is going to review what He has already taught in the form of parables. Parables can be challenging; however, Jesus clarifies these parables in a way that makes them easier to understand. We will be able to study the same material it has taken six weeks to cover in just two weeks in parables. Jesus uses a chiastic form of teaching; this is a method of teaching or writing that sets a going back and forth pattern. For example, a subject is taught from beginning to end and then from the end back to the beginning. If that sounds confusing, we will see how it works as we go forward.

The chiasm (Ki-ism) begins in 24:15; here, Jesus is teaching concerning the first phase of His second coming at the end of the age. The church will be caught away to meet Jesus in the air and then go to an appointed place to wait until the seven years of tribulation are finished. There will be the judgment seat of Christ for the purpose of examining the type of service rendered and the handing out rewards to the saints of both the old and New Testaments. The next thing Jesus explains is the second phase of His return to earth, which will be the second coming proper, at which time the great white throne judgment of unbelievers will take place, and they will be sentenced for rejecting Christ. In verse 30, we see the tribes on earth mourn at this time because they now face judgment.

Then in verse 36, Jesus talks about what he refers to as the coming of the Lord, which is the rapture of the church. This appearance of the Lord is different from the second coming. The easy way to explain it is that the Lord’s return is in two parts. The first part is His coming in the air to call up His church and the resurrected Old Testament saints to meet Him, and the second part is His actual coming to earth, which is His second coming proper. The first part of the second coming is unpredictable and imminent and can occur in the twinkling of an eye or as fast as you can blink; this will be a catastrophic event when millions of people suddenly exit the earth. The world will suffer in many ways economically and in the labor force.

As we move into chapter 25, Jesus is now covering the same material again but differently by using parables as a method of review. This repetition is an example of what is meant by the chiastic structure. When we go into it with the understanding that the system helps us understand Jesus’ teaching more quickly, it is just a matter of understanding the subject matter is taught in the reverse order. That means we will be looking at the material ending in chapter 24 and going back over the same material from the end back to the beginning. If we don’t recognize the method Jesus is using, it will confuse the timing of the events.

So, with that background method of teaching in mind, let us begin in chapter 25 as we review and elaborate on what we have just studied in chapter 24:

Matthew 25:1-13, “Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom. 2And five of them were wise, and five were foolish. ₃They that were foolish took their lamps, and took no oil with them: 4But the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps. 5While the bridegroom tarried, they all slumbered and slept. 6And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him. 7Then all those virgins arose, and trimmed their lamps. 8And the foolish said unto the wise, Give us of your oil; for our lamps are gone out. 9But the wise answered, saying, Not so; lest there be not enough for us and you: but go ye rather to them that sell, and buy for yourselves. 10And 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. 11Afterward came also the other virgins, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us. 12But he answered and said, Verily I say unto you, I know you not. 13Watch therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh.”

We recognize that this parable is aligned with the subject at the end of chapter 24, which is the church’s rapture. Jesus mentions first that the parable is about the kingdom of heaven and our life in that kingdom in the future. Second, Jesus compares a bride, related to the church, and the groom who comes suddenly to claim His bride and whisk her away to an unannounced place prepared for a waiting place until the end of the tribulation. Third, ten virgins are waiting but there is only one groom; these virgins are single women of marrying age; this means the church will be made up of several different people; five virgins are unprepared when the Lord comes and are locked out of the wedding ceremony. The central point of the parable points to the rapture of the church. Another significant issue is that not all groups that bear the church’s name are not authentic as represented by the five virgins who were unprepared for Christ’s second coming.

               The label virgin stands for moral purity. The bride of Christ is expected to be pure, clean, and white, as the wedding gown represents. It is also noted that these virgins were expecting the groom to arrive at any time; they were waiting and watching even though five were not prepared and were not the true church. I sometimes wonder if the church today is expecting the arrival of Jesus at any time or, in some cases, if some are like the five who are unprepared.

               Jesus states in verse 2 that half of the virgins are wise and half of them are foolish. The wise virgins have oil in their lamps, and the foolish do not. According to Zechariah chapter 4, oil represents the presence of the Holy Spirit. The book of Romans declares that believers receive the indwelling Holy Spirit at the point of salvation. For a church to be authentic, it must have the presence of the Holy Spirit, which is obvious five of these representatives of the church do not. Not all churches that bear the name are true churches and will not be part of the marriage of the Lamb at the time of the rapture. The five wise virgins represent the true believers while the five foolish ones represent the evil, wicked ones who are believers in name only.

               Five virgins representing the false church are found asleep at the midnight shout and the coming of the Lord. They cannot turn their lights on because they have no oil in their lamps, and the Lord does not find them. It is too late to find the needed oil, so they are left out of the wedding ceremony. The unprepared five virgins want to borrow oil from those prepared but those will not share their oil. No one can go to heaven on the merits of someone else. Just because you are born into a Christian family does not mean you are a believer. The five foolish go to try and purchase oil, but it is too late. When Jesus returns, it is too late to be saved, and those unprepared will be left behind. The chamber door was closed like Noah’s ark at the flood. In Matthew 24:36-41, Jesus compares the coming of the Lord to the days of Noah when people were unaware that judgment was coming upon them. They wanted into the ark, but the door was closed to them, and they perished in the waters. The virgins want in, but the door is closed, and they cannot open it. The Lord responds to their request that He does not know them; He does not recognize them as His bride. When Jesus returns, as we saw in chapter 24, He only receives those who are His.

               The details of the parable all line up with the closing verses of chapter 24, so the chiasm is on the right course. We see the point of Jesus in verse 13 at the parable’s end; we are to be watching and ready when the Lord returns, spiritually prepared to meet Him. There is nothing more important than placing your faith in Jesus Christ; if a person has gained the whole world symbolically and has not a saving faith, they have nothing. What a terrible thing to exchange your eternal soul for that which is vanishing away and lose your place in the future kingdom with no rewards, no eternal glory, and to be lost and separated from the love of God through all eternity.

               The Bible is clear that today is the time for salvation. Jesus is waiting and ready to save all those who will come unto Him, trusting in Him for the forgiveness of their sins and receiving the Holy Spirit. The presence of the Holy Spirit in your life is having oil in your lamp fully prepared to meet the Lord in the air when He returns.

There may never be another time to confess Jesus as Lord than now. No one knows if they will have a tomorrow. That is the lesson of this first parable; salvation must not be put off for another day because there may never be another day.

And now we come to the second parable:

Matthew 25:14-18, “For the kingdom of heaven is as a man travelling into a far country, who called his own servants, and delivered unto them his goods. 15And unto one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one; to every man according to his several ability; and straightway took his journey. 16Then he that had received the five talents went and traded with the same, and made them other five talents. 17And likewise he that had received two, he also gained other two. 18But he that had received one went and digged in the earth, and hid his Lord’s money.”

This parable matches Jesus’ teaching on the judgment seat of Christ as seen in Matthew 24:42-51. This review is of the event that occurs after the rapture of the church and is where believers receive their rewards based on if they completed their mission and how diligently they completed it. This parable is not difficult to understand. Its details are pretty straightforward.

In verse 15, the master gives his servants different amounts of money to invest and manage based on their ability. Each servant was expected to invest their allotted amount wisely and earn the Master a return on his money. 

The term used was “talents.” One silver talent weighed about 130 pounds and was equivalent to 9 years of pay. Just one talent was a considerable amount of money. Our modern-day word talent comes from the Greek word used in this parable. Today talent is one’s ability to use special skills to make money. Each servant was expected to faithfully serve their master’s interests in his absence and earn interest on their investment. 

            After a period of time the Master returns to reckon with servants:

Matthew 25:19-30, “After a long time the Lord of those servants cometh, and reckoneth with them. 20And so he that had received five talents came and brought other five talents, saying, Lord, thou deliveredst unto me five talents: behold, I have gained beside them five talents more. 21His Lord said unto him, Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy Lord. 22He also that had received two talents came and said, Lord, thou deliveredst unto me two talents: behold, I have gained two other talents beside them. 23His Lord said unto him, Well done, good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy Lord. 24Then he which had received the one talent came and said, Lord, I knew thee that thou art an hard man, reaping where thou hast not sown, and gathering where thou hast not strawed: 25And I was afraid, and went and hid thy talent in the earth: lo, there thou hast that is thine. 26His Lord answered and said unto him, Thou wicked and slothful servant, thou knewest that I reap where I sowed not, and gather where I have not strawed: 27Thou oughtest therefore to have put my money to the exchangers, and then at my coming I should have received mine own with usury. 28Take therefore the talent from him, and give it unto him which hath ten talents. 29For unto every one that hath shall be given, and he shall have abundance: but from him that hath not shall be taken away even that which he hath. ₃₀And cast ye the unprofitable servant into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

The Master has returned, and it is time to see how well his servants has done in his absence. One servant was given five talents, and one was given two. Each gained on their investment but to a different degree. However, both were rewarded the same based on their faithfulness, not their amount of success. The third servant proved himself not to be a true servant at all, and he did nothing to gain from what he was given; instead, he buried his talent for safekeeping, so he said. The master rebukes this false servant and casts him into outer darkness, representing hell because he was an unbeliever.

So, the rewards were based on the servant’s faithfulness in using what was given then rather than on the amount of their success. That is good to know since we may feel we have accomplished little in our service to the Lord compared to others. It is good to know God will reward us for how faithful we have tried. Once again, in this parable, we see there is one who claims to be a servant who was an imposter like the five virgins who were without oil for their lamps or who did not have the indwelling Holy Spirit.

Today the Master, Jesus Christ, expects each of His servants to be serving Him in His absence. He has given each a talent or talents. Each of us has different opportunities and abilities, which will be taken into consideration, along with our willingness to serve when He returns to hand out rewards. Those rewards will not depend on the magnitude of our effort or our success; They will be given on our faithfulness to serve the Master.

Jesus said that we would receive rewards in His Kingdom for serving Him here during our time on earth: “He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much: and he that is unjust in the least is unjust also in much. 11If, therefore ye have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches? 12And if ye have not been faithful in that which is another man’s, who shall give you that which is your own? 13No servant can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon,” Luke 16:10-13. 

The point of the second parable is that each of us need to be ready for Jesus’ return, and when He returns, we need to be busy doing that which He has assigned us to do. So, each of us need to ask ourselves, am I doing anything Jesus expects me to do, or am I spending my time doing what I want to do?

The last command Jesus gave to the church, In Matthew 28:19, before He ascended into heaven, was for us to serve Him by going out to all the world and sharing the gospel and bringing those who are believers into the church and teaching them those things He taught when on earth. Then when He returns, we will hear Him say, “…Well done, good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord,” Matthew 25:23.