Ready or Not Are You Truly Prepared for the Return of Jesus?

The parable of the ten virgins in Matthew 25 is one of the most sobering stories Jesus ever told. It is not a timeline for the end times. It is a mirror held up to anyone who calls themselves a Christian, asking one piercing question: when Christ returns, will your faith prove to be genuine?

What Is the Parable of the Ten Virgins About?

In Matthew 25:1-13, Jesus tells the story of ten women waiting for a bridegroom to arrive. They all have lamps. They all have invitations. They all fall asleep waiting. But when the bridegroom finally comes, only five of them are ready.

“Then the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish, and five were wise. For when the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them, but the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps.” – Matthew 25:1-4

This parable is not aimed at atheists or people who have never heard the gospel. It is a warning directed at church people. People who know the songs, know the language, and know the stories, but may not actually know Jesus.

Why Does Jesus Tell This Story?

Matthew 24 and 25 together are known as the Olivet Discourse. The disciples asked Jesus about the end of the age, and rather than giving them a detailed timeline, He told three parables. The ten virgins, the talents, and the sheep and the goats. Each one asks the same underlying question: what does genuine faith look like while we wait for the King?

Jesus is not trying to satisfy curiosity about end-times prophecy. He is calling every believer to honest self-examination.

Should Christians Try to Predict When Jesus Is Coming Back?

Scripture is clear on this point. No one knows the day or the hour.

“Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour.” – Matthew 25:13

Throughout history, people have tried to pin down the exact moment of Christ’s return. Books have been written, calendars have been studied, and blood moons have been analyzed. None of it has produced the answer, because the answer was never ours to find. Spending energy trying to figure out the exact timing of Jesus’ return is energy that could be used to reach lost people, grow in discipleship, and serve those around us.

Yes, Jesus is coming back. That is certain. When He is coming back is not ours to know.

Looking Ready Is Not the Same as Being Ready

This is the first and most important lesson from the parable. All ten women looked identical from the outside. Same lamps. Same invitation. Same waiting. But five of them had no extra oil, and when the bridegroom was delayed, their lamps went out.

The oil is not the main point of the story. Readiness is. A lamp without oil has no purpose. The foolish women assumed that showing up with a lamp would be enough. Their appearance was going to carry them through.

This is a real danger for anyone who has grown up in the church. Growing up in a Christian home will not save you. Having your name on a church roll will not save you. Being baptized will not save you. Serving on a ministry team will not save you. Being around Jesus is not the same as belonging to Jesus. Just ask Judas, who walked with the greatest small group leader who ever lived and still walked away lost.

As theologian J.C. Ryle observed, “the visible church contains wise and foolish alike until the Lord returns.” It is possible to look like a Christian and not know Christ. That is not a reason to live in fear, but it is a reason to examine whether your faith is real.

Can You Borrow Someone Else’s Faith?

When the foolish women realized their lamps were going out, they asked the wise women to share their oil. The wise women refused, not out of selfishness, but because readiness cannot be transferred.

Your spouse cannot believe for you. Your parents cannot believe for you. Your pastor cannot believe for you. Personal faith cannot be inherited, loaned, or borrowed.

There will come a moment, for every person, when the only thing that matters is whether you personally know Jesus. Not whether you were raised in church. Not whether your family has a legacy of faith. Not whether you attended the right services or said the right prayers at the right times without ever truly meaning them.

Charles Spurgeon said it plainly: “tomorrow is the devil’s day. Today is God’s.”
None of us are guaranteed another day. Waiting until life settles down, until the kids are older, until things feel more stable, is a luxury no one actually has. What God is doing is happening now, and it cannot wait.

What Does It Mean to Hear “I Do Not Know You”?

The most heartbreaking moment in this parable comes when the foolish women finally arrive at the door and cry out to be let in.

“Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, ‘Lord, Lord, open to us.’ But he answered, ‘Truly, I say to you, I do not know you.'” – Matthew 25:11-12

Notice what Jesus does not say. He does not say they were not good enough, or that they did not work hard enough, or that they did not attend church enough. He says He does not know them.

Following Jesus is not about accumulating facts about Him. It is about knowing Him. Memorizing Scripture is valuable. Attending church is important. But when those things stay at the level of information and never lead to transformation, something is missing.

Jesus said in John 17:3, “And this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.” – John 17:3

The tragedy of the foolish women was not that they lacked sincerity. It was that they lacked a relationship with the bridegroom. There will be many sincere people who will not be in heaven because they were never truly known by God.

What Does Genuine Faith Look Like While We Wait?

John MacArthur wrote that saving faith is evidenced by enduring readiness. Genuine faith does not just show up on good days. It endures through every season, including the waiting rooms of life.

The wise women in the parable are not frantic when the bridegroom arrives. They are calm. They are prepared. Their trust in the bridegroom produced expectancy, not panic.

That same peace is available to every believer who has placed their trust in Jesus. Not because life is easy or circumstances are perfect, but because they know who is coming and they know they belong to Him.

The Door Is Open, But Not Forever

One day the bridegroom will close the door. But today, because Jesus stretched out His arms on the cross and tore the veil in two, the door is still open. The invitation is still extended.

The question is not whether Jesus is coming. He is. The question is whether you will be ready when He does.

Life Application

This week, take time to move beyond the routine of Christian activity and examine the actual condition of your relationship with Jesus. Not your church attendance. Not your service record. Your relationship with Him.

Set aside intentional time to pray, not out of obligation, but out of a genuine desire to be known by God and to know Him more deeply. Let that time be honest. Bring your doubts, your struggles, and your questions to Him.

Ask yourself these questions:

• If Jesus returned today, would my faith prove to be genuine, or have I been relying on my appearance of faith rather than the reality of it?
• Is my relationship with Jesus something I have personally chosen and cultivated, or have I been borrowing it from the faith of those around me?
• When I think about the return of Christ, does it produce expectancy and peace in me, or anxiety and avoidance? What does that reveal about where I am placing my trust?

Readiness is not about being perfect. It is about truly belonging to Jesus. And that begins with an honest conversation between you and Him today.