The Secret of Buying Oil

O

il in the Bible is often representative of the Holy Spirit, so to have oil in our lamps means to have the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit illuminating our lives with His

zeal and glory. Without the oil of the Holy Spirit, our lives become lifeless, and our light is extinguished. The secret place is where we buy oil. As we come aside to commune with our Lord, we are renewed in the Holy Spirit, and our oil levels are replenished.

The idea of “buying oil” derives from the parable of the ten virgins, so let’s look at that passage and take special note of how the word “oil” appears in the parable. Jesus is speaking:

“Then the kingdom of heaven shall be likened to ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. Now five of them were wise, and five were foolish. Those who were foolish took their lamps and took no oil with them, but the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps. But while the bridegroom was delayed, they all slumbered and slept. And at midnight a cry was heard: ‘Behold, the bridegroom is coming; go out to meet him!’ Then all those virgins arose and trimmed their lamps. And the foolish said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ But the wise answered,

Secrets of the Secret Place

saying, ‘No, lest there should not be enough for us and you; but go rather to those who sell, and buy for yourselves.’ And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the wedding; and the door was shut. Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, ‘Lord, Lord, open to us!’ But he answered and said, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, I do not know you.’ Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour in which the Son of Man is coming” (Mat- thew 25:1-13).

We do not have space in this brief chapter for a thorough study of this parable. This is an incredibly fascinating parable, and it has earned a wide variety of interpretations and applications. However, the vast majority would agree that oil in the lamp represents hav- ing an inner reservoir of Holy Spirit reality. Our focus here is on the oil. If we are not filled with the oil of the Spirit, we will not survive the chaos and calamities of the last days.

All ten virgins had oil in their lamps, but the five wise virgins brought an extra vessel of oil with them. This was because the wise virgins had anticipated that the return of the bridegroom might possibly be delayed beyond their expectations. The foolish virgins made the fatal assumption the bridegroom’s return would be sooner than later. They were confident that they didn’t need extra oil; they thought their lamp held enough oil to sustain them until the bridegroom’s coming.

All ten were virgins, which is to say they were all sincere believers. Mike Bickle has suggested, based on the context, that the virgins represent leaders in the church. If that’s true, then the oil could be said to represent a leader’s ministry anointing that is cultivated in the secret place. The foolish virgins had a “get by” mentality. They invested themselves in the secret place only to the degree that their ministry responsibilities seemed to dictate. The wise showed their diligence by garnering a depth in God that was greater than their present ministries demanded of them. The wise did not come to the secret place simply to buy oil for ministry impartation; they also came to buy oil for themselves in order to have a private burning-heart relationship with the Lord.

The Secret of Buying Oil

It doesn’t cost much to get oil for ministry, but it will cost you a lot to get the oil of an intimate relationship with Jesus. Then, when the ministry time is over, you’re still a burning love-flame for Him.

The oil of authentic relationship is bought at the cost of investing time and energy in the secret place. The foolish will allow urgent matters of the moment to pull them away from the secret place after having a minimal filling. The wise will stay and continue to be filled with oil until their hearts are energized by their love relationship with Jesus.

When their foolishness becomes obvious, the foolish will turn to the wise and say, “Give us some of your oil.” They will recognize the wise have a depth in God that they never took the time and energy to cultivate. They will say, “Give us some of your author- ity in ministry,” but the wise will understand that there are no shortcuts to ministry authority. You can’t derive the authority of anointing from another person; you have to get it yourself in the secret place.

When the bridegroom delays His return, the virgins are overtaken with heartsickness because of deferred hope (Prov- erbs 13:12). Heartsickness will cause them to sleep from sorrow (Luke 22:45). The bridegroom’s delay has a way of distinguish- ing between the foolish and the wise. It reveals those who had developed their own personal history of a living relationship with the bridegroom. Those who persevere in love through the heart- sickness of deferred hopes will be entrusted with the authority to minister deliverance to the captives. The wise will become mighty deliverers in the end.

We will need a reservoir in the Spirit if we are to sustain through the hour of trial that is to come upon the entire earth (Revelation 3:10). The point of the parable is—buy oil! Devote yourself to the secret place until your heart is overflowing with love and zeal for your Beloved. Then, make it the first priority of your day to keep that oil replenished. The secret is right here: The

secret place is the threshold for resourcing the replenishment you need to sustain through the dark night of Christ’s delays.

Buy oil!

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Дата добавления: 2015-10-23