Tim Woods | August 23, 2026
As we journey through life, we come to many different intersections. We meet friends, interact with family, and even meet new people at pivotal moments in their lives. Your interaction with them may plant a seed that leads them to Jesus. Is your life representing Christ at every intersection? Are you sharing the Gospel? Paul met Christ on the road to Damascus. The connections you make can be priceless. Are you ready for these interactions? We are to build our faith on the foundation of Jesus Christ. We hear the Gospel preached; we hear the lessons in Sunday School class, and the foundation is laid. Jesus is that foundation, and the church will not stand on any other besides Christ. Are you building your life on the one true foundation? Is your faith growing and maturing in Him? Is your faith made ready for Him?
What we do and how we act indicate how we genuinely believe. God isn’t looking for those to simply “go through the motions.” To please Him, our faith must be so deep that our behavior reflects who we follow. We suit up with the armor of God, ready for battle. But are you choosing what piece to wear? Every piece of God’s armor is vital. You cannot pick and choose which piece you’ll wear. One or two pieces aren’t sufficient. To be able to stand against Satan and the evils of this wicked world, your spiritual armor must be fully intact. Are you ready for the battle ahead? Our understanding is always subject to error. The LORD knows what is best for each one of us. Due to our limitations, we must trust in God and let Him have complete control over us. God has a calling for each of us. He is designing and shaping a path for you. This calling may come through a gentle nudge, directing you to His will. Sometimes, though, it may require something a little more jarring. Regardless, He has a plan just for you.
For such a time as this. (Esther 4:14 NKJV)
The Lord had a calling for Esther; He has one for you, too. It’s time; He’s always present. Are you ready to answer the call for such a time as this? “But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only. 37 But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. 38 For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, 39 and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. (Matt. 24:36-39)
Are you ready for His return?
Jesus continues in Matthew 25:1-13 with the parable of the Ten Virgins, emphasizing the importance of readiness. “Then the kingdom of heaven shall be likened to ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. 2 Now five of them were wise, and five were foolish. 3 Those who were foolish took their lamps and took no oil with them, 4 but the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps. 5 But while the bridegroom was delayed, they all slumbered and slept.6 “And at midnight a cry was heard: ‘Behold, the bridegroom is coming; go out to meet him!’ 7 Then all those virgins arose and trimmed their lamps. 8 And the foolish said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ 9 But the wise answered, saying, ‘No, lest there should not be enough for us and you; but go rather to those who sell, and buy for yourselves.’ 10 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.11 “Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, ‘Lord, Lord, open to us!’ 12 But he answered and said, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, I do not know you.’13 “Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour in which the Son of Man is coming.
Often during this time and within this culture, the word “virgin” was used to describe young, unmarried women. In this passage, these young women would have been bridal attendants or bridesmaids in a wedding procession. This celebration would have taken place in the evening. The virgins would have the lamps lighting the way for the groom and his friends as they left his home to go to the bride’s home for the first part of the wedding. The couple, along with the entire wedding party, would return to the groom’s home for the banquet. Wedding celebrations were often multi-day events. Therefore, those who were waiting for the groom to come and collect his bride wouldn’t know when he would arrive, but they had to be ready.
But the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps. (Matt. 25:4)
The virgins had to have the oil to sustain the fire in their lamps, and so do you! You must invest in your own oil and be ready for His coming, unlike the five foolish virgins. You must build a relationship with Him. The oil that keeps the fire burning is your personal relationship with Him, faith, and obedience to His Word. To be ready for the return of Christ, you must have that personal relationship with Him. The Holy Spirit must indwell within. Without the Holy Spirit (the oil), you are unprepared. It’s only through the blood of Jesus Christ that salvation can be obtained. The message within this parable is that Christ will return at an unknown time. Therefore, we must be ready to meet Him.
But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up. (2 Peter 3:10)
About the Author
Tim Woods lives in West Frankfort, Illinois, where he serves as Director of Student Ministries at First Christian Church and Jr. High/High School Teacher and Chaplain for New Covenant Christian School. Woods earned his B.Min. in Discipleship and M.Min. in Biblical Studies from Veritas Theological Seminary and is currently working toward a D.Min. He is the author of the forthcoming (2025) book, Battle for Souls (Illative House Press).
