For a human being, it would be very rebellious to be such a child in such a family. For a Christian, it is very unspiritual to be this kind of Christian. No matter what kind of person you are, you need to know the principle of being that kind of person. If you are a student, you should study. The principle of being a student is to focus on studying hard. If you do not study or work hard as a student, you are not doing what you are supposed to be doing and should feel ashamed of yourself. This is true not only for students but also for people with any kind of occupation. Whether you are a storeowner, boss, professor, or doctor, you must follow certain principles. Similarly, there is a principle for being a Christian. A wise person, no matter what kind of person he is, will behave according to the principle for the kind of person he is. It would be very foolish for him to overlook or to violate that principle.
What is the principle of being a Christian? Why are we Christians? What is the purpose of being a Christian? If we truly want to be Christians and to be called Christians, yet we overlook and violate the principle of being a Christian, then we are the most foolish people in the world. The principle of being a Christian is to let Christ mature in us. A Christian is a person who belongs to Christ, who is filled with Christ, and who expresses Christ. To express Christ requires that we be filled with Christ, and to be filled with Christ requires that we be filled with the Spirit of Christ. This is the principle of being a Christian. We must follow this principle so that Christ within us may possess us, govern us, and control us. Our entire inner being, that is, our mind, emotion, and will—including our thoughts, views, insights, opinions, preferences, choices, and decisions—must be brought under the governing of Christ. We must give Christ the right to control us so that He may move freely in us and possess us.
To get to this stage, we must be filled with the Spirit who is the essence of Christ. Christ controls, possesses, and governs us in and through the Spirit. Therefore, we must pursue the infilling of the Spirit. This is the principle of being a Christian. Christians who do not live according to this principle do not behave like Christians and do not live up to the standard. To live up to the standard, a Christian must be subject to the principle of the infilling of the Spirit. In the parable of the ten virgins, the virgins’ preparing oil in their vessels signifies our pursuing the infilling of the Spirit.
No other passage in the entire Bible is as clear as the parable of the ten virgins in Matthew 25 in telling us the way a Christian matures after being saved. That way, which is the principle of being a Christian, is extremely simple—it is to prepare oil in his vessel. Those who prepared were the prudent ones, and those who did not prepare were the foolish ones. As Christians, whether we are prudent or foolish in the eyes of the Lord will be determined not by so many other things but by the principle of whether we have prepared oil in our vessels. Whether or not we will be with the Lord, feast with Him, and participate in the heavenly joy with Him in the kingdom age does not depend on so many other things but on whether we have prepared oil in our vessels.
Many Bible expositors agree that to prepare oil in the vessel is to be filled with the Spirit. There is no question that we have been regenerated and saved and have the Spirit within us. The only question now is whether we have prepared the oil in our vessel and have the infilling of the Spirit. We may make light of this or may overlook this matter before the Lord, but the Lord wants us to realize that our situation before Him today and our future destiny all depend on our attitude in this matter. In other words, our future destiny depends on whether or not we have the infilling of the Spirit. Let us consider the following questions. Have we been saved? Have we been regenerated? Do we have the life of the Lord, and are we children of God? Do we have the Spirit of God in us? I believe that we would all say yes to all of these questions. However, if I were to ask whether or not we have given the Spirit the ground or whether or not the Spirit has the authority in us, I am afraid that we would find it difficult to answer.
By giving the Spirit the ground and allowing the Spirit to have the authority in us, we are preparing our vessels with the oil. However, we have to admit that most of us have not given the Spirit the ground and the authority to fill us. We may have many reasons and excuses for not preparing our vessels with the oil. We may not even have the heart to be prepared with the oil. As Christians, we are often foolish and unwise. May the Lord have mercy on us to open our inner eyes and to clearly show us that this is the way for a Christian to mature so that we would rise up to pursue the infilling of the Spirit.