Matthew 25:3-4 mentions two things that are absolutely different—one is the lamp and the other is the vessel. The difference between the foolish virgins and the prudent virgins does not concern their lamps but the contents of their vessels. The prudent prepared oil in their vessels while the foolish did not. Verse 7 says, “Then all those virgins arose and trimmed their own lamps.” This verse mentions only lamps, not vessels. Then verse 8 says, “And the foolish said to the prudent, Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.” This verse proves that the lamps of the foolish virgins were burning but were soon about to go out. This also implies that there was no problem with their lamps. Instead, the problem was that they did not take oil in their vessels.
We have to pay attention to what the lamp, the vessel, the oil in the lamp, and the oil in the vessel signify. Then we will know what our problem is. Proverbs 20:27 clearly tells us, “The spirit of man is the lamp of Jehovah, / Searching all the innermost parts of the inner being.” The lamp is the human spirit within us, and our spirit is the lamp of God. Jehovah has a lamp in us, which is the spirit in man. God searches every part of our inner being using this lamp. The parts of our inner being are the parts of the human soul.
Second Corinthians 4:7 says, “But we have this treasure in earthen vessels that the excellency of the power may be of God and not out of us.” The treasure in this verse is the life of God and the Spirit of life. The earthen vessel refers to our being. Verse 16 says, “Therefore we do not lose heart; but though our outer man is decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day.” The outer man is our natural man, our soul, whereas the inner man is our regenerated new man, our regenerated spirit. Thus, the vessel mentioned in the previous verse refers to our outer man, our soul. The treasure is the life of God, the Spirit of life, mingled with our inner man, our spirit. Therefore, our spirit has the life of God and the Spirit of God, and our outer man, our soul, is a vessel.
Second Corinthians 3:6 says, “Who has also made us sufficient as ministers of a new covenant, ministers not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.” Verse 8 says, “How shall the ministry of the Spirit not be more in glory?” Verse 6 mentions the Spirit, and verse 8 mentions glory. Verse 6 says that the ministers of the new covenant are made sufficient to be ministers of the Spirit through which man can have life. Then verse 8 says that there is glory in the ministry of the new covenant. Therefore, the Spirit and glory are closely related. Verses 16 and 17 say, “But whenever their heart turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. And the Lord is the Spirit; and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.” Our turning our heart to the Lord is our turning to the Spirit. Whenever the veil is taken away, the Spirit works to set us free.
Verse 18 says, “But we all with unveiled face, beholding and reflecting like a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, even as from the Lord Spirit.” This means that our being transformed into the image of the Lord is our being transformed from glory to glory. Our being transformed from glory to glory is also from the Lord Spirit. In other words, our being transformed from the Lord Spirit is our being transformed from glory to glory. Anyone who knows Greek should realize that this verse shows us that our transformation from glory to glory and our transformation from the Lord Spirit are the same thing. They are two matters that refer to the same matter. This proves that glory and the Spirit are one thing. John 7:39 says, “But this He said concerning the Spirit, whom those who believed into Him were about to receive; for the Spirit was not yet, because Jesus had not yet been glorified.” This also proves that glory and the Spirit are related.