Reflective Bible Study Gospel Adventure

Learning Wisdom: Matthew 25:1-13

Published October 9, 2026 in Written Journal Entries

Focus Passage: Matthew 25:1-13 (NIrV)

¹“Here is what the kingdom of heaven will be like at that time. Ten bridesmaids took their lamps and went out to meet the groom. ²Five of them were foolish. Five were wise. ³The foolish ones took their lamps but didn’t take any olive oil with them. ⁴The wise ones took oil in jars along with their lamps. ⁵The groom did not come for a long time. So the bridesmaids all grew tired and fell asleep.

⁶“At midnight someone cried out, ‘Here’s the groom! Come out to meet him!’

⁷“Then all the bridesmaids woke up and got their lamps ready. ⁸The foolish ones said to the wise ones, ‘Give us some of your oil. Our lamps are going out.’

⁹“ ‘No,’ they replied. ‘There may not be enough for all of us. Instead, go to those who sell oil. Buy some for yourselves.’

¹⁰“So they went to buy the oil. But while they were on their way, the groom arrived. The bridesmaids who were ready went in with him to the wedding dinner. Then the door was shut.

¹¹“Later, the other bridesmaids also came. ‘Sir! Sir!’ they said. ‘Open the door for us!’

¹²“But he replied, ‘What I’m about to tell you is true. I don’t know you.’

¹³“So keep watch. You do not know the day or the hour that the groom will come.

Read Matthew 25:1-13 in context and/or in other translations on BibleGateway.com!

In Jesus’ parable of the wise and foolish bridesmaids, we can learn a lot about what it takes to be known as wise. In this parable, there are some clear differences shared between the wise bridesmaids, and the foolish ones.

This parable opens by describing ten bridesmaids who all want to meet the bridegroom. All ten have the same goal, but then Matthew describes the differences between them. He tells us, “Five of them were foolish. Five were wise. The foolish ones took their lamps but didn’t take any olive oil with them. The wise ones took oil in jars along with their lamps.” (v. 2-4)

The first key difference between these two groups of bridesmaids is that the foolish ones didn’t bring along any extra oil in jars. Perhaps the foolish bridesmaids believed the oil was safer left at home, or maybe they assumed that there would be no delaying the wedding party’s arrival. Whatever the reason, these foolish bridesmaids did not bring extra oil.

On the other hand, the wise bridesmaids either anticipated a delay, or they thought that more oil would be good to have. Oil left at home does no one any good. They likely didn’t bring all their oil, but enough to get all the way through the night.

Then all the bridesmaids fell asleep. After being woken up, we are able to see another key difference between the wise and the foolish. Matthew describes the bridesmaids having a frantic conversation while scrambling to get ready for the bridegroom who was almost here. He tells us the foolish bridesmaids said to the wise, “Give us some of your oil. Our lamps are going out.” (v. 8)

The wise bridesmaids responded by saying, “No, there may not be enough for all of us. Instead, go to those who sell oil. Buy some for yourselves.” (v. 9)

Matthew then describes what the foolish bridesmaids did: “So they [the foolish bridesmaids] went to buy the oil. But while they were on their way, the groom arrived. The bridesmaids who were ready went in with him to the wedding dinner. Then the door was shut.” (v. 10)

Preparation and decision separated the wise from the foolish in this parable. The wise bridesmaids prepared by bringing enough oil, and that preparation let them experience the wedding. The foolish bridesmaids’ lack of preparation made for an awkward conversation and a poor decision on the back end.

Following being woken up, the foolish bridesmaids left their post in order to go get oil. This decision cost them the chance of being part of the wedding celebration.

While tradition holds that the oil represents the Holy Spirit, it is possible that in this parable, it could mean simply anything that we feel we need to have or do before coming to God. If the oil really does represent the Holy Spirit, then the only Source of it would be coming with the wedding party, with God the Father (as Father of the Groom), and God the Son (the groom). It is possible that the Father, seeing that the foolish bridesmaids had run out of oil, may have brought out some and given it to them.

But the foolish bridesmaids were nowhere to be found. They had left their post in favor of seeking oil elsewhere, and they missed out on the wedding celebration.

The key two ideas that make us wise in this parable are that we should plan ahead and bring more than is necessary incase Jesus’ return is delayed; and secondly, we should never leave our post thinking there is something more we need to have or do elsewhere. If we leave our post, we guarantee that we will miss out on the reward of being included in the wedding celebration.

This thought was inspired by studying the Walking With Jesus “Reflective Bible Study” package. To discover insights like this in your own study time, click here and give Reflective Bible Study a try today!

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Accepting God’s Challenge: Matthew 21:28-32

Published October 8, 2026 in Audio Journal Entries

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Moving into the week leading up to Jesus’ crucifixion, it seems as though Jesus turns up the pressure with the illustrations He shares. In Jesus’ parable for this episode, Jesus is talking with the religious leaders on one of the early days of the week He would be crucified. As we read this parable and the ones that follow, I don’t think it will be much of a shock that the priests and Pharisees present would have wanted to get Jesus out of the picture. The religious leaders definitely understood Jesus’ parables were shared as a challenge to them.

The short parable we are focusing in on for this episode comes from Matthew’s gospel, chapter 21, and we will read it from the New Century Version. Starting in verse 28, Matthew quotes Jesus saying to the religious leaders:

²⁸“Tell me what you think about this: A man had two sons. He went to the first son and said, ‘Son, go and work today in my vineyard.’ ²⁹The son answered, ‘I will not go.’ But later the son changed his mind and went. ³⁰Then the father went to the other son and said, ‘Son, go and work today in my vineyard.’ The son answered, ‘Yes, sir, I will go and work,’ but he did not go. ³¹Which of the two sons obeyed his father?”

The priests and leaders answered, “The first son.”

Jesus said to them, “I tell you the truth, the tax collectors and the prostitutes will enter the kingdom of God before you do. ³²John came to show you the right way to live. You did not believe him, but the tax collectors and prostitutes believed him. Even after seeing this, you still refused to change your ways and believe him.

In this short parable and passage, Jesus emphasizes two very important and profound ideas.

The first of these ideas is that talk is cheap, while action has value. I know if I were given the choice to have someone tell me they would help me versus someone actually helping me with a task, I would choose the help over the promise almost every single time.

It is the same way with God. Through Jesus’ parable and the religious leaders’ response, we know God values someone who obeys Him much more than someone who says they will obey, but then who breaks their word.

Interestingly enough, both sons broke their word, but one broke their verbal agreement by not coming, while the other decided to come after saying that he would not. While the ideal would be for one son to say they would come help in the vineyard, then follow through by actually coming and working in the vineyard, when given the choice, action always beats talk.

It is interesting in my mind that Jesus transitions out of the parable with the question that He does, because by answering this question, the priests and leaders end up incriminating themselves. By answering that the first son obeyed because he followed through and helped in the vineyard, Jesus is then able to point out the truth that this parable has a parallel in John the Baptist’s ministry.

Because of the ministry of John the Baptist, some of the worst sinners in the region changed their lives and returned to God. In contrast, when hearing John’s challenge to the religious leaders, most religious leaders disregarded John’s message and warning. Whether they disregarded John’s message because they didn’t think John was speaking truth, or whether they disregarded John’s message because they simply didn’t like the words, or even if they disregarded John’s message because they didn’t like John, their refusal to accept God’s challenge through John sets up their rejection of Jesus.

In Jesus’ concluding remarks, we discover that any message that gets us to turn towards God and away from sin is a message that is worth paying attention to. Any message that prompts us to turn back to God and away from sin is a message from the Holy Spirit. It doesn’t really matter who or where the message came from, because a message to turn back to God can only come with the Holy Spirit’s prompting.

While Jesus challenges the religious leaders in a direct way with the last verses, Jesus’ message gives us hope because while the religious leaders are being challenged, Jesus is giving assurance to everyone who has turned away from sin and back to God who might doubt that they have been saved. Someone who feels they may have gone too far or done too many bad things might doubt God’s love and saving ability. In Jesus’ message, any person who returns to God, regardless of how bad they feel their past or present is will enter God’s kingdom before someone who lived a life they felt did not need a savior.

God’s kingdom will be populated with more people who realized they needed a Savior after they screwed up their lives here on earth, than it will be filled with people who believed they didn’t need a Savior. Actually, there might not be anyone in heaven who believes they lived so good that they didn’t need Jesus.

We all have screwed up our lives here on this earth to some degree or another. That is the nature of sin and its effect on our lives. However, Jesus came to be the remedy for sin and to take our punishment for sin onto Himself, opening up the way for us to be saved forever. God offers the gift to anyone and everyone who is willing to accept Jesus into their lives and accept the gift God offers.

God is happy to reward all who turn away from sin and back to Him.

As we come to the end of another podcast episode, here are the challenges I will leave you with:

As I always challenge you to do, continue seeking God first in your life. Choose to let God lead and guide you each and every day and let Him lead you away from the sin in your past. Pay attention to every message challenging you to turn away from sin and back to God because messages like those have the Holy Spirit’s fingerprints present.

Also, continue to pray and study the Bible for yourself to grow personally closer to God each and every day. As you pray and study, be sure to open your heart to God and let Him come into your life and into your circumstances.

And as I end every set of challenges by saying in one way or another, never stop short of, back away from, chicken out of, or abandon where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!

Year of Parables – Episode 41: Following one of His shorter parables during the week He was crucified, discover how the religious leaders incriminate themselves by answering a question Jesus asks.

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Why Bad Things Happen (Maybe): John 9:1-41

Published October 7, 2026 in Written Journal Entries

Focus Passage: John 9:1-41 (NLT)

¹ As Jesus was walking along, he saw a man who had been blind from birth. ² “Rabbi,” his disciples asked him, “why was this man born blind? Was it because of his own sins or his parents’ sins?”

³ “It was not because of his sins or his parents’ sins,” Jesus answered. “This happened so the power of God could be seen in him. ⁴ We must quickly carry out the tasks assigned us by the one who sent us. The night is coming, and then no one can work. ⁵ But while I am here in the world, I am the light of the world.”

⁶ Then he spit on the ground, made mud with the saliva, and spread the mud over the blind man’s eyes. ⁷ He told him, “Go wash yourself in the pool of Siloam” (Siloam means “sent”). So the man went and washed and came back seeing!

⁸ His neighbors and others who knew him as a blind beggar asked each other, “Isn’t this the man who used to sit and beg?” ⁹ Some said he was, and others said, “No, he just looks like him!”

But the beggar kept saying, “Yes, I am the same one!”

¹⁰ They asked, “Who healed you? What happened?”

¹¹ He told them, “The man they call Jesus made mud and spread it over my eyes and told me, ‘Go to the pool of Siloam and wash yourself.’ So I went and washed, and now I can see!”

¹² “Where is he now?” they asked.

“I don’t know,” he replied.

¹³ Then they took the man who had been blind to the Pharisees, ¹⁴ because it was on the Sabbath that Jesus had made the mud and healed him. ¹⁵ The Pharisees asked the man all about it. So he told them, “He put the mud over my eyes, and when I washed it away, I could see!”

¹⁶ Some of the Pharisees said, “This man Jesus is not from God, for he is working on the Sabbath.” Others said, “But how could an ordinary sinner do such miraculous signs?” So there was a deep division of opinion among them.

¹⁷ Then the Pharisees again questioned the man who had been blind and demanded, “What’s your opinion about this man who healed you?”

The man replied, “I think he must be a prophet.”

¹⁸ The Jewish leaders still refused to believe the man had been blind and could now see, so they called in his parents. ¹⁹ They asked them, “Is this your son? Was he born blind? If so, how can he now see?”

²⁰ His parents replied, “We know this is our son and that he was born blind, ²¹ but we don’t know how he can see or who healed him. Ask him. He is old enough to speak for himself.” ²² His parents said this because they were afraid of the Jewish leaders, who had announced that anyone saying Jesus was the Messiah would be expelled from the synagogue. ²³ That’s why they said, “He is old enough. Ask him.”

²⁴ So for the second time they called in the man who had been blind and told him, “God should get the glory for this, because we know this man Jesus is a sinner.”

²⁵ “I don’t know whether he is a sinner,” the man replied. “But I know this: I was blind, and now I can see!”

²⁶ “But what did he do?” they asked. “How did he heal you?”

²⁷ “Look!” the man exclaimed. “I told you once. Didn’t you listen? Why do you want to hear it again? Do you want to become his disciples, too?”

²⁸ Then they cursed him and said, “You are his disciple, but we are disciples of Moses! ²⁹ We know God spoke to Moses, but we don’t even know where this man comes from.”

³⁰ “Why, that’s very strange!” the man replied. “He healed my eyes, and yet you don’t know where he comes from? ³¹ We know that God doesn’t listen to sinners, but he is ready to hear those who worship him and do his will. ³² Ever since the world began, no one has been able to open the eyes of someone born blind. ³³ If this man were not from God, he couldn’t have done it.”

³⁴ “You were born a total sinner!” they answered. “Are you trying to teach us?” And they threw him out of the synagogue.

³⁵ When Jesus heard what had happened, he found the man and asked, “Do you believe in the Son of Man?”

³⁶ The man answered, “Who is he, sir? I want to believe in him.”

³⁷ “You have seen him,” Jesus said, “and he is speaking to you!”

³⁸ “Yes, Lord, I believe!” the man said. And he worshiped Jesus.

³⁹ Then Jesus told him, “I entered this world to render judgment—to give sight to the blind and to show those who think they see that they are blind.”

⁴⁰ Some Pharisees who were standing nearby heard him and asked, “Are you saying we’re blind?”

⁴¹ “If you were blind, you wouldn’t be guilty,” Jesus replied. “But you remain guilty because you claim you can see.

Read John 9:1-41 in context and/or in other translations on BibleGateway.com!

In today’s entry, we are looking at another one of Jesus’ miracles, and we will be focusing specifically on the response Jesus gives to the disciples’ question before the miracle.

The disciples ask Jesus, “Why was this man born blind? Was it because of his own sins or his parents’ sins?” (v. 2)

Jesus responds, “It was not because of his sins or his parents’ sins. This happened so the power of God could be seen in him.” (v. 3)

Which leads us to our big thought: What if all the bad that is present in this world today is really an opportunity for God’s glory to be revealed?

If this is the case today as it was at the time Jesus performed this miracle, are we viewing problems in the world as an inevitable chain of events that must progressively get worse for Jesus to come back sooner, or are we viewing these problems as opportunities to show God’s glory by helping to solve the problems we can touch?

In this parable, we are given a glimpse that sometimes bad things happen not because of something we did, something that our parents did, or something that could have been avoided, but instead as an opportunity for God’s glory to be revealed.

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Bigger than the Cross: Luke 4:42-44

Published October 6, 2026 in Written Journal Entries

Focus Passage: Luke 4:42-44 (NIV)

⁴²At daybreak, Jesus went out to a solitary place. The people were looking for him and when they came to where he was, they tried to keep him from leaving them. ⁴³But he said, “I must proclaim the good news of the kingdom of God to the other towns also, because that is why I was sent.” ⁴⁴And he kept on preaching in the synagogues of Judea.

Read Luke 4:42-44 in context and/or in other translations on BibleGateway.com!

Of all the events in the gospels, the one in our passage for this entry stands out in my mind as being notable, because in it, Jesus shares a key part of His mission to earth. While the last two months on earth made for the ultimate conclusion to His ministry, Jesus spent over three years traveling around ministering to the people in Israel. While Jesus would ultimately face the cross, experience the resurrection, and ascend triumphantly back to heaven, He spent more time teaching, preaching, and healing than He did dying.

In this passage, after the disciples and the people find Him away from the town, they urge Him to come back. But Jesus responded by saying, “I must proclaim the good news of the kingdom of God to the other towns also, because that is why I was sent.” (v. 43)

While death was on Jesus’ mission statement, higher on the list was proclaiming the good news about God’s kingdom. During the time leading up to Jesus’ ministry, people had a very distorted view of God’s character. Jesus came to show us what God the Father was like. In other words, Jesus came to live like God the Father would have lived.

It wasn’t enough to speak through a prophet, or to try to get the message delivered by a third party. The Godhead knew that They needed to send one of Their own to represent Their character – and most specifically, Their love with a world where love was growing cold.

Our world today is a place where true love is growing cold. This means that we are in the perfect place to help people experience a God-like love – but we can only share this type of love if we are connected with Jesus. “God loves us” is the essence of the good news of the Kingdom of God, and each one of us can share this news with the world around us – both by saying it, and by showing it!

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