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  FOOLISH VIRGINS AND THE SOON COMING OF CHRIST
  by Edgar Reich
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Summary: This sermon emphasizes the need for repentance, returning to
God, and seeking forgiveness. It highlights the importance of
maintaining a strong relationship with Jesus, focusing on love,
humility, and obedience. The speaker addresses various issues within the
church, urging individuals to examine their hearts, repent of sin, and
strive for holiness. The message stresses the imminent return of Christ
and the necessity of being prepared as His bride.

Topics: "Repentance", "Preparedness for Christ's Return"
Scripture References: Joel 2:12, Isaiah 1:18, Revelation 3:20, 1 John 1:9, Matthew 18:21, Ephesians 5:27, Matthew 5:44, Isaiah 57:15, Revelation 2:4, Isaiah 64:6

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DESCRIPTION
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This sermon emphasizes the need for repentance, returning to God, and
seeking forgiveness. It highlights the importance of maintaining a
strong relationship with Jesus, focusing on love, humility, and
obedience. The speaker addresses various issues within the church,
urging individuals to examine their hearts, repent of sin, and strive
for holiness. The message stresses the imminent return of Christ and the
necessity of being prepared as His bride.

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CONTENT
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There's no glory in us. It is all due to him. So we give him all the
praise and the glory.

Before we think about the word, brother Dennis Balcombe said that the
Chinese always expected a three-hour sermon. I was sort of wondering
what are your expectations tonight? If you went to a party, it would go
long. So we'll just trust the Lord and see the word he has prepared for
us for this hour.

But before I go on, I just wanted to express my deep appreciation to the
organizer, brother Greg Gordon. I know that you're disappointed because
you expected brother and pastor Brian Long tonight to hear him. He was
not able to be here and there were some issues that occurred and so
before we start, I just would like to lift him up in prayer, if I may.

And Heavenly Father, we come again into your holy presence in that name
that is above every name, Father. We thank you so much for our dear
brother and pastor Brian Long, Father. You have called him for revival.

You have lifted him up to teach and preach your word, Father. And we
pray blessings upon him and the needs that are perhaps in his church or
in his family or health needs, Father, or spiritual needs, Lord. And we
lift him up before you in this hour with this congregation of saints,
Father, that you would meet that need and that you would be glorified in
our brother Brian Long's life and that he would continue to do the work
that you have called him for and that your word would go out with might
and with power and we thank you for that, that you will do that in
Christ's name.

Amen. I'd like to thank Brother Greg Gordon and Brother Mark McCord for
leading us. Sister Mary Beth has been in the background and greeting and
she has done so much work and I just want to thank her so very much and
the other dear sisters and brothers who had a part.

We thank the technical staff that has kept us on the sound and speaking
and recording and doing the streaming. So we are so thankful for you.
Then we thank the pastor of this church for kindly providing us with
this building and their facilities.

And then how thankful I am for having heard men of God these days give
the word and for Pastor and Brother Keith Daniel, for Jose Moniz, for
Dennis Belcombe, for David Servan, and Dean Odell and how privileged I
am to hear the words that God has given you that I might be changed and
that I might become a better man. And so then I thank all of you who are
here tonight. I thank many sisters and brothers that I was out on the
street with, a couple of street preachers that I love dearly.

God has given them a mighty, mighty gift. I think they're far better
preachers than I am. And being out on the street and giving the Word of
God, standing up, and I see my brother over here and then the sisters
that came out.

It was such a joy and also meeting so many new people. Sister Lynn
Saunders and Brother Joe Sisko is here tonight. He's going to be my next
host and I see my current host, Brother Tom.

And it's such a joy to see you. Thank you, dear brother, to you and to
your family for what you do. So I'm so grateful for all of you and the
Lord bless you mightily and continue to use you mightily for your, for
his great glory.

Now the title for tonight's message is the one that was given to Brother
Brian Long and I prayed much about that. I hid for three days because I
didn't know what to do and I just asked the Lord, would he show me the
way on what he wanted to have said? And so you will hear that in a
moment. The title for tonight's message is Sleeping Virgins and the Soon
Coming of Christ.

Let us bow in another word of prayer, please. And Father, I thank you so
much for your heart. I thank you so much for your mind.

I thank you so much for what you related with respect to this passage. I
thank you so much, dearest Lord Jesus, for showing me the kind of bride
that you want and what the current bride looks like. And so Father, I
thank you so much for this.

Now I pray that we would learn from this and that we would love you even
more, even so you need to show this to us, Father, and that in turn we
might be changed and that we might make a difference in this great
nation of America and in the neighboring nation of Canada. And so we
thank you, Father, in Christ's holy name. Amen.

Our text tonight comes from the text that was given to us from Matthew
chapter 25 verses 11 through to 13. Matthew chapter 25, 11 through to
13. This is a parable related to the kingdom of God, and there it says,
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.
Verse 13, watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour in
which the Son of Man is coming. Brother David Servant read the passages
prior and following this text to give us the understanding that this has
to do with us being ready and with us being prepared for the marriage
supper of the Lamb, to be prepared for that time when Christ returns and
comes for his bride.

And so I'm wondering if you would think back, perhaps, to the day that
you got married. Could I see hands, perhaps, of all the married people?
Thank you so much. Thank you so much.

You may put them down. And now, ladies, I would like you to think back
to that special day, how you got ready, and what you did to get ready,
and then the beautiful white dress, I assume, that you wore that day.
And then, husbands, I'd like you to think of that wonderful and special
day of your marriage, when you were looking for that bride in her
beautiful garment, in her beautiful makeup, her hair made up, her
beautiful expression on her face, the joy and expectation, and perhaps
you were still in your first love then, and you couldn't think straight.

You were just looking towards that bride, and you loved her so much. And
the bride also could not think straight because she was in her first
love. She had no husband yet, and she was looking to her white knight.

She was looking at this husband. She could not think of anyone else. She
was looking for him around every corner.

He was looking around for her at every corner. Until that day came of
that heavenly union, where their first love was expressed in this
heavenly union, to come together as a husband and a wife. And beloved,
this is the picture.

This is the picture of Christ Jesus coming for his bride. He wants his
bride to be delighted with him, and he wants to be delighted with his
bride. He doesn't want to see spots and wrinkles.

He doesn't want to see evil. He doesn't want to see a torn bride's
dress. He doesn't want to see dirt on that dress.

He doesn't want to see a drunk bride. Drunk with iniquity, drunk with
other gods. He does not want to see a bride that is not holy and
acceptable unto him.

And so God put on my heart that I might look at the five virgins that
were in the text, and the five foolish virgins especially, because we
can see in the five foolish virgins certain traits that relate to our
times and our circumstances. And before I do that, I'd like to turn to a
second text that actually refers to the wedding of the Lord Jesus Christ
with his church. And that second part is in Revelation chapter 19,
verses 7 to 9. You see the wedding party story that we have with the ten
virgins, they are actually part of a wedding party.

But someday they would also become a bride. And so now we have here in
Revelation chapter 19, verses 7 to 9, we have the actual picture of the
bride of Christ. And here it says, let us be glad and rejoice and give
him glory for the marriage of the Lamb has come and his wife has made
herself ready.

And to her it was granted to be arrayed in fine linen, clean and bright,
for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints. Then he said to
me, write, blessed are those who are called to the marriage supper of
the Lamb. And he said to me, these are the true saints of God.

And this passage refers to the future. It has not yet happened. This
scripture talks about the Lord Jesus Christ as being the bridegroom.

He's called the Lamb here in this passage that we just read. It refers
to this future physical union, the marriage between Jesus Christ and his
church. There will be a wedding feast where Jesus sits with all those
who have received him as their Savior, to celebrate this wonderful union
for eternity.

So in Revelation chapter 19, verse 7, we have a picture of the
bridegroom as the Lamb. We know from other passages that the Lord Jesus
Christ is the Lamb who taketh away the sin of the world. And then in
Revelation 5, 12, it said worthy, worthy is the Lamb who was slain to
receive power and riches and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and
blessings.

So this is the wedding of the Lamb, of the Son of God, and he's looking
for a worthy bride. Ephesians chapter 5, verses 31 to 32. Ephesians
chapter 5, verses 31 to 32.

In verse 31, it says, for this reason a man shall leave his father and
mother and be joined to his wife and the two shall become one flesh. Now
in verse 32, this is a great mystery, but I speak concerning Christ and
the church. And so the church in Revelation 19, 7, she was making
herself ready for the wedding.

She's dressed in fine linen, clean and bright. And then in Ephesians
chapter 5, 27, it says that he might present her to himself a glorious
church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she
should be holy and without blemish. Beloved, may I ask you this
question? Is your first love still intact for your husband or for your
wife? Or what has happened? Do you still love your spouse
unconditionally? Have you found some things that get on your nerves? You
know toilet paper put the wrong way and socks on the floor and and you
know little stuff like this.

Has your first love diminished for the Son of God? Or is your first love
still intact? Are you looking for that union with Christ to see his
blessed face, face to face? Are you saying with the Shulamite woman in
the Song of Solomon, my beloved is mine and I am his and he's mine.
Amen. And I'm so delighted with my bride.

I'm so delighted with my bridegroom. I can't wait. I can't wait to see
him face to face.

Or are the things that have gotten into your life, are the things that
have affected your first love with that great, great Savior and God that
we have. Now beloved, when I look at the foolish and sleeping virgins,
there were five of them. So I segmented what I see in our beloved nation
for us to understand.

And by the way, I love America very, very much. At the age of three, a
soldier saved my life in Germany. My father had been shot in Russia.

I was dying of malnutrition and illness and my mother went out on the
streets begging for my life. And so the American soldiers were to give
their blood to other soldiers who needed blood. Likewise, the German men
were supposed to give their blood for other German soldiers.

However, my mother went out on the street begging for my life and got an
American soldier to come and give me blood that I might live. Praise
God. And so I'm so thankful for America.

I love you so much. I really do. And I only mean the very, very, very
best for you.

But I do have to tell you that there are certain signs in this country
that you are going the same way as Germany once did. And so may God help
you to turn this around and you can through him. Now, the first foolish
and sleeping virgin I call the government.

Most Americans might say that America was founded on the principles of
the Bible, the Word of God. Today, we have a government in the United
States that has abandoned to a large extent the founding principles of
this nation. The bridegroom's name is no longer welcome in the schools.

The name of Jesus is no longer welcome in government offices. Everywhere
in the courts and in the military, the name of Christ is no longer
welcome. If a soldier mentions the name of Christ, he's threatened with
court-martialed because if another soldier complains that the name of
Christ was mentioned, he can be court-martialed.

There are laws that are now instituted in most states of the United
States permitting and supporting open sin. In one of the most chilling
statements, beloved, that was just days ago was made by a Supreme Court
judge in New Mexico. He said to a wedding photographer that they would
lose their case and as part of his overall judgment, he said that
Christians must learn to compromise.

Do you know what that means for you? Do you know what that involves for
you? You're going to have to make a choice. Are you going to stand for
the bridegroom? Are you going to be the bride that's going to wait upon
him? Now here, the government bride of Christ has abdicated her love for
the bridegroom, the Lamb of God. The following poem comes from Judge Roy
Moore, who was removed from the bench as a judge in court because he
would not take down a copy of the Ten Commandments from a wall in his
courtroom.

You may not agree with all of his poem, but he put his life on the line.
He gave up all for Christ. He lost his judge's bench.

He was shunned by the legal community and the government was or has been
trying to take away his lawyer's credentials. America, the beautiful or
so you used to be, land of the pilgrim's pride. I'm glad they'll never
see babies piled in dumpsters.

Abortion on demand. Oh, sweet land of liberty, your house is on the
sand. Our children wander aimlessly, poisoned by cocaine, choosing to
indulge their lusts when God has said abstain.

From sea to shining sea, our nation turns away from the teaching of
God's love and a need to always pray. We've kept God in our temples. How
callous we have grown when earth is but his footstool and heaven is his
throne.

We've voted in a government that's rotten at the core, appointing
godless judges who throw reason out the door, too soft to place a killer
in a well-deserved tomb, but brave enough to kill a baby before he
leaves the womb. You think that God's not angry that our land's a moral
slum? How much longer will he wait before his judgment comes? How are we
to face our God from whom we cannot hide? What then is left for us to do
but stem this evil tide? If we, who are his children, will humble, turn,
and pray, seek his holy face, and mend our evil way, then God will hear
from heaven and forgive us of our sins, heal our sickly land and those
who live within. But America, the beautiful, if you don't, then you will
see a sad but holy God withdraw his hand from thee.

This beautiful land of America, she has put on torn clothes for her
wedding. In fact, she is not even interested. She's dirty.

She's not washed. This land of ours no longer wants the Savior. The
bridegroom Jesus Christ is saying, I no longer want you to come to this
wedding.

I have put you, they have put on sin clothes and put my white wedding
dress in the trash. Christians, we now have been classified as dangerous
to the nation of America. We are classified with terrorists.

This is an excerpt of a speech Paul Washer made in the same auditorium
in 2008. This is five years ago. He said the church in America is going
to suffer so terribly and you laugh now, but they will come after us.

They will come after our children. They will close the net around us
while we're playing soccer, mom and soccer dad. When we are arguing over
so many little things and mesmerized by so many trinkets, the net even
now is closing around you and your children and your grandchildren and
it does not cause you to fear.

You will be isolated from society as already has happened. Anyone who
tries to run from office, who actually believes the Bible, will be
considered a lunatic until finally we are silenced. We will be called
things that we're not and persecuted for not being followers of Christ,
but for being radical fundamentalists who do not know the true way of
Christ, which of course is love and tolerance.

We'll go down as the greatest bigots and haters of mankind in history.
They've already come after your children and for most of you, they got
them. They got them through the public schools and indoctrination in the
university and then you wonder why your children come out not serving
the Lord.

It's because you fed them right into the devil's mouth. Number two, the
foolish and sleeping virgins of pastors and preachers. How can a pastor,
preacher, or prophet manage these days? Many say I must raise money for
my salary.

Many say I must maintain these buildings. Many say I must attract people
to come to church any way I can. God understands.

Yes, I will get this high power and attainment. Yes, I will give people
what they want. These are excerpts from an article by Kevin Klein.

One day I asked in desperation, God, then how do I know a true prophet
and true prophecy? He replied, Kevin, read the prophets. End of
confusion. Could it really be that simple? Could it really be that
simple for understanding prophets and prophecy? We overlooked about one-
third give or take of the Bible.

Did God know in advance that in the latter days false prophecy would be
so prevalent that his children would need a clear guide to discern false
prophecy and true prophecy? You see, true prophets expose sin. True
prophets tell you what is against the heart of God. True prophets tell
you what you must do to turn around.

True prophets will tell you what will happen if you don't. True prophets
tell you about the love of God, but they will not deny the other two.
They will not deny the other two.

Lamentations 2.14, your prophets have predicted for your falsehood and
delusion and foolish things, and they have not exposed your iniquity and
guilt to avert your captivity by causing you to repent, but they have
given and declared to you false and deceptive prophecy, worthless and
misleading. True prophecy will expose sin for what it is, an abomination
to God. True prophecy will not play with sin.

Sin separates God from his beloved children, and he hates it. Yes, yes,
he hates it. He doesn't accept sin, beloved.

He doesn't overlook it. But it is because of God's love that he sends
true prophets to his people to bring them to a place of repentance. Now
pastors face many, many struggles, beloved.

They're human, an empty church, a failing church, nasty deacons, nasty
elders, no paycheck, an overworked wife, a congregation of full of sin,
of drugs, adultery, divorce, children out of wedlock, sexual misuse of
the church's children, poverty, perhaps in the neighborhood rats the
size of cats. You take care of people for all of their lives, but they
won't even leave a few dollars for you when you do the funeral.
According to a website, Lifeline for Pastors, here are statistics for
all Christian denominations.

The website is conducted by reputable people, including pastor-to-pastor
interviews and information from Focus on the Family. 1,500 ministers
leave the ministry every month in the USA. This number totals 18,000 for
the year.

The three main causes are moral failure, spiritual burnout, and
contention within their church. 50% of pastors' marriages end up in
divorce. 50% are so discouraged they would leave if they could, but have
no other job.

70% of pastors feel called at the beginning of their ministry. Only 50%
feel called after three years. 80% of new pastors from seminary and
Bible schools will leave the ministry within five years.

85% of pastors say their greatest problems are disgruntled deacons or
elders or board members or worship leaders and associate pastors. 70%
feel grossly underpaid. 80% of spouses are overworked.

They feel left out. They feel unappreciated, and they feel pressured by
the congregation. 70% of pastors, note this, fight depression.

80% of pastors' children have had to seek professional help for
depression. 70% of pastors do not have a close friend. 95% do not pray
regularly with their spouse.

80% of pastors spend less than 50 minutes in prayer per day. They're too
busy taking care of their congregation. 70% only study the Bible when
preparing sermons, and almost 40% of pastors admitted to, listen to
this, to extramarital affairs, and 51% of pastors are watching porn.

Charisma Magazine states, leaders must stage humility and repentance.
The world has changed, and so-called anointing is put before character
and holiness. If a pastor can preach the paint of the wall and gets
everyone shouting and gets the money in, then his personal life
seemingly does not matter.

But beloved, it matters to God, for he says, be ye holy as I am holy.
Also, the Word of God says in 1 Timothy 3, 2, 3, a bishop then must be
blameless, the husband of one wife, temperate, sober-minded, of good
behavior, hospitable, hospitable, able to teach, not given to wine, not
violent, not greedy for money, but gentle, not quarrelsome, not
covetous. So what must a pastor do? A pastor must repent, return to an
intimate relationship with Jesus, repent, fall in love again with your
Savior, fall in love with prayer and your Bible.

That is above your family, but then your family is next after that, not
the church. You take care of your children so that they are not lost.
Why should they be lost and you save someone else? Return to preaching
the whole counsel of God.

Preach sin, righteousness, and judgment. And then see, you must deny
yourself. And you can do this through Christ Jesus.

Without denial, there is no victory and there's no cross. Find a pastor
friend or pastor mentor to help you and hold you accountable. Is the
bride of Christ ready for the bridegroom? Is her dress without spot or
wrinkle? Is this bride holy and without blemish? This bride has a badly
discolored wedding dress.

It's torn with much dirt. Only repentance will wash away our sin. We
need to be washed in the blood of the Lamb.

Pastors, if any of you see this video, I urge you, I beg you, won't you
return to holiness and repent? Won't you return to the word of God? If
you don't, the bridegroom Jesus will say, I know you not go into
everlasting punishment, but the righteous into eternal life. And yet
Jesus still says, come, come bride. I love you with an everlasting love.

Won't you repent? And the third foolish virgin is our denominations.
Over 7,000 churches close each year, which are only replaced by 4,000
new churches. The number of congregants are receding in many churches.

Only some mega churches are increasing. Overall, only about 20 percent
of Americans now actually attend church, and that goes for all
denominations. That includes the Catholic faith and anyone who's called
a Christian.

So this is 20 percent. With the absence of the Bible in school, and
absence of prayer, and in the absence of home Bible reading and prayer,
we are now raising godless generations of children. Eighty percent of
the youth has left the church.

One-third of high school students are considering suicide seriously.
Why, beloved? Why? We have failed as parents. We have taken humanism.

We have taken riches to our heart. We wanted to have the same our
neighbors have. We wanted to live up to expectations.

And so the wife works, the husband works, and everyone is away. The
children have no more Bible or any teaching in school. And so between
you and the school, there isn't much left.

Jesus came to save and see which is lost. He left his job. He left this
job for us.

And this morning I shared where the Lord said, well, I love all of them.
And their blood will I require from your hand if you don't tell them. So
it's your and my job to also share the truth.

Only about one percent of Christians witness. Some denominational
churches have turned to the prosperity gospel, demanding God's blessings
without holiness. And obedience.

Mega motivational churches have sprung up that hardly mention the name
of Jesus. The mega church has sprung up teaching that punishment of
sinners is temporary and teaching that there is no eternal judgment.
There's the infiltration and practicing gay ministers in many
denominations and the creation of gay churches.

The gay church accuses Christians of demonizing them. At the same time
Americans are normalizing homosexuality and the majority of people are
now giving approval to this lifestyle openly. Several denominations have
now changed officially to accept lifestyles of sin openly.

Then there's the interfaith alliance inviting clergy to read the Quran
in their churches. And there are dozens of churches now where the Quran
and the Bible are read in the same church. The interfaith alliance
accuses Christians of anti-Muslim bigotry leading to stereotypes that
have erupted throughout the country and led to misconceptions, distrust,
and in some cases to violence.

They say the true Christian is associated with bigotry and division. Yet
our Christian God Jehovah is the only true God. When he opened up heaven
and spoke he helped us to know the truth.

He did not say this is my beloved son Muhammad. He did not say this is
my beloved son Hindu God Krishna. He did not say this is my beloved son
Buddha.

Our great God helped us to know the truth forever because he said this
is my beloved son in whom I'm well pleased and it was Jesus Christ. It
was the only, only way, the only way. Life that can bring us back to the
father.

Praise God. So the interfaith alliance ecumenical movements and other
organizations will form the foundation and development of a global
church beloved. In Revelation chapter 13 you will read about a beast
with two horns.

That is a representation of the false prophet and he will bring down
fire from heaven with the help of Satan. He will combine these religious
entities throughout the world and form a new religious organization
where the world will believe that they are truth. When you see fire come
down from heaven on CNN, when you see it on your own television, when
you see it on your handy phone, will you believe? God is saying prophets
are telling lies in my name.

I have not sent them. I have not commanded them nor spoken to them. They
prophesy false visions.

I did not give them. Those denominations that have accepted sin and
apostasy have rejected the bridegroom Jesus Christ. The bridegroom Jesus
will say I know you not.

I will not go into everlasting punishment but the righteous into eternal
life. But yet God cries out from heaven. He still loves.

And he cries from heaven return to me and I will return to you. Return
to me because he loves you. He loves all of those that have gone astray.

He loves you. Yes, he wants you to come back but come back to this book
what he has given us. Come back to this book and you will know the
truth.

You don't have to think in your own head. You don't have to rely on
humanism. You don't have to rely on secularism.

You don't have to remind yourself on your own mind what you want. But
look at what God has given us because what he has given us is love and
it's good for us. It's good for us.

So if I follow the commandments and I don't kill someone, in fact, I
don't have to go to the electric chair. I don't have to go to jail. So
it's good for me.

So as we follow the commands of God, they are good for us. But Christ
Jesus will say, I know you not. Now the sleeping and foolish virgins, in
the fourth version, I will call our congregations.

55 million children have been killed since 1973. We have offered them on
the altar of lust. The divorce rate is 50 percent, the same for
Christians.

70 million plus Americans have sexually transmitted disease. 47 percent
of couples no longer get married. The Sunday is no longer holy nor a day
of rest.

About 70 percent of men watch pornography, adultery, and uncontrolled
lust via the internet and TV has affected the basic fiber of the whole
society of America. God said it's his will that we should abstain from
sexual immorality. TV has become our God.

Sports has become our God. The average TV time for men was 4.35 hours
per day. For women, 5.17 hours a day.

The Gallup poll in America for the public in 2011 said that 69 percent
say it's okay to divorce. 60 percent say it's okay to have sex outside
marriage. 54 percent say it's okay to have children outside of marriage.

56 percent say it's okay for men to lie with men. And these percentages
actually have increased, not decreased. Born-again Christians must
accept that they are now in a great, great minority.

Will the bridegroom want a bride like that? Will the bridegroom say,
come, come beloved, you're mine? The fifth version, and please don't get
mad at me, but may I call it the remnant? Even at times, the remnant
does not display true Christianity, often avoiding the commandments of
Jesus. He said, if you love me, keep my commandments. The underground
church considers that we don't follow more than 20 percent of the Bible.

May I ask you, how are you getting on in your church or in your
fellowship? If someone bumps you, do you get mad? If someone says
something about you behind your back, how do you react? Like the world?
Matthew 18 says, forgive 70 times 7. Matthew 18 says, that if you don't
forgive, I'll send you a torturer. Matthew 6, 14, and 15, God said, if
you forgive, I'll forgive, but if you don't forgive, I won't forgive
you. Are there people inside your family you can't forgive? Are the
people at work, at university? Just forgive them.

It's all right. They don't benefit by it. You will benefit more than
they.

Because your bitterness will be gone. Your hurts will be gone from your
body. And then I find that when we go from the little things to the big
things, it's even worse.

Let me tell you one story of Maria from South America. She had a little
son and a husband. The little son went out on New Year's, and he had a
great time with firecrackers.

And a man in a white suit walked by. He pulled out a gun, and he shot
her little boy to death. He fell to the ground and was dead.

Maria was heartbroken, and her husband was even more heartbroken. And
her husband was so heartbroken that he ended up dying. And so Maria was
left without a little boy and without a husband because of the evil that
was done in her life.

But Maria had become a Christian, and she told me she was told to
forgive. And someday she was seen going on a bus with a package and she
went to a prison many miles away where a man was in that prison that had
taken her joy, her earthly joy. And she started to minister to that man.

And the town said, how can you do this? What's in this package? And she
brought him food, and she did good to him. You know what Matthew 5.44
says? Love your enemies so you can practice. And when you love enemies,
you first have to forgive them to be able to love them, okay? So you
forgive them first, then you love them.

And in Matthew 5.44, it says then you pray for them, and you bless them,
and then you do good to them. Praise God. May I ask you another
question? And this had come up before.

How is your first love towards the Lord Jesus Christ? Would you consider
not loving Christ with your first love a sin? Or is it your right? I can
do whatever I please, right? Would Jesus consider it a sin? In
Revelation chapter 2, he told the Ephesian church, you're a hard-working
church. You kick out people that don't tell the truth, that don't teach
the truth. You're really quite a good church.

But I have this one thing against you. You have lost your first love.
You don't look around every corner anymore.

Is Jesus there? How can I please my bridegroom? What can I do to make
him happy, not myself? What can I do to bring joy to him, to the
bridegroom? What can I do to delight him? And so my prayer often in the
morning is, I'm saying, Lord, what is it that would please you most this
day? What would please you most this day? Not what would please me, but
what pleases you? And so, concerning first love, beloved, Jesus said in
Revelation chapter 2, what did he ask for people to do to get back to
the first love? Do you remember? I'll give you three R's. My name is
Edgar Reich, so remember the R forever, okay? The first thing is,
remember what you did at first, repent, and then redo. Three things,
okay? Or you can go repent first, and then to help you to get back where
you once were, remember and redo.

So husbands, take your wife out sometimes for dinner, okay? Wives, be
nice to your husband sometimes. Get back to your first love in your
marriage. Get back to your first love, with the Lord Jesus Christ, with
loving your enemies.

I want to tell you one story of Pastor Wurmbrandt. Pastor Wurmbrandt had
18 pieces of flesh cut out of him. He was 14 years in prison, and I
heard him in People's Church Toronto in Canada.

He walked in in the 70s with feet that had no shoes on them, and we were
wandering, and the ushers were rushing to take away the podium. They put
a chair there so he could sit down, and he said, sisters and brothers,
forgive me for sitting down, but my feet are broken so many times. I
cannot stand on them.

And then he said, now people want me to talk about the evil of
communism, but I can't. And we were wondering why. And he said, I cannot
talk about it.

You see, I am at fault. And the whole church gasped. How could he be at
fault? 18 pieces of flesh cut out.

His feet broken many times. How could he be at fault? And then he said
these words, and he said, you see, I did not love enough. I did not love
enough.

So we love it. We say we love God, but we cannot love our fellow man. So
we are liars.

We cannot love our brother. We are liars. Yes, your brother is a little
bit different from you.

Yes, he has different opinions. Yes, he has different clothes. Maybe he
has a little different color.

Maybe he has a different background. You're supposed to love him. You're
supposed to be nice to him.

You're supposed to reach out to him. You're supposed to love him with an
everlasting love from God. May I ask you, do you esteem others better
than yourself? You say to me, you got to be kidding me.

Isn't that what Philippians 2 teaches you to do? Do you do the word of
God? Or do you just read it, and you put it aside and say, I have a
choice. I'm not going to do this. So you see, if we want to be
Christians and follow Christ, then we ought to follow the whole counsel
of God.

And you know, when you like to argue, and when you like to have your own
opinion heard, and when you want to be right on everything, there are
many people, I think, in the remnant, they are right on everything. When
I talk with them, it doesn't matter what we talk about. They are right.

And you know, I call that a little bit self-righteousness at times. In
Isaiah 64, 6 says, filthy rags. Isaiah 64, 6, your self-righteousness is
like filthy rags.

So listen to someone. Listen, listen, listen, brothers and sisters. And
I pray that if any of these things are true in your life, or if any of
the things are true in your life from what I mentioned before, would you
repent before God? Would you return? Would you wash your your dress,
your wedding gown, in the blood of the Lamb? A judgment is on the way.

John MacArthur spoke at a conference on June 24, 2011, stated that the
United States is now on a divine judgment. We have rejected the Word, we
have rejected the law of God, and we have rejected the Holy One Himself.
Jesus is coming soon, beloved.

And even as my dear brother explained his visions, the time is short, my
sisters and brothers. Jesus is coming soon. There's signs all over the
world.

And then it tells us that every eye shall see Him when Christ returns in
the clouds. And so we know that that is the sign of His coming. Don't be
deceived by anyone else who tells you that there is another way.

And then in Joel chapter 2, verse 12, 2, verse 12, God said, now
therefore says the Lord, turn to me with all your heart. Here's the
solution. Turn to me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping,
and with mourning.

Be sad about it. No, no, preachers say. Just, just forget it.

Let it go. It's done. It's gone.

But this here says with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning. So
break your heart, rend your heart, and not your garments. Return to the
Lord your God, for He is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of
great kindness.

And He relents from doing harm. Joel 2, verse 14, who knows if He will
turn and relent and leave a blessing behind Him, a grain offering.
Isaiah 1, 15 to 20, when you spread out your hands, I will hide my eyes
from you, even though you make many prayers.

I will not hear. Your hands are full of blood. Wash yourself.

Make yourself clean. Put away the evil of your doings. From before my
eyes, cease to do evil.

Learn to do good. Seek justice. Rebuke the oppressor.

Defend the fatherless. Plead for the widow. Come now and let us reason
together, says the Lord.

And here comes the love of God. Though your sins are like scarlet, they
shall be as white as snow. Though they are red like crimson, they shall
be as wool.

Praise God, if you're willing and obedient, you shall eat the good of
the land. But if you refuse and rebel, you shall be devoured by the
sword, for the mouth of the Lord has spoken. And then in Isaiah chapter
57, 15 to 19, and that's the last passage perhaps for Christians.

I'd like to read one other passage for non-Christians. But in Isaiah
chapter 57, verse 15 to 19, God accepts and heals backsliders. Isn't
that wonderful? We have a merciful and wonderful God.

And in this passage, he says, I will accept and heal backsliders. And in
verse 15, for thus says the high and lofty one who inhabits eternity,
whose name is holy, I dwell in the high and holy place with him. Who has
a contrite and humble spirit to revive the spirit of the humble and to
revive the heart of the contrite ones.

For I will not contend forever, nor will I always be angry. For the
spirit would fall and fail before me and the souls which I have made for
the iniquity of his covetousness. I was angry and struck him.

I hid and was angry and he went on backsliding in the way of his heart.
I have seen his ways and I will. Here comes the mercy of God.

I will heal him. He will heal you if you want to. He will heal you.

He will mend you. I will also lead him and restore comforts to him and
to his mourners. I create the fruit of the lips.

Peace, peace to him who's far off and to him who's near, says the Lord
and I will heal him. The Lord will heal backsliders. Now beloved, just
by chance, in case there's someone here tonight who has never asked
Christ to save you, you can also do so tonight.

Because Jesus says in Revelation chapter 3, verses 20 to 21, Behold, I
stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the
door, I will come into him and dine with him and he with me. To him who
overcomes, I will grant to sit with me on my throne.

As I also overcame and sat down with my father on his throne. And so
beloved, we have looked at five foolish virgins. Beloved, if you have
seen yourself in any of these, would you repent tonight? Would you
return to your God? Because in 1 John 1, 9, he says, if you confess your
sins to him, he's faithful and just to forgive your sins and cleanse you
from all unrighteousness.

Beloved, if you have never asked Christ to come into your life to save
you, please, please, please, confess your sins to him. Cry out to him.
Have faith in him.

He can and he will save you, beloved. Would you say, Lord Jesus, you are
the bridegroom. I am the bride, but I'm not ready.

My wedding gown has spots and wrinkles. I am not holy. I'm not without
blemish.

Lord, I want to be ready. Show me where I'm going wrong. Help me.

Give me that victory. And the Lord will hear you and he will answer. Let
us close in prayer, please.

And while your heads are bowed, I will ask you to consider your own
life. And if there is repentance that is necessary, where you want to
speak to God and say, I need to turn from certain things. My wedding
gown is not white and bright.

Would you lift your hand to God? Don't lift it to me. But would you lift
your hand to God and say, God, help me. Help me.

Help me. Help me. Cry out to him.

Cry out to him. And turn from any wicked ways in your life. Turn.

Turn. Turn. God says, come to me.

I love you. I love you. Turn from your wicked ways and I will come to
you.

Seek me with all of your hearts. Seek me and I will answer. You may put
down your hands.

Thank you so much. And so Father, as we are in the last moments of this
conference, Lord, we thank you so much for having spoken to our hearts,
for having spoken to the remnant, for having spoken to those that want
to follow you with their whole love, with their first love, with all of
their heart, their soul, their mind, and their strength. And our Father,
I pray that each one of them who has not lifted their heart, that they
do have a first love for you, Father.

That they have a first love for the Bridegroom, the Lord Jesus Christ.
Father, even so, if they may not have lifted their hands, Father, I pray
that they would confess it right now to you and ask you to reunite with
them in that first love where they give the first part of the day,
Father, where they walk with you in a new, wonderful relationship of joy
and peace and love. And so, Father, I thank you that you will deal with
each heart, Father, as they sincerely cry out to you, as they confess to
you, answer their prayers, Father.

And I thank you so much. I thank you so much for your love and for your
mercy. And we give you all the praise, all the glory in Christ's holy
name.

Amen. Amen.

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Video: https://sermonindex2.b-cdn.net/e0ZcmVsHWIU.mp4
Source: https://sermonindex.net/speakers/edgar-reich/foolish-virgins-and-the-soon-coming-of-christ/
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