600. The parable of the ten virgins, found in Matthew 25, pictures Israel as ten virgins awaiting the return of the bridegroom. The wedding custom of the day called for the groom to return to his home leading a procession, and the image is that of Christ returning from Heaven with His bride, the church. Preparation for the banquet is necessary, but five of the virgins have failed to prepare by bringing enough oil. They leave to shop for oil, and by the time they get back, the feast is in progress and they are denied admission. The image is that Israel is unprepared, though they should know the Messiah is coming.
601. The parable of the talents is the story of a master entrusting three servants with various amounts of money to invest while he is away. Upon his return two have invested wisely and are praised. The third has hidden his money and is rebuked. His words and actions reveal a lack of faith in the master. The point of the parable is that God's people must serve Him while He is away.
602. The parable of the lamp reminds us that no one lights a lamp and then hides it. Instead we use a lamp to illuminate the darkness. In the same way, we have not been given the truth of the Gospel in order to keep it a secret, but to share it with others.
603. The parable of the prodigal son is one of the most welltold stories in Scripture. A father has two sons, one of whom demands his inheritance, leaves town, and wastes the money on foolish pleasures. The other son stays at home, working with his father. When the profligate son decides to return, the father rejoices, while his brother grouses about his father's response. Christ's point in telling the story was that not only is everyone welcome in God's family, but we should all rejoice when a lost soul repents and enters into fellowship with God.
604. The parable of the rich fool, related in Luke 12, tells of a wealthy man who builds bigger and bigger barns, promising himself that he will soon be able to take life easy. God's response is clear: "You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you." Life is more important than hoarding material things. The rich fool's wealth would do him no good in eternity.
605. The parable of the shrewd manager is one of the more difficult parables to understand. a financial manager, in danger of losing his job, does favors for some of the people who owe money to his master. The master then praises the manager for acting shrewdly. The point is not that it's good to be dishonest, but that it was good the manager had planned ahead-in essence, he had used material goods for future benefits.
606. The parable of the rich man and Lazarus, in Luke 16, relates a story of a wealthy man dying and going to hell, while a poor man dies and goes to Heaven. The initial point Christ was making was that material wealth has nothing to do with spiritual righteousness. But there is more to the story. When the rich man asks to go back and warn his living brothers, his request is rejected-a suggestion from the Lord that people will always be asking for more signs, even though they've already been given more than enough information that Jesus is the Christ.
607. The parable of the persistent widow tells of a woman seeking justice from an unjust judge. Though he routinely refuses to hear her case, the woman's persistence finally wears him down, and she gains justice. Jesus interpreted the parable by saying, "Listen to what the unjust judge says. And will not God bring about justice for His chosen ones, who cry out to Him day and night?" (Luke 18:6-7).
608. The parable of the pharisee and the tax collector is perhaps the most touching story Christ told. A self-righteous priest stands before God and offers a prayer of thanks that he is not like the tax collector. But the tax collector is too humbled to even look up to God and pleads with the Lord to forgive him for his sins. Jesus' point is that we dare not trust in our own righteousness or compare ourselves to others in order to be justified. Instead we must humble ourselves before God in order to find forgiveness and gain His righteousness.
