What is Your Portion? Pt II
To understand portion, we must understand law.
To survive in a temporal world, we must understand the conditions of temporal law. Those who don’t die young.
To advance in the spiritual world, we must understand the conditions of spiritual law. The entire purpose of the Holy Scriptures is to teach us the conditions of spiritual law.
There are two sets of spiritual laws. The Law of Justice, which is the governing law of everything, and the Law of Mercy, which is the governing law of salvation. We live in a fallen world; therefore, we cannot live the Law of Justice. Only the law of mercy can justify us, preserve us, perfect us, and sanctify us. The portion we are required to live is made up of the conditions of the law of mercy. Those conditions are defined in the Holy Scriptures.
Perhaps my favorite parable is the Parable of the Ten Virgins.
1 Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom.
2 And five of them were wise, and five were foolish.
3 They that were foolish took their lamps, and took no oil with them:
4 But the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps.
5 While the bridegroom tarried, they all slumbered and slept.
6 And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him.
7 Then all those virgins arose, and trimmed their lamps.
8 And the foolish said unto the wise, Give us of your oil; for our lamps are gone out.
9 But the wise answered, saying, Not so; lest there be not enough for us and you: but go ye rather to them that sell, and buy for yourselves.
10 And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came; and they that were ready went in with him to the marriage: and the door was shut.
11 Afterward came also the other virgins, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us.
12 But he answered and said, Verily I say unto you, I know you not.
13 Watch therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh. (Matthew 25:1-13)
All Ten Virgins believe in Christ because all ten “took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom.” What, then separates the five foolish virgins from the five wise virgins. One of the conditions to meeting the Savior when he comes is to endure to the end. All ten virgins “slumbered and slept.” However, the five wise virgins had extra oil. They were prepared in case the Lord delayed his coming. The others put a limit on what they were willing to do. They procrastinated repentance until it was too late. The Savior came when they least expected him. The five wise virgins couldn’t give them more oil because they couldn’t atone for sins of the five foolish virgins. We must understand that the conditions placed on the law of mercy are placed there by the law of justice which cannot be cheated. The law of mercy satisfies the law of justice. It doesn’t rob the law of justice. All conditions on the law of mercy are placed there by the law of justice. The law of mercy saves us. The law of justice condemns us. The law of justice, however, cannot condemn us if we meet the conditions placed on the law of mercy as with the five wise virgins.
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