THE DISCIPLES, QUESTION
After the Resurrection of Jesus the hope of a visible Kingdom was revived, and just before His Ascension the Disciples asked Him-
"Lord wilt Thou at this time restore the Kingdom of Israel? " His reply was- "It is not for you to know 'The Times' or 'The Seasons' which the Father hath put in His own power." Acts 1:6, Acts 1:7.
It is clear from this that the Disciples were looking for an Earthly and Visible Kingdom, and not a spiritual one. If Jesus came simply to set up a "Spiritual Kingdom" in this Dispensation, as many claim, then common honesty demanded that He at that solemn moment when He was about to leave His Disciples and go back to the Father, should have disabused His Disciples' minds of their false hope, and told them plainly that the Kingdom he came to set up was "spiritual" and not earthly. But He did no such thing. He confirmed their hope and told them that there was to be an "Earthly Kingdom, " but the time and season for setting it up had not yet come.
In Luke 19:11, Luke 19:12, we read-
"Because He was nigh to Jerusalem, and because they thought that the Kingdom of God Should 'IMMEDIATELY' Appear; He spake this parable. A certain nobleman went into a far country to receive for himself a Kingdom, and to return."
From this we see that Jesus is the "Certain Nobleman" who has gone into a "Far Country" (Heaven), to receive the Kingdom and that, when He has received it, He will return.
There is nothing in the Scriptures to prove that Jesus is a King now. David was anointed King over. Israel long before King Saul died in anticipation of that event, but he did not become King, and take the throne, until after Saul's death. So while Jesus was born "King of the Jews, " He does not become King until He actually takes the Throne. At present He is engaged in His High Priestly functions, and is seated on His Father's Throne and not on His own Throne.
II. The Kingdom in Mystery.
The King having been rejected it was impossible then to set up the Kingdom, so the Kingdom took on another aspect known as
The Kingdom in Mystery.
This "Mystery Form" of the Kingdom is described in the "Kingdom of Heaven Parables" found in Matthew's Gospel alone. If we want to know the character of this Period, which covers the time between the Ascension of Christ, and the Rapture of the Church, we must study these Parables. They are 12 in number.
After Jesus had spoken the Parable of "The Sower, " the Disciples came to Him and said, "Why speakest Thou unto them in Parables? " He answered-"Because it is given unto you to know
THE MYSTERIES
Of the Kingdom of Heaven."
In verse 35 He gives as His reason for speaking to them in Parables, that it might be fulfilled as spoken by the prophet-
"I will open my mouth in Parables; I will utter things which have been kept SECRET from the foundation of the world."
The "Kingdom of Heaven Parables" therefore cannot describe the "Messianic" or "Millennial Kingdom, " for it was no "secret" to the old Testament Prophets. Neither do they describe a "Spiritual Kingdom, " for the figures they use are all of an "earthly" nature. They must then describe the character of the Present Dispensation, in its earthly aspect, during the absence of The King.
Our Lord's Parables are not "Allegories." A vein of falsehood characterizes all allegories. Things are represented "fictitiously." The Parables of our Lord present things truthfully. He used Parables so that those who were not disposed to believe might not understand, and that the word of God might be fulfilled as spoken by the Prophet Isaiah. Isa. 6:9-11. Matt. 13:13-15. Also because "blindness in part"had fallen upon Israel, (Rom. 11:25), and a clear revelation would only discourage them or drive them further into unbelief.
Seven of the "Kingdom of Heaven" Parables are found in Matthew 13. All of the twelve, except the Parable of "The Sower, " begin with "The Kingdom of Heaven is like unto."
1. The Sower.
The purpose of the "Parable of the Sower" seems to be, not so much to show the "character" of the "Kingdom of Heaven, " that is, the "proportion" of those who hear the Gospel and fail to profit by it though that is clearly revealed, as it is to show the causes that hinder the growth of the Seed. The Parable mentions four classes of "Hearers."
(1) The "Wayside" Hearer.
Here the seed does not have a chance to "take root." The"Devil's Birds, " (vs. 19), "Criticism, " "Doubt Unbelief, " "Prejudice, " "Preoccupation, " etc., snatch up the seed before it can be worked into the soil.
(2) The "Stony Ground" Hearer.
Here the seed takes "root" but dies before it can grow up because of the "shallowness" of the soil. Emotional souls caught by some sudden fear of hell, or moved by some strong appeal, profess conversion, but not counting the cost they soon fall away. Jesus mentioned "two stones" that underlie the soil of the heart of the "Stony-Ground Hearer Tribulation" and "Persecution."
(3) The "Thorny-Ground" Hearer.
Here the seed takes "root, " "grows up, " but does not bear fruit. The soil of the heart of the "Thorny-Ground Hearer" contains the seeds or roots of "thorns" and these spring up, and outgrow, and overshadow the wheat, and absorb from the soil the nutriment needed by it. Matthew mentions two of these "thorns"' the "Cares of the World" and the "Deceitfulness of riches." Mark (4:19) mentions another, the "Lust of other things, " and Luke (8:14) a fourth, the "Pleasures of this life."
(4) The "Good-Ground" Hearer.
Here the seed takes "root, " "grows up bears fruit, " but the amount varies. Some brings forth a 100 fold, some 60, some only 30. Why is this? It was not the fault of the soil. That was equally good all over the field, even on the "Wayside, " and in the "Stony" and parts. Why then? It was the lack of cultivation. If the soil had been properly cleared, tilled, and cultivated, and the proper atmospheric conditions prevailed, it would have brought forth a uniform crop of 100 fold.
This Parable teaches us that Christianity is a New Thing, that it s not like weeds that grow up spontaneously of themselves, but it must be sown and cultivated like wheat. The figure is a lowly agricultural one, that of a farmer sowing seed, and not of a King Setting Up a Kingdom. In other words this Dispensation is an "Agricultural One" the purpose of getting the "WHEAT OF THE CHURCH."
The apparent fruitlessness of the soil, only one-quarter bringing forth any fruit, and that in unequal proportions, seems to indicate the comparative failure of the Gospel in this Dispensation. Surely this rable does not teach that the World is to be converted in this Dispensation by the preaching of the Gospel.
2. The Wheat and Tares.
The Parable of the "Wheat and Tares" (Matt. 13:24-26), Christ Himself interprets (vs. 37-39), and this forbids any fanciful or unscriptural interpretation. He tells us that the "Man" who sowed the good seed is the "Son of Man" (vs. 37), that He sowed it in His "own field" (vs. 24), and that the "Field" is not the Church, but the "world." This at one stroke demolishes the argument of those who claim that the "Field" is the Church, and that the "Wheat" and the "Tares" represent "true" and "false" professors.
The Son-of Man, the "Sower, " in the first Parable sowed the seed of "The Word." In this Parable He sows "Men" (the Children of the Kingdom). This is beautifully illustrated in the persecution that followed the martyrdom -of Stephen. Acts 8:1-3. It was the Son of Man Himself, through the agency of Saul of Tarsus, and not Satan, who scattered the Church broadcast throughout Judea and Samaria. This is where the Parable begins. This scattering has been going on down the centuries.
But the "Field" was not left to the "Wheat." The Devil came and sowed Tares." The "Tares, " or "Darnel, " so closely resembles Wheat that its true nature cannot be seen until it has matured. This sowing of the "Tares" was done, not while the Sower slept, for He never slumbers or sleeps, but while the "men" He left to look after the Field slept. Vs. 25. This sowing is still going on.
The "Tares" are called the "Children of the Wicked One." They are men of the character of those Jews to whom Jesus said-"Ye are of your father the Devil." John 8:44.
It is important to note that the Devil cannot "change" the "Wheat; " he can only sow "Tares; " but he can sow in such large quantities as to completely change the "aspect" of the whole field. When the servants saw what was done they said, "Wilt thou then that we go and gather them up? " The master said "Nay; lest while ye gather up the tares ye root up also the wheat with them." This is no argument for "laxness" in Church Discipline. This Parable has no reference to the Church, as a church. Men and women in these days are trying to root out all manner of obnoxious evils, it is an idle dream. It does more harm than good. There is to be a Twofold Development of "Good" and "Evil" DOWN TO THE END OF THE AGE, the "Good" growing better and the "Evil" worse. The Parable teaches that as the time for the "Harvest" approaches the difference between the "Wheat" and the "Tares" will become more strikingly and clearly manifest.
How long is this conflict between "Good" and "Evil" to last? "Until the Harvest." Vs. 30. When is the Harvest. At the "End of This Age, " and the "reapers" are the Angels (vs. 39). As soon as the "Wheat of the Church Is Ripe" Jesus will come back.
Some are perplexed by the words-
"Gather ye together first the 'Tares, ' and bind them in bundles to burn them; but gather the 'Wheat' into my barn" (vs. 30),
and claim that the Church is to remain on the earth until the "Tares" are burned, and that this necessitates the Church's going through the Tribulation.
The fact is that the "Tares" are gathered together in "bundles, " not to burn them "before" the "Wheat" is harvested, but to have them "separated" and in readiness to burn "after" the "Wheat" has been garnered in the "Heavenly Barn." This gathering together of the "Tares" into bundles is going on now in the formation of false religious systems such as "Christian Science, " "New Thought, " "Millennial Dawnism...... Spiritualism, " "Mormonism, " "Theosophy, " etc. This Parable teaches that the "Wheat" and the "Tares" are inseparable until the End of This Dispensation, and therefore there can be no Millennium until Christ returns.
3. The Mustard Tree.
The Parable of the "Mustard Tree, " and the one that follows it, the "Leaven, " both begin with the phrase "The Kingdom of Heaven is like unto, " and therefore their teaching should not contradict the teaching of the Parable of the "Wheat and Tares." The same is true of all the "Kingdom of Heaven" parables. Yet these two parables have both been used to teach the "expansion of the Church" until it shall be universal in its supremacy. We repeat again that the "Kingdom of Heaven" is not the Church, but Christendom. Yet for clearness sake we will let the "Mustard Tree" represent the "visible" Church, composed of all churches called Christian. Of these two Parables the "Mustard Tree" represents the "external" growth and condition of the visible Church and the "Leaven" the "internal" development.
The "Mustard Plant" is a "garden herb, " and is cultivated for its seed, used as a condiment. It grows wild, often to the height of seven or eight feet. To obtain the best results it should be cultivated in a garden. In the Parable we find the seed sown in a "Field, " (the World), not in a garden, and it grows "wild" until it is no longer called an "herb" but a "tree." The seed does not produce, after its kind, " an humble "herb, " but becomes a vain-glorious Tree, a "Monstrosity, " in which the "Birds of the Air" Lodge. Who are these "birds? " They are the "fowls" of the Parable of the Sower, for the same word is used, and are therefore the agents of the "Wicked One, " the Devil. Matt. 13:4, Matt. 13:19. It is clear then that the "birds" in this parable do not represent persons converted by the preaching of the Gospel, but the emissaries of Satan, and they do not lodge in the branches of the "Tree" so much for shelter as for worldly advantage, and they "befoul" it by their presence.
The "Mustard Tree" began with the 120 believers who received the Baptism of the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost and continued to enlarge until its branches spread all over the Roman world. But the "Birds of the Air, " the Ananias and Sapphiras, the Simon Maguses, the Hymenaeus and Philetus and other emissaries of Satan, began to lodge in its branches and "befoul" its purity, and when in A. D. 324 the Emperor Constantine united Church and State, thousands, and tens of thousands, crowded into the Church as a matter of policy, interest and fashion, and crouched beneath its shadow, lodged in its branches, fattened on its fruit, and have continued to do so until this day.
According to this Parable the "Kingdom of Heaven" is a
Vast Worldly System,
rooted in the earth, bearing the name of Christ, possessed of wealth, standing, and power but sheltering the agents of the "Ruler of the Darkness of This Age." Such we know is the condition of the visible Church today. Where is the picture of "pure" Christianity spreading through the world until the knowledge of the Lord shall cover the earth as the waters cover the deep, thus ushering in a Millennium, in this Parable? In fact, it teaches the contrary and is proof of Jesus' own declaration that when He shall come back He shall Not Find 'THE FAITH' on the Earth. Luke 18:8.
4. The Leaven.
The common interpretation of the Parable of the "Leaven" (Matt. 13:33), is, that the Woman" represents the Church, the "Leaven, " the Gospel, and the "Three Measures of Meal, " Humanity; and that the "Leaven of the Gospel" is to be so introduced by the Church into the
"Meal of Humanity" that the whole world will be converted to Christ. But the "Leaven" cannot mean the "Gospel, " Leaven in the Scriptures is the
Symbol of Evil.
It is a species of corruption produced by fermentation, and tends to putrefaction, and will "corrupt" everything with which it comes in contact. The Children of Israel were commanded to put it out of their houses at the time of the "Passover" on penalty of "excommunication." Ex. 12:15. It must not come in contact with any sacrifice. Ex. 34:25; Lev. 2:11; Lev. 10:12. Three times Christ uses the word "Leaven" beside here in this Parable. He speaks of the "Leaven of the Pharisees, " the "Leaven of the Sadducees" and the "Leaven of Herod." Matt. 16:6-8; Mark 8:15. He calls the "Leaven" of the Pharisees and Sadducees "false doctrine." The "False Doctrine" of the Pharisees was "Legalism, " the "form of godliness without the power." The "False Doctrine" of the Sadducces was "Scepticism, " the denial of the resurrection of the body, saying there was neither angel or spirit. The "False Doctrine" of Herod was "Materialism, " a mixture of religion and worldliness.
Christ never used the word "Leaven" except in an "evil" sense. It is used in the same way by the Apostle Paul. Writing to the Corinthians he said-"Purge out therefore the 'old leaven' that ye may be a 'new lump."' 1Cor. 5:6-8. In the same passage he calls Leaven "malice and wickedness, " as contrasted with "sincerity and truth." Writing to the Corinthians and Galatians about "evil practices, " he warns them that "a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump." 1Cor. 5:6; Gal. 5:9.
There are but two exceptions to this universal rule. In Lev. 23:6-8 we read that the "Wave Sheaf" of "First Fruits" was to contain no Leaven because it represented Christ, the "First Fruits" of the, Resurrection, who was "without sin." But the new "Meat Offering, " of "two wave loaves, " offered 50 days later, at the Feast of Pentecost (Lev. 23:15-17), was to contain Leaven, because the Feast of Pentecost was typical of the bestowal of the Holy Spirit on the Disciples on the Day of Pentecost (Acts 2:1-3), and those who received it were not free from sin.
The other exception is in Amos 4:4, Amos 4:5, where the Lord is "rebuking transgression, " and "sarcastically" refers to the use of Leaven as a "multiplying of transgression." We see then that even where the use of Leaven is commanded, or permitted, it is a symbol of evil. It is clear then that what is meant by "Leaven" in this Parable is false or corrupting doctrine.
If by "Leaven" is meant the Gospel we have a queer contradiction, for the Gospel does not work like leaven. Leaven when put in meal works by "itself, " and if left "alone" will leaven the whole batch of dough. But this is not the way the Gospel works; if it were, every village, town, city and country where the Gospel has once been implanted, should by this time be so thoroughly "Leavened" as to be now completely Christian, but this we know is not true. The Gospel as far as converting the world is concerned is a failure.
We are not left in the dark as to the "character" of the Leaven. Paul writing to Timothy said-
"The time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers having 'itching ears; ' and they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables." 2Tim. 4:3, 2Tim. 4:4.
The Apostle Peter also sounds a warning.
"But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily (like hiding the Leaven in the meal) shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction. And many shall follow their 'Pernicious Ways, ' by reason of whom the 'Way of Truth' SHALL BE EVIL SPOKEN OF." 2Pet. 2:1, 2Pet. 2:2.
So much for the "Leaven." Now what is meant by the "three measures of meal? " Where do we get meal? Not from Tares. They would not yield fine wholesome flour. Meal comes from corn. Hence the "Meal" cannot represent the "unregenerate mass of humanity, " but the pure seed of the Word of God. It is a striking coincidence that the professing Church is divided today into three great parts, the Roman Catholic, the Greek, and the Protestant churches, which may represent the "three measures" into the "Meal" of which has been placed the false and corrupting doctrines of "Baptismal Regeneration, " "Prayers for the Dead, " "Image Worship, " the "Sacrifice of the Mass" and other false doctrines.
The "Woman" who hides the "Leaven" corresponds to the woman Jezebel of the Church of Thyatira (Rev. 2:20), and foreshadows the "System" (Papal) referred to in Rev. 17:5, as the "Mother of Harlots and Abominations of the Earth." As further proof that the "Leaven" is "bad" and "corrupting" is the fact that the Woman "hides" it in the "Meal." If the Leaven is the Gospel there was no reason why she should hide it.
The purpose of these four Parables is to warn us of what to expect as the result of the preaching of the Gospel in this Age, so that we shall not be discouraged and disheartened by what we see to be the apparent failure of the Gospel. They teach that at no time during Christ's absence will there be a universal reception of the Gospel; that it will be opposed by the World, the Flesh and the Devil until the End of the Age, that the Church will grow unwatchful and fall asleep, that the Devil will take advantage of such unwatchfulness to put his own children into the professing Church to introduce corrupting doctrine, and that all this shall continue in an increasing measure until the Lord shall come with "fiery" judgments, for fire alone can arrest the work of leaven. This then is to be the outcome of all the "religionism" of the Age. Where is there a place in these Parables for a Millennium before Christ comes back?
5. The Hid Treasure.
The Parables of the "Hid Treasure, " and the "Pearl" have been interpreted to mean that Christ is the "Hid Treasure" and also the "Pearl, " and that we are to sell all, that is, give up everything for Him. But such an interpretation is contrary to the Gospel plan of salvation and breaks down in every particular.
The "Field" in this, Parable is the "World, " the same as in the Parable of the "Wheat and Tares, " and the sinner is not to "purchase" the "World" but to "give it up." Furthermore, the sinner has "nothing to sell, " nor is Christ "for sale, " nor is He "hidden in a field, " nor having found Christ does the sinner "hide him again." Salvation is not something that can be "bought." it is a "free gift." Rom. 6:23. The sinner does not buy Christ, Christ buys him. 1Cor. 6:20. Salvation is "free, " and is something to be "received" (John 1:12), and that "without money" and "without price." Isa. 55:1.
As in the preceding Parables the "Field" is the World, and the "Man" is the Son of Man, or Christ. Christ is the "purchaser" of ' the "Field." But why should He purchase the "Field? " Does not the World belong to His Father? And if He found the "Treasure" in the :, Field" why should He "hide" it until He was able to purchase the 'Field? " Would it be considered honest to discover that, under the surface of a man's farm there were hidden treasures of coal, iron, oil or copper, and, without letting him know, try to secure the farm at a small cost, thus deceiving him until the property was secured? The answer is that a "usurper, " the Devil, had taken possession of the "Field." The Hid Treasure was not in the field when he took possession. It was placed their afterward. It did not belong to the Devil, it belonged to God who had hid in it the "Field" from the Devil. Christ found it, and as the only way to get the "Treasure" was to buy the "Field, " Christ hid it again, and then purchased the "Field." The price He paid was all He possessed. 2Cor. 8:9.
The Hid Treasure is Israel. God said to Israel at Sinai-
"Ye shall be a Peculiar Treasure unto me above all people; for all the earth (world) is mine." Ex. 19:5.
"For the Lord hath chosen ' Jacob for Himself and Israel for His Peculiar Treasure." Psa. 135:4.
The "Treasure" still remains "hid" in the "Field." Christ purchased the "Field" on the Cross, but He has not taken possession as yet, and will not until the time comes for the "Redemption of the PURCHASED POSSESSION." Eph. 1:14.
Until that time Israel must remain hid among the Nations. This is one of the "Mysteries" of the "Kingdom of Heaven."
"For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this 'Mystery, ' lest ye should be wise in your own conceits, that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the Fulness of the Gentiles Be Come in." Rom. 11:25.
Israel must remain hid in the "Field"' until the "Fulness of the Gentiles" be come in. Then Christ will come back and claim His "Hid Treasure, " and Israel will be resurrected from the "Graveyard of the Nations" where she is buried and restored to her own land.
6. The Pearl.
In the Parable of the "Pearl" the "Merchant Man" is Christ. The "Pearl" is the Church. In the Parable of the "Hid Treasure, " the Treasure was not purchased but the Field. In this Parable it is the "Pearl" that is purchased. Once Christ comes into full possession of the "Pearl" it will never be on the market again. It will be His forever. We see from this Parable that the purpose of this Dispensation is not the conversion of the World, but the securing (formation) of the Church.
7. The Drag Net.
The Parable of the "Drag Net, " like all the preceding, covers the present Dispensation. The "net" here mentioned is the "Gospel Net." The Parable is descriptive of the work the Disciples were to do when Jesus said unto them-"I will make you 'Fishers of Men."' While men in this "Gospel Age" are mostly caught one by one, yet in times of revival they are caught as in a net in large quantities. The Parable is descriptive of the method used in this Gospel Dispensation of gathering people into our churches by the "Drag-net of Solicitation."
The result is that there are "Good" and "Bad" fish in the net. But while fishermen can separate the "bad" fish from the "good, " that is the eatable and marketable from those that are not, the officers of a church are not always omniscient enough to do this. The ending of this Parable corresponds with the ending of the Parable of the "Wheat and Tares." As there the separation does not come until the "Harvest, " and the "Harvest" is the "End of the Age, " and the separation will be made by the "Angel Reapers, " so in this Parable the separation between the "Good" and "Bad" fish will not be until the "end of this Age, " and angels will do the separating.
We should notice also that as the "Tares" were gathered together "first, " but not burned until the "Wheat" had been garnered in the "Heavenly Barn, " so here, the "Good" fish are separated from the "Bad" and the "Good" gathered into "vessels" (Heaven), before the "Bad" are cast away.
When a net is cast into the sea, even though the net is filled to the point of breaking, the great bulk of the fish in the sea remain uncaught, and where there is a separation of those caught, as in the Parable, comparatively few are saved. If this is true of this Gospel Dispensation, as the Parable seems to teach, then the world is not to be converted before the "Angel Fishermen" separate the "Righteous" and the "Wicked" at the coming of the Lord.
Of the five remaining "Kingdom of Heaven" Parables we have only space to speak briefly. The Parable of the "Unmerciful Servant" (Matt. 18:23-25), has to do with the "conduct" of the members of the "Kingdom of Heaven" towards each other during this Dispensation.
The Parable of the "Vineyard Laborers" (Matt. 20:1-3) does not teach that the "penny" that the laborers received for their labor represents "Salvation, " for "Salvation" is a Gift, and cannot be "earned" as wages, or "merited" as a reward. Neither does the Parable teach, as some claim, that those who were hired early in the morning, and at the third, sixth, ninth and eleventh hours, represent the different ages at which sinners may come to Christ. Neither does the Parable teach that because each one received a "penny" that men shall be "equally" rewarded in the next world. What then does the Parable teach? The context shows (Matt. 19:27-29), that the Parable was spoken to rebuke the "hireling spirit" of Peter, and is to teach that men will be judged for the "motive" of their service, and not for the "amount." The Parable teaches that the "Hireling Spirit" will be a characteristic of the "Kingdom of Heaven, " and therefore of this Dispensation, and that it will be revealed at the "Judgment of Reward" by the consumption of the "wood, " "hay" and "stubble" works of all "Hireling Laborers." 1Cor. 3:9-11.
The Parable of the "Marriage Feast" (Matt. 22:1-3) must not be confounded with the Parable of the "Great Supper" recorded in Luke 14:16-18. That Parable was spoken in the house of a chief Pharisee in Perea, three months before Christ's death, and refers to the "Gospel Feast." This Parable was spoken in the Temple at Jerusalem on the morning of the Tuesday preceding His Crucifixion, and was spoken to the multitude. In the scope of its teaching and outlook this Parable of the "Marriage Feast" is the broadest of all the parables of Jesus. In its perspective it extends from the giving of the "Mosaic Law" to the "Marriage of the Lamb." The "certain king" is God, the "son" is Christ. Those first bidden were the Jewish Nation. Moses and the Prophets announced the "Feast." John the Baptist, the Twelve, and the Seventy, notified the Jewish Nation that it was about ready. When Jesus the "Lamb" was offered on Calvary the Feast was ready, and Peter, John and others were the "other servants" sent forth. This was the "second" call. Acts 3:19-21. But the Jewish Nation made "light of it." Then the "remnant" took Stephen, James and others, and "entreated them spitefully" and "slew them." This made the King angry and He sent His armies and "burned their city." This is a prophetic announcement of the destruction of Jerusalem by Titus in A. D. 70. Then Philip, Barnabas, Paul and others, were sent out into the Highways of the "Gentile World" to gather in those who were willing to accept the invitation to the "Marriage Feast." This is still going on. The Parable looks forward to the "Marriage of the Lamb, " and reveals that there is to be a "separation" among the guests, and that all those who have not on a "Wedding Garment" will be excluded from the "Feast." The ending of the Parable synchronizes with the separation of the "Wise" and "Foolish" Virgins, and reveals the fact that many professing Christians will be found without a "Wedding Garment, " and "speechless, " when they are called upon to face God.
The Parable of the "Ten Virgins" (Matt. 25:1-3), is a picture of what will happen to the professing Church when Christ comes to gather out His Saints. It teaches that we cannot distinguish the "True" from the "False" professors in the Church until the time for separation, comes, and that the possession of the Holy Spirit represented by the "oil" in the Parable) will be the supreme test. If possibly half the "Professing Church" is shut out from the "Wedding, " and all of the great multitude outside the Church, who show by their lives that they are unsaved, where is the Conversion of the World in this Dispensation to be seen in this Parable?
The Parable of the "Talents" (Matt. 25:14-16) must not be confounded with the Parable of the "Pounds" in Luke 19:11-13. The "Man" is Christ. The "far country, " Heaven. The "departure, " Christ's Ascension. The "return, " His Second Coming.
The Parable of the "Pounds" is Jewish and pictures what will happen when Christ, "having received the Kingdom, " returns to the earth and rewards His Servants (the Jews), by giving them authority over different cities. The "One Pound" man loses his Pound and the right to rule, but is not "cast out." In this Parable of the "Talents" the "One Talent" man is "cast out." The theme of the Parable is "Christian Stewardship" and the fact that the "One Talent" man complains of the strict accountability required of him shows that the "One Talent" man is a mere professor, and his character is revealed by his commission of the "Napkin Sin." The time of the accounting synchronizes with that of the separation of the "Wheat" and "Tares, " the "Good" and "Bad" Fish, and the "Wise" and "Foolish" Virgins, and reveals the fact that unfaithfulness in "Christian Stewardship" will be punished.
