Life Walk Lesson 101: Lessons from the Epistle of the Apostles
In this Bible Lesson I will be introducing another ancient document, outside of Canonized Scripture, to expound on a particular topic. Because of the importance of the topic to our journey with God, I invite you set aside some quiet time with the Lord, and your Bible, and take the time to fellowship with Him.
Let us begin with the Scriptures, regarding the parable of the ten virgins.
Matthew 25:1-13
1 “Then the kingdom of heaven shall be likened to ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom.
2 Now five of them were wise, and five were foolish.
3 Those who were foolish took their lamps and took no oil with them,
4 but the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps.
5 But while the bridegroom was delayed, they all slumbered and slept.
6 And at midnight a cry was heard: ‘Behold, the bridegroom is coming; go out to meet him!’
7 Then all those virgins arose and trimmed their lamps.
8 And the foolish said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’
9 But the wise answered, saying, ‘No, lest there should not be enough for us and you; but go rather to those who sell, and buy for yourselves.’
10 And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the wedding; and the door was shut.
11 “Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, ‘Lord, Lord, open to us!’
12 But he answered and said, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, I do not know you.’
13 “Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour in which the Son of Man is coming.”
And now I will introduce an ancient manuscript, probably written around 140-150 A.D. [C.E], called, in English, The Epistle of the Apostles [Epistula Apostolorum]. It is said to be a record of some of the things Jesus taught His disciples, during the 40 days while He was with them, before His ascension as recorded in Acts 1:1-11.
I include this writing for three reasons:
- The revelation given about the ten virgins
- The concepts discussed on judgement which are relevant to our Bible Lesson so that we may see it all in context
- It brings us into a closer relationship with Jesus, which is my criteria for including uncanonical, and historical writings, which corroborate Scripture, and which give us further evidence for the authenticity of Holy Scripture.
The names of the ten virgins given in this Document show two things:
1. The five wise virgins can only receive what they have from God, through a close and constant relationship with God, and by the power of the indwelling Holy Spirit.
2. The five foolish virgins can attain theirs on their own, without obeying God. They choose a relationship with people, not God.
This is the key, I believe, to help us understand why it was revealed, and written, in this way.
At the very least it is eye-opening, and very sobering. It invites us to a deeper, more personal relationship with God, so that we rely on Him for all things, and obey Him wholeheartedly, thereby being ready whenever He comes to us, to talk with us, or to take us up with Him at His coming.
Epistula Apostolorum 43-51
43 “And ye shall be like the wise virgins which watched and slept not, but went forth unto the lord into the bridechamber: but the foolish virgins were not able to watch, but slumbered. And we said unto him: Lord, who are the wise and who are the foolish? He said unto us: Five wise and five foolish; for these are they of whom the prophet hath spoken: Sons of God are they. Hear now their names.
But we wept and were troubled for them that slumbered.
“He said unto us: The five wise are Faith and Love and Grace and Peace and Hope. Now they of the faithful which possess this (these) shall be guides unto them that have believed on me and on him that sent me. For I am the Lord and I am the bridegroom whom they have received, and they have entered in to the house of the bridegroom and are laid down with me in the bridal chamber rejoicing. But the five foolish, when they had slept and had awaked, came unto the door of the bridal chamber and knocked, for the doors were shut. Then did they weep and lament that no man opened unto them.
“We said unto him: Lord, and their wise sisters that were within in the bridegroom's house, did they continue without opening unto them, and did they not sorrow for their sakes nor entreat the bridegroom to open unto them? He answered us, saying: They were not yet able to obtain favour for them. We said unto him: Lord, on what day shall they enter in for their sisters' sake? Then said he unto us: He that is shut out, is shut out.
“And we said unto him: Lord, is this word (determined?). Who then are the foolish? He said unto us: Hear their names. They are Knowledge, Understanding (Perception), Obedience, Patience, and Compassion. These are they that slumbered in them that have believed and confessed me but have not fulfilled my commandments.
44 “On account of them that have slumbered, they shall remain outside the kingdom and the fold of the shepherd and his sheep. But whoso shall abide outside the sheepfold, him will the wolves devour, and he shall be (condemned?) and die in much affliction: in him shall be no rest nor endurance, and (Ethiopic) although he be hardly punished, and rent in pieces and devoured in long and evil torment, yet shall he not be able to obtain death quickly.
45 “And we said unto him: Lord, well hast thou revealed all this unto us. Then answered he us, saying: Understand ye not (or, Ye understand not) these words? We said unto him: Yea, Lord. By five shall men enter into thy kingdom <and by five shall men remain without>: notwithstanding, they that watched were with thee the Lord and bridegroom, even though they rejoiced not because of them that slumbered (yet will they have no pleasure, because of, Ethiopic). He said unto us: They will indeed rejoice that they have entered in with the bridegroom, the Lord; and they are sorrowful because of them that slumbered, for they are their sisters. For all ten are daughters of God, even the Father. Then said we unto him: Lord, is it then for thee to show them favour on account of their sisters? (It becometh thy majesty to show them favour, Ethiopic) He said unto us: <It is not mine,> but his that sent me, and I am consenting with him (It is not yours, &c., Ethiopic).
46 “But be ye upright and preach rightly and teach, and be not abashed by any man and fear not any man, and especially the rich, for they do not my commandments, but boast themselves (swell) in their riches. And we said unto him: Lord, tell us if it be the rich only. He answered, saying unto us: If any man who is not rich and possesseth a small livelihood giveth unto the poor and needy, men will call him a benefactor.
47 “But if any man fall under the load <because> of sin that he hath committed, then shall his neighbour correct him because of the good that he hath done unto his neighbour. And if his neighbour correct him and he return, he shall be saved, and he that corrected him shall receive a reward and live for ever. For a needy man, if he see him that hath done him good sin, and correct him not, shall be judged with severe judgement. Now if a blind man lead a blind, they both fall into a ditch: and whoso respecteth persons for their sake, shall be as the two <blind>, as the prophet hath said: Woe unto them that respect persons and justify the ungodly for reward, even they whose God is their belly. Behold that judgement shall be their portion. For verily I say unto you: On that day will I neither have respect unto the rich nor pity for the poor.
48 “If thou behold a sinner, admonish him betwixt him and thee: (if he hear thee, thou hast gained thy brother, Ethiopic) and if he hear thee not, then take to thee another, as many as three, and instruct thy brother: again, if he hear thee not, let him be unto thee as an heathen man or a publican.
49 “If thou hear aught against thy brother, give it no credence; slander not, and delight not in hearing slander. For thus it is written: Suffer not thine ear to receive aught against thy brother: but if thou seest aught, correct him, rebuke him, and convert him.
“And we said unto him: Lord, thou hast in all things taught us and warned us. But, Lord, concerning the believers, even them to whom it belongeth to believe in the preaching of thy name: is it determined that among them also there shall be doubt and division, jealousy, confusion, hatred, and envy? For thou sayest: They shall find fault with one another and respect the person of them that sin, and hate them that rebuke them. And he answered and said unto us: How then shall the judgement come about, that the corn should be gathered into the garner and the chaff thereof cast into the fire?
50 “They that hate such things, and love me and rebuke them that fulfil not my commandments, shall be hated and persecuted and despised and mocked. Men will of purpose speak of them that which is not true, and will band themselves together against them that love me. But these will rebuke them, that they may be saved. But them that will rebuke and chasten and warn them, them will they (the others) hate, and thrust them aside, and despise them, and hold themselves far from them that wish them good. But they that endure such things shall be like unto the martyrs with the Father, because they have striven for righteousness, and have not striven for corruption.
“And we asked him: Lord, shall such things be among us? And he answered us: Fear not; it shall not be in many, but in a few. We said unto him: Yet tell us, in what manner it shall come to pass. And he said unto us: There shall come forth another doctrine, and a confusion, and because they shall strive after their own advancement, they shall bring forth an unprofitable doctrine. And therein shall be a deadly corruption (of uncleanness), and they shall teach it, and shall turn away them that believe on me from my commandments and cut them off from eternal life. But woe unto them that falsify this my word and commandment, and draw away them that hearken to them from the life of the doctrine and separate themselves from the commandment of life: for together with them they shall come into everlasting judgement.
51 “And when he had said this, and had finished his discourse with us, he said unto us again: Behold, on the third day and at the third hour shall he come which hath sent me, that I may depart with him. And as he so spake, there was thunder and lightning and an earthquake, and the heavens parted asunder, and there appeared a light (bright) cloud which bore him up. And there came voices of many angels, rejoicing and singing praises and saying: Gather us, O Priest, unto the light of the majesty. And when they drew nigh unto the firmament, we heard his voice saying unto us: Depart hence in peace.”
When we look at the Scriptures in Matthew 25, together with the Epistle of the Apostles, we see the heart of God for us.
You may think that the five foolish virgins did no wrong for these virtues are also of God [Knowledge, Understanding (Perception), Obedience, Patience, and Compassion].
Consider for a moment the accounts of Adam and Eve, taking from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, as they were told not to do, and the nation of Ancient Israel, who often determined on their own what they chose to do instead of obeying God wholeheartedly. Consider the account of Lot’s wife, who turned back out of compassion for her two daughters, left behind in Sodom when God destroyed the cities for their wickedness. According to the record in the Ancient Book of Jasher 19:52-55, Lot took his two daughters with him, whereas his wife’s two daughters stayed with their betrothed husbands in Sodom.
In the Kingdom of God there is, and will continue to be, no place for wickedness, evil of any kind, or disobedience to God. To live by, or to lean on, our own understanding, when God has called us to do something specific, is disobedience to God. To be patient with evil is to tolerate it, and God hates evil. When Jesus comes to remove all evil, He will not tolerate anyone looking back and longing to be part of the evil. Those with Him at His coming will come to remove all evil. This is then no longer about making our own choices and acting upon our own free will — when it is crucial, and a choice between life and death, God asks us to choose life because He loves us and wants the best outcomes for us in life.
When the Ancient nation of Israel was told to utterly destroy the cities of Canaan, with all inhabitants including animals, there was a reason — no evil was to be left alive so that no evil would be allowed to destroy what God was building. They chose to tolerate it, and it was to their destruction time and time again. They chose the surrounding cultures, and the worship of idols, to the end that God, their Husband in covenant with them, chose to divorce them. It was when Jesus came, and died for them, according to Scripture, that everyone, including the people of Israel, had a chance to be in the Family Kingdom of God, as sons and daughters once again, married to the Bride Groom, Jesus.
This is a sobering reality, however, wholehearted obedience to God is important to God. It is the difference between eternal life and eternal separation from Him, in outer darkness, in hell.
Choose to follow God, wholeheartedly, and have a relationship with Him that is instant in prayer, and fellowship with Him. Then you will be found faithful and He will ask you to sit with Him on His right hand in the Kingdom. [Matthew 25:33-34]
