TD Jakes - Get Your Own Oil
In the parable of the ten virgins, Jesus teaches that potential without preparation leads to frustration and exclusion. While all had lamps, only the wise brought extra oil to be ready for the bridegroom's delay—urging us to steward opportunities, prepare with anointing, say no to those who waste our reserves, and convert oil into light before the door closes.
The Parable of Shared Potential
Oil through a lantern turns to light. Jesus spoke a lot in parables. The kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. The foolish ones took their lamps but did not take any oil with them. He is teaching us to value and to prepare for moments that have not come yet.
Potential without preparation leads to frustration. All God gives us is an opportunity. It is foolish to say yes to a fool. Get your own oil. Behold, the bridegroom cometh. There are some folk in this room right now that are soaking up this oil, your money, your energy, your time, your compassion, and converting it into light.
We had ten virgins here. They had a lot in common. They were all female. They were all virgins. They were all in the same place at the same time, waiting for the same event. They had the same opportunity. They had the same exposure. They had the same experiences. They had the same lanterns.
The Difference That Matters
The only thing that was different is that five of them had brought an extra jar of oil and five of them did not. Five of them did not underestimate how long it might be, or when he might come, or if he comes at night—I need to be ready. Five of them were prepared for the unexpected, glory to God. Five of them were just there.
They had the look, they had the dress, they had the lantern, but they had no oil. There are people amongst us that have the look, they have the dress, they have the slogan, but they have no oil. At the end of the day, either you have it or you do not.
It is not enough to look blessed. It is not enough to look like a Christian. It is not enough to have the walk and have the talk. If you have no oil, you are not ready for the blessing. How will you handle the fact that all ten of them had potential?
The Agony of Unused Potential
I want to talk a moment about the agony of potential. All ten had the potential, the possibility, but potential is painful if it is not taken advantage of, if it is not maximized, if it is not fully used, if it is not fully executed. All of them had potential.
I was talking to a young man the other day. I said, "You got to be one of the most talented people I know." I said, "You are so talented, it is amazing." He said, "Yes, and it drives me crazy because I have all kind of talent and yet I remain unsuccessful."
There are people in prison with talent. There are people with needles in their arms with talent. Having talent is not enough. Having potential is not enough. How you steward the potential determines whether you go up or whether you go down.
It is a terrible thing to have great potential and poor results. It is a terrible thing to have an opportunity that you failed to act on and end up in torment and become somebody else's hater because they did more with their opportunity than what you did with yours.
Some people hate you because you took advantage of your opportunities and they did not. We both got up this morning. We both breathed air this morning. We both got dressed this morning. Do not hate on me because I was more ready for the opportunity than you were.
Stewarding the Opportunity
All God gives us is an opportunity. How we steward the opportunity is up to us. You can blame your mama. You can blame your daddy. You can blame your sister. You can blame your brother. You can blame your whole family. You can blame your community. You can blame your size. You can blame your weight.
Blame whatever you want to blame, but you are only playing games with yourself. You fell asleep with no oil. You fell asleep unprepared. You fell asleep because you thought it would be easier than it is. There is nothing worse than the regret that comes from getting serious too late.
There is nothing worse than the regret of getting serious too late in a marriage, in a ministry, in a business, in a leadership role. It does not matter where you apply this truth—it will fit you, and it will fit all sizes.
They were all in the same place at the same time, wearing the same outfit, carrying the same lanterns, and they all fell asleep. The wise and the foolish fell asleep. The prepared and the unprepared fell asleep. Because the bridegroom tarried so long, they fell asleep.
Waking a Sleepy Church
We are dealing with a sleepy church. We are dealing with a groggy church. If you do not have church on Sunday, we do not see you. We are dealing with a groggy church. If we clap too long, it gets on your nerves. If we do not clap enough, it gets on your nerves.
We are dealing with a groggy church. If you have to walk too far, you do not come. We are dealing with a groggy church who leaves during the altar call. We are dealing with a groggy, sleepy, lethargic, indifferent church—what the Bible calls a lukewarm church.
But I came to ring the alarm this morning. I came to sound the bell. I came to wake you up. I came to get you excited. I came to tell you that every day is a gift from God. Every breath you breathe is a gift from God. Every move you make is a gift from God. Every time you stand is a gift from God.
There is somebody that has not stood up in ten years. There is somebody that has not been out of the hospital, been in hospice for three years, and there you are wasting days murmuring and complaining about stuff that does not matter.
Rising in Gratitude
It makes me sick. It gets on my nerves that you are not happier, you are not more grateful, you are not more thankful. There is somebody in the hospital that would trade places with you right now. There is somebody in the nursing home that would trade places with you right now. And if you do not want your life, give it to somebody else.
Something is about to happen in this place today. I feel some gratefulness coming up into somebody's spirit. I feel somebody growing up in this room right now. I feel somebody waking up out of their sleep right now. I feel somebody that is about to seize the moment, that is about to take advantage of now, that is about to step into the opportunity that you have been given.
I feel somebody in this place that is starting to recognize I am blessed whether I am in the city or in the field, whether things are going good or bad. I am blessed in the city. I am blessed in the field. I am blessed in my uprising. I am blessed in my downsetting. I am blessed with my single self. I am blessed with my married self. I am blessed in my apartment. I am blessed in my mansion. I am blessed on my motorcycle. I am blessed in my jet. Any way you bless me, Lord, I am blessed.
What good is potential without preparation? Somebody shout preparation. Look to your neighbor and say preparation. People who are in preparation do not have time to be haters, do not have time to be gossipers, do not have time to read bloggers, do not have time to respond to foolishness, because you are in preparation.
Extra Oil for the Journey
I came to church because I am in preparation. I got out of bed this morning in preparation. I came because I am expecting something to happen in my life. I have been in preparation every day—preparation, preparation. Because potential without preparation leads to frustration.
What I am trying to tell you is that what God has for you is bigger than what you imagine. It is bigger than what you thought about. It is bigger than what was in your head. It is bigger than what you fantasize. "Now unto him that is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we may ask or think."
God said, "What I got for you is going to blow your mind. Get rid of your meager plan. Get rid of your meager goal and expect me to show up." All my extra-oil people, make some noise in this place. I got extra oil. I got extra oil. I am 64, but I got extra oil. Get rid of your nursing home—I am not coming. I got extra oil. I got stuff to do. I got places to go. I got people to see.
Extra oil means if it takes all night, I will fight all night. If it takes all month, if it takes all year, I brought extra oil because I refuse to underestimate my future.
Learning to Say No
Let me help you with the guilt that comes when you have enough but you attract people who do not. Because for every wise virgin, there was a fool. It is amazing how you attract people who are so different from you that if you are not careful, you become guilty trying to be a savior to everybody else when you have just enough oil for the calling, for the position, for the opportunity, for the favor.
The Bible says, "Tell them" no. Somebody shout no. You have been wanting to say no, but you said, "I cannot say no, I am related to them. I cannot say no, I grew up with them. I cannot say no, I am in love with them. I cannot say no, I feel sorry for them." But how about I help you out? Open your mouth and shout no.
Wisdom demands that you know how to say no. You cannot be a wise virgin and not say no. It is foolish to say yes to a fool. If they wasted their oil, they will waste yours too. The wise virgins were wise enough to say no. I will not be your provision.
I do not know how many more hills I will have to climb. It is midnight. I do not know how far I will have to go before daybreak. This is somebody who is wise enough not to underestimate that just because you are elected and selected does not mean that you will not have to face adverse conditions.
Reserves for Midnight Seasons
I need oil enough in case it is harder than I thought, in case marriage is harder than I thought, in case raising children is harder than I thought, in case opening up a business is harder than I thought, in case pastoring is harder than I thought, in case being an entrepreneur is harder than I thought.
I have to have reserve. We are in a season right now where reserves are all that matters. You need reserve wisdom, reserve grace, reserve resources. You need to have stuff on reserve. You got to stop spending everything you got—your money, your energy, your time, your compassion, your emotions, your efforts.
Because we are in a midnight season and you only have a jar full of oil. And as cold as it sounds, and as tough as it sounds, you have to sometimes say, even to your own family, "Behold, the bridegroom cometh." And what got me is all ten of them trimmed their wick.
What are you trimming your wick for? Because they are fools. Why would you trim your wick? You are so sure that I am going to come through that you are trimming your wick based on my oil? You are spending my money. You are spending my wisdom. You are spending my time.
Converting Oil to Light
As I come to a close, the wick is the thing that turns oil to light. It is the object of conversion. Everybody had a lantern, everybody had a wick, but only five had oil. It is the wick that turns the oil to light.
Everybody who has ever read the Bible over two weeks understands that the oil is a type of anointing. And whenever you see the Bible talk about oil, you are talking about anointing. And in order to convert the anointing into light, there has to be a wick that is dipped down in the oil that is soaking it up.
Everybody is here, but everybody is not soaking. Everybody is listening, but everybody is not soaking. There are some folk in this room right now that are soaking up this oil that is coming forth and converting it into light.
So the wise virgins left. They have left the building. And they told the foolish ones, "Get your own oil." And the wise ones went in to the ceremony or the supper and the bridegroom closed the door.
What do you do when by the time you get your oil and get yourself together, the door is closed? By the time the foolish ones took life serious, by the time you recognize that life is not a game, by the time you recognize that you are not a kid anymore, that it is not about you being cute with your broke self, with your dysfunctional self.
The Need for More Oil
You are fine, but you are crazy. It is not about you got all kind of selfies posted everywhere and no retirement. You got on Gucci underwear and cannot send your kids to school. You are a prophetess, but you cannot see how to own your own place.
How can you be that anointed and have no light? You need to dip your wick in that oil and convert some of that anointing into enlightenment. The oil is the thing that is missing.
We got people who can sing like never before. Never in the history of the church have we had people who can do the kind of riffs that they do now. All kinds of stuff, all kinds of talent, all kinds of instruments, all kinds of buildings. We have never had buildings like this. We have never had opportunities like this. We have never had information at our fingertips like this.
There is nothing you cannot Google. There is nothing you cannot find. We have never been exposed to education with the click of a button like this—so we have got more lantern but we have got less oil.
The old folks did not sing good, but they sung with power. They did not have five riffs, but they had glory. The old church did not have padded pews, but there was a glory that would hit the church. The power of God would saturate the church. People got delivered in the church. We survived atrocities in the church.
You know what we need? We need more oil. We need oily preachers. We need oily singers. We need people playing instruments until the power of God knocks you off the instrument.
Calling for an Oily Praise
We need the kind of oil that comes down in the church where witches do not feel comfortable in the service. We need the kind of oil in the church that binds people together, that heals yokes, that tears down barriers, that opens doors, that looses the bound, that sets the captive free.
We need the kind of oil to come in this place. Depression cannot come in here. Fear cannot come in here. Suicide cannot come in here. We need the kind of oil that will break yokes and tear down barriers and open doors.
We need the kind of oil that gives you favor on Monday. We need the kind of oil that will loose resources from the North, the South, the East, and the West. We need the kind of oil that will set before you an open door.
We need the kind of oil that will bring your children into alignment. We need the kind of oil that will pronounce generational blessings until you and your daughter, you and your son, you and your grandson, you and your granddaughter are walking in the supernatural power of God.
We need the kind of oil that covers our families, that covers our bodies, that covers our resources. We need an oily praise. Can I get an oily praise? I need three minutes of an oily praise.