Not Left Behind but Left Out

What an offense is the the Parable of the Bridesmaids in Matthew 25:1-13! People are left out of the wedding because they did not have any oil. To make matters worse, the bridegroom even tells the latecomers that he does not know them. Perhaps the offense is there because we don’t understand the intent of the parable. Spiritual preparedness is not something that can be delegated to someone else, just as the empty bridesmaids could not simply borrow oil from another. We can only prepare for ourselves. We cannot even prepare for those we love the most. We can encourage them and set them an example, but they are responsible for their own relationship with Christ, for him knowing them. How many of us are not spiritually prepared but have been thinking we could borrow oil from someone else?