The Bride in the wilderness.. preparation

 1. Read: Ephesians 1:15-19

2. About the Text:

1) The book of Ephesians is about the church, the bride of Christ.

2) All spiritual blessings are in the heavenly places in Christ (Ephesians 1:3).

3) God’s revelation is for everyone, but only the bride has enlightenment.

4) It takes personal application of God’s revelation to truly understand its power.

5) This means commitment by identifying with Jesus Christ in baptism.

3. Ref. to S, T, P, O, and A.

DISCUSSION: The Bride is Blessed with God’s Revelation which Enlightens Her Regarding…

I.   JESUS CHRIST (15-18A)

1. Paul’s relationship with the church.

1) He heard of their faith in the Lord and their love for all the saints.

2) He did not cease to give thanks for them.

3) He prayed for them.

2. Paul’s Prayer

1) The Father of the Lord Jesus Christ would give them a gift.

2) The spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Jesus.

a. The early church had miraculous gifts to know God’s revelation.

b. Today, we have the Bible.

c. They received knowledge directly from God.

d. We receive knowledge through study.

e. “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth” (2 Timothy 2:15).

f. God gives us the wisdom and knowledge as we seek to apply what we learn.

g. “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work” (2 Timothy 3:16-17).

3. The knowledge of Jesus.

1) His ministry, life, death, and resurrection.

2) “And truly Jesus did many other signs in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name” (John 20:30-31).

3) His bride, the church, and God’s eternal purpose.

4) Read Ephesians 3:3-6

4. The eyes of your understanding being enlightened.

1) This is application of the knowledge of Jesus to our personal lives.

2) “To them God willed to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles: which is Christ in you, the hope of glory” (Colossians 1:27).

3) Christian living.

4) Read Colossians 3:12-17

5) Knowing how Jesus applies to every situation and circumstance I encounter.

5. The church is the pillar and ground of the truth (1 Timothy 3:15).

1) The world is not going to give you God’s revelation.

2) Only the church is going to do that.

6. God wants us to know Jesus Christ.

II.  THE HOPE OF HIS CALLING (18)

1. God has a calling!

1) “Who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began” (2 Timothy 1:9).

2) “But we are bound to give thanks to God always for you, brethren beloved by the Lord, because God from the beginning chose you for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth, to which He called you by our gospel, for the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ” (2 Thessalonians 2:13-14).

2. The Hope of His Calling

1) God’s calling entails great hope!

2) There is one hope of His calling (Ephesians 4:4).

3) “Christ in you, the hope of glory” (Colossians 1:27).

4) “For we know that if our earthly house, this tent, is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens” (2 Corinthians 5:1).

5) “For what is our hope, or joy, or crown of rejoicing? Is it not even you in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at His coming?” (1 Thessalonians 2:19).

3. God wants us to know His Hope.

III. THE INHERITANCE AMONG THE SAINTS (18)

1. The inheritance is what the Father gives the Son.

1) What has the Father given the Son? His people.

2) The inheritance among the saints are the saints.

3) “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away, reserved in heaven for you, who are kept by the power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time” (1 Peter 1:3-5).

4) “For what is our hope, or joy, or crown of rejoicing? Is it not even you in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at His coming?” (1 Thessalonians 2:19).

2. God wants us to know the inheritance among the saints.

IV.  THE GREATNESS OF HIS POWER (19-20).

1. God demonstrated His power in the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

1) Jesus was “declared to be the Son of God with power according to the Spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead” (Romans 1:4).

2) “And God both raised up the Lord and will also raise us up by His power” (1 Corinthians 6:14).

2. God demonstrated His power when Jesus ascended to sit at His right hand.

1) This was first shown in Acts 2 with the coming of the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:8).

2) His power is in the gospel today (Romans 1:16-17).

3. Do we trust in the power of God to save us?

4. Do we trust in the power of God to raise us from the dead?

The Bride of Christ

​The bride of Christ are those that are one with Jesus just as the Father and Jesus are one; those that have been faithful and had a heart toward the things of God. All Christians that believe in Him will have eternal life, but those that are faithful and overcome will reign with Jesus as His bride, Rev 20:4, 2:26, 3:21, Rom 5:17, 8:17, 2 Timothy 2:11–12.
This is the prize of the high calling, Phil 3:14.
 
He has invited me to be a part of his family and to participate in all that He has to offer me.
He has invited me to spend eternity with Him and made it extremely easy to do so. He offered the free gift of grace to me. That, if I believe in Jesus, my sins are forgiven and I am washed by the blood of the Lamb and I can live forever with the King of the universe, but wait there is more. It doesn’t stop there; this is just the starting point. This is actually where it all starts, but unfortunately, some Christians don’t even get off the starting blocks. Paul is constantly referring to Christianity as a race. Besides the gift of grace, there is another commonality to Paul’s writings; an urgency and a desire he is always striving for. Is this his salvation? No, of course not; we are saved by grace, that not of ourselves it is a gift of God. Our justification does not have anything to do with our works. It is all based on Jesus and the works He performed on the cross. So what is this that Paul is so concerned and motivated for? It is the pleasure of knowing the Father and Jesus; becoming one with them and walking faithful and worthily of Him, 1Tim 4:8-10, 15-16. This is the Christian walk. It is not bogged down with rules and law that forces us to do these things. This is a matter of the heart. Faithfulness comes from the heart and if we choose to be faithful to Him and commit our life to live for Him only; desire Him, know Him, seek Him, then great is the reward in heaven. This is what Jesus has in store for us beyond eternal life with Him. To rule and reign with Him as One, as His bride seated next to Him, Eph 2:4-10, 1Tim 5:17.
How do I become one with Jesus?We are living in a special dispensation of time that God has chosen to build the body of Christ, His Church. This opportunity, this chosen period of time to form His church, began when Jesus was raised from the dead and it will last until the Marriage Supper of the Lamb which will happen sometime just before Jesus returns to set up His kingdom at His second coming, (not the rapture, but His true second coming to the earth).
The Father sent His Son Jesus to reconcile man to Himself thru Jesus. Jesus paid for all our sins on the cross and made the righteousness of God available to all men who believe in Him. If you believe in Jesus, you have been made new, all your sins, past and future, have been removed from your account and you have been reconciled to the Father and made righteous thru the precious blood of Jesus, 2Cor 5:17-21, Eph 1:7.
 
Only the first fruits of Jesus’ death and resurrection are allowed to be in the body of Christ, Eph 1:10. We are those that first believed in Him, Eph 1:11-12, and we are those that believed without seeing, Jn 20:29.
 
If you are in Him and He is in you, then you are part of the body of Christ. A group of elect that is only available to those that believe in Jesus in this dispensation.
Ro 12:5  so we, being many, are one body in Christ, and individually members of one another.
1Co 12:12  For as the body is one and has many members, but all the members of that one body, being many, are one body, so also is Christ.
Eph 1:22  And He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church, 23  which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.
Col 1:18  And He is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things He may have the preeminence. 19  For it pleased the Father that in Him all the fullness should dwell,
Col 2:9  For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily; 10  and you are complete in Him, who is the head of all principality and power.
There is no question that those who believe in Jesus are in the body of Christ, but what does it mean to be one with Him and to be the bride of Christ?  Is there a difference? Does everyone in the body of Christ become the bride of Christ? I used to be one of those people who thought these were the same, until I discovered all thru the Word, an elect group of the body with special privileges and rights. The bride of Christ is an elite group of the body of Christ; those who were most faithful to Him and for Him. There are several parables from Jesus and many scriptures that help define what it means to be the bride of Christ.
The first and foremost concept to being His bride is the idea of being made one with Him. This is something God put forth between man and woman from the very beginning. Of course this has physical implications that lead to procreation and sustaining life, but life would and could continue without the concept of being made one with your partner. Use the animals for instance. They unite physically, but that is the extent of it, yet they still produce offspring. God could have made this the same for man, but instead he wanted to show us and offer us so much more. This concept of being made one is a foreshadow, an allusion, to what He wants us to have with Jesus on a spiritual level. Of course, the physical rules don’t apply here, that is only something we needed on this earth to procreate with other humans. The idea of being one with Jesus is so much more than physicality; it is oneness, being unified, together in all things, never being separated or divided, always in agreement. Once you understand what unity means from God, then you can apply this back to your personal relationship with your spouse and see things grow to the next level beyond just the physical implications, Eph 5:29-32.
We have the opportunity to get a first-hand discourse of Jesus’ prayer to the Father on the night before He was crucified. This insight helps us gain understanding of what it means to be One with Him.
John 17:20–26
20 “I do not ask on behalf of these alone, but for those also who believe in Me through their word;
21 that they may all be one; even as You, Father, are in Me and I in You, that they also may be in Us, so that the world may believe that You sent Me.
22 “The glory which You have given Me I have given to them, that they may be one, just as We are one;
23 I in them and You in Me, that they may be perfected in unity, so that the world may know that You sent Me, and loved them, even as You have loved Me.
24 “Father, I desire that they also, whom You have given Me, be with Me where I am, so that they may see My glory which You have given Me, for You loved Me before the foundation of the world.
25 “O righteous Father, although the world has not known You, yet I have known You; and these have known that You sent Me;
26 and I have made Your name known to them, and will make it known, so that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them.”
 
It is the Father’s earnest desire that we be made one with Him. This is why He paid the ultimate price and sent His Son to die for us. So He could reconcile us to Him.
But do you notice there is not a guarantee to be made one with Him. Any time Jesus mentions us being one with the Father it is always preceded by “may”.  Compare this to any salvation scripture. When it comes to salvation, there is nothing else for us to do except believe in Him to be saved. All the work and responsibility is on Him and any works that we try to contribute to salvation is actually blaspheming the name of Jesus and counting the work on the cross as no effect, like it wasn’t good enough.
But when you see any scripture that has to do with being one with Him or reigning or ruling with Him, there is a contingency, something we need to do. God has made it available to all who believe in Him to be one with Him and rule and reign with Him, but not all will achieve this ultimate prize. This is what Paul was striving for all his life and what he wanted for the body of Christ as well.
Eph 1:10  that in the dispensation of the fullness of the times He might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven and which are on earth--in Him. 11  In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will, 12  that we who first trusted in Christ should be to the praise of His glory. 13  In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, 14  who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory
 Eph 5:23  For the husband is head of the wife, as also Christ is head of the church; and He is the Savior of the body, , Eph 4:11-16, Jn 17:21.
Ro 7:4  Therefore, my brethren, you also have become dead to the law through the body of Christ, that you may be married to another--to Him who was raised from the dead, that we should bear fruit to God
2Co 11:2  For I am jealous for you with godly jealousy. For I have betrothed you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ.
Being made the bride of Christ is the ultimate prize and should be what every Christian is striving for while he is alive on the earth, Phil 3:14. Not for personal gain or selfish motivation, but because in this process and in the future with Jesus, if we are His bride, this means we will know Him and have such a close intimate relationship with Him we will be as One with Him. This is what every Christian should be longing for and desiring.
 
Ephesians 5:29–32
29 for no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ also does the church,
30 because we are members of His body.
31 For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and shall be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.
32 This mystery is great; but I am speaking with reference to Christ and the church. 
 
Let us take a look at more scripture surrounding the bride of Christ and the marriage feast.
Now if you are in the body of Christ you have the opportunity to become the bride of Christ.

The rapture

The rapture is the event when Jesus rescues or catches away His church from the coming wrath of the Great Tribulation. This event is commonly known as “the rapture”; although this word is not used in the English bible, it is found in the Latin bible. We get this term from the Greek word ἁρπάζω, harpazo, to catch, take away, seize, or snatch, 1Thes 4:17. The Greek word harpazo is translated as rapturo in the Latin bible.
The word harpazo is used several places in scripture. Paul used this word in describing his experience being caught up to the third heaven, 2Cor 12:2. Luke uses this word when Phillip was snatched by the Spirit after he baptized the eunuch, Acts 8:39.
The rapture is different than Jesus’ second coming. In the rapture, we meet Jesus in the air, 1Thes 4:14-17. At the second coming, Jesus comes to the earth with His saints, 1Thes 3:13, Jude 14-15.
The rapture is a special event for the body of Christ that will rescue or snatch Christians out of this world before the Great Tribulation begins,
2 Thessalonians 2:3
Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;
This falling away could actually be the rapture. Not a falling away from God, but a separation from the world. The Greek word is ἀποστασία, apostasia-  fall away, rebellion. The root word is apostation- separation, divorce. This is a separation or divorce from this world. This coincides with the next few verses in which Paul says the hinderer or restrainer of lawlessness, this is us, Christians, must be taken out of the way before the anti-christ can be revealed.
2 Thessalonians 2:7
For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only he who now restrains will do so until he is taken out of the way.
 
We, Christians, those that are filled with the Holy Spirit, are restraining evil. Jesus has all authority over sin and death. As long as the Holy Spirit in us is on the earth, death cannot rule, Heb 2:14-17. Once we are taken out of the way by the rapture, the Holy Spirit also leaves and the anti-christ will have full reign on the earth and there will be no restraint for evil, Rev 13:5.
Sometime after the rapture, probably within months after the catching away, the anti-christ makes a covenant with Israel. This starts the 70th week prophesied by Daniel and the Day of the Lord begins. This is the start of the next dispensation. The Day of the Lord is the Day of Christ, Phil 1:6-10, 2:16. The Day of the Lord cannot start until the son of perdition, the anti-christ is revealed, 2Thes 2:3. The son of perdition is revealed by making a covenant with Israel. He must be revealed before the Day of the Lord can start. This covenant triggers the 70th week of Daniel, Dan 9:27, 2Thes 2:3.
 
The purpose of the 70th week of Daniel is to bring the Jews back to Glory, Ezek 20:34-38, Zech 12:9-10, 13:8-9, Jer 30:7, Matt 24:15-22.
 
At the harpazo, not all Christians are caught up and not all Christians who have already died are raised out of the ground; only those who were expectant of the Lord’s coming, those who lived for Christ will be caught up with Him, Lk 21:34-36, Lk 12:35-48, Matt 24:22, 36-44, Matt 25:10, Mk 13:33. Those that are alive at the rapture and also those resurrected out of the ground at this time go back to heaven with Jesus; escaping the wrath of the Great Tribulation, 1Thes 4:13-18.
1 Thessalonians 4:13–18
 
13 But we do not want you to be uninformed, brethren, about those who are asleep, so that you will not grieve as do the rest who have no hope.
14 For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who have fallen asleep in Jesus.
15 For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep.
16 For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.
17 Then we who are alive and remain will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we shall always be with the Lord.
18 Therefore comfort one another with these words.
The elect are saved by the Rapture
Mt 24:22  And if those days had not been cut short, no human being would be saved. But for the sake of the elect, Mk 13:20   whom he chose,  Mt 24:22 those days will be cut short.
Mt 26:28  for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. 29  I tell you I will not drink again of this fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom.” 
 
At this time in heaven there are two groups of the elect:
1)Old testament saints rescued out of Abraham’s bosom. Those that were expectant of the Messiah before His first coming. This happened when Jesus died and went to hell for three days; after three days, Jesus was raised out of hell and He rescued all those that believed in Him, , Eph 4:8, Ps 68:18.
2)New testament saints that believe Jesus did come and is the Messiah. These are they that had an expectancy of the rapture and either physically died and were then raised again at the rapture or were still alive at the time of the rapture. These Christians are part of the body of Christ, Rom 10:9-10, Rom 12:5, 1Cor 12:12, Eph 1:22, Col 1:18, 2:9.
 
In the book of Revelation, we see two groups of Christians in heaven that participate in the rapture.
1)The seven lampstands
2)The 24 elders
The seven lampstands represent raptured Christians, as a whole, filled with the Spirit of God, standing in front of the throne of God, Rev 1:4-5, 3:1, 4:5, 5:6, 11.
 
The 24 elders represent an elect group of new testament Christians; those that were most faithful and are given authority to reign with Jesus.
 
Who do the 24 elders represent?

• they are seated on thrones of power and authority- Rev 4:4,10, 11:16
• they are clothed in white raiment and have crowns of gold on their head Rev 4:4,10
• they know who Jesus is and His authority- Rev 5:5, Eph 1:17-23
• they have been redeemed by the blood of Jesus Rev 5:9, Gal 3:13, 1Peter 1:18-23, Rev 1:5
• they have been made kings and priests and they will reign upon the earth- Rev 5:10-14, 2:26-27, 20:4-6, 22:3-5, Dan 7:18,22 Matt 25:21, Luke 19:11-27
  • only 3 people have been made a king and a priest- Melchizedek- Gen 14:18, Jesus- Heb 4:14, 6:20, 1Tim 6:14-15, Rev 17:14, and those that believe in Jesus- Rev 1:5-6, 1Peter 2:9
• they are not the tribulation martyrs- Rev 7:13-15 or the 144,000 Jews- Rev 14:3.
  • The 24 elders are always seated on their thrones and the others are standing in front of the throne, not on a seat of authority, Rev 5:11, 15:2-3.

 
The Day of the Lord begins sometime after the rapture; when the anti-christ makes a covenant with Israel, Dan 9:27, 2Thes 2:3-10. Some Christians have been left behind because they did not have an expectancy for the rapture. These Christians still on the earth have a choice, die for Christ or be a part of the world.
Those Christians that die for Christ are called tribulation martyrs. They are beheaded and exalted by Jesus. These Christians, however, are not a part of the 24 elders seated on thrones. They are at the feet of Jesus in front of the throne, Rev 5:11,6:9-11, 13:10, 14:12-13, 15:2-4.
 
Now in heaven we have three groups of elect:
1)Old testament saints
2)New testament saints represented by the 24 elders seated on thrones
3)New testament saints standing in front of the throne of God. These consist of:
a.Saints represented by seven lampstands. These were part of the rapture but are not seated on thrones.
b.Tribulation martyrs- these are Christians who did not participate in the rapture because either were not expectant of the Lord’s coming or they were Jews who didn’t believe in Jesus. I believe that it will be very hard, if not impossible, to become a Christian after the rapture if you had a chance to accept Jesus as Lord before He came. The Lord will send a strong delusion and those that had a chance to believe in Jesus but rejected Him, will believe the lie of the devil and never come to Jesus, 2Thes 2:8-12.
 
Towards the end of the 70th week, after many tribulation martyrs are killed during the Great Tribulation; up in heaven, there is the Bema seat judgement. This is where all new testament Christians in heaven, the body of Christ, are judged by their faithfulness to Jesus on the earth. From this judgement, rewards are given based on faithfulness and condition of the heart toward God, 2Cor 5:10, Rev 22:12,3:11, Dan 7:10,1Cor 9:25,Matt 5:12, 20:8, 16:27, Jn 4:36,2Jn 1:8,Lk 14:4.
Authority and responsibility to rule and judge are
given to those that proved themselves faithful,
Matt 25:14-30, Luke 19:11–27.
The faithful are promised to reign and rule with Christ. This is not all Christians, only those who have proven faithful and overcame, Rev 20:4, 2:26, 3:21, Rom 5:17, 8:17, Phil 3:14, 1Tim 4:10, 16, 5:17, 6:6, 11-12, 19, 2 Tim 2:11–12.
 
Eternal life with Jesus is promised to all Christians that believe in Him, but there is so much more than just getting into heaven. The Bema seat judgement distinguishes and starts to separate these different categories.
Out of this judgment, three groups are defined:
1)Those Christians who will be exalted to the highest status, the prize of the upward calling, to be named the bride of Christ; those who are most faithful, see notes below on the Bride of Christ.
2)Those who are a part of the wedding ceremony, but not the bride, just guests. See notes below on the parable of the wedding, the parable of the dinner, and the parable of the guests at the wedding feast.
3)Those who were not faithful, but still Christians. What little they have will be taken away from them, Lk 19:13 parable of the ten minas. They are allowed into the kingdom of God, but not into the wedding ceremony or the wedding feast.
 
The Return of Christ 
​
- Be on guard and ready for the rapture so we can have strength to escape the Great Tribulation
 
Luke 21:25–38
 
25 “There will be signs in sun and moon and stars, and on the earth dismay among nations, in perplexity at the roaring of the sea and the waves,
26 men fainting from fear and the expectation of the things which are coming upon the world; for the powers of the heavens will be shaken.
27 “Then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory.
28 “But when these things begin to take place, straighten up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.”
29 Then He told them a parable: “Behold the fig tree and all the trees;
30 as soon as they put forth leaves, you see it and know for yourselves that summer is now near.
31 “So you also, when you see these things happening, recognize that the kingdom of God is near.
32 “Truly I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all things take place.
33 “Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will not pass away.
34 “Be on guard, so that your hearts will not be weighted down with dissipation and drunkenness and the worries of life, and that day will not come on you suddenly like a trap;
35 for it will come upon all those who dwell on the face of all the earth.
 
36 “But keep on the alert at all times, praying that you may have strength to escape all these things that are about to take place, and to stand before the Son of Man.”
37 Now during the day He was teaching in the temple, but at evening He would go out and spend the night on the mount that is called Olivet.
38 And all the people would get up early in the morning to come to Him in the temple to listen to Him.
 
The parable of the ten virgins gives us an insight to this event.
The ten virgins are those who say they are Christians, but 5 of them do not have the oil for their lamps. Oil represents the Holy Spirit. All ten virgins had oil at one time. You cannot be a Christian without the Holy Spirit dwelling in your heart. Jn 3:3-6, 14:17, Rom 8:14, Eph 4:30. These ten virgins were all Christians but five of them let their oil run out and quenched His fire by their unbelief and un-readiness, 1Thes 5:19. This doesn’t mean they lost their salvation. They just forfeited their rewards and inheritance in heaven.
 
The Parable of the Ten Virgins- be prepared and keep the fire of the Spirit burning in your life
- those that quenched the fire of the Spirit did not make the rapture
Mt 25:1  "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.
 
When the bridegroom came, this is Jesus; those that had the oil, Christians filled with the Holy Spirit; went with Jesus into the marriage feast. They were prepared and expecting Him, but  those that did not have the oil, left to buy some, but it was too late. These first five virgins evidently had lamps that were burning, but they were going out. The fire of the Holy Spirit was making their lamps burn at one time, but they quenched His fire by their unbelief and un-readiness, 1Thes 5:19. Jesus had come and the door was shut. They were not prepared and were not expecting the Lord to come.  Do not be slothful and lazy with your Christianity. Take it seriously, be alert, on guard and ready. Now is the acceptable time, 2Cor 6:2. Once the door to the wedding was shut, they were never allowed in. This does not mean they were shut out of heaven, although we will see some other parables where this is the case, but here we see the five virgins not shut out of heaven but out of the wedding feast. This one parable now distinguishes 4 types of saints in heaven.
1)Old testament saints
2)Christians represented by the 24 elders seated on thrones with authority.
3)Christians represented by the seven lampstands standing in front of the throne of God.
4)Christians who did not make the rapture and were not allowed into the marriage feast.
a.All Christians who participate in the rapture will also be allowed into the marriage feast
b.but this is not a guarantee with Christians after the rapture. Those that come to heaven during the tribulation are not guaranteed to have a seat in the marriage supper. Entrance into the marriage feast is based on your heart. There will absolutely be those who were beheaded for Christ during the tribulation that will be exalted to a seat in the Marriage feast, and there will also be those just like in the parable of the ten virgins that will make it heaven eventually, but will not be allowed in to the marriage feast.
 
Be in Readiness- Be ready and alert for Jesus when He comes. Don’t be distracted by the world. Keep your focus on Him.
-Those that are looking for Jesus will be rewarded for their faithfulness
Luke 12:35–48
35 “Be dressed in readiness, and keep your lamps lit.
36 “Be like men who are waiting for their master when he returns from the wedding feast, so that they may immediately open the door to him when he comes and knocks.
37 “Blessed are those slaves whom the master will find on the alert when he comes; truly I say to you, that he will gird himself to serve, and have them recline at the table, and will come up and wait on them.
38 “Whether he comes in the second watch, or even in the third, and finds them so, blessed are those slaves.
39 “But be sure of this, that if the head of the house had known at what hour the thief was coming, he would not have allowed his house to be broken into.
40 “You too, be ready; for the Son of Man is coming at an hour that you do not expect.”
41 Peter said, “Lord, are You addressing this parable to us, or to everyone else as well?”
42 And the Lord said, “Who then is the faithful and sensible steward, whom his master will put in charge of his servants, to give them their rations at the proper time?
43 “Blessed is that slave whom his master finds so doing when he comes.
44 “Truly I say to you that he will put him in charge of all his possessions.
45 “But if that slave says in his heart, ‘My master will be a long time in coming,’ and begins to beat the slaves, both men and women, and to eat and drink and get drunk;
46 the master of that slave will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he does not know, and will cut him in pieces, and assign him a place with the unbelievers.
47 “And that slave who knew his master’s will and did not get ready or act in accord with his will, will receive many lashes,
48 but the one who did not know it, and committed deeds worthy of a flogging, will receive but few. From everyone who has been given much, much will be required; and to whom they entrusted much, of him they will ask all the more.
Be alert and expectant of the Lord- Be on guard and awake for Jesus when He comes. Don’t be distracted by the world. Keep your focus on Him.

The Lord will choose who he takes based on the readiness and expectancy of the heart

Matt 24:36  “But concerning that day  and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only. Mk 13:33  Be on guard, keep awake. For you do not know when the time will come. 34  It is like a man going on a journey, when he leaves home and puts his servants in charge, each with his work, and commands the doorkeeper to stay awake. 35  Therefore stay awake—for you do not know when the master of the house will come, in the evening, or at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or in the morning— 36  lest he come suddenly and find you asleep. 37  And what I say to you I say to all: Stay awake.” Mt 24:37  For as were the days of Noah, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. 38  For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, 39  and they were unaware until the flood came and swept them all away, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. Lk 17:28  Likewise, just as it was in the days of Lot—they were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building, 29  but on the day when Lot went out from Sodom, fire and sulfur rained from heaven and destroyed them all— 30  so will it be on the day when the Son of Man is revealed. 31  On that day, let the one who is on the housetop, with his goods in the house, not come down to take them away, and likewise let the one who is in the field not turn back. 32  Remember Lot’s wife. 33  Whoever seeks to preserve his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life will keep it. 34  I tell you, in that night there will be two in one bed. One will be taken and the other left. Mt 24:40  Then two men will be in the field; one will be taken and one left. 41  Two women will be grinding at the mill; one will be taken and one left. 42  Therefore, stay awake, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming. 43  But know this, that if the master of the house had known in what part of the night the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and would not have let his house be broken into. 44  Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect. Lk 17:37  And they said to him, “Where, Lord?” He said to them, “Where the body is, there the eagles will gather.”
 
The parable of the talents- the talents are given to each according to his own ability. It is up to the servant to do something with what the Lord has given us.
 
- faithfulness is rewarded with authority
 
-the slothful servant was stripped of what he had and cast into the outer darkness.
 
Matt 25:14-30
14  “For it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted to them his property. 15  To one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability. Then he went away. 16  He who had received the five talents went at once and traded with them, and he made five talents more. 17  So also he who had the two talents made two talents more. 18  But he who had received the one talent went and dug in the ground and hid his master’s money. 19  Now after a long time the master of those servants came and settled accounts with them. 20  And he who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five talents more, saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me five talents; here I have made five talents more.’ 21  His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’ 22  And he also who had the two talents came forward, saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me two talents; here I have made two talents more.’ 23  His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’ 24  He also who had received the one talent came forward, saying, ‘Master, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you scattered no seed, 25  so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here you have what is yours.’ 26  But his master answered him, ‘You wicked and slothful servant! You knew that I reap where I have not sown and gather where I scattered no seed? 27  Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and at my coming I should have received what was my own with interest. 28  So take the talent from him and give it to him who has the ten talents. 29  For to everyone who has will more be given, and he will have an abundance. But from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. 30  And cast the worthless servant into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’
 
Parable of the minas- reward is given for faithfulness
 
-Authority and rule is given those who were faithful with what Jesus has given us
 
- those not faithful are stripped of what they have. They are not thrown into outer darkness, but they probably aren’t allowed into the wedding feast.
 
Luke 19:11–27
11 While they were listening to these things, Jesus went on to tell a parable, because He was near Jerusalem, and they supposed that the kingdom of God was going to appear immediately.
12 So He said, “A nobleman went to a distant country to receive a kingdom for himself, and then return.
13 “And he called ten of his slaves, and gave them ten minas and said to them, ‘Do business with this until I come back.’
 
They each received one mina. They all were given an equal amount, but it was what they did with that gift that was important. The mina represents God’s grace and righteousness that was a free gift to all. Everyone who believes in Jesus was given the same amount of righteousness, but it is what we have done with this free gift that is most important. Did you hide it away under a bushel and not do anything with it, or did you set it on top of a hill and let your light shine for everyone to see?, Matt 5:14-16.  Did you bury it in the ground to keep it safe for the Master’s return because you thought the Master was a hard, cruel man, or did you invest it and multiply what was given to you?, Matt 25:14-30, Luke 19:11–27, Is 55:10.
 
14 “But his citizens hated him and sent a delegation after him, saying, ‘We do not want this man to reign over us.’
15 “When he returned, after receiving the kingdom, he ordered that these slaves, to whom he had given the money, be called to him so that he might know what business they had done.
16 “The first appeared, saying, ‘Master, your mina has made ten minas more.’
17 “And he said to him, ‘Well done, good slave, because you have been faithful in a very little thing, you are to be in authority over ten cities.’
18 “The second came, saying, ‘Your mina, master, has made five minas.’
19 “And he said to him also, ‘And you are to be over five cities.’
20 “Another came, saying, ‘Master, here is your mina, which I kept put away in a handkerchief;
21 for I was afraid of you, because you are an exacting man; you take up what you did not lay down and reap what you did not sow.’
22 “He *said to him, ‘By your own words I will judge you, you worthless slave. Did you know that I am an exacting man, taking up what I did not lay down and reaping what I did not sow?
23 ‘Then why did you not put my money in the bank, and having come, I would have collected it with interest?’
24 “Then he said to the bystanders, ‘Take the mina away from him and give it to the one who has the ten minas.’
25 “And they said to him, ‘Master, he has ten minas already.’
26 “I tell you that to everyone who has, more shall be given, but from the one who does not have, even what he does have shall be taken away.
27 “But these enemies of mine, who did not want me to reign over them, bring them here and slay them in my presence.”
 
 
Here is another parable describing the wedding
The Parable of the Wedding
Mt 22:1  And Jesus answered and spoke to them again by parables and said: 2  "The kingdom of heaven is like a certain king who arranged a marriage for his son, 3  and sent out his servants to call those who were invited to the wedding; and they were not willing to come. 4  Again, he sent out other servants, saying, 'Tell those who are invited, "See, I have prepared my dinner; my oxen and fatted cattle are killed, and all things are ready. Come to the wedding." ' 5  But they made light of it and went their ways, one to his own farm, another to his business. 6  And the rest seized his servants, treated them spitefully, and killed them. 7  But when the king heard about it, he was furious. And he sent out his armies, destroyed those murderers, and burned up their city. 8  Then he said to his servants, 'The wedding is ready, but those who were invited were not worthy. 9  Therefore go into the highways, and as many as you find, invite to the wedding.' 10  So those servants went out into the highways and gathered together all whom they found, both bad and good. And the wedding hall was filled with guests. 11  But when the king came in to see the guests, he saw a man there who did not have on a wedding garment. 12  So he said to him, 'Friend, how did you come in here without a wedding garment?' And he was speechless. 13  Then the king said to the servants, 'Bind him hand and foot, take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.' 14  For many are called, but few are chosen."
 
- Those first invited to the Marriage Supper, the Jews, did not accept His invitation and made excuses to not attend
- the Gentiles are now invited and Jesus has made the way for them to sit at the Marriage feast. It didn’t matter if they were bad or good as long as they accepted His invitation they could participate in the wedding. The admission into the wedding is based on one thing, the condition of the heart. Your past doesn’t matter. The only thing that matters is what you did with your free gift of righteousness. Did you hide it away under a bushel and not do anything with it, or did you set it on top of a hill and let your light shine for everyone to see?, Matt 5:14-16.  Did you bury it in the ground to keep it safe for the Master’s return because you thought the Master was a hard, cruel man, or did you invest it and multiply what was given to you?, Matt 25:14-30, Luke 19:11–27, Is 55:10.
 
- those that attended the wedding were given a wedding garment to wear, a robe of righteousness, Is 61:10; a robe of righteousness that represents the blood of Jesus. We are clothed in the free gift of righteousness that Jesus bought and paid for on the cross. Jesus has this garment hanging and waiting for us, but it is our choice, our responsibility to make ourselves ready, the garment was given to us, but we must take the step of actually putting the garment on, Rev 19:7-9. Just before the Marriage Supper in heaven, we will participate in the Bema seat judgement. This is a judgement for the righteous. Righteous works are rewarded, worthless works are burned up, 2Cor 5:10, 1Cor 3:11-15, Rom 14:10-12, Dan 7:10. The treasure that we store up in heaven, Matt 6:19-21, 1Tim 6:19, the prize of the upward calling, Phil 3:14, an imperishable wreath, 1Cor 9:24-25, a crown of righteousness for those who loved His appearing, 2Tim 4:8; the Bema seat judgement is the period in time for this to happen. The Father will give us a robe of righteousness. I think this is the same robe of righteousness that Jesus has freely given us and made available to anyone who believes in Him, and it also contains an account of our righteous acts embroidered on the hem of the garment, Rev 19:8. All thru scripture the hem of the garment has played a significant role. This border at the bottom of the robe represents an outward reminder of the covenant relationship between God and His people, Num 15:37-40, Deut 22:12. Kings, royal priesthood, Jews of a higher status would have a significant outward appearance representing that person. They used their garment to show off who they were. This is why Jesus said “they do all their deeds to be noticed by men; for they broaden their phylacteries and lengthen the tassels of their garments”, Matt 23:5. The difference between the Pharisees robe of selfish acts and our robe of righteousness is our robe will be made by our heavenly Father. He is the one exalting us by making a righteous robe for us to wear. If you show off and proclaim your righteous acts now in the world, you also will have your reward now in the world; but if you wait and let God exalt you, then your Father will grant your reward openly, which will be great in heaven, Matt 23:5-12, Matt 6:1-6, 16-21.
When David cut off the hem of King Saul’s garment in the cave, the reason David felt ashamed of this act was because the hem of the garment contained the significance of the anointed king of Israel, 1Sam 24:4-6.
When the woman with the issue of blood touched the hem of Jesus garment, she was touching what signified Him as the Anointed One, the Messiah, Matt 9:20-22.
 
This robe of righteousness is a requirement to enter the wedding. There are two types of people who do not receive a wedding garment.
1)Those that when invited to the wedding, chose the world, deceitfulness of riches, the lust of other things and are too busy to attend. This choice is made on the earth. This is the parable we were just reading, Matt 22:1-14. These people have a dim future. They are not only rejected from the wedding, but cast into outer darkness. I don’t believe that the outer darkness is the lake of fire, but it is not in the kingdom of God either. Jesus said that the sons of the kingdom (those that had a right to the kingdom but did not believe) will be cast out into outer darkness, Matt 8:10-12. I believe these are the Jews who never accepted Jesus as Savior.
2)The other type is the person who accepted the invitation, but didn’t prepare for the event. They weren’t expectant or ready when the time came, they didn’t get themselves ready for the party, and they quenched the fire of the Holy Spirit, so they missed it, the parable of the ten virgins, Matt 25:1-13.
Anyone not wearing this wedding garment will be cast out of the wedding and based on the state of their heart possibly cast into outer darkness.
So how do we avoid being kicked out of the wedding? The short answer is-
Live for Jesus, know Him, fight the good fight of faith, persevere, let everything you do be to the glory of God and let your light shine before men.
 
The Parable of the Dinner- this is another parable
 
- the invitation to the supper is the rapture
 
- Those first invited to the Marriage Supper, the Jews, did not accept His invitation and made excuses to not attend
 
- the Gentiles are now invited and Jesus has made the way for them to sit at the Marriage feast
 
Luke 14:16–24
16 But He said to him, “A man was giving a big dinner, and he invited many;
17 and at the dinner hour he sent his slave to say to those who had been invited, ‘Come; for everything is ready now.’
18 “But they all alike began to make excuses. The first one said to him, ‘I have bought a piece of land and I need to go out and look at it; please consider me excused.’
19 “Another one said, ‘I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I am going to try them out; please consider me excused.’
20 “Another one said, ‘I have married a wife, and for that reason I cannot come.’
21 “And the slave came back and reported this to his master. Then the head of the household became angry and said to his slave, ‘Go out at once into the streets and lanes of the city and bring in here the poor and crippled and blind and lame.’
22 “And the slave said, ‘Master, what you commanded has been done, and still there is room.’
23 “And the master said to the slave, ‘Go out into the highways and along the hedges, and compel them to come in, so that my house may be filled.
24 ‘For I tell you, none of those men who were invited shall taste of my dinner.’ ”
 
Parable of the Guests at the wedding feast- Humble yourself and let God exalt you
 
- Do good things and bless those that can’t repay you because the Father will reward you at the resurrection of the righteous- the Bema seat judgment
 
Luke 14:7–15
7 And He began speaking a parable to the invited guests when He noticed how they had been picking out the places of honor at the table, saying to them,
8 “When you are invited by someone to a wedding feast, do not take the place of honor, for someone more distinguished than you may have been invited by him,
9 and he who invited you both will come and say to you, ‘Give your place to this man,’ and then in disgrace you proceed to occupy the last place.
10 “But when you are invited, go and recline at the last place, so that when the one who has invited you comes, he may say to you, ‘Friend, move up higher’; then you will have honor in the sight of all who are at the table with you.
11 “For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”
12 And He also went on to say to the one who had invited Him, “When you give a luncheon or a dinner, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your relatives or rich neighbors, otherwise they may also invite you in return and that will be your repayment.
13 “But when you give a reception, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind,
14 and you will be blessed, since they do not have the means to repay you; for you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.”
15 When one of those who were reclining at the table with Him heard this, he said to Him, “Blessed is everyone who will eat bread in the kingdom of God!”
 
 
 
The Marriage Supper of the Lamb closes the events in heaven before Jesus’ second coming to the earth. The time period from the rapture through the Marriage Supper has distinguished and determined several levels and positions of authority for the Christian as Jesus begins to set up His kingdom. He is setting up a hierarchy of authority as He begins His eternal reign on the earth which starts with the Millennium. As we have discovered with this study, there are many different groups and levels of authority established up till this point. Below is re-cap of these groups:

• Old testament saints rescued out of Sheol at Jesus’ death
• New testament saints that participate in the rapture
  • Those represented by the 24 elders seated on thrones
  • Those represented by the seven lampstands standing in front of the throne
• Tribulation martyrs
  • Christians who believed in Jesus, but did not participate in the rapture because they were not expectant of His return
  • Jews who became Christians during the Great Tribulation

These four different groups of new testament saints are all judged at the Bema seat judgement where rewards and authority for faithfulness are given. This also determines the participation we will have in the Marriage and the Marriage Supper.
 
 
At the Marriage:

• Those that are named as His bride standing with Him at the Marriage
• Those seated as guests
• Those not even allowed into the Marriage ceremony but still in heaven

 
At the Marriage Supper:

• Those represented as the bride with Jesus at the head of the table
• Those as guests seated at the table
• Those not even allowed into the Marriage Supper ceremony but still in heaven

 
Every one of these six groups above will be with Jesus when He comes back to the earth at His second coming.
 
There is also another place, not a part of His kingdom and not a part of hell. It is named the outer darkness. These people are spared the eternal suffering of the lake of fire, but are not allowed into His kingdom, Matt 8:12, 22:13-14. Rev 22:15 gives me the idea that there is a place outside the kingdom of God, but not thrown into the lake of fire. This, I believe, is the outer darkness. So who would be a part of this place? The man that was thrown in the outer darkness was in the kingdom, but didn’t accept the gift of righteousness. God is not finished with Israel. Rom 11:2. Is there a special place for the Jew who does not accept Jesus? The following is a list of scripture that gives me an idea that God has something planned for them. It is true that no one comes to the Father except thru Jesus. And the only way into the Marriage Supper is thru Him. The only way to Life is thru Him.  So the person who is cast into outer darkness will never see the Father or participate in any of these events, but they are not thrown into the lake of fire either. Is this the place for the Jews in particular, who don’t accept Jesus? Because they are God’s chosen people, will they be saved from the lake of fire but not be a part of His kingdom? Rom 11:25, Jn 10:16, Is 56:8, 29:10, 18-24, 6:8-12, Matt 24:29-31, Dan 12:1-2, Hosea 13:14, Jn 5:24-30, Ezek 37:10-14, Amos 9:14-15, Zech 8:8, Zeph 3:20, Micah 7:18-20.
 
 
 All this is conjecture and there are many good Christians that have many different views of these things, but I think the one thing we can all agree on is God wants us to love Him. He gave everything He had so we could be with Him and in Him. God rewards the faithful and those that seek Him so no matter what, don’t be a lukewarm Christian. Give your life and everything that you are to Him and I guarantee you will not be disappointed.

Pentecost is a holy day of rejoicing. In the not-too-distant future, Jesus Christ, the resurrected Son of the living God, will wed a bride specially prepared for Him! And this was all made possible because Christ endured the furnace of fiery trials and qualified to be the ultimate Husband for all eternity!

God wants us to know that, when we are in the furnace, He is right there with us, even as He was with Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego in their fiery crisis (Dan. 3:25). God has promised to deliver us from every trial—if we obey and trust Him (Ps. 34:17, 19).

Part of the lesson of Pentecost is learning to fully and unconditionally surrender to God and His perfect way so He can place His perfect holy righteous character in us.

Next time you are headed into the furnace of a fiery trial, never forget what your Refiner is working to accomplish in you. He wants you, through much trial and tribulation, to become as pure as the gold of Ophir—that extremely valuable gold that will symbolically adorn the bride of Christ at the marriage of the Lamb. Realize that the Father chose you and me—despite our imperfections and character flaws—to overcome and be groomed to help Christ for all eternity. He wants to help you to attain the highest possible reward.

Embrace the furnace of life which develops and purifies our character. Look to the example of your Husband-to-be. Realize that you can do all things through Him. Resist sin all the way to the end (Matt. 24:13) so you can become that beautiful bride of Christ adorned in the purest of gold, the gold of Ophir!

One King. One Kingdom. One Life.

To define terms, God’s eternal vision, purpose, and will are viewed as synonymous and are used interchangeably.

The Godhead of eternity past, present, and future has revealed this mystery to us through Christ. Our discovery of eternal purpose, by revelation, is of utmost importance for an unshakable, unwavering trajectory to hit the mark of our fullness in Christ. A new creation infused with His DNA, transformed with a new heart, and conformed into His character. The amago dei, “the image of God.”

“Let Us make man in Our image, after Our likeness… So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it…” (Gen. 1:26-28)

God desired to share His beauty and glory in relationship so He created family, metaphorically, the collective bride to ultimately marry the Lamb, His Only Begotten Son. The Bride of Christ: perfected in love and fulfilled in oneness.

Most importantly, on this journey of faith to fullness, be confident that in the spirit, your new man is already sufficient and perfected in Christ. I’m convinced that from this revelation, energized by the Holy Spirit and patience, our behavior (ethics) and current reality will line up with the HIGHER reality of Heaven.

Father… thy kingdom come, thy will be done in earth as it is in heaven… (Matt. 6:10)

We are Heaven’s conduits bringing the Kingdom of God to earth. Embrace this higher reality of the realm of Heaven which swallows up the lower reality of your current existence. You are BECOMING who you already ARE in Christ. Mortality putting on immortality.

“Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ… may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ…” (Eph. 4:13, 15)

“And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one: I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me.” (Jn. 17:22-23)

“Now the Lord is the Spirit; and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.” (2 Cor. 3:17-18)

“For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son…” (Ro. 8:29)

May we give you a brief backdrop of a couple significant encounters that has formed the vision of Christ for Acts In Motion Christian Church?

In 2002, Jeffrey and Alina Parrott, had a life changing encounter with God when he highlighted rhema in the Book of Acts, especially:

“And the multitude of them that believed were of one heart and of one soul: neither said any of them that ought of the things which he possessed was his own; but they had all things common. And with great power gave the apostles witness of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus: and great grace was upon them all…” (Acts 4:32-35)

He then said: “Acts In Motion, I want to make you an expression of the NEW early church. Do not try to recreate the wheel, I already have My pattern–My pattern is my Son, My pattern is family. I will breathe a fresh breath of revelation on this generation.” As we meditated on this rhema (word) our understanding was opened. The Father gave us a mission to continue the work as “living epistles” in this generation. A people committed to a pure kingdom context: the pattern of Christ being King in every facet of life.

At that time, God seeded a deep longing in Jeffrey and Alina for authentic kingdom life where disciples were of one heart and soul. The status quo, business as usual, and the religious Laodicean slumber just doesn’t satisfy. In that season the questions arose: Is there more than this? How do we live God’s pattern for life practically–right now? How does this work in the current reality of society? How do we get back to Christ’s definition of the “real” church (ekklesia)? We have traveled across the world looking for answers, it’s been like searching for hidden treasure–very rare, incredibly valuable, and hard to find.

Furthermore, in 2012, the Father brought more clarity when He asked us a very interesting question, “Do you want to know my vision statement?” He said, “I want to see the reflection of my Son in my people. Now go serve their destiny.” That thought-provoking question keeps us focused on what really matters for eternity–making disciples that bear His image.

Since that time until now, that same passion burns, yet the answer has been discovered. The revelation of eternal vision is simpler than ever imagined, it’s relationship with Jesus the Christ and making Him the center of all things. If we know Him: we know life, we know significance, we know FULLNESS. It is a glorious journey… that will cost us everything, our life for His Life–the great exchange. In that place of surrender is our true rest.

Yeshua says,

“Whoever desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me…” (Mark 8:34)

“Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” (Matt. 11:29-30)

The Bible clearly teaches us that “God has not appointed” the church “to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Thessalonians 5:9). We are, as Paul exhorts us, to wait therefore for the return of the resurrected Jesus, who will deliver “us from the wrath to come” (1 Thessalonians 1:10). Unfortunately, many contemporary Christians confuse God’s coming wrath on a Christ-rejecting world, from which Christ’s church will be saved at His Second Coming, with God’s coming judgment on an end-time world, by which Christ’s church will be prepared for His Second Coming.

 

According to the Bible, the church will be caught up to meet the Lord in the air “at the last trump” (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; 1 Corinthians 15:51-53). This “last trump” or “trump of God,” as Paul calls it in 1 Thessalonians 4:16, is the seventh trump of the book of Revelation, which is sounded to signal the completion of “the mystery of God” (Revelation 10:7), which Paul identifies elsewhere in the New Testament as the church. For instance, according to Ephesians 3:2-13, the church is not only the mystery of God, but also the eternal purpose of God. It is what God has been about all along and why He has done all that He has done.

 

Why did God create the universe? So that He would have a place to hang the earth. Why did God create the earth? So that He would have a place to put man. Why did God create man? So that He could choose for Himself a chosen people. Why did God choose for Himself a chosen people? So that His Son could come into the world through them. Why did God's Son come into the world? So that He could secure for Himself an eternal companion, a bride, a forever lover, the church! The church is the mystery and eternal purpose of God! It is what God has been about all along and why He has done all that He has done.

 

In order to be prepared for her Bridegroom’s return, as well as properly adorned and readied for the marriage supper of the Lamb (Revelation 19:6-9), the church will not be spared from end-time judgment, but end-time judgment will actually start in the church (1 Peter 4:17). It is in the fiery trails of end-time judgment, symbolized by the seven seals and seven trumpets of the book of Revelation, that the church will be refined and readied for Christ’s Second Coming, as well as for the consummation of her eternal union with her forever Lover. Although she will be spared from the pouring out of God’s wrath upon a Christ-rejecting earth, represented by the seven bowls or vials of the book of Revelation, she will not be called up into the safety of her Savior’s arms until the last or seventh trumpet of Revelation is sounded; in other words, until all of the seals of Revelation are broken and all of Revelation’s trumpets are blown.

 

That God will use the consummate and cataclysmic judgment of the end times, represented by the seven seals and seven trumpets of the book of Revelation, to completely and conclusively fit the church for her never-ending nuptial bliss with Christ is totally consistent with the teaching of the rest of Scripture. For instance, throughout the sacred pages of Holy Scripture we are taught repeatedly that God uses the fiery trials of judgment to refine and purify His people. Although sinners are consumed in the fires of God’s judgment, the saints are chastened and cleansed by them.

 

But he knows the way that I take; when he has tried me, I shall come out as gold. (Job 23:10 ESV)

 

Bless our God, O peoples; let the sound of his praise be heard, who has kept our soul among the living and has not let our feet slip. For you, O God, have tested us; you have tried us as silver is tried. You brought us into the net; you laid a crushing burden on our backs; you let men ride over our heads; we went through fire and through water, yet you have brought us out to a place of abundance. (Psalm 66:8-12 ESV) 

 

How the faithful city has become a whore, she who was full of justice Righteousness lodged in her, but now murderers. Your silver has become dross, your best wine mixed with water. Your princes are rebels and companions of thieves. Everyone loves a bribe and runs after gifts They do not bring justice to the fatherless, and the widow's cause does not come to them. Therefore the Lord declares, the Lord of hosts, the Mighty One of Israel: “Ah, I will get relief from my enemies and avenge myself on my foes. I will turn my hand against you and will smelt away your dross as with lye and remove all your alloy. And I will restore your judges as at the first, and your counselors as at the beginning. Afterward you shall be called the city of righteousness, the faithful city.” Zion shall be redeemed by justice, and those in her who repent, by righteousness. But rebels and sinners shall be broken together, and those who forsake the Lord shall be consumed. (Isaiah 1:21-28 ESV)

 

Yes, I will tell you of things that are entirely new, things you never heard of before. For I know so well what traitors you are. You have been rebels from birth. Yet for my own sake and for the honor of my name, I will hold back my anger and not wipe you out. I have refined you, but not as silver is refined. Rather, I have refined you in the furnace of suffering. I will rescue you for my sake—yes, for my own sake! I will not let my reputation be tarnished, and I will not share my glory with idols! (Isaiah 48:8-11 NLT)

 

The king of the north will…set himself against the people of the holy covenant…Then at the appointed time he will…vent his anger against the people of the holy covenant and reward those who forsake the covenant. His army will take over the Temple fortress, pollute the sanctuary, put a stop to the daily sacrifices, and set up the sacrilegious object that causes desecration. He will flatter and win over those who have violated the covenant. But the people who know their God will be strong and will resist him. Wise leaders will give instruction to many, but these teachers will die by fire and sword, or they will be jailed and robbed. During these persecutions, little help will arrive, and many who join them will not be sincere. And some of the wise will fall victim to persecution. In this way, they will be refined and cleansed and made pure until the time of the end, for the appointed time is still to come. (Daniel 11:28-33 NLT)

 

But he said, “Go now, Daniel, for what I have said is kept secret and sealed until the time of the end. Many will be purified, cleansed, and refined by these trials. But the wicked will continue in their wickedness, and none of them will understand. Only those who are wise will know what it means.” (Daniel 12:9-10 NLT)

 

In the whole land, declares the Lord, two thirds shall be cut off and perish, and one third shall be left alive. And I will put this third into the fire, and refine them as one refines silver, and test them as gold is tested. They will call upon my name, and I will answer them. I will say, “They are my people”; and they will say, “The Lord is my God.” (Zechariah 13:8-9 ESV)

 

Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come, saith the Lord of hosts. But who may abide the day of his coming? and who shall stand when he appeareth? for he is like a refiner's fire, and like fullers' soap: And he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the Lord an offering in righteousness.” (Malachi 3:1-3 KJV)

 

Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing…Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him. (James 1:2-4, 12 ESV)

 

In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. (1 Peter 1:6-7 ESV)

 

When he opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God and for the witness they had borne. They cried out with a loud voice, “O Sovereign Lord, holy and true, how long before you will judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?” Then they were each given a white robe and told to rest a little longer, until the number of their fellow servants and their brothers should be complete, who were to be killed as they themselves had been. (Revelation 6:9-11 ESV)

 

Then I saw thrones, and seated on them were those to whom the authority to judge was committed. Also I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus and for the word of God, and those who had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. (Revelation 20:4 ESV)

Christians are aware that in the scriptures the church is referred to as the kingdom and the Savior as its King. But the New Testament has several other ways of referring to the relationship between Jesus and His followers, and some of these are metaphorical. For example: there is the head and the body, the vine and the branches, the shepherd and the sheep, and a number of others. Of all these figures of speech, for Jesus to be called the Bridegroom and His church the bride is most meaningful. We can all easily relate to this description since we have either been in such a relationship ourselves or have been very close to those who have.

 

Some of the marriage terminology for the LORD and His church comes to us from the LORD Himself. Jesus said He was the bridegroom (Mark 2:19), and John the Baptizer called himself the friend of the bridegroom (John 3:29). Toward the end of His life's work on earth Jesus gave a parable of an impending wedding in which Jesus is obviously the bridegroom for which the people were waiting (Matt 25:1-13). And then Paul made some touching statements depicting Jesus as a husband and the church as His wife (Eph. 5:22-33). This brings to mind certain actions and/or responsibilities on the part of both parties that it would be well for us to keep in mind.

 

What Jesus Did and Does for His Bride

 

He loved her. Paul says, Christ...loved the church" (Eph. 5:25). This is not the romantic word for love but rather the word agape - which speaks of the ultimate, outpouring kind of love. He loved us even when we were unlovable. Jesus, "having loved His own that were in the world, He loved them unto the end" (John 13:1). There is simply no limit to the kind of love Jesus manifests toward His bride. Even from heaven Jesus dictated a letter to a first-century church and told them that the ungodly would "know that I have loved you" (Rev. 3:9). We cannot fathom the love of Christ.

 

He died for her. Paul said that Christ not only loved His bride, the church, but also "gave Himself up for her" (Eph. 5:25). Paul pointed out that people will ordinarily not even die for someone righteous and good but that "while we were yet sinners Christ died for us" (Rom. 5:7-8). Jesus said, "Therefore My Father loves me, because I lay down My life that I may take it again" (John 10:17). He said, "No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of Myself” (v. 18). He was heaven's volunteer martyr. All we can say is, "Thanks be to God for His unspeakable gift" (2 Cor. 9:15).

 

He cleansed her.  Since the bride of Christ was sin-stained, the only way for Jesus to enter into a betrothal with her was for Him first to clean her up. So He became "the savior of the body" (Eph. 5:23) as well as the heavenly bridegroom. He died for the church in order "that He might sanctify and cleanse her, by the washing of water with the word (v. 26). The purifying element was "precious blood, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot" (1 Pet. 1:19). He "washed us from our sins in His own blood" (Rev. 1:5). But the cleansing place for each one of us is our baptism. The washing of water over the body signifies the simultaneous cleansing of the soul (cf. Heb. 10:22).

 

He cares for her.  It is not just what Jesus did in the past that counts but also what He continues to do in the present. Paul said that Jesus "nourishes and cherishes" the church (Eph. 5:29). The blood of Jesus continues to cleanse us from all sin (1 John 1:7) because the Lord "always lives" to make intercession and care for His own (Heb. 7:25).

 

He becomes one with her.  Paul quotes God's words to Adam (Gen. 2:24) as repeated by Jesus (Matt. 19:5): "For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife; and the two shall become one flesh" (Eph. 5:31). This speaks of human marriage. But Paul sees something that Adam didn't know - that marriage in its deepest union is to remind us of the more profound spiritual union between Christ and His bride: "This mystery is great: but I speak in regard of Christ and the church" (v. 32). Becoming ONE with the Lord is the privilege of every one who is "in Christ" (Eph. 1:3) and thus a part of the Lord's bride.

 

What the Bride Must Do for Jesus

 

She must realize her importance.  One cannot have Christ without the church. Jesus promised to build it (Matt. 16:18) because it was part of God's eternal plan (Eph. 3:10-11).  Therefore, it is important and one must "seek" it and put it "first" in his life (Matt. 6:33). We cannot honor the Lord if we despise His bride. As an unbelieving Jew, Paul [then Saul] spent time "breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord" (Acts 9:1). Years later Paul said he had "persecuted the church of God" (1 Cor. 15:9). But when Jesus spoke from heaven while Paul  [Saul] was still engaged in those activities, He said, "Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?" (Acts 9:4). Whatever is done to the church is done to Jesus, for she is His bride. And she must recognize her privileged position. So Paul exclaims that unto God "be the glory in the church by Christ Jesus...forever and ever" (Eph. 3:21).  She has her glory too.

 

She must wear His name.  Long ago it was prophesied that God's people "shall be called by a new name, which the mouth of the Lord will name" (Isa. 62:2). This was fulfilled when "the disciples were first called Christians in Antioch" (Acts 11:26). Peter spoke of the Christ and said that "neither is there any other name under heaven, that is given among men by which we must be saved" (Acts 4:12). Years later he said, "If any one suffer as a Christian, let him not be ashamed; but let him glorify God in this name" (1 Pet. 4:16). It is that "worthy" or "honorable name by which you are called" (Jam. 2:7). If Christians are true to their standing as the bride of Christ, they will not adopt the name of some human leader or favorite doctrine by which to be known. Such was condemned in the first-century church (1 Cor. 1:12-15), and it is still wrong today.

 

She must not commit spiritual adultery.  Paul said, "I am jealous over you with a godly jealousy: for I espoused you to one husband, that I might present you as a pure virgin to Christ.  But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve in his craftiness, your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity and the purity that is toward Christ" (2 Cor. 11:2-3). This can mean two things:

 

First, the bride of Christ must not forsake the simplicity and purity of undenominational Christianity to join human allegiances that are in conflict with the Lord's will. The Lord prayed for the church to be "one" (John 17:20-21), not split up into competing sects. Church divisions are condemned in scripture (1 Cor. 1:10-12; 11:17-19).  Paul said that those who engage in "factions, divisions [and] parties...shall not inherit the kingdom of God" (Gal. 5:20-21). As observers of the current scene, we see denominational thinking and practices encroaching more and more into the Lord's church. The bride of Christ must sound an alarm lest many souls be lost in the process.

 

Second, the bride of Christ must not forsake spirituality to become worldly. James said, "You adulterers and adulteresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world makes you an enemy of God?” (Jam. 4:4). As worldliness seems to be creeping more and more into the bride of Christ, let us correct the problem at its root - our hearts. John said, "Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him" (1 John 2:15). The cure for worldliness is to get our minds off of the secular and temporal and put them on the heavenly and eternal. "Set your mind on things that are above, not on things that are on the earth. For you have died, and your life is hid with Christ in God" (Col. 3:2-3).

 

She must bear fruit.  We were "joined to another, even to Him who was raised from the dead, that we might bring forth fruit unto God" (Rom. 7:4). Fruit bearing should manifest itself in two ways:

 

First there should be fruit in our own lives - the development of spiritual qualities of Christ-likeness. Paul spoke of "the fruit of the Spirit" and then named it as love, joy, peace, long-suffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, meekness, and self-control. The bride must bear this “fruit,” and crucify "the flesh with the passions and the lusts [desires]" (Gal. 5:22-24). Each one of us should strive to "be strengthened with power through His Spirit in the inward man; that Christ may dwell in (our) hearts through faith" (Eph. 3:16-17).

 

Second, we must bear fruit by multiplying ourselves. Jesus said to the apostles, "You did not choose Me, but I chose you, and appointed you, that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should abide" (John 15:16). But such fruit bearing did not stop with the apostles. Faithful men are to teach others also (2 Tim. 2:2). The "Great Commission" is still in force, and the world still needs evangelizing (Matt. 28:18-20; Mark 16:15).  We must not shirk these responsibilities.

 

She must get ready for the wedding day. Up to now the bride of Christ is simply betrothed or engaged, much like Joseph was to Mary before the birth of Jesus (Matt. 1:18-20). The wedding day awaits. John saw a vision of the end of time in which it was said, "Let us rejoice and be exceeding glad, and let us give the glory unto Him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and His wife has made herself ready" (Rev. 19:7). The bride's splendid clothing was then described as "the righteous acts of the saints" (v. 8). When Jesus comes again, He will come "to present the church to Himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish" (Eph. 5:27). What a blow to His dignity and honor it will be if He comes and finds His bride stained with sin. Pure religion is to "keep oneself unspotted from the world" (Jam. 1:27).

 

Conclusion

 

In order to be prepared to meet our God and take our place with the heavenly bridegroom, we must never forget that we are the bride of Christ. Let us not allow earthly concerns to distract us from that high and heavenly calling. In the parable of the virgins, when the bridegroom finally came, "they that were ready went in with Him to the marriage feast; and the door was shut" (Matt. 25:10). When this event takes place in actuality at the second coming, how many who now make up the bride of Christ will find themselves on the outside? "Blessed are they that are bidden to the marriage supper of the Lamb" (Rev. 19:9).  Let us make sure we are among that number.

The relationship between the Lord Jesus and His bridal congregation is strikingly described in terms of Jewish marriage customs in biblical times. In this article, the main emphasis is on the responsibilities that rested upon the bride during the long absence of the bridegroom. Her sanctified life and daily dedication to the bridegroom were of crucial importance for the day when he would come to collect her, and therefore also for the final consummation of their marriage.

After a young man had met a girl whom he liked, and she had agreed to enter into a relationship with him that would lead to marriage, preparations were initiated for a betrothal ceremony.

The young man first had to obtain his father’s consent for the marriage. Shortly afterwards, the young man and his father paid a visit to the house of the prospective bride. The father of the house, who was aware of the intended visit, peeked through a little window to identify the visitors. He then looked to his daughter to confirm if her mind was settled. If she did not want to proceed with the marriage negotiations she simply said “no”. The door would then not be opened and the visitors would return home, mission not accomplished.

If she said “yes”, for all practical purposes the commitment to work through the betrothal process and arrive at a full marriage contract was made at that moment. The young man and his father had carried with them a betrothal cup, unfermented wine, and the intended bride-price in a pouch. At different stages during the negotiating process they would drink wine from the cup to ceremoniously confirm and celebrate certain aspects of their agreement.

The first was the cup of acceptance. Members of both families, including children who had reached the age of accountability, concluded a blood covenant (also referred to as servant covenant) through which they committed themselves to life-long service to one another. This cup was passed around shortly after the arrival of the visitors and the closing of the door.

The second was the cup of betrothal and friendship. This cup was consumed by the prospective bride and groom and their two fathers only. By this act the two families covenanted to become eternal friends with their joint son and daughter, and also with one another. The meal was served, and the eating was accompanied by haggling over the details of the marriage contract. Should no agreement be reached on this matter the negotiations could fail, thereby preventing the conclusion of a marriage contract. If all conditions were mutually accepted the contract was concluded during the meal and the second cup consumed.

The third was the cup of inheritance. At the end of the meal only the bride and bridegroom drank from this cup, indicating full acceptance of the marriage contract and sealing their relationship as future husband and wife. This was the moment when the girl became bride. Young men of the family would then go out into the streets to blow their rams horn trumpets (shofars), announcing to the entire community that the marriage contract (betrothal) has been concluded. From this moment onwards the couple belonged to one another and also owned a shared inheritance. If either one should die the survivor would inherit the deceased partner’s possessions, even though the marriage was not finally consummated yet. The marriage contract between them was binding and could only be broken under extreme conditions, e.g. by adultery. Joseph and Mary were such a betrothed couple when he planned to divorce her because of supposed unfaithfulness to him: “When… Mary had been promised in marriage to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be pregnant [through the power of] the Holy Spirit. And her [promised] husband Joseph, being a just and upright man and not willing to expose her publicly and shame and disgrace her, decided to… divorce her quietly and secretly” (Matt. 1:18-19; Amplified Bible).

When the marriage contract had been accepted and the couple drank from the third cup, the bridegroom gave gifts to his bride and also promised that he would come and take her to be with him after he had prepared a place for her at his father’s house. The bride, in the mean time, occupied herself with preparations for her married life. In her room she had an oil lamp which was to be kept burning during the evenings. Care had to be taken that she would always have enough oil in order that her lamp would not go out when the bridegroom comes for her. When going out into the streets during daytime she was always veiled to indicate that she was purchased at a price and already belonged to a man.

During this time the bridegroom prepared a suitable place at his father’s house, which often only consisted of one room. It was known as the bridal room (Heb. huppah). His father first had to express his satisfaction with the room before the bridegroom was allowed to fetch his bride. If anyone asked the bridegroom when he would bring his bride he always replied that only his father knew on which day that would happen.

The bridegroom came for his bride in the evening or at night – usually between six o’clock and midnight. When he and his friends got close to the bride’s house they would give a loud shout and blow on the shofar to let the bride and her maids know to come out immediately to meet the groom outside along the road. Those who did not have enough oil at that critical moment were late for their appointment and remained behind.

It sometimes happened that the bride lost interest in the consummation of the marriage, possibly because of unfaithfulness towards her groom, and consequently discontinued her preparations to meet him. In that case she would not have a burning lamp. When, on arrival, the groom noticed that her room was dark, he returned to his home, leaving her in the darkness. The bride-price then had to be returned to him. If it was revealed that the bride had committed adultery during his absence she was guilty under penalty of death.

If, however, everything proceeded according to plan the bride would have a burning lamp in her room when the groom arrived at night time. She would then meet him outside the house and immediately depart with him to his father’s house. There she would spend seven days alone with him in the bridal room where they were united as husband and wife. During these seven days the guests who were invited to the marriage feast started arriving. At the end of the seven days the groom introduced his wife unveiled to the guests, and the celebrations began.

During the feast the married couple alone partook of the fourth cup of unfermented wine, which was known as the cup of thanksgiving. That was the big moment of joy and thanksgiving for the consummation of their marriage after the long time of seclusion, waiting and preparing. The resplendent marriage feast dawned for them because they had remained true to one another.

Spiritual application

The Lord Jesus often made His offer of salvation to lost humanity in terms of traditional Jewish marriage customs. He is the heavenly Bridegroom who came from His Father’s house in heaven to seek and to save those who were lost (Luke 19:10). His purpose is not only to save lost sinners and use them in His service, but also to sanctify them completely and make them members of His bridal congregation so they can share His heavenly kingdom with Him. All Christians received this esteemed call of God in Christ Jesus but not all of them comply with the conditions to actually attain it. This is something to which we should commit and for which we must exert ourselves (Phil. 3:14).

Like the prospective Jewish groom who knocked on the door of the girl whom he wished to marry, the Lord Jesus, in a spiritual sense, knocks on the door of our hearts and confronts us with the choice of either opening the door for Him or not. He says, “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me” (Rev. 3:20). Every person has a free will. People can decide for themselves whether they will invite the Lord Jesus into their lives. John says, “But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name” (John 1:12).

The message of the gospel is that the Lord has born the full penalty for our sins on the cross – that is the divine bride-price by which He redeems every sinner who comes to Him for salvation and wishes to belong to Him (1 Cor. 6:20; 1 Pet. 1:18-19; Rev. 5:9). When we take up the communion-cup as the cup of acceptance, we celebrate the fact that we were bought at a price, and now belong to the Lord Jesus to serve Him all the days of our lives. He is our Saviour and we are His disciples or servants.

Unfortunately, many Christians only abide by this initial surrender and do not pursue a deeper and more intimate relationship with Christ in order to receive all His promises. They are missing the fact that He does not only wish to be our Salvation but also our Sanctification and our Bridegroom.

Before the final confirmation of the Jewish marriage contract the two parties supped together while further discussing the conditions for this agreement and new relationship. When they had reached agreement on everything they took up the cup of betrothal and friendship.

God’s Word is spiritual food to us – the bread of life – and we are sitting at a table which was prepared for us. When we immerse ourselves in intensive Bible study we get to know the Lord Jesus better and our delight is in His Word. We fully realise what He has done for us and what the conditions of our relationship with Him comprise. These commands are joyfully observed. Under these circumstances the disciple of Christ draws nearer to Him and also becomes His friend and bride who understands and observes His Word. That places him in a relationship on a higher level than that between a servant and his master. Christ said, “No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I heard from My Father I have made known to you” (John 15:15). He reveals to us wonderful things on the deeper aspects of our friendship and betrothed relationship with Him. Do you reconfirm your friendship and intimate relationship with the Lord Jesus during Holy Communion?

We should not be content with the first step of this commitment since the Lord Jesus has a higher calling for His disciples as members of His bridal congregation. This call demands that we live absolutely separated from the world while daily preparing ourselves on the appearing of the heavenly Bridegroom and our gathering together to Him. An important aspect of these preparations is to have a burning lamp with enough oil. This symbolism refers to the Spirit-filled life. The wick of the lamp should regularly be cleaned to ensure that it burns brightly. We should take active steps to cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and the spirit, and to be filled with the Holy Spirit so we can perfect holiness in the fear of the Lord (2 Cor. 7:1; Eph. 5:18; 1 John 1:7). If we surrendered ourselves to the Bridegroom and are truly committed to Him we will, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, do works that are equated with a marriage garment. These works are described as “the righteous acts of the saints” (Rev. 19:8).

When this level of dedication has been achieved the cup of inheritance is taken up. Such believers are deeply conscious of the fact that they are pilgrims and sojourners in the present evil world, and they long for the kingdom of Christ where they will rule with Him as kings. Paul said that we are “heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together” (Rom. 8:17; cf. 2 Tim. 2:12). When introducing Holy Communion Jesus said, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood” (1 Cor. 11:25). The advantages of a covenant (or testament) are only in force after the death of the testator: “For where there is a testament, there must also of necessity be the death of the testator… Therefore not even the first covenant was dedicated without blood” (Heb. 9:16-18). When Jesus shed His blood and laid down His life on the cross He made us joint heirs of His everlasting heavenly kingdom in which we will be His “wife” and rule with Him as kings.

Did you ever get to the point where the Lord Jesus and the precious promises in His Word mean everything to you, and where your values changed in such a way that you would rather lay up treasures in heaven than on earth? Then your light will shine brightly in a dark world, and you will refrain from any compromise with the evil world. You will not pursue earthly wealth (the prosperity gospel) and a man-made kingdom on earth before the coming of Christ. Our fervent hope is for a kingdom that will only be revealed when the King comes!

The Jewish bridegroom made sure that his bride knew exactly why he left, and also that he would return to take her away to their new home. We received a similar promise. Jesus said, “In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also” (John 14:2-3).

We should be mindful of the fact that our future lies with Jesus Christ and that, as members of His bridal congregation, we are living in the unseen reality of His heavenly kingdom which is yet a mystery on earth because the King has not yet come. We do not fit into the lifestyle of the present world and reject its evil practices (Eph. 5:11), and for that reason the world hates us (John 15:18-20). We look forward to a wonderful future when we will be united with the heavenly Bridegroom: “For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body that it may be conformed to His glorious body” (Phil. 3:20-21).

It is vitally important to know the full implications of being children of our heavenly Father, and of being empowered by His Spirit to be able to remain true to Him under all circumstances while we are waiting on the sudden coming of the Bridegroom. We should not only honour and serve the Lord Jesus as our Saviour and Sanctification, but also as our Bridegroom and King with whom we will rule if we are found worthy. Do you know the Messiah in all these capacities, or are you still only a servant of Him? We should be conscious of our noble call in Him and actively pursue it.

Believers who do not have a clear understanding of their position in Christ suffer from a poor spiritual perspective, half-hearted dedication to their Saviour, a vague and doubtful expectation on His second coming, and consequently a frail motivation to remain true to Him to the end. They often neglect to walk in the Spirit, thus being easily deceived into apostatising by the flesh and the lust of the world. That may lead to serious unfaithfulness towards the heavenly Bridegroom. Paul said, “For I am jealous for you with godly jealousy. For I have betrothed you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ. But I fear, lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, so your minds may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ” (2 Cor. 11:2-3).

Although the marriage contract which we have concluded with Christ is meant to be permanent and binding, and has also been sealed by the Spirit of God, it nevertheless imposes responsibilities on both parties and can therefore be nullified by the non-observance or breaching of its conditions. The Bridegroom can never become unfaithful and will always honour His promises (2 Tim. 2:13), but we can become unfaithful and even lose what we have obtained by faith in Him (cf. John 15:4-6; Col. 1:23; Heb. 3:12-14). The Jewish groom rejected his former bride if, by his return, it was evident that she had become unfaithful to him and no longer had a burning lamp.

Christians can also leave their first love and lapse into spiritual darkness. The Lord Jesus says, “Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left your first love. Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent and do the first works, or else I will come to you quickly and remove your lampstand from its place – unless you repent” (Rev. 2:4-5). The lampstand was the container into which the oil that was symbolic of the Holy Spirit was poured. It enabled a person to let the light of the Messiah shine in a dark world. However, should such a person lose his love for the Messiah by being overcome by love for worldly things, he was in danger of losing his lampstand with its light, which refers to the Holy Spirit. Such believers will not be taken along at the rapture to walk the ivory palace in heaven and to be united with the Lamb as His bride (cf. Ps. 45:9-10, 15-17). By their actions, backsliders have denied the Messiah before other people, and for that reason He will deny them in heaven before His Father (Matt. 10:32-33).

Members of the bridal congregation who will be worthy by having enough oil in their lamps and have as a result of their vigilance not lapsed into a state of spiritual darkness, will be snatched away in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, when the Bridegroom comes (Matt. 25:6-10; 1 Cor. 15:51-52; 1 Thess. 4:16-17). Thereafter, for a period of seven days, which prophetically refers to a week of seven years (Lev. 25:8), the bride will be in the presence of the heavenly Bridegroom and consequently not be seen by any person on earth. That will be the seven years of tribulation on earth during the reign of the Antichrist.

After these seven years the heavenly Bridegroom will come, accompanied by His “wife” with whom He has been united, and establish His kingdom on earth. After He has destroyed the Antichrist and his powers (Rev. 19:19-21), saved a remnant of Israel and the nations (Zech. 12:10; Matt. 24:29-30), and restored the fallen tabernacle of David (Acts 15:16-17), the marriage feast of the Lamb will be celebrated on earth. Members of Israel and the nations who were saved during the coming of Christ will be the guests at this illustrious feast: “Let us be glad and rejoice and give Him glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and His wife has made herself ready. And to her it was granted to be arrayed in fine linen, clean and bright, for the fine linen represents the righteous acts of the saints” (Rev. 19:7-8).

It is on this occasion when the cup of thanksgiving will be consumed by the bride and Bridegroom. The great moment of the bride’s glorification dawns shortly after she is revealed on earth with Christ: “When Christ who is our life appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory” (Col. 3:4). The Lord Jesus referred to the Communion that He would again celebrate with His disciples after having been on earth for the first time to provide for our salvation and the conclusion of a marriage covenant with Him: “Assuredly, I say to you, I will no longer drink of the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God” (Mark 14:25).

The kingdom of Christ will only be established on earth after His second coming. That is the reason why the wedding-feast of the Lamb will be celebrated here and the cup of thanksgiving will also be taken up here after we have finally inherited the kingdom. This Communion and thanksgiving ceremony cannot occur directly after the rapture, since the rapture will be followed by the bride’s seclusion of seven years with the Bridegroom.

Deep symbolism is hidden in the coming Communion. During Communion unfermented wine is consumed, which alludes to the blood of Christ that was shed for the remission of our sins. The Lord Jesus is the true vine and we are the branches. We draw our sap, or life-energy, from the vine in that the Holy Spirit pours out the love of Christ into our hearts (Rom. 5:5). We are then expected to bear fruit which is also described as the fruit of the Spirit. Only after the harvest of all the fruit has been gathered into the kingdom of the Bridegroom, a Communion can be celebrated which will represent the spiritual fruit of the true vine. A strict evaluation of this fruit will be done at the judgement seat of Christ (1 Cor. 3:9-16; 2 Cor. 5:10). Only the righteous acts of the saints will survive the test as gold, silver, and precious stones that will be accepted and rewarded. The carnal works of Christians who did not appropriate their full inheritance in Christ, and who did not spiritually mature after partaking of the first cup, will be rejected as vain human efforts (1 Cor. 3:15).

The important question to all Christians is this: “Did you only proceed as far as the first purging of your sins and fell short of appropriating your full inheritance in the Messiah?” If so, you are moving backwards in your spiritual life and not forwards. Peter says that Christians should add to their faith godliness, brotherly kindness, and love. “For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. For he who lacks these things is short-sighted, even to blindness, and has forgotten that he was purged from his old sins” (2 Pet. 1:6-9).

Are you among these blind and short-sighted Christians who have not yet surrendered themselves for sanctification and committed themselves to the service of the Lord Jesus? If so, you will one day appear before the Lord empty-handed as your fleshly works will be consumed like wood, hay and straw. To the faithful ones the Messiah will say: “Well done, good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your Lord” (Matt. 25:23).

Most churches in Christendom teach the Church is the “bride of Christ.” But the phrase “bride of Christ” does not occur in the Bible. Furthermore, the imagery of the Church as bride is thin at best. The goal of this study is to examine whether the teaching that the Church, the body of Christ, is the bride of Christ has Biblical merit.

The Bride in the Old Testament

In the Old Testament, the idea of Israel as the “wife” of God is developed. Though Israel was “married” to God she proved an unfaithful spouse. The nation’s unfaithfulness was expressed as spiritual adultery: it deserted Him for false gods, e.g., Baal, Asherah, Molech, Dagon, etc. Despite these failures, God declared the nation would return to Him, that they would become what He had purposed for them, and that He would fulfill His covenant promises to them. According to God’s promise, the entire nation would become priests (Exodus 19.6) and a faithful wife. With this in mind, Isaiah wrote:

4 “Fear not, for you will not be put to shame; and do not feel humiliated, for you will not be disgraced; but you will forget the shame of your youth, and the reproach of your widowhood you will remember no more. 5 “For your husband is your Maker, whose name is the LORD of hosts; and your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel, who is called the God of all the earth. 6 “For the LORD has called you, like a wife forsaken and grieved in spirit, even like a wife of one’s youth when she is rejected,” says your God. 7 “For a brief moment I forsook you, but with great compassion I will gather you. 8 “In an outburst of anger I hid My face from you for a moment, but with everlasting lovingkindness I will have compassion on you,” says the LORD your Redeemer (Isaiah 54.4-8).

1 For Zion’s sake I will not keep silent, and for Jerusalem’s sake I will not keep quiet, until her righteousness goes forth like brightness, and her salvation like a torch that is burning. 2 The nations will see your righteousness, and all kings your glory; and you will be called by a new name which the mouth of the Lord will designate. 3 You will also be a crown of beauty in the hand of the Lord, and a royal diadem in the hand of your God. 4 It will no longer be said to you, “Forsaken,” nor to your land will it any longer be said, “Desolate”; but you will be called, “My delight is in her,” and your land, “Married”; for the Lord delights in you, and to Him your land will be married. 5 For as a young man marries a virgin, so your sons will marry you; and as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, so your God will rejoice over you (Isaiah 62.1-5).

Jeremiah wrote:

“Return, faithless people,” declares the LORD, “for I am your husband. I will choose you—one from a town and two from a clan—and bring you to Zion (Jeremiah 3.14).

31 “Behold, days are coming,” declares the LORD, “when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah, 32 not like the covenant which I made with their fathers in the day I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, although I was a husband to them,” declares the LORD. 33 “But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days,” declares the LORD, “I will put My law within them and on their heart I will write it; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people (Jeremiah 31.31-33).

God used the prophet Hosea’s personal life as an object lesson to instruct idolatrous Israel. To present His case, God told Hosea to marry an idolatrous woman,1 to represent Israel’s faithlessness in serving other gods. Hosea had three children by his wife, Gomer. Their names depicted God’s judgment of the nation. The first child, a son, was named Jezreel (God scatters). God judged (scattered) the northern kingdom with the Assyrian invasion (722 B.C.). The second child was a daughter named Lo-ruhama (not pitied) and the third child, a son, was named Lo-ammi (not my people). But God’s disfavor would be temporary. He promised that the nation would repent of its unfaithfulness and return to Him. Hosea wrote:

14 “Therefore, behold, I will allure her, bring her into the wilderness and speak kindly to her. 15 “Then I will give her her vineyards from there, and the valley of Achor as a door of hope. And she will sing there as in the days of her youth, as in the day when she came up from the land of Egypt. 16 “It will come about in that day,” declares the LORD, “That you will call Me Ishi and will no longer call Me Baali. 17 “For I will remove the names of the Baals from her mouth, so that they will be mentioned by their names no more. 18 “In that day I will also make a covenant for them with the beasts of the field, the birds of the sky and the creeping things of the ground. And I will abolish the bow, the sword and war from the land, and will make them lie down in safety. 19 “I will betroth you to Me forever; Yes, I will betroth you to Me in righteousness and in justice, in lovingkindness and in compassion, 20 And I will betroth you to Me in faithfulness. Then you will know the LORD (Hosea 2.14-20).

In this tender passage, God is seen as a courting lover. He “allures” the object of His love and speaks kindly to her. The passage speaks of a refreshed relationship in which His wife (Israel) will call Him  אִישִׁי “my husband,” “my man” (Ishi) instead of בַּעְלִי “my Lord.” Baal (בַּעַל) was one of the false gods Israel discovered when they came into the land of Canaan (Numbers 22.41; Judges 2.13). In the prophecy of this restored relationship, in which God will put His Spirit into the nation (Jeremiah 31.31-40), the animal kingdom will also be at peace (Isaiah 11.6-9) and war will be no more (Isaiah 2.1-4). This renewed betrothal will be eternal and Israel will know the Lord–the One True God.2

The Bride in Revelation

The book of Revelation reads like an Old Testament book. And for good reason. Most of its symbols and imagery are found in the prophets. To a discerning reader, it should be clear that Jesus’ messages to the assemblies (ἐκκλησία) in Revelation 2-3 were not Christian, i.e., Pauline churches. The language the Lord used towards them has no correspondence to the language or the concepts Paul had received and communicated to Christian churches. John wrote to these seven Jewish assemblies to encourage them in the tribulation they were experiencing (cf. Revelation 1.9). Of the seven cities Jesus mentioned, only three are found elsewhere in the Bible: Ephesus (Acts 18.19, 21, 24, 19.1, 17, 26, 35, 20.16, 17; 1 Corinthians 15.32, 16.8, Ephesians 1.1, 1 Timothy 1.3; 2 Timothy 1.18, 4.12), Thyatira (Acts 16.14), and Laodicea (Colossians 2.1, 4.13, 15-16; 1 Timothy 6.21). We have no information about Smyrna, Pergamon, Sardis, or Philadelphia. The events of Revelation remain future. Those who have attempted to make church history correspond with the messages to these churches (historicists–see below example) or worse, have tried to fit the events into a pre-70 A.D. timeframe (preterists), have replaced sound exegesis with fantasy.

The character of these assemblies is Jewish. No Church, i.e., body of Christ, doctrine is present in them. The Lord’s message to them is wholly different from the language He gave to Paul for the body of Christ. No hint of the gospel or the doctrines of grace may be found in Jesus’ words to these assemblies. Jesus’ refrain is “he who has an ear, let him hear” and His command is to persevere and endure. None of this is present in Paul. The warnings Jesus gave the assemblies echo His warnings to the Twelve on the Mount of Olives. In that address, He warned them not to be deceived and to endure to the end (Matthew 24.4, 11, 24, 13). The great temptation that will confront Israel, as well as the world, during the period of time foretold by Revelation, will be to accept a false Messiah. This will involve the worship of Satan, the beast (Satan’s man, the Antichrist), the Antichrist’s image, and the taking of his mark (Revelation 13.4, 8, 15, 16-17). Jesus’ refrain to the seven assemblies is repeated in Revelation 13.9. In Revelation 14.9-11, God’s angel warned of the consequences of submitting to the temptation. Revelation 14.12 describes the “patience,” “perseverance,” or “endurance” (ὑπομονή) Jesus described in the Jewish assemblies in Revelation 2.3, 19, 3.10. During this period of time salvation is possible only through endurance (Matthew 24.13). Jesus’ words about salvation during this period are as straightforward as words can be: only by enduring to the end, i.e., the end of one’s life (martyrdom) or until He returns is salvation possible.

Since the book is primarily about Israel and reads like the Old Testament, one conclusion remains: that is what it is. The bride of Revelation 19 is Israel, not the Church, the body of Christ, since the Church is nowhere in the book. John wrote:

7 Let us rejoice and be glad and give the glory to Him, for the marriage of the Lamb has come and His bride has made herself ready.” 8 It was given to her to clothe herself in fine linen, bright and clean; for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints. 9 then he *said to me, “Write, ‘Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb’” (Revelation 19.7-9).

In the marriage of the Lamb, we read that the bride has made herself ready. Does this sound like the Church, the body of Christ? Paul declared members of the body of Christ have been made complete in Christ (ἐστὲ ἐν αὐτῷ πεπληρωμένοι, Colossians 2.10). The Church needs no “preparation.” We are complete in Him! No, the bride here is Israel and the “marriage of the Lamb” is the reconciliation of Israel with God which the prophets foretold.

In Revelation 21, John described a new heaven and new earth (Revelation 21.1) to replace the old heaven and earth which had departed (ἀπέρχομαι). Along with the new heaven and earth is the new Jerusalem. It comes down from heaven onto the new earth (Revelation 21.2). John described the city as a bride adorned for her husband. In Revelation 21.9, one of the seven angels of the seven bowls showed John the bride, called the wife of the Lamb. This was the new Jerusalem. Again, everything is Jewish. The city has twelve gates with the names of the twelve tribes of Israel written on them (Revelation 21.12). The twelve foundation stones have the names of the twelve apostles (Revelation 21.14; cf. Matthew 19.28). Nothing of the Church is here.

Israel had both an earthly and a heavenly calling. They were called out from among the nations of the earth and given earthly promises, e.g., a kingdom and preeminence among the nations (Deuteronomy 28.1, 13). But they had a heavenly calling also, described in Hebrews 3.1 that began with Abraham, cf. Hebrews 11.8-10. Abraham anticipated (ἐκδέχομαι) a heavenly city. How much he knew of it is unknown. But he looked for a heavenly city. The new Jerusalem of Revelation 21 was that city.

The first two callings pertain to Israel. The third calling is for the Church, the body of Christ (Ephesians 1.18; 2 Timothy 1.9). God’s promises to the Church are wholly heavenly, not earthly (Ephesians 1.3, 2.6; Philippians 3.20).

Paul and the Bride of Christ?

Paul taught that the Church was the body of Christ (Ephesians 1.22-23; Colossians 1.18, 24) and that believers become members of His body through the baptism of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 12.13). This revelation was one of the “secrets” (μυστήριον) the glorified Lord revealed to Paul alone. Paul was the only writer of Scripture who taught that the Church was the body of Christ. He declared that before him this truth was not known (Ephesians 3.3-7).

We have established that the Scriptures teach that the Church is the body of Christ. How is it most of Christendom teaches the Church is the bride of Christ? Two passages have been used to make this argument. They are the following:

2 Corinthians 11.2

For I am jealous for you with a godly jealousy; for I betrothed you to one husband, so that to Christ I might present you as a pure virgin.

Read out of context, this passage may appear to support the idea that the Church is the bride of Christ. But the verses that follow correct such wandering. Paul continued,

3 But I am afraid that, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, your minds will be led astray from the simplicity and purity of devotion to Christ. 4 For if one comes and preaches another Jesus whom we have not preached, or you receive a different spirit which you have not received, or a different gospel which you have not accepted, you bear this beautifully. 5 For I consider myself not in the least inferior to the most eminent apostles. 6 But even if I am unskilled in speech, yet I am not so in knowledge; in fact, in every way we have made this evident to you in all things (2 Corinthians 11.3-6).

Paul’s point was to encourage the Corinthians to remain faithful to Christ and his gospel (1 Corinthians 15.1-4). Paul constantly had to defend his ministry–from both unbelievers and believers. From his words in this passage, he recognized he was not the most polished speaker. But in terms of knowledge, he was far ahead of anyone else: he was God’s apostle to the Gentiles (Romans 11.13). The risen Lord had commissioned him and revealed to him secrets no one else knew.3 Paul’s choice of words to the Corinthians, “present you as a pure virgin” was to illustrate his desire for holy living for these believers, not to teach that the Church is the bride of Christ–any more than Paul taught that he was their mother (Galatians 4.19) or their father (1 Corinthians 4.15).

Ephesians 5.22-33

22 Wives, be subject to your own husbands, as to the Lord. 23 For the husband is the head of the wife, as Christ also is the head of the church, He Himself being the Savior of the body. 24 But as the church is subject to Christ, so also the wives ought to be to their husbands in everything. 25 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her, 26 so that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, 27 that He might present to Himself the church in all her glory, having no spot or wrinkle or any such thing; but that she would be holy and blameless. 28 So husbands ought also to love their own wives as their own bodies. He who loves his own wife loves himself; 29 for no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ also does the church, 30 because we are members of His body. 31 FOR THIS REASON A MAN SHALL LEAVE HIS FATHER AND MOTHER AND SHALL BE JOINED TO HIS WIFE, AND THE TWO SHALL BECOME ONE FLESH. 32 This mystery is great; but I am speaking with reference to Christ and the church. 33 Nevertheless, each individual among you also is to love his own wife even as himself, and the wife must see to it that she respects her husband.

In the passage above, Paul argued that as a husband is the head of a wife, Christ is the head of the Church. This fit with Paul’s teaching that the Church is the body of Christ with Christ Himself as the Head (Ephesians 1.22; Colossians 1.18). Paul noted that husbands should love their wives as their own bodies (v. 28) because no one ever hated his own flesh (v.29). One nourishes his body and cherishes it (v.29). It is this nourishing and care of a husband for his own body that Paul used to make the analogy regarding Christ’s care for His Church, i.e., His body (v. 29-30). Paul quoted Genesis 2.24, not to make a point about the husband/wife relationship or that the Church is the bride of Christ but to emphasize the unity and care for the body. Paul declared this was a great “secret” (μυστήριον) but that he spoke with reference to Christ and His Church (v. 32).

Since the Church is the body of Christ it means that if Christ is the bridegroom we are part of His groomsmanship. Thus, we are of the bridegroom, not the bride!

Conclusion

Wife and bride are titles that belong to Israel, not the Church. Our title is “the body of Christ.” As the body, we are of the bridegroom, not the bride. If you cannot tell the bridegroom from the bride at a marriage it is going to be a confusing wedding. But God is not the author of confusion (1 Corinthians 14.33). He wishes believers to understand who they are, where they fit in His plan, and what promises belong to them. When we do, we can rejoice in the grace God has given to us and serve and honor Him effectively.

1 Hosea’s wife אֵשֶׁת זְנוּנִים (Hosea 1.2) was most likely an idolater, not a physical prostitute. This is what seems to be indicated in Hosea 2.8, 13, 3.1, 4.12-19, etc. God used Hosea’s personal life to address the spiritual adultery of the nation, their unfaithfulness to God as Israel’s husband.

A Witness Fair as the Moon

Who is she that looketh forth as the morning, fair as the moon, clear as the sun, and terrible as an army with banners (Song of Solomon 6:10)? The Bride is fresh, eager to be about her Father’s business. She looketh forth as the morning, rested, refreshed in His Spirit, ready to work. How wonderful, what a witness she is—fair as the moon!

Leaning upon the strength of Jesus, on His love, the Bride trusts in His peace, not her own, not in what she can do. Jesus is her security, what He has done for her and will continue to do. Not wilted, discouraged and depressed, the Bride is alive in Him, in His Spirit, in His greatness, so alive that she will carry Jesus to the whole world, saith the Lord, in this her last hour, to the ends of the earth. All the greatness of Him will work through the Bride.

Some claim that people can’t live free from sin, but how could the Bride be fair as the moon with sin in her spirit? Fair, fair as the moon she is, clear as the sun. Jesus is coming after a Bride, a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish (Ephesians 5:27).

If the Bride weren’t holy coming up out of the wilderness, she wouldn’t be leaning on Jesus. It’s the holy people who lean upon the Lord. Those harboring any sin in their hearts do not lean on Jesus; they are deceived, saith the Lord; they have deceit in them. One speck of deceit means you are not really leaning upon Jesus although you may think you are. To lean upon Jesus is to accept all of Him, to let the whole Jesus flow into your spirit day and night.

The Bride is not only holy, without spot or wrinkle, she is terrible as an army with banners and covered with the blood of Jesus, blood bought, blood washed. The devil fears the blood. Every member of the bridal company will be covered with the blood of Jesus, will have this divine blood flowing in his or her soul. No contamination, no sin will be in the heart of the Bride, no disobedience will work through her. Can this be done? It was done through the apostle Paul, through John the Baptist, through many others, and it will be done through the Bride. To be a member of the bridal company, a person can be no other way than sinless.

How Long Will They Provoke the Lord?

How long will God put up with this generation today? How long will they provoke the Lord? And the Lord said unto Moses, How long will this people provoke me? and how long will it be ere they believe me, for all the signs which I have shewed among them (Numbers 14:11)? The gift of miracles was in operation in Egypt—that was the gift of miracles, saith the Lord, that operated. Look how God performed all kinds of fantastic, unbelievable things for Israel. But the people soon forgot. People are the same today. Regardless of what God does for them and for others, most of them soon forget.

How many people came out of their spiritual wilderness after Jesus worked for three-and-a-half years with multitudes? He performed incredible miracles, even raised the dead as He manifested His greatness, proving He really was the Son of God. Yet only about one hundred twenty waited in the Upper Room for the promise of the Holy Spirit. Where were all the thousands He had ministered to? Where were the thousands He had fed with a few loaves and fishes? Where were the thousands who had seen a family member or friend healed? They didn’t come out of the wilderness.

Tarry for the Holy Ghost

Jesus commanded them that they should not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, which, saith he, ye have heard of me. But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth (Acts 1:4,8). Those in the Upper Room whom the Lord brought out had to be willing to obey Him, willing to receive the promise of the Father that Jesus had told them about. They waited for the receiving time.

Your receiving time is here, saith the Lord. You’re not going to leave the wilderness without the Holy Ghost baptism, and you definitely are not going to be taken in the Rapture without it. He will change you according to the power that worketh in us (Ephesians 3:20). That power is the power of the Holy Ghost. It’s according to the power that works on the inside; the change will take place from the inside, not the outside. It will start in your soul and change you in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed (I Corinthians 15:52). This explosion of miracle power in your soul will change your mortal body to immortality, catch you up to meet Jesus in the air.

Sitting in Heavenly Places

I had been in the wilderness of affliction in my early ministry, but then the Lord healed me and took me out. Because I was pure and clean, the Lord could pay me a divine visitation personally when He made me well all over. He will make a lot of personal visits in this last hour. You needn’t worry about coming up out of the wilderness; the Holy Ghost will bring you out, you who have prepared for the crossing. The Lord is visiting His people; He is close to the Bride. The Lord is with us just as much as we let Him in this last hour.

The Bride is not afar off from the Groom, but nigh; the blood makes the Groom nigh. Jesus is not limited by time or space. He can be in Heaven one moment and with the Bride in a split-second. His desire is to be with His Bride. The Lord loves to be with holy people; they are the only kind He is with. He will never fellowship with people who have sin, for that would be fellowshiping with the devil. Light and darkness have nothing to do with each other. Light dispels darkness, and the blood of Jesus dispels all evil. That’s the reason the devil fears the blood so very much.

The Lord says about the disobedient: I will smite them with the pestilence, and disinherit them (Numbers 14:12). Disinherit? We have been made joint-heirs with Jesus, not second-class heirs, but joint-heirs. The Lord has made us to sit in heavenly places with Him. To be disinherited from that glorious position would be a tragedy indeed. Many have been disinherited through backsliding. They once had their heritage, once had Jesus and obeyed Him. He was their first love, but through their disobedience they broke the blood seal that had covered their souls, and their salvation was lost.

Man Broke God’s Covenant

The Israelites “had it made” at one time. The Lord brought them out of the bondage of Egypt, a type of sin. He delivered them completely, healed them all. He brought them forth also with silver and gold: and there was not one feeble person among their tribes (Psalm 105:37). God sent the frogs, the flies, the plagues, but the greatest miracle came when He healed that huge multitude of people. He healed them when they ate the lamb’s body. The blood on the doorpost, a type of the blood of Jesus, stayed the hand of death. They had life, health when they left Egypt.

God made a covenant with them: If thou wilt diligently hearken to the voice of the Lord thy God, and wilt do that which is right in his sight, and wilt give ear to his commandments, and keep all his statutes, I will put none of these diseases upon thee, which I have brought upon the Egyptians: for I am the Lord that healeth thee (Exodus 15:26). And the Lord will take away from thee all sickness (Deuteronomy 7:15). After the Israelites left Egypt they would have been in the Promised Land in about eleven days, free from all sicknesses had they not disobeyed God, rebelled and destroyed the blessings God had wanted them to have. In this hour the Bride is going to the spiritual land of Canaan. Children of God, we can expect more miracles, more healings than ever before, saith the Lord, as we go into Canaan’s land. I’ve been living there, and it’s great, filled with the wonderful fruits of the Spirit and love of God. In Canaan you are not aggravated with flies and fleas, busybodies, gossipers and backbiters; you are so carried away with the goodness of the Lord that they have no power over you. In this atmosphere many who could never get their miracles will receive them. Miracles of creation and re-creation will take place—all kinds of unbelievable things—as the Lord manifests Himself through His people. Everything He does for a true child of God makes a greater witness, a brighter light for the Lord.

What a jubilant time it is! The Lord who separated the waters of the Red Sea will do even greater things for the Bride. Jesus gave us this new life, a new and living way when we were born new all over. The Bride is a most special group of people; after the Rapture she will follow the Lord wherever He goes in Heaven. They will have wonderful togetherness. How marvelous to be with Jesus all hours, to talk with Him!

Rooted and Grounded in Love

That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God (Ephesians 3:17-19). A tree must be rooted and grounded in the right soil if it is to grow. After the Israelites were brought out of Egyptian bondage with a mighty hand, they still were not rooted and grounded in love. Those who fail to grow in the Lord lose out on the blessings of God; they’re like dried-up, stunted trees that have lost all signs of life. The Israelites let every little thing bother them, took their eyes off the greatness of God, and their trust in Him was rendered void.

If you don’t trust the Lord, you are not rooted and grounded in His love. When you trust Him, you don’t grumble and complain. The Lord hates a grumbling, complaining spirit, a spirit rebelling against God.

Do you fuss? It takes two to fuss. Don’t fuss with your companion. If your companion has a fussing fit, it’s time for you to take a consecrated spell. Let your mind go right into the Lord; be quiet in His presence as you put your spirit under His control. Don’t beat holes in the wall with your fists; don’t throw things. Not being able to express yourself without breaking dishes or the furniture is mindless behavior, shameful and disgraceful. You don’t have to scream and become violent to get your point over. It isn’t necessary to curse to be understood; those outbursts are marks of ignorance. The devil makes people so stupid they use the filth of the body to express themselves. Some Christians use those words and think they are all right with God. They are not.

Showing love, love, love, the Bride is coming out of the wilderness, leaving the fuss behind, the envy, strife, bitterness, clamor. No corrupt talk, no evil speaking—she is done with it all. Not one tiny white lie will she tell. If she is not free to speak the truth, she will say nothing.

The Bride will be in unity with each member of the bridal company. How pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity (Psalm 133:1)! People in the congregation of God’s people who break that unity will be left behind in the wilderness.

Who is the Bride? The Bride is a glorious Church without spot or wrinkle, blemish or any such thing. She has the sweetness of Jesus, the pure breath of the Lord’s courage, strength, love, pure, pure love. No malice, no deceit, no rumors will come from the Bride.

We must help people in every way to find God, to fight the devil, to encourage them to keep their minds on the Lord. Let’s go along talking about the Lord and the goodness of God, walking and living in the truth. The truth will keep us free.

Look Again at the Miracle Hand of God

The heathen enemies of Israel knew the greatness of the Lord. Moses said, For they have heard that thou Lord art among this people, that thou Lord art seen face to face, and that thy cloud standeth over them, and that thou goest before them, by day time in a pillar of a cloud, and in a pillar of fire by night (Numbers 14:14). The manifestation of God with the Israelites was a holy terror to the heathen, taking the strength, the courage from them.

Look at the miracle hand of God that was available to the Israelites and realize the greatness of God the Bride is going to have. She won’t fear the enemy. Israel did not have to fear the enemy; the Lord was before them, going with them. The Lord sheltered them with the cloud by day so that the hot sun didn’t bear down on them. They had God’s umbrella of love. The Lord is going to be the Bride’s everything, her protective umbrella in the heat of the battle and persecutions. How wonderful!

The Bride Will Have the Humility of Jesus

Coming up out of the wilderness, the Bride is walking in the Spirit of the Lord, abiding in His love, His faith, His grace. Lowly and meek she walks, leaning on the Lord. She rejoices in the midst of persecutions. That meekness doesn’t come from God by just asking for it. It comes by following in the steps of Jesus, by humbling yourself when others are fighting against you, saying hurtful things about you. You take it all for His name’s sake. That’s how you get the Jesus humility.

Most go no further than human humility, human forgiveness. But the Bride will have His humility, the humility she received in the wilderness. As she is fought, she humbles herself, knowing vengeance is the Lord’s, that He will repay. She doesn’t try to get even with people; she doesn’t have that kind of spirit. Humbling herself in her patience she becomes just like Him, lowly and meek. When you are lowly and meek, it is easy to forgive anyone and everyone. The grudges all melt.

Jesus is the Bride’s life, her light, her strength. He is her help and her salvation, her rock of ages, her peace, understanding, wisdom and knowledge. He is her gentleness, her goodness, her self-control, her everything. That’s the reason she is meek and lowly like He is.

The Bride will speak only in truth and love. She will be as kind as Jesus told us to be one to another. Friction will be gone in Canaan. Calling across the border, dissenters try to intimidate the Bride, but she will not give heed to them. With her tender heart and forgiving spirit she is coming up out of the wilderness. Look upon her; how beautiful, how marvelous she is! Her spirit blends with the Groom’s in one goal. Can two walk together unless they agree? In perfect harmony they agree, in perfect step they walk.

Some Left Their First Love

Under the direction of the Lord, John the Revelator wrote to a church that had lost their first love: Unto the angel of the church of Ephesus write; These things saith he that holdeth the seven stars in his right hand, who walketh in the midst of the seven golden candlesticks [The candlesticks represent the churches]; I know thy works, and thy labour, and thy patience, and how thou canst not bear them which are evil: and thou hast tried them which say they are apostles, and are not, and hast found them liars: And hast borne, and hast patience, and for my name’s sake hast laboured, and hast not fainted. Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love. Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent (Revelation 2:1-5). The Lord will move the Church, the Bride, away from those who have left their first love, those who are disobedient to God, those with a contrary spirit. The disobedient won’t reap the blessings they once reaped by being in the midst of God’s people. They won’t have the opportunities they once had or feel the pull of the Spirit.

You who have left your first love, if you don’t repent, the Lord said He would move the candlestick, the real Church of Jesus Christ, away from you. To those who don’t receive the love of the truth God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness (II Thessalonians 2:11,12). Many are deceived, thinking they are going to Heaven when they are not, having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof (II Timothy 3:5). They have denied the power of God by not obeying Him, a power that would have kept them obedient, kept them leaning upon Jesus.

Some have been stubborn with God, rebelling and hindering His work, passing gossip and rumors. They won’t stay prayed up, won’t live in the Word and love of God. The Church will be taken away from them as it moves out of the wilderness, the true Church, the true Bride of Christ.

The world church, the false church is being formed now, and millions already belong to it. Deceived, those in the world church think they are all right. The message that claims everyone sins and can still go to Heaven tickles their ears. It’s a lie of the devil. No one can enter Heaven with even a tiny speck of sin in his or her soul. The Lord will see that the heathen get this message of salvation. He will deal with the heathen because so many of them will accept, saith the Lord.

If you are in the wilderness today, be sure that the wilderness is not in you. There is a great difference between being in the wilderness and the wilderness being in you. Live in the Pauline Epistles, in the many, many things that Paul wrote to the different churches. He didn’t spare them. Emerging from the wilderness, they went to the Upper Room and moved on into Canaan. They had their opportunity. For over thirty years they dwelt in Canaan. Then they began to lose their first love, to backslide, to reach back to the wilderness and its sins and disobediences. The wilderness mind started to take them over. More and more they bowed to the golden calf of the material world. Like many today, their eyes were more on money than on God.

Willing to Sacrifice

I know what it means to be poor, to wonder where the next meal is coming from. In those early years, sometimes my wife, Angel, and I had nothing for Sunday dinner but dried beans and bread, but we thanked God for them, and we preached the Gospel right on. The Lord was proud of Angel when His handmaiden went through the gate of Glory. She never did one thing to try to get me out of the ministry—a girl that was used to having much more than I had ever had.

Angel and I in the beginning of the ministry had car payments, mobile home payments to meet so we could be on the evangelistic road. That mobile home represented a monument of sacrifice. We worked on two mobile homes, fixing them up to sell for a little profit. The first car we bought by saving our dimes. Willing to sacrifice, we never gave up. We went places we were given less than ten dollars a week in the offering, but we held on to God. Angel didn’t say, “Let’s go to my parents’ or your parents’ home”; it was ever onward. Lord, give us souls. We cried for souls.

Be willing to sacrifice for Jesus. Don’t pity yourself; trust God to provide. I never asked one preacher, “What will you pay me?” I’m called of God to preach. My mind is not on money, only for souls. I think what those dollars will do in spreading the Gospel to the world. If I had millions of dollars, every penny would go to the work of God. I would be delighted to hand it all over to Him to evangelize the world.

Multitudes are dying without God. How much are you willing to pay? You on limited income may think you are having it hard, but when you put souls first, God will look out for you. God will make the way somehow, someway.

Jesus suffered much; He didn’t have a bed to call His own. He said, The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head (Matthew 8:20). I think of Jesus, not those who won’t live for God and still are prospering. They have all the Heaven they will ever have. I feel sorry for them. Not one ungodly millionaire would I change places with. I have something money can’t buy, a home beyond the sky. Heaven will be mine one day.

When the Lord calls me to fast forty days at a time, I think of the times I couldn’t eat, when my body went down to a skeleton and I was at death’s door. I never tell God no. Sometimes during those fasts I am so weak I just lie down on the floor. Then I feel the Lord feeding me. His strength and power seem to be going into my veins, my flesh, and I stand up strong in Him to continue His work.

Carried Away in a Vision

When the Lord healed me of a severely ulcerated stomach, He told me that later I would go on a long fast, and when I came out of that fast I would have His power for the healing of the people.

Angel didn’t hear what God said, but she knew He had spoken. She said to me, “God told you He was going to give you that power, didn’t He.” It shocked me. I was shocked anyway. I knew she hadn’t heard what God had said. It had been revealed to her. She was to be a part of it. Later, although she didn’t desire it, God even let her see demons so she could realize what I was going through as the Lord taught me the kingdom of Satan.

I’ve never gone away for a long fast, except the first one the Lord told me about when He healed me in the beginning of our evangelistic work. I felt as though Angel and I should just close down everything, get away from everyone, family, friends, and be with God. Angel, God and myself.

Some years later when the Lord carried me away in the vision in 1954, I was walking with the Lord in perfect step, and He was many feet tall. At the time, I didn’t think how little I was compared to Him. In that vision I stood perhaps half a head above His knee. Never thinking to look into His eyes, I was too busy drinking in what He showed me would happen in the future. I had never before seen the gift of miracles in operation, and now in the vision, I beheld it in holy awe. I saw the unbelievable. Walking natural steps, looking at the wonder of it all, I was in step with Him. We took every step together, walking some distance across what seemed to be a high mountain.

The Bride Adores Jesus

Angel lived close to God; she would have made a wonderful member of the bridal company on earth today. As I stood at the big window in our home the other day, I was thinking of the light she saw a short time before the Lord took her. Long before daylight she was looking at this bright, beautiful light, a huge light. She watched it two or three hours. I had been working so hard, she didn’t want to disturb my sleep. She waited, but she wanted me to see it. When day was breaking, she rushed in and said, “Honey, wake up. I want you to see something in the sky.” It wasn’t my light, it was hers, and when I got to the window it was gone. The Lord was showing her the way on home, encouraging her heart. Her days were limited. Suddenly the Lord would take her.

The Lord is directing the Bride now by His mighty light to guide her steps with His message into all nations. She’ll make any sacrifice to get the Gospel to all, even to giving her own life, to giving her last drop of blood—she loves Him that much. She won’t worship the golden calf of this world; she will give, give, give until she has given herself completely.

The Bride adores Jesus; He is her life, and she wants no other. The things for which people sell their souls look insignificant to her, worthless, as she travels leaning on Him. Soon this great crossing is going to take place throughout the earth; the Lord is bringing members of the bridal company up out of the wilderness. To some He will have to give the revelation of what’s happening Himself, maybe on the same order He gave it to me when He took me into Canaan. He led me out of the wilderness of affliction by a mighty hand, healed me all over and gave me His gifts. It’s all there for you, the greatness, the victorious power—all of Jesus will be yours in the land of Canaan to use, His wisdom and knowledge.

Redemption Draweth Nigh

Give more of your spirit, more of your thoughts, more of your mind, more of yourself to the Lord so that He can use you in every way He can. I know how He wants to use people; I know how He uses me, how He has lived with me these many years, spending all kinds of hours patiently teaching, training. Things He has shown me to come now are here. I’m glad for this hour.

Jesus told of the perilous times the world would experience just before His coming, and we see His prophecy taking place now. And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh (Luke 21:28). Redemption is nigh for us; we have just one more thing to accomplish for Him: bringing in the harvest. We must work in the vineyard of the Lord in this last hour. We will work in the vineyard of the Lord in this last hour. We will work until Jesus comes. Even so, come quickly Lord Jesus, but help us with your wings of love, grace, faith, salvation and the Holy Ghost. Help us to get to all the lost. We will declare your message in its pure form, and you will manifest yourself as you have longed to down through the years.

Reach for God’s Greatness

Will you be left in the wilderness or are you coming out leaning on Him? You won’t get out trusting in yourself. You won’t get out with a selfish or a lukewarm spirit. You won’t get out with that spirit of indifference, saith the Lord, you won’t get out. You will get out wholly committed, totally dedicated, made holy by Him in His likeness. Made in His righteousness and holiness, you will speak His language and understand what He is saying to you. It will be one language, the Jesus love language. When you speak, you will speak in love.

Feel His great love; in that great love, people will be healed, saved, set free. It’s a time of yielding, a time, I say again, of making sure none of the wilderness is inside of you, although you may be in the wilderness. Remember, the things of the wilderness must not be a part of you. Leave the world behind in your spirit, in your soul. Let nothing keep you from the greatness of Jesus, or make you so weak you will not be able to lean upon Him in all faith. Do nothing that would cause condemnation to be in your spirit; if you do, you won’t be able to lean on Him.

Those making up the bridal company will lean completely on Heaven’s love and grace and be brought out of the wilderness without any effort on their part. Her efforts have already been made, saith the Lord, before He starts with her, her efforts to please Him, to be pure, clean and holy through His blood. It will be no trouble for Him to bring her out.

When the Lord finally got the Israelites ready, He had no trouble bringing them through the Red Sea; it was easy for Him to separate the waters. The Lord Almighty can separate the Red Sea, but He can’t separate one soul from disobedience, arrogance, unless that soul wants it. It’s whosoever will, let him come. You are a free moral agent in the seat of decision today. But on tomorrow, you may not be in that seat; it could be all over with for you. God cannot do anything for you if you tie His hands—how fearful! God can’t help you if you won’t let Him. He can’t take one thing out of you that you don’t want Him to. He isn’t able to deliver you from any wrong spirits if you prefer not to be delivered. It’s impossible for Him to take that deceit out of you unless you want it to go. You have to yield to the cleansing blood of Jesus to get rid of sin. God with all of His power—power to quench the violence of fire the way He saved the three Hebrew boys, power to shut the mouths of the lions as He did for Daniel—our God has great trouble with human beings because of their free choice. When man’s hour of free choice is over, woe, woe, woe—what God will do! A sample of it is in the book of Revelation.

Cry Out to God

Decide before God that nothing will stand between you and your Lord no matter what you have done in the past. Cry out to God, present yourself before the Lord. Some of you will be presented before the throne of Grace in a holy condition, some not. Cry out to God, telling Him you don’t want any deceit, you don’t want to disobey Him in anything. You don’t want any spirit unlike Jesus. You want to be just like Him. Lift your heart into the realm of His precious blood; you’re nigh to Him through the blood, you can reach Him through the blood for anything. Pray with me now: Oh, God, I come to you. I don’t want to be left in the wilderness of the world. I want to come up out of the wilderness leaning on the Lord. I have determined in my heart that I will come up with you. I will be ready when you say, Child, let’s go. I will be ready. I will be pure, I will be clean. I will have your cloak of righteousness, and I will be walking in the truth and in your great love.

Come Holy Spirit, apply the blood to my soul. Apply the blood to my soul, destroying any spirit, any disobedience, anything unlike my Lord. Holy Spirit, I yield to you today. I am so sorry that I have ever failed God. I am so sorry that I have ever displeased the Lord. But I am in your presence Lord, and I am yielded one hundred percent. Use me. Lord, use me. I will not fail you. I will do whatever you want. I will seek to please you. I will not please self from this time forward. I will please my Lord. I will have Jesus victory because I believe I am cleansed right now of everything, cleansed through the blood of Jesus. I put everything under the blood. I am all yours, Lord.

Praise the Lord for the blood that cleanses; praise Him with all your heart. Yield to Him in every way. Yield to Jesus and you will find rest for your soul, what your heart has been longing for. Give over to the Spirit through His truth and find that the search is over. The Lord will take care of you, bringing you out of the wilderness leaning on Him. Who is this that cometh up from the wilderness, leaning upon her beloved? Fair as the moon, clear as the sun, she is the Bride of Christ, alive in the Holy Spirit and taking Jesus to the world.

Hardly need we add that the “wilderness” is not a geographical designation. Always the New Testament church is “in” the world. Only there can she carry out her God-assigned commission. What He commands is spiritual isolation and insulation from every worldly influence. For pilgrims and strangers on this earth only such a “wilderness” assures safety. Like Abraham, their spiritual father, they seek no abiding city here but “the city with foundations whose architect and builder is God” (Hebr. 11:8–10).

The attacks of the devil, vss. 15, 16←⤒🔗

Although “out of the serpent’s reach” in that place, the church never escapes Satan’s attacks. He can never kill her with the poison he carries within himself. We do well to take this to heart. So long as believers cling to the Savior and give testimony to such faith, none of the poison of false doctrine and practice can cause her death. What consolation in times when rebellion and apostasy rise high within the walls of what still calls itself church. Christ, so we confess, by His Spirit and Word always preserves His own.

Even the distance provided, however, does not stop the devil in his tracks. He must, by that inner necessity of his rebellion against God, use every opportunity to demonstrate his “fury.” He is angry, full of burning wrath caused by his frustration.

Again the language is colorful and not to be muted or minimized in any way. “The serpent spewed water like a flood” (“nahar,” also used for rivers when in full spate). By this he hopes to make its waters carry the church along and so sweep her into destruction (“potamophoreton” as river-borne). Floods, too, play an important role in the Bible. We need only think of how in Noah’s day everything of the old world perished except what the ark contained. Also in Amos 8:8 it is used as a figure for God’s wrath against a covenant-breaking people. But, in contrast, believers also suffered at the hands of ungodly men who rose up against them as “a flood” (2 Sam. 22:5; Ps. 18:4; 69:2). Then the faithful God promised safety. “Therefore let everyone who is godly offer prayer to thee; at a time of great distress, in the rush of great waters. They shall not reach him. Thou art a hiding place for me” (Ps. 32:6, 7a).

And “the earth helped the woman.” In sharp contrast to the serpent, it opens its mouth to swallow up what the devil used in attempting to sweep away the church. Nowhere in Scripture do we find an exact parallel to this. The only echo of something akin is in Moses’ song, “You stretched out your right hand and the earth swallowed them” (Exod. 15:12). Land and sea are always at His command. The Lord uses His providential government, both general and special, to safeguard His church in ways past our finding out. Even worldly kings and nations have been employed by Him against her persecutors (lsa. 44:28; 45:1) No satanic attack is too clever or powerful to withstand Him. So did Israel’s poet remind the people in Psalm 136:

Overwhelmed therein the foe, Drowned therein proud Pharaoh; Through trackless waste He led Israel’s folk and gave them bread. For His mercy will endure, Ever faithful, ever sure!

War against the woman’s seed, vs. 17←⤒🔗

The message, however, is not yet complete.

The true church can and never will perish from the earth. No matter how often she is attacked, her safety is secured. It is impossible for the Savior-King to be without a citizenry, be it but a small remnant, since also the earth was given to Him as His possession.

Alright, the second requirement of a bride is a heartfelt yearning for the return of the bridegroom. If we turn to Hebrews 9:28 it says:

“So Christ was offered once to bear the sins of many; to those who eagerly wait for Him He will appear a second time apart from sin for salvation.”

To whom will He appear? To those who eagerly wait for Him. Those who are on the tip toe of expectancy. He will not appear to other for salvation. That’s very simple logic. The bride’s first concern is to be ready for the bridegroom’s return, eagerly awaiting Him.

So, let me ask you, are you yearning, are you longing for the return of the bridegroom? Are you eagerly waiting, not just waiting, but eagerly waiting?

The third condition is to have the proper clothing. Everybody knows that for the bride, her attire is one of the most important features. And you see, it says:

“Let us be glad and rejoice and give Him glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come and His wife has made herself ready. And to her it was granted to be arrayed in fine linen, clean and bright; for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints.”

In other words, for your bridal attire you’re going to have a record of righteous acts. It’s the things you have done for the Lord that will become your attire. Now be honest, some of you at the moment don’t have more material than will make a bikini. You need to change. We are going to be clothed in what we’ve done for the Lord.

If you turn back in Revelation to chapters 2 and 3, we don’t need to turn there, to the messages to the seven churches, there’s one thing that Jesus says to every church. Do you know what it is? “I know your works. I know what you’re doing.” He doesn’t say, “I know your doctrinal statement, your denominational position, your theological background.” He says, “I know what you’re doing.” And that’s what’s going to provide your marriage garment. It’s not going to be doctrine, it’s going to be things you’ve done.

And it’s not always easy to serve the Lord, sometimes the pressures are great. But next time you’re really honestly serving the Lord and you feel all these pressures coming against you—and I want you to know they come against Ruth and me just as much as against anybody else. Just bear in mind it’s all part of providing your marriage garment. You’ll feel different about it then.

So, let’s just go back very briefly over the three purposes of God that have to be fulfilled.

First of all, the gospel has to be proclaimed to all nations. I believe that’s a responsibility of the entire church. I don’t believe any Christian is exempt from responsibility in that area.

Secondly, before the age can close Israel has to be restored first to their land and second to their God. And bear in mind the purpose of restoring them to their land is to restore them to their God. In Ezekiel 36 God says:

“You shall dwell in your own land and you shall be my people and I will be your God.”

That’s the ultimate purpose. All the rest, all the political, military negotiations and interchanges, it’s all just part of the process.

And the third condition is the preparation of the bride: loyalty to Jesus, heartfelt yearning and righteous acts.

I invite each of you to consider how far you really are aligned with the purposes of God. The next time you pray “thy kingdom come,” bear in mind that that’s a commitment to be aligned with what’s involved in the coming of the kingdom.

"I tell you, I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it anew with you in my Father's kingdom." (Matthew 26:29 || Mark 14:25)

"14When the hour came, Jesus and his apostles reclined at the table. 15And he said to them, 'I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. 16For I tell you, I will not eat it again until it finds fulfillment in the kingdom of God.' 17After taking the cup, he gave thanks and said, 'Take this and divide it among you. 18For I tell you I will not drink again of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes.' (Luke 22:16-18)

"For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes." (1 Corinthians 11:26)

In each of the Synoptic Gospels and in 1 Corinthians 11, the Words of Institution look forward to a fulfillment in the future. A key element in our own celebration of the Lord's Supper is future-looking as well. Let's explore this.

Jewish Expectation of the Great Feast

An expectation of the Great Feast on the Last Day began perhaps with a wonderful prophecy from Isaiah, clearly eschatological, that is, speaking of the Last Days:

"On this mountain the LORD Almighty will prepare
a feast of rich food for all peoples,
a banquet of aged wine--
the best of meats and the finest of wines.
On this mountain he will destroy
the shroud that enfolds all peoples,
the sheet that covers all nations;
he will swallow up death forever.
The Sovereign LORD will wipe away the tears
from all faces;
he will remove the disgrace of his people
from all the earth." (Isaiah 25:6-8)

You find echoes of this prophecy in the Old Testament and the New, finally being fulfilled in Revelation with the Marriage Supper of the Lamb (Revelation 19:6-9) and the New Heavens and the New Earth (Revelation 21:4).

It's pretty clear from the Bible and from Jewish rabbinical literature that at least the Pharisees in Jesus' time had a strong expectation of this Great Feast after the resurrection:

• "Blessed is the man who will eat at the feast in the kingdom of God" (Luke 14:15), comment by a dinner companion.
• Yahweh will recline at table, the patriarchs and the righteous at His feet,2 and "They will recline at table and eat in Gan Eden,"3 rabbinical commentary on Exodus.
• "At the last coming he will lead out Adam and the patriarchs and bring them (into the paradise of Eden) that they may rejoice, as when a man invites his friends to eat with him, and they come and speak with one another before the palace, joyously awaiting his feast, the enjoyment of good things, of immeasurable wealth and joy and happiness in light and everlasting life,"3 pseudepigraphical Book of Enoch
• "Rise and stand, and see at the feast of the Lord the number of those who have been sealed," Old Testament Apocyrpha.4
• "The feast of our God, which He will prepare for the righteous, has no end,"5 Midrash on Esther.

Jesus' Teaching on the Great Banquet

It was in this context that Jesus taught. He often alluded to the Great Feast in the Kingdom of God, both in parables and in direct comments. For example:

• Parable of the Great Banquet. At a dinner to which Jesus was invited, he told his host not to invite those who could invite him back so that he would be rewarded "at the resurrection of the righteous" (Luke 14:14). One of the guests remarked: "Blessed is the man who will eat at the feast in the kingdom of God" (Luke 14:15). Jesus followed with the Parable of the Great Banquet (Luke 14:18-24, partial parallel in Matthew 22:2-14), the point of which was that the Jews (who had been invited to the banquet but made excuses) would be displaced by the Gentiles.
• Reward for the Apostles. "And I confer on you a kingdom, just as my Father conferred one on me, so that you may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom and sit on thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel." (Luke 22:29-30)
• Teachings on Inclusion and Exclusion. "People will come from east and west and north and south, and will take their places at the feast in the kingdom of God." (Luke 13:29-30 || Matthew 8:11)
• Parable of the Delayed Householder. "It will be good for those servants whose master finds them watching when he comes. I tell you the truth, he will dress himself to serve, will have them recline at the table and will come and wait on them." (Luke 12:37)
• Parable of the Ten Virgins. "And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the marriage feast; and the door was shut."6 (Matthew 25:10)
• Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus. "The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham's side...." (Luke 16:22). Being in Abraham's bosom pictures both a place of honor and a place of loving, intimate fellowship.7
• Gathering the Elect. The elect are gathered at Christ's coming for this very feast. "And he will send his angels and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of the heavens." (Mark 13:27 || Matthew 24:31)

Q1. Why are so many of Jesus' teachings oriented toward the future? What kinds of associations come to mind as you think of the Great Banquet? https://www.joyfulheart.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=489

The Marriage Supper of the Lamb

The Book of Revelation also refers to the Great Banquet. In a promise to overcomers in his letter to the churches, Jesus says:

"He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God" (Revelation 2:7)

Revelation culminates with the Marriage Supper of the Lamb:

"Then I heard what sounded like a great multitude, like the roar of rushing waters and like loud peals of thunder, shouting:

   'Hallelujah!
   For our Lord God Almighty reigns.
   Let us rejoice and be glad
   and give him glory!
   For the wedding of the Lamb has come,
   and his bride has made herself ready.
   Fine linen, bright and clean,
   was given her to wear.'

(Fine linen stands for the righteous acts of the saints.)

Then the angel said to me, 'Write: "Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb! "' And he added, 'These are the true words of God.'" (Revelation 19:6-9)

The Lord's Supper Looks Forward to the Great Banquet

With this introduction, you can now appreciate Jesus' words on that last night:

"I tell you, I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it anew with you in my Father's kingdom." (Matthew 26:29 || Mark 14:25)

"For I tell you, I will not eat it again until it finds fulfillment in the kingdom of God." (Luke 22:16)

"Fulfillment" is the verb plēroō, "to make full." Here it could have one of two meanings: "to bring to a designed end, fulfill" a prophecy, a promise, etc., or "to bring to completion an activity in which one has been involved from its beginning, complete, finish."8 Indeed, the Lord's Supper is fulfilled at the Great Banquet. This gathering of the redeemed of the Lord in the presence of God on the Last Day is the culmination and fulfillment of the incarnation, the cross, and the resurrection.

Q2. (Luke 22:16) In what sense does the Lord's Supper find its "fulfillment" in the Great Banquet at the end of the age? What should this do to our thoughts at the Lord's Table? https://www.joyfulheart.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=490

The Promise of Future Fellowship

I'm saddened by the many Christians who, for one reason or another, no longer attend church. The church is flawed, they've been hurt in the church, the church is filled with hypocrites, and so forth. And these things are too often true! But we are not to give up on Christian fellowship.

"Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another -- and all the more as you see the Day approaching." (Hebrews 10:25)

For in our future is a seat at the Great Banquet with millions of other fellow believers. Isn't it ironic that we would separate ourselves now from those with whom we'll share the Feast and an eternity in heaven? The essence of a banquet -- and of the Lord's Supper -- is not food on which to gorge ourselves, but the joyful fellowship of those at the table.

The Lord's Supper as a Promise of the Future

The Lord's Supper is our reminder that this life isn't "as good as it gets." Just as the seal of Holy Spirit is your guarantee of future glory (Ephesians 1:13; Romans 8:23; 2 Corinthians 1:22), so the piece of bread and portion of wine you hold in your hands are a token of your ticket to the Great Banquet at the end of the age.

The Lord's Supper looks backward as a remembrance to the death of Christ for our sins. It looks to the present as a communion with the living Christ, and it looks to the future as a promise of eternal life in the presence of God.

Q3. In what sense does the Lord's Supper point to the past? How does it point to the present? How does it point to the future? https://www.joyfulheart.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=491

We Shall See His Face

As I think about that Great Banquet, I begin to look forward to it afresh, for it will be the time of "entering into the joy of our Lord." The chorus of an old gospel hymn comes to mind:

"O I want to see Him, look upon His face,
There to sing forever of His saving grace;
On the streets of glory let me lift my voice,
Cares all past, home at last, ever to rejoice."9

On that day, the promise of Revelation will be realized. Jesus told his disciples that despite various appearances in one form or another, "No one has seen God at any time" (John 1:18; 1 John 4:12), that is, his essential Spirit-nature. But on that Day, the scripture says,

"They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. There will be no more night. They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, for the Lord God will give them light. And they will reign for ever and ever." (Revelation 22:4-5)

"I tell you, I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it anew with you in my Father's kingdom." (Matthew 26:29)

Q4. (Revelation 22:4) When you meditate on "seeing his face," what thoughts come to mind? Why should the Lord's Supper stimulate these thoughts every time we partake of it? https://www.joyfulheart.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=492

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Prayer

Father, so often our minds are focused on our own needs and problems. Henceforth, may the Lord's Supper turn our eyes instead to the Great Banquet and the culmination of all things in you. Maranatha. Come soon, Lord Jesus! Amen.