Who Are We - A Bride Prepared For Marriage

Westhill Community Church

Sun 31^st May 2020

Who Are We? A Bride Prepared for Marriage

Reading: Rev 19: 4-9

The reading Hamish read to us this morning from the book of Revelation included this wonderful verse.

‘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.’ (Rev 19: 6-7)

These words speak both of an event that lies in the future, and of a preparation that is taking place right now. The future event is the wedding of the Lord Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God. The present preparation is his bride, the church, making herself ready.

This is the last of our meditations on ways in which the Bible describes the church, the gathered people of God who love Christ and follow him. All reveal deep truths about our relationship with God and with one another, and the purposes God has for us. But to me this description of the church as the bride of Christ is perhaps the most profound revelation. In Ephesians 5: 32 the apostle Paul describes it as a profound mystery.

This is a profound mystery – but I am talking about Christ and the church. (Eph 5: 32)

Other depictions of the church remind us of God’s design and purpose, as He places quarried stones in the right place in a building for Him to dwell in. Or of God’s rich provision of life and nourishment to enable us to be fruitful vine branches for His glory. Or of God’s care and protection as a Father for his cherished sons and daughters, or a shepherd leading his sheep. But this depiction of the church as Christ’s bride speaks as no other does of the deep, intimate, sacrificial, incomparable love Christ has for those who belong to him, a love indeed that is then reciprocated in the commitment and submission of his people to him.

As I consider this I am reminded of the words of that very moving song by Bryan Adams.

Look into my eyes
You will see
What you mean to me

Search your heart
Search your soul
And when you find me there
You'll search no more

Don't tell me it's not worth trying for
You can't tell me it's not worth dying for

You know it's true
Everything I do
I do it for you

The apostle Paul spoke of this deep, deep love of Jesus when writing to the church at Ephesus.

Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ. Wives, submit yourselves to your own husbands as you do to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Saviour. Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything. Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. (Eph 5: 21-27).

Don’t be put off by thoughts of marriages that don’t work well. Satan has done his best to spoil and ruin what God provided for blessing and fruitfulness. And in any case this passage is not saying that the relationship between Christ and his church should be like a human marriage. Quite the opposite. A human marriage is at its best when it emulates the self-sacrificial love of Christ for his church, and the church for Christ.

This deep, sacrificial love of Christ for his church was demonstrated when he gave himself up to die for her, in order to wash her clean and make her holy. The amazing thing is that Christ did not start loving us when we blameless, spotless and beautiful but when we were unworthy, dirty and fallen. He did not give up his life for us because we were righteous and worthy, but when we we were unrighteous and unworthy, and in order to make us blameless and holy. So God’s word says

I will show my love to the one I called “Not my loved one”. (Hos 2: 23)

And again

No longer will they call you Deserted, but you will be called Hephzibah. (Isa 62: 4) [Hephzibah means “My delight is in her.”]

Now of course these scripture quotations are from the Old Testament prophets, and they were written about God’s chosen people, the people of Israel. God spoke of the people of Israel as being his bride, even though they had deserted Him. But then in the New Testament we are told that God has chosen the church to be his bride. Does this mean that God has two different brides?

“No,” is the answer. The people of Israel and the church are not two different brides, but one and the same bride! This is what the apostle Paul wrote to the church at Ephesus.

Remember that formerly you who are Gentiles by birth … were separate from Christ, excluded from citizenship in Israel and foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For he himself is our peace, who has made the two groups one and has destroyed the barrier. (Eph 2: 11-14)

Christ has made the two groups one said Paul. One bride, not two. Putting it another way when writing to the Galatians he said

If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise. (Gal 3: 29).

Because Christ himself is truly and fully a child of Abraham and an heir of all the promises made to the people of Israel who walk by faith, so we too who belong to Christ and walk by faith share in that wonderful blessing. One bride, not two.

Now, there’s an interesting revelation in Isaiah’s ancient prophecy that I quoted earlier; did you notice it? The bride of Christ will have a name. God will call her Hephzibah – my delight is in her. The Lord Jesus truly delights in those whom he has redeemed, forgiven and cleansed by his shed blood, his people, his bride. And if you are one of those who belong to him then he delights in you, too. Oh, you might say, there’s not much about me to delight in. There’s too much in me that is unpleasant – you don’t know the half of it. No, I don’t know the half of it but Jesus knows all of it, and the verses in Ephesians 5 that we read earlier told us that he is going to present Hephzibah to himself as a radiant bride, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. And that, dear follower of Jesus, includes you and it includes me.

Of course, we have a part to play in this process. Our reading from Revelation this morning said

His bride has made herself ready. Fine linen, bright and clean, was given her to wear. (Fine linen stands for the righteous acts of God’s holy people.) (Rev 19: 7-8)

Just as a bride spends hours making herself ready or her wedding so we, the bride of Christ, are to be diligent in preparing ourselves for his coming. We have been given clothes to put on, fine linen, bright and clean, that represents the righteousness of Christ bestowed on us. So day by day we put on these clothes. As the apostle Peter said, “Live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming” (2 Pet 3: 11,12). The devoted bride is not unmindful of the day of her wedding, nor is she careless about her preparation. On the contrary she counts down the days and looks forward with anticipation, and makes sure she is fully prepared.

In Bible times marriage for Jewish people was somewhat different to ours today.

Marriage was usually decided between families rather than just between two individuals. After reaching agreement about future partners the couple would make a formal commitment to one another for marriage. This betrothal (erusin) was a legal contract which could not be broken, except by a formal process of divorce. Just before the betrothal each of them would engage in a ceremony (mikvah) involving immersion in water, symbolic of spiritual cleansing. The groom, or usually his father, would pay a bride price (mohar) to the bride’s father, and typically also would give the bride a gift or gifts (mattan). The completion of the betrothal contract usually involved sharing a cup of wine together.

The betrothal period could last a long time – typically a year or more. During this time the bride and groom would live apart, and have no sexual relations. They would each make their own preparations for their planned life together. The groom would prepare a place for them to live together. The bride would prepare wedding garments and other provisions. The couple would be considered as husband and wife during this betrothal period, even though the final wedding ceremony had not yet taken place.

On the day of the wedding (nissuin) the groom would make his way to the bride’s house accompanied by his companions. The groom would decide when this was to be. Although the bride would be aware of when this was likely she might not know the precise time, or even which day. The groom would then greet his bride, and would take her back with him to the home he had prepared. There they would finalize their vows and celebrate their marriage with friends and family. This celebration would typically last for many days. From that time on the couple would live together as husband and wife.

It is remarkable how many aspects of these ancient Jewish marriage customs feature in the work of salvation accomplished by Christ.

Bride price (mohar): a price was paid to redeem us.

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son (John 3: 16)

For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed … but with the precious blood of Christ. (1 Peter 1: 18-19)

Bridegroom’s gift (mattan): Christ gave a gift to his church.

I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you for ever – the Spirit of truth. (John 14: 16-17)

Ceremonial washing (mikvah): Christ was baptised, and so is each of his followers on coming to faith.

Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit (Matt 28: 19)

Betrothal covenant (erusin): Christ made a covenant with his disciples.

In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, ‘This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you. (Luke 22: 20)

The extended betrothal period: Jesus went back to his Father in order to prepare a place for his bride.

And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. (John 14: 3)

The wedding day (nissuin): There is a day coming when we will celebrate the wedding supper of the Lamb of God.

Then the angel said to me, ‘Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb!’ And he added, ‘These are the true words of God.’ (Rev 19: 9)

The certainty of the return of the Lord Jesus for his bride, and the need for patience and perseverance, was a recurring theme of the New Testament writers.

Be patient, then, brothers and sisters, until the Lord’s coming. See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop, patiently waiting for the autumn and spring rains. 8 You too, be patient and stand firm, because the Lord’s coming is near. 9 (James 5: 7-8)

But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: with the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance. But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. (2 Peter 3: 8-10)

So I return to the verse from Revelation that I quoted at the beginning.

‘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.’ (Rev 19: 6-7)

The bride has made herself ready, it says. And this means that what Jesus asks of all of us is that we by his grace make sure that we, too, are ready for that glorious day.

Amen.