I think I am so fascinated with the Bridal Paradigm (seeing through the lenses of Jesus as our Bridegroom and the church as the Bride) because of the position that it puts the people of God in. What more intimate metaphor than a marriage partner who shares dreams, secrets, and feelings. In John 15: 15 Jesus says "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." Jesus is waiting and wanting us to see the privilege of our position in Him. He doesn't want me to live as a servant who sits in the background not worthy of coming before Him. He wants to share with us secrets of the world. (Isaiah 45:2-4). Jesus last prayer in John 17:23, is about Jesus praying for the believers to be a people that is one with Him. He wants a confident Bride who knows the way Jesus feels about her. My mom said a profound thing the other day. We were talking about the new TV shows about weddings and how so many people make their wedding day more important than the marriage itself. She said "There is something about this generation that wants to be a bride." I thought "YES!!" That's it, the closer it gets to the second coming of Christ, the more the earth will be longing for a wedding. The world may not know that the true longing comes from a deep desire that has been put in us from the beginning. The marriage supper of the lamb in Revelation 19:7-9, describes the prepared Bride. She is pure and set apart. She [the church] is Ready to be presented to Jesus as an eternal life partner forever.
While I was babysitting recently, I was helping a precious little 4 year old girl brush her teeth and get ready for bed. In her mind, she really does think is a princess :) She told me she only wears dresses (even to sleep in) because that is what princess' wear. As she was brushing her teeth she stopped and said, "Miss Brooke, I don't want to be a dentist lady when I go up, I want to be a Bride" As she pointed to the red towel beside her she said, "And I don't want my dress to be this color, I want it to be white!" Then she went on to ask what you wear when you date someone, if you wear white when your married.. haha! But I was stunned that this 4 year old had such desires in her heart. No one had to teach her to want to be a Bride. Jesus put a eternal desire in us for partnership. Knowing our position as a heavenly partner with Jesus makes us come alive. The world needs people who come alive and who are radically in love. People who are lovesick will not burn out when things get tough. When we don't know our position, we may see Jesus as a hard coach who motivates by fear of consequences or guilt. Jesus, our Beloved, motivates by Love (2 Corinthians 5:14). His love is the best motivator because we no longer have to try harder to overcome sin, we simply focus on enjoying God and our deepest desire for satisfaction is met! He feels joyful towards us. He is singing over us a happy song of delight. In this end time army, He is raising up those with furious love in their hearts to leave everything for the sake of love...
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