How Does It Feel To Be A Bride?

How Does It Feel To Be A Bride?

Matthew 22, the parable of 'The Marriage Feast Slighted,' was Jesus' last public sermon. It is very radical. Revelation 22:17 says, "And the Spirit and the bride say, 'Come...'" The Spirit and the bride must be together in spiritual identity. The Church must come to realize that we are the bride of Christ.

Until the first commandment ("You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind" (Matthew 22:37) is in first place, we are burnt out trying to fulfill the great commission. When we have lovesick hearts that are fascinated with Jesus, the second commandment and the great commission will explode out of our hearts. Jesus was not just answering a question in this verse in Matthew; He is getting the last word. This is a Messianic prophecy. Before Jesus returns, the Father will raise up wholehearted, mature lovers of God.

In Matthew 22, the Father is arranging a wedding for His Son with total power and total wisdom. There are at least four powerful dynamics of this mystery of God, this hidden secret in the Father’s heart, that are only revealed by impartation of the Holy Spirit in the context of the Word of God. (Ephesians 3:9) The first is seen in Ephesians 5:22-32. These verses speak of the bride and the bridegroom clinging to one another in love. Second, in Psalm 2, which tells of the reign of the Lord’s anointed, Jesus possesses the affections of the human heart. The capacity for burning affection is unique to the human spirit. Third, Isaiah 45:23 says, "...unto Me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall swear." This means humans, angels and demons—it will be mandatory obedience. Higher than this, though, is to be a voluntary lover of God. And fourth, in Genesis 1, God burned with desire for a relationship with mankind.

Lovers are far more effective than workers. A person in love doubles what he does, unconsciously. Our Father is a romantic and so should, and will, we be. The secret of the martyrs was that they were lovesick, lost in love. God is calling us to the romance of the gospel—how He equips and empowers the heart to extravagant obedience.

The Song of Songs is about both marital and spiritual love. Chapter 2, verse 5 and chapter 5, verse 8 are just two verses that speak of being lovesick. The Father’s heart is filled with gladness, fire, passion, and love for human beings. Spiritual pleasures that are most profound penetrate deeply and exhilarate—this is God revealing Himself to the human spirit.

Isaiah 4:2 says that the Son will be revealed in His glorious beauty. God longs for us to be fascinated with Him, and He alone can satisfy our desire to be fascinated. We are anointed to be wholehearted lovers. Boredom and passivity result from lack of fascination. We need to return to the marvel and the wonderment of first love.

Hosea 2:16 says we will call the Lord our husband; this is the meaning of worship. Jesus will appear as a cherishing Bridegroom. The bridal identity transcends gender; it describes nearness to the heart of God.

John the Baptist prepared the way for the Lord. His spirit and his calling were that he was a friend of the bridegroom and he heard His voice and his joy was made full. (John 3:29) John redefined fasting; it was related to lovesickness, a longing for the bridegroom. Fasting tenderizes the human spirit and makes us want more of the beauty of the Lord. It causes our spirit to go deeper, faster. It is an on-ramp to a deeper relationship with God.

More love, more power, more of You, O holy God, in our lives. We will worship You with all of our heart. We will worship You with all of our soul. We will worship You with all of our strength, for You are our Lord, our Bridegroom, our Husband, our God.