Part XX.1 - The Bride..

The Bride-The Wife Of The Lamb As we have seen, the Reign of the Heavens is about who will ascend the throne of the Kingdom of Heaven with Christ to rule and reign with Him. Who will be crowned with glory and honor? At Calvary, the one new man in Christ was birthed. At the Second Coming of Christ, the Bride of Christ will come forth and ascend the throne with Him. She will wear the crown of the life, the crown of the righteousness and the crown of glory. It is love that will crown her in that day. In the Scriptures, we discover that in the creation of man and the fashioning of woman from man, God forever established that His work is all about a love relationship-bridegroom and bride, husband and wife, king and queen. We might think that these relationships are the invention of man, but it is God who has established these things. Why? Because God is love and He has embarked upon a love relationship with His created beings. This relationship will not stop at the end of the seven days set aside for this earth but will continue into eternity. In fact, the coming millennial reign of God’s Son is only the beginning of an endless love affair that will grow stronger and stronger in the endless ages. God’s ultimate purpose and plan involves bringing man into the very heart of all that He desires to do throughout eternity, and this involves an intimate love relationship between God and man. God’s heart is to bring man into the reign of His universe and for man to join Him in all that His creative power of love will bring forth in an ever-growing dimension. There is no end to the increase of His government and there is no end to His love.

Under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, Paul declared what was written: "Things which eye has not seen and ear has not heard, and {which} have not entered the heart of man, all that God has prepared for those who love Him" (1 Corinthians 2:9). In the immediate sense, this refers to the coming millennial Kingdom, but this is only the beginning point in an endless revelation or unveiling of what God has prepared for those who love Him. Things the likes of which we cannot imagine with our minds today will be manifested in eternity. It is like Paul who was caught away to Paradise and heard things unspeakable (2 Corinthians 12:4). What excitement this should bring to our hearts; what hope should strengthen our hearts; what love for God should flood our hearts. When we consider the glory of the eternal ages, it captivates our hearts; however, we must come back to earth, for we still have a 1,000-year Kingdom of Glory to come and this is the central theme of the prophetic Scriptures. Our hope is to be fixed on the coming of our Lord Jesus, for He is coming for a people to enter with Him into that most intimate of relationships, that of a bridegroom and a bride, a husband and a wife, a king and a queen. This matter of a bride for His Son is central in God’s purpose and plan. When Adam was created, God commanded that man (represented by Adam) was to have dominion over the earth. However, God declared: It is not good for the man to be alone; I will make him a helper suitable for (corresponding to) him (Genesis 2:18). Adam needed a helpmate if he was to have dominion over the earth; so God put Adam to sleep, fashioned Eve, a woman, from Adam’s body and presented Eve to Adam as his wife. We could say that Adam was to be the first king of this earth but he needed a queen if he was to rule. Unfortunately, Adam did not become king because of rebellion in the Garden. But it is here that God laid down His unchanging principle that His Son must have a wife, a helpmate, a queen to rule with Him.

God’s restoration work in Man’s Day is leading to the marriage of the Lamb and a great wedding feast that will usher in the Kingdom of the Son of God’s love (Revelation 19:7).

Throughout the Scriptures, we see evidence of the Bridegroom and the Bride. The Song of Solomon is about the Bridegroom’s pursuit of His Bride. The Bridegroom speaks to His Bride: "How beautiful you are, my darling, how beautiful you are!" (Song of Solomon 4:1). When he came on the scene announcing the arrival of the Lamb of God, John the Baptist spoke of his joy over the Bridegroom: "He who has the bride is the bridegroom; but the friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly because of the bridegroom’s voice. And so this joy of mine has been made full" (John 3:29). Jesus spoke of Himself as the Bridegroom: And Jesus said to them, "The attendants of the bridegroom cannot mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them, can they? But the days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast" (Matthew 9:15). The Lord also spoke a parable about the Bridegroom coming: "But at midnight there was a shout, ‘Behold, the bridegroom! Come out to meet {him’} (Matthew 25:6). We even see evidence of the coming wedding feast when Jesus performed his first miracle at a wedding feast (John 2:1-11).

Finally, when we come to the end of the Bible and the Revelation of Jesus Christ, the Bride comes into view. At the end of the Great Tribulation as the King of kings begins His descent to the earth, taking the scepter of the Kingdom, a shout of rejoicing will come forth from the voice of the great multitude in heaven. The Lord God, the Almighty will have begun His reign. And I heard, as it were, the voice of a great multitude and as the sound of many waters and as the sound of mighty peals of thunder, saying, "Hallelujah! For the Lord our God, the Almighty, reigns. 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." And 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. And he said to me, "Write, ‘Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.’" And he said to me, "These are true words of God." (Revelation 19:6-9)

However, the Son of God will not be alone in His reign, for He will have a bride who has overcome and has made herself ready to sit upon His throne as He had sat upon His Father’s throne (Revelation 3:21). The shout is not only for the arrival of the King but also for the marriage of the Bridegroom to His Bride who will sit upon His throne as His Queen.

There is another indication of this fact as recorded in Psalms 45:1-17, a prophetic song of love that overflows with a good theme-the coming King (Psalms 45:1).

Thy throne, O God, is forever and ever; a scepter of uprightness is the scepter of Thy kingdom.… Kings’ daughters are among Thy noble ladies; at Thy right hand stands the queen in gold from Ophir. (Psalms 45:6; Psalms 45:9) When the King comes, He will have a queen at His right hand who will reign with Him. Her clothing will be inter-woven with gold (Psalms 45:13), the divine character of the One to whom she is betrothed. She will stand with Him in all of His glory. This is the view that the Scriptures present of God’s desire to have a bride for His Son. We can see that the Bride of Christ is presented in the Scriptures from the beginning to the end. The Bible starts with a wedding and ends with a wedding; therefore, the theme of the Bridegroom and the Bride is very significant in our understanding of the Word of the Kingdom and coming into the Reign of the Heavens. However, it is more than a theme, for it is an essential matter for all who are seeking the Kingdom and desiring to receive the inheritance of the Kingdom. Let us not forget that it is about a love relationship with the Creator of the universe. The Restoration Work Of The Holy Spirit With this overview, there are two questions that are relevant to our understanding of this matter of a bride and they involve the Holy Spirit. First, what has the Holy Spirit been doing since the beginning of the restoration of this earth and, subsequently, during the restoration of fallen man? Second, what has been the Holy Spirit’s primary work since Calvary? It is the answer to the second question that will be taken up in this chapter, but let us begin with the first answer. In the book of beginnings, we discover the work of the Holy Spirit in the restoration of an earth that had fallen into ruin because of the rebellion of God’s ruling angel, Satan. And the earth was formless and void, and darkness was over the surface of the deep; and the Spirit of God was moving over the surface of the waters. (Genesis 1:2) The Person of the Holy Spirit is the agent of the Godhead who breathes life into that which is dead and in ruin; this has been His work and will continue to be His work throughout Man’s Day. The work of restoration is accomplished by the Holy Spirit; and since the very beginning, this is the only way that life has come forth from death. The earth was in ruin and the Spirit hovered over the ruin and breathed life into it. In like fashion, fallen man is in a state of spiritual death and ruin, and it takes the Spirit to breathe new life into man who is dead in transgressions (Ephesians 2:5). However, this work did not start at Calvary; otherwise, no one prior to Calvary was saved, which is not true. This is a very important point, for we might be tempted to believe that the Spirit’s work began at Pentecost. As we will see, He did start a new work at Pentecost but it was not the work of restoration. The fact that many were saved even before God’s Son came to this earth is clearly seen in the Hebrew letter. Hebrews 11:1-40 speaks of all those who died in faith, without receiving the promises, but having seen them and having welcomed them from a distance, and having confessed that they were strangers and exiles on the earth. Women received {back} their dead by resurrection; and others were tortured, not accepting their release, in order that they might obtain a better resurrection. And all these, havinggained approvalthrough their faith, did not receive what was promised (Hebrews 11:13; Hebrews 11:35; Hebrews 11:39). These saints of old had faith; they believed God; they were looking for the same promises to which Christians are encouraged to look; they were looking for the heavenly city; they even were desiring the same resurrection from the dead. How did these saints of old come to have such faith? It only could be the result of the work of the Holy Spirit who breathed life into those who stood in faith, believing God’s promises. For by it [faith] the men of old gained approval (Hebrews 11:2). As Christians, we look back at the cross of Calvary and see our eternal salvation. Unfortunately, we become very shortsighted in our view and think that only those who came after the cross have eternal salvation and everyone before the cross has something else. But the Scriptures never present this view. In our day, we look back at the cross; but in the days before the cross, the people of God looked forward toward the cross. Speaking to the Jews, Jesus said: "Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw {it} and was glad" (John 8:56). Further, we are told that Moses left the comfort of Egypt, for he looked for the reward and he endured as seeing Him who is invisible (Hebrews 11:26-27NKJ). He saw Christ and he followed Him forty years later as the nation of Israel was led through the wilderness (1 Corinthians 10:4).

It is as if Calvary stands outside of time and all time during Man’s Day points to the cross. We are not told how much the saints of old understood nor how they knew what they knew, but the fact is that they had tremendous vision of what is to come. They did not have the Bible as we have it today and thus they might have had less knowledge of God’s purpose and plan than we do; nevertheless, it is apparent that they had far more vision than many Christians do today who have unlimited access to God’s completed Word. The point that must be understood is that the work of the Holy Spirit has continued uninterrupted since the beginning of the restoration of this ruined earth, prior to the creation of man. Thus, the Holy Spirit was involved from the beginning in the restoration of this earth, hovering over the raging waters, and He has continued this work of breathing life into fallen man for nearly 6,000 years. It is the work of grace, and all the saints that have gone before (Old Testament and New Testament) have been redeemed by grace through faith as the work of the Holy Spirit. In the coming age, there will be saints of old who will shine brightly in the Kingdom. The Holy Spirit’s work in this regard has not changed and will not change as long as God has set the time for bringing the lost into eternal salvation. It was by grace through faith in the beginning and it will be by grace through faith until the end.

[We need to be reminded that salvation always is based on the blood. When Adam and Eve sinned, God killed an animal, shedding its blood as a type of what would occur 4,000 years later at Calvary (Genesis 3:21). When the nation of Israel was called out of Egypt as God’s first-born son (Exodus 4:22), they had to appropriate the blood of the sacrificed lambs (Exodus 12:3-7), again as a type of what would occur 2,000 years later at Calvary. In our day, 2,000 years after Calvary, when a person believes and is saved by grace through faith, they too are appropriating the blood-the blood of the Lamb of God-and will not enter into the wrath of God unto eternal condemnation. God’s unchanging principle is based on the blood: When I see the blood I will pass over you (Exodus 12:13).]

Now, having answered the first question, we must proceed to answer the second question, which will take up the remainder of this chapter. A Helpmate To Rule To begin, we need to return to this matter of a bride for Adam. When Adam was created and Eve was fashioned out of Adam’s body, God said, "Let them have dominion." In other words, the word them means that God set down a principle right at the start that requires man and woman to have dominion together. Adam could not rule or have dominion over the earth apart from Eve. Adam was to be the king and Eve his queen. This is the principle God laid down which cannot be broken.

Satan, who was the ruling angel over the original, perfect earth, rebelled against God in wanting to be like the Most High (Isaiah 14:12-17; Ezekiel 28:14-19). His rebellion brought the territory (earth) of his kingdom into ruin. In Genesis 1:2 a, it is recorded that the earth became void. It was a dark (without sunlight), worthless, wasted ruin with raging waters flowing over its surface. God did not create the earth in vain but with a purpose to be inhabited (Isaiah 45:18NKJ).

Starting in Genesis 1:2 b, God began six days of work to restore the ruined earth with a purpose in mind. On the sixth day, He created man from the dust of the earth. God’s purpose for man was to have dominion. God created man to rule the restored earth, taking the place of its fallen ruler, Satan. But Adam was not to rule alone, for his helpmate, Eve, was to rule with him. Without her, there could be no rulership over the earth; both had to rule together. To Adam, Eve was bone of his bones and flesh of his flesh (Genesis 2:23). Thus, rulership over this earth required (and still does) a king and a queen. This is the principle God set forth when He restored this earth.

Once we understand this principle, the reason for Satan’s successful attempt to deceive Eve becomes apparent. Satan knew the reason for the creation of man and he sought a way to bring about man’s disqualification. If successful, Satan knew that he would continue to hold the scepter of the kingdom over this earth.

[It is most instructive to read the account of the Lord’s temptation following His baptism. When Satan tempted the Lord Jesus in the wilderness, he offered Jesus the kingdoms of the world saying, "This has been delivered to me, and I give it to whomever I wish" (Luke 4:6NKJ). In other words, the rulership of this world was delivered to Satan by God and retained by Satan when Adam fell.]

Satan also knew that Adam could not rule without Eve, so he proceeded to tempt her into disobeying the command of God that was given to Adam. [Eve should have turned to Adam and consulted with him over the meaning of the command. Why? Because they were one flesh and in ruling they were to work together, not independently of one another. This is as it will be with Christ and His Bride. Think about it; Christ will not act independently from His Bride.] When Satan was successful in his deception, Adam followed Eve in partaking of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil (1 Timothy 2:14). But why did he follow her? The answer is the same reason why our beloved Lord Jesus who knew no sin became sin for us (2 Corinthians 5:21). Out of love, Jesus became sin to redeem a people to be His Bride. He became sin with a view of redeeming for Himself His Bride who was dead in sin and trespasses (Ephesians 2:5NKJ).

Adam is a type of Christ (Romans 5:14). He had to become a sinner to redeem Eve, his bride. There was no other way for Adam, for apart from her he could not rule. Likewise, apart from His Bride, the Lord Jesus cannot rule over this earth. He must have a queen if He is to be the King of the Kingdom of Heaven. The Son shall have a helpmate to reign with Him (Genesis 2:18). This is God’s principle which cannot be broken and must be fulfilled.

Following Adam’s fall, God sacrificed an animal and covered Adam’s and Eve’s shame (nakedness) with animal skin (Genesis 3:21). God redeemed them, but they were disqualified from replacing Satan as the ruler over this earth.

According to God’s command: "In the day that you eat of it you shall surely die" (Genesis 2:17NKJ). In that day, their spiritual life with God went into a death. Not only did their spirit die but their physical bodies began to go into a death. Adam lived 930 years and died. He died seventy years short of God’s day for with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day (2 Peter 3:8). God kept His promise: "In that day (a 1,000-year day)…you shall surely die."

Adam and Eve were barred from the tree of life which was present to give them the ability to rule and live forever (Genesis 3:22-24). When Eve was deceived, she was disqualified from eating of the tree of life and ruling with Adam forever. Adam could not partake of the tree of life and reign without her, so he partook of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil with a view of redeeming Eve so that they both could eat of the tree of life one day and fulfill God’s purpose for the creation of man-to have dominion. This is all a type of what was to come through God’s only begotten Son (Romans 5:14).

Man would have to wait 4,000 years until God’s Son would come to this earth and die as the perfect sacrifice for the sins of the world. Without the shedding of blood there is no remission of sin (Hebrews 9:22NKJ). Through His perfect sacrifice, Christ has fulfilled the requirement to redeem His Bride for Himself. The Son has been waiting 2,000 years since Calvary to take the scepter of the Kingdom that was intended for Adam in the beginning. But why the long wait? This is what we want to look at more closely. Since Pentecost, the Holy Spirit has been searching for the Bride, the Queen who will rule with God’s King. The Promise Of The Holy Spirit When the Lord Jesus ascended to the throne and was exalted to the right hand of God the Father, the promise of the Holy Spirit was poured out on the Body of Christ, the new creation in Christ.

"Therefore being exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He poured out this which you now see and hear." (Acts 2:33NKJ) When He came down from heaven to fill the 120 believers waiting in the upper room, the Holy Spirit came not to save them but to fill them. They were already saved at that time through a work of the Holy Spirit. They believed on the Lord and were obeying His command to wait. Thus, when the Spirit came as Christ was exalted, there was another reason for His coming. To understand the purpose, let us turn to the book of Genesis, chapters 21 through 25, for here we will see the type which points to the work of the Spirit today. The Types InGenesis 21:1-34;Genesis 22:1-24;Genesis 23:1-20;Genesis 24:1-67;Genesis 25:1-34 In these chapters, Abraham is a type of God the Father; Isaac is a type of God’s Son; Abraham’s oldest servant who was sent to find a bride for Isaac is a type of the Holy Spirit who has been sent to procure the Bride for the Son of God; Rebekah is a type of the Bride of Christ; Sarah and Keturah (Abraham’s two wives) are types of Israel, the wife of Jehovah.

By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises offered up his only begotten son, of whom it was said, "In Isaac your seed shall be called," concluding that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead, from which he also received him in a figurative sense. (Hebrews 11:17-19NKJ) From this passage in Hebrews, we discover that the events surrounding Isaac are in a "figurative sense." Actually, the Greek word for figurative sense is parabole which means "a truth cast alongside a previously explained truth." Thus, if we understand the truths laid down regarding Isaac’s life, including the persons and events surrounding his life, then we will come into a further understanding of God’s work in the present dispensation.

Isaac is a type of Christ. He was conceived in a supernatural way since Sarah was old and barren. But God set the time for Isaac to be born and He gave life to what was barren. By comparison, the birth of Christ was supernatural, as well. Mary was a virgin and was found with child of the Holy Spirit (Matthew 1:18NKJ).

Later, God commanded Abraham to offer his son Isaac for a burnt offering on a mountain in Moriah. So Abraham proceeded to the mountain and saw it three days later, on the third day (Genesis 22:4). When Abraham was commanded to offer his son, Isaac died in the eyes of Abraham; therefore, in a sense, Isaac was in a place of death to Abraham for those three days. Three days later, he would be resurrected (raised back up to life in respect to Abraham). On the mountain, he placed his son of promise on the altar, trusting God to provide the sacrifice. As his hand was raised to sacrifice his son, the Angel of the Lord called to him to stop. Abraham looked up and saw a ram caught in the thicket. Isaac, who was set to die, was spared through a substitute sacrifice, the ram which was slain in his place. By comparison, Isaac on the altar points to God the Father offering His only begotten Son on the cross to die a substitutionary death for fallen man. [Christ probably was offered up at the exact same place that Isaac was offered.] The Passover Lamb paid the penalty for sin. On the third day after His death, He arose from the dead, once again alive to the Father.

Following the offering of Isaac, Sarah, his mother, the wife of Abraham, died. This is a type of what happened to Israel following the death of their Messiah. As Isaac was offered and Sarah died, so was the Messiah offered and Israel was set aside, that is, put into a place of death for the next 2,000 years.

Come, and let us return to the LORD; for He has torn, but He will heal us; he has stricken, but He will bind us up. After two days He will revive us; on the third day He will raise us up, that we may live in His sight. (Hosea 6:1-2NKJ)

Israel was offered the Kingdom of Heaven by their Messiah but rejected the offer and crucified the One who made the offer. Israel has been wounded for 2 days (2,000 years) but will be revived on the third day (the coming Messianic Era, the seventh day of rest, the third day). In the type, Abraham is God the Father. Sarah the wife of Abraham is Israel the wife of Jehovah. Thus, in the antitype, Israel is set aside following the cross of Calvary. In Genesis 24:1-67, following the offering of Isaac and the death of Sarah, Abraham sent his oldest servant out to procure a bride for Isaac. In type, this points to the time after the death and resurrection of the Son of God and after Israel is set aside for rejecting the offer of the Kingdom and ultimately crucifying their Messiah. This time is the last 2,000 years or two days of Man’s Day. The Servant Seeks For A Bride When Abraham was old, well advanced in age, he called his oldest servant and made him promise: "Please, put your hand under my thigh, and I will make you swear by the LORD, the God of heaven and the God of the earth, that you will not take a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I dwell; but you shall go to my country and to my family, and take a wife for my son Isaac" (Genesis 24:2-4NKJ). This servant was given the charge to go to Mesopotamia to the family of Abraham and take a wife for Isaac from his blood relatives. A wife could not be taken from the Canaanites. "Go to my country and my family" was the charge. As a type, the procurement of a bride for Abraham’s son refers to the Holy Spirit who has been sent throughout the world to procure a wife for the Son. But it is vital that we see that the search is amongst the family, that is, God’s family. The Canaanites represent the lost and the family of Abraham represents the saved, the house of God. In other words, the Holy Spirit is searching amongst the one new man in Christ, the Body of Christ to procure a bride for Christ.

We can see a further type in Adam and Eve. Eve was taken out of the body of Adam. She was not his entire body but a part of his body. When she was fashioned from one of his ribs, she was presented to him as his wife. The same picture is given to us regarding the Bride of Christ. She will come out of the Body of Christ. His entire Body will not be His Wife. The work of the Holy Spirit today is to search for and procure a bride for the Son, not from the lost of the world but from those who are saved and make up the Body of Christ. He is looking for those who are overcoming, who are running the race of the faith and who will finish the course. The oldest servant went out alone to search for the bride for Isaac, who remained at home with his father. Likewise, the Son of God remains with His Father, seated upon His throne, while the Spirit searches for the Bride. When the servant went out, he took with him ten camels with all of the master’s goods. Ten in the Scriptures refers to completion. The Holy Spirit has gone forth with all the possessions of God, which can refer only to one thing-the Word of God. The Holy Spirit, the Spirit of truth, is the One who unveils to the hearts of the saved (not the lost) all the possessions of God. He proceeds forth from the Father (John 15:26); the world cannot receive Him (John 14:17), for He comes to guide the saved into all truth (John 16:13). This truth pertains to Christ (He witnesses of Christ) and all that concerns His return, His Kingdom and how to overcome to be His Bride. When the oldest servant went to Mesopotamia, he prayed to the Lord, asking for Divine favor in knowing whom the bride was to be.

Then he said, "O LORD God of my master Abraham, please give me success this day, and show kindness to my master Abraham. Behold, I stand here by the well of water, and the daughters of the men of the city are coming out to draw water. Now let it be that the young woman to whom I say, ‘Please let down your pitcher that I may drink,’ and she says, ‘Drink, and I will also give your camels a drink’-let her be the one You have appointed for Your servant Isaac. And by this I will know that You have shown kindness to my master." (Genesis 24:12-14)

Before he had finished speaking to the Lord, it happened; Rebekah appeared at the well. She was from the family of Abraham, was a virgin and was able to draw water from the well (Genesis 24:15-16). All of these traits speak of Christians and the requirements to become the Bride of Christ. Again, the Bride must come from the family. All who are born-again are children of God who are awaiting adoption as first-born sons in the Kingdom.

Rebekah was a virgin, which speaks of those cleansed by the blood of the Lamb. In the New Testament, there are two instructive references to Christians as virgins.

First, Paul the apostle saw the saved as being betrothed to one Husband, Christ, and he jealously worked to present the saints to Christ as a chaste (perfect, clean, innocent) virgin. 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. (2 Corinthians 11:2NKJ) This is the heart of the Holy Spirit who is searching for that chaste, pure virgin to present to Christ.

Second, the Lord Jesus spoke the parable of the ten virgins who are associated with the Kingdom of Heaven (Matthew 25:1-13). [Some people think these virgins refer to Israel, but this cannot be possible because, at the time of this parable, the offer of the Kingdom of Heaven had been taken from Israel due to their rejection of the offer. Also, the five foolish virgins do not refer to the lost because the lost are never considered virgins.] The ten virgins refer to those who are saved who are currently being offered the Kingdom. Again, ten refers to a number of completion. All ten virgins are called, but only five are chosen to enter into the wedding when the Bridegroom comes. We must be reminded of the Lord’s exhortations: "For many are called, but few are chosen" (Matthew 22:14NKJ). "Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it" (Matthew 7:13-14NKJ).

They all knew the Lord ("Lord, Lord, open up to us!") and they all went out together to meet the Bridegroom. All Christians will rise in the air together and stand before the judgment seat of Christ. From the called ones will come forth the ones who are called out (chosen) to rise to the throne as the Bride of Christ. The others are saved (eternal salvation) but will not be received as the Wife of Christ during His millennial reign.

What makes the difference between the wise and the foolish? The extra oil. They all have oil in their lamps. In the Scriptures, oil represents the Holy Spirit (Leviticus 8:10-12; Leviticus 21:12; 1 Samuel 10:1; 1 Samuel 10:6; 1 Samuel 16:13), which means that they all are new creations in Christ (born-again believers) and as such the Holy Spirit has taken up residence in them. The difference between the foolish and the wise virgins is that the wise virgins (Christians) possess an extra supply of oil. In other words, the wise ones are filled with the Holy Spirit.

What does being filled with the Spirit mean? Some Christians immediately relate filling to speaking in tongues and "flowing in the gifts." This is not what is spoken of as being filled. It has to do with receiving the implanted Word of God, which is able to save your souls (James 1:21). This also relates to the third quality of the bride as seen in Rebekah drawing water. Water refers to the Word of God; therefore, being filled with the Holy Spirit and the Word of God are related to one another. Without the Word, there is no filling. To prove this, we need to look at two related passages in Paul’s epistles. Paul wrote to the Ephesians about being filled with the Holy Spirit and he wrote to the Colossians about the Word of Christ dwelling richly. By comparing the two verses and the text that follows each, the proper relationship between the Word of God and the Holy Spirit will be discovered as presented by Paul. The two are inseparable. And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord, giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, submitting to one another in the fear of God. (Ephesians 5:18-21NKJ)

Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. (Colossians 3:16NKJ) Be filled with the Holy Spirit and let the word of Christ dwell in you richly reveal that Christians filled with the Holy Spirit are the ones who allow the Word of God to dwell in their hearts in all wisdom. The same result follows in each case-speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing to the Lord in your heart. These Christians dwell in the Word of God (reading, understanding, acting upon it) in such a way that it is implanted in them under the leadership of the Holy Spirit. As James wrote: Therefore lay aside all filthiness and overflow of wickedness, and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls (James 1:21NKJ). The Word is able to save our soul; but it must be implanted or rooted in us. This does not come by some mere understanding of some basic truths in the Scriptures. It comes from searching the Word of God and allowing the Holy Spirit to reveal the mature (epignosis) knowledge of Christ and His coming. The eyes of our heart are opened to see the goal of the Kingdom that is set before us, and we allow the Word to work actively in our lives through faith. It is to do its cutting work in our lives today so that we may gain our life in the Kingdom (Matthew 16:24-27) and receive the outcome of our faith, the salvation of our soul (1 Peter 1:9). The Holy Spirit has brought this into sharp focus in the letter to the Hebrews.

Let us therefore be diligent to enter that rest, lest anyone fall through {following} the same example of disobedience. For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart. And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are open and laid bare to the eyes of Him with whom we have to do. (Hebrews 4:11-13)

Thus, the wise virgins are full of the Holy Spirit through the Word of God which richly dwells in them unto the salvation of their souls. It is the active and living Word that prepares a heart to stand before the Judge. The wise virgins are ready to be received by their Bridegroom because they willingly lost their lives (soul, self-life) to gain them in the Age of the Kingdom. They are wise because the Word of God richly dwells in them in all wisdom. This wisdom, which is from above (not earthly), leads them to endure the trials and temptations of this life, producing patient endurance so that they will be perfect and complete, lacking nothing (James 1:2-4). In the Day of Christ, they will lack nothing and will be prepared to enter the wedding.

[For a more detailed explanation of the parable of the ten virgins, see the author’s book titled Watch!, chapter 10, The Bridegroom Is Coming.]

Now, returning to the servant’s search for the bride, we discover that he went with all the master’s goods. He brought out jewelry of silver, jewelry of gold, and clothing, and gave them to Rebekah. He also gave precious things to her brother and to her mother (Genesis 24:53NKJ). The servant revealed all the wealth of the one to whom she would be married and he shared some of it with the whole household. This is the same picture we have today of the Holy Spirit who is revealing all the treasures of Christ and the age to come as found in the Word of God. The Holy Spirit is revealing to the Bride of Christ the inheritance that awaits her in the Son, and He reveals some of these things to Christians (of the household) who will not share in the inheritance as the Bride.

After seeing all the wealth of her future husband, Rebekah was ready to go but the family wanted her to delay. The servant was not to be denied doing what his master had called him to do, and in his timing. The Father has set the time for the presenting of the Bride to His Son and nothing will stop Him from bringing forth the Bride in His time (Acts 1:7; Mark 13:32-33). Will You Go?

Because of the persistence of the servant, the family called Rebekah and asked if she wanted to go. So they said, "We will call the young woman and ask her personally." Then they called Rebekah and said to her, "Will you go with this man?" And she said, "I will go." (Genesis 24:57-58NKJ) This question is an essential question to all Christians: "Will you go? Are you willing to lay down your life today and prepare yourself to be His Bride? Are you willing to come under the leadership of the Holy Spirit and allow the Word to dwell richly in you with all wisdom? Will you say, ‘Yes, I will go!’?" The invitation is going out to the Body of Christ, but who has an ear to hear?

"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. To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches." (Revelation 3:20-22) This is the voice of the Bridegroom calling forth to His Bride. It is His Bride who will ascend His throne in the day of His glory because she overcame the world, the flesh and the devil. The call is going out to "he who has an ear." Are you listening? Are you responding?

Next in Rebekah’s journey to Isaac, she mounted the camel along with her maids who rode on the other camels (ten of them). All the maids and Rebekah went to meet Isaac, which once again signifies all Christians going to meet the Lord in the air (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17). Isaac left his home and went out to meditate in the field in the evening (Genesis 24:63). As he was in the field, he looked up and saw the camels coming. When Rebekah was told that Isaac was the man walking in the field, she took a veil and covered herself. Isaac then brought her into Sarah’s tent and took Rebekah as his wife.

Christ will meet His Bride in the same way. He will come in the air and receive all of His people. Those who stand out amongst all Christians will be those who are clothed with the fine linen, which is the righteous acts of the saints (Revelation 19:8). As Rebekah wore the veil, they will be wearing the wedding garment. They are the ones who throughout their walk with the Lord said "Yes" to the Holy Spirit. It is at this point that the great multitude in heaven offer up their shout: "Alleluia! For the Lord God Omnipotent reigns! 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" (Revelation 19:6-7).

Let us yield to the Holy Spirit today and in our hearts purpose every day to be like Rebekah: "Yes, I will go!"

Now, before concluding this chapter, we need to touch upon the hearts of the Bridegroom and the Bride. The Heart Of The Bridegroom In his letter to the Ephesians, Paul wrote of the relationship between a husband and wife and he compared this relationship to Christ and His Church. Paul wrote that the mystery is great. Christ loved the Church and gave Himself up for her; that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, that He might present to Himself the Church in all her glory, having no spot or wrinkle or any such thing; but that she should be holy and blameless. Christ nourishes and cherishes the Church because His people are members of His Body. He has cleaved Himself to the Church, becoming one with her, just as a husband cleaves to his wife, becoming one flesh with her (Ephesians 5:25-32).

All of this speaks of the heart of the One who gave His life to redeem a bride for Himself. As John, the apostle who abided in the love of Christ, wrote: We love, because He first loved us (1 John 4:19). This is the heart of the Bridegroom. He loved first! It was His love that was poured out on Calvary and it is His love that will bring His Bride to His side. The Lord Jesus commanded that His disciples (all of us) love one another, even as He has loved us (John 13:34). The Lord has promised the "brotherly love" church at Philadelphia that those who stand against His people will be made to know that He has loved them (Revelation 3:9). No one can turn to John 17:1-26 and read the Lord’s prayer to His Father as He was about to die on the cross without touching the depths of the love of Christ. The very conclusion of His prayer touches upon love.

"O righteous Father, although the world has not known Thee, yet I have known Thee; and these have known that Thou didst send Me; and I have made Thy name known to them, and will make it known; that the love wherewith Thou didst love Me may be in them, and I in them." (John 17:25-26) Paul’s oft-quoted words to the Romans express the depths of the love of God and of Christ. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? Just as it is written, "For Thy sake we are being put to death all day long; we were considered as sheep to be slaughtered." But in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8:35-39) Is there anything that will stop God from bringing forth a bride for His Son? Is there anything that will stop the Holy Spirit from procuring a bride for the Son? Is there anything that will stop the Bridegroom from receiving His lovely Bride to His side? Absolutely nothing will stop God from fulfilling His purpose and plan. Love does not fail! The Heart Of The Bride

What should be the heart of the Bride as she waits for the love of her life? For those children of God who love the Lord and are longing for His appearing, there should be a growing attraction, hunger and desire to be in His presence. Are you hungry to be in His presence? Is there a sensing in you that this world is not your home? Are you a pilgrim, a sojourner like Abraham? Those who are being conformed to the image of God’s Son to be His Bride should no longer be attracted to this earth. There should be a growing desire to meet Him in the air. "Come, Lord Jesus" is their cry! Is this your cry?

We are to be like the Shulamite maiden who declared: "Listen! My beloved! Behold, he is coming" (Song of Solomon 2:8). As their marriage deepened, the wife’s heart was so caught up with her beloved that she said, "I am my beloved’s, and his desire is for me" (Song of Solomon 7:10). After a while, she could wait no longer.

"Hurry, my beloved, and be like a gazelle or a young stag on the mountains of spices." (Song of Solomon 8:14) This is the cry of the Bride of Christ. "Hurry, my beloved! You have been gone too long and I must see You. I must embrace You. I must be with You. This earth has no more attraction for me. Come, my beloved!" The book of Revelation is the revealing of Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. As the Revelation is unveiled, we are told: Behold, He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him; and all the tribes of the earth will mourn over Him. Even so. Amen."I am the Alpha and the Omega," says the Lord God, "who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty" (Revelation 1:7-8). Our beloved Lord Jesus is calling out today: "Surely I am coming quickly" (Revelation 22:20NKJ). Do you hear His voice of love calling? Do you see His soon arrival? The cry of the longing, faithful Bride is: Come, Lord Jesus!Let it be so. Come, Lord Jesus! The heart of the Bridegroom and His future Bride is one heart, a heart to be together. When this day comes, it will be glory. The Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit will be fully satisfied.

O Lord, come! Maranatha!