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Site Owner Posts: 23363 |
Revelation
19:7-9 Let us rejoice and exult and give him the glory, for the marriage of
the Lamb has come, and his Bride has made herself ready; it was granted her to
clothe herself with fine linen, bright and pure”— for the fine linen is the
righteous deeds of the saints. And the angel said to me, “Write this: Blessed
are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.” And he said to
me, “These are the true words of God.” Revelation 21:9 Then came one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues and spoke to me, saying, “Come, I will show you the Bride, the wife of the Lamb.” Ephesians 5:25-27 Husbands, love your wives, as 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, so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish. John 3:29 The one who has the bride is the bridegroom. The friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly at the bridegroom's voice. Therefore this joy of mine is now complete. Revelation 21:2 And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. 2 Corinthians 11:2 For I feel a divine jealousy for you, since I betrothed you to one husband, to present you as a pure virgin to Christ. Colossians 1:18 And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent. Matthew 25:1-46 “Then the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish, and five were wise. For when the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them, but the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps. As the bridegroom was delayed, they all became drowsy and slept. ... 1 John 5:5-6 Who is it that overcomes the world except the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God? This is he who came by water and blood—Jesus Christ; not by the water only but by the water and the blood. And the Spirit is the one who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth.
Colossians 1:24 Now
I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I am filling up what
is lacking in Christ's afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the
church,
Ephesians
5:25 Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself
up for her,
Romans 12:1 I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by
the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and
acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.
1 John 3:17 But if anyone has the world's goods and
sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God's love
abide in him?
Hebrews 6:1 Therefore leaving the principles of the
doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection;
Old Testament Types
and Foreshadows
Scriptures from Song of Solomon: “This Book stands like the tree of life in the midst of
the garden, and no man shall ever be able to pluck its fruit, and eat thereof,
until first he has been brought by Christ past the sword of the cherubim, and
led to rejoice in the love which hath delivered him from death. The Song of
Solomon is only to be comprehended by the men whose standing is within the veil.
The outer-court worshippers, and even those who only enter the court of the
priests, think the Book a very strange one; but they who some very near to
Christ can often see in this Song of Solomon the only expression which their
love to their Lord desires.” Charles
Spurgeon Shulamite (Bride) looking for her Shepherd (Jesus our Bridegroom) Song 1:7 Tell me, O thou whom my soul loveth, where thou feedest, where thou makest [thy flock] to rest at noon: for why should I be as one that turneth aside by the flocks of thy companions?
The Shepherd refers to
the one He loves (Shulamite Bride)
Song 1:15 Behold, thou [art] fair, my love; behold,
thou [art] fair; thou [hast] doves' eyes.
Song 2:10 My beloved spake, and said unto me, Rise
up, my love, my fair one, and come away. Song 2:13 The fig tree putteth forth her
green figs, and the vines [with] the tender grape give a [good] smell. Arise, my
love, my fair one, and come away. 14 O my dove, [that art] in the clefts of the
rock, in the secret [places] of the stairs, let me see thy countenance, let me
hear thy voice; for sweet [is] thy voice, and thy countenance [is]
comely.Song 4:1 Behold, thou [art] fair, my love; behold, thou [art] fair; thou [hast] doves' eyes within thy locks: thy hair [is] as a flock of goats, that appear from mount Gilead. Song 4:7 Thou [art] all fair, my love; [there is] no spot in thee. Song 4:9 Thou hast ravished my heart, my sister, [my] spouse; thou hast ravished my heart with one of thine eyes, with one chain of thy neck. Song 4:10 How fair is thy love, my sister, [my] spouse! how much better is thy love than wine! and the smell of thine ointments than all spices! Song 5:9 What [is] thy beloved more than [another] beloved, O thou fairest among women? what [is] thy beloved more than [another] beloved, that thou dost so charge us? Song 6: 1 Whither is thy beloved gone, O thou fairest among women? whither is thy beloved turned aside? that we may seek him with thee. Song 6:5 Turn away thine eyes from me, for they have overcome me: thy hair [is] as a flock of goats that appear from Gilead. Song 6:10 Who [is] she [that] looketh forth as the morning, fair as the moon, clear as the sun, [and] terrible as [an army] with banners? | |
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-- 1Thessalonians 5:16 -18 Rejoice evermore. Pray without ceasing. In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you. KJV
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Site Owner Posts: 23363 |
Source: Sarah Beveridge
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-- 1Thessalonians 5:16 -18 Rejoice evermore. Pray without ceasing. In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you. KJV
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Member Posts: 269 |
a different view on the Bride of Christ
most of this is from http://cdacoffee.hubpages.com/hub/Who-Is-The-Bride-of-Christ but I added a few thoughts of my own and verse citations to try and make it a bit clearer
The New Jerusalem, the Bride of the Lamb Revelation 21:9-10 One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb.” And he carried me away in the Spirit to a mountain great and high, and showed me the Holy City, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God.
Revelation 21:9-10 clearly states that the "the bride, the Lamb's wife" is the Holy Jerusalem from heaven.
If the Church were "the bride, the Lamb's wife" then that angel would have shown him "the Church", not the Holy Jerusalem. - Rev. 21:9-10
Jesus did not teach that his body is also his bride. Paul didn't teach it either. Rather they both used an analogy comparing the relationship of the Church to Jesus as being similar to that of a husband and wife, simply because that was the most serious earthly covenant mere humans could relate to and comprehend.
If the church is "the bride of Christ" then the Christian has to do something to get "herself ready" because Rev 19:7 says, "Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready." That would requires "works" to be done by the Christian to get ready. The Church is made righteous, and sanctified by faith alone note works:
John 6:28-29 Then they asked him, “What must we do to do the works God requires?” Jesus answered, “The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent.”
Romans 4:18-23 shows how it is your faith that is credited to you as righteousness not your works
Luke 18:8 reveals that Jesus is looking for faith when he returns
So then, the church, in God's eyes, is already ready. The "Bride of Christ" teaching states the church has to do something to make "herself ready", to be perfect. If this were true then there is absolutely no way Jesus will ever return for the church, because that which can perish (mortals- the church) is incapable of putting on the imperishable (1 Corinthians 15:53), yet that is something we are not capable of doing ourselves (1 Corinthians 15:50) . Only God can clothe us in immortality, but that is conditional upon first having clothed us in righteousness, which only the works of Jesus can clothe us in, not our own works.
We can't get "ready" ourselves out of our own doing something to be perfect. We are not perfect and we can never be perfect outside of Jesus' gift of righteousness. It is just not possible.
TAKING GRACE AWAY?
Rev 19:7 says: "Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready."
It isn't that this scripture is teaching to take away grace it is the people who preach the church/bride concept that are undermining grace, whether knowingly or unknowingly. Since they believe the church is the "bride" then by default they have to preach that the church is getting herself ready and be without spot and blemish before the Lord comes to get us in order to be consistent with Rev 19:7.
Rather, Jesus said he left to prepare (John 14:3) and make ready the bride of Christ (The Heavenly Jerusalem, His Father's house with many mansions or chambers) that is why it is a gift of grace, because Jesus is the one making it ready and doing the work, not believers, so again it is a gift of unmerited favor/grace we simply have to have faith in HIS works.
I personally do not see the Church as being the "Bride of Christ" but rather see all the references made to the husband and wife relationship and verses regarding the Bridegroom's arrival being more of instruction on how Jesus interacts with the Church expressed in an earthly covenant (marriage) that mere mortals can more easily wrap their minds around than the deeper spiritual reality those verses are trying to express, because now we are only capable of seeing this in part, once raptured in whole. Jesus tried to express the concept of his relationship to believers in something (marriage) that the Church is familiar with and can comprehend, but the relationship clearly goes much deeper than any earthly marriage. | |
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Member Posts: 277 |
If the church were Christ 's Bride ,then he'd be marrying himself. We are His body. He's the head. One Body. He cannot marry His OWN body. Must agree with you Aragorn | |
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-- '' I'am the Lord; that is my name! I wil not give my glory to anyone else. I will not share my praise with carved idols. Everything I prophesied has come true,and now I will prophesy again. I will tell you the future before it happens'' Isaiah Chapter42 Verses8-9
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Posts: 1654 |
There is a point where analogy fails. But, as the Bible states the symbolism of the marriage relationship is reveals a picture of our relationship to Christ. After all what is a city?, the buildings or the people.
The Rapture & The Ancient Jewish Wedding - Pt. 1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dB5HYXNF7xg
The People's "Marriage" with God http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QpvnmeCOrGo
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shavuot Qumran school Gabriele Boccaccini has suggested that the 1,290 and 1,335 days of Daniel 12:11-12 point to the observance of Shavuot in a restored Israel, as reckoned by the priestly solar calendar. These durations are exactly 30 and 45 days longer than the 3 ½ years mentioned in Dan. 7:25 and 9:27. The period of 3 ½ years amounts to 1,260 days in the priestly solar calendar because the equinoxes and solstices count as markers of the seasons rather than monthly days (1 En. 74:11, 75:1, 82:4). The blessings expected at the end of the 1,335 days pertain to the resurrection to "everlasting life" mentioned a few verses earlier (12:2), and this is the reward to those who refused to forsake the covenant unto death (Dan. 11:22, 11:28, 11:30, 11:33-35), while those who forsook the covenant (11:30-32) face "everlasting contempt". | |
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Posts: 1654 |
Better said...
http://www.gotquestions.org/bride-of-Christ.html
Husbands, love your wives, as 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,(Ephesians 5:25-27).
For I feel a divine jealousy for you, since I betrothed you to one husband, to present you as a pure virgin to Christ. Corinthians 11:2
The imagery and symbolism of marriage is applied to Christ and the body of believers known as the church. These are those who have trusted in Jesus Christ as their personal savior and have received eternal life. In the New Testament, Christ, the Bridegroom, has sacrificially and lovingly chosen the church to be His bride (Ephesians 5:25-27). Just as there was a betrothal period in biblical times during which the bride and groom were separated until the wedding, so is the bride of Christ separate from her Bridegroom during the church age. Her responsibility during the betrothal period is to be faithful to Him (2 Corinthians 11:2; Ephesians 5:24). At the Second Coming of Christ, the church will be united with the Bridegroom, the official "wedding ceremony" will take place and, with it, the eternal union of Christ and His bride will be actualized (Revelation 19:7-9; 21:1-2).
At that time, all believers will inhabit the heavenly city known as New Jerusalem, also called “the holy city” in Revelation 21:2 and 10. The New Jerusalem is not the church, but it takes on the church’s characteristics. In his vision of the end of the age, the Apostle John sees the city coming down from heaven adorned “as a bride,” meaning that the inhabitants of the city, the redeemed of the Lord, will be holy and pure, wearing white garments of holiness and righteousness. Some have misinterpreted verse 9 to mean the holy city is the bride of Christ, but that cannot be because Christ died for His people, not for a city. The city is called the bride because it encompasses all who are the bride, just as all the students of a school are sometimes called “the school.”
As believers in Jesus Christ, we who are the bride of Christ wait with great anticipation for the day when we will be united with our Bridegroom. Until then, we remain faithful to Him and say with all the redeemed of the Lord, “Come, Lord Jesus!” (Revelation 22:20). | |
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Site Owner Posts: 23363 |
Amen .....
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-- 1Thessalonians 5:16 -18 Rejoice evermore. Pray without ceasing. In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you. KJV
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Member Posts: 1537 |
Great study! | |
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-- The eyes of the LORD are upon the righteous, and his ears are open unto their cry...The righteous cry, and the LORD heareth, and delivereth them out of all their troubles. The LORD is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit. Many are the afflictions of the righteous: but the LORD delivereth him out of them all. ꕥ Psalm 34:15,17-19 ꕥ
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Member Posts: 44 |
“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.” 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. —Revelation
19:7-8 1) Forsook God 2) Worshipped idols Nevertheless, God pleaded with His bride to repent, Jeremiah 3:12-14. But Israel rejected the mercy of God. There came a time though when the Jews were free to remarry. The Jews, so long as the law of Moses was in existence was married to that law as their husband. | |
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Site Owner Posts: 23363 |
Jeepman ..... thank you for sharing. I am drawn to that opinion also .... Blessings brother
Thanks to all for sharing your thoughts on this topic. We live in the generation that will see the prophetic word come to pass. That should give us all a sense of urgency and excitement at the soon return of Jesus the Christ. What a blessed people to live in such a day .... Blessings
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-- 1Thessalonians 5:16 -18 Rejoice evermore. Pray without ceasing. In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you. KJV
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Member Posts: 44 |
Steve, great to be here! Very interesting topics for sure. We are indeed very blessed to live in this generation! God bless you Brother!
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Member Posts: 829 |
Interesting............... Topic.Blessing. | |
--Ro 14:8 For if we live, we live to the Lord; and if we die, we die to the Lord. Therefore, whether we live or die, we are the Lord’s.לאם אנו חיים, אנו חיים, אל יהוה ואם אנחנו מתים, מתים ליהוה. בין אם אנו חיים או מתים ולכן, אנו של אדון. Blessing .שמואל
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Member Posts: 277 |
Welcome Jeepman. | |
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-- '' I'am the Lord; that is my name! I wil not give my glory to anyone else. I will not share my praise with carved idols. Everything I prophesied has come true,and now I will prophesy again. I will tell you the future before it happens'' Isaiah Chapter42 Verses8-9
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Posts: 1654 |
This brings up another topic, you have a room reserved in this city!
The New Jerusalem (An Engineering Feasibility Study)
New Jerusalem http://www.remnantreport.com/cgi-bin/imcart/read.cgi?article_id=346&sub=4
Biblical Interpretations
You can follow scholars today who allegorize most of Scripture - still. But, unless the bible is clearly metaphorical or allegorical, the "plain sense of scripture" should be interpreted literally. There is no reason to do otherwise. "Like" something - such as gathering Jerusalem "like a hen with chicks under her wings," or God protecting someone "like covering with wings," is metaphorical. An allegory is a story with deeper meaning.
A Real City
The New Jerusalem, however, is described as a very real city. Consider the following gleaned from Revelation, chapters 21 and 22:
1/2 the size of United States The New Jerusalem is 1,400 miles long and 1,400 miles high. It is like an "enormous floating continent" which comes down out of the third heaven to rest upon or above the new earth. (It reminds me of a space-city).
Perfect Cube It is a perfect cube and contains 2.25 million square miles. Its size is big enough to accommodate one hundred thousand billion people (that's not a typo).
Mansions Astrophysicist Hugh Ross says, "if its population exceeds ten billion, the New Jerusalem alone would give each of us about forty billion cubic feet of living space (equivalent to a fourteen square mile home with a hundred foot high ceiling)..." (1996, 220).
14 Square Mile Mansions Our 14 square mile homes with hundred foot high ceilings is what Jesus probably referred to when He said, "In my Father's house are many rooms (mansions). If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you?..." (John 14:2-3).
Encased in thick transparent Walls The wall around N.J. is transparent, bright and glowing, 216 feet thick and 1,500 miles high. Some theorize that this keeps the temperature suitable for its inhabitants and protects everyone from outer space threats or harsh elements.
Exotic Beauty N.J. gates are pearlized and inscribed with the names of the twelve tribes of Israel Think of it. This means we remember and honor some of earth's history in the heavenly city! There is one main street which is made from a gold, transparent glass like substance (on which we will travel).
Waterfront Properties? There is a river which runs through N.J. It doesn't take too much imagination to think a river suggests there may also be streams, lakes, and waterfalls in the vicinity.
Your best health food Store The "tree of life" alongside the river provides healthful, life-giving nutrients, and its leaves heal the nations. It is what the "tree of life" in Eden was meant to be. This is the ultimate health food supplement!
No Storms The N.J. has no sea, sun, or moon as we know it. This suggests that we will no longer fight hurricanes, tsunamis, earthquakes, volcanoes, or other incidents of instability. Hurrah!
"Beam me Up" Not only is this space-city our ultimate destination and an awesome future for all believers, but we are told we will be "beamed up" off of the earth to get ready to enter our fabulous new home in the New Jerusalem.
1 Thessalonians 4:17 says it this way: "Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air..." Read it for yourself - in context. Awesome!
New Home - New Citizenship Get ready for a new life in new galaxies containing a new earth with a stunning, brilliant space-city to call your home. It is there that we will have true citizenship...because, "Our citizenship is in heaven" (Philippians 3:20). | |
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Posts: 1654 | ||
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Member Posts: 252 |
This is wonderful, thanks everyone.......God bless! | |
--SHAUNA
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Member Posts: 1537 |
That is a GREAT layout Mike! Makes me Homesick just thinking about it | |
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-- The eyes of the LORD are upon the righteous, and his ears are open unto their cry...The righteous cry, and the LORD heareth, and delivereth them out of all their troubles. The LORD is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit. Many are the afflictions of the righteous: but the LORD delivereth him out of them all. ꕥ Psalm 34:15,17-19 ꕥ
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Site Owner Posts: 23363 |
A great post Mike. Blessings brother.
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-- 1Thessalonians 5:16 -18 Rejoice evermore. Pray without ceasing. In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you. KJV
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