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.
Revelation 19:7 KJV
Throughout the scriptures, God revealed Himself to man in many ways. In the old covenant, calling yourself a child of God was blasphemy. The highest and the closest to God then was a friend of God. However, in the new covenant, we have the privilege of being children of God, yet the peak of our relationship and interaction with God is being His bride. The cause of Joy in heaven in Revelation 19:7 was that the bride had made herself ready. Note that there is the bride that will make herself ready based on the materials provided for her, 2 Peter 1:2-4 and there are those who will be made ready via the great tribulation. A woman may move around freely, but the moment she is aware that a man seeks her hand in marriage, her disposition and interaction with other people, especially other men changes, because she wants to be worthy of that choice on her to be a wife. Much more, we in the new covenant have such a great call, where the King of the universe would like to share all He is and has with us via the covenant of marriage. It is therefore necessary to prepare for this great call.
How do we prepare for the marriage supper of the Lamb?
Matthew 25 gives us a parable that explains the preparation of those who will eventually become the bride of Christ. In this verse, there were ten virgins. Typically in a marriage, there is one man and one wife, not 10 women to one man, so this is clear that this story is more than just tales, but has great significance to us at this time. 10 is the number of testing. We see this in Daniel 1:12 and Revelation 2:10. This means the bride is under testing, to know who will be worthy of this call to be married. Each one of them took their lamps. The lamp is the Spirit man, Proverbs 20:27. The lamp lit with oil in it means that these are not unbelievers, but men and women who have had their spirit man revitalized. Their spirit man was made aware of the need to meet the bridegroom.
The focus of today would be that they were virgins. Songs of Solomon 1:3 says that because the name of the bridegroom is as ointment poured unto the lips of the bride, the virgins love Him. The virgins in this case are lovers of their bridegroom. To be a virgin means they have kept their bridal chastity. It was very important in the old covenant that a priest, most especially a high priest must marry a virgin, Leviticus 21:10-14. In our case, the requirement for being among the choice to be married is to have a virgin heart. Paul describes this in, 1 corinthians 7:34, as one whose heart and desire are to please the Lord. To be a virgin means that this woman has not been ‘known’ by another man. There is a specific passion, emotional response, and a part of her that is to be stirred up by one man alone. How do we keep our virginity?
We must ensure that our loyalty is undivided and nothing stirs us up or takes the affection in our hearts that Christ does. This is fornication and adultery, James 4:4. We may have desires, however, David says the way to receive these desires is not to idolize them, but to delight ourselves (endear ourselves) in the Lord. Like the case of Samson in Judges 15:1-2, those who seek to corrupt the bride of Christ are often His friends. This is seen often in the church today, where men who are meant to be friends of God, take up titles that seem to elevate them above their brethren and steal the affection, worship, and devotion that is meant for Christ alone. Some go as far as restricting the interaction of these believers with other congregations and discourage personal devotions subtly, claiming that prayers that would be answered by God are those that they make for ‘their flock’ to God, because of some anointing they possess. This is adultery! If you are in such a place, flee for your soul’s sake! While these men will be punished, it is not worth it to be defiled due to deception.
In tomorrow’s meditation, we will explore in more detail, Matthew 25. However, the qualification to undergo these testings in the first place is to be a virgin. Do not let anyone or anything steal the devotion meant for God alone. Ezekiel 16 shows a pictorial representation of how we make God feel when we run to man and other things or extol any other relationship over Him. Our God is a jealous God and will not tolerate unfaithfulness. He is also a consuming fire!
Prayer for today: Lord thank you for giving me a privilege that many of the saints of old and patriarchs sought to understand, but were not given the ability to partake of while on earth, that I should be called the bride of Christ. To confirm this, You gave me the Holy Spirit to prepare me for the marriage. Lord help me to keep my bridal chastity. May nothing else woo or satisfy me as You do. May I not give that which is meant for You as my husband to another. May I not lose out on this privilege because of deception or ignorance and be cast to a place of regret and gnashing of teeth. Amen
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