A Beauty Glorious

I like to imagine sometimes what my wedding will be like. I want something breezy and free and beautiful. I imagine what I will look like as I walk down the aisle. I picture a white flowing dress that looks like something out of The Lord of the Rings, and maybe even bare feet. My hair will have soft waves and curls, gently pulled back and pouring down my back in a luscious waterfall. My gauzy veil, attached to my hair by a little silver tiara, will flow down over my hair, brushing against my cheek. I will walk slowly down the aisle, with all my dearest friends and family watching me, but my eyes will be locked on the eyes of the man at the front. My bridegroom. The man who has chosen me whom I have chosen in return. Maybe you like to imagine the same thing.

What would you say if I told you there is a wedding more beautiful than that waiting for you?

There are a lot of phrases that get batted around in the church a lot, and “Bride of Christ” is one of them. If you grew up in the church, you’ve probably heard it all your life. We talk about the Church being the Bride of Christ, and in heaven we will celebrate at the Wedding Feast of the Lamb.

This can sound like a rather strange concept (especially for guys), but it’s definitely in the Bible.

"Let us rejoice and be glad; let us praise his greatness! For the time has come for the wedding of the Lamb, and his bride has prepared herself for it. She has been given clean shining linen to wear.” (The linen is the good deeds of God's people.) Then the angel said to me, “Write this: Happy are those who have been invited to the wedding feast of the Lamb.” And the angel added, “These are the true words of God.”
Revelation 19:7-9

And I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared and ready, like a bride dressed to meet her husband.
Revelation 21:2

That bride, the new Jerusalem, is the Church, all believers who have ever lived. She is being married to Jesus, the lamb of God, the lamb who was slain. (John 1:29, Revelation 5:12)

Maybe this is something that boggles your mind a bit. I hope so. It is a gloriously massive concept, and it should stagger you a bit. If it doesn’t, you probably haven’t let it sink in yet. We are Jesus’ bride! The King of heaven and earth has chosen us, courted us, and proposed. For those of us who have accepted, a beautiful wedding beyond imagination and blissful unity for all eternity await us.

If you have a hard time thinking of yourself and God in romantic terms, you’re not alone. It was a crazy concept to the Hebrews too. They were used to thinking of themselves primarily as God’s servants, chosen and protected so they could serve him. But this is what God said through one of his prophets in the Old Testament:

“On that day she will call me her husband,” declares the LORD. “She will no longer call me her master.”
Hosea 2:16

God longs to take us beyond a master-servant relationship into a real love affair, a passionate and committed marriage! He wants us to call him “husband”! Can you imagine?

Of course, it’s not entirely literal. God has no gender, and there are millions of Christians, men and women. Obviously, God is not going to put on a tux and we are not going to all try to fit into one wedding dress. But in the most important sense it is absolutely true. Think about it. In human life, marriage is the most intimate relationship two people can have. What better picture is there for God to use in describing how close he wants to be to us?

In the past few years when I first began realizing that this is how God sees me, as his beautiful and beloved bride, I absolutely melted. I have been so captivated by this love that has swept me off my feet. This is my prayer for you.

I am the devoted servant of the Most High God. I am the precious daughter of the King of Kings. But even beyond that…I am the beloved bride of the Man who gave up everything to pursue me. I am the princess bride of King Jesus Christ.