"When the Bridegroom King beholds His Bride, His heart is ravished by just one glance from her. Would you like to learn hidden truths, past present and future regarding this special relationship? Deep in scripture are secrets that have been held back from the wise and revealed to babes. Could it be that discovering her, we find ourselves? Come track with me this holy journey of the Bride and her Beloved."

Biography of the Bride

The Divine Union between Christ and His ChurchBy Ali Johnson

AuthorHouse

Copyright © 2009 Ali Johnson
All right reserved.
ISBN: 978-1-4490-0706-5

Contents

Introduction........................................................1Judgment............................................................4Marriage: One Man-One Woman.........................................6Marriage and the Humility of Christ.................................8A Sinless Savior....................................................11The Beauty of Humility..............................................14The Cross and the Passover Lamb.....................................17The Darkness........................................................20His Death...........................................................25The Bride was Born..................................................27His Burial..........................................................30The Bridegroom Beckons..............................................33The Water of Life...................................................39The Oil of Intimacy.................................................42Our Spiritual Journey...............................................45Our Spiritual Journey Scripture Reference...........................47The Bridal Relationship and His End Time Church.....................50The Divine Union....................................................54Recommended Reading/Study...........................................57I Give You My Heart.................................................59

Chapter One

Judgment

When sin found its entrance, the intimate relationship between Godand man was severed. At that moment, Adam and Eve suffered spiritualdeath and eventually physical death. Looking at the punishment fortheir disobedience, we will see that the curse of sin remains with eachsubsequent generation until it is wiped away through the Cross ofChrist. He became our curse (Galatians 3:13) so we would not have tosuffer an eternal death.

"And the Lord God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast donethis, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field;upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thylife, And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and betweenthy seed and her seed; It shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise hisheel" (Genesis 3:14-15). To Eve, God said, ".....I will greatly multiplythy sorrow thou shalt bring forth children; and thy desire shall be to thyhusband, and he shall rule over thee" (Genesis 3:16). Finally to Adam,God declared, "Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife,and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thoushalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thoueat of it all the days of thy life ..." (Genesis 3:17-19).

When examining this portion of scripture in Genesis 3:16-19,God is speaking to the now fallen man and woman. The self-life wasborn in the Garden that day because of mankind's disobedience to thecommand of God. Christ gave us power over this self-life through thecross. We are given the first prophetic promise of hope in Genesis 3:15,where it is declared, Christ would triumph over Satan. The woman'sseed was to crush the devil's head, making all things subject to theauthority of God. Scripture also reveals there will be enmity betweenthe woman and the serpent (Genesis 3:15). We see this more clearly aswe peer into the pages of history and reflect on the abuse women havetaken ever since the fall of mankind. Satan's disdain for her is obvious,as she symbolized the Church of God as a whole and became the avenuethrough which our Savior was born. Jesus brings reconciliation betweenGod and man once again. This is the place where the power strugglebetween man and woman melts into oneness, back to their originalstate, reconciling them in the presence of God. The second Adam was soin love with His Eve (the Church) that no price was too great to redeemher from the hands of the enemy.

Chapter Two

Marriage: One Man-One Woman

What was God's design for marriage from the beginning? Did he nottake only one rib from Adam for the creation of Eve? He said in Genesis2:24, "Therefore shall a man leave his father and mother, shall cleaveunto his wife; and they shall be one flesh." God did not use the word"wives" here. So when did "wives" come into the picture? The very firstto practice this was Lamech, an ancestor of Cain. In Genesis 4:19, theBible states he took for himself two wives. This was just the beginningof a blatant violation of God's marital law of one man and one woman.In order for Lamech to keep his wives in this unheard-of relationship,he used great boasting, coupled with fear. He said (Genesis 4:23),"....Adah and Zillah, Hear my voice; ye wives of Lamech, hearken untomy speech: for I have slain a man to my wounding and a young manto my hurt."

Lamech stated his name for the purpose of declaring his authority.He orchestrated a damaging use of religion to lead these women to gainultimate control and then presented God as a seal of approval for hisactions, "If Cain shall be avenged sevenfold, truly Lamech, seventy andsevenfold" (Genesis 4:24). In other words, he was telling the two womenif you leave or hurt me, not only will you face my wrath, but God willget you in the end as well. Fear was the knot that tied them together.

Jesus revealed the heart of God about marriage when He said,"Wherefore they are no more twain, but one flesh" (Matthew 19:6). Noother relationship on earth can be more sacred. Our whole Christianlife depends on our understanding of the marriage principle. If we fullycomprehend and accept the natural law of marriage, we will have a veryclear picture of the divine marriage. One man for one woman; no othercombination will do. It is not only the design of God, but it is His ownwork that we are in Christ (John 1:12-13). Right from the beginning oftime, before the foundation of the world, this Holy union was ordained:one bride for one husband (Genesis 1:27). The Daughter of God for theSon of God, given in marriage by the infinite Father, knitted togetherby the Holy Spirit.

The more we give ourselves to Him, our Holy Bridegroom, the moreHe gives Himself to us. We find we can have as much or as little as wedesire. He promises that if we draw near to Him, He will draw nearto us (James 4:8). As our hearts are united by the bonding of the HolySpirit, we are filled with the same love the Father has for the Son. Thisvery love is how the Son loves us (John 15:9).

Prayer

Lord, show us that it is your very own life you
impart as we become one with you. Teach us what it
means to abide. This most intimate act of obedience
would make it impossible for us to seek, even for a
minute, a life apart from you. Deepen within us the
sense of this Holy union. Reveal to us the revelation of
this mystery and all the love and power it avails to us.

Chapter Three

Marriage and the Humility of
Christ

There is a natural body and there is a spiritual body (I Corinthians15:44). "There are also celestial bodies, and bodies terrestrial, but theglory of the celestial is one, and the glory of the terrestrial is another(I Corinthians 15:40). There is a natural or fleshly marriage betweena man and a woman. The man shall leave his father and mother andcleave unto his wife; the two shall be one flesh (Genesis 2:24 andEphesians 5:31). This natural union is a picture and a foreshadowing ofthe supernatural union in the spirit life between Christ and His Church."That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of theSpirit is spirit" (John 3:6), both holy yet distinctly separate. God in Hiswisdom set in place different roles in the natural marriage using theheavenly union as a pattern. This can be an extremely sensitive subjectfor women since they have felt, for the most part, the lesser of the twosexes. What did Paul mean when he said, "But I would have you know,that the head of every man is Christ; and the head of woman is theman; and the head of Christ is God" (I Corinthians 11:3)? The veryword "head" has caused a great divide in our churches and broughtabout much debate. The original Greek word for "head" is "kephale."There are two preeminent interpretations of this word in this passageof scripture. To some it has come to mean authority over and they havebased their whole church administrative offices and fivefold ministry(Ephesians 4:11) around that interpretation. This group believes that awoman is not any less important than a man, just different from him,thus divinely giving a man authority over a woman at home as well as inthe church. The contrary concept fervently presents scriptural referencesto solidify the doctrine of the word "head" means source. God is thesource of Christ (John 17:8), Christ is the source of man (Acts 17:28),and finally, man is the source of woman (Genesis 2:22). These scholarsfeel the correct interpretation for the word "kephale" is source in thisparticular instance.

When listening in on the debate, it is difficult not to be swayedin either direction. Both sides seem compelling, do they not? Who orwhat are we to believe? The latter seems to set women free from theLaw (Romans 7:6), the former keeps them bound to it (I Corinthians14:34). "For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyonewho believeth" (Romans 10:4). There is a fine line dividing these twodefinitions, but with significant consequences. For example, in today'suse of the word "fast," one instance it means "to hold tight" and inanother context it means entirely the opposite: "to go quickly."

Can it please the heart of our Bridegroom King to debate themeaning of one word (II Timothy 2:14)? He has come to set us free. Heis our Head; He is our Source. When operating in the body of Christ, Heis our only "Head" (Colossians 1:18). He is jealous over the affections ofHis Bride. We are betrothed to one Husband (II Corinthians 11:2). Whena person has the place of leadership (Ephesians 4:11) in our churchessimply because of gender, then the Church has literally been placed inan adulterous position. We, male and female alike, are the Bride. Inthis heavenly union, there is neither male nor female (Galatians 3:28),we are one body in Christ Jesus, who is not a respecter of persons (Acts10:34). Only He has the right to the position of headship regardingHis Church (Ephesians 1:22-23). When biases of any sort make theirway into our pulpits, into our classrooms, or into the mission field, weunknowingly have exalted the old life of self and stand on the very thingfrom which the cross has set us free. This Beloved is the sin of religiouspride (Proverbs 16:18) and grieves the heart of God.

In the spiritual marriage, there are roles and responsibilities to helpmaintain holy order, yet unlike the natural marriage, these roles arenot based on gender but on a divine call of the Potter's choice (Romans9:20-21). We are called to be servants of all (Matthew 20:27), just asour Savior (Philippians 2:7). With proper interpretation, the questionof headship would be fully understood. We can walk in this kind ofhumility if we would keep our eyes on our heavenly Bridegroom andstudy the pattern of His walk and life of humility.

Chapter Four

A Sinless Savior

Through a woman came the first sin; it was also a woman who birthedthe Redeemer who washed sin away. Matthew 1:20-21 says, "....thoushalt call his name Jesus: for he shall save his people from their sins."Jesus became the Holy sacrifice, sinless and perfect. How could Christ beborn sinless, since He had a mortal mother? In our human reproductivesystem, it is the man's seed that is a living organism; it fights for survivalby swimming to the female seed/egg. It only knows it has to be the oneto connect in order to ensure survival. It is through one live seed thatsin is passed down from one generation to the next.

The Holy Spirit overshadowed Mary's (Luke 1:35) human eggcontaining the DNA of mankind, without the living seed of the malehuman. The result: a sinless birth, pure Deity in human form comingfrom the Bosom of the Father to be from the seed of a woman (John1:13). We stand back, dazed at such a gift, speechless to witness Hisprofound humility as Deity willingly makes Himself a little lower thanthe angels (Hebrews 2:9).

He grew up before us as a tender plant (Isaiah 53:2). At the ageof twelve, He was clear of His purpose. He innately knew who Hisfather was (Luke 2:49). Yet, "He was in the world, and the world wasmade by him, and the world knew him not. He came unto his own,and His own received him not" (John 1:10-11). Scripture tells us Hegrew in wisdom and stature (Luke 2:52). He was the Word before thefoundation of the world, became flesh and dwelt among us (John 1:14)."Jesus therefore, knowing all things that should come upon him ..."(John 18:4), reveals to us He knew exactly what Isaiah 53 said andthe path that lay ahead for Him. The hardest thing for us to possiblyunderstand is that He was "... smitten of God ..." (Isaiah 53:4). Somebelieve Romans or Jewish leaders of that day were responsible for thecrucifixion, but scripture clearly tells us it was God Himself who tookfull claim for this unimaginable event. He said, "Yet it pleased the Lordto bruise him; he hath put him to grief ..." (Isaiah 53:10).

Before the fall in the Garden of Eden, both male and female sharedmutual love and walked with God, scripture says, "... in the cool of theday ..." (Genesis 3:8), sharing a divine fellowship.

When Eve succumbed to the craftiness of the devil, she becameguilty of what I will call Unintentional, the first transgression/sin. Shethen handed the forbidden fruit to her husband, Adam, standing rightthere beside her (Genesis 3:6). As he partook, just as his wife, he becameguilty of the second sin, Intentional. Both made up the whole of sin,bringing forth death (James 1:15).

Mankind lost their status the moment they choose to rebel. In theOld Testament, God ordered the Israelites, when in battle, to wipe outwhole nations. It's hard to understand how a holy God could wipe outwhole people-groups, but when He looked at them, all He could seewas sin. Other nations served false gods, usually made by their ownhands, and did not believe in blood atonement for sin. From the timeof Cain and Abel, mankind knew sin could only be covered by a bloodsacrifice. These different people-tribes refused the God of Israel and Hisatonement requirements. Through the wickedness of his heart, Cainslew his brother, Abel. His jealousy and rebellion made Abel the firstmartyr for the blood sacrifice.

The shedding of the blood of sheep and goats did not please theheart of God (Hebrews 10:4-6). Though animals are sinless, their bloodcould only cover sins temporarily and could not give eternal life andcomplete forgiveness. The blood of animals had no atoning power, itcould only act temporarily. Christ's blood, sinless in every way, broughteternal forgiveness, not just covering sin but wiping it completely away(Colossians 2:13-15).

Chapter Five

The Beauty of Humility

Jesus' example of washing His disciple's feet perfectly modeled thegreatest humility. Only the poorest and lowliest of servants in theancient community washed the feet of others. Jesus shocked all thosearound Him, as evidenced by Peter's exclamation, "Thou shalt neverwash my feet." (John 13:8a). To Peter's surprise, Jesus answered, "If Iwash thee not, thou hast no part with me" (John 13:8b). Jesus paintedsuch a vivid picture in the minds of His disciples that it still marks us tothis day. Without the full cleansing work of redemption at the momentof salvation, the disciples could not have any place with Him.

Jesus stated, "He that is washed needeth not save to wash his feet,but is clean every whit ..." (John 13:10). We are completely cleansedwhen we are born again, and this need not be repeated. Repentance,renewal, restoration, and growth are ways we experience continualcleansing, ultimately contributing to an abiding heart.

Continues...

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