His way is perfect

Luke 1:38 - "And Mary said, “Behold, the bondslave of the Lord; may it be done to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her."

In the first couple chapters of Matthew and Luke we're told of some of the events and details surrounding the birth of the Lord Jesus Christ. In reading through these accounts over the past couple of weeks I've tried to put myself in the shoes of some of the key players in these scenes. We would do well to remember that these are real people just like you and me. Just because someone has their name and their story in the Bible doesn't mean that they were somehow above the emotions and feelings and confusion and unrest that often mark our lives. Granted, they are removed from us by some 2000 years and some 6000 miles, but essentially people don't change all that much. Consider some of the ups and downs of your life over the past five years. Think about how you reacted to the changing circumstances for good or ill. Think about the joy that completely consumed you during times when it just seemed that everything was going for you. At that moment there was nothing in the world that could get you down. But there were also times when sorrow or confusion marked your course. Think of the tears that you shed in prayer to God during those times when your life seemed to be falling apart and you couldn't make heads or tails of it. The people that we read of in the Word of God had these same experiences. They knew what it was to feel afraid. They knew what it was to feel lost and confused. They experienced joy and sorrow. They experienced the joy of laughing with friends and family, and they also knew what it was like to come before God with a broken heart and a mind full of questions.

In Luke chapter 1 the angel Gabriel appears to Mary, a young teenage girl who is engaged to be married. The angel gives her the news that she is going to become pregnant and give birth to a son. Naturally the question comes to her mind that would come to any virgins mind, "How can this be, since I am a virgin?" Answer: "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; and for that reason the holy Child shall be called the Son of God." This young, unmarried, Jewish virgin is the one through whom God was going to bring the Messiah who was prophesied about throughout the Old Testament. It was Mary that was referred to in Isaiah 7:14 - "Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel." Think of all that this news would mean to Mary. She was going to be a mother. She was going to have the immense privilege of raising the Son of God. But she must have had mixed emotions. "I'm going to have a baby before I'm married, what is my family going to think? What are my friends going to think? What will Joseph think? No one's going to believe this, and there's no way I can prove it to them. They might reject me even though I haven't done anything wrong." Certainly this wasn't how she had envisioned her life. She had plans for her life like any other teenage girl. She was going to marry Joseph. They were going to raise a family together. But suddenly a wrench is thrown into her plans. "He may not even marry me now." Whatever plans she had formulated, with this one announcement all those plans went out the window. But how did Mary respond to this news? "Behold, the bondslave of the Lord; may it be done to me according to your word." What a response! Would you have responded that way? I'm not so sure I would have. This is some heavy stuff, but it's evident in the little that we know of Mary, that she had a close relationship with the Lord, she knew His Word and she committed herself into His hands without reserve. She was clear in her own thinking that, whatever the cost, she was all in. And I'm not trying to cast this news in a negative light. Honestly, I don't know how a young Jewish girl would respond to the news that she was going to bear the Messiah. There may have been a longing on the part of any young Jewish girl to play this role, but I'm sure that playing this part in Gods plan was not without difficulty. Especially considering the nature of her part, people could have easily condemned her falsely, after all, people don't just happen to get pregnant. And considering the wretched nature of gossip, I'm sure that her pregnancy caused many to look at her in suspicion and harsh criticism. I can imagine Mary praying that God would give her family understanding. That He would reveal to them that she hadn't done anything wrong, but she was in fact carrying God in her womb. That she had become pregnant by the Holy Spirit. "God, please make them understand. Help me to be accepted by my friends and family. I don't understand why this is happening to me. I know you've chosen me to carry the Messiah and I thank you for that immense privilege, but please help others to understand this. Give me wisdom, God, to know how to handle this rejection. Help me to bear it in a way that is pleasing to You." At any rate, Mary was ready to serve God in whatever capacity He saw fit. That's the attitude of a true servant. "Behold, the bondslave of the Lord; may it be done to me according to your word."

Now she has to break the news to Joseph. This conversation had to take place somehow. She has to build up the courage to tell her fiance that she is pregnant. This could fill her with all sorts of anxiety. Her heart is beating faster as she looks for the right moment, he knows something is amiss because her hands and her voice are shaking and her mind seems to be somewhere else. "What's wrong Mary?" "Joseph, I'm going to have a baby." Now, Joseph doesn't know much, but there's one thing he knows beyond the shadow of a doubt, that baby isn't his. His normal day just blew up in his face. His heart drops into his stomach. Joseph doesn't know how to respond. He's lost in a sea of emotions. He feels betrayed, heartbroken, enraged, bewildered and confused, all at the same time. He can't articulate his feelings. All will power is gone. He doesn't want to eat, he doesn't want to talk, he just wants to go to bed. And Mary is heartbroken as well. She loves Joseph, and she knows what tremendous pain this must have caused him. But still, she didn't do anything wrong. Was he going to reject her on a false premise? And even if Joseph did want to talk about it, he would never believe her story that an angel appeared to her and God Himself had caused her to conceive.
As Joseph lies on his bed his mind is racing trying to figure out what is going on and how he can fix it. "How could she betray me like this? I was going to marry her and we were going to raise a family together, but there is no way I can do that now. Obviously Mary isn't the girl that I thought she was. So what am I supposed to do? According to the law of God I could have her put to death... No. I could never do that. I love Mary, even if she doesn't love me. I don't want to bring her shame or disgrace. I don't want to draw attention to her. But it's obvious that I can't marry her now, not after this. There's only one thing to do. I'm going to have to break off the engagement and send her away quietly..." And with these thoughts circulating through his mind, Joseph drifts off to sleep. Suddenly he's startled. He doesn't know if he's awake or still sleeping, but standing there in front of him is an angel of the Lord. The angel says to him, "Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife; for the Child who has been conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. She will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins." And as quickly as the angel appeared, it was gone. "Can this be so? Mary is carrying in her womb the Messiah, the Son of God? Oh, thank You God for not letting me do anything rash. She must be the one of whom the prophet wrote: "Behold the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and you shall call His name 'God with us.'"" The Lord revealed to Joseph what Mary never would have been able to convince him of. And Joseph arose from his sleep and did as the angel of the Lord commanded him. Certainly this isn't the start that Joseph had planned, but as Proverbs 16:9 says - "The mind of man plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps." The sense of betrayal and hurt turn into a sense of wonder and amazement. And as Joseph considers this he realizes that there is something much bigger going on here than just a baby being born.

When the angel came to Mary to announce her conception he also told her that her elderly relative Elizabeth, who had been barren all her life, was in her sixth month of pregnancy. So Mary goes into the hill country to visit her cousin. Now, the circumstances surround Elizabeths pregnancy, though not impossible according to human standards, are certainly unusual. The baby that she had conceived was to be the forerunner of the Messiah. And as this young teenage girl greets her elderly cousin, the baby begins to leap for joy within her mother's womb. Elizabeth somehow knows that Mary is pregnant and that the baby she's carrying is the Lord Himself. "Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! And how has it happened to me, that the mother of my Lord would come to me?" Can you feel Mary's spirit begin to lift? The Lord brings this encouragement at just the right time. As the awesome scene of the angel begins to wear off and the fear of loneliness and rejection begin to set in, the Lord boosts up Mary's spirit. We have a small sense of what this is like. I'm sure we've all had times in our lives when we knew beyond a shadow of a doubt what the Lord wanted us to do, but as we began to set off in that direction we just hit one obstacle after another, and then the discouragement begins to set in and we begin to think, "maybe I didn't hear Him right. Maybe this isn't what God wants me to do after all." And just when those thoughts start to emerge God sends someone into our lives to speak a word of affirmation, or something happens that verifies what the Lord had initially laid on our hearts. And so, encouraged by her cousin, Mary begins to rehearse in her mind the Scriptures that she had been taught from childhood, and her heart overflows in praise to God. "My soul exalts the Lord, and my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior. For He has had regard for the humble state of His bondslave; For behold, from this time on all generations will count me blessed. For the Mighty One has done great things for me; And holy is His name. And His mercy is upon generation after generation toward those who fear Him. He has done mighty deeds with His arm; He has scattered those who were proud in the thoughts of their heart. He has brought down rulers from their thrones, and has exalted those who were humble. He has filled the hungry with good things; And sent away the rich empty-handed. He has given help to Israel His servant, in remembrance of His mercy, as He spoke to our fathers, to Abraham and his descendants forever."

After staying with Elizabeth for three months Mary returns home. For the next several months life goes on as normal as you could expect. Over time it becomes obvious that Mary is pregnant, and gossip begins to fill the small town. Mary and Joseph are slowly becoming distant from their friends and family, but the thing that is causing the separation is also serving to draw them closer to one another. They are becoming more dependent on one another because they need each other. There may not be a single other person in their immediate surroundings who believes the supernatural account that Mary and Joseph are giving, but they both now know beyond the shadow of a doubt that this pregnancy is an act of God. And even if there's not another person who they can entrust themselves to, they have each other.

Over the course of time word reaches the small town of Nazareth that the Roman emperor, Caesar Augustus, the ruler of the known world, has issued a decree that all the world should be taxed. And the way this tax worked was that everyone had to travel to his own hometown in order to be registered, and then the tax would proceed from there. And this was not something that could be opted out of. This decree affected everyone in the entire world. So here they are, Mary is close to full term, and out comes this governmental decree, 'By order of Caesar Augustus, everyone is to travel to their city of origin in order to register for the census.' Are you kidding me? Could this have come at a worse time? We may not see this as such a big deal, but think about the governmental decrees that we get all worked up about. We talk about those lousy politicians and the stupid selfish decisions they're making. But have we ever been put under a mandatory decree that forced us to leave our homes, take time off work, travel at our own expense and register with the government, all for the singular purpose of giving them our money? Can you imagine the outrage that would flood our nation if something like this was even hinted at? And yet what were Mary and Joseph going to do? Protest? That wouldn't do any good. Those under Roman rule could gripe and complain as much as they wanted, but if Caesar decreed something it stood. There was no changing it. It didn't matter if you were pregnant or anything else. And if the decrees of our government affect us as they do, the decrees of their government were life altering. We can tend to just gloss over these first few verses of Luke chapter 2 without really considering the impact of this decree, but this truly was life altering. And what could they do but comply? As Joseph makes preparations for the journey he really wishes that there was some way out of it. He knows that Marys time to be delivered is near and he wants to make sure that everything is ready and that his wife is comfortable when the time comes. "O Lord, I know that you are the Sovereign God. You hold the nations in Your hands. The heart of the king is like channels of water in Your hands and You turn it wherever You wish. God, if there is a way out of this census, I pray that You would make it plain. Change the kings heart I pray. God, my heart aches for Mary. You know how difficult it would be for her to make this journey at this stage of pregnancy. I want to take care of her and the baby that You've given her, but I can't see a way around this trip. God give me wisdom to know what to do! And again, if there is a way to avoid this census, please, make it clear. I need Your guidance and Your wisdom. Help me I pray." But a way out never came, so after some preparation Joseph and Mary set out on an unexpected 80 mile trip. An unexpected 8 hour car ride can frustrate us. But think about this young teenage couple and the difficulties that this trip would include. To make matters worse, Mary is going to give birth any day. Just as their lives were becoming somewhat normal again and they were beginning to rework their plains for the coming years, another unpredictable event comes in, forcing them into a situation which will pull them out of familiar surroundings and force them on a journey which they probably would've never chosen for themselves.

What do we tend to do when adverse circumstances come into our lives? I hope we pray. We're supposed to "pray without ceasing", but even when we fall short of this, we tend to turn to the Lord in prayer when things are not going according to our plans. Often when things are going smoothly we neglect prayer. It's when tragedy strikes, when trials come, at crises moments, when things are going from bad to worse that we tend most often to turn to God in prayer. Well, think of how many prayers must have been offered in the days surrounding the birth of Christ.

As the young couple enters Bethlehem Mary is beginning to experience labor pains. But the small city is completely packed. The result of the decree has had a horrifying effect on the little town of Bethlehem. How are they to find a room in all this mess? Mary has one thing on her mind, "This baby is coming!" And Joseph has an incredible weight of responsibility falling on his shoulders. He wants to provide for his family. He needs to provide for his family, but he just can't. There simply isn't room anywhere. He would have easily given up anything, including his own comfort and security, in order to get a place for his young bride. But as they go from door to door facing rejection after rejection the anxiety and sense of failure continue to build. "What kind of husband am I? I can't even provide a descent place for my wife to give birth! Lord, please help there to be a room available at the next inn... God please provide a place for this baby to be born. Press it on somebodies heart to invite her into their home so that she doesn't have to give birth on the street. God, I want to provide for my family but I don't know how. I am incapable, there is nothing I can do. I'm helpless to help her! I need you to open a place for us!" And inn after inn they get the same message, and step after step their prayers become more fervent. "God the time is near. Please give us a place!" Can you imagine how many prayers went unanswered surrounding that first Christmas? Did God hear their prayers? Certainly. Could God have provided a room for them? Yes. So why didn't He? God alone knows the answer to that question. Gods ways don't always make sense to us, but one thing is certain, "As for God, His way is perfect."

The only place found for Mary to give birth was a manger, a feeding trough for animals. "And Mary brought forth her firstborn Son, and wrapped Him in swaddling cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn." In that moment the world around her seemed to fade away. Mary sits gazing into the eyes of her baby boy and her Savior. Oh the wonder of it all, "God contracted to a span, incomprehensibly made man." This is it. This is Gods answer for all of history, lying in a feeding trough in a small Judean city, with no one to welcome him into the world except His teenage mother and her husband to be. How could it ever be so? He emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond servant, and being made in the likeness of men.

Mary and Joseph are exhausted. They're completely drained, but even in the less than ideal circumstances they have peace. They can't explain it, but there is a joy in their hearts and a peace which passes understanding.
As the night wears on there is commotion in the street. Shepherds are running through the city asking about a baby in a manger. And as they locate Mary and Joseph and the babe lying in the manger they begin to relate to His parents the amazing events of the preceding hours. They told of the angel and his announcement, a Savior was born into the world, who is the Messiah, God Himself, lying in a manger and wrapped in swaddling clothes. And they told of the multitude of angels who were declaring in one voice, "Glory to God in the highest!" Mary and Joseph listened to all of this in amazement and wonder. And as the shepherds went away, their words did not, for Mary treasured all these things and pondered them in her heart.

We could go on to talk about the pronouncements that were made by Simeon and Anna in the temple as the Lord Jesus was dedicated when He was eight days old. We could look at the magi and the gifts that they brought to the Lord Jesus as they fell down and worshiped Him. We could talk about the family's  flight to Egypt in order to escape from Herod and his attempts to kill the Christ child, but I'll leave you to think these things out for yourself and put yourself in Joseph's and Mary's shoes as the events of life continue to lead them on mountain peaks and through valleys. Because the ups and downs of life are something that we can identify with. We know what it's like to be on the highest mountain peak at one moment and down in the lowest valley at the next.

The events surrounding this first Christmas are astounding. But the overruling characteristic of the lives of Mary and Joseph are summed up well in Marys response to the angel. All these ups and downs on the road of life, all these situations and circumstances that Joseph and Mary would not have picked for themselves if given the choice, all of this was in Gods plan for their lives. They couldn't understand it, but they knew that God had a plan for their lives and He was directing according to His will. And knowing this, they could entrust themselves completely into His care and say, "Behold, the bondslave of the Lord; may it be done to me according to your word."

So what about you? Are you willing to follow Him regardless of the cost? Even if it means that people will look down on you and judge you? "They had so much potential, why would they waste their talent like that?" When it comes to our obedience to the Lord there are always going to be some people, maybe even people who are close to you, who are not going to understand. But we have to determine that we're going to please God rather than men. We're sometimes tempted to make decisions based on what our culture sees as normal or what people expect, but if God wants you to do something that is counter-cultural, do it!

Are you willing to follow Him even if it means that you'll have to trash all the plans that you've been making for your life? This is what Joseph and Mary had to do, right? Doubtless, Joseph had plans for his future. And those plans certainly did not include his fiance becoming pregnant and having a baby before they were married. His plans didn't include traveling eighty miles to pay taxes when his fiance was nine months pregnant. His plans didn't include delivering a baby at a filthy dark stable and cradling that baby in a feeding trough. He probably didn't intend to travel to Egypt in order to escape the death sentence that an evil king would place on all the children in and around Bethlehem. If Joseph was like any normal teenage boy I'm sure he had dreams and aspirations for his life. As he and his young bride planned out their life together neither one of them could have predicted the course that their life together would take. And we've all been in similar situations. We know we're coming to a crucial point in our lives and things aren't going the way we expected. Either we need a door to walk through and it just isn't there, or there are a thousand possibilities to choose from and as you plead for direction the Lord seems silent. We know what it's like to have our life take an unexpected turn. We know what it's like to have to scrap all of our plans and start over. It's easy to become anxious and stressed out in the changes and challenges of life, but here's a crucial question, do you believe that God loves you? Don't just pass by this, actually stop and consider it. Do you really believe that God loves you? Then why would you doubt that God has been intimately and purposefully involved in directing the course of your life? It may not seem like it now, but even when we don't see Gods guidance, even when our plans go out the window, even when our lives seem to be falling apart, God is directing the course of your life. Mary and Joseph are real people. They felt just like we do. They had emotions just like we do. They reasoned just like we do. They struggled to see Gods hand in their circumstances just like we do. But in reading through these early chapters of the life of the Lord Jesus we see that, though they may not have seen it, God was directing everything according to His sovereign plan. Mary became pregnant outside of the bonds of marriage. "this took place to fulfill what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet: “Behold, the virgin shall be with child and shall bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,” which translated means, “God with us.”" They had to take an 80 mile trip to Bethlehem to pay taxes. This was to fulfill what the Lord said through the prophet Micah, "And you, Bethlehem, land of Judah, Are by no means least among the leaders of Judah; For out of you shall come forth a Ruler Who will shepherd My people Israel." They had to flee to a foreign country to escape the death sentence of a paranoid king. This happened to fulfill the word of God spoken through the prophet Hosea, "Out of Egypt I called My Son." These things didn't catch God by surprise. He had this planned the whole time. And though they may not have been able to see it at the time, we can look back on their lives and see that, yes, God had a purpose in all of it. And do you think that your life is any less important to God then their lives were? It is no accident that you were born in the time that you were. As He placed Mary and Joseph into time some 2000 years ago to accomplish His will, so He has placed you in the exact time and place where you are right now for His own purpose. Your life isn't an accident, and it isn't an aimless path that is wandering from nowhere to nowhere without purpose. Sometimes I fear that I might miss Gods will for my life, but how foolish is that? If I'm worried about missing His plan for my life then that simply shows that I'm trusting in my own ability to discern and obey Gods will rather than trusting Him to lead and guide me and enable me to carry out His work. Sometimes I can look at my circumstances and my lot in life with discontent, seeing it as a burden rather than as a gift from the hand of God. But, as one writer put it, "Our present circumstances are to be looked upon as advantages which the Great Disposer has afforded us, and not, as we are apt to think, impediments which He has thrown in our way. They are the materials with which we are to begin to build, and not a heap of rubbish that must be cleared out of the way before we lay the first stone in the edifice of our lives." We should never suppose that we could be something if only we had a different lot and sphere assigned to us. The very things that we most depreciate, as fatal limitations or obstructions, are probably what we most want. What we call hindrances, obstacles, and discouragements, are probably Gods opportunities. For He says "My power is made perfect in weakness."

Twice during the childhood of the Lord Jesus we read that "Mary treasured all these things and pondered them in her heart." And we would do well to follow her example. It's good to stop every once in a while and just reflect on how the Lord has worked in your life up to this point. Think back over the times when you felt lost or scared, when you didn't know how things would work out, when your were confused or conflicted, or you felt trapped, you didn't see how you would ever be able to move on, but by Gods grace you did. At the time you may not have seen the Lords guidance, but looking back you can see that He brought you through it. The path ahead is dark, but looking back we can see beyond the shadow of a doubt that "my times are in His hands." He led me all the way. Though we may not see it going forward, the Lord has declared, "I know the plans that I have for you." Though we don't know the plans that He has for us, He does. And we simply need to trust Him and entrust ourselves to Him. "Behold, the bondslave of the Lord; may it be done to me according to your word."

"How can you live sweetly amid the vexations things, the irritating things, the multitude of little worries and frets, which lie along your way, and which you cannot evade? You cannot at present change your surroundings. Whatever kind of life you are to live must be lived among precisely the experiences in which you are now moving. Here you must win your victories or suffer your defeats. No restlessness or discontent can change your lot. Others may have other circumstances surrounding them, but here are yours. You had better make up your mind to accept what you cannot alter. You can live a beautiful life in the midst of your present circumstances."

Father, I know that all my life
Is portioned out to me;
The changes that are sure to come,
I do not fear to see;
But I ask Thee for a present mind
Intent on pleasing Thee.

I would not have the restless will
That hurries to and fro,
Seeking for some great thing to do,
Or secret thing to know;
I would be treated as a child,
And guided where I go.

I ask Thee for the daily strength,
To none that ask denied,
A mind to blend with outward life
While keeping at Thy side,
Content to fill a little space,
If Thou be glorified.

And if some things I do not ask,
In my cup of blessing be,
I'd have my spirit filled the more
With grateful love to Thee —
More careful than to serve Thee much,
To please Thee perfectly.

There are briers besetting every path,
That call for patient care;
There is a cross in every lot,
And need for earnest prayer;
But a lowly heart that leans on Thee
Is happy anywhere.

Psalm 31:14-15 - "But as for me, I trust in Thee, O Lord, I say, “Thou art my God.” My times are in Thy hand."

Immanuel, God With Us

Matthew 1:18-25 - "Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: when His mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child by the Holy Spirit. And Joseph her husband, being a righteous man and not wanting to disgrace her, planned to send her away secretly. But when he had considered this, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife; for the Child who has been conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. She will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.” Now all this took place to fulfill what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet: “Behold, the virgin shall be with child and shall bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,” which translated means, “God with us.” And Joseph awoke from his sleep and did as the angel of the Lord commanded him, and took Mary as his wife, but kept her a virgin until she gave birth to her Son, the firstborn; and he called His name Jesus."

In considering the name Immanuel I want to begin with a question that Solomon poses in 2 Chronicles chapter 6. In 2 Chronicles 6 and the surrounding chapters we're told about the construction of the temple that Solomon built for the name of the Lord. And as Solomon gathers the people to dedicate the temple, he poses this question to God in verse 18 - "But will God indeed dwell with mankind on the earth? Behold, heaven and the highest heaven cannot contain Thee; how much less this house which I have built." Solomon asks, "Will God really dwell with men on the earth?" Why are we beginning with this question?
Is that really relevant? I mean, we're pulling out a question that was asked by an ancient king in a foreign country some 3000 years ago, could this possible have any significance to the average person living in America today? Will God, or we might say, Has God indeed dwelt with mankind on the earth? Well I don't know if you've noticed, but the world has a problem with Jesus. Have you noticed how much interest there is in "the historical" Jesus, especially during this time of the year? Newspapers will have articles titled "the historical Jesus." And the history channel will put forth a program that sets out to answer the question, who was the baby born in Bethlehem?
There was a book published last month entitled 'Christ Actually, the Son of God for the secular age.' And in this book the Author sets out on "The effort to save Jesus from the distortions of history, even from the gospels themselves."

A recent article in a Pennsylvania newspaper stated, "When Christianity began defining Jesus as God, it detached Jesus from his humanity and from the Jewish faith in which the human Jesus believed." Notice, it was Christians who set out to deceive the world and make Jesus into something that He was not.

In another article this past week entitled, 'The historical Jesus,' the author went to great pains in order to discredit the Biblical account. After concocting several pages of "research" which was comprised of more fiction than fact, the authors great conclusion was, "Jesus paternity will never be known -- and it was probably unknown to Jesus Himself." Essentially saying, "If we can shower some doubt on the birth of Christ, then we can discredit His entire life." And that's really all you need to do. Because if you question the identity of the baby in the manger then everything else that follows is brought into question. We certainly can't have people going around and suggesting that Jesus was God in the flesh, that Jesus was "God with us," so we must discredit the Bible and discredit Christ. Because if we can reject God in the manger at Bethlehem then we can reject Him anywhere. If we can make Him out to be an imposter at His birth then nothing else He did matters. So Solomons question, "Will God indeed dwell with mankind on the earth?" is extremely relevant. It sounds like it could have been lifted right out of today's paper.
Throughout the life of the Lord Jesus questions were posed, either directly or indirectly, about His identity. It was essentially Solomon question whether God would really dwell with mankind. Throughout His life people were posing the very questions that they are posing today. I browsed through the gospels this past week, and here are just a few of the questions that were posed about the identity of the Lord Jesus: In Luke 8:25 the Lord is Jesus in a boat with His disciples and He had just calmed the sea and His disciples were in wonder and they said, "Who then is this, that He commands even the winds and the water, and they obey Him?" In John 4:29 the woman of Samaria asks the question, "This is not the Christ, is it?" Johns disciples in Luke 7:20 asked the Lord Jesus, "Are You the Expected One, or do we look for someone else?" After seeing Christ cast out a demon, the multitudes in Matthew 12:23 began to say, "This cannot be the Son of David, can He?" When the Lord Jesus came to His hometown in Luke 4:22, those who heard His teaching began questioning, "Is this not Josephs son?" And again they asked in Matthew 13:54-56, "Where did this man get this wisdom, and these miraculous powers? Is not this the carpenter's son? Is not His mother called Mary, and His brothers, James and Joseph and Simon and Judas? And His sisters, are they not all with us? Where then did this man get all these things?" In John 6:42 they said, "Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How does He now say, 'I have come down out of heaven'?" In John chapter 8 the crowds asked, "Whom do you make yourself out to be?" to which the Lord responded, "Before Abraham was, I am." And they picked up stones to stone Him for making Himself out to be God. As He forgave sins in Luke 7:49, something that God alone has the power and authority to do, those who were around began to question, "Who is this who even forgives sins?" And in Matthew 21:10 the Lord Jesus was riding into Jerusalem on a donkey, and there we read, "And when He had entered Jerusalem, all the city was stirred, saying, "Who is this?"

People don't really change all that much. All through history the question has remained largely unchanged. Whether we're listening to Solomon praying 3000 years ago at the dedication of the temple, or hearing peoples puzzled questions concerning the identity of Christ as He was walking here on earth, or picking up today's paper, the question remains essentially the same. Is Jesus really God? Will God, has God, does God really dwell with mankind on the earth?

This question is also posed to us in some of the hymns that we sing during this time of year, Right?

What Child is this, who laid to rest,
On Mary's lap is sleeping?

The hymn writers ask the questions too, but unlike the journalists and commentators, they don't given us several possibilities, only to end with the statement, "Frankly, we don't know who He was, and He probably didn't either." No, the hymn writers pose the question, but then they give us the answer. And not only that, but they also tell us the proper response to these truths. 

Question:
What Child is this, who laid to rest,
On Mary's lap is sleeping?

Whom angels greet with anthems sweet,
While shepherds watch are keeping?

Answer:
This, this is Christ the King,

Whom Shepherds guard and angels sing:

Response:
Haste, haste to bring Him laud -

The Babe, the Son of Mary.

There is another hymn that we sometimes sing that asks the same question.

Who is He in yonder stall,
At whose feet the shepherds fall?

Answer:

'Tis the Lord! Oh wondrous story!

'Tis the Lord! The King of Glory!

Response:

At His feet we humbly fall,

Crown Him! Crown Him, Lord of all!

This particular song goes on to give us nine more verses, each on asking the question, "Who is this?" It travels through the birth, life, miracles, death, burial, resurrection, and current position of Christ, and in every instance asks "Who is this?" And each time the answer is the same. "Tis the Lord! The King of Glory!" So whatever the answer is to that first question, "Who is He in yonder stall, at whose feet the shepherds fall?" Whatever the answer is to this question is going to be the answer to all the other question. Because He didn't change. Whoever He was at His birth He remained through His life. And this is why the incarnation of Christ becomes the central issue. Because if the baby in the manger was not God then nothing else that He did bears any significance on my life today. If He was just a man then His life is largely inconsequential. The incarnation of Christ is a vitally important and relevant issue.

In his book 'Knowing God' J.I. Packer is talking about the difficulties of Christs life, for instance, the miracles, atonement, resurrection, etcetera, and he writes, "The real difficulty lies, not in the Good Friday message of atonement, nor in the Easter message of resurrection, but in the Christmas message of incarnation. The really staggering Christian claim is that Jesus of Nazareth was God made man… that He took humanity without loss of deity, so that Jesus of Nazareth was as divine as He was human… ‘The Word was made flesh’; God became man; the divine Son became a Jew; the Almighty appeared on earth as a helpless human baby, unable to do more than lie and stare and wriggle and make noises, needing to be fed and changed and taught to talk like any other child. And there was no illusion or deception in this: the babyhood of the Son of God was a reality. The more you think about it, the more staggering it gets. Nothing in fiction is so fantastic as is this truth of the incarnation."

Packer goes on to say "It is from misbelief, or at least inadequate belief about the incarnation that difficulties at other points in the gospel story usually spring. But once the incarnation is grasped as a reality, these other difficulties dissolve."

In the book 'Basic Christianity' John Stott says, "The crucial issue is this: was the carpenter of Nazareth the Son of God?...If Jesus Christ can be shown to have been a uniquely divine person, many other problems begin naturally to be solved. The existence of God is proved and the character of God revealed if Jesus was divine. Again questions about man’s duty and destiny, life after death, the purpose and authority of the Old Testament and the meaning of the cross begin to be answered because Jesus taught about these things, and His teaching must be true if His person is divine." 

Think about it, if that little baby in Bethlehem is God then you can easily accept everything else He did throughout His life. It's not beyond reason to think that the Creator of the eye could cause blind men to see. It's not a stretch to say that the Creator of the seas could walk on top of them or that they would obey His voice. It's not strange that the Author of Life would rise from the dead and enable others to do so. Actually, it's far more staggering that the Author of Life would die than that He should rise from the dead. The incarnation is itself an unfathomable mystery, but it makes sense of everything else that the New Testament contains. 

J.I. Packer says again, "The mystery of the incarnation is unfathomable. We cannot explain it; we can only formulate it. Perhaps it has never been formulated better than in the words of the Athanasian Creed. ‘Our Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is God made man;… perfect God, and perfect man:… who although He be God and man: yet He is not two, but one Christ; one, not by conversion of the Godhead into flesh: but by taking of the manhood into God.’ Our minds cannot get beyond this. What we see in the manger is, in Charles Wesley’s words, 

Our God contracted to a span;

Incomprehensibly made man.

Incomprehensibly- We shall be wise to remember this, to shun speculation, and contentedly to adore."

So the answer to Solomons question is given in the person of the Lord Jesus. John 1 states - "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and apart from Him nothing was made that has been made. In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men. The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it... And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth." This passage is clear, the Word is God and the Word became flesh, meaning that the answer to Solomons question is yes, that the Lord Jesus is Immanuel, He is God with us.

And so, in the remaining time I want to look at the Lord Jesus as Immanuel, God with us. And it's not my purpose to prove that Jesus is in fact God. Rather than focusing on the facts of the incarnation, I want to focus on the wonder of the incarnation. In other words, can we give ample proof of the deity of Christ? Yes, I believe that Scripture leaves us in no doubt to that fact. But rather than simply filling our minds with the facts and going away saying, "Yes, Jesus is God. I already knew that." I want to focus on the wonder of the incarnation, and hopefully help us to respond in the way that many of our hymns compel us to.

Hail the incarnate Deity,
O come let us adore Him, Christ the Lord.
 
Haste! Haste, to bring Him laud,

At His feet we humbly fall,
Crown Him! Crown Him Lord of all!

Come and worship, come and worship,
Worship Christ the new-born King.

When confronted with the truths of the incarnation these hymn writers were compelled to do more than just satisfy their intellect, but overwhelmed by the wonder of it all they were compelled to fall at Christs feet and worship. The wonder of God becoming man is brought out in this name, Immanuel. So I don't want so much to engage in a study expounding upon all the reason why we know that Jesus was God in the flesh, but rather focus on the mystery and the wonder of God becoming man. "Immanuel, God with us."

Go back with me in your thinking to the book of Genesis, and let's trace the history and progression of God's dwelling with man. In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. So keep in mind, this is who we're dealing with, the Almighty God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. Oh, and by the way, "He made the stars also." So, in the beginning the Lord God created man and woman, and desired to have a close and intimate relationship with them. In the early chapters of Genesis we see the closeness of the relationship. In those early chapters the relationship with God is pictured by a walk. God used to walk with man in the garden. But in Genesis chapter 3, right after sin entered the world, we read that Adam and Eve heard that sound of the Lord God walking in the midst of the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God amongst the trees of the garden. They hid themselves from His presence. Sin caused a separation. By the end of chapter 3 the man and his wife were driven out from the presence of the Lord. No longer could they have that close fellowship for which they were created. Isaiah puts it this way in Isaiah 59:2 - "Your sins have separated you from your God." But the Lord began to enact a plan that would restore our relationship with Him and through which He could dwell with us. Throughout the Old Testament we see that Gods presence is evident in the lives of certain people and in certain places at various times, but it never seems to be a permanent thing. We go a bit further in Genesis and we read of a man by the name of Enoch. "Enoch walked with God and was not, for God took Him." We come to Noah and read that Noah found grace the eyes of the Lord. When we come to Abraham we find God interacting with him quite a bit, and the testimony of those looking on is this, "God is with you."
In Genesis chapter 26 the Lord appears to Issac and says to him, "I will be with you and bless you." And just a few verses later He says to him, "Do not fear, for I am with you." And again, the presence of the Lord in Isaac's life was evident to those looking on, for they said, "We plainly see that the Lord has been with you."
In Genesis 28 the Lord appeared to Jacob in a dream and said to him, "Behold, I am with you, and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land; for I will not leave you until I have done what I promised you."

When we come into the later chapters of Genesis we read of Joseph in Egypt, and we read that "The Lord was with Joseph, so he became a successful man." and "his master saw that the Lord was with him and how the Lord caused all that he did to prosper in his hand." And even after Joseph was falsely accused and thrown into jail, we read, "But the Lord was with Joseph." And "the Lord was with him; and whatever he did, the Lord made to prosper."

Well, by the time we come to the book of Exodus the children of Israel have multiplied exceedingly in Egypt and out of fear the Egyptians forced them into bondage. But the Lord appeared to Moses in the burning bush in the wilderness and said to him "I have surely seen the affliction of my people who are in Egypt, and have given heed to their cry because of their taskmasters, for I am aware of their sufferings. So I have come down to deliver them from the power of the Egyptians, and to bring them up from that land into to a good and spacious land, to a land flowing with milk and honey." and He said to Moses, "Come now, and I will send you to Pharaoh, so that you may bring my people, the sons of Israel, out of Egypt." But Moses said to God, "Who am I, that I should go to Pharaoh, and that I should bring the sons of Israel out of Egypt?" Remember the Lords answer? "Certainly I will be with you."

Until now we do not see God dwelling with people. We don't see God living among them. We saw Him walking with Adam and Eve in the garden before the fall and with Enoch after. We see His special presence with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, and Joseph. He promises His presence to Moses as He sends him into Egypt to deliver the children of Israel. We see that God seems to be with certain people at certain times, but His presence seems very selective up to this point. It's not until we come to the later chapters of Exodus that He puts His presence, not just with certain individuals, but among the congregation of the descendants of Abraham.
Up to this point God doesn't have a dwelling place. We don't read of Him dwelling with mankind. We read of the calling of God, and the promises of God, and the presence of God, but we have no such thing as God dwelling with Abram or the patriarchs. But now we come to Exodus 25:8, and here we're introduced to a new idea. Gods says, "Let them construct a sanctuary for Me, that I may dwell among them. According to all that I am going to show you, as the pattern of the tabernacle and the pattern of all its furniture, just so you shall construct it." What a staggering thought. I know, this doesn't seem like such a big deal to us, but put yourself in their shoes. This is a completely new concept. Never before had it been heard of that God Almighty, the Creator God was going to come down and live among His creatures. This was such a foreign concept. The one true God, dwelling with men? How could it be?
In Exodus 29:45-46 He says again - "I will dwell among the sons of Israel and will be their God. They shall know that I am the Lord their God who brought them out of the land of Egypt, that I might dwell among them; I am the Lord their God."
And so there were careful instructions that they had to give heed to in the building of this tabernacle. "Make sure" He says "That you make it exactly according to the plan that was shown you on the mountain." And there were certain rituals and ceremonies that were surrounding this tabernacle. A sacrificial system was set up. A priesthood was instituted. Everything had to be done to the letter, just as God had said. From the priesthood, to their garments, to the measurements of the tent and furniture, the placement of the furniture, the sacrifices, the materials, everything had to be done in a very intentional way. Because this was going to be the dwelling place of God, and He can't just dwell anywhere. A very important part of the tabernacle, though all of it was vitally important, but one part of it was the veil that separated the Holy Place from the Holy of Holies.

Yes, God was going to dwell above the Mercy Seat on the Ark of the Covenant in the Most Holy Place. And that room was to be set apart, separated by a veil. Though Gods presence dwelt in the midst of His people, there was still a separation. God was not approachable. He cannot have anything to do with sinners, and so that veil always said "Stay back!" Only the high priest could enter through that veil and only once a year on the day of Atonement, and only after spilling the blood of an animal to pay for his own sins.

Nevertheless, in the tabernacle we begin to see Gods plan to dwell with mankind being worked out. God, however unapproachable, is, in the tabernacle, dwelling in the midst of His people, and we continue to see this expounded throughout the books of the law.
As we continue on in history we come to a man named David, a man after Gods own heart. And David had the desire to build a house for God. For several hundred years now God has been dwelling in a tent, and David desires to build for Him a more permanent structure. But in 2 Samuel chapter 7 the Lord sends Nathan the prophet to David to tell him, essentially, "You're not going to build Me a house. I've given that task to your son who will come after you." He says in verses 12-13 - "When your days are complete and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your descendant after you, who will come forth from you, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build a house for My name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever." Yes, He was speaking of Solomon, but He was looking past Solomon to a greater than Solomon. One whose throne would be established forever. One who would be there very Son of God, for God says "I will be a Father to Him, and He shall be a Son to Me." This is a verse that is used in the book of Hebrews to refer to the Lord Jesus Christ.

So David proceeded to make preparations for the building of the temple, but it was Solomon, his son, who would actually carry out the work of building a house for God. In the early chapters of 2 Chronicles we're given the account of the building of the temple and when we come to the end of chapter 5 the temple is completed and the glory of the Lord fills it to such an extent that the priests could not even stand to minister because the glory of the Lord was filling the house. In chapter 6 Solomon stands on a platform in the midst of the congregation of Israel, he gets down on his knees, spreading his hands toward heaven, and he begins to talk to God.

As he prays the wonder begins to fill Solomon, and the question comes to his mind in verse 18 - "But will God indeed dwell with mankind on the earth? Behold, heaven, and the highest heaven cannot contain Thee; how much less this house which I have built?" Can you hear the wonder in Solomons voice? This is the Almighty God. This is the One who created the materials I have used to build this house. He made the stone that this temple is resting on. This is the One who created the trees that make up the structure and the gold that covers it. He's the One who created all these things. This is the God who flung the stars into space and knows them. This is the God who is enthroned on high, heaven cannot even contain Him. This is the One who humbles Himself to even behold the things that are in heaven and in the earth. This is the God who created each person standing here in the midst of the congregation. The God who knit each one of us together in our mothers wombs and has marked out the days of our lives. And Solomon is overwhelmed. "Is this God really going to dwell with mankind on the earth?"

Can you catch the wonder of this? Can you hear the astonishment and awe in Solomons voice as he asks this question? Don't miss this.

I think sometimes we can become so familiar with the accounts of Scripture that they become ordinary to us. The thought of God dwelling with His creatures, the thought of "Immanuel, God with us" is so common to us that it's easy for us to throw around these phrases and actually miss the wonder of God dwelling among us. Approach these truths as if you've never heard them before. Sometimes I think we lose the wonder due to familiarity. The reality of God with us has become commonplace. But think about what this truth meant to Solomon and those standing there. It wasn't until some 300 years later that Isaiah would prophesy of one who would be the answer to Solomons question. "Behold, a virgin will be with child and bear a son, and she will call His name Immanuel." If heaven itself cannot contain God then how can this temple? Answer, it can't. But the wonder of the incarnation is that what man could not do through Solomons temple, God Himself did through the wonder of the incarnation. "The Word became flesh and dwelt among us." God became Immanuel. Colossians 2:9 tells us that in Jesus all the fulness of the Godhead dwells in bodily form.

So we come to Matthew 1 and we read that the baby in the manger is "Immanuel" which translated means, "God with us." So why is this different? How is this different than Gods presence with the patriarchs? How is this different from the Lords presence in the Tabernacle or the Temple? In the incarnation God became what He had never been before. Throughout Biblical history we see that God has a desire to dwell amongst His people. With the temple and the tabernacle it was a place for the Lords name to dwell, A place for the Lord to dwell in the midst of His people, but in both cases God is unapproachable. In both the tabernacle and the temple man is separated from God and we are unable to come into His presence. By the end of the Old Testament that veil is stilling saying "stay back!" The sacrifices are still needed. The priesthood is still in place. Because none of these things were able to deal with the problem of mans sin or bring us into the presence of God. Even in the temple Gods presence wasn't able to abide. Ezekiel tells us that the sin of Israel became so great and they began to even defile Gods house and make it into a place for worshiping false gods. And Ezekiel see the Lords presence physically leaving the house of God. He couldn't stay there, even behind the veil.
This is why we can't take the Old Testament apart from the New Testament or the New Testament apart from the Old. It takes a whole Bible to make a whole Christian. In speaking of the Old Testament W.H. Griffith Thomas says, "It is a book of unfulfilled prophecies, unexplained ceremonies, and unsatisfied longings.  All of which are resolved in the New Testaments focus on Jesus Christ, who fulfills in His life the prophecies, explains in His death the ceremonies, and satisfies in His resurrection the longings." The Bible is a book about Jesus. and in the Lord Jesus God Himself came in human flesh as Gods answer to the Old Testament.
The Bible begins in Genesis chapter 3 with separation. After man sinned he was separated from the presence of God. Even when the Lords presence came down to dwell among the people in the tabernacle in the wilderness, there was always a veil that said, "stay back!" There was that constant reminder of separation. You cannot come near to God, you cannot approach Him. It was the same in the temple. Yes, Gods shekina glory is dwelling in the midst of His people, but you can't go into His presence "lest you die." From the time that sin entered the world separation took place. The old covenant was unable to bring us close to God or bring God close to us. As long as that veil remained there was a constant reminder of separation. But when we come to the New Testament we read of a different veil, the Word became flesh. As the hymn writer puts it,

Veiled in flesh the Godhead see;

Hail the incarnate Deity,

Pleased as man with men to dwell,

Jesus our Emmanuel.

The Lord Jesus, God veiled in human flesh. As Christ was dying on the cross we read that the veil of the temple was torn in two, symbolizing that the way into the presence of God was open, not by our doing, but because God made the way. It was in the tearing of the veil, namely, the flesh of Christ, that the way into Gods presence was opened. Yes, He was veiled in flesh, but that flesh was torn. And in Hebrews chapter 10 we read - "Therefore, brethren, since we have confidence to enter the holy place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way which He inaugurated for us through the veil, that is, His flesh, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water."Christ fulfilled the Old Testament sacrifices and prophecies in His death. He has made it possible for us to enter the presence of God, and in His resurrection He is our Great High Priest who ever lives to make intercession for us.

Immanuel. God with us. The Word became flesh and tabernacled among us. In the Person of Immanuel we have Gods presence dwelling among us. The gospel of Matthew is book-ended with the presence of God. We begin in Matthew chapter 1 with "Immanuel, God with us." And we end in Matthew chapter 28 with the statement of Immanuel, "Lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." How can it be? The reason for the incarnation was the atonement. "You know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, that you through His poverty might be rich." The Bible begins, as I said, with separation, we were driven out from the presence of God. But the Bible draws to a conclusion in Revelation 21:3 with God dwelling among men. "And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God. "

In the words of Romans 8, "If God is for us, who can be against." Amazing truth, that God is for us. But even more amazing, God is not only for us, but He is with us. If we got what we deserved we would read nothing of God with us. Instead we would read of God against us. But in the Lord Jesus Christ God is not only for us, but He is Immanuel, God with us.

Isaiah 57:15 says - "For thus says the high and exalted One who lives forever, whose name is Holy, “I dwell on a high and holy place, and also with the contrite and lowly of spirit in order to revive the spirit of the lowly and to revive the heart of the contrite."" Isaiah 66:1-2 says - "Thus says the Lord, “Heaven is My throne and the earth is My footstool. Where then is a house you could build for Me? And where is a place that I may rest? For My hand made all these things, thus all these things came into being,” declares the Lord. “But to this one I will look, to him who is humble and contrite of spirit, and who trembles at My word."" Yes, the Lord dwells on high, yes, heaven itself cannot contain Him. "But," He says, "I will dwell with the humble, the lowly, those who are low." God is opposed to the proud but gives grace to the humble. I love reading about the thief on the cross. Hanging there in open shame, getting the punishment that he deserves and without hope. He cries out, "Lord, remember me when you come into your kingdom." And how did Christ respond? "Today you will be with Me in paradise." Where? "With Me." You mean God takes people like that? Sinners who are without hope? Yes. And He leaves pharisees behind. God dwells on high, and also with those who are contrite, and lowly of spirit. And though He dwells on high and humbles Himself even to behold things in heaven and earth, He humbled Himself far beyond that. "who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross."

Veiled in flesh the God-head see;
Hail the incarnate Deity,
Pleased as man with men to dwell,

Jesus, our Emmanuel. 

O holy Child of Bethlehem! Descend to us we pray;

Cast out our sin, and enter in; Be born in us today,

We hear the heavenly angels The great glad tidings tell;

O come to us, abide with us, Our Lord Emmanuel.

The Bridegroom

John 3:29 - "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. So this joy of mine has been made full."

In John chapter three John the baptist refers to the Lord Jesus as the "bridegroom." This is the same title by which the Lord identifies Himself in Matthew 9, Mark 2 and Luke 5. As with many of the titles of the Lord Jesus, at first glance this title doesn't seem to be very significant or carry with it much information but as we meditate on it and think about it, searching the Scriptures, we begin to realize that this one title actually conveys a great deal of information. In fact I would even go so far as to suggest that you could share the gospel with someone looking at Christ only as the Bridegroom and in that one title the person would have enough information to be saved. That's simply my opinion, you think it out for yourself. But the fact is that there is actually a great deal of information communicated through Christ as the Bridegroom. So let's suppose that we are telling someone about the Lord Jesus and for some reason the only thing we're able to communicate to them is Christ as the Bridegroom. First of all, what does a bridegroom beg for? A bride. It’s in the subject title, you can’t have one without the other. Can you picture a universe that contained nothing but a bridegroom? Something would be obviously missing. A bridegroom needs a bride. So we’re talking to somebody and we say “I want to tell you about the Lord Jesus and He is called the bridegroom. Bridegroom speaks of relationship." We’re not reading in new information here. Relationship is the idea of a bridegroom, someone who has a bride. Just like a bridegroom desires a relationship with his bride, so Christ, the Bridegroom, desires to have a relationship of that kind of intimacy. So the first idea communicated through Christ as the Bridegroom is one of relationship, and not just any relationship, but a relationship of the closest and most intimate kind. A mistake that some people make when looking at Christ is that they regard Him as simply the founder of a religion. They miss the whole aspect of relationship. Christ wants to have an intimate and permanent relationship. That’s the other thing about the Bridegroom, He is not called "the boyfriend." The Bridegroom not only speaks of the intimacy of the relationship but also of the permanence of the relationship. When the Lord instituted marriage in Genesis chapter 2 it is clear that He never intended for that relationship to be something temporary. We read in Genesis 2:24 - "For this reason a man shall leave his father and his mother, and be joined to his wife; and they shall become one flesh." That oneness in the marriage relationship is not to be broken. It's a permanent thing. 

What else can we learn from this title? In order for this relationship to begin, what does the bride have to do? Those magic words have to come out, ”I do.” In other words, implied in the title is the aspect of decision. We have a choice to make in regard to the Bridegroom. We don’t just get sucked in as part of the bride. There’s a decision on our part. Is the Lord going to force you into a relationship with Himself? No, you have to say “I do.” There’s a choice on the part of the bride. The Lord Jesus is not going to force anyone into that relationship.

Something else we know about the Bridegroom is that He laid down His life for the bride. He demonstrated His love for the bride by laying down His life for her. When it meant that one of them had to die He said "It's gonna be Me." And now He is working to beautify His bride.

With this one title we’ve erased a lot of the misconceptions of Christianity. One misconception is that it’s a list of rules to be followed. Another is that it’s a religion to sign up for. Another is that it’s a subject to be studied. This one title has erased all of these misconceptions because the essence of Christianity is being in a relationship with the Lord and knowing Him.

As with many of the titles of our Lord Jesus, the Old Testament narrative becomes extremely helpful in shedding light on different aspects of Christ as the Bridegroom. There are several Old Testament accounts that tell us about a bridegroom and his bride, and many of these picture Christ and His relationship with His bride, the church.
Last time we considered the Lord Jesus as the Last Adam. One of the comparisons that we didn't look at was the comparison of their brides. Just as the Lord made a bride for Adam He is making a bride for Christ. I think perhaps the clearest parallel passage for Genesis chapter 2 is Ephesians chapter 5. In Genesis chapter 2 the Lord is making a bride for Adam, in Ephesians chapter 5 we're given instructions concerning the oneness of the marriage relationship, and after spending several verses talking about this relationship we read - "This mystery is great; but I am speaking with reference to Christ and the church." So let's compare these passages side by side. We read in Genesis 2:21-24 - "So the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and he slept; then He took one of his ribs and closed up the flesh at that place. The Lord God fashioned into a woman the rib which He had taken from the man, and brought her to the man. The man said, “This is now bone of my bones, And flesh of my flesh; She shall be called Woman, Because she was taken out of Man.” For this reason a man shall leave his father and his mother, and be joined to his wife; and they shall become one flesh." The theme here is obviously the oneness of the marriage relationship. The two coming together are actually one. And there is a particular way that the Lord chose to make a bride for Adam. The Lord God formed Adam out of the dust and breathed into him the breath of life. He could have made Eve the same way but He intentionally created her in the way that He did. Why? Again, it was to show the closeness of the relationship. Eve was actually a part of Adam. She was created from his side. In a sense she was both his body and his bride. When Adam first saw her he said "This is now bone of my bones, And flesh of my flesh." In other words, "She is a part of me." This is the Lords intention for every marriage. That's why several times throughout the New Testament Genesis 2:24 is quoted, "For this reason a man shall leave his father and his mother, and be joined to his wife; and they shall become one flesh." This has been Gods pattern from the beginning. So when we come to Ephesians chapter 5 we read that this is Gods pattern, not only for the human relationship between a husband and wife, but also for the relationship between Christ and the church. Ephesians 5:22-32 says - "Wives, be subject to your own husbands, as to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife, as Christ also is the head of the church, He Himself being the Savior of the body. But as the church is subject to Christ, so also the wives ought to be to their husbands in everything. Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her, so 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 would be holy and blameless. So husbands ought also to love their own wives as their own bodies. He who loves his own wife loves himself; for no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ also does the church, because we are members of His body. For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and shall be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh. This mystery is great; but I am speaking with reference to Christ and the church." The similarities are striking. The relationship between Christ and the church is identical to the relationship between a bridegroom and a bride. We are part of His body. The submission of the wife to her husband is to picture the submission of the church to Christ. The love of a husband for his wife is to be the same as Christs love for the church. How did Christ demonstrate His love for the church? By giving Himself up for her. We continue to see the oneness of the relationship brought out in this passage. It seems to be constantly switching back and forth between the marriage relationship and the way we treat our own bodies. And the teaching is clear, the marriage relationship is to be as close as our relationship with our own bodies. That's Gods design. And He not only sets it up as a pattern to be followed, but He, our heavenly Bridegroom, demonstrates it through His relationship with us. "He who loves his own wife loves himself; for no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ also does the church, because we are members of His body."
Something else that I think is noteworthy is that Eve was taken out of Adams side. Is that significant? Think about it, this relationship is the pattern of marriage, but it's also a picture of Christ and the church. Is there any passage that comes to mind that talks about the something coming out of the side of the Lord Jesus? Immediately our minds go to the Lord Jesus on the cross and the events that are recorded in John 19:34 where we read - "But one of the soldiers pierced His side with a spear, and immediately blood and water came out." Blood and water came out of His side. So what? Just as the Lord took a rib out of Adams and fashioned it into a bride for him, I would suggest that the blood and water are the means by which God is making a bride for the Lord Jesus. This is a study in itself, but think about the significance of the blood of Christ. Throughout the New Testament the blood of Christ is emphasized. His shed blood is absolutely essential in our salvation. No one can be a part of the bride of Christ without coming through His blood. This is the means by which He has saved us. We've been purchased by His blood, Acts 20:28. We have been justified by His blood, Romans 5:9. We have redemption through His blood, Ephesians 1:7. We have been brought near by the blood of Christ, Ephesians 2:13. Christ has made peace through the blood of His cross, Colossians 1:20. Through His own blood He entered the Holy Place, Hebrews 9:12. We are sanctified through the blood of Christ, Hebrews 13:12. We are cleansed from sin by the blood of Christ, 1 John 1:7. These are just a few of the verses regarding the importance of His blood, and it is clear that no one becomes part of the bride of Christ apart from His shed blood. The second thing that came out of His side was water. The significance of the water is not talked about as much as the blood, but there are a couple of passages that might help us to understand the significance of it. The first one I want to think about is the passage that we've already looked at in Ephesians chapter 5. In the middle of all that instruction concerning husbands and wives and the relationship between Christ and the church, we read - "Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her, so that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word." Christ is working to beautify and sanctify His bride through the washing of the water of the Word. In relation to being Christs bride it is vital that we are not only brought near by His blood, but also sanctified through the water of the Word. In Hebrews 10:19-22 the blood and the water are brought together once again. There we read - "Therefore, brethren, since we have confidence to enter the holy place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way which He inaugurated for us through the veil, that is, His flesh, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water." Through the death, burial and resurrection of the Lord Jesus, God has initiated a new covenant and He is in the process of making a bride for His Son by the blood and water which flowed from His own side.

Another Old Testament account that pictures for us the relationship between the bridegroom and the bride is found in Genesis chapter 24 where we read of Issac and Rebekah. This is where we read the account of a bride being found for Isaac, and there are several similarities between this account and the New Testament truths concerning Christ and the church. 

The chapter begins by recording a conversation between Abraham and his unnamed servant. Abraham is sending the servant back to the land from which he came to find a bride for his son Isaac. Back in chapter 22 we have one of the clearest types of Christs sacrifice in all the Bible. This is where we find Abraham, the father, taking Isaac, the son, up on a mountain in order to offer him up as a sacrifice. A picture, of course, of God the Father offering up His only begotten Son. So we've seen Abraham as a type of the Father and Isaac as a type of the Son. If we continue with these types into chapter 24 we find the Father sending out a servant to find a bride for the Son. The main body of the chapter records the servants journey, the Lords leading him to Rebekah, the servant giving gifts to her, a discussion about Abraham and Issac, and finally the chapter ends with a journey back to the land of Canaan and Rebekah meeting her bridegroom. A key character in this chapter is the servant and yet throughout the entire chapter he is not named. He is the one doing the work of finding and preparing a bride and yet this chapter doesn't even mention his name. As we look at the servant he doesn't emphasize himself but rather Abraham and Issac. If we think about this, again, in New Testament terms, seeing Abraham as the Father and Isaac as the Son, I think what we have here in the servant is a type of the Holy Spirit. Think about the sequence of events in the surrounding context. In chapter 22 Abraham and Isaac went up Mount Moriah because the Lord had told Abraham to offer up his son as a burnt offering before the Lord. Looking at this account through New Testament lenses, it's almost impossible not to see the similarities between this account and the account of the Lord Jesus being offered up on the same mountain for us. It's significant to note that after picturing the sacrifice of the Lord Jesus, Isaac is not mentioned again until the end of chapter 24. This may not seem significant at first, but think about it. Abraham and Isaac go up the mountain in order to picture the Father sacrificing His only begotten Son. In verse 19 we read - "So Abraham returned to his young men, and they arose and went together to Beersheba; and Abraham lived at Beersheba." Abraham returned, but what about Isaac? I'm sure he went back down the mountain with his father, but it doesn't say that. And I believe that this is intentional. After Isaac is sacrificed, so to speak, he isn't seen again until the end of chapter 24 when he is coming out to meet his bride. This sounds familiar doesn't it? After Christ was sacrificed and rose again He ascended into heaven and we are awaiting a day when we will meet Him in the clouds. In the meantime the Holy Spirit is in the process of preparing a bride for Christ. In John chapter 14 the Lord Jesus tells His disciples that He is going to leave them, but He says that He will ask the Father, and the Father will send a another Helper, that is the Spirit of Truth. And He says in John 15:26 - "When the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, that is the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify about Me." This is what the servant did in Genesis chapter 24, right? He didn't shine the spotlight on himself, he told Rebekah and her family about the father and the son,about Abraham and Isaac. The Lord Jesus also says in John 16:13 - "But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak on His own initiative, but whatever He hears, He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to come." Again, this is what the servant did in Genesis 24. He wasn't going on this errand for his own benefit or his own initiative, he was simply coming on behalf of the father for the benefit of the son, and he disclosed to Rebekah things to come. He told her about his master and his masters son. He told her what living with that family in Canaan would be like. But that's not all the servant did, he also gave Rebekah gifts. And this is what something else that the Spirit is doing in the church today. We read in Romans 12, 1 Corinthians 12, Ephesians 4 and 1 Peter 4 about spiritual gifts, that is, gifts that the Holy Spirit has given us on behalf of Christ in order that we might build up the body of Christ and beautify His bride. The Helper, the Holy Spirit, on behalf of the Father is in the process of preparing a bride for the Son, the Lord Jesus Christ.

This process in Genesis 24 sounds strange to us because this is simply not the way that relationships work in our culture. Can you imagine getting engaged to someone you've never even met? Of course not. But this is our experience with Christ, isn't it? We are betrothed to Christ. We, the church, are the bride of Christ. First Peter chapter 1 says concerning our relationship with Christ, "And though you have not seen Him, you love Him." After Isaac goes up to the mountain to be sacrificed he isn't seen again until the end of chapter 24 where we read - "Isaac went out to meditate in the field toward evening; and he lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, camels were coming. Rebekah lifted up her eyes, and when she saw Isaac she dismounted from the camel. She said to the servant, “Who is that man walking in the field to meet us?” And the servant said, “He is my master.” Then she took her veil and covered herself. The servant told Isaac all the things that he had done. Then Isaac brought her into his mother Sarah’s tent, and he took Rebekah, and she became his wife, and he loved her." The next time Christ appears on the scene He is coming to meet His bride. We'll meet Him in the clouds and then He'll take us to the Fathers house. Until then the Spirit is working on us to teach us about our heavenly Bridegroom, and to beautify and prepare us to meet Him. And though, like Rebekah, we have not seen Him, we love Him.

The book of Ruth gives us another story of a bride and a bridegroom. It seems that in each one of these pictures a different aspect of our relationship with Christ is emphasized. Our Bridegroom is so vast and so wonderful that each account simply adds another aspect of His relationship with us, and no one picture could fully portray our perfect Bridegroom. In fact, all these accounts combined still fall short of a complete portrayal of Christ, though each one does add to our understanding and appreciation of Christ. With Adam and Eve we saw the oneness of His relationship with us. In Isaac and Rebekah we saw the Spirits work in preparing a bride for Christ. In the book of Ruth I think the main emphasis is His love for us when we were unlovely. Ruth was a Moabitess. According to the law of God in Deuteronomy 23:3 no Moabite was even allowed to enter the assembly of the Lord. And according to Judges 3:28 Moab was the enemy of Israel. Time and again throughout the Old Testament we see Moab standing in opposition to the people of God. So we come to the book of Ruth and we're surprised to find that the title character is a Moabitess, a foreigner. 

The book begins with a famine coming on the land of Israel. Because of the famine an Israelite by the name of Elimelech and his wife, Naomi, decide to travel from the land of Israel to the land of Moab with their two sons, Mahlon and Chilion. While they were in Moab both Mahlon and Chilion took wives from the daughters of Moab. One was named Orpah and the other was named Ruth. In the course of time Elimelech and his two sons died and all three of their wives became widows. Naomi then decided to return to her own country and she tried to persuade her daughters-in-law to go back to their fathers houses. Orpah returned but Ruth clung to Naomi and returned with her to nation of Israel and the town of Bethlehem. So Ruth is a foreigner, an alien, excluded from the commonwealth of Israel, a stranger to the covenants of promise, without hope and without God in the world. This pretty well pictures us, does it not? For we read in Ephesians 2:11-12 - "Therefore remember that formerly you, the Gentiles in the flesh, who are called “Uncircumcision” by the so-called “Circumcision,” which is performed in the flesh by human hands— remember that you were at that time separate from Christ, excluded from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world." Paul is writing to the church, the bride of Christ. But after talking about what we were, it goes on to say in verse 13 - "But now in Christ Jesus you who formerly were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ." Though we were foreigners, though we were excluded and strangers to Gods covenants, though we were without hope and without God, we have now been brought near by the blood of Christ. This is what the story of Ruth pictures.

When Boaz first saw Ruth in chapter 2 he asked his servant, "Whose young woman is this?" To which the servant replied, "She is the young Moabite woman who returned with Naomi from the land of Moab." If Boaz had been thinking about cultivating any kind of relationship with this girl then this response should have turned him off. The Moabites were bad news. Any good Jew would want to keep his distance from a Moabite. But even with this information, Boaz tells Ruth not to go to anyone else's field, but to continue gleaning from his and he tells her to help herself to the water jars that have been supplied for his servants. He also tells the servants not to bother her. He tells them to let her glean even from what they already harvested and he even told them to periodically pull out a handful of grain on purpose and leave it for Ruth to find. He cared for her and he was watching out for her in spite of the fact that she was a foreigner. In chapter 2 verse 10 Ruth recognizes her own unworthiness and we read - "Then she fell on her face, bowing to the ground and said to him, “Why have I found favor in your sight that you should take notice of me, since I am a foreigner?”" The truth is that Ruth was a woman of noble character, the problem was that she was a foreigner.

The book of Ruth is more than a love story, although it certainly is a love story. It is the story of a kinsman redeemer. The law of God made provision for a childless widow as well as for her property. God intended that each tribe keep their own land, so when a Jewish man died childless it was the responsibility of his brothers or the next of kin to buy the land that he left behind. But along with the land the kinsman would also acquire the dead mans widow and would be responsible to raise up offspring through her in the name of the dead man. There were two requirements that the kinsman redeemer had to meet. First of all he had to be related. Second, he had to be willing. One without the other would be useless. And this is what we see when we come to chapter 4. Now, it's obvious up to this point that Boaz and Ruth like each other, but Boaz knows that in relation to Ruth he has to do the right thing. Boaz was both a relative and he was willing to redeem Ruth, so he met both requirements. But he says to Ruth in the latter part of chapter 3 - "It is true I am a close relative; however, there is a relative closer than I. Remain this night, and when morning comes, if he will redeem you, good; let him redeem you. But if he does not wish to redeem you, then I will redeem you, as the Lord lives." And so this interesting transaction takes place in chapter 4. The unnamed relative and Boaz meet in the city gate at the beginning of chapter 4 and the legal process concerning the land begins to take place. Boaz says, "Naomi, who has come back from the land of Moab, has to sell the piece of land which belonged to our brother Elimelech. So I thought to inform you, saying, ‘Buy it before those who are sitting here, and before the elders of my people. If you will redeem it, redeem it; but if not, tell me that I may know; for there is no one but you to redeem it, and I am after you.'" To which the man responds, "I will redeem it." The man is interested in the land, but up to this point Ruth is not mentioned. So Boaz says, "On the day you buy the field from the hand of Naomi, you must also acquire Ruth the Moabitess, the widow of the deceased, in order to raise up the name of the deceased on his inheritance." And upon hearing this the man says, "I cannot redeem it for myself, because I would jeopardize my own inheritance. Redeem it for yourself; you may have my right of redemption, for I cannot redeem it." This man was a kinsman and he was interested in the land, but when it came to marrying Ruth he said, "I'm not interested." He met the first requirement but not the second. He had the means but not the desire. Boaz had both the means, because he was a kinsman, and he had the desire, because he loved Ruth. So Boaz bought from Naomi the land that belonged to Elimelech and he married Ruth.

Consider how this pictures us and our heavenly Bridegroom. We've already seen that Ruth was a foreigner just like us. We were held in bondage to sin and we needed someone to buy us back, to redeem us. And it wasn't enough that someone had the desire to do it, but they would also have to be related to us. God so loved the world, but love in itself was not enough. That's the desire, but what about the means? In order for God to redeem us He had to be a kinsman, a relative. How was God going to become a kinsman redeemer for us? In John 3:16 we see that God had not only the desire, but also the means. "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life." He gave His only begotten Son. God became a man. He took on human flesh. He was made like us in all things, sin apart. "Therefore, since the children share in flesh and blood, He Himself likewise also partook of the same, that through death He might render powerless him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, and might free those who through fear of death were subject to slavery all their lives. For assuredly He does not give help to angels, but He gives help to the descendant of Abraham. Therefore, He had to be made like His brethren in all things, so that He might become a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people." We needed more than just a lover, we needed a kinsman redeemer, and we have this in the incarnation.

Boaz paid dearly for Ruth. Boaz apparently owned a great deal of land, I'm sure he didn't need any more. But he paid the full price of the land in order that he might acquire Ruth as his bride. This sounds similar to the parable that the Lord Jesus told in Matthew 13:44 where He says - "The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in the field, which a man found and hid again; and from joy over it he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field." The man in the parable paid the price of the entire field in order that he might obtain the treasure that was in it. Boaz paid the entire price of the land in order to acquire Ruth. The Lord Jesus was willing to pay for the entire world in order that He might redeem His bride. When we were unlovely, foreigners, strangers to the covenants of promise, without hope and without God in the world, God, because of the great love wherewith He loved us, sent forth His only begotten Son to be born of a woman in order that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and present to Himself the church, His bride, in all her glory, having no spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she should be holy and blameless before Him. Such is the love of Christ, and it's pictured beautifully through Boaz and Ruth.

There is one final picture that I want to look at and that is the Song of Solomon. In the Song of Solomon we see the intimacy of the love relationship between the bridegroom and the bride. Everything about this poetic book is dripping with love. You see it in the terminology that is used, the way the bridegroom and bride refer to one another, the way that they look at each another, the way that they talk about each other, there's no question about it, they're deeply in love. This short book depicts the intimacy of our relationship with Christ. There is no doubt that the Lords relationship with us is a love relationship. As you travel through this book you can see a growth in the brides love for the bridegroom. More and more she is becoming consumed with him. This should be our experience with Christ. We should be falling deeper in love with Christ every day. Are you more in love with Christ today than you were yesterday? The bridegrooms love for the bride is faithful and unwavering. And her love for him grows only as she takes her eyes off of herself and considers his love for her. We may think that if we're going to grow in our love for Christ then we need to focus really hard on our claim on Him, but the bride in this book learns that that's not the case. As she loses sight of her own claim on him and focuses on his claim on her she grows in her love for him as a byproduct.

To go through this book and see the unwavering love of the bridegroom for his bride is astounding. There are times when the bride becomes self-satisfied or distant from the bridegroom, but even then he loves her selflessly. Throughout this book we see the bridegroom constantly drawing his bride back to himself and causing her to grow in love for him. There are three verses in this book that I think mark the brides growth in relationship with the bridegroom. The first is found in chapter 2 verse 16 where the bride says - "My beloved is mine, and I am his." There's no doubt that she loves him, but her claim on him is her primary focus, "My beloved is mine," and his claim on her is only an afterthought, "And I am his." This pretty well represents chapters 1-3. In chapters 1-3 the bride is the primary speaker and she talks much about her claim on the bridegroom. She uses the words I, me and my, quite a bit through this section. In chapter 2 he invites her to come along with him but she is apparently content simply knowing that he is hers. He goes off and she remains where she is. But at the beginning of chapter 3 she is restless. She has to find him. She goes about looking for him and finds him and this time she's not going to let him go. This begins a section of unbroken fellowship that continues through the end of chapter 4. In this portion the bridegroom is the primary speaker and he is absolutely consumed with love for her. After this wonderful experience of being close to her bridegroom and hearing him, in chapter 5 the bride again is separate from her bridegroom. She is asleep in the house and he knocks to get in. She delays to open to him until she gets a glimpse of his hand through the door, and then her affections for him are stirred. But when she opens the door he is gone. But, again, she is restless. She must find her beloved. She begins searching for him and begins to implore others that if they see him to tell him that she is lovesick for him. They ask her, "What is your beloved that you thus adjure us?" And she responds at the end of chapter 5 by giving them a description of her beloved. In this description she doesn't mention herself at all. Her thoughts are only of him and her description is so beautiful and so stirring that those who hear it have their own hearts stirred to find him. This is where we find the second verse that marks the brides growth. She says in verse 3 of chapter 6 - "I am my beloved’s and my beloved is mine." This is the reverse order of what we saw in 2:16. Now his claim on her is her primary focus, "I am my beloved's" and her claim on him is only an afterthought, "and my beloved is mine." No sooner had she finished this statement than he bursts upon the scene and begins to express how beautiful she is in his sight. After this restoration we find the bridegroom and the bride separated no more. He continues in chapter 7 to expound his love for her, and after being completely submersed in his love for her we see the third and finale mark of the brides growth in chapter 7 verse 10 where the bride says - "I am my beloved’s, and his desire is for me." How different from her first statement. From, "My beloved is mine, and I am his." To, "I am my beloved's, and my beloved is mine." To, "I am my beloved's, and his desire is for me." She is now completely consumed with his claim on her and has forgotten her claim altogether.

What a picture of the Bridegrooms relationship with us. He is altogether lovely, I am altogether unlovely, why should He love me so? When it comes to our relationship with Christ we can tend to focus on ourselves and our own efforts. But Christs' intention is that we be completely consumed with Him. I can tell myself, "I need to love Jesus more." and focus on how I might grow in my love for Him, but perhaps the way to truly grow in love for Him is to completely lose sight of our own efforts and focus entirely on Him. This is the example that the Lord Jesus set in His relationship with the Father. How many times in the gospel of John does the Lord Jesus says that the Father loves Him? Several. John 3:35 - "The Father loves the Son and has given all things into His hand." John 5:20 - "For the Father loves the Son." John 10:17 - "the Father loves Me." John 15:9 - "the Father has loved Me." And the list goes on. The Lord Jesus was constantly focusing on the Fathers love for Him. But how many times in the gospels to we read the Lord Jesus saying that He loved the Father? Only once that I could find. John 14:31 says - "but so that the world may know that I love the Father, I do exactly as the Father commanded Me." Is there any doubt that the Lord Jesus loved the Father? And yet He only says it once. But He was so completely absorbed with the Fathers love for Him that His love for the Father was evident as a byproduct. And our relationship with Christ is the same way. When we become consumed with the Bridegrooms love for us we grow in our love for Him whether we realize it or not.

The apostle Paul made his prayer for the Ephesians in chapter 3 verses 16-19 saying- "that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with power through His Spirit in the inner man, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; and that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled up to all the fullness of God." The love of Christ is so vast that searching the depths of His love is a pursuit that will consume the rest of our lives. We cannot reach the bottom of that which has no bottom. In searching out the breadth, length, height and depth of His love we discover that it is bottomless, topless, and it goes on forever. We will never be able to plumb the depths of Christs love. It is incomprehensible, and yet we're told that by His own revelation we can know that which surpasses knowledge, namely, the love of Christ.

And again, we are dependent on Christ to cause us to grow in love for Him. Whether or not we realize it, we are completely dependent on our Bridegroom to produce a love for Him in our hearts. We cannot even love Him as we should unless He works in us to produce that love. This is what the bride recognized in the Song of Solomon when she says in chapter 1 verse 4 - "Draw me after you and let us run together!" We cannot even love Him like we should unless He enables us. We need Him to draw us after Himself.

These Old Testament accounts present us with beautiful pictures of Christs relationship with us, and it would be very profitable for us to go through and read these passages in their entirety, familiarizing ourselves with them and then read the book of Ephesians with these stories in mind, and perhaps we'll gain a greater understanding and appreciation of Christ, our perfect Bridegroom.

Just a few verses in closing, James 4:4 says- "You adulteresses, do you not know that friendship with the world is hatred toward God?" We are in a relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ, a relationship of the most intimate kind, and the Lord Jesus is a jealous Bridegroom. He is jealous for our love and affection. Any bridegroom has the right to expect fidelity and faithfulness out of his future life partner, and Christ expects the same from us. He is sickened and heartbroken when He sees us flirting with the world or giving our love to anyone or anything else. He lays claim on us exclusively, and He considers friendship with the world to be adultery. Don't cheat on your Bridegroom. He has the right to expect, and even demand, our fidelity. Don't downplay the seriousness of friendship with the world. It's adultery. Let us present ourselves to Him as pure virgins, without spot and blameless, unstained by the world. In Revelation 19:7-8 we read - ""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." At the marriage supper of the Lamb we are going to be clothed in a white garment. That pure white garment is going to be made up of our good works. Every time that we do a good deed we are sewing another white thread into the wedding dress of the bride.

"Thou glorious Bridegroom of our hearts,
Thy present smile a heav'n imparts,
Oh, lift the veil, if veil there be,
Let every saint Thy glory see!"

Song of Solomon 7:10 - "I am my beloved's, and his desire is for me."