What steps does one take to become a bride? In the natural realm a person becomes a legitimate bride after three things have taken place: engagement, marriage, and consummation. The same is true in the case of a spiritual union.
In the natural marriage process, ordinarily a man invites a woman to consider becoming his bride. If she accepts, she realizes her life will change course. A new path lies just over the horizon. Having made a commitment, one to the other, they link arms and their journey begins. Upon the commitment of engagement the parties have temporary access to one another’s property, authority, etc; i.e., you can drive your fiancée’s car, use their name to gain immediate access to their office, and so on. If the commitment is broken and a marriage does not take place these entitlements cease to exist. If a marriage results from the couple’s union, then everything they own becomes communal property. However, if consummation does not take place the marriage is considered invalid; the covenant was not sealed. Therefore, the parties can reverse their decision and file for annulment at which time the parties revert to their official single status and retain their respective possessions.
Likewise, the spiritual marriage process takes place when we accept Jesus as our personal Savior (engagement); we then take on His name in water baptism (marriage), and receive the gift of the Holy Ghost (consummation). The outward evidence of the private consummation in the natural realm is a baby, and speaking in tongues in the spiritual realm.
The Lord calls us to repentance. He invites us to make an immediate about-face and begin walking with Him as His future bride. We willingly abandon our old way of life. Our focus is now placed on exploring and experiencing what the future holds. Jesus gives us a glimpse of what life will be like once we are married to Him. As His “fiancé,” He provides for us. He graciously allows us to experience a sample of the eternal life that awaits us. He gives us favor in this life, healing, prosperity and everything that is stated in His Word. After all, we are His betrothed. However, only a bride can gain entrance into the bridegroom’s eternal home. If we refuse to complete our commitment and do not exchange “wedding vows” and “consummate” the marriage we remain a fiancé and never become His bride.
In Matthew 7, we are told that Jesus will say to some, “I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.” This scripture indicates that even though some people used His name and demonstrated its authority they were not intimately known of Him. Why? Was the engagement the only thing that had taken place? Jesus told the people they were workers of iniquity. I find the definition of iniquity very interesting. As noted below, iniquity is defined as a deviation off of the right path.
In the Old Testament of the 11 words translated "iniquity," by far the most common and important is `awon (about 215 times). Etymologically, it is customary to explain it as meaning literally "crookedness," "perverseness," i.e. evil regarded as that which is not straight or upright, moral distortion (from `iwwah, "to bend," "make crooked," "pervert"). Driver, however (following Lagarde), maintains that two roots, distinct in Arabic, have been confused In Hebrew, one = "to bend," "pervert" (as above), and the other = "to err," "go astray"; that `awon is derived from the latter, and consequently expresses the idea of error, deviation from the right path, rather than that of perversion (International Standard Bible Encyclopaedia)
How does one deviate from the right path? They deviate off the right path when they refuse to take God’s established path to their desired destination — Heaven.
“Verily, verily, I say unto you, he that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold, but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber.” John 10:1
If you will recall, Jesus said He was going to prepare a place and would return for His bride and enter into the marriage supper of the lamb in the last day. He will return and receive to Himself those who are already His bride. We are not told that we will become his bride after leaving this earth:
“Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and His wife hath made herself ready.” Revelation 19:7
The following excerpt was taken from the Jewish learning website, “For centuries the Jewish bride has immersed herself in a mikveh--a ritual bath--in preparation for her wedding. The bridal mikveh was a woman's first trip to a place that would be part of her life's rhythms… According to the Talmud, the ultimate source of all water is the river that emerged from Eden. By immersing in the mikveh, people participate in the wholeness of Eden and are reborn as pure as Adam and Eve. Mikveh also represents the physical source of life--the womb--from which humans enter the world untouched by sin. For brides and grooms mikveh is a physical enactment of the passage from being unmarried to married. Entering the huppah [marriage canopy] is a public declaration of a change in status; entering the mikveh is a private transforming moment….” Myjewishlearning.com
In the natural marriage process, ordinarily a man invites a woman to consider becoming his bride. If she accepts, she realizes her life will change course. A new path lies just over the horizon. Having made a commitment, one to the other, they link arms and their journey begins. Upon the commitment of engagement the parties have temporary access to one another’s property, authority, etc; i.e., you can drive your fiancée’s car, use their name to gain immediate access to their office, and so on. If the commitment is broken and a marriage does not take place these entitlements cease to exist. If a marriage results from the couple’s union, then everything they own becomes communal property. However, if consummation does not take place the marriage is considered invalid; the covenant was not sealed. Therefore, the parties can reverse their decision and file for annulment at which time the parties revert to their official single status and retain their respective possessions.
Likewise, the spiritual marriage process takes place when we accept Jesus as our personal Savior (engagement); we then take on His name in water baptism (marriage), and receive the gift of the Holy Ghost (consummation). The outward evidence of the private consummation in the natural realm is a baby, and speaking in tongues in the spiritual realm.
The Lord calls us to repentance. He invites us to make an immediate about-face and begin walking with Him as His future bride. We willingly abandon our old way of life. Our focus is now placed on exploring and experiencing what the future holds. Jesus gives us a glimpse of what life will be like once we are married to Him. As His “fiancé,” He provides for us. He graciously allows us to experience a sample of the eternal life that awaits us. He gives us favor in this life, healing, prosperity and everything that is stated in His Word. After all, we are His betrothed. However, only a bride can gain entrance into the bridegroom’s eternal home. If we refuse to complete our commitment and do not exchange “wedding vows” and “consummate” the marriage we remain a fiancé and never become His bride.
In Matthew 7, we are told that Jesus will say to some, “I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.” This scripture indicates that even though some people used His name and demonstrated its authority they were not intimately known of Him. Why? Was the engagement the only thing that had taken place? Jesus told the people they were workers of iniquity. I find the definition of iniquity very interesting. As noted below, iniquity is defined as a deviation off of the right path.
In the Old Testament of the 11 words translated "iniquity," by far the most common and important is `awon (about 215 times). Etymologically, it is customary to explain it as meaning literally "crookedness," "perverseness," i.e. evil regarded as that which is not straight or upright, moral distortion (from `iwwah, "to bend," "make crooked," "pervert"). Driver, however (following Lagarde), maintains that two roots, distinct in Arabic, have been confused In Hebrew, one = "to bend," "pervert" (as above), and the other = "to err," "go astray"; that `awon is derived from the latter, and consequently expresses the idea of error, deviation from the right path, rather than that of perversion (International Standard Bible Encyclopaedia)
How does one deviate from the right path? They deviate off the right path when they refuse to take God’s established path to their desired destination — Heaven.
“Verily, verily, I say unto you, he that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold, but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber.” John 10:1
If you will recall, Jesus said He was going to prepare a place and would return for His bride and enter into the marriage supper of the lamb in the last day. He will return and receive to Himself those who are already His bride. We are not told that we will become his bride after leaving this earth:
“Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and His wife hath made herself ready.” Revelation 19:7
The following excerpt was taken from the Jewish learning website, “For centuries the Jewish bride has immersed herself in a mikveh--a ritual bath--in preparation for her wedding. The bridal mikveh was a woman's first trip to a place that would be part of her life's rhythms… According to the Talmud, the ultimate source of all water is the river that emerged from Eden. By immersing in the mikveh, people participate in the wholeness of Eden and are reborn as pure as Adam and Eve. Mikveh also represents the physical source of life--the womb--from which humans enter the world untouched by sin. For brides and grooms mikveh is a physical enactment of the passage from being unmarried to married. Entering the huppah [marriage canopy] is a public declaration of a change in status; entering the mikveh is a private transforming moment….” Myjewishlearning.com
