Message 11

Our glorious future. 2 Cor. 1:1-2; 11:1-3; Rev. 19:1-9; 21:9-10, 23-24. Who is the Bride? Three opinions: 1 .All the saved from Adam to the resurrection. 2. All the saved of the N. T. age. 3. All the saved, baptized, believers who are faithful church members in a N.T. Church. The latter is your speaker's belief and I simply ask you to take your bibles and study and reason with me.

The Marriage of the Iamb

Rev. 19:7-9. The N.T. relation between Christ and the church is presented under the figure of a bride and bridegroom (Eph. 5). At the resurrection Christ will come as the Bridegroom to take His heavenly bride to Himself. Then that relationship that was pledged over 1900 years ago will be consummated, and Christ and His church will be eternally united. Eph. 3:21. The church is not yet the Lamb's wife. She at present is the bride-elect. The Bible tells us that the church is "espoused ...to one husband", 1 Cor. 11: 2 .She is engaged to be married to Christ after the rapture and the judgement seat of Christ.

Where and When?

In heaven, because no other location is fit for a heavenly people. This marriage, more than any other marriage, will be made in heaven. While the earth is in the worst part of the Great Tribulation, heaven will be rejoicing as the marriage bells ring!

The book of Rev. gives the chronological order of events leading up to the Marriage of the Lamb. Rev. 19:1-6; it will be after the destruction of the great whore, and Rev. 19:11-21; before the battle of Armageddon.

The marriage will follow the Bema Seat of Christ; the bride appears dressed in the righteousness of the saints, which is reward for her faithful acts of obedience to the lord. (Rev. 19:8) The fine linen in which the wife is clothed is not the imputed righteousness of Christ, instead it is the righteous acts and works of the saints themselves, "made herself ready." The fiery test of the Bema seat will reveal what we have truly done as unto the lord. I don't believe anyone can be ill the bride of Christ without, salvation, scriptural baptism, and a faithful life that has been dedicated to God's will first and foremost.

The bible refers to the bridegroom as "the Lamb" 27 times in the book of Revelation. While "the Lamb" is not always a reference to the bridegroom it is always a reference to Jesus Christ. In this wedding the attention is focused on the groom, he is the center attraction, the marriage of the Lamb gives the bridegroom the greatest honour. Rev. 19:7; "Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come."

John the Baptist called Christ the Bridegroom: "He that hath the bride is the bridegroom", Jn. 3:29. Christ called Himself by this title: "Can the children of the bride-chamber mourn, as long as the bridegroom is with them? But the days will come, when the bridegroom shall be taken from them, and then shall they fast" Matt. 9:15. The Lord Jesus pictured himself as the bridegroom in the parable of Matthew 25:1-15. He did so again in Matt. 22 in the marriage of the king's son.

The Bride Israel can't be the bride of Christ, she is the mother of Jesus Christ; "Whose are the fathers, and of whom as concerning the flesh Christ came," Rom. 9:5. In Rev. 12 Israel is the Sun Clothed Woman. She is said to give birth to a man-child who shall rule the nations, Rev. 12:1-5. Here again we see Israel giving birth to Jesus Christ.

The nation of Israel is already the wife of God the Father. Isa. 54:5. Because of her spiritual whoredoms, Israel is a cast off wife, Hosea 2:2. When she ceases from her adulteries, the Father will take her back again, Hosea 2:7. Christ is to marry a virgin, 2 Cor. 11:2.

The bride can't be all the saved, four reason for your consideration: 1. The bride is distinguished from the great multitude in heaven. In Rev. 19:7 the "us" is distinguished from "his wife". Heb. 12:33 shows a distinction between the "general assembly" and "church of the firstborn". The general assembly of the saints is a different company from the church. "The firstborn is a title of Christ." Rom. 8:29; Col. 1:15; Rev. 1:5.It is out of context t consider all the saved to be in the church, no one was ever a member of the church of the Lord Jesus Christ who was not first saved and then baptized. 2. The bride is distinguished from the guests. In Rev. 19 she is said to have made herself ready while others are said to have been invited or "called to the marriage supper", Rev. 10:7-9. The bride is not invited to her own wedding; there are guests at this wedding. These guests are saved people who are not in a church relationship with Christ. 3. The bible makes a difference between the bride and other saved people. Rev. 22"17; "And the Spirit and the bride say come, and let him that heareth say, come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely." First, there is an invitation for Christ to return, given by the Holy Spirit, the church, and a saved soul outside the church. Second, there is an invitation to thirsty and willing sinners to come to the water of life. Especially note the expression: "And let him that heareth say, come." The person that hears is a sheep, Jn 10:3,16,27. He is not in the bride, but he does look for the appearing of Jesus Christ. Does a lost sinner look for the coming of Christ? N0! The person here is saved but not in the bride. In 1 Cor. 5 there is a man about to be excluded from the church for immoral conduct, yet after the exclusion he is still saved, 1 Cor. 5:5. It should appear to the careful reader that some saved people are in the church and some are not, then some are exposed to Christ die to church membership and some are not, accoutring to consistent thinking and comparison of these scriptures. 4. The New Jerusalem is the future home of the bride, Rev. 21:9-10. There are some saved people outside the city, Rev. 21:24. All the saved then, are not in the bride. Salvation alone then does not make one a part of the bride any more than being a woman makes her a bride. Salvation is essential to being in the bride just as being a woman is necessary to being a bride but being a woman doesn't make one a bride.

The bride of Christ is not the total sum of all denominations. She is not Christendom with its variety of denominations and doctrines. Truth and error will not be rewarded equally.

The true Baptist churches constitute the bride of Christ, Jn 3:29; 2 Cor. 11; Eph. 5:25-32. I would not make the bride to be all the members of everything that calls itself Baptist, but would say the Lord's true churches could be found among those who call themselves Baptists because everyone who calls themselves Baptists are not true to the name and teachings it has represented through the ages.

True churches are identified by their doctrine and practice, not a name that anyone may assume. The true churches have not always been called Baptists. They were called Galileans, Christians, Anabaptists, Mennonite, Albigenses, Arnoldists, Henricans, Paulicians, Waldenses, Montanists, Paterines, Donatists, Hussites, Loddards Wickliffites, Numidians, Cathari, Novatians, Tertulianists, Lyonists, Puritans, Bogamiles, Petrobrusians, and many other names. I would not say that all these people were true churches but I would say the true churches were found among them. Some of the Waldenses were sprinkling babies by the close of the dark ages, how long will it take Southern Baptist church to start doing something similar to this in our day, they already have baby dedication services on Mother's day in may parts of the USA.

The bride will be composed of that group of Spirit-regenerate men and women who have been baptized into a New Testament Church (there is no scripture that teaches anyone is a member of a church without scriptural baptism), and have lived faithful lives for the Lord (2 Thess. 3:6). They are the faithful few in the true churches. Rev. 1 9: 7 -8 says those in the bride have sane works of righteousness. Matt. 3:15 shows us that baptism is a work of righteousness. Those in the church at Corinth were all baptized in water. 1 Cor. 1:13-15

Moral and spiritual purity will have to do with who is in the bride. 2 Cor. 11: 2.

This will be a reward for those who have striven lawfully for masteries and run the race according to the rules. You can be saved and not be in the bride, you can be a Baptist and not be in the bride John the Baptist Will not be in the bride, he will be the friend of the bridegroom, Jn. 3:29. To be in the bride you must be in a church like Jesus established, in doctrine and practice, and historically.

There will be guests at the wedding, Rev. 19: 9; this may be some of the saved of all ages, possibly tribulation saints, and maybe faithful men and women who were not church members of this or some other age. It is one thing to be taught the truth and reject it and another to not know. There is no indication that rebellious or backslidden people will have the privilege of being invited to the marriage supper of the Iamb.

I believe after the marriage is solemnized in Heaven, Christ and his lovely, newly wedded wife will go to the bride's old home, the earth, for the Marriage Supper and a thousand year honey moon. The Lord Jesus Christ will rule the world for a thousand years and at the end of this time the Son and the bride will return to the Father's house and the earth will be renovated by fire and the Father and his wife Israel and his Son and Bride will return to the earth to dwell in the New Jerusalem, Rev. 21:9-14; 21:2,9. The guests will dwell outside the Holy City, Rev. 21:22-24.

One day soon Christ will say: "Rise up, my love, my fair one, and come away" (S. of S. 2: 10).