AN ERA OF THE REVEALING OF THE BRIDE
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.
—REVELATION 19:7
Prophecy
“Who is this coming up from the wilderness, leaning on her beloved?” (Song of Sol. 8:5). It is My lovely Bride, for she is being awakened and revealed in this hour. Her heart is alive with love and she desires nothing less and nothing more than Me. She has ravished My heart.
In this era, you will behold those whose passion for Me will be ignited in deeper ways than they have ever known. Their love for Me will be as a flame that ever increases. Deep will call to deep within them. The more they encounter Me, the more they will desire Me. And the more they desire Me, the more they will encounter Me.
My Bride is altogether glorious, for her heart is fully Mine. She is pure, holy, and God-fearing. She is patient and kind. She is gentle and meek. She is submissive, obedient, and full of courage. She is industrious and resourceful. She is faithful and full of faith. She is beautiful beyond description, magnificent in glory, and clothed in My love. Oh, do you see her unfolding? I am revealing her in this hour.
There are many who say, “I believe in Jesus—He is my Savior,” but I do not know them, for their hearts are far from Me in their daily walk. Other things absorb their attention. They have failed to relinquish the rule of their lives unto Me and give very little place to My ways and direction. They deliberately continue in sinful practices they know are forbidden in Scripture and do not even seem to be concerned about it. My church is full of those who gaze on pornography, commit fornication and adultery, are involved in homosexuality, have abortions, get drunk, and abuse drugs. They lie, cheat, steal, engage in pride, gossip, unforgiveness, and slander and are disobedient to My great commission. These ones have one foot in the world and one foot in My Kingdom. These ones love fleshly indulgences more than Me. They say, “I am redeemed by His blood and all My sins are forgiven” while they are yet in the midst of sinful practices. They speak arrogantly and they are ignorant of the truth.
They do not embrace the attributes of My Bride, but many of them shall come under conviction in these days and will turn their hearts back to Me. They will abandon their worldly passions and lusts and return to Me. They will prepare for My coming and will become gloriously arrayed in My presence and truth. A fire will burn with intensity within them—the fire of My love—and they shall turn.
I am knocking on the hearts of My people. I am calling for My beloved Bride to awaken and she shall. You shall see her emerge. In this era, those who are My Bride will prepare—they will make themselves ready.
INSIGHTS
The Bible is a beautiful love story revealing the Father’s search for a Bride for His Son. We see the story unfold in the first book of the Bible when the Father spoke concerning Adam, “It is not good for the man to be alone; I will make him a helper suitable for him” (Gen. 2:18). Throughout the Scriptures we see this theme continue all the way to the final chapters in the Bible, describing this perfect Bride who made herself ready. The Bride longs for her Bridegroom. Her heart is toward Him all day long and she yearns for and calls for His return. The Bible closes with the cry of the Bride: “The Spirit and the bride say, ‘Come’” (Rev. 22:17).1
Jesus is coming for a Bride that is expecting and longing for His return. He teaches us in His Word to be ready even though we do not know the day or the hour—the Father alone knows. When the Father tells His Son to collect His Bride, He will suddenly come. We see a picture of this in the following story.
Then the kingdom of heaven shall be likened to ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. Now five of them were wise, and five were foolish. Those who were foolish took their lamps and took no oil with them, but the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps. But while the bridegroom was delayed, they all slumbered and slept.
And at midnight a cry was heard: “Behold, the bridegroom is coming; go out to meet him!” Then all those virgins arose and trimmed their lamps. And the foolish said to the wise, “Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.” But the wise answered, saying, “No, lest there should not be enough for us and you; but go rather to those who sell, and buy for yourselves.” And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the wedding; and the door was shut.
Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, “Lord, Lord, open to us!” But he answered and said, “Assuredly, I say to you, I do not know you.”
Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour in which the Son of Man is coming (Matthew 25:1-13 NKJV).
In this parable there were ten virgins with a number of things in common:
■They were all expecting the bridegroom.
■They all had lamps.
■They all heard the shout at midnight.
■They all went out to meet him.
However, there was one significant difference: five of them were ready and five of them were not.
The five that lacked fresh oil for their lamps ran to get it at the last minute, but it was too late. When they came to the wedding feast later, after they bought their oil, the door was already shut. They cried out, “Lord, Lord, open up for us.” He replied, “I do not know you.”
The Bride of Christ is a wise virgin. She awaits her Bridegroom with oil in her lamp. In Scripture, “oil” represents the anointing of the Holy Spirit who comes and fills us to overflowing with His Presence. The easiest way to be filled is simply to spend time with the Lord. We see a picture of this in Psalm 23. The Lord welcomes us to His banqueting table where we meet with Him in intimate communion. As we do, the Word says He pours out His oil upon us until we overflow like a cup that has been filled beyond its brim (see Ps. 23:5). To make sure you are full of fresh oil, spend time with God. Here are three simple ways you can do that every day:
1.Read your Bible! Scripture is more than print on a page, it is the Living Heart of God revealed. As you get into the Word, the Word gets into you—filling you with His Truth until you overflow with Him everywhere you go!
2.Worship! When we worship the Lord, we are turning our hearts to Him, drawing near to declare our love and appreciation of what He has done, and of who He is. In James 4:8 the Lord promises that as we draw near to Him, He will draw near to us. When we praise and worship, it is like singing an enthusiastic “Yes!” to the invitation of Psalm 23 to come and sit with Him. We cannot help but be filled with His presence!
3.Pray! Any good relationship is built from good communication. Prayer is talking with God, sharing your heart with Him, and taking the time to let Him share His heart with you. Like with worship, to talk with God is to draw near to God. When we do, He draws near to us—filling us afresh with His presence. When we turn to the Lord in prayer, we become like John the Beloved, leaning against the breast of Jesus. So close. So intimate, we can hear the very beating of His heart, that glorious heart of His that beats for each and every one of us!
Who Is the Bride of Christ?
Some state that the Bride of Christ is made up of all believers. Others are convinced the Bride includes the Jews who have received the Messiah. Some believe that the Bride is made up of Christians living at the time of the rapture, and yet others are convinced the Bride is a consecrated remnant within the Body who are waiting for the return of the Lord. I am certain the Lord wants His Bride to include all believers, yet I personally do not sense that all will be included in His Bride. God alone knows the heart of each individual. He knows if your heart is completely His or not. The Scripture clearly teaches that the Bride of Christ “makes herself ready.” She will have a heart only for Him and will have no other gods or idols.
This single-heart focus is the main quality of the Bride. My personal conviction is that the Bride is a remnant within the Body of believers who is completely consecrated unto the Bridegroom and who is obedient to His Word. Those in this remnant have made themselves ready by watching over their hearts with all diligence. They love, serve, and obey Him in complete abandonment; are not legalistic or religious in their motivation; and neither are they bound by self-righteousness. They live with this focus of complete abandonment because they love Him. They believe the truth about Him and know He is worthy and deserving of their all.
Jesus is marrying a Bride who has made herself ready, a Bride who has eyes only for Him. He is marrying a Bride who wants nothing else in life but to know Him, to be intimate with Him, to live with Him and to serve Him and with Him forever. He is marrying a Bride who does not love the world or the things of the world. She is fully separated unto Him and Him alone. She loves the things He loves and hates the things He hates. She longs for the return of her Bridegroom and is watching for His coming. This is the heart of the Bride of Christ. Jesus will rule and reign with His Bride for eternity.
The Lord is alerting His church in this hour. It is time to prepare for a glorious day—the wedding of Jesus the King and His glorious Bride. He is coming for His Bride. A wedding feast is being planned by our heavenly Father. At this celebration there will be guests in attendance and the Bride and Groom.
Then he said to me, “Write, ‘Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb’” (Revelation 19:9).
It will be wonderful to be invited to this event, but oh, to be the Bride and not just an invited guest!
May you enjoy being filled with His precious love and grace as you prepare for this glorious day. When is the day? When is the hour of His coming for His Bride? Only the Father knows, but His Bride is making herself ready.
The Spirit and the bride say, “Come” (Revelation 22:17).
Thoughts to Ponder
The marriage of the Lamb is likely the most important event in eternity next to Christ’s finished work on the cross.
Are you stirred with deep hunger and thirst for your Bridegroom’s presence? If not, would you like to be?
What attributes of the Bride of Christ do you identify in yourself?
If Christ were to come today for His Bride, are you ready?
How would you like to prepare for Him?
PRAYER FOR BRIDAL PREPARATION
Heavenly Father,
I long to be ready when Christ comes for His Bride and I commit myself to becoming ready. Increase Your grace upon my heart and teach me how to walk as Christ’s glorious Bride.
In Jesus’ name I pray,
Amen.
NOTE
1.Patricia King, The Bride Makes Herself Ready: Preparing for the Lord’s Return (XP Publishing), Kindle loc. 30-33.