THE MOST BEAUTIFUL ONE
A Study of the Bride of Christ and Temple of God
FOUNDATION MINISTRIES
“In them He has set a tabernacle for the sun,
Which is like a bridegroom coming out of his chamber”
Psalm 19:4-5, NKJV
“If you do not know, O fairest among women”
Song of Songs 1:8
Note: All Scriptures referenced are from the NASB, unless otherwise noted.
(1) LOOKING FOR ANSWERS IN THE BEGINNING
Scripture Reading:
Genesis 2:7, 18-25; Matthew 19:3-5; Luke 3:21-22, 38;
1 Corinthians 15:45-47
The Pattern of Christ
In Matthew 19:3-5, the Pharisees are asking Jesus a question about divorce. They are wondering what measures should be taken when someone divorces, according to the Law. When Jesus answered He did not go to the Law. Instead, He said, Have you not heard what was done in the beginning of creation? There is a principle here that shows we have to look at the beginning to see what the LORD originally intended. Things may happen in between, where accommodations may need to be made (like the Law in this instance), but the Divine Truth of matters is truly seen in the beginning. Here Jesus is specifically speaking of marriage.
In the subject of the union of marriage, Jesus answered by going back to the beginning. Since our current study concerns marriage of a higher order – Christ’s marriage with the Church – we also must look for answers in the beginning of creation.
In general, I believe Genesis 1-3 should be studied perhaps more than any other part of Scripture. These chapters are certainly quoted extensively in the New Testament. We must know the true intent God had from the beginning.
The Creation of the Man and Wife
In Genesis 1 we are given the overall picture of creation and the general picture of a husband and bride. Genesis 2, though, gives us more specific details.
According to Genesis 2:7, the first thing created in the man was his body. After this, God breathed spirit into the man to give him life (for “the body without the spirit is dead” [James 2:26]).
2 Corinthians 6:16 shows that every Christian is called the temple of God because the Spirit of God is living inside of us. Adam was first created as a body, then, he was created in the image of a temple as well (he had the spirit of life in his body). First is a body, then a temple.
Later in Genesis 2 it gives details of the bride, Eve, being created. The bride was created from Adam directly. The order of creation is this: (1) A body for the man, (2) a temple for the man, and (3) a bride for the man.
Adam, a Type for Christ
In 1 Corinthians 15:45-47 we have two pictures of a man. The first man is Adam, and the first thing he needed was a bride. Remember that God told Adam he needed a helper (see Gen. 1:18). It was not that Adam asked God for a helper and bride, but God saw it right that a helper/bride be created for Adam. This was all before the fall of man took place. This shows the eternal purpose of God. From the very beginning, God wanted a helper for the man. The first man, the man from the earth, needed a bride and helpmate so that the two could become one flesh (see Gen. 2:24). Also remember that Jesus told us we must look at the beginning in the matter of marriage.
Jesus, “the second man”, came to the earth for the same purpose.
In Luke 3 we are given the genealogy of Jesus. In this chapter, Jesus’ line of ancestry is traced backwards, all the way to Adam. Luke 3:38 says, “the son of Enosh, the son of Seth, the son of Adam, the son of God.” Adam is called the son of God here. So God had a son in Adam, in one sense. He is, of course, of a different nature than Jesus. Adam was a son from the earth, Jesus is the Son from heaven. Earlier in Luke 3, though, we read of another son.
The details of Christ’s baptism are seen in Luke 3:21-22. In verse 22, we read that God spoke to Jesus after his baptism and said, “You are My beloved Son, in You I am well-pleased.” God speaks of another Son here, and gives additional commentary: “in You I am well-pleased”. God is well-pleased with this Son, whereas He was not well-pleased with Adam, the other son mentioned.
In Adam, “the son of God” (Luke 3:38), God desired to create a bride for this son. Genesis 1 and 2 show us the details of what God wanted before the fall ever came.
Romans 1-8 gives us very precious information about the power of the cross of Jesus and the redemption this brings. There is so much that should be said and realized about the power of the cross, the blood, and redemption, and these things are clearly a main focus of the New Testament Scriptures. However, the cross and redemption are not the final place God wants to take us. They do not show the finality of the LORD’s plan for our life. There is true redemption in Jesus, and we praise God so much for this, but our redemption only takes us back to where Adam was. God has said that He has another Son who is well-pleasing who is not of the dust, but of heaven, the LORD Jesus Christ. From the beginning, God’s plan has always been to have a beautiful bride for His Son.
(2) THE BRIDE AND GROOM
Scripture Reading:
Deuteronomy 7:1-3; John 3:26-31; Revelation 21:1-2
The Bride: a Focus
In Genesis we read that “God created the heavens and the earth” (Gen. 1:1) and later He created a man and bride. At the end of the Bible we see a new heaven and a new earth, and the first thing after this is “a bride adorned for her husband” (see Revelation 21:1-2). The bride is a point of focus in the old heavens and earth and in the new heavens and earth. The bride is always the supreme focus of His plan. God greatly desires a bride for his son.
One of many examples of this can be seen in Abraham and Isaac. Isaac is a type for Jesus, God’s Son, and Abraham is a type for God the Father. In Genesis 24, Abraham sends out his servant to find a bride for his son. There is a clear interest Abraham has in finding a bride for Isaac, and it is the same with God the Father. These types give us many general pictures of God bringing a Bride for His Son.
Jesus, The Bridegroom
In John 3 we are presented with additional details. John the Baptist is here talking about Jesus. He calls Jesus “the bridegroom” (v. 29). This shows us that the Jews knew God as a bridegroom and His people as a bride. Even though the Apostle Paul writes in depth about this subject later, it was not as though he alone had this special revelation. It is clear that John the Baptist understood this before Paul even became a Christian. In the Old Testament, God continually rebukes Israel as an unfaithful wife. There has been a consistent image of a bride and bridegroom throughout the Scriptures.
In these verses we are told more about the bridegroom. In John 3:27, John the Baptist says, “A man can receive nothing unless it has been given him from heaven.” This verse burdens me, and hopefully you as well. There is nothing a man can receive that will not be cursed by the flames if the origin of the thing is not heaven. There is nothing you can give that will be received if it does not come from heaven. This is the power of the Gospel. The world has nothing to offer. Nothing. This is why we are told to love not the world. You can’t receive anything unless it comes from heaven. After saying this, John talks about Jesus and says, “the bride belongs to the bridegroom” (John 3:29, KJV).
The Rule Against Intermarrying With Other Nations
“Is not this Jesus…How does He now say, ‘I have come down out of heaven’?” (John 6:42). The home of Jesus is in heaven. This is where He is from. It is his place of origin. In Deut. 7:1-3, we see a principle in the law of God that has bearings on the subject at hand. These are instructions given to Israel when they enter land to possess it and drive out the other nations (v. 1). We know that Jesus came to the earth, from heaven, with plans of possessing and ruling the earth, and driving out the nations and enemies that oppose his rule, so He would also be under this rule. In verse 2, Israel is told to utterly destroy the things of the place they came to possess. When Jesus came, He agreed with God’s words in Deut. 7:2 and commanded total separation and annihilation of the things of this world: “NOW judgment is upon this world; NOW the ruler of this world will be cast out.” (John 12:31, emphasis mine). There is another divine command in verse 3: “Furthermore, you shall not intermarry with them”.
Now, Jesus truly is the bridegroom who has come for his bride, but the bride, in no way, can be anywhere from the earth. This is according to God’s law. If Jesus has come to dispossess the world, He cannot take brides from the earth. The bride cannot be from the world. Jesus came to destroy the nations and possess the earth, but God commands him not to marry anyone from there.
Marrying in the Father’s Family
Christ needs a bride who comes from his same home and heritage: heaven. This is a common theme throughout the Old Testament Scriptures as well. For instance:
- Abraham speaks of his wife saying, “she actually is my sister, the daughter of my father, but not the daughter of my mother, and she became my wife” (Gen. 20:11-12). His wife was of his family, on his father’s side.
- Years later, Abraham tells his servant: “you shall go to my father’s house and to my relatives, and take a wife for my son.” (Gen. 24:38). Like Abraham, the bride of Abraham’s son had to specifically be from the father’s own house.
- When Jacob met his wife Rachel, he told her “that he was a relative of her father” (Gen. 29:12). She had to be a relative on the father’s side.
- King Solomon writes, “You have made my heart beat faster, my sister, my bride” (Song of Songs 4:9). The bride is first called “my sister”, then she is “my bride”. She had to be from the same family.
From all of these examples, we see a clear principle. Marriage often happened with relatives on their father’s side. Not their mother’s. This gives an amazing example for us as Christians. We too, should marry those who are part of Our Heavenly Father’s family (fellow Christians). And even more, Christ, the Son of God, must seek a wife among the household of His Father.
God cannot give his Son a bride from the earth. The LORD will not take her, indeed He cannot.
(3) THE ORIGIN OF THE BRIDE AND THE DOMAIN OF THE SERPENT
Scripture Reading:
Genesis 3:1, 12-16; Leviticus 11; John 13:10; 1 Timothy 2:14; 1 John 3:9; 4:7; 5:1, 4, 18
Eve and the Serpent
Let’s return now to the beginning of creation. In Genesis 3:1 we see that the serpent went to the woman so that the man would fall. He attacked the wife, not the husband. The same is true today. Satan (“the serpent of old” Rev. 20:2) attacks the bride of Christ, (his church). “And it was not Adam who was deceived, but the woman being deceived, fell into transgression.” (1 Tim. 2:14). Think of this with the husband of all the church, Christ. It is necessary that the church (Christ’s bride) not be deceived and it is necessary that she be from heaven, of the Father’s household. The proverb truly says,
“An excellent wife is the crown of her husband,
But she who shames him is like rottenness in his bones.”
(Proverbs 12:4).
We know that Eve was deceived and caused her husband to fall as well. Genesis 3:12-16 shows the resulting pronouncements of God. The serpent is punished first, then the bride (and later the man).
The Serpent and the Earth
“On your belly you will go”
Gen. 3:14
We may not know exactly what the serpent looked like before this incident, but we know that he must have had some kind of legs in which to crawl. But because of this great act of deception, the serpent had his legs removed and he was forever confined to slither about the earth on his belly. He would always be confined to the earth. In no way would the serpent ever be able to detach himself from the earth. If he had legs, perhaps he could jump off the earth, but this is not the case. Instead, his only dominion would be the earth. He had to stay on the earth. This was his dwelling. The serpent speaks of Satan, which means that Satan’s dwelling is only confined to the earth.
“Whatever crawls on its belly…they are detestable.”
Lev. 11:42
Leviticus 11 talks of clean and unclean animals. There are many rules regarding what makes an animal clean or unclean, yet there is one common factor seen in every one of these rules. It seems that an animal is considered clean or unclean strictly by its relationship with the earth. For instance, “All the winged insects that walk on all fours are detestable to you. Yet these you may eat…those which have above their feet jointed legs with which to jump on the earth.” (Leviticus 11:21-22). If an animal touches the earth, it is detestable to you, but if they have joints to jump on the earth, they become clean. They become clean when they can separate themselves from the earth. God says we can eat those that separate themselves from the earth, but those things that cannot separate themselves from the earth are considered unclean. The fish that were clean had fins and scales in which to separate themselves from the water of the world, but the unclean fish did not have such a layer of separation. And so forth the pattern goes. The unclean animals did not have separation from the world. The clean animals did. This makes the serpent perhaps the most detestable of all the animals for it can never remove itself from the earth (see Lev. 11:42).
“He who has bathed needs only to wash his feet”
John 13:10
Such a pattern is true for us as well. Jesus tells his disciples that “He who has bathed needs only to wash his feet, but is completely clean” (John 13:10). The part that is unclean is the feet. This is because the feet touch the world. Your relationship with the world decides if you are clean or unclean. The way in which you touch the world determines your cleanness in God’s sight.
The Serpent Feeds off Dust
“And dust you will eat/ All the days of your life”
Gen. 3:14
After the serpent is told he would always crawl on his belly, God tells him that he will only eat dust. The food of the serpent is dust. He is fed by dust. And by extension, the same is true of the devil – his very nourishment is dust. In Genesis 2:7, though, we are told that Adam was created from the dust of the earth. He was made from the dust of the earth. Therefore, as long you are “in Adam” (see 1 Corinthians 15:22), the man of the earth, you feed Satan. As long as you are living out of your old nature in Adam, you are giving sustenance to Satan. You are making him stronger, and bigger, and mightier the longer you stay in Adam who was formed of dust. So how do we get out of Adam and overcome Satan?
Origin Determines Everything
The next verse in Genesis 3 is a telling one:
And I will put enmity
Between you and the woman,
And between your seed and her seed;
He shall bruise you on the head,
And you shall bruise him on the heel.
Gen. 3:15
From this verse, we see that the serpent would not be able to feed off of the wife. Why? Because her origin was from Adam, not the dust. Eve was formed when Adam’s was put to sleep and his side was pierced, just as Christ was put to death and His side pierced. Eve was never made from the dust. She was made from the man’s body. Her place of origin made all the difference in the world. Indeed, origin determines everything.
The serpent was still allowed to strike her heel, because her feet touched the ground. But this was the most Satan could do to the woman. He could strike her heel, but she had power to stomp over him. This can all be attributed to the woman’s origin. I repeat that origin determines everything. Since the woman had a different origin, she had power over the enemy. If you are from the dust, though, you will feed Satan.
In 1 John, there are five different times it refers to being “born of God”. No one who is born of God practices sin. Everyone who loves is born of God. Whatever is born of God overcomes the world. (1 John 3:9; 4:7; 5:4). The power of your Christian walk lies in your origin. It does not say, He who does extra Bible studies does not sin. Or, He who does extra prayer… Rather, it rests with your origin. It is your origin that determines everything. Are you born from heaven or born from the dust?
Childbirth
After God explains the woman’s interaction with the serpent in Gen. 3:15, He proceeds to give further details concerning the woman’s future life:
To the woman He said,
“I will greatly multiply
Your pain in childbirth,
In pain you will bring forth children…”
(Gen. 3:16a)
The childbirth of the woman may symbolically speak of us bringing new people to the LORD. There is certainly much pain and labor involved with bringing people to Christ, but as Jesus says, “Whenever a woman is in labor she has pain…but when she gives birth to the child, she no longer remembers the anguish because of the joy that a child has been born into the world.” (John 16:21). There is pain and trials and tribulations now, but the reward of a new birth eclipses these things. Isaiah prophetically writes of the birth of the church saying, “As soon as Zion travailed, she also brought forth her sons.” (Isaiah 66:8). There is much pain in bringing forth life. This is what God forewarns Eve.
The Rule of the Husband
But God continues with His pronouncements:
“Yet your desire will be for your husband,
And he will rule over you.”
(Gen. 3:16b)
The Husband has the rule now. This means that Christ has rule over us as his bride. This is why there is so much importance in listening to the voice of God. Our Husband cannot rule over us if we never hear his voice. We must hear the voice of God and relentlessly obey what we are told.
This all shows the way it was at the beginning. It was God’s purpose to have a bride for his son. This has been his plan throughout the ages.
(4)THE BODY, TEMPLE, AND BRIDE OF CHRIST
Scripture Reading:
John 2:19-21; 19:34; Acts 9:3-5; Romans 8:16; 1 Corinthians 6:17, 19; 12:13; 15:45; 2 Corinthians 6:16; Ephesians 2:18-22
Jesus Fulfills the Pattern of Adam’s Creation
In John 2:19-21 Jesus speaks of his own body as a temple, because He had the Holy Spirit. Christ’s body is also called his temple. This was true of Jesus, but the purpose of God was not merely to bring the body/temple of his Son into the world. He still needed a bride. Jesus could not go to the brides of the earth. This is forbidden in the law. If you are to possess a place, you could not intermarry with their people (Deut. 7:1-3). Jesus needed a bride that was not from the earth. He had to have a bride from a different home. How could He obtain this, then? Where could He go to find a bride?
God created a bride for Adam by putting him to sleep and piercing his side. This was God’s strategy from the beginning. As sleep is a common phrase for death in the New Testament (“sleep” points to the temporary nature of death, and “death” points to the consequence of sin), the sleep of Adam foreshadows a mighty work of Christ’s death. The first man, Adam, needed to be put to sleep and his side pierced for a bride to be formed. The second man, Christ (see 1 Cor. 15:47), was hung on a cross and his side was pierced where blood and water flowed out (see John 19:34). We must remember that this happened with Adam and Eve before sin entered the picture. This was the divine goal of God. It is true that the cross of Christ brings redemption from our sins, but this is not the end of work of the cross. The cross also is the starting point of a bride for God’s Son.
Adam was created with the spirit of a man (Gen. 2:7), where Jesus had the Holy Spirit. Paul writes to Christians saying that the Holy Spirit testifies with our spirit so that we become one Spirit with God (compare Romans 8:16 with 1 Cor. 6:17). Ezekiel also speaks of this miracle of God’s Spirit joining with our spirits prophetically in Ezekiel 36:26-27. It is true, then, that Adam was first a body, then a temple who housed the spirit of man. And Jesus too was a body, and also a temple housing the Holy Spirit. But they both needed a bride. The bride would come from the body, or temple, of both Adam and Jesus. Jesus needed his Body to be pierced and His Spirit to be given out so that He could have a bride for Himself.
The Church is the Body of Christ
In Acts 9:3-4 Jesus is speaking to Paul after He has resurrected and ascended. He asks, “Why are you persecuting Me?” I imagine that Paul was thinking in his mind about all the people he could have possibly persecuted. He must have been asking, Who are you, which one of the people I have persecuted? Are you this person or that person? In verse 5, Paul asks who was talking with him, and Jesus responds by saying, “I am Jesus whom you are persecuting.” Paul never directly persecuted Jesus, yet he was being accused of this very thing. What this shows is that Jesus is one body with those who follow Him. If you are persecuting any Christians, then you are persecuting Jesus.
This incident is the first revelation Paul ever receives from Jesus, but many more would follow. You will remember that Paul gave us all the mighty revelations of the church as recorded in his New Testament letters. But his very first revelation was this: If you touch one member of Christ, you have touched Jesus Himself. Jesus never asks, “Why are you persecuting MY CHURCH?” He never asks, “Why are you persecuting MY PEOPLE?” Or, “Why are you persecuting those who believe in Me?” No. Jesus could have said a number of things, but instead He asks, “Why are you persecuting Me?” This is how Christ sees the church, as one Body. The church is called the very Body of Christ (see Ephesians 4:4, for instance).
The Church is the Temple of Christ, Housing God’s Spirit
In 1 Corinthians 15:45 there is a contrast drawn between Adam and Jesus. Adam was a living soul, whereas Jesus is said to be a life-giving spirit. What does it mean to be a life-giving spirit? James 2:26 says, “the body without the spirit is dead”. This is certainly true with our natural body, but it is equally true with the Body of Christ. Jesus had to give his Spirit to his Body so that there would be life. There is one body and one Spirit, Eph. 4:4. The Body of Christ could not be unless the Spirit of Christ is given to it. Just as Jesus had a body where the Holy Spirit resided, so His people now are called the Body of Christ where the Holy Spirit resides.
What makes something a temple in God’s sight? Wherever God dwells is called a temple. 1 Corinthians 6:19 and 2 Corinthians 6:16 tell us that the bodies of all Christians are called temples because the Holy Spirit lives within us. And Ephesians 2:18-22 shows that both our individual bodies and the entire body of the church is considered a temple, because God’s Spirit dwells in us. Consistently in the Scriptures, a temple is called the dwelling place of God. Therefore, the church must be seen as the Body of Christ and the Temple of Christ, for we have the Holy Spirit: “For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body” (1 Corinthians 12:13).
(5)A STUDY IN THE BOOK OF EPHESIANS
Scripture Reading:
Song of Songs 1:8; Ephesians
The Theme of Ephesians
To see the full view of the church we must set our attention on the book of Ephesians. I suppose that the book of Ephesians can perhaps be best summed up by the words of the King-Lover to his bride in Song of Songs: “Most beautiful among women” (Song of Songs 1:8). The husband says this to the bride. Before this, the bride is asking the husband where she is supposed to go to have her fullness of life. She wanted direction, and these are the first words from the husband’s mouth. If you yourself do not know,/ Most beautiful among women. He first says to her that although you may not know everything, I still will call you the most beautiful among women. And I believe this is the essence of Paul’s letter to the Ephesians. In a very real sense, Paul is describing the church as the most beautiful among women here.
A Breakdown of Ephesians
The book of Ephesians can be broken down in this way:
Ephesians 1 describes who Jesus is, what He did, and the power He has.
Ephesians 2 tells us that those who believe in Jesus have become “one new man” in Him, and later in this chapter the church is further described as a temple.
Ephesians 3 and 4 show that there should no longer be division in the Body of Christ (the church). Ephesians 4 focuses especially on the special function and ministry each member serves within the Body.
Ephesians 5 shows the highest calling of the church, that she should be called the Bride of Christ.
Ephesians begins by talking about the Husband, Jesus. After this the focus shifts to the Church, where Paul calls it a body and a temple. Then later, at the climax of the truth of this letter, the church is finally described as a bride.
Eph. 1: The Lord’s work.
Eph. 2 (start): Church = Body (“one new man”).
Eph. 2 (end): Church = Temple
Eph. 3 & 4: Explanation of this (NO more division)
Eph. 5: Church = Bride (highest form)
Eph. 6: Stand against the Tempter.
Adam, Christ, and Ephesians
In the creation of the man, there was first a body, then a temple that housed his spirit, then a bride. We have shown that this corresponds to Jesus who came with a body, and called his body a temple, then later a bride was created out of his body. But according to Ephesians, a similar pattern can be seen in the church. The focus of the church is first on the Husband, Jesus (Eph. 1). Then it shifts to calling the church the body of Christ, and later the temple of the Holy Spirit. But the highest mark of the church is that she is called a bride in Ephesians 5. Just as Eve was made of Adam’s body, so the Church had to come from the Body of Christ, in a very real sense.
The Bride, the Church’s Highest Form
In Ephesians 5:22-24 the husband is referred to as the head of the wife just as Christ is the head of the church. In v. 23 Christ is called the head of the church and the Savior of the body. Paul is helping us see here how the church is the body and the bride simultaneously.
Later, in Ephesians 5:28-30, the mystery of the church is explained in a bit more detail. Just as husbands love their own bodies, so they should love their wife. This corresponds with the fact that we are members of Christ’s body and also called his wife.
The next two verses (vv. 31 and 32) are key in our understanding. Verse 31 quotes from Genesis 2:24 and verse 32 tells us that Adam and Eve are symbols of the union between the church and Christ. We see again the importance of going back to the beginning.
We have here a picture. Christ had to die, just like Adam was put to sleep, and out of His own body a bride was created for Himself. But the Husband and wife are not to stay separate. The bride must come back to join together with her Husband. A man…shall be joined to his wife, and two shall become one flesh. Isaiah writes truly that “Your husband is your Maker, / Whose name is the Lord of hosts” (Isaiah 54:5). So the bride is created as a separate person from the husband, yet they are called to join together as one flesh. This entire act displays the power of the body of Christ (the communion) – the fact that “we are many members of His body” – becoming also the bride of Christ.
A Stand Against Satan
And now, what of Ephesians 6? Reading Ephesians 6:10-11, we see that the first word used here is “finally”. These are the final instructions Paul gives. We must be ready, at last, to stand against the schemes of the devil. This is just like Eve. She was created as the bride, but it was she whom the serpent attacked (see Genesis 3:1), and we know that she was not able to withstand. Truly, Eve fell and caused Adam to fall. But now we are created as a “helper” for the work of our Lord and Husband. How do we then stand against the schemes of the devil? You must read on to find out.
(6) AN ORIGIN IN THE HEAVENS
Scripture Reading:
2 Chronicles 3:1; Ezekiel 40:2, 5; Haggai 1:8; Matthew 6:9; Mark 3:13-14; Luke 3:21-22; John 6:42, 51; 2 Corinthians 11:2; Hebrews 8:5; Revelation 21:2
Heaven, God’s Origin
Origin determines everything. Our Father dwells in heaven (Matt. 6:9). The Spirit too comes from heaven (Luke 3:21-22), just as at Pentecost the Spirit fell from heaven (Acts 2:1-4). The origin of Christ’s Body is also from heaven (John 6:42, 51; 1 Cor. 15:47; Acts 9:4-5).
In Revelation 21:2, the Bride is seen descending from heaven. This contrasts the prostitute from the earth (see Revelation 17). Revelation 21:2 mentions the Bride of Jerusalem where Rev. 17:5 describes the whore of Babylon. There is a clear difference and contrast between these two. The Bride from Jerusalem speaks of the true Bride of Christ. The whore of Babylon speaks of a counterfeit bride – a bride that appears to be the true church, but in reality is not. In fact, the Greek word whore in Revelation 17:5 here indicates an unfaithful wife. But the church of God is called to be a pure virgin (see 2 Corinthians 11:2), and never a woman who has other lovers.
As we have spoken previously, the order of creation is: (1) a body, (2) a temple, (3) a bride. The Father, Spirit, and Son all come from heaven. They have existed for eternity, and there was no beginning to them. But we see in Revelation 21 that the Bride has also come from heaven. It should then be no less true that the temple of God, where His Spirit dwells, must be a heavenly temple.
A Temple Built on Top of the Mountain
In Exodus 19:20 Moses was sent to the top of the mountain. He had to go up the mountain, and he had to go to the very top. It was here that Moses was given the revelations of the tabernacle (see Exodus 26). The revelation for the tabernacle was given at the top of the mountain, and nowhere else could it be given (see also Hebrews 8:5). Hundreds of years after Moses, when Solomon was constructing the temple of God, we read that “Solomon began to build the house of the Lord in Jerusalem on Mount Moriah” (2 Chronicles 3:1). This temple was also built on the top of a mountain (the very same mountain where Abraham took Isaac to be sacrificed). Many years still after this, the prophet Ezekiel received a vision of a new temple for God. In the visions of God He brought me into the land of Israel and set me on a very high mountain. And behold, there was a wall on the outside of the temple all around. (Ezekiel 40:2,5). And still years after this, God spoke to the prophet Haggai, among others. God told Haggai: “Go up to the mountains, bring wood and rebuild the temple” (Haggai 1:8). He had to go to the top of the mountain to obtain supplies to build the temple.
Moses was sent to the top of a mountain for the temple. Solomon built the temple on top of a mountain. Ezekiel was sent to the top of the mountain for the new temple. And God told Haggai to go to the top of the mountain to build the temple. Consistently, the origin of the temple is at the top of the mountain. This symbolically shows that the temple began in the heavens. The top of a mountain is the highest point you could ever reach on earth, and it symbolizes heaven above. The temple comes from heaven. You must gather the wood for the temple from the top of the mountain.
A mountain is a God-made structure in the world. Its peaks are at the top of God’s creation. Satan is aware of this. We can see the perversion of this in Genesis 11 with the tower of Babel. This tower was manmade instead of made by God. It was a tower with “the top in the heavens”, which means that it was a tower with images of false gods at the top. Because of this perversion, God had to separate the languages so the people could not unite against God. A tower is manmade, but the mountain is made by God, and the top of the mountain corresponds to being in the heavens.
At the end of Ephesians 2, the church is called a temple: “having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the corner stone…growing into a holy temple in the Lord…a dwelling of God in the Spirit.” (Eph. 2:20-22). And where did the construction of this temple begin? “He [Jesus] went up on the mountain and summoned those whom He Himself wanted, and they came to Him. And He appointed twelve” (Mark 3:13-14). This temple also began on a mountain, showing us that the temple of God must always have a heavenly origin. In Daniel 2, through Nebuchadnezzar’s dream, we see that Christ was spoken of as a rock that grew into “a great mountain and filled the whole earth” (Daniel 2:35). This is the truth of the church today. The temple is built upon the Rock of Christ, and it has grown into a great mountain. It is only upon the mountain that God’s temple can be built. This is always the case.
(7) THE MATURING OF THE BRIDE
Scripture Reading:
Genesis 2:18; Song of Songs 1:6, 9-11; 3:1-4; 7:12;1 Corinthians 1:4-8; Revelation 2:1-5
Restoration of the Bride
So what must we do today? In Song of Songs chapter 3 the bride is said to have had a troubled night. At the beginning of this chapter, she is on her own bed (instead of the king’s bed where she was at the beginning of the book) and she has lost the presence of her husband. She asks, Where is he? Where is he? She is very troubled and desperate to find her lover. Later in the chapter, though, she indeed is restored to her lover.
When I found him whom my soul loves;
I held on to him and would not let him go
Until I had brought him to my mother’s house,
And into the room of her who conceived me.
(Song of Songs 3:4)
We see that the bride had to return to the place she was conceived. The church is called a heavenly bride, and she must return to her place of origin to bring about the power of the Lord and restore the fellowship of the Spirit.
A Bride Adorned
It is not enough to be a bride, merely, although this is a most wonderful thing. The bride must also be adorned. In Song of Songs 1:9-11, the King-Lover tells the bride this truth. Our husband is not fully satisfied until the Bride is fully adorned. The adornment of the church will come from the Spirit.
When Abraham sent his servant out to bring a bride for his son, he immediately adorned the bride with gold jewelry before taking her back to meet with Isaac. In the same manner, the Holy Spirit has gone forth to bring a Bride to Jesus, and longs to adorn the bride before she meets her husband in the air. Paul says: “I thank my God always concerning you for the grace of God which was given you…so that you are not lacking in any gift, awaiting eagerly the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Corinthians 1:4, 7). This is fully realized when we see that the bride who is seen coming from heaven in Revelation 21 is called “a bride adorned for her husband” (v. 2). A mature bride is an adorned bride.
The Work of the Bride
We will also remember that the bride was created as a helper for the man (Genesis 2:18). God saw it fitting that the man had a helper for the work. With this in mind, it should be pointed out that the bride in the Song of Songs begins her troubles because she neglects her work. She spends her time tending other vineyards while neglecting her own. They made me caretaker of the vineyards,/ But I have not taken care of my own vineyard. (Song of Songs 1:6b). This is why she is seen as dark in the presence of the King (see 1:6a). She has busied herself with tending other vineyards and set aside her own. At this point, she is not a very mature bride. She does not know how to work the vineyards of others and maintain her own vineyard concomitantly. But as the chapters of Song of Songs unfold, so does the maturity of the bride grow. By the time we reach chapter 7, we see an altogether new bride.
In Song of Songs 7:12 the bride has finally learned how to work with her lover. She is able to give out her love while serving in the vineyards. At the beginning, she did not know how to do this. She was going on her own and was unable to serve in the vineyards without becoming darkened and neglecting her own. But here she learns that the LORD is her helper. She is the wife but He is the husband. When we have a realization of this, we will be able to work fully with our Husband and show our love to Him through our service. Was this not the warning given to the church of Ephesus by Jesus in Revelation 2? They were told that they were doing good work for the LORD, but they had forgotten their first work and their first love. And the LORD told them they were in danger of truly being darkened: “You have left your first love. Therefore remember from where you have fallen, and repent and do the deeds you did at first; or else I am coming to you and will remove your lampstand out of its place” (Rev. 2:4-5). After we have known the intimacy and love of our Husband, the work flows naturally. But it is dangerous to work strictly out of duty, for the letter kills.
Adam was told he needed a helper to take dominion over the world, and it is the same with Jesus. He has called us a bride who would help Him subdue the world. This will help us see the power and importance of prayer, among other things. Our praying is a joining of hands with our Husband that His will may be accomplished on earth. Jesus asks us to pray that God’s will be done on earth. This implies that our prayers are essential for God’s will to happen on earth, and if we fail to pray than we have no assurance that God will do what He fully desires in the world. As one person has said, God’s will is like a powerful locomotive and our prayers are like the tracks. When the locomotive has a track to move on, it can never be stopped. But it needs the tracks to be laid.
(8) A FULLY MATURE BRIDE
Scripture Reading:
Song of Songs 8:5, 10; Ezekiel 40:5; Revelation 21:9-12
The Bride Becomes a Wall
The totally mature bride is seen in Song of Songs 8. The chorus asks, Who is this coming up from the wilderness/ Leaning on her beloved? (Song of Songs 8:5). She has learned to lean on her beloved. The two have now become one. She no longer derives her strength from her own power. Instead, she is known as one who leans upon her beloved. And the mark of such a maturity is seen in verse 10: I was a wall, and my breasts were like towers. Breasts are a sign of maturity in a woman. This is why they are so concerned about the young sister who has not developed her breasts (verse 8). So when the bride is seen as most mature (having breasts) she is called A WALL. She says that she is a wall and her breasts are like towers. This is the sign of her maturity.
The Wall: A Separation From the World
In Ezekiel 40, we remember that he was atop a mountain and had a vision of the new temple. And behold, there was a wall on the outside of the temple all around (v. 5). The first thing he notices about the temple that came from this heavenly vision was the wall. John’s vision of the bride in the new heavens and new earth is similar to this.
In Revelation 21:9-12, you will notice that John, like Ezekiel, was carried to a “great and high mountain” to see the Bride (which is also Jerusalem) coming down from heaven, just as we know that both the bride and temple must come from heaven. And what is the first thing John notices about the bride/Jerusalem? It had a great and high wall (v. 12). This is the first thing that is noticed. A wall is always seen in connection to a mature bride and a mature temple. And what was the purpose for building a wall around the city? A wall was built to separate and protect a city from the outside world. Therefore, the sign of maturity of the bride is that you are a wall who is separated from the world. The wall keeps out wild beasts, enemy nations, and the rest of the world, and so we too must be separate from the enemy and the world (of course, these two actually work in tandem).
The bride must be adorned and separate from the world. I pray that we would have a revelation of what this truly means.
SOURCES:
- NASB.
- Mauro, Philip. “Hope of Israel, The”
- Nee, Watchman. “Normal Christian Church Life”
- Nee, Watchman. “Normal Christian Life”
- Nee, Watchman. “Let Us Pray”
- Nee, Watchman. “Love Not the World”
- Nee, Watchman. “What Shall This Man Do?”
- Nee, Watchman. “Sit, Walk, Stand”
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