AS A BRIDE

Jeanette Berry, June 1975

"...As a bride adorned for her husband..."  Revelation 21:2.

The Bible speaks much about brides and marriage.  It must be very dear to the heart of God.  From Eve, the bride taken from the side of Adam to the church taken from the riven side of Christ, brides are very special in the Word of God.

As we think of brides, we are always curious as to how she was adorned.  Newspaper accounts always describe in detail how the bride was dressed.  As a bride I wanted to please my husband.  I gave much thought and planning as to how to adorn myself to please him.

Naturally, a beautiful white gown was first on my list.  White was to represent the purity with which I offered myself to him, and with it a veil.  In Genesis 24:65 Rebekah meets Isaac, her husband to be, and "She took a veil and covered herself...".  This is a symbol of submission to his ownership and authority.  Only to the husband does she give the right and the privilege to left the veil and seal the vows with a kiss.

I carried a white Bible because it is the foundation of our new relationship and the guide of our future.  It has been all of that and more.  We exchanged rings,---tokens of our unending love and as a pledge of our vows.  A pledge is a down payment until the vows are fulfilled.  I treasure my rings even today as they were the first of thousands of blessings from my husband.

Our wedding was wonderful and marriage to Tom has been a heaven on earth.  However, I'm planning on getting married again!  The Bible tells us that the Church is the bride of Christ, looking forward to the marriage of the Lamb.  I want my adorning for this marriage to surpass that of our wedding.

Again, I'll be dressed in white, --the robe of righteousness, and again, I want to please HIM, whom having not seen, I love.  I want to be pure, obedient, and loving.  In the Genesis story,  as the servant made the journey bringing Rebekah to her bridegroom, he gave her tokens of his riches and filled her heart with stories of his blessings and riches.  In like manner the Holy Spirit presents us with tokens of God's love, and tells us of the riches of our Bridegroom, the Lord Jesus Christ, and the joys that await us when we become His wife.

The sweetest and most precious token of Jesus to me is the husband He gave me here on earth.  If anything on earth can be as wonderful as the love and the fellowship I enjoy in our marriage relationship, then our marriage to the Lamb is beyond description.

Copyright © 2008 Truth Helpers Inc.