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From Bride to Mother Rev. 19:7 (KJV) “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.” Rev. 21:9 (KJV) “And there came unto me one of the seven angels which had the seven vials full of the seven last plagues, and talked with me, saying, Come hither, I will show thee the bride, the Lamb’s wife.” In our preparations to be the Bride of Christ, one must ask what kind of bride we will be. What would be pleasing to our Husband Jesus Christ? This is a confusing day of roles in the home. We see television shows of the father staying at home with the kids while the wife is working. We see a woman taking her pick of twenty-five men and then asking for his hand in marriage. We hear of women choosing their career before pursuing a family. Also, we hear the echoes of the women’s movement and equal rights. So with all of this, how might the potential bride of Christ turn out? One possibility is that she chooses her “career” over children. Many women are choosing to marry later in life so that they can develop their own life and see how much power and prestige she can gain without a husband. Then, there is a great move today for young married couples to wait to have children until they are in their late thirties or forties. By doing this, they can focus on their career and gain wealth early, hoping for great returns later. Looking at these scenarios spiritually, we can see that the church can spend a lot of time trying to build itself up. The church might have a focus to see how much influence it can have in the community. It may spend a lot of time on building programs. The teachings may focus on self improvement to be the best person possible for Jesus. All the while the church becomes more selfish, self-centered, and self-focused. The church becomes ingrown and stagnant. The mentality that surrounds the people is, “As long as I’m OK, everything else is OK.” People don’t stop to think about others unless something is going wrong in their life. And then, the blame game begins. The church isn’t encouraging and uplifting; her members have become down trod and hurt. All the while the church tries with every bit of strength to prove to the world that she is something. She focuses on her career and her wealth as her power and prestige. A second possibility for the bride of Christ, is that she become a mother. She sets aside her ambitions. She lays down all desire for power and prestige. She has been shown the example by her groom, Christ. She doesn’t focus on selfish motives. She gives no room to her own image. All she wants is to have a family. She desires that her Husband’s image be seen in her children. She wants to have sons and daughters to follow her and learn of her. That she may grow them up with their purpose of producing sons and daughters. All of this is to the glory of her Husband. Spiritually in this scenario, we see that the church has chosen to focus on raising up young believers behind her. There is no arguing about what she wants; she has laid down her life. She is now in the shadows of her husband. She is a nurturer, full of mercy and compassion for her young. She knows that her glory will come when her young are grown and matured. She remembers that at one time she was a daughter. Someone raised her up, took time with her and trained her. Now she chooses to do the same. She has nothing to prove. All that she is reflects in her children. 1 John 3:1 (KJV) “Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God:” It is only by the love of God that we can be who we are in Him. We have not done this miraculous change within ourselves. May we pass the love on to others. -S. Chad Ross February Newsletter 2003 | Face Like Flint | From Bride to Mother Pastor's Journal February 2002 | Lawless Theology | Precious Seed part 2 of 3
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Biblical Counseling for Leaders
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