And I John saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down from God out of Heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. Revelation 21:2
The Old Testament has many examples of brides being sought, selected, and prepared for their husbands. Consider how Abraham sent his servant to find a bride for Isaac, a bride who must meet very specific requirements. Consider how carefully King Ahaseurus had the women of his kingdom searched until he found the loveliest of all in Esther, who became his queen. Consider the qualities of the perfect wife as laid out in Proverbs 31. And there are many other examples as well, in which we can see the Word of God providing pictures and types that would foreshadow the preparing of a bride for the Lamb of God. Our text compares the New Jerusalem, the dwelling place of the saints forever, as being prepared like a bride ready to meet her husband. As the bride of Christ, there is a great deal of preparation required.
Every marriage must be based in love. And when we consider our Bridegroom, we cannot question His love. In Galatians 2:20, we read of the Son of God Who loved me and gave Himself for me. In John 3:16, we read of the love of God in giving His Son, whose love was the same as His Father’s love. When we were saved, we discovered not only the love of God, but our love in response to His love to us. We love him, because he first loved us (1 John 4:19). While His love for us never fails, our love for Him is prone to the weaknesses of the flesh, but grows ever deeper as we appreciate His love for us.
Our preparation as the bride is also marked by our purity. We often feel ashamed of ourselves as we compare us with the holiness of God and of the spotless character of the Lamb of God. We appreciate His character, knowing it was only as the unblemished Lamb that He could qualify as our sacrifice. In contrast, we see ourselves as weak and failing and full of blemishes. But we consider how God has clothed us in the righteousness of His Son. Despite our failing condition, we have a perfect position; God sees us as holy and pure, a fit bride for His Son. And it should be our desire to bring our condition into harmony with our holy position.
When a bride prepares for her husband, she learns everything she can about him, so she will be able to understand and appreciate him, and to respond appropriately to him. It is the very same with the bride of Christ. A great part of our preparation is learning about our Bridegroom. He has given to us His Book, which we can -and must – study to learn of Him. Within His Word, we learn of His character, His purposes, and His desires, as well as those things which He hates. The more we learn of Him now, the better prepared we will be to fulfill our role as His bride in Heaven.
God has prepared us as a bride for Christ, but there is still much we must do to prepare ourselves to appreciate our Bridegroom. -Jim MacIntosh