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That She Might Be Holy

In the Beauty & the Beast, it is the beast who changes over the course of the story.  That’s how we would like wedding supper of the Lamb to go.  “Just As I Am” means that Christ ought to accept His bride without any change on her part while the Lion of Judah must be transformed into our image.

The Bible, however, shows a very different picture–one that describes a process of perfection that we must undergo to share in Jesus’ holiness.

I.  Ephesians 5:25.  Like God’s people of the Old Testament (Deuteronomy 7:6-8), there’s nothing special about us that the Bridegroom would choose us (1 Corinthians 1:26-28).  We are the nothings of this world, despised and rejected (Ezekiel 16:4-7), yet God loved us, and Jesus gave Himself for us (John 3:16-17).

II.  Ephesians 5:26.  We are not okay the way we are but dirty, sinful, and separated from Him.  Jesus perfects His bride, the church, through a sanctification process (Ezekiel 16:8-12).  This was made possible through His sacrifice on the cross and involves much discipline on our part (Hebrews 12:7-14).  The result, however, is that we share in His holiness if we are trained by it (Ephesians 4:20-24).

III.  Ephesians 5:27.   Once perfected, we advance to royalty (Ezekiel 16:13-14) as the King of Kings presents the church to Himself (1 Peter 2:9-10).  There is no doubt that the sanctified bride will be presented to the Lion of Judah (Revelation 21:1-4).  All that is to be determined is if you will be part of the bride.

We are given the opportunity to share in Christ’s character–holiness, but many do not work out their salvation with fear and trembling.  In describing how God’s people of the Old Testament did not go through the sanctification process, Ezekiel gives us a bleak picture of their end in Ezekiel 16:15-22.  May we remember where we’ve been, recall the price of our sanctification, and live our new lives as the bride of Christ.

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He is a New Creation

As the road is wide that leads to destruction, much of mankind are caterpillars concerned with things below.  It’s when one realizes a need, turns, and obeys the gospel that he enters Christ through baptism and changes to be born a member of Christ’s body the church.  From there the butterfly … erm, Christian … walks (or flies–to keep the illustration consistent) as Jesus did upon that narrow road that leads to eternal life.

I.  Romans 5:18-21.  Sin marred the image of God that we were created in, but Christ was the perfect image of God who lived perfectly and then died so that in Him we could be restored to that perfection (Romans 6:1-14).  When we enter the chrysalis of Christ, we become a new creation (2 Corinthians 5:17-19).

II.  Colossians 3:1-17.  God’s ways and thoughts are so much above our own (Isaiah 55:8-9), yet in Him we are united with him and change to live differently.  Our minds and hearts need to be set on things above, not on earthly things.  After all, butterflies have wings and do not have the concerns of caterpillars.

III.  Ephesians 2:4-10.  The flutter (collective noun for a group of butterflies) that make up the bride of Christ works (obedient living) for the Bridegroom, walks as the Bridegroom (1 John 2:3-6) does, watches for the Bridegroom (Luke 21:34-36), and waits for the Bridegroom (Hebrews 9:27-28).

Jesus has made us to be a new creation as we enter the chrysalis of His body, the church, and are reborn as something entirely different.  Why live as if we don’t have wings?

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Obtained with His Own Blood

When my dad would leave for his two weeks’ active duty in the Navy Reserves every year, he would tell me I needed to be “the man of the house” and take care of my mother.  He didn’t expect me to take care of things that were beyond an eight year-old like fixing the washing machine or drive to the store for milk, but it didn’t stop me having fantasies of wrestling a robber to the ground in the middle of the night to save mom.

In many ways, Jesus wants us to take care of His bride, the church, until He returns.

I.  Ephesians 5:25-27.  As Paul spoke with the Ephesian elders, he states that Jesus’ church was “obtained with His own blood” (Acts 20:28).  Like a medieval knight battling a dragon to rescue the princess, Jesus overcame sin and death on the cross to win those who would be His.  The church is His bride, His treasured possession, that He gave Himself for.  He died for His greatest love!

II.  Hebrews 13:7-17.  Jesus obtained His bride with His blood, but He has gone to prepare a place for her (John 14:1-3), and entrusted her to shepherds.  Speaking to those same elders, Paul states that they are to “care for the church” (Acts 20:28).  Like my dad trusted me to care for my mother while he was away, the Good Shepherd (John 10:11-16) entrusts His greatest love with shepherds under Him.

III.  Revelation 19:7-8.  Every bride needs to make herself ready for her wedding day!  The church is no exception.  When the bells ring, it is not time to roll out of bed.  Knowing that our Knight, our King of Kings, has shed His blood for us to rescue us from such a foe (Revelation 5:9-14), we must don our fine linen (righteous acts) and be eagerly waiting for Him when He returns for us (Hebrews 9:28).

Are you by obedience and repentance making yourself ready for when the groom comes for His bride?