The Bride of Christ - Picture for Marriage

This week we started off by trying to find the phrase "the bride of Christ" in the bible. After spending a few minutes looking for the phrase, we actually found that it wasn't there. hahaha! But the idea of the phrase is there.
So we looked at a couple of passages where this idea occurs. But first we looked at the concept of marriage.

Gen 2 v 24

"Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh."

So we discussed how it can be difficult to see how this joining of the flesh (sex) is a picture of Christ and his bride. We then looked at the steps of marriage

• Attraction
• Going out (Fall in love)
• Engagement (Choose to love)
• Become one mind
• Marriage
• Become one flesh

ps in case you don't understand - the fall in love and choose to love was a very very interesting point brought up by Gab Bauer at the glasgow central fraternal - on ephesians. 'Phileo' seems to be the physical, first love attraction - the falling in love. 'Agape' seems to be a conscious decision to keep loving the person - choosing to love. (jamie wants me to put that that paragraph was by me - debbie)

Becoming one mind is crucial for becoming one flesh. This is why this is harder for one believer and one believer to be married. This parallels with the picture of Jesus and his wife

John 10 v 30

"I and my father are one"

and

Galatians 3 v 28

"There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for we are all one in Christ Jesus."

So we are preparing now to become one then. So now is the time for us to become one in mind with Jesus and God to prepare us for the marriage supper of the lamb. Which is mentioned in the following passages

Revelation 19 v 1 - 9

1. And after these things I heard a great voice of much people in heaven, saying, Alleluia; Salvation, and glory, and honour, and power, unto the Lord our God:
2. For true and righteous are his judgments: for he hath judged the great whore, which did corrupt the earth with her fornication, and hath avenged the blood of his servants at her hand.
3. And again they said, Alleluia And her smoke rose up for ever and ever.
4. And the four and twenty elders and the four beasts fell down and worshipped God that sat on the throne, saying, Amen; Alleluia.
5. And a voice came out of the throne, saying, Praise our God, all ye his servants, and ye that fear him, both small and great.
6. And I heard as it were the voice of a great multitude, and as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of mighty thunderings, saying, Alleluia: for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth.
7. 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.
8. And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints.
9. And he saith unto me, Write, Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb. And he saith unto me, These are the true sayings of God.

Rev 21 v 1 - 12

1. And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea.
2. And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.
3. And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.
4. And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.
5. And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful.
6. And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely.
7. He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son.
8. But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.
9. 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 shew thee the bride, the Lamb's wife.
10. And he carried me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain, and shewed me that great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God,
11. Having the glory of God: and her light was like unto a stone most precious, even like a jasper stone, clear as crystal;
12. And had a wall great and high, and had twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and names written thereon, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel.

Once we've become one in mind (which we can't do properly until the kingdom) we will no longer
have the desire to sin - we will have 'divine nature.'

2 Peter 1 v 1 - 11

1.Simeon Peter, a servant and apostle of Jesus Christ, to those who have obtained a faith of equal standing with ours by the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ:
2. May grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord.
Make Your Calling and Election Sure
3. His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence,
4. by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire.
5. For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge,
6. and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness,
7. and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love.
8. For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
9. For whoever lacks these qualities is so nearsighted that he is blind, having forgotten that he was cleansed from his former sins.
10. Therefore, brothers, be all the more diligent to make your calling and election sure, for if you practice these qualities you will never fall.
11. For in this way there will be richly provided for you an entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

this wasn't by me