“Listen! My beloved! Behold, he comes, Climbing on the mountains, Leaping and running on the hills! “My beloved is like a gazelle or a young stag. Behold, he is standing behind our wall, He is looking through the windows, He is gazing through the lattice.
“For behold, the winter is past, The rain is over and gone. ‘The flowers appear on the earth once again; The time for singing has come, And the voice of the turtledove is heard in our land. ‘The fig tree has budded and ripens her figs, And the vines are in blossom and give forth their fragrance. Arise, my love, my fair one, And comeaway [to climb the rocky steps of the hillside].’” “O my dove, [here] in the clefts in the rock, In the sheltered and secret place of the steep pathway, Let me see your face, Let Me hear your voice; For your voice is sweet, And your face is lovely.”
“Catch the foxes for us, The little foxes that spoil and ruin the vineyards [of love], While our vineyards are in blossom.”” SONG OF SOLOMON 2:8-9, 11-15 AMP
Hear the God of the Nations call her. Arise my love. The Shepherd Groom searches for His Bride, for those He paid a great price to redeem, recrown. He peers through the shaded windows of our heart, calling us closer. He sees us and we behold Him through a glass dimly but one day…. we will see Him truely as He is. Glorious beautiful holy pure He is and she reflects His radiance like sunlight diamonds on the sea reflects the sunrise. Known and fully loved by her Courter. He gazes over the lattice on tip toes, the walls that hide us from Him and He will stand amazed at this wonderous bride! She is lifting up out of the ashes, crowned with grace and mercy. She is enamoured by His sweet love!
Yet what do we see when we look at His bride, His church and the Nations? Do we stand amazed or frustrated, annoyed, disgusted, or hating how the Bride looks? Are we at fault at our perceptions and labels? We want to dress her to our own culture, preference,denomination. Did we make her ugly that way with our bigotry, fear, hurt, racism, conflict, violence, offense, judgement, separation? Did we ever even think to ask ourselves that question?
We sometimes don’t act chosen, beloved. We pull our hair out often before the wedding and during the ceremony and reception. We are perhaps are the Runaway Bride or the Bridezilla at times in our love of Christ and others in this ceremony of life, or perhaps even the jealous bridesmaid, always a bridesmaid never a Bride, looking at the gifts and beauty of others, loathing them. But the Groom stands committed to make us like Him, for her to reflect His beauty, to know His deep committed love for us and the nations, a unified holy Bride.
If we manage to capture a glimpse His ravished heart for His Beloved, we see Him gasping to catch His breath. He embraces her as He beholds her in awe in a spectrum of shining glory and lavish diversity. But that diversity is unified, loving all parts of itself, free, whole, alive, creative! He wants a ravished, focused Bride pursuing what He loves, standing in complete unity. But that is far from what we have, the arguments, conflict, bitterness, pride stands in the way. We find a Bridegroom though in love with the One He’s pursuing, determined, unrelenting to draw her, call her out among the cliffs. Let me see your face and hear your voice, for your voice is sweet and face is lovely. Catch the foxes of division that ruins the vineyards! Do we know the bride fully or do we want to see the bride in all her beautiful array of shining glory, standing in her identity as Christ’s redeemed Beloved. Our view of loving diversity can sanctify, can even call lost Brides in of unreached peoples as we see His heart loving longing and reaching out to ALL people’s of the earth. We must ask God for Hus eyes, His heart for the part of the bride we may not prefer or like. We must stand with our brothers and sisters across the world, across denominations, across all boundaries of our earth. Then we must long for Rev 7 on earth,
“After these things I looked, and this is what I saw: a vast multitude which no one could count, [gathered] from every nation and from all the tribes and peoples and languages [of the earth], standing before the throne and before the Lamb (Christ), dressed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands; and in a loud voice they cried out, saying, “Salvation [belongs] to our God who is seated on the throne, and to the Lamb [our salvation is the Trinity’s to give, and to God the Trinity we owe our deliverance].” And all the angels were standing around the throne and around the [twenty-four] elders and the four living creatures; and they fell to their faces beforethe throne and worshiped God, saying, “Amen! Blessing and glory and majesty and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might belong to our God forever and ever. Amen.”” REVELATION 7:9-12 AMP
How rich I am and truely experience to have brothers and sisters I can get to know from Egypt, South Africa, Zulu, Sutu, Khoi San, and Norway, Palestine, Egypt, Iran, South Korea, Figi, America, France, Switzerland, Germany, Ethiopia, and Holland. How fun to laugh at jokes with a Khoi, sing with a Norwegian, dance with a Brazilian! How lovely is it to chat and have coffee at the home of a Palestinian with deep conversation about live, life, and family. Or visit an art museum with my French friend as she sees a type of beauty I don’t. And the afternoon tea with my English friend and chat is oh so divine. My Sudanese refugee friend will teach you how a business can be run and greet you as if you were her long lost family. It is more than a privilege to see more of Who God is through these people of His bride, to worship with them in the diverse Christian organization I belong to. .. I also get to see God pursue the Malay and stop by anytime for a tea and bite of home cooked samosas. I love to meet and chat with others God loves and pursues like the precious Syrians, Saudi Arabians, Sudanese, Libyans Burundians, and Israelis. I know it won’ t be complete for me or even a fuller reflection of the character of my God the Groom to not have Palestinian friends at the cost of only Israelis. He loves them. He pursues them. Both their passion and perseverance has taught me so much. All these will worship the Lamb at the feast and I get to know them before that! I caught a greater glimpse of the diverse beautiful bride and I stand in aweand humbled. But where am I afraid or too prejudice to meet another, to love another that is what I ask myself in my own neighborhood. I know many don’t have a chance to meet this many from other nations. Yet look for them. The world is moving to the rest of the world and your neighborhood. Maybe it’s the family in your church from a different people group, education, social- economic class to find His expression. Maybe you need to pursue a Muslim friend or a Hindu. Maybe you need to pray for the persecuted church from North Korea or a “lost bride” from Yemen.
Every nation reflects a piece of His heart and as we see all the Bride of Christ in all it’s array of splendor, creativity, beauty, expression of culture and worship and diversity we come to know more of our Beloved Jesus. It’s not some like the Western or the Indian or the South Korean but the Syrian, the North Korean, the Mongolian, the Venuwatuan.
“Now this is eternal life: that they may know You, the only true [supreme and sovereign] God, and [in the same manner know] Jesus [as the] Christ whom You have sent.
I have given to them the glory and honor which You have given Me, that they may be one, just as We are one; I in them and You in Me, that they may be perfected and completed into one, so that the world may know [without any doubt] that You sent Me, and [that You] have loved them, just as You have loved Me. Father, I desire that they also, whom You have given to Me [as Your gift to Me], may be with Me where I am, so that they may see My glory which You have given Me, because You loved Me before the foundation of the world.” JOHN 17:3, 22-24 AMP
He wants us to discover the beauty of unity of other cultures, of the uniqueness of our brothers and sisters in many nations. Lets know His beautiful heart more, to see Him alive and amazing! We are to delight and sigh when the bride enters. We must make her ready. When we hold people at arms length animosity or distance from seeing and valuing other believers or cultures we miss more of the total expression of wonder, diversity and glory of our King. To love Him is to love His bride of many shades, cultures, nations.
We miss this unity and intimacy he so desires with us by not beholding her, the epitome of breathtaking love because of the Lover who has taken her over. He’s calling us to see Him and the beautiful bride He is forming pursuing loving. He’s calling us to call her out, get to know her, prepare her, redeem her through His perfect love.
Will we call the Bride out of every culture background, broken or unbroken. God is offering those who are thirsty. Will we love the unlovable and people, cultures, nations, enemies, prostitute, religious, stubborn, fearful led to be His while bride as we walk them down the isle with affrection and love. Here’s a song about Gods pursuit through us partcof His diverse Bride. Let’s call them to intimacy and rejoice in diversity. And let’s not forget those who forgot their worth and value and have run from Gods live song, Let’s sing it to them. Here’s a song that reflects His heart of pursuit for the prodigal bride.
Prodigal Daughter
I see her wander round, princess without a crown, stumbling and falling down beneath her burden.
She’s floating through my town, a bride without a gown, passing her heart around to numb the hurting.
She’s scared of coming home, she’s been so long alone , She sat upon her throne until it crumbled.
And now she’s got to choose, she’s nothing left to lose, She’s battered and she’s bruised and feeling humbled, and saying her prayers to no one.
Chorus:
Who is her brother, who is her keeper? Where is her Lover, can anyone reach her?
A cup of cold water in the name of the father, I’m sending a letter to the prodigal daughter.
So where is the reward for all the ones who mourn, for those who suffer scorn and have no father?
Maybe the blessed are cursed, maybe the last are first, maybe the ones who thirst will find the water.
Her lover sees inside, he sees with lover’s eyes, He sees a radiant bride with passion burning,
Everything upside down, her rags become a gown, Her scars become a crown at the returning~~ Lyrics by Andrew Smith ~~
Hear Him pursuing her. You must listen to this amazing Song of the Story of a Bride broken being made whole. Jesus died for her unity, delighted in our diversity and calls us to do the same and hear our love pursuing us. Let’s take care of her vineyard. And tend to her beauty. The Sun has kissed her from her sweat and tears and labor. His love is calling and drawing.
“Dark am I, and lovely, daughters of Jerusalem— like the black tents of the Kedar nomads, like the curtains of Solomon’s palace. Don’t stare at me because I’m darkened by the sun’s gaze. My own brothers were angry with me. They made me a caretaker of the vineyards— but I couldn’t care for my own vineyard.” Song of Songs 1:5-6 CEB
““O my love, you are altogether beautiful and fair. There is no flaw nor blemish in you! “ Come away with me from Lebanon, my [promised] bride, May you come with me from Lebanon. Journey down from the top of Amana, From the summit of Senir and Hermon, From the dens of lions, From the mountains of leopards. “You have ravished my heart and given me courage, my sister, my [promised] bride; You have ravished my heart and given me courage with a single glance of your eyes, With one jewel of your necklace.”SONG OF SOLOMON 4:7-9 AMP
It’s going to be a lavish and awesome celebration feast of the wedding of the Lamb, so let’s celebrate our differences and diversity and love the Body of Christ. It is our worshipful temple for eternity.
“The [Holy] Spirit and the bride (the church, believers) say, “Come.” And let the one who hears say, “Come.” And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who wishes take and drink the water of life without cost.”
REVELATION 22:17 AMP
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