The Bride of Christ
Today’s passage: Revelation 21:9–27
Focus verse: “Come, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb.” (Revelation 21:9)
An angel—one of the angels who carried a bowl filled with one of the seven plagues—invites John to come with him. The messenger has something exciting to share.
The angel whisks John to a mighty mountain. From that vantage point they gaze upon the bride, the wife of the Lamb. The bride appears as the Holy City, Jerusalem, coming down from heaven and from God.
The new Jerusalem, representing the bride of Christ, shines with God’s glory, a brilliance resembling the most precious of jewels. It looks like jasper, yet it is as clear as crystal.
The pair explore the new Jerusalem, the Holy City. It’s a square, with walls of protection and twelve gates to allow for entry. But there’s no temple. Father God and Jesus are the temple.
Their glory shines bright, eliminating the need for sun or moon.
The gates remain open, yet nothing impure can ever enter. Those who have done what is shameful or deceitful will not have access. Only those who have their names written in the Lamb’s book of life can enter the new Jerusalem.
This means that only those whose names appear in the book of life can become the bride of Christ.
As Jesus’s wife, we become children of Father God through our marriage to his Son. That’s why he’ll be our God and we’ll be his children, his heirs.
The idea of being married to Jesus is a difficult concept for many of his followers to grasp, perhaps for men even more so than for women. The thought of a holy, marital union to the divine is enough to make most anyone squirm.
Maybe it’s because no one on earth has ever seen a perfect marriage. Regardless of the love we have for our spouse or the prayerful effort we put forth to have a union that honors God and reflects his goodness, we still fall short.
Add to this that God made us male and female, husband and wife, so that we could produce children. This adds a sexual component to our human marriages. As such, we have a fleshly desire for our partners.
This image of physical desire seems inappropriate when we consider our marriage to Jesus.
Yet in that context we’ll have a spiritual desire for him, a zeal to draw close to him and be with him in a perfect union that honors our Father.
Questions:
- What do we think about there being no temple in heaven?
- What do we think about God being the only light we will need?
- What will it be like to be the bride of Christ?
- How can we relate to the idea of God as our Father because of our marriage to his Son?
- Do we have a spiritual zeal for God?
[Discover more about heirs of God in Romans 8:17, Ephesians 3:6, and Titus 3:4–7.]
Tips: Check out our tips to use this online Bible study for your church, small group, Sunday school class, or family discussion. It’s also ideal for personal study. Come back each Monday for a new lesson.
Read more in Revelation Bible Study: Discover Practical Insights from John’s Epic Vision.
Discover practical, understandable insights from the book of Revelation.
Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront a status quo faith and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.
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