Some young children enjoy watching TV, riding bikes, and playing games. They go to dance or music classes, swimming and sports. And while I personally did all of these at one point, I consider myself to have been an easily pleased child.

Namely, I could self entertain. By age four, I had mastered the art of happily whiling away hours by myself. This hasn’t changed much over the years. Today I still retreat to a quiet corner; I write this now from such a place.

Reading was (and still is) a passion of mine. One day I was reading the book of Isaiah when I came across the following verse:

For your Maker is your husband—the Lord Almighty is his name—the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer; he is called the God of all the earth. Isaiah 54:5

And to be perfectly honest…..I didn’t know what to make of it. It wasn’t the first time I had come across something similar in my study; the Bible is full of references to marriage. But it was the first time I ever thought of it. Truly reflected on the meaning of the phrase: The Church is His Bride.

Once my eyes were open to this theme I couldn’t help but notice. Passages such as Ephesians 5:25-33 and Jeremiah 31:31-34 make it explicit that God’s relationship with the Church is analogous of a marriage relationship. From the very beginning, He set a standard. In our fallen minds, we can not comprehend the purity of the love He has for us; but we can understand the principles of marriage! In the Old Testament, God’s love for Israel is frequently compared to a husband and wife relationship. The wedding traditions reflect this.

The marriage vows represent God’s covenant with His people. (Am I the only one so amazed by this?). All well and good – but if I’m remembering correctly, Israel’s relationship with God wasn’t exactly squeaky clean. And if OT Israel didn’t remain faithful to God’s covenant what chance does the modern church have? I encourage you to reflect on this over the week and check in next Wednesday.

Yours in Christ,

The Wednesday Witness

Upcoming: Unfaithful to a Faithful God