He who has the bride is the bridegroom; but the friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices with joy because of the bridegroom’s voice. This joy of mine therefore is made full.
— John 3:29
Finally, we should enjoy Christ as the Bridegroom. John 3:29 quotes John the Baptist, “He who has the bride is the bridegroom; but the friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices with joy because of the bridegroom’s voice. This joy of mine therefore is made full.” Here John called himself “the friend of the bridegroom.” As the friend, he rejoiced that Christ, the Bridegroom, was gaining a Bride. We, the believers, are this Bride. As we are being built up as the Body, we are also being prepared as His Bride. We are going to marry Him. The more we enjoy the living person of Christ, the more we should have the sense that we are being betrothed to Him.
Suppose we are spending time in the Lord’s presence. We may begin to pray, “O Lord Jesus, I love You. O Lord, I love You so much. I just want to give You my whole being. O Lord Jesus, I belong to You. You are so satisfying. You are so nourishing. You are so strengthening. You are so wonderful, so fresh, and so sweet.” When we pray in such a way, we surely feel, “I’m going to marry this One. I’m going to marry this wonderful Bridegroom, Jesus Christ. Hallelujah!” By enjoying the Lord Jesus as a living person in our spirit, we are being prepared to marry Him.
Adapted from Born Again, pages 57-58.
Tomorrow: “Enjoying All Christ is in Spirit”