Insolomonsporch's Blog

Chapter One

A Right Focus

“Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth.” Col 3:2

There is a need to actively, deliberately, change our mind-set from being the church (Christ’s body) to being the Bride of the Bridegroom.  We have long been focused on being the church, but in fact when we see the Lord and are presented to Him – it will be as the promised Bride, not as the church.  Paul alludes to this future meeting in 2Cor 11:2-3.  He says, “For I am jealous for you with godly jealousy.  For I have betrothed you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ.  But I fear, lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, so your minds may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.”

The Chaste Virgin/One Body

As you see from this passage – our presentation to Christ will be as a chaste virgin to our Lord, not as a corporate entity, or in the form of a multi-faceted church.  Between now and our imminent future as the Bride, things must change.  More specifically, we the saints must change. Those areas of change are what we will explore here, beginning with our mind-set.

It is not possible for the enemy to steal the salvation which Jesus has already purchased as our Kinsman Redeemer for His Bride, but it is possible for the enemy to help us be corrupted and deceived in our thinking.  What am I trying to say, you may be asking?

Currently, all the believers on earth, and those saints already in heaven comprise the church.  Strong’s Concordance renders the word as ekklesia, from a compound of 1537 and a derivation of 2564; a calling out, a popular meeting especially a religious congregation (Jewish synagogue, or Christian community of members on earth or saints in heaven or both).

Positionally — in Christ, we already exist as one body, His body — the body of Christ — straddling heaven and earth, vivisected from full fellowship with each other, and from full fellowship from Jesus our Lord as well.  This has been a time of training for all parts of the body — a divine dress rehearsal in a sense for getting skilled and practiced in our roles, and transformed ourselves for making His impact on the world at large.  Indeed, the church is a training organization!  However, our goal here is not to perfect being the church – it is instead to perfect becoming the Bride.  One does not perfectly overlay the other.  They are different especially in their focus.

Two Illustrations

My best illustration of this different focus is when I was in training at Officer Training School (OTS) as an Officer Trainee (OT) for the United States Air Force – a “90 Day Wonder” as we often were called.  On the last day of training, just prior to being commissioned as a new 2^nd Lieutenant in the United States Air Force, it suddenly hit me.  I didn’t quite know how to behave.  I didn’t know what to do.  Up till then, all my training was as an OT.  In very little time I was going to become an officer – but I wasn’t sure of the transition.  Was I going to need to be different?

Thankfully, the training as an OT prepared and carried me over into the performance of a successfully functioning officer.  But the point to understand is that they were not exactly the same.  One prepared you to become the other.  But we were never meant to continue as OTs for the duration of our careers!  The training as an OT was required to walk as an officer.  The training was necessary to help me function in a similar but higher capacity.

Another illustration is seen through examining how the lock system of the Panama Canal works.  As a ship enters the lock system, it is raised to a new level by water being pumped into the lock that holds the ship.  When raised to the desired water level, the lock opens and the ship is now able to function at a different level of water and to enter the places at that new elevation.  We are ourselves being prepared to be raised by a great influx of the Lord’s presence.  We enter the process as the church, but we exit as the Promised Bride about to enter the marriage supper of the Lamb.

The Next Destiny

In the same way, we are the church for this time of training and preparation, but that is not the ultimate destiny.  Making ourselves ready or preparing ourselves to become the Bride is in fact the next target goal, as we see in Revelation 19:7-8: “…for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and His wife has made herself ready.  And to her it was granted to be arrayed in fine linen, clean and bright, for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints.”

These righteous acts are what we are led to accomplish on earth as the church, but in our focus – our mind-set – even now we are called to be heavenly minded.  In truth, we must see that there is a distinct difference between having the mind-set of the church, and having the mind-set of the Bride.  Let’s look at some examples the Lord provided to help distinguish between these two mind-sets.

Two Examples/Two Mind-Sets

When we have the mind-set of the church, we view evangelism in a process-oriented, particularly administrative way.  To be clear, I must describe this in the extreme state — although there are degrees and variations of this description that may apply.  I mean no offense to anyone who evangelizes.  It is necessary, however, to describe how the two mind-sets differ.  With the mind-set of the church, evangelism is predominantly a programmatic and planning function.  It is something to be managed.  Statistics, and strategizing – a focus on numbers served and numbers converted provides the impetus as we pursue the Great Commission.  There is a difference, as the church, in knowing we have achieved this goal with quantification being the ultimate measure of success.  We will know, for instance we have succeeded when “this many” people groups have heard the gospel message and responded with a commitment to Christ as Lord.  Its focus is less associated with the heart than with a plan.  In no way do I condemn these goals or methods of evangelism, for we are called to spread the gospel and make disciples.  But here – intent of the heart trumps method.  What is our heart focus as we evangelize is more important even than our focused goal.  Please stay with me as I clarify the mind set of the Bride.

To understand the mind-set of the Bride, we must look at the Scripture in Song of Solomon chapter five.  The Shulammite woman is describing how she has taken her rest after working in the vineyard all day.  The voice of her beloved comes to her as he knocks at her door.  As she deliberates about opening the door, since she has already retired for the night, the words of the beloved move her heart to arise.  She opens the door, but he has already departed.  She begins to search for him, and even enters the city where the watchmen strike her and take her veil and mantle.  She addresses the daughters of Jerusalem, and it is here that we apprehend the heart of the Bride for evangelism.  The Shulammite charges the daughters of Jerusalem to tell her Beloved (if they should see Him), that she is sick from love (the Amplified renders this “simply sick to be with him”).  They of course ask her a provocative leading question: “What is your beloved more than another beloved?”  In essence, they wonder what does he have that she is out here in the city seeking him, being struck and robbed?  What is he that prompts this search and makes it worth the cost?  This very question opens the door for the Shulammite to proclaim the nature and worth of her beloved  from her heart – which begins: “My beloved is fair and ruddy, the chief among ten thousand!”  She offers a soliloquy of such praise that it becomes a bookend of equal force to match her passion of pursuit.  There is a “marriage” (foretaste) here of believing and doing that are irresistible as a testimony to her beloved.  This is not a four-point conversion strategy, nor is this a promise to make your life’s journey more comfortable.  In fact this is not a strategy of any kind to elicit a commitment.  The goal is not to gain a response from the daughters – but to express a truth so formed in the heart of this Shulammite that she can do nothing but express it.  Her soul and her body cooperate to form the foil of expression for this deep love in her inner man. It is a picture of profound love and devotion.  It is the essence of the difference between the mind-set of the church and its academic preparation which tends to present academically. The Shulammite, however, is more like the picture of the Olive press, when indeed pressed – the olives give forth what is hidden within them.  What is hidden within the Shulammite that is expressed is something to be sought after — that experiential love and knowledge of Christ that has no counterfeit.

What do we seek?

Ultimately, another clarification in this mind-set might be stated, “what do we seek?”  If we seek to evangelize as the primary thing, it will fall short.  If we seek first the kingdom (and to first know Him above all else) then we will have sought the better portion like Mary did, and it will not be taken away from us.  Then when the opportunity arises to speak about him, it will be as easy as bragging on the beloved – and our actions will validate our passion and provide a testimony that rings of truth.  The point here is not that evangelism from the mind-set of the church is wrong in any manner or way. It is that evangelism from the mind-set of the bride is better!

Perhaps it is best understood by a comparison.  It would seem the early church set itself to walk out the believing life as the Spirit led.  Along the way, they evangelized wherever opportunity arose.  Today’s church seeks to evangelize all over, and along the way to find the leading of the Spirit.  So with the Bride, the mind-set’s first and foremost focus is relationship and devotion to Christ, secondarily it is to share that as a life testimony.  You must possess it first before you can give it out, or break is as bread to share.

This, then, is the danger alluded to much earlier, that 2Cor 11:3 speaks about.  It is simplicity to follow our heart’s devotion to a natural event of sharing that heart.  However, the more we focus or construct the event of sharing over simply focusing on the object of our affection, the more the event begins to take precedence and our witness can actually suffer loss and weaken.  In a sense, we are distracted from the greater portion just as Martha was wearied in a multiplicity of her ways.  She did not have the single, simple focus that Mary did – which would not be taken from her.  Also, our heart can become torn and entangled over the conditions people are experiencing, and we can be more caught up into their plight than in our first love when outcome-based results take precedence.  The enemy is very cunning, and when it comes to the sympathies of our heart, we are called to “guard our hearts above all that we guard, for out of it flow the issues of life.”  Nothing is to be of greater value than our devotion to our Lord, not even our witnessing about Him, or our ministry for others.

Why Imagine the Bride?

In the Book of Revelation, we hear a profession of amazing unity between the Spirit and the Bride who say, “Come.”  This is a call to those remaining on the earth to receive Christ as their Savior.  The Bride here has aligned herself with the call of the Spirit.  Through His power working in her, she will convict and convince the world and bring demonstration to it about sin and about righteousness.  This is not simply an academic teaching of who the Savior is.  This is a demonstration of His truth and power by the operation of the Holy Spirit.  The call is directed to those who are listening, those who are thirsty, and those who desire it.  This unity with the Spirit is what keeps the Bride safe from corruption and seduction away from Christ, and keeps her protected from any other devotion except that for Christ Jesus.  Like the Holy Spirit – all of our promotion will be for Jesus.

As the church adopts the mind-set of the Bride we will focus with one spectacular unifying vision of Christ before us.  This vision is the heart that is fully set on Him and trumps all other causes.  The believers will coalesce as one flow.  Unlike today where the church holds multiple visions which serve to dissipate and channel our force – there will be just one vision – the Beloved Jesus, soon coming King.  Things like evangelism, discipleship, doctrine, gifts, etc. all should hold a secondary place to the unifying vision of devotion to our Lord Jesus Christ. The Apostle Paul talked about knowing Christ (and Him) crucified as his preeminent focus.  As the church, we have become beset by cumbersome weights and causes that vie for supremacy with devotion to Jesus.  As the Bride, out perspective is simple: nothing is more important than loving and serving Him.  This then gives an important insight into the question: why have the mind-set of the Bride?  The answer: as the bride we become single focused with a unifying vision of Christ.  We become single-hearted as His love.

So, we first contrasted the way evangelism is perceived from the mind-set of the church, and then the mind-set of the bride.  Let us now look at another application of the two mind-sets.

Faith vs. Faithful

We turn now to contrasting the virtue of faith/faithfulness as would be perceived by the respective mind-sets of church and bride.  Luke 18:8 part b asks a provocative question: “When the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on the earth?”

Again, first looking from the church’s mind-set – this more often is focused on the qualities that we demonstrate to the world or even other believers.  Are we operating in faith?  Do we still believe as we should?  Is our salt still salty?  Can we still affect change in the world?  So it points as a warning against losing faith.  It emphasizes the need to keep the faith resident within us, but as a means of demonstration to the world, or to those in the church around us.  In the church mind-set we seem to look for validation to others and/or the world.

For the Bride, the rendering of this Scripture’s intent is profoundly personal, and much more directed towards the Bridegroom than anywhere else.  It is a caution against unfaithfulness in our relationship with Him.  It is the Bride remaining faithful to her vows of devotion and having nothing else before Him – like a newly engaged couple, or newly married pair – it is about remaining faithful and allowing no ground to an outside element to have a foothold or place that would erode the relationship.

Imagine you are a newly wed.  You are a professional in the work environment.  Think of how staunchly you have to guard against encroachments in your affections, your responsibilities, and your emotions with your new spouse.  You strive to give no reason for jealousy, no reason for doubt, no foothold of allegiance to any obligation over that of your new spouse.  If you let it, time spent at work can contest available time with each other.  The important question is always, who is serving whom?  Do I perceive my occupation as providing a base of service to support my marriage relationship?  Or do I see my marriage as a means to support my occupational goals and pursuits?  Precedence it everything: in this as well as in our relationship with the Lord.  So, concerning the Bride’s mind-set on faithfulness, it is all person-oriented: to the person of our Lord Jesus Christ.  The Bride desires to have or hold nothing before Him, and her faithfulness is all towards Him.  He is the object of all her allegiance.

It is this mind-set of the Bride which ultimately steers us toward Christ-likeness.  As we focus our thinking on higher things and not on earthly things (Col 3:2), we bring ourselves into the position of being renewed and remolded into fuller and more perfect knowledge after the likeness of Him Who created it (Col 3:10).  As our eyes behold Him our thinking is renewed, and we are transfigured from glory to glory, which is from the Lord (2Cor 3:18).

I raise a caution, here, to not discount the importance of pursuing the mind-set of the bride. To do so would be like disregarding a compass heading affected by magnetic north.  Initially, we would seem to be on the right path, but as time and distance wear on the error is both great and ruinous.

Our next chapters explore some of the nature and specifics of the Bride and these will form the remainder of the book.  May the Lord go before us even now for a witness to His truth, and for protection against the enemy’s deception.