The Bride-Bridegroom Relationship: May 2005
Table of Contents
The Bride of the Lamb
Ephesians 5:22-32
As the bride of the Lamb, the church is viewed as wholly for Christ — the object of His love and care and delight. This aspect of the church brings into display in a special way the love of Christ, and for this reason it appeals very directly to our hearts. There is no more intimate relationship than that of a bridegroom and a bride. These figures suitably set forth the love of Christ for His church. We may say that the Spirit of God has used this most intimate of all relationships to set forth:
First, the church as the object of Christ’s love, care and delight.
Second, that in the church there will be an object suited for Christ to love.
Third, that in the church there will be found a companion suited to share with Christ the coming glories of His reign. All that the Bridegroom inherits the bride will inherit. As she is the sharer of His sufferings in the day of His rejection, she will be the sharer of His throne in the day of His glory. When Christ reigns over the wide earth, she will reign with Him.
In this very practical portion of the Epistle to the Ephesians, the Apostle is exhorting us as to the conduct that becomes believers in the marriage relationship. In so doing, he shows the intimate character of the relationship. There are other relations in life, as parents and children, and brothers and sisters, but in no relationship is the link so close as in that of husband and wife. The Apostle says, “They two shall be one flesh.” Again he says, “So ought men to love their wives as their own bodies.” They are viewed as one.
To enforce these exhortations and show the true character of this time-relationship of husband and wife, the Apostle turns to the eternal relationship of Christ and His church. This leads to a very beautiful unfolding of the love of Christ for His church viewed under the figure of a bride, of which Eve, in the Garden of Eden, is used as a striking type. The Apostle passes before us the love of Christ that secures the bride for Himself; then, possessing the bride, the love that forms her in suitability to Himself; and finally, having prepared the bride, the love that will present her to Himself.
The Love That Secures the Bride
First we read, “Christ also loved the church, and gave Himself for it” (vs. 25). The source of all blessing for the church is the unmerited love of Christ. Before ever the church was brought into being, He loved it with a perfect, divine and infinite love. He did not first die for it, cleanse it, and then love it, but He first loved it, died for it, and then cleanses it. And loving the church, He gave Himself for it. He did not only do something for it; He did not simply give up something for it. His love went a great way farther than doing something or giving up something for the church. His love went to the uttermost: He gave Himself — all that He is in His infinite perfections; nothing was held back. He gave Himself; more He could not give. And by giving Himself for the assembly, He secures it for Himself and possesses it by a perfect title. The church actually exists as the result of Christ’s work. Christ has purchased the church for Himself. Hence, though the marriage has not yet taken place, the relationship between Christ and the church already exists. The church is not a company of people who are being put to the test by commands which they have to obey in order to gain the relationship. Christ has brought us into relationship with Himself wholly by His own work, the fruit of His own love. The responsibilities and privileges of the church flow from the relationship that has already been formed. We belong to Christ, and it is our privilege, as well as our obligation, to be entirely His and entirely for Him. Christ has ever been faithful in His changeless love, though, alas, how much the bride has failed in devotedness to the Bridegroom!
The Love That Sanctifies the Bride
Second, having so touchingly presented the love of Christ in giving Himself for the church in the past, the Apostle proceeds to speak of the activities of the love of Christ for His bride in the present time. He tells us that Christ has secured his bride in order “that He might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word.” The love that by death secured the bride is now occupied in preparing her for the supreme happiness of being with Himself in glory. The Bridegroom would make her a suited object for His love and capable of responding to His love. To this end love is occupied in sanctifying and cleansing the bride. The cleansing is not in order that we may belong to Him, but because we are His, and being His, He would have us suited to Himself. He would have us in devoted affection set apart entirely for Himself and cleansed from all that is contrary to Himself.
The means used to bring this about is “the washing of water by the word.” The Lord expresses this in His prayer to the Father when He prays, “Sanctify them through Thy truth: Thy word is truth. . . . For their sakes I sanctify Myself, that they also might be sanctified through the truth.” The Lord sets Himself apart in heaven, that, like Stephen, we might look up through the opened heavens and find in Christ in glory a sanctifying Object. Gazing upon Him in the glory we see what He would have us to be, and beholding the glory of the Lord, we are changed into the same image from glory to glory, and we thus realize the transforming power of a perfect Object. The Word, too, while directing our gaze to Christ, gives us a true revelation of the perfections of the One we gaze on, so that we are not left to any sentimental imaginations of our own hearts. On the other hand, the Word detects and condemns in us, and around us, all that is contrary to Christ and the place where He is.
What a value this gives to the Word! It is the Word which He uses for the cleansing of His church. What confidence should this give in applying the Word to our own souls or in ministering the Word to one another — the confidence that we are using that which in grace He uses.
In the light of this Scripture which discovers to us what Christ is occupied with from His place in heaven, we may well challenge our hearts as to what we are occupied with down here. Occurring in the practical part of the epistle, this unfolding of the love of Christ for His bride is surely intended to have a very practical effect upon our lives. The question for us all is, Have we before our hearts what Christ has before His? Do we desire to be made suitable to Him and capable of enjoying and responding to His love even now, so that, in the time of His absence, we may be faithful to Christ as a waiting bride for her absent Bridegroom?
The Love That Presents the Bride to Himself
Third, the present activities of the love of Christ for His bride are in view of what is yet future — “the marriage of the Lamb” — when He will present the church to Himself a glorious church, “not having spot or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish.” It is not only that the church will be in glory, but it will be “glorious.” It will be like Christ, fit for His glorious presence. Thus He secured His bride by Himself, He is preparing her for Himself, and He will present her to Himself. His love is the source of all, and what love commenced at the cross, love will complete in the glory.
There is, however, further important truth concerning Christ and the church in this instructive passage. The Apostle proceeds to tell us that Christ nourishes and cherishes the assembly, treating us as “members of His body, of His flesh, and of His bones.” This brings before us another precious truth, distinct from that which we have been considering. We have seen that Christ is fitting His bride for heaven; now we learn that He is also caring for His bride on earth. Sanctifying and cleansing are in view of the presentation in glory; nourishing and cherishing have reference to our pilgrim journey on earth. His love not only looks on to the glory, but watches over us as we pass through this dark world from which He is absent, on our way to glory. He knows the circumstances we are in, the trials we have to meet, our weaknesses and infirmities, and in them all He cares for us and meets our needs, and thus it is He nourishes us. But He also cherishes us; that is, He not only meets our needs, but He does so as those who are cherished as being very precious in His sight.
H. Smith
The Believer’s Hope
Romans 5:12
“Being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: by whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.”
As to our past, we have peace with God. All our past has been dealt with at the cross, and as a result, we have perfect, unbroken peace with God.
As to our present, Jesus Christ has opened up for us access to God’s blessed presence in the unclouded sunshine of His favor.
As to our future, we “rejoice in hope of the glory of God.” Yes, our blessed Lord and Saviour is our Head in glory and has promised, “I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto Myself; that where I am, there ye may be also” (John 14:23). He will soon come again to accomplish His blessed promise.
The world with all its vanities, the lust of the eyes, the lust of the flesh, and the pride of life, will one day collapse into dust and ashes in the fire of God’s righteous judgment. But long before that awful day arrives, our Saviour will come for us, whom we expect from heaven, where our citizenship is. At His quickening word of command, His sleeping saints of all ages will arise from the dust of their graves in glorious bodies, in a moment — in the twinkling of an eye. At the same moment these corruptible “bodies of humiliation” of ours will be transformed into the likeness of His own glorious body, and He will lead us to the mansions in His Father’s house. “Behold I and the children which God hath given me” (Heb. 2:13).
His great new name, that name at which every knee shall bow, will then in the blaze of His glory be written on the foreheads of His servants. And when the day shall appear, when the Lord will “make up [His] jewels” (Mal. 3:17), every tear wept for His sake will then shine like a diamond in the sunlight of His face, “when He shall come to be glorified in His saints and to be admired in all them that believe” (2 Thess. 1:10). Then the countless hosts of His saints will fitly reflect His beauty, as the dewdrops in the field at the rising of the sun, like precious jewels, in variegated colors reflecting the glory of the heavenly orb.
And what is it that enables those tiny dewdrops to reflect the light of that glorious orb, the splendor of which blinds the human eye? Is it not because those little drops are free from earthly alloy? They come from heaven and therefore are able to reflect heavenly glory. Thus it will be with the saints, the Lord’s servants, when they shall appear with Him in glory, each “clothed upon with our house which is from heaven,” in glorified bodies — the livery of glory, “the gala-uniform,” as it were, of the servants and soldiers of Christ. Then there will be no more impediment in their bodies, no earthly nor fleshly alloy, no intrusion of vain-glorious self in our poor little service, to impede our reflecting His glories! Oh, what a radiant reflex of His glory and beauty will His servants then be! How different from what we are now! Would to God we were now more like dewdrops — little, pure and empty, that is, clear of alloy! What different lights we should then be, in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation!
May we learn, in the power of an ungrieved Spirit, more truly to “rejoice in hope of the glory of God”!
We thus have peace, grace and hope, expressing the believer’s past, present and future: as to the past, unbroken peace with God; as to the present, the unclouded sunshine of His favor; as to the future, the never-to-be-disappointed hope of the glory of God. May that calm and secure peace, that blessed and establishing grace, and that cheering hope shine out more and more in our walk and daily life!
Bible Treasury, Vol. 15, p. 295
A Sense of Littleness
Nothing gives such a sense of littleness as being in the presence of the Father and Him who bore all the wrath due to me. What is a zero? It is the unit before it that gives the value. All the value of what Christ is comes out alongside of us. G. J.
I Am My Beloved’s
“the Song of Songs”
This song begins with the bride in a suitable position and condition to be forever in her Bridegroom’s presence (Col. 1:12-13). Sin is not mentioned. It has gone as far away as the East is from the West, no more to be remembered by God. It no longer affects the bride’s conscience or hinders her joy. Later, we shall read of correction and repentance, but only because of lassitude and coldness — not gross sin. The Bridegroom finds His delight in His people, His bride, whom He has redeemed at the cost of His life.
She loves Him for His love to her and sacrifice for her. She cost Him all that He had as man (Matt. 13:46). He set His love upon her and proved His love for her (at the cross), before she ever became His.
While she loves Him, there is something lacking in her understanding and enjoyment of His love, something she has not laid hold of. To learn, she must pass through the experiences of the wilderness. This growth in spiritual intelligence comes as the Holy Spirit opens to her this blessed truth step by step.
It is blessed to view the activity of God, who acts by the Holy Spirit, to carry on the communion between the Bridegroom and the bride. The communion and instruction of the first two chapters bring the bride to realize that her Beloved belongs to her, but also that she is His. Blessed truth. She exclaims, “My Beloved is mine, and I am His: He feedeth among the lilies.” Reaching this first milestone in her spiritual growth gives joy to her heart, but it does not completely satisfy her. It takes further experience and spiritual intelligence to draw her soul out further and open to her heart the place of rest that she so desires — in His bosom.
After further communion and lessons learned by experience, she muses, “I am my Beloved’s, and my Beloved is mine: He feedeth among the lilies.” She begins to realize that the Bridegroom’s love for her is more important than her love for Him. Having learned this, she mentions that she is His before stating that He is hers. She has reached a second milestone in her spiritual growth.
Finally, she learns that the love of her Bridegroom for her is not only more than hers, it is everything. “I am my Beloved’s, and His desire is toward me.” Now the bride has disappeared into His love. His love is everything. She has reached the third and highest milestone.
As they near the end of the betrothal [when the Lord comes], He owns everything in her, and His desire is completely upon her (ch. 7:10). In full communion she says, “Let us get up early to the vineyards [the place of joy]; let us see if the vine flourish, whether the tender grape appear, and the pomegranates [a picture of the church] bud forth: there will I give Thee my loves. The mandrakes give a smell, and at our gates are all manner of pleasant fruits, new and old, which I have laid up for Thee, O my Beloved” (vss. 1213). This garden, which she had planted for her Beloved, has now matured.
The song closes with the appeal, “Make haste, my Beloved, and be Thou like a roe [gazelle] or to a young hart upon the mountains of spices.” The Revelation closes with the Bridegroom saying, “I am . . . the bright and morning star.” The Spirit and the bride join in spirit with Him, for they say, “Come.” And all who hear are invited to say, “Come.” The Bridegroom concludes, “Surely I come quickly,” and the bride responds, “Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus.”
Heaven is our home. Soon we will be there with our Bridegroom in the Father’s house. Have we, like the bride in the song of songs, been growing with our hearts set to follow our Bridegroom in everything? May the Lord exercise our hearts to be ready in every sense of the word to say with a full heart, “Even so, come, Lord Jesus.”
C. E. Lunden, from
The Bridegroom’s Song of Songs
Bridal Affection for Christ
Revelation 22:16-21
Would it rejoice your heart to hear that Jesus was now coming? In fact, would you like Him to come now? Oh! how sad, how very sad is it that, when He is just about to come, and His saints about to be made entirely like Him, they should be mixed up in any way with the workers of iniquity, practicing their habits, pursuits or satisfactions! Pray, brethren, that you may be led to a more simple and entire conformity to the image of your Saviour; that you may be cleansed from the unsatisfying and unsanctifying desires of the world, so that you may be ready to meet your Lord at His appearing.
In the Word of God, the thoughts and feelings and conduct and doings and affections of Christians are identified with the coming of Christ. Take 1 John 3: “Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that when He shall appear, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is.” When are we to be like Christ in the glory? When He comes, He will change our vile bodies and fashion them like to His glorious body; so here “it doth not yet appear what we shall be, but when He shall appear, we shall be like Him.” Now mark the practical consequences upon the man that has been, in his faith, brought up to God’s purposes. “Every man that hath this hope in Him, purifieth himself, even as He is pure.” I know I am going to be perfectly like Christ in the glory; therefore, I want to be as like Him as possible down here.
Those Who Respond, “Come”
“The Spirit and the bride say, Come.” We get the whole circle of the church’s affections. When the Spirit of God is working in the saints, what will be the first affection? Christ. The Spirit and the bride turn to Him and say, Come. What is the next affection? It is the saints. Therefore, it turns and bids him that hears say, Come. The bride would have every saint to join in these affections and in the desire to have the Bridegroom. But does it stop with those who have heard the voice of the Lord Jesus? No. And what next? We turn around to those who may be athirst, bidding them come, and whosoever will, let him take of the water of life freely. The saint who has the sense of the blessedness of having drunk of the living water which Christ gives wants others to have it also.
God, in the love of His own heart, has associated the church with Jesus, and the very mention of His name awakens the cry, “Come!” for it touches a chord which gives an immediate response, and therefore He does not say here, “Behold, I come quickly.” The question here is, not when He will come, but that it is Himself that is coming. He does not speak of His coming, blessed though that thought is, but He reveals Himself, and this it is that awakens the response of the heart by the power of the Holy Spirit. No mere explanation of His coming as a doctrine is the proper hope of the saint. That hope is not prophecy; it is the real and blessed and sanctifying expectancy of a soul that knows Jesus and waits to see and to be with Himself.
What He Is to Us
Our affections and our duties flow from the relationship in which we are set. It is clear that if we are creatures of God, our duties as such flow from our knowledge of that. So with our earthly duties and affections — they flow from our relationship one with another, whether as husband and wife, or father and child. It is a very simple remark, but of all importance, with regard to the saints’ position. But then I must be in this relationship to have these affections, and I must know what the relationship is to which those duties belong. If we are the bride of Christ, we ought to have the feelings and wishes of one that is so. You cannot speak of any glory of Christ or of God that does not awaken in the heart of the saint the consciousness of what God and Christ are to itself. This is characteristic of the existence of such a relationship and the affections that belong to it. You cannot speak of the person with whom others are in relationship, without awakening in their hearts the sense of what the person is to them. However Christ is presented, it is her own relationship with Him that is at once awakened in the bride. What I see in the Word is not merely God visiting us as sinners, as He has done, but that when He has visited us, He has brought us into blessed connection with Himself, and having brought us there, He calls us, as in that connection, to live in the delight and in the duties that belong to it.
Christ Loves Nothing Less
I feel the importance of definitely apprehending the relationship in which the Lord has set us; it will touch us in our consciences, not merely saying the church is secure — surely it is, but we ought to be touched with the sense of our relation to Christ and the responsibility of that relationship. There should be nearness to Christ which would keep us from sectarianism, the most natural weed of the human heart (sectarianism is getting an interest in a little circle around ourselves), and would give us a feeling as to, and an interest in, the whole church of God, for Christ can love nothing less. Then I shall refuse to own anything that is not the bride of Christ, but be ready always to acknowledge and receive that which is the bride of Christ.
The church will not always have to mourn an absent Lord. He will come to claim His bride — to take her to Himself, that where He is, she may be also; so He prays, “Father, I will that they also, whom Thou hast given Me, be with Me where I am,” and in Him she is complete, for the Father gave Him to be “head over all things to the church, which is his body, the fullness of Him that filleth all in all.” Here then is the position of the church with Christ: one body, one mind, one in all things, one in tastes, one in desires.
If my heart is right in its affections for Him, I am looking too straight up on high to take notice of the things around me. Plenty of things there are around in the world, plenty of bustle and turmoil, but it does not disturb the blessed calm of my soul, because nothing can alter our indissoluble relationship with a coming Jesus, as nothing should divide us in hope. May the Lord give us such an apprehension of redemption and of our position in Him as may so fix our hearts on Himself that we may be daily walking down here like unto men that wait for their Lord, who has promised to come and take us to Himself, watching in the midst of a night of darkness, aware that it is the night, although we are not of the night, but watching and waiting for the day, having the morning star arisen in our hearts!
J. N. Darby (excerpts from his writings)
Humility
The only humble place is the presence of God. It is when I get out of His presence that I am in danger of being lifted up. People say it is dangerous to be too often on the mount. Now I do not think that it is when we are on the mount that we are in danger, but when we come off it. It is when we come off the mount that we begin to think that we have been there. Then pride comes in. I do not think that Paul needed a thorn when he was in the third heaven. It was after he had come down that he was in danger of being exalted above measure — from thinking that he had been where no one else had been.
Things New and Old, Vol. 8, p. 152
His Three Expectations Until He Comes
Revelation 22
“He which testifieth these things saith, Surely I come quickly” (Rev. 22:20). Three times in this chapter He makes this announcement (vss. 7,12,20). What a blessed prospect is unfolded to us!
During the little interval of waiting until He comes, what does our Lord expect of us here? This chapter gives the answer. We have pointed out the threefold announcement of His speedy coming, and now let us look at their different connections. The first is, “Behold, I come quickly; blessed is he that keepeth the sayings of the prophecy of this book” (vs. 7). Thus, He teaches us that obedience is what He prizes in His own while they await His coming, and this obedience is the proof of our love.
Who then, with such a word as this, will seek to excuse himself from obedience? Will not every true believer rather say, “What a privilege my Lord has bestowed upon me, to permit me to declare my love for Him whom man rejected, by keeping His Word!” His eye rests with delight upon those who, amid trials and dangers, make this the one object of their lives!
He speaks the second time and says, “Behold, I come quickly: and My reward is with Me, to give every man according as his work shall be” (vs. 12). Here we are taught that He looks for faithfulness in His servants. Moreover, He will recompense them accordingly. (Compare Luke 19:12-26.)
The last time, He speaks, “He which testifieth these things saith, Surely I come quickly.” The response of John is, “Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus” — a response which should flow spontaneously from the heart of every saint. Thus we are taught that during the little while we await, our affections are very precious to Him.
These are the three things which He looks for from us now: obedience, faithfulness and affection. The prospect of the Lord’s coming and what He values in His saints while they are expecting His return are for us to consider in the light of this truth.
E. Dennett
Waiting for the Son
If you can look up to heaven and say, “Thank God, I do know Him, and I am waiting for Him,” then let me remind you of what the Apostle John says, as to the practical result of this blessed hope. “Every man that hath this hope in Him, purifieth himself, even as He is pure.” Yes, this must ever be the result of waiting for the Son from heaven. Those who know the Lord Jesus Christ and love His appearing will daily seek to shake off everything contrary to their Master’s mind; they will seek to become more and more conformed to Him in all things. C. H. Mackintosh
The Changing Face of Roman Catholicism
The recent illness and death of the Roman Catholic Pope John Paul II has focused world attention once more on the vast Roman Catholic system. His reign (since 1978) has been one of the longer ones in the history of the papacy, longer than any since Pius IX (1846-1878). Like Pius IX, John Paul II has presided over troubling times in which many changes have taken place in the world. In order to adapt itself to these changes, the Roman Catholic Church has also introduced changes that have seemed to alter its face considerably.
Forty years ago the Roman Catholic Church required its members to adhere strictly to its dietary rules which involved eating fish instead of meat on Fridays. (I remember well a fellow-worker in a factory who, while working a night shift on a Thursday, was most scrupulous in not eating any meat after midnight.) Now all this has been relaxed. Likewise, Roman Catholics were discouraged from reading the Bible. They were told that it was a book only for priests and Church dignitaries, as they alone were supposed to be able to understand and explain it. Now Roman Catholics are allowed to have and read Bibles. Formerly, Roman Catholics were to keep separate from other Christian denominations, and both their schools and their Churches emphasized this fact. Now much more openness with other Christians is allowed and even encouraged.
More recently, an accord was signed in 1994 that has extremely far reaching consequences. Signed by leading American evangelicals and Roman Catholics, it was a joint declaration entitled, “Evangelicals and Catholics Together: The Christian Mission in the Third Millennium.” The document asks Protestants and Roman Catholics to recognize one another as Christians and to work together in seeking to evangelize the world. Such well-known evangelical leaders as Pat Robertson and Charles Colson were among those who signed, and, indeed, Charles Colson was one of the chief originators of the document. This was followed by another in 1997, entitled, “The Gift of Salvation,” a definition of salvation and the gospel that was supposed to satisfy Protestants and Roman Catholics alike. Further articles entitled “Thy Word Is Truth” (2002) and, most recently, “The Call to Holiness” (2005) have attempted to bring Roman Catholics and Protestants even closer together. The serious Christian may well ask what all this means and whether Rome is really reforming and changing from what it has held and practiced for so many hundreds of years.
A Good Side
First of all, we must recognize that there is a good side to all this, and something that should make us thankful. In Revelation chapters 23, seven churches (assemblies) are addressed in order. It is clear from the context that these seven churches give us a panoramic history of the Christian profession down through the ages, from the time that the apostles passed away until the Lord comes. In Revelation 2:1829, it is evident that the description of Thyatira is that of the Roman Catholic Church. In verse 19 we read, “I know thy works, and charity and service, and faith, and thy patience, and thy works; and the last to be more than the first.” Likewise the Apostle writes, “Unto the rest in Thyatira, as many as have not this doctrine, and which have not known the depths of Satan, as they speak; I will put upon you none other burden. But that which ye have already hold fast till I come” (Rev. 2:2425). The Roman Catholic Church has consistently opposed abortion, euthanasia, and artificial means of birth control. Likewise, it has never given up its belief in the deity of Christ, the virgin birth of Christ, and the inspiration of the Scriptures. The Roman Catholic Church has been diligent in works of charity and service, and many have profited from its help down through the ages. As Revelation 2:19 notes, the last works are more than the first, perhaps indicating that what it is doing today surpasses what it did in the past. For all this, as far as it goes, we can be thankful.
Likewise, the relaxed attitude of the Roman Catholic Church has resulted in more freedom to share the gospel and more opportunities to bring Christ before Roman Catholics as well as others. There is an openness among Roman Catholics to listen to the Word of God and the gospel, an openness that was not there previously. Evangelical Roman Catholic Churches are tolerated and even encouraged, as long as official Roman Catholic dogma is not at risk. All this has made it easier for the Word of God to be preached.
On the other hand, we must recognize that, despite all the hype and appearance to the contrary, Rome has not fundamentally changed. Pope John Paul II has been a most ecumenical pope, but he has embraced all religions, not only Protestants. One of his favorite tactics has been to get leaders of all religions together for prayer. He has gathered together Buddhists, Muslims, Hindus, Jews, snake worshipers, fire worshipers, animists, and witch doctors, as well as true Christians and Roman Catholics. Given the serious apostasy among Roman Catholics in most parts of the world, it is not surprising that all this has been generally welcomed rather than spoken against. By saying that all were praying to the same God, the Pope has encouraged and given momentum to a movement that justifies itself on the grounds of peace and ecological wholeness. The result can only be the destruction of all truth, with error and man’s thoughts being substituted for it.
Rome’s Agenda
Rome’s agenda is not simply that Protestants and Roman Catholics should work together toward a common end. No, the end for Rome is to prevent Roman Catholics from becoming Protestants, while at the same time to engage in the evangelization of Protestants. Recognizing the rise of apostasy and the fact that many of her adherents do not believe her dogmas, Rome is seeking to maintain her authority among her own while seeking to broaden her influence wherever she can. To do this she is willing to embrace even false religions, if Rome can keep her influence. One Roman Catholic theologian expressed it well when he said in 1990, “So as Catholics . . . our job is to use this remaining decade evangelizing everyone we can into the Catholic Church, into the body of Christ and into the third millennium of Catholic history.”
More than this, a book by Patrick Madrid published in 1994, entitled Surprised by Truth, details how eleven supposed evangelicals were convinced that the Roman Catholic Church was the one true church and that they should return to it. Obviously irritated by the confusion and disagreement among so-called Protestant evangelicals, these people were impressed by the fact that Rome supposedly has not changed, and they returned to her. Several sequels to this book have brought out further arguments in favor of Rome and her beliefs, and they have made some impact on the Christian world. Protestant churches are now beginning to pay attention to the virgin Mary, and some have even gone so far as to invoke her supposed intercessory powers in prayer, as Roman Catholics have done for centuries. Even as staunch an evangelist as Billy Graham seems to have been taken in by Rome’s new posture, and he has made the statement, “I’ve found that my beliefs are essentially the same as those of orthodox Roman Catholics.”
What’s Ahead
While space does not permit us to examine in detail the various accords signed by evangelical and Roman Catholic leaders (beginning with “Evangelicals and Catholics Together” in 1994), we would only point out that the wording in each is clever. Rome seems to have given her support to a gospel of which evangelicals could approve, while at the same time keeping back what is vital to her interests. The accord on “The Gift of Salvation,” for example, does not face such important issues as baptismal regeneration, indulgences, purgatory, or the worship of the virgin Mary. It merely states that these issues will require “further and urgent exploration.”
There is no doubt that all this is leading up to a vast false religious system that Scripture calls “Babylon the Great.” After the true church is called up to heaven at the Lord’s coming, this huge system will dominate the political scene in the western world, at least for a time. Her incredible wealth will allow her to traffic in all sorts of commercial ventures, and for a time she will be successful. But then God will allow those whom she rules to hate her and to overthrow her. “The ten horns which thou sawest upon the beast, these shall hate the whore, and shall make her desolate and naked, and shall eat her flesh, and burn her with fire” (Rev. 17:16).
In conclusion, let us not be fooled into thinking that Rome has changed. Her energy is not for truth, but rather for herself and the system that she represents. God in His sovereignty may allow His Word to be used in blessing to some as a result of the dialogue between Protestants and Roman Catholics, and for this we can be thankful. However, in the long run Rome’s interests will predominate. Let us remember the admonition in Revelation 18:4: “Come out of her, My people, that ye be not partakers of her sins.” Let us be thankful for any blessing that God allows, but equally true, let us not be duped into thinking that Rome is changing in any fundamental way.
W. J. Prost
An Easy Way
There is an easy way of going on in worldliness, and there is nothing more sad than the quiet, comfortable Christian going on day by day apart from dependence on the Lord. We must always be in dependence or we will fall. In every detail of our lives, there is no blessing but in dependence on God. The point for us is to rest in the arm of the Lord, whatever may be, and not run to get help elsewhere.
J. N. Darby
Theme of the Issue
The theme of the issue is the bride and bridegroom relationship between Christ and His church and the affections and activities that flow from that relationship.
“Christ also loved the church, and gave Himself for it; that He might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, that He might present it to Himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish” (Eph. 5:2527).
“Surely I come quickly. Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus” (Rev. 22:20).
Reciprocal Affection
It is a blessed thing to cultivate in our hearts, not only the sense of what God has done for us, but also what He in grace has made us to be for Himself. It is most blessed to get away from ourselves, and, entering into the secret of God’s presence, there to learn what those sentiments are which fill His heart. The Spirit of God makes those who believe in Christ to rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory (1 Peter 1:8). That is our side of this joy, but “it is meet that we should make merry and be glad” is His, for the Father has His joy as well, and it is boundless.
W. T. P. Wolston