The Bridegroom and Bride Pictured in John 14

Let's turn, please, in the scriptures to John chapter 14, the gospel of John chapter 14. John 14 and verse 1. Let not your heart be troubled. Believe in God.

Believe also in me. In my Father's house are many mansions. If it were not so, I would have told you.

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. Whither I go ye know, and the way ye know.

Thomas saith unto him, Lord, we know not whither thou goest, and how can we know the way? Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life. No man cometh unto the Father, but by me. If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also.

And from henceforth ye know him, and have seen him. Philip saith unto him, Lord, show us the Father, and it sufficeth us. Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? He that hath seen me has seen the Father.

And how sayest thou then, show us the Father? Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? The words that I speak unto you I speak not of myself, but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works. Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me, or else believe me for the very works' sake. Now, for the next 15 minutes, I want you to come with me in your mind, just for a second.

And I want you to think. I want you to picture with me a young lady. A young lady in the land of Israel, in the times of the Lord Jesus.

A young lady who's engaged to be married in our terms today. She's betrothed to a bridegroom. And every day, she waits for him to come.

She waits as the busyness of the day carries on, into the stillness of the night. And I would say just before she lays her head on her pillow, perhaps it's become a part of her daily or nightly bedtime ritual to say, perhaps, perhaps, it'll be tonight. She remembers.

She remembers the last time she saw him. He came to her, to her family, with a marriage covenant in hand. A marriage contract, if you will, a covenant.

He sat with that family, and he paid a price to make this young lady his own. She remembers the look on his face when he paid that price, entered into that covenant, and they took a cup. When they took that cup, they each drank from it.

And having partaken of that cup, they knew that it symbolized the agreement that they had entered into. It was the cup of a covenant, cup of a covenant. And just before he left, he gave her this promise.

I'm going away, but I'm going to come again. The reason that I'm going away is because I'm going to prepare a place for us in my father's house, so that when I come back to get you, we can be together forever. When I come back to receive you, I will receive you onto myself, that where I am, there you will be forever.

And then he left, and now she waits. I would say every day she goes over those words in her mind. I go to prepare a place for you, and since I go, I will come again, receive you onto myself, that where I am, there you may be also.

But as she's waiting, she's busy. You see, there's going to be a ceremony, and there's going to be a presentation. And she's busy.

I was going to say weaving, but I'm not sure if weaving is the right word. But she's busy making her wedding garments. She's sewing the threads together, so that when the big day comes, he takes her to the father's house, and then they come out of the father's house, and he presents her to all who are honored guests at the marriage supper.

She will have this garment, a garment that will display beauty and glory to all who will watch. But she waits. She's going to hear a sound when he comes.

Most often, it would have been at night, but she's going to hear a sound. It is going to be the sound of a trumpet, a shofar trumpet, if you will, blowing in the streets to announce his arrival. And there will be the sound of a voice, a voice that will shout, behold, the bridegroom cometh.

Go ye out to meet him. Upon hearing the trumpet and hearing his voice, she will respond and go and be with him. Now, for these men in this upper room, they knew exactly what that scene was like.

And as the Lord Jesus sat down with them on that night, they began to speak words like these. They immediately conjured up the imagery of a bridegroom and a bride. When he took that cup, we remember what he said.

This is the cup of the new covenant in my blood, shed for many for the remission of sin. What was he saying? He is saying, I'm going to pay the price. I'm going to pay the price for you to secure you as my own.

And this is the cup of the covenant. This is a cup that symbolizes that promise, that covenant that I am entering into with you. Although I know now this morning we heard it absolutely correctly, doctrinally, according to the scriptures, that covenant is with Israel and Judah.

According to the scriptures, primarily Israel is the focus of this new covenant. But the blessings that the bride has come into as a result of the price that was paid at the cross and the new covenant that has been established in his blood, my brethren and sisters, but they knew bridegroom and bride when they partook of the cup. They knew what it meant.

And then he says these words to them. I go to prepare a place for you. And since I go, I will come again and receive you onto myself that where I am there, you may be also.

But before he says that, what does he say in my father's house? My father's house. And when they connect the father's house with a prepared place and a price paid and a covenant entered into, you see, they're processing this just like the young lady would have processed it when her bridegroom made the promise. Then he leaves.

I would say my brother and his sister said it would be approximately six weeks later. They would go out as far as Bethany to the Mount of Olives. Being at Bethany at the Mount of Olives, he told them that the times and the seasons were not for them to know, but that everything is left in the father's hands as to when he will return and set up that kingdom.

But then he began to rise up. He rose up into the clouds. Out of their sight.

And they watched him. They continued watching even after he was gone. I believe watching in wonder.

And then what do we do next? And then those men came and said, he men of Galilee, why stand he gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus who has gone up shall so come and like manner as you have seen him go. But he went up. Now they wait.

They waited as the gospel was preached on the day of Pentecost and souls were saved. They waited as the persecution came heavy from the Jews. They waited as many of them would die the death of martyrs.

And yet they waited. What was it? I wonder my brethren and sisters that was on their mind as they were waiting. But the promise.

I will come again. To receive you onto myself. The era of the apostles came and went.

And the church through many changes and compromises. Ups and downs. And yet I believe there's always been a remnant that have been waiting.

Waiting for the trumpet. And waiting for his shout. They waited.

And now today we wait. I hope we are waiting expectantly. My brethren and sisters.

I hope it's on our mind all the time. I hope that in the morning of busyness and in the afternoon when the shadows start to grow. And then into our nighttime ritual if you would.

That we're always thinking of his coming. Yeah, I think it would be healthy for us spiritually. My dear brethren and sisters.

If we said maybe it will be today. Maybe if we said even so come today. Lord Jesus.

We wait. But do you know that while we are waiting we are weaving our garment. For according to the book of Revelation there is going to be a display of the bride to the entire world.

I believe when he comes according to the chronology that is to happen. He comes to the air and he receives us onto himself. He takes us into the father's house.

There are faithfulness is assessed at the judgment seat of Christ. But there comes a point when we are taken out of the father's house. Joined now with him forever.

He displays his bride to the entire world. And according to the book of Revelation onto her. That is the bride is given to her to wear garments of fine linen.

Which is a righteousness of the Saints or the righteousness is the righteous acts of the Saints. So that while we are here living here and now the good deeds that we are doing in honor of him. And because of him are really going to be the garment that's going to be displayed in that millennial glory.

So while we wait. We are weaving. We're weaving.

And are we not waiting for the trumpet and for the shout. Behold the bridegroom coming. I was thinking maybe we should all try and learn that.

Very phrase in Hebrew or Greek or some language. What language is it? It doesn't matter what language. We'll hear the shout.

And we'll go up. But I want you to think for a second. How many times he said believe.

Believe. This woman would have had a lot of different anxieties. Wouldn't she? There's got to be a lot of tension while you're waiting.

She might have wondered who is going to be there at this wedding. She might have wondered is my garment going to be beautiful enough. She might have wondered a lot of things.

But you know there's one thing that I'm convinced that she wasn't concerned about. Where this place was and how she was going to get there. How am I going to find it? And how am I going to get there? No.

You know what she knows? When he comes he's going to take her there. She doesn't need the map. He's the way.

She doesn't need a mode of transportation. He will take her. That's why I believe you find these words in this context.

I am the way when I come for you. I will take you to myself and I will take you to the father's house and I will present you to all of the guests at the wedding feasts. I am the way.

But now as we wait we have anxieties. I know it's not spiritual to worry. But we do.

Don't we? We have concerns. And we have our cares. But can I just be as honest with you as I am with my own soul? I am quite sure that none of us are wondering when he comes how will we ever get there? To the father's house.

No, no. Why? She was just simple enough to trust him with everything she didn't know how to do. And can we believe him? Just to trust him.

Trust him for his timing when the father sends him. Trust him that he will fulfill his promise to come and receive us. But believe him because he says I am the way, the truth, and the life.

No man cometh unto the father but by me.