“God prepares his bride”
Mark 14:1-9
One of the privileges of being a minister is the opportunity to solemnize weddings. I must confess that I had my share of surprising moments during weddings. I remember solemnizing a wedding where both myself, and the groom were having high fever. My head was aching and my whole body was shaking, but I had to go through the ceremony together with the groom who was also praying that the ceremony would end soon because he was also having a difficult time. There was another time where in the middle of the ceremony the bride collapsed, perhaps out of exhaustion from the heat or for lack of sleep and rest prior to the wedding. I had to pause for a while and asked the groom and the maid of honor to assist the bride until she gained consciousness. However, there is one thing I noticed in all the weddings that I solemnized, that is, the bride was always the center of attraction and attention. Most people do not really mind the groom and the other participants, but their eyes are glued on the bride.
The imagery of a bride in the Bible is unique to the followers of Jesus Christ. Only in Jesus do we find the relationship as between husband and bride. Prior to the incarnation of Jesus, the relationship between God and Israel was a relationship between a master and servant. Moses himself was a servant in God’s house and all who followed Moses were servants in God’s house. The reason why Moses and the Israelites were governed by laws, rules and regulations is because they were servants. As long as the servant is faithful in following the rules and regulations in the house, the owner of the house will reward him generously. However, when the servant misbehaves and becomes rebellious, the master will kick him out.
