I opened my Bible to the first book in the New
Testament. As I read through the first chapter, some special names popped out
to me. I had underlined them long ago. The book of Matthew, chapter one, lists
the lineage of Christ through the line of Joseph. Joseph is not his father but
the husband of Jesus Christ’s Mother, Mary. Matthew 1:1-16.
In the list, God had
Matthew include mothers of some of those born into the family tree. Why? From
what I’ve read, and my own opinion, these women had sordid pasts. They got pregnant
in an unconventional circumstance, or were Gentiles. They were included to let
us know that God accepts all, no matter the background. The requirement to be
included in the list—they needed to believe in Him.
The list includes: Tamar
(who played a harlot – Genesis 38), Rahab (a harlot – Joshua 2 and 6:22-23),
Ruth (a Gentile from Moab – the book of Ruth), Bathsheba (adulterer – 2 Samuel
11), Mary (a devout Jew and a virgin whose baby was conceived by the Holy
Spirit instead of her espoused husband – Matthew 1 and Luke 1-2).
Those names of women gave
me pause. Another meaning came to me: His chosen bride, Israel, rejected Him.
He ‘took another bride,’ the Gentiles. This is a picture of that grace.
The good, the bad, the
ugly, the broken, the ‘less than,’ and the forsaken—He forgives us and chooses
us all to be His bride. We come to Him, accept what Christ did for us in His
death on the cross, we receive salvation, and only then we become His chosen
bride.
All who accept Christ
become His bride. For I am jealous for you with the jealously of God Himself. I
promised you as a pure bride to one
husband—Christ (2 Corinthians 11:2). Let us be glad and rejoice, and let us
give honor to Him. For the time has come for the wedding feast of the Lamb, and
His bride has prepared herself (Revelation
19:7).
If we trust Him, dear
one, we are renewed, reborn, grafted in, and become—His chosen bride. Grace
freely given to us to be included in The Bride of Christ.
I am included in the
Bride of Christ. At a young age, I accepted Christ as my Savior. My father
answered my questions and explained how I could go to heaven, someday. Have you
trusted him as your Savior? Are you included as part of those considered in the
Bride of Christ?