Of Brides and Badges

Of Brides and Badges

“Then one of the seven angels…came and spoke with me, saying, ‘Come here, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb.’” Revelation 21:9

A late-model black Ford Mustang drove past me on my walk earlier this week. It was a beautiful car, sleek and freshly polished. I waved at the driver and she waved back. (I wave at everybody on my walk, makes them scratch their head and say, “Do I know that guy?”)

The next day I took the same route and about 15 minutes into my walk saw the same black Mustang parked in the driveway of a house nearby. “That’s nice,” I thought. “The owner lives in the neighborhood.” Then, about 10 minutes later, passing another house I saw a second black Mustang. I thought, “Well, it is a nice car. But two in the same neighborhood?”

Today I took my walk, same route, same cars. But this time I looked closer at the second “Mustang”. Oh no, it had a Chevrolet badge on the front. It’s a Camaro!

That made me think of my early teens. I grew up in a very car-centric time and place. I turned 13 in 1968 living near East Los Angeles. Almost every friend I knew was into cars. We are also not far from some of the most famous drag strips in the country. I watched the Funny Cars more than once as the red to green countdown sent them roaring down the quarter-mile track. So, cars were a big part of our scene.

Sitting in the front yard with my friends, they would often identify the make and model of each car well before it drove by. Me? I had no idea. I couldn’t distinguish a Ford from a Chevy from a Dodge, let alone the model and year. But they could! I take that back. I knew what a Ford Fairlane was, our next-door neighbor owned one. I don’t think I even knew the difference between a sedan and a coupe. (Yes, if you are asking, I do know now. Four-door, two-door.)

I never asked those long-ago friends how they could tell the difference. For one thing, it would betray my ignorance. Whether they had read Car and Driver from front to back since they were ten or had glued models together of all the popular cars, they knew what they were talking about. On my walk, it was the Chevy insignia that identified my mistake.

How do we know what group or groups are the “church”? What insignia or badge can we identify? Does the church have modern fuel-injection, hemi engines, or gull fins? There are many pictures of the church throughout the New Testament. One of the most frequent is the “bride of Christ.”

I’ve performed over 100 weddings in my ministry. I’ve seen brides in glorious white and beaded dresses, in cowboy boots and in their favorite team’s jersey. No matter how they were dressed, there was no one more beautiful than the bride standing with her groom. (Sorry guys, nobody comes away from a wedding saying, “And wasn’t the groom beautiful?”)

Brides are radiant; they are effusive. They are like a firework display of protons brightening the world for the few moments of the ceremony. Their faces shine, their makeup runs, but even that is beautiful. It really doesn’t matter if they took all morning to pretty themselves up or went minimal for a simple exchange of vows. A bride is love and loveliness on visual display.

There is a reason she glows. (And you can thank me now, guys.) Brides do not stand alone. They beam because they are in love with their groom. She may have been “pretty” before the wedding but combine that with the depth of love the couple shares, and there are few moments like it.

I believe these two qualities, beauty and love, are the primary marks of the church. Whatever else we might say about any particular bride, she is beautiful. And so is the church.

Now, I do not mean, necessarily, the religious expression of Christianity. I am referring to the beauty of those who have kept their heart and eyes upon Jesus alone. They have learned there is no other like Him. They take the blush in their cheeks from the love He has for them.

Imagine the moments when you have seen someone carry out a selfless act. Perhaps, struggling financially themselves, a family decides to adopt a child from out of poverty. Or another, in retirement, decides to mentor a preteen child. Or think about former President Jimmy Carter, at 95 and still building houses with Habitat of Humanity. Recently he was back on site the day after falling at home and receiving 14 stitches.

There is beauty in all of these acts. I would venture to say that most people who give selflessly have been on the receiving end of great love and mercy at one time in their lives. Those who keep Christ in view have received the infinite grace of God. The more we realize that and experience it, the more beautiful the church becomes.

Which lead to the second attribute; brides are full of love. That is the source of their beauty, isn’t it? You see, we really do have a choice. Is our relationship with Christ about rules? Is it about some view that sees Him as a taskmaster who expects our slavish devotion? Or, are we like a bride who, knowing great love, can only give the same?

It is far too easy to replace these insignias with labored practices that wear us out. Or, we become political polarized, seeing every act of one party as “godless” and another as “God’s own will.” Never forget that during the American Civil War preachers were using the Bible to preach both slavery and emancipation. But which view was beautiful? Which was loving? Which looked like a beautiful bride?

I haven’t used the word “romance” yet but let me conclude with it. Men may have a difficult time with the concept because Jesus is male, and we are called the Bride. But I believe Jesus wants to romance us. If it helps, the Holy Spirit was often referred to as feminine in early church writings. Nonetheless, let the idea of romance inform your response to Christ. Allow the Divine Love that gave everything for you sweep you off your feet. Allow the Divine Love that asked nothing of you, but simply gives, transfix you. Let the thought that the entire universe if filled with the glory of Love invoke a tear, or even make you a bit giddy today.

Beauty and love; be the Bride.