Introduction:
Week 1: A Glorious Bride:
Embroidered with Gold
The royal daughter is all glorious within the palace;
Her clothing is woven with gold.
She shall be brought to the King in robes of many colors.
(Psalm 45:13-14a nkjv)
Week 1
A Glorious Bride:
Embroidered with Gold
We have been overwhelmed by the response to our first curriculum, Falling in Love with Jesus. So many of you, from eighteen to eighty, have written and told us how understanding that Jesus is your Bridegroom has brought your relationship with Him to a whole new level. Wherever you are in your singleness or marriage, you know you have a perfect Bridegroom. You feel cherished, and you are experiencing a deeper intimacy with Him.
What an exciting journey this has been for us as well. We'd like to tell you about just one amazing weekend when we were invited to minister at a two-day event. Falling in Love with Jesus was the theme, and it was being held at an elegant hotel in Atlanta. At this event the committee had planned all the pomp and circumstance involved with a royal wedding reception in order to bless four hundred women who were in full-time ministry. We watched as these women completely absorbed the pampering, the attention, and the reminder that they are loved as the Bride of Christ. Facials, manicures, and massages were available, without cost, before the start of the event. White flowers, fine china gleaming in candlelight, and displays of wedding gowns were arranged throughout the hotel. In the evening, when the women returned to their rooms, they found rose petals and chocolates scattered across their bedspreads. It was all magnificent.
Several humorous things happened that weekend, which we later realized made a perfect parallel for this study, Living in Love with Jesus.
(Dee) My plane arrived first. I waited with the retreat coordinator, Mary Francis, outside the security area. Darlene, a Delta flight attendant on the committee, went right to the gate to greet Kathy when she got off the plane. Darlene watched as each woman walked through the door. When the last passenger walked off and they closed the door, she was dismayed. No Kathy! She hurriedly called Mary Francis on her cell phone. I could hear Darlene's voice, filled with panic:
"Kathy wasn't on the plane!"
I thought for a moment and then realized what had happened. Smiling, I said, "Mary Francis, Kathy was on the plane. Trust me. Darlene just didn't recognize her. People always look for the 'album cover Kathy.' You know-the hair done, the makeup, the gorgeous clothes. Don't worry. I'll watch for her. She'll be coming up the escalator any minute."
Sure enough, a few minutes later, Kathy appeared, easily lost in the crowd in her typical ball cap, jeans, cowboy boots, and leather jacket. I waved to get her attention. She smiled that recognizable smile, and the committee all breathed a sigh of relief.
The situation became more humorous when we arrived at the hotel. Our van pulled up to a side entrance, which was lined with urns overflowing with flowers.
(Kathy) I was walking in to greet the women when I was stopped.
"Wait, wait, wait! You can't come in yet."
Dee and I began to see what was so sweetly planned. The women started to unroll a white lace runner. A bubble machine was turned on over the door, and bubbles began to fill the air. When I saw what they were doing, I lightheartedly pushed Dee aside, saying:
"You've done this before. Get out of the way! This may be my only chance!"
This was a moment I didn't want to rush. I began to walk with an exaggerated "bride step," singing, "Here Comes the Bride." Everyone laughed hysterically. Part of the comedy was that instead of wearing a delicate white wedding gown and demure veil, I marched in wearing my traveling clothes: jeans, leather jacket, and ball cap. I had on no makeup, and to be quite honest, I had to catch a really early flight, so I had not even showered. I was surely not a typical bride!
Photo of Kathy's Entrance
(Courtesy of Susan Stewart)
It hit us later that this picture was a quite accurate portrayal of us as His betrothed. . . .
This week we are going to look at some of the pictures our Lord gives in Scripture of brides-some caught off guard, some gloriously adorned. For a great wedding day is coming, and our Bridegroom, Jesus, is coming for us. We want to be prepared.
Do your homework before you gather in your groups. In your groups you will be watching a video that will correspond with the lesson for that week. You will see a page for video notes. If you learn better simply by listening, you needn't fill it out. But many women find filling in the blanks helps them remember key points. There are also spaces for you to jot down anything you want to remember.
We challenge you to give your daily time with God top priority and attention. You will discover that much of the emphasis of 1 John is on the difference between the real and the counterfeit. It is so easy to walk like a Christian, talk like a Christian, and even be a Christian, yet have so much of the counterfeit in us. One of the key ways to drive the counterfeit from our lives is to pour truth into our souls. Determine now to be faithful, giving your time with Jesus priority, and with a heart open to His Spirit. Read with a pen or a highlighter, marking things in the workbook text that you want to keep in your heart. Our Bridegroom longs for faithful brides.
You will also find a memory passage for this week on a perforated page at the back of the book. Begin learning it right away so you can review it each day. Set a high standard for yourself and you not only will be taken to new spiritual heights, but you will help your sisters in this group to grow as well.
One key to living in love with Jesus is pouring truth into your soul, so set your heart to do that from the beginning.
Video Notes for Week 1
A Glorious Bride: Embroidered with Gold
Thoughts I want to remember:
1. What did the woman cleaning the hotel rooms ask Kathy?
_____________________________________________________________________
2. John's Gospel helps us _______ in love with Jesus. He wrote the Gospel so that "you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have ______________ in his name" (John 20:31).
3. John's first letter was written later, to revive that life, to help us __________ in love with Jesus. He tells us: "And now, dear children, continue in him, so that when he appears we may be _________________ and _______________ before him at his coming" (1 John 2:28).
4. In the parable of the wedding banquet in Matthew 22, the king asked one guest: "How did you get in here without ___________ ____________?" The man was speechless. Then the king told the attendants, "Tie him hand and foot, and throw him outside, into the darkness, where there will be _____________ and ______________ ______ __________" (Matthew 22:12-13). In this passage, the wedding garment seems to
represent ____________________.
5. In the description of the "Wedding of the Lamb," we are told that "fine linen stands for the _______________ ______ _____ ______ _________" (Revelation 19:8b). In this passage, the wedding garment seems to represent _______________________.
6. James tells us "Faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is _______________" (James 2:17).
7. Define "revived."______________________________________________________
8. "The colors of His love" is a phrase we hope will ignite your ____________________ on what is possible as you live in love with Jesus.
9. In Scripture, the color __________ represents the finest and the best.
10. Job said, "When he has tested me, I will come forth as ______________" (Job 23:10).
11. Psalm 45 begins with "My heart is stirred by a noble theme." What is this noble theme?______________________________________________________________
12. A scepter of _________________will be the scepter of your kingdom.
13. All glorious am I, _____________________________, within my chamber. My gown is interwoven with ___________. (The character of God is interwoven throughout my character.) In embroidered garments I am led to the __________.
Getting Acquainted
1. Going around the circle, be ready to share your name and a response to one of the following: A time when you were caught unprepared that was funny or stressful. _______________________________________________________________
What you are looking forward to in this group.
_______________________________________________________________
2. What stood out most to you in the video? Why?
____________________________________________________________________
3. Some groups particularly spur you on to a deeper walk with Jesus. They are blessed because they are made up of women of depth who hunger for more of Jesus. How can you, as an individual, prepare and share so as to make this group the best it can be?
Day 1
Becoming His Betrothed
God gives us many pictures in Scripture to show us He wants intimacy with us: He tells us we are His children, that we are His body, but also, that we are His Bride. God the Son is the Bridegroom, and the church, or the true body of believers, is His Bride.
How interesting it is to examine some of the wedding customs in the days Jesus was on earth, and to see how they make a beautiful parallel to our ultimate Bridegroom.
The Jewish wedding ceremony in the days of...
