The Calling of the Bride

Genesis 24:51-59 HCSB Rebekah is here in front of you. Take her and go, and let her be a wife for your master's son, just as the LORD has spoken." (52) When Abraham's servant heard their words, he bowed to the ground before the LORD. (53) Then he brought out objects of silver and gold, and garments, and gave them to Rebekah. He also gave precious gifts to her brother and her mother. (54) Then he and the men with him ate and drank and spent the night. When they got up in the morning, he said, "Send me to my master." (55) But her brother and mother said, "Let the girl stay with us for about 10 days. Then she can go." (56) But he responded to them, "Do not delay me, since the LORD has made my journey a success. Send me away so that I may go to my master." (57) So they said, "Let's call the girl and ask her opinion." (58) They called Rebekah and said to her, "Will you go with this man?" She replied, "I will go." (59) So they sent away their sister Rebekah and her nurse, and Abraham's servant and his men.

This passage describes when Abraham sent out his servant to find a bride for his son, Isaac. Abraham had been promised by God that his descendants would become a great nation, as numerous as the stars, and so it was important to ensure that his son married a suitable person. We know that this promise was fulfilled and Abraham’s grandson Jacob, who had his name changed to Israel, became the start of that great nation.

Abraham knew that Isaac’s wife would be a part of that promise. Abraham, therefore, sent his most faithful servant to fulfill the task. The servant (who is never named) was faithful to his mission, mainly because he continually bathed the matter in prayer, pleading that God may grant him success and show kindness to his master. Ultimately, the servant was successful, and brought Rebekah back to marry Isaac. The story ends with,

· Genesis 24:67 HCSB And Isaac brought her into the tent of his mother Sarah and took Rebekah to be his wife. Isaac loved her, and he was comforted after his mother's death.

I would like you consider the possibility that this story may serve as a picture of God sending out His servant to find a bride for His son Jesus. God the Father, like Abraham, will only accept the best for His Son. Jesus, like Isaac, is the groom in waiting for his bride. The Holy Spirit is like the faithful servant who carries out the Father’s work.

In John 3:29, John the Baptist referred to Jesus as the Groom.

In Matthew 9:15 (cp Mark 2:19-20), 25:1-10 (cp Luke 5:34-35), Jesus describes Himself as the Bridegroom.

Paul tells us

· Ephesians 5:25-27 HCSB Husbands, love your wives, just as also Christ loved the church and gave Himself for her, (26) to make her holy, cleansing her in the washing of water by the word. (27) He did this to present the church to Himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but holy and blameless.

In Revelation chapter 21, the church (which at the point described has been raptured and is in the heavenly Jerusalem) is described as the bride of Christ, along with those from the tribes of Israel who God calls unto Himself.

Therefore, we are like Rebekah in this story. With that in mind, I want to look at WHY Rebekah was chosen to be a part of Hashem’s promise. She could have easily missed out, as the servant could have chosen someone else, or been released from his oath if she had not been willing to come. I want to look at what Rebekah did that caused her to become the bride of Isaac, and show what we need to do in order to ensure that we are the bride of Christ.

Rebekah shared the family’s values.

Abraham sent his servant back to his own country for the bride. He wouldn’t allow his son to marry a Cannanite woman. This was because they had different gods and lived by different laws. They were a people that lived by their fleshly desires and would have been a poor match for his son. They would have contaminated the promise. Instead, the bride would have to come from amongst people who shared the same values as Abraham.

Why do you think that Jesus kept saying that it was those who had “an ear to hear” that would get the message? It is those who recognize their sinfulness and humbly admit their need for God’s help who can become part of the Bride.

This is why the personal inculcation of humility, self-discipline, and virtue is so critical. This is why Adonaic parents must never tolerate rebellious pride in either their children or themselves! Anyone who is not capable of humility will not make it into heaven.

Rebekah was pure and had been kept beautiful.

In verse 16, Rebekah is described as being a beautiful virgin. There is no way that the servant would have chosen her if she had been a loose woman or already in a relationship with another man. She also had to be beautiful. The servant wanted to make sure that Isaac would be pleased with what he saw. Even when carrying out the mundane chores, Rebekah had ensured that she still looked beautiful.

Illustration. I once heard of a dissatisfied married woman. She was sitting on the sofa with the husband. She had her hair in curlers and her face covered with a mud pack. She had let her figure, which was once slim and trim, slip a little and she was wearing the old baggy clothes that she used for decorating the house in. She then turned to her husband and moaned..."Where’s all the romance gone?"

Rebekah on the other hand, even when doing the household chores, ensured that she still looked beautiful.

If we want to be the Bride of Christ, we also need to keep ourselves pure and looking beautiful. We expect impurity in the world, but often, in the church, and in lives of Christians, purity is compromised.

· We often agree that pornography is wrong and demeaning, but then we fail to censor ourselves properly from things that we see on the television.

· We can agree that theft is wrong, but then break copyright laws; having no qualms about copying a tape or a video.

· We can even find ourselves gossiping about how wrong somebody is for gossiping!

I am not talking about things that happen in the world, but things that we can find in the church!

· 1 Corinthians 5:9-13 HCSB (9) I wrote to you in a letter not to associate with sexually immoral people-- (10) by no means referring to this world's immoral people, or to the greedy and swindlers, or to idolaters; otherwise you would have to leave the world. (11) But now I am writing you not to associate with anyone who bears the name of brother who is sexually immoral or greedy, an idolater or a reviler, a drunkard or a swindler. Do not even eat with such a person. (12) For what is it to me to judge outsiders? Do you not judge those who are inside? (13) But God judges outsiders. Put away the evil person from among yourselves.

We seem to try and justify our actions but the Apostle Paul reminds us

· 1 Thessalonians 4:1 HCSB Finally then, brothers, we ask and encourage you in the Lord Jesus, that as you have received from us how you must walk and please God--as you are doing--do so even more.

Unless we search ourselves and ensure that we are kept pure, we can never please God, and we can never expect to become Jesus’ bride.

What about keeping ourselves beautiful? Am I referring to physical beauty? Certainly not, because let’s face it, some of us would make some ugly looking brides, especially us men. So what makes us beautiful to God?

· 1 Peter 3:3-4 HCSB Your beauty should not consist of outward things like elaborate hairstyles and the wearing of gold ornaments or fine clothes; (4) instead, it should consist of the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable quality of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is very valuable in God's eyes.

The Bible makes it clear that what makes us beautiful to God is the ability to live gentle, quiet, and obedient lives. God does not look on the outside, He looks at inward beauty. We need to ask ourselves this question, are we fully submissive to God in every area of our lives? If there are areas of our lives that aren’t fully given over to him, then those areas are ugly and offensive to our Groom. Would you find somebody physically attractive, if they were perfectly formed, apart from a great big five inch boil on the end of their nose? The answer is “probably not”. It would be difficult to overlook.

Spiritually speaking, it is the same when we say to God, ’Lord you can have every area of my life... apart from that bit, I want to keep that bit for myself. I want to keep control of that area’.

Remember the young rich man who spoke to Jesus? Jesus recognized that this young man had given everything over to God, except for control of his finances. The man was unwilling to let go of this area of his life and so left in a sad state. (Matthew 19:21; Mark 10:21; Luke 18:22)

If we are to be picked as His bride, then we must be pure and look beautiful before Him.

Rebekah was willing to serve and to refresh.

Rebekah came to the well outside the town at the time when all of the women would have come to draw water. She had work to do and limited time to do it in. Yet, she was not only willing to share what she had in order to refresh a stranger, but she was also willing to go further and feed all of the man’s camels as well. She had a heart that was willing and ready to serve. She wasn’t just coming to the well to meet her own needs, but she was also willing to meet the needs of those around her also.

The Holy Spirit is also looking for the same qualities in us. Do we come to the church just to refresh ourselves, or are we willing to refresh the lives of those around us? God is looking for a people with a servant’s heart. Jesus stated that He is the source of living water, and that those who come to Him will not thirst, but will always be satisfied (John 4:14). Jesus didn’t just seek Gods refreshing for Himself, instead He sought to refresh others with it.

Why did you come to church this morning? Was it so that you could enjoy the worship? Was it so that you could receive the Word of God? Was it so that you could be refreshed and receive from God? All of these are good things, but if we truly want to be the kind of bride that Christ wants, then we need to be willing to give too. We need to have that desire to bless others and to go that extra mile to see that they are refreshed also. Are we really meeting the needs of those around us? If we aren’t, then we will never be the bride of Christ, and we will miss out on the heavenly wedding feast.

Jesus said some frightening words when he spoke of His return. He will accuse many of not feeding Him when He was hungry, and not giving Him a drink when He was thirsty.

· Matthew 25:44-45 HCSB "Then they too will answer, 'Lord, when did we see You hungry, or thirsty, or a stranger, or without clothes, or sick, or in prison, and not help You?' (45) "Then He will answer them, 'I assure you: Whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for Me either.'

If we don’t come to God with a servant’s heart, then we can never be Christ’s bride. How are we meeting the needs of the needy amongst us? How are we meeting the needs of this town? Are we refreshing both family and strangers? I am not implying that we are NOT doing these things. I’m simply stressing the importance of asking ourselves these questions regularly, both as individuals and as a church. If we are found wanting then the consequences will be serious.

Lets ensure that when the Spirit comes looking, we are going to be found with servant’s hearts.

Rebekah was ready to go.

Until the stranger had come to town, Rebekah would have been living her life without any expectation of what was about to happen to her. She would have just been going about her everyday business. Suddenly, a man walked into town, and he told her that he had been sent to ask her to be someone’s bride. The man had only been in town for one night when he stated that he wanted to take her to his master. Her family wanted her to stay with them for a little while longer, and so she was asked to make the decision.

She had been put in quite a position! If she was going to go with the man she would have to leave all her family behind at a moment’s notice. Without trains, cars, or airplanes, it’s not as if she could just pop BACK to see them with a moment’s notice. Yet, we don’t read of any hesitation. She simply got herself ready, got her maids ready, jumped on a camel, and off she went.

God requires the church to be ready in much the same way. The problem is that many in the church are so focused on the world’s pleasures that they aren’t willing to let them go. If we are to be the bride of Christ and enter into His promises, then we need to be ready to leave behind everything that this world offers. Rebekah was willing to leave all, including her own family. If God suddenly called us to a ministry that would entail leaving everything behind, would we be willing to do it? Willing to sell our homes and put the money into the mission, to give up our pensions and the security that living here has to offer? Have we put our trust in the comforts of this world, or are we looking forward to Gods promises?

In the account of the man who puts his hand to the plough and then looked back (Luke 9:62), and in the parable of the ten virgins (Matthew 25:1-13), we find that God is looking for a bride who is willing to let go of worldly comforts; who is ready and waiting for Him.

Conclusion.

Rebekah entered into the promises of God because she was shared His values; because she was pure and kept herself beautiful; because she was willing to serve and refresh; and because she was ready and willing to go. Because she did these things, she became the mother of a great nation. She even found herself in the Messiah’s genealogy.

The return of Christ is the ultimate promise that we have and can enter. Unless we are like Rebekah, then we will never partake in the wedding feast described in the Revelation of John. God also has other promises for us as individuals and as a church. The Holy Spirit is searching for those who are willing to enter in.

God has promises for your life. The servant, however, would have been released from his oath if Rebekah hadn’t have been willing to seize those promises. She would have missed out on the promises of God. Likewise, we often miss out on the promises of God because we are not willing. I want to encourage you to trust Him; to enter in; and to see what He has in store for you.

· Revelation 22:17 HCSB Both the Spirit and the bride say, "Come!" Anyone who hears should say, "Come!" And the one who is thirsty should come. Whoever desires should take the living water as a gift.