                    [Times Square Church Pulpit Series]

                  The Queen in Gold! The Bride of Christ

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By David Wilkerson
March 13, 1995
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          The 45th Psalm provides us with a beautiful picture of
          Christ and His bride. A great marriage is about to take
          place, and the writer is "boiling over" with ecstasy
          and excitement: "My heart is inditing [boiling over] a
          good matter..." (Psalm 45:1).

          The psalmist can hardly contain himself. He is trying
          to describe something he sees in his mind's eye - an
          incredible ceremony, with a grand and glorious
          Bridegroom and a beautiful bride dressed in gold!

          Several years ago, the entire world was mesmerized by
          the royal wedding in England. Millions around the globe
          were glued to TV sets as Princess Diana and Prince
          Charles were married. It was one of the most glamorous
          and celebrated of weddings in modern history.

          TV networks had "color commentators" who described
          every detail of the proceedings. News clips showed the
          princely, regal life of Charles - his polo matches, his
          duties as prince, and his inheritance as the next king
          of England - his throne, his riches, his palace.

          The commentators also described in exquisite detail
          everything about Princess Di. And the picture was
          incredible: her hairstyle, her royal gown, her retinue,
          her shoes, her ornaments, her ring, her flowers, her
          royal carriage. Even during the wedding ceremony, as
          the couple stood together at the altar, a commentator
          whispered details into a microphone: "Isn't she
          beautiful? Look at her shoes, her flowers..."

          It was romantic, breathtaking - a prince and a princess
          united in holy marriage "until death do part." People
          all over the globe wept at the sight. But today we have
          lived to see this marriage disintegrate into one of the
          most sordid, ugly breakups on the face of the earth!

          The marriage described in Psalm 45, on the other hand,
          is a union far more glorious and grand. It too is full
          of romance, beauty, majesty - but it is a marriage that
          will never end. It is meant for eternal glory!

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           This Wedding Is All About King Jesus Taking A Bride!

                      -------------------------------

          At this very moment, you and I are seated in heavenly
          places with King Jesus. Yet, much greater than that, we
          are engaged to Him! And soon a grand and glorious
          marriage will take place - a majestic royal wedding
          beyond anything this world has ever seen. The
          commentator for this marriage is the Holy Spirit, who
          unfolds to us a glorious scene:

             * King Jesus is standing before His throne -
               His royal scepter in His hand, His garments
               full of the wonderful aroma of myrrh and
               aloes. He has come from the ivory palace of
               His Father, where He has been anointed with
               the oil of gladness.

             * He is dressed in His full military regalia.
               His glittering sword is strapped upon His
               thigh. He has conquered all His enemies, and
               His kingdom is secure. He reigns in peace and
               power, Victor over all. And, Scripture says,
               He is "...fairer than the children of men:
               grace is poured into thy lips..." (Psalm
               45:2).

             * Every battle this King has fought - every
               enemy He has laid low, every act of grace and
               mercy He has provided - has been for His
               bride. It all has been meant for this moment.
               And now He is ecstatic, beaming with joy,
               full of excitement - because He anticipates
               being joined to His beautiful bride. He gazes
               down the long corridor of the palace, waiting
               for her to approach with all her retinue!

          The psalmist tells us that the Bridegroom could have
          chosen a bride from many honorable daughters in the
          kingdom. "Kings' daughters were among thy honourable
          women..." (Psalm 45:9). But He chose only one: "...upon
          thy right hand did stand the queen in gold of Ophir"
          (same verse).

          Now, Ophir gold was the purest, most refined gold made
          in those days. And this bride is adorned in it. What a
          sight she is, as she is "...brought unto the king..."
          (verse 14). She absolutely glows, because her heart is
          pure.

          Her golden gown glistens with incredible needlework.
          This isn't some broad cloth picked out of endless
          yards; it has been intricately interwoven with threads
          of the purest gold. And its gold ornaments shine forth
          spectacularly.

          The queen in gold marches toward the King with great
          fanfare. And what a glorious sound - tambourines,
          trumpets, stringed instruments! Behind her, as far as
          the eye can see, is her retinue - an army of virgins,
          all dressed in white, singing, dancing, praising with
          great joy. The bride is leading the whole procession -
          and they're coming to meet the King of Kings and Lord
          of Lords.

          Finally, the queen takes her place at the King's right
          hand. And everyone is rejoicing - because this is the
          royal wedding of eternity! "...the virgins her
          companions that follow her shall be brought unto thee.
          With gladness and rejoicing shall they be brought: they
          shall enter into the king's palace" (verses 14-15).

          Talk about a Holy-Ghost revival meeting! Can you
          imagine the scene? This wedding is the purpose, the
          highlight, of all Creation. There stands King Jesus,
          His heart full of joy. And here comes His bride - the
          redeemed of mankind - dressed in pure gold, the
          righteousness of Christ!

          Yet, I want to stop here for a moment. So far, this
          looks like another romantic, royal wedding. My question
          is: Just who is this bride in gold?

          Some commentators say this psalm merely describes an
          historical marriage between King Joram of Judah and
          Athaliah. Scholarship shows that there was a great,
          royal wedding at the time. But to say this psalm is
          about that wedding is mere conjecture.

          I agree with most spiritually-minded scholars that this
          psalm is messianic. And I believe its message is very
          clear: It's about Jesus and His bride! The Bridegroom
          is our King and Lord, Jesus Christ. And the bride is
          His church - believers who have prepared themselves for
          His coming - who yearn for Him with great expectancy,
          and whose hearts are without spot or wrinkle.

          "And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming
          down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride
          adorned for her husband.... And there came unto me one
          of the seven angels which had the seven vials full of
          the seven last plagues, and talked with me, saying,
          Come hither, I will shew thee the bride, the Lamb's
          wife.

          "And he carried me away in the spirit to a great and
          high mountain, and shewed me that great city, the holy
          Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God, having
          the glory of God: and her light was like unto a stone
          most precious, even like a jasper stone, clear as
          crystal" (Revelation 21:2, 9-11).

          This picture in Revelation 21 is a beautiful picture of
          the last-day church of Jesus Christ! The great, holy
          city descending out of heaven is His spotless bride -
          the overcoming church seated with Him right now in
          heavenly places. This church is built upon the
          foundation of gospel truths of the twelve apostles. And
          it is surrounded by walls and gates that keep out
          everything impure and uninvited.

          Scripture also speaks of a pure, crystal water, which
          represents a clear conscience. And that is another
          component of this last-day church: It is transparent,
          pure, walking in the light - with no other temple but
          Christ!

          As the Queen Stands Before Her Bridegroom, The Wedding
          About to Begin, the Voice of a Third Party Is Heard!
          The queen in gold is honored, favored, greatly adorned.
          And now she stands at her Beloved's right hand, the
          marriage about to be performed. But before the ceremony
          begins, a voice whispers an admonition to her:
          "Hearken, O daughter, and consider..." (Psalm 45:10).

          I believe this voice is the Holy Ghost, warning all who
          are called by His name. He is speaking a word to
          overcomers - to those most in love with Jesus - saying,
          "Harken, consider, listen!" This voice comes to the
          bride in the final moments just before the marriage is
          to be consummated.

          Now, you must understand - the queen has already been
          chosen. Her heart has already been won to her
          Bridegroom. She has left her home, family and country
          and has committed herself to Him. And she is full of
          joy because she passionately loves the King.

          So, let me ask you: Do you think of yourself as chosen
          by the Lord? Are you the blood-covered, redeemed apple
          of His eye? Do you love Him with all your heart? Have
          you forsaken all the world, all your past, for Him? Can
          you say, "He is mine, and I am committed to Him. Lord,
          I love You with all my heart!"

          My point is this: If you want to be in the bride of
          Christ, you must be concerned with more than simply
          escaping a godless hell. Rather, you must desire not to
          be absent on that great wedding day! You must shudder
          at the very thought of not being His bride - of not
          being in His embrace, not spending eternity with Him.

          The Holy Ghost's message to the bride was: "...forget
          also thine own people, and thy father's house" (Psalm
          45:10). The still, small voice was whispering, "It's
          not enough just to leave your past behind. You must
          also forget it all - put it out of your mind - all past
          loves and distractions!"

          Jesus said, "...Whosoever he be of you that forsaketh
          not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple" (Luke
          14:33). And the messenger here is saying to the bride,
          "Are you counting the cost as you prepare to be united
          to Him? Or are you going to give Him mere lip service
          after the wedding? Have you started a commitment you're
          willing to finish? Or does your mind wander back to
          things of your past - old friends, old habits, old
          loves? If you commit to this marriage, you must not
          only leave your past behind - you must forget it
          completely!"

          Are the Holy Spirit's words a call for us to physically
          leave family, job, career? No - never! His warning
          isn't an excuse to escape the obligations of marriage
          or family. In fact, the Bible is full of commands and
          warnings about providing for our household. We are to
          cling to our mate, care for our relatives and raise our
          children in the fear of God.

          No, this isn't just a physical call. When Jesus speaks
          of some "not forsaking all," He is speaking of those
          who turn from Him and cling to idols. An idol is
          anything that becomes the sole focus of our devotion -
          anything that possesses our time, attention, money,
          love, interest.

          "And they forsook the Lord God of their fathers...and
          followed other gods..."(Judges 2:12).

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            I Want to Speak Particularly to Husbands And Wives!

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          I'll address husbands first. Many men can rightly say
          they are good providers. They work long and hard, don't
          waste their money, dress their children adequately and
          spend quality time with their family. But how much time
          do they devote to Jesus? Do they have what I call a
          "leaving-and-forgetting time" - a time when they
          mentally leave and forget everything, setting aside
          quality time for Jesus alone?

          A man can do this on the job, while driving to work,
          anytime. It's a time to set aside all thoughts of work,
          family, children and say, "This is Your time, Jesus.
          I'm Yours alone right now. No one is more important to
          me!"

          Please don't misunderstand me: The problem isn't
          business or family or career. Rather, it is "loitering"
          - idle, aimless, lounging around and wasting time.
          Multitudes of God's people spend their time endlessly
          loitering - idly spending time with friends or lolling
          in front of a TV. We loiter away so many precious hours
          - and we neglect our Lord and Savior!

          Now I want to speak to wives: You have given your
          husband and children the best years of your life. You
          are hardworking and faithful. You take good care of
          your family. Yet, I ask you: How much
          "leaving-and-forgetting time" do you give to Jesus? How
          many hours a week do you shut the world out and draw
          close to Him?

          Grandfathers, grandmothers, singles, everyone - one day
          you're going to stand before the judgment seat to
          account for your time. And God keeps accurate books! He
          knows exactly how many hours you've spent on "good"
          things - your children, your spouse, your interests.
          But He is going to place that on His scales - and then
          measure it against the few hours you gave Him! Do you
          think those scales are even going to move?

          How jealous the Lord must be over all our other loves -
          all the things that eat up our time and attention. The
          old adage is true: It's not the "bad" that is the enemy
          of the Christian, but the "good": It's family, career,
          job, children. Yet these things in themselves don't
          stand between us and the Lord. No - it's our loitering!
          We could easily take hold of our time for Jesus' sake -
          but we don't!

          Now the Lord stands before us, asking: "...lovest thou
          me more than these...?" (John 21:15).

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                           Whatever You Love Most
                 Will Get Most of Your Time and Attention!

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          God is a jealous lover! "...for the Lord, whose name is
          Jealous, is a jealous God" (Exodus 34:14).

          Indeed, it is possible for us to provoke Him to
          jealousy: "Do we provoke the Lord to jealousy?..." (1
          Corinthians 10:22). Paul is asking: "You have testified
          that you love Him. You've even taken His name. Yet, has
          someone or something else stolen your heart?"

          As a faithful shepherd, I am called by the Spirit of
          God to warn you: When the day of judgment comes, you
          may not be in the bride of Christ! And when you stand
          before the Bridegroom, He won't say, "Here is My
          beloved, who spent so much time with Me.

          You couldn't wait to wake up to meet Me, and You didn't
          go to bed without talking to Me. You have been waiting
          for Me expectantly - and now we are one. Nothing will
          part us!"

          No! Instead, Jesus will turn His face away from you. He
          will say, "You loved Me with words - but your heart was
          far from Me. You went to church and called that
          'quality time' with Me. But there was no intimacy, no
          private time. You were seldom with Me, seldom in My
          presence. I don't know you. Depart from Me!"

          "Can a maid forget her ornaments, or a bride her
          attire? yet my people have forgotten me days without
          number" (Jeremiah 2:32).

          "How shall we escape, if we neglect so great
          salvation..." (Hebrews 2:3).

          You can say you love Jesus; you can go to church every
          time the doors are open. But do you seek Him when your
          time is your own?

          How many books do you devour - how many magazines and
          newspapers, how much TV and radio - and yet you never
          give a thought to spending time with Christ? Beloved,
          time is running out! Soon you'll stand before Jesus.
          And how will you escape His judgment then, when you
          have been given every opportunity to know Him now?

          Think of whole nations begging for Bibles - old Russian
          mothers who cry for even a New Testament! Think of the
          thousands of Eastern European pastors and believers who
          now sit devouring the Word, weeping at its glorious
          truth. Then think of your own Bible (if you even know
          where it is) - and how you neglect it!

          Preachers search their Bibles for sermons.
          Sunday-school teachers study it for lessons. But why do
          we not turn to it for recreational reading, to be
          refreshed by our Lord? Why don't we open it to learn of
          Him, to love Him?

          The Bible is Jesus - God's own Word! It is the full
          revelation of His heart. Everything about Him is
          unmasked there. And I would think that if you truly
          love Him - if you expect to spend eternity as His bride
          - then you'd want to learn everything about Him that
          you can!

          Right now many Christians are being branded in their
          very souls. Perhaps you are one. Will you go to the
          judgment with these words marking you: Christ
          Neglecter? Have you rejected Him, making no time for
          prayer or His Word? If so, how will you escape?

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               Many Have Had Their Hearts Won to the Lord -
                   But Have Never Been Satisfied by Him!

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          It's not enough for Jesus to win your heart. He has to
          be the satisfaction of your heart! Yet, there are many
          believers who have never been satisfied with Jesus.
          They're always up or down according to their
          circumstances.

          That is not a suitable bride for this Bridegroom. No, a
          certain beauty must adorn His bride in order to attract
          Him: "So shall the king greatly desire thy beauty..."
          (Psalm 45:11). But what is this beauty?

          You probably have sung of the beauty of holiness:
          "...worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness" (Psalm
          29:2). This beauty is beheld in God's eyes; it is what
          Jesus sees in us that attracts Him. It's what is
          beautiful about us in His eyes!

          And the Holy Ghost is saying to the bride in gold, "If
          you will lay aside everything, forget all others and
          adorn yourself for Him alone - then He will desire your
          beauty!" This means no job, no person, no relationship
          can come between you!

          I heard a godly wife say, "The more godly my husband
          becomes, the more attractive he is to me." Indeed, that
          is what a godly marriage is all about. And, likewise,
          the more you give yourself in entire devotion to the
          Lord, the more attractive and beautiful you become to
          Him.

          "So shall the king greatly desire thy beauty..." (Psalm
          45:11). What an incredible thought: Jesus will not be
          able to stay away from you! In fact, the Hebrew meaning
          of beauty here includes the word lust (with righteous
          connotations). It signifies a strong yearning and
          desire. In other words, Jesus will draw close to you -
          overflowing with desire for you!

          I have performed many weddings in my lifetime. And
          there was never a groom who didn't smile with delight
          at his bride, thinking, "She's all mine!" Beloved, that
          is the beauty I'm talking about. Our Bridegroom
          rejoices, saying of His bride, "I'm the apple of her
          eye. She'd rather spend time with Me than with anyone
          else. And that makes her beautiful to Me!"

          I want to be beautiful in Jesus' eyes. I want to
          worship Him in the beauty of holiness. He is not merely
          "first" in my life; He is everything. And the Bible
          says He is drawn to me because of that!

          Indeed, the bride in gold has an inner beauty that
          makes her outwardly beautiful. She is "...all glorious
          within..." (verse 13) because she is devoted to her
          Bridegroom. He knows beyond any shadow of a doubt, "She
          is all Mine - devoted only to Me! She worships Me and
          is submissive to Me. I am the only One in her life, the
          sole focus of her attention. She makes time for Me, is
          overjoyed in My presence, and desires to be with Me
          continually. What beautiful devotion!"

          In Closing, I Want to Ask You an Important Question:

          If Jesus were to come tonight, would you be in the
          great marriage procession, approaching the throne? Or
          would you find yourself standing before a jealous,
          jilted Lover?

          Our Lord yearns after us, wanting our time and
          attention - and yet He sees us spending all our time on
          other people, other things. And that makes Him burn
          with jealousy! The day is coming when His jealousy will
          "smoke" against those who turn to vain idols
          (Deuteronomy 29:20). It will burst into flames of
          judgment!

          Beloved, when that day comes, will Jesus take your hand
          with delight and whisper, "At last - we're together!
          You have desired Me so. You have given Me the best of
          your life, your time, your attention. Come, now - let
          us be one!"

          Or, will He say to you: "I'm sorry - I don't know you.
          You said you loved Me, but your actions never matched
          your words. You had time for a lot of things - family,
          children, grandchildren, loved ones, career. But you
          neglected Me. We were never intimate; I never had your
          heart. And now it's too late!"

          How will you stand before Him on that day? Everything
          of this world is going to burn. But what about your
          intimacy with Him? Will you be able to stand before
          Him, because you shut out the world and cried, "Jesus,
          I want to know You!"

          The Holy Spirit is whispering to you right now: "Harken
          - listen! Forget everything else, and start anew today.
          If you have missed Him altogether, confess it to your
          heavenly Father. Repent - and devote yourself wholly to
          your Bridegroom!"

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                           Pray with me right now

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          "O blessed Lamb of God, I want to be beautiful in Your
          sight! Forgive me for neglecting Your Word, for
          rejecting Your revealed heart. Forgive me for spending
          so much time on everything else but You. And give me a
          new heart to know You. I want to grow in intimacy with
          You!"

          Give the Lord all your devotion - your time, your
          attention, your thoughts, your finances - and He will
          take care of all such things. You won't have to seek
          after them as the heathen do; instead, He will add them
          to your life liberally.

          The Lord has promised to take care of you. And if you
          turn to Him with your whole heart, He will walk in
          covenant with you and your family. So give Him your
          wholehearted attention. Act as His bride - and you will
          become beautiful in His sight! Amen!

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