VIGILANCE

 

Nourishing bridal love means being vigilant,

always on the alert for Jesus, our heavenly

Bridegroom. Blessed were the five virgins

who were watchful even while asleep. They

were ready to meet the bridegroom and

take part in the wedding. But how does the

bride of Jesus watch while sleeping, so that

she not only awakens when her Bridegroom

comes at midnight but is also ready for Him

at that late hour?

 

Only love will keep her vigilant---the love that

God, who first loved us, has poured into our

hearts through the Holy Spirit. Being born of

God, this love has within it the seed of divine

life.  It is immortal and indestructible and never

sleeps. And so the heart of the bride is awake

even when she sleeps (Song of Songs 5:2).

 

Love is awake within the heart of the bride of

Jesus, no matter what darkness may surround

her, no matter how great the danger of being

overcome with sleep. This love is like a

sensitive instrument. A single string plucked

by the One she loves sounds in her heart,

and immediately the bride is awake. Rising

quickly, she rushes to meet Him. She would

never miss those times when her Bridegroom

draws near; for her, such encounters are a

foretaste of heaven. So she will not sleep

through the hour when the Bridegroom comes

in glory to take His bride to Himself and to

celebrate with her the marriage supper of

the Lamb.

 

If you want to be a bride of the Lamb ready to

go out to meet the Bridegroom when He comes,

then take care that this love is alive in you.

Do not let it fade, but rather let it keep you

spiritually alive and alert. Without this love,

you will not be ready when He comes at

midnight. Only if divine love burns in your

heart can you awaken in a state of readiness,

shaking off the paralyzing sleep that will

overcome all of humanity, believers and non-

believers alike.

 

The midnight hour is near. The signs Jesus

spoke about in Matthew 24 are being fulfilled.

Love is growing cold in many. God's command-

ments are widely rejected. The onward march

of lawlessness is causing devastation and

despair. Blasphemy is on the rise, indicating a

burning hatred of Jesus Christ. In many parts

of the world Christians are suffering for their

faith. God's chose people are returning to the

land of their fathers. The Gospel is being

preached throughout the world. The Bride-

groom is preparing to meet His own. But

for whom will He open the door to the banquet-

ing hall, where the marriage supper of the

Lamb is to be celebrated on the glorious day

of union between the heavenly Bridegroom

and His bride, when heaven resounds with

the sound of singing and rejoicing? Those for

whom love for Jesus is a way of life will see

that door open.

 

 

To be continued

(excerpt from My All - Ch. 27)