Page 195 - Radical Love by Linda Robinson

RADICAL LOVE

can be so glorious a destiny awaiting us; conscious of our corruptions

and shortcomings, we cannot understand how the pure eyes of Jesus
can see anything in us attractive. Hence, He takes special pains to

enlarge on this point, and assure us how greatly He delights in
beholding our ripening graces.”

We can rest assured that the Saviour’s love for us is the deepest and the

best.

Moving on, I also noticed something else of interest in the way He now

begins to address her. In verses 9 and 10 of the Passion Translation,
the writer uses the phrase “my equal”—for which we need no in-depth

explanation—alongside the word “bride.” In the NIV translation, we

see that the Bridegroom calls her both his “sister” and his “bride.”

The use of language is not always adequate to fully describe the

meaning of heavenly and spiritual truths. For example, the relationship
between Jesus and a believer can be compared to that of a husband and

wife, as it is the most intimate relationship we have, serving as our grid

of reference. However, it is not sufficient to use just one analogy
because the relationship can also quite rightly be compared to that of a

brother and sister, because of its complete purity. The bond between
Jesus and His Bride is a combination that resembles the deep love and

unity of a marriage, as well as the innocence and purity of sibling love.

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