Now we come to a very crucial matter, the matter of the readiness of the Bride. Verse 7 says, “Let us rejoice and exult, and let us give the glory to Him, for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and His wife has made herself ready.” “His wife” refers to the church (Eph. 5:24-25, 31-32), the Bride of Christ (John 3:29). However, according to verses 8 and 9, the wife, the Bride of Christ, here consists only of the overcoming believers during the millennium; whereas the Bride, the wife, in 21:2 is composed of all the saved saints after the millennium for eternity. The readiness of the Bride depends upon the maturity in life of the overcomers. Furthermore, the overcomers are not separate individuals, but a corporate Bride. For this aspect, building is needed. They are not only mature in life, but are also builded together as one Bride.
Verse 8 says, “And it was given to her that she should be clothed in fine linen, bright and pure; for the fine linen is the righteousnesses of the saints.” The word pure (or clean) refers to the nature; whereas bright refers to the expression. The Greek word translated righteousnesses may also be rendered righteous acts. The righteousnesses do not refer to the righteousness (which is Christ) we receive for our salvation (1 Cor. 1:30). The righteousness we receive for our salvation is objective, that we may meet the requirement of the righteous God; whereas the righteousnesses of the overcoming saints here are subjective (Phil. 3:9), that they may meet the requirement of the overcoming Christ. Hence, the fine linen indicates our overcoming life, our overcoming living. It is the very Christ whom we live out of our being.
According to the revelation of the whole Bible, we, the saved ones, need two garments—one for our salvation and one for our reward. For our salvation we need a robe to cover us. This robe is the robe put on the prodigal son in Luke 15. Upon his return, the prodigal son said to his father, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you; I am no longer worthy to be called your son” (Luke 15:21). He thought himself unworthy to be in the presence of the father. But the father said to his servants, “Quickly bring out the best robe and put it on him” (Luke 15:22). This robe is Christ as our righteousness. It is for us to be justified by God in His presence. We all have this robe, the first robe, which is Christ as our righteousness, our justification, that enables us to stand before the righteous God.
However, we also need the second garment, which is the wedding garment in Matthew 22:11 and 12. This garment is not for our salvation; rather, it is for our reward, qualifying us to attend the wedding feast of the Son of God. The first garment qualifies us to meet God for our salvation. The second garment qualifies us to meet Christ for our reward. The second garment is the work of the Holy Spirit within us. It is actually the very Christ by whom we live and whom we live out. It is the Christ expressed through us in our daily living. This is the righteousnesses of the saints in verse 8.
The second garment is also the righteousness spoken of in Matthew 5:20. In this verse the Lord Jesus said, “For I say to you, that unless your righteousness surpass that of the scribes and Pharisees, you shall by no means enter into the kingdom of the heavens.” This is a weighty word, and few Christians understand it. This verse clearly indicates that we must have a righteousness that surpasses the righteousness of the Pharisees. This righteousness is not the objective Christ we receive as our robe for our justification. Rather, it is the subjective Christ whom we live out as our daily living. It is not the justifying robe; it is the garment that qualifies us to receive the reward.
The wedding garment in Matthew 22:11 and 12 illustrates this. In this parable the Lord speaks of a man who comes into the wedding feast without a wedding garment. When the king sees him, the king says, “Friend, how did you come in here not having a marriage garment?” The guest is speechless. Then the king says to his servants, “Bind his feet and hands, and cast him out into the outer darkness; there shall be the weeping and the gnashing of teeth” (Matt. 22:13). The wedding garment is not the justifying garment; it is a very special garment. According to the custom of the ancient Jews, no one could attend a wedding feast without a special wedding garment. If we would be in the wedding feast of the Lamb, we must be clothed with such a garment. If you would be qualified to attend the wedding feast of Christ, you need to live by Christ and to live Him out in your daily living. This Christ, the subjective Christ, will be the wedding garment to qualify you to be admitted into the wedding feast. Therefore, we need both the justifying garment and the wedding garment.
The second garment is referred to in Revelation 3:4, 5, and 18. In 3:4 and 5 the Lord told the church in Sardis that those who have not defiled their garments will walk with Him in white and that the overcomers will be “clothed in white garments.” This is the garment for the wedding feast. In 3:18 the Lord advised the church in Laodicea to buy from Him “white garments.” Thus, in the book of Revelation the matter of the second garment is stressed. If we do not have it, we shall miss the wedding feast.
© Living Stream Ministry All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited.