The Bridegroom's Joy

There are multitudes of scripture verses that speak of the joy and  rejoicing the Lord's people have in the Lord and truly there is exceedingly much to rejoice in for all the greatness, love, mercy,  grace, and salvation of the Lord. What truly is amazing to me is that the Lord rejoices in his people! Yet the following scriptures teach us of the "bridegroom's joy:"

1. Ps. 19:5, "Which is as a bridegroom coming out of his chamber, and rejoiceth as a strong man to run a race.

2. Is. 62:5, "For as a young man marrieth a virgin, so shall thy sons marry thee: and as the bridegroom rejoiceth over the bride, so shall thy God rejoice over thee."

3. Is. 65:18, 19, "But be ye glad and rejoice for ever in that which I create: for, behold, I create Jerusalem a rejoicing, and her people a joy. And I will rejoice in Jerusalem, and joy in my people."

4. Jer. 32:41, "Yea, I will rejoice over them to do them good, and I will plant them in this land assuredly with my whole heart and with my whole soul."

5. Zeph. 3:17, "The Lord thy God in the midst of thee is mighty; he will save, he will rejoice over thee with joy; he will rest in his love, he will joy over thee with singing."

6. Heb. 12:2, "Looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God."

When I consider myself as one of the Lord's elect people that make up his bride, I find nothing in myself (as the songwriter wrote) that could give the Creator delight. For I know myself to be a sinner and full of iniquity and that all of my righteousnesses are as filthy rages in the eyes of a just and holy God. As the scriptures say, "There is none  righteous; there is none that understandeth; there is none that seeketh after God; there is none that doeth good."

Also the scriptures teach us that all the works of the flesh are wickedness and sinful before God. Truly God's love toward us is amazing  as we read in Rom. 5:6 8, "For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. For scarcely for a righteous man will one die; yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die. But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." God loved us when we were yet sinners. However, the joy which God has for his bride is not because those who make up his bride are sinners for God hates sin. Rather the joy that our Husband has for His bride is because of what she became based on what he did for her and what he made her. Heb. 12:2 speaks of how Jesus, our Husband, endured the cross, even though he despised the shame, and that was because of the joy that was set before him.

The joy Jesus has in his bride was that she was redeemed from her sins and made righteous by his atoning blood shed on the cross: "For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him." Eph. 5:25 27 speaks of Christ's love for his bride, the church, what he did for her, and what she became as a result of what he did for her: "Husbands love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it; that he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, that he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish."

In nature when the bridegroom comes out of his chamber to marry the bride, he does so with joy looking to the beauty of the one who he has chosen to be his bride and with anticipation of the joy he will have with her. Thus Jesus has made his bride beautiful thru his atoning sacrifice and as the Bridegroom who came out of the chamber of heaven to claim his bride he rejoiced in her glorious beauty of his imputed righteousness.