Cornerstone Curriculum, Official Certification Edition

370 / CORNERSTONE CURRICULUM STUDENT WORKBOOK

Eph. 5.25-27 – Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, [26] that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, [27] so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish. According to this text, the love that a man has for his wife should be patterned upon the love that Jesus has for his people. Furthermore, the heart and goal of all apostolic ministry should be the preparation of the people of God for the ceremony and union ahead: “I feel a divine jealousy for you, for I betrothed you to one husband, to present you as a pure virgin to Christ” (2 Cor. 11.2). Christ is building his Church, his sacred company of disciples from all eras, places, and times, those whom he personally purchased for himself, and those who will serve him, with not even the gates of Hades being able to overcome their onslaught (Matt. 16.15-19). Any of us who have gone to a wedding know the difference between the bride as she ordinarily appears over against how she is adorned for the wedding day! In the same way, God is preparing for his Son a bride, a people, a divine assembly who will forever be at his side and who will reign with him in the coming Kingdom. This makes it simple and easy to understand the role of mission: the task of mission is to gather the remaining souls unto Christ, to fill up that number that has been given to him by his Father (John 6.44). Simply stated, there can be no salvation apart from the people of God in the body of Christ. If there is no Church, there can be no Christianity, no salvation, no hope for this world. An urbanized version of a saying by the great Latin father, Cyprian, makes this even more plain: “If the Church ain’t yo’ mama, then God ain’t yo’ daddy!” Yes, and amen! As believers we have been apportioned to the great mystery, the prospect of sharing eternity and the Kingdom with our bridegroom, who also is our Savior and Lord, the Lord Jesus Christ. The means by which we come to acknowledge our connection to him is not apart from the Church, but rather, as a part of her, as a member of the Church of God in Jesus. Unfortunately, some people never come to church except for their baptism, their marriage, and their funeral, or, as some might say, when they’re hatched, matched, and dispatched! In my mind, no informed and biblical Christian can claim intimacy with God and deny and ignore the Church; such a one is confused at best, and perhaps not a Christian, at worst. To be a Christian is to be a member of the bride of Christ, and be a part of the divine romance. In a real sense, the “two becoming one” will occur at the consummation of all things at the Second Coming, but the

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