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The Chruch for today, the Body of Christ, is not the "Bride of Christ."

Taken from: http://www.starlightresearch.com/Problem7.html

PROBLEM No. 7--THAT THE CHURCH, THE BODY OF CHRIST, IS ALSO THE BRIDE OF CHRIST

This is a favorite theme of Acts 2 Dispensationalists. The Scripture passages they use to support this theory are John 3:29, Rev. 19:7-9, 2 Cor. 11:2, Eph. 5:31-32, and Romans 7:4.

THE TRUTH

The Apostle Paul said nothing about the Body of Christ being the Bride of Christ. This 'doctrine' has come about because of mixing the truth given to John and Paul, whose apostleships were different in calling and ministry.

The words 'bride' and 'bridegroom' are strictly a part of Kingdom language; that is, they pertain to the Nation of Israel. Neither word is found in Paul's letters, not even in Hebrew s. This fact, then, tells us that this subject is a part of Judaism instead of being a part of Christianity. This is a good example of the inconsistency of the Acts 2 position.

Let us briefly look at the teaching of the above verses:

1. John 3:29: "He that hath the bride is the bridegroom; but the friend of the bridegroom, which standeth and heareth him, rejoices greatly because of the bridegroom's voice; this my joy therefore is fulfilled."

This verse was spoken by John the Baptist and written down by the Apostle John. There are three individuals mentioned - bride, bridegroom, and friend of the bridegroom. John the Baptist is the friend of the bridegroom; Jesus is the bridegroom (which is also the teaching of Matthew 25:1-13); and the bride constitutes those who believe in Him as the Messiah of Israel (John 3:28).

There is nothing here concerning the Body of Christ.

2. Rev. 19:7-9: "Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to Him, for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and His wife has made herself ready. [8] And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white; for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints. [9] And He said unto me, Write, Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb. And he said to me, These are the true sayings of God."

This passage will be fulfilled at the Second Coming of Christ. One of the events the Lord is involved in then will be the marriage of the Lamb. It is not a 'bride' but 'His wife has made herself ready.' The use of the word 'wife' looks back to the Old Testament, particularly to Ezekiel 16:8, where Israel became Jehovah's wife (first marriage); to Jer. 3:8 where we read of a bill of divorce from the first marriage; and to Hosea 2:19 which speaks of the remarriage of Israel to the Lord which Revelation 19:7-9 describes (please read Hosea 2:7,16 which relate to this subject). Israel will become a 'bride' and a 'wife' at the Second Coming of its Bridegroom.

There seems to be another 'bride' involved with Israel, and that is the New Jerusalem mentioned in Revelation 21:9-10.

So then, during the Millennium the saved Nation of Israel will be the wife of the Lamb, and during the Dispensation of the Fullness of Times, the New Jerusalem will also be called 'the bride,' the Lamb's wife. The terminology used indicates a very close connection between Israel and the New Jerusalem in an earthly setting.

3. 2 Cor. 11:2, "For I am jealous over you with godly jealousy, for I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ."

All the translations favor the idea of the Body of Christ being the Bride of Christ. But the Greek does not support this. There is an alternative translation that teaches otherwise, and is in harmony with Pauline theology.

The Greek word for 'husband' also means 'man;' 'espoused' also means 'joined,' and the word 'virgin' is masculine, not feminine. A better translation reads like this: "For I am burning with zeal (over) you with a zeal of God, for I myself have joined you to one Man, to present a pure virgin to Christ" (from The Unveiling of Christianity by the author).

When unsaved people were saved under Paul's ministry, they became joined to Christ as being a part of the Body of Christ. The Body of Christ is called a gone new man' in Eph. 2:15. The masculine 'virgin' fits in well here. There is no teaching of the Body being a 'bride' in this verse, unless you can find it in a masculine bride instead of a feminine bride. In addition, Jesus is not presented as a 'husband' here, but as a MAN.

4. Eph. 5:31-32 , "For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and shall be joined unto his wife, and they two shall be one flesh. (321 This is a great mystery, but I speak concerning Christ and the church."

This is a favorite passage with the Acts 2 brethren. It seems to be suited for this doctrine, but we must carefully notice the language used in this passage. This passage and 2 Cor. 11:2 go together.

The emphasis is on the word 'joined' in verse 31: '...and shall be JOINED unto his wife...' The Greek word used here does not mean 'married' but 'joined' (Acts 5:36) or 'to cleave' (Matt. 19:5; Mark 10:7). You can 'cleave to' a person without being 'married' to him or her. Disciples can 'cleave to' their leader and follow what he teaches, but they are not married to him. The Holy Spirit could have had Paul use 'marriage' in verse 31 instead of 'joined' if that was supposed to have been the intended meaning.

If you go back to Adam and Eve, the emphasis is the same. In Gen. 2:24 the word 'marriage' is not used, but 'cleave,' the same as in Eph. 5:31. There is no marriage ceremony in Genesis 2:22-24. If one does not pay close attention to the vocabulary used by a writer of Scripture, anything can be taught from the Bible.

5. Rom. 7:4, "Wherefore, my brethren, you also are become dead to the law by the body of Christ; that you should be married to another, even to Him who is raised from the dead, that we should bring forth fruit unto God."

This verse seems to teach that believers should be 'married to another even to Him who is raised from the dead.' The NKJV still retains the word 'married.'

The reason why 'married' is carried over into verse 4 is because of what is taught in verses 2 and 3, that the married woman is bound to her husband as long as he lives. The language of verses 2 and 3 is correct, even though translators can do a better job of translating verses 2 and 3, so that the truth can be more easily seen.

A Greek word for 'married' [HUPANDROS; Thayer's Greek-English Lex., p. 638] is used in verse 2 and translated 'which has a husband.' It can be translated 'For the married woman...' In verses 3 and 4 the English word 'married' is used three times, and it is the translation of the Greek verb GINOMAI, which means 'to become, to arise, appear, to be made ' done, finished.' It doesn't mean 'to marry' or even 'to join.' The meaning of 'become,' which should be used in verse 4, emphasizes the fact of 'becoming' one with our Saviour, the RISEN Christ Jesus. This is the only way that we can produce fruit (good works) for our Father God. There is no 'marriage' in this verse.

Since we have already been made a part of the Body of Christ at the time of salvation by the baptism of the Holy Spirit (1 Cor. 12:13), there is absolutely no need to be joined or married to Him again.

By Robert C. Brock

God Bless.
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