Beloved radio, friends, we greet you in the precious and the worthy name of the Lord Jesus, giving you a hearty welcome to the continued study of the precious Word of God, and that delightful subject, the hope of the church. We have noted that the hope of the church is that blessed coming event called the rapture, which will also be the first resurrection of the saints. We have also touched upon following that, There will be the judgment seat of Christ, when every believer will be appraised by the Lord Jesus himself, and given the joy of receiving, according to his appraisal and his righteous estimation, the rewards that will be ours in that coming day for his glory. But there's another joy before the church, and that is, the church is someday to be brought and presented to the Savior as his blessed, blood-bought, precious bride. May I read the words that are found in Ephesians chapter five? That great chapter of the Ephesian epistle where Paul particularly mentions the blessed aspect of Christ being the bridegroom and the church being his bride. He uses the blessed illustration of even what is precious in life the relationship of husband and wife. Let me read from chapter five of Ephesians, verse twenty-five through twenty-seven. 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 of any such thing, but that it should be holy and without blemish. Oh, my beloved, in this blessed context where the husband and wife relationship is so precious and brought before us in responsibility, that relationship is likened to Christ and the church. Let me prove it. Go down to verse thirty-two for just a moment. In the same chapter, Paul says this is a great mystery, but I speak concerning Christ and the Church. The relationship of a bridegroom to his beloved and blessed bride is given us in this Scripture between Christ and his Church. Note the words that we have read, Husbands love your wives, even as Christ also loved the Church. First of all, The church is the object of his divine and of his eternal affection. May I emphasize that? He loves the church. Yea, says the Spirit of God, he loved it. And then he proved that love. For the church is not only the object of his affection, but it is the object of his redemption. He gave himself for it. My beloved, Oh, may I present this aspect of our beloved Savior in his relationship to the church that is very little emphasized nor even appreciated as it should be. Christ, so loving the church, he gave himself for it. Paul writing to the Galatians in chapter two and verse twenty said, the life that I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me and he gave himself for me? Wonderful when any individual, when every individual that can will say, Christ loved me and he gave himself for me. But I want you to think of the enlargement of this truth that is before us in Ephesians. It's not the love for the individual believer, but it's love for them all in that constituted body which is called his bride, the church. It is the object of his divine affection. He has loved it. He will love it forever. By proving that love, he gave himself for it. My beloved, may I suggest to you Please take in this relationship the love of a bridegroom for his bloodbought, redeemed bride. I often wonder, and why should we not all wonder, how the Lord Jesus could love sinners like we, by nature and practice, so unworthy and undeserving, But he knew what his love, what his grace could do, when he sought us in his infinite compassion and bought us with his own precious blood. My beloved, may I say this? Please note it. This particular truth Christ gave himself for the church. Yes, he loves others. Yes, he has loved others. But here is the special treasure which he values in the likeness of one being a companion as a wife to him forever. Now he uses this relationship of life that we know. He magnifies them. Yes, he glorifies them and sanctifies them. But the church is not only the object of his affection. It is not only the object of his redemption. I want you to know it in verse twenty-six. It is the object of his sanctification, that he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word. For that church has not only been loved, that church is not only redeemed, that church is being ministered to by the Lord Jesus himself, by the washing of water by the word. Do you remember in chapter thirteen of the Gospel of John, the Lord Jesus, too, taking his outer garment and laying it aside and wrapped himself with a towel? And he took a basin of water and began to wash the disciples' feet? They ministered to them. So Peter objected. He overruled that objection, indicating, Peter, as well as to you and to me, unless I keep your feet clean, you'll not be able to go along with me. My beloved let us rejoice. The Lord Jesus, through the ages of the church's history, has kept ministry going, to wash the feet of his own, to minister to them, that they may be kept clean by the washing of the water, by the Word of God. Ah, my beloved, let me say, there's no better instrument than the washing of the water of the Word of God to keep a saint clean. Now may I remind you, my fellow believer, unless you keep yourself bathing your feet in the Word of God, your feet will get dirty. Every day, I'm sure, you know as well as I do, we walk through an unclean world. Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? Wrote the psalmist long ago, and then said, By taking heed thereto, according to thy word. How can you and I, my fellow believer, go through this scene without the Lord keeping our feet clean? And I'm sure that you will agree with me. It's a dirty world we have to walk through. But oh, what comfort, what blessing, what help, what cleansing. When we come to the word of God to cleanse the filth of the mind and the filth of the heart and of the feet, we may have accumulated during our walk in this scene. Ah, it's the object of his ministration. But go further, please. Let me go to verse twenty-seven. He has a future purpose for it. And this will be the theme that we shall follow. The hope of the church. Verse twenty-seven. That he might present it to himself. a glorious church, not having Spadareko or any such thing, but that it should be holy and without blemish. Oh, my beloved, will you take it in? May I take it in. This complete purpose and its final fulfillment for the church in its purpose and future, it is that he might take it to himself as a bridegroom takes to him the bride whom he claims and whom he marries. So the Lord Jesus intends to take that church and make it its own possession forever. And I want you to know what kind of a church it's going to be. A glorious church. Now may I be very frank, as well as faithful, I would not say that on the earth today the church is a glorious church. No. I am ashamed. I bow my heart. I bend my own soul in confession and repentance. That the condition of the Church upon the earth is most unlike what our Lord would desire it to be. But when he comes, when he presents it to himself, if you note the context, he will not have any spot. He will not have any wrinkle, nor any such thing. He will be holy. It will be without blemish. Now let's revert. Let us return back to our preceding subject that we've studied. One blessed event relating to the hope of the church, the judgment seat of Christ. And may I suggest to my believing friends, Thank God that judgment think he's going to get rid of the wrinkles. He's going to remove the blemishes. He's going to make sure we take nothing, and He takes nothing in that church, from that church, which has any spot or wrinkle or any such thing or any blemish. I sometimes think of the judgment seat of Christ as being that great ironing day when our Lord judges his people and destroys the wood and the hay and the stubble that they've accumulated but remaining will be the gold and the silver and the precious stones which will receive a reward my beloved wanted joy to realize when he receives that church to himself and that will be at the wedding the marriage of the lamb which we shall continue with God willing it will be a glorious church It will not have any spot. It will not have a wrinkle. Or any such thing. My, I wish it were there already. Oh, my beloved fellow believer, please. This is part of the hope of the church. In that coming day, when he presents it to himself, and we shall see more about it in the will of the Lord as we go to Revelation. But oh, may God by his spirit. cheer and courage, as well as used to cleanse our lives, my fellow believers, to be more like him, knowing what we shall be when we see him and are taken to him to be his eternal bride. Oh, my fellow friend, who may not be a Christian, why don't you get saved? I'm glad I'm a member of his church. Forget all the names on the earth. They mean nothing. His name is above every name. Do you belong to him? If not, seek him, while he may be found. Father, in the name of the Lord Jesus, bless thy word to saints and sinners. Amen.