John 1

So my wife finally got me to listen to The White Album. She's a huge Beatles fan, which she got from her dad. And so we were all three having dinner tonight and talking about how I'm a Beatles fan now. It's good stuff, but then any music about social rebellion, insurrection, and counterculturalism I tend to gravitate to. And in other news, my God finally got me to read the Bible (just kidding). But I do tend toward certain parts in the Bible more than others, certain verses, certain books, etc. And I recently have felt like I fall short of having eyes and ears to see and hear the divine romance with Yahweh God in his Word, who is Jesus Christ. I feel like Israel sometimes when Paul told off the leaders of the Jews in Acts 28 and how they were blind and deaf and couldn't understand. But as my wife and I and one of my close brothers in Christ have talked about, it's in him and through faith in him that we approach God with freedom and confidence (Ephesians 3:12). Paul even said at the even of Ch. 7, 1 Corinthians, that I too think that I have the Spirit (out of all people, Paul had to write that he thought he had the Spirit as well as other believers did-he had his dry times with God). We come to Jesus in two parts: 1) in his Spirit, and 2) in our faith in him. Perhaps, it is the faith we are forced to perfect during dry times that he will never leave us even if we don't feel him near to us that we must use as our faith in our Beloved that comprises the part 2) in approaching our God.

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made...The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. John 1:1-2,14 (NIV)

The Word, our Lover Jesus Christ. He is our love letter from our God. How badly deep down we desire him and true life with him. To be the couple with him having black & white photo moments all day long to put in the scrap book of eternity. To hear him laugh and smile in our arms. Worship. It's worship. Life is worship and that's what this divine romance with God is. It's falling in love with him and worshiping him and one day knowing we will have these types of moments with him all day forever, like that couple above learning the guitar. It's why marriage is the reflection of our relationship with God in eternity. It's why God says, "In that day," declares Yahweh, "you will call me my Husband; you will no longer call me my Master." Hosea 2:16

God wants to fulfill our heart's desires. Psalm 37:4 - delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you your heart's desires. That doesn't mean be happy about God, read your Bible and he will give you your spouse and family and life will be good. That's not a verse about prosperity, it's a verse about falling in love with our Heavenly Lover. When you delight in your Beloved, you have your heart's desires fulfilled. That's marriage :) And look what we have coming to us when he returns: our wedding to him (Revelation 19:7-10), and then our beautiful city to live in, the New Jerusalem, which will prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. All the imagery, all the verses and hope and vision is pointing to one thing, our marriage with our God. It's all about love, because our God is love (1 John 4:8). One day, we'll walk through the New Jerusalem on a date with our Jesus, laughing, loving, playing guitar, holding each other and wearing the coolest, most indie shades ever through the entire time (trading off as the day goes on). The tree of life is there, so is there a great river coming out of his throne that will go through the city and we'll hang out there in his arms watching the waves go by. And in him, in love, we will reign for ever and ever (22:5). Where will we reign? In his heart. It's what we really want: a love neverending with the desire of our hearts, our Beloved.

And we will live happily ever after, forever and ever, with our Beloved Jesus Christ, our Father, His beautiful Spirit, and our entire family of brothers and sisters, in paradise.