Mankind’s Spiritual Husband: Part 1

“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 the Messiah.” 2 Corinthians 11:2

YHWH, our heavenly Father, is drawing all men unto Himself through the fellowship of His Son. YHWH knows that when we realize the magnitude of the gift He has given us in His Son as the “greatest dowry every paid” and the “largest inheritance ever received”, that “His goodness will lead to humanity’s repentance (Romans 2:4).

This series shows how one grows from a baby born again Christian into the bride of Yahushua waiting for His soon return and how that growth corresponds with the different segments of the sanctuary:

Justification: We accept Yahushua as our personal Savior as the Lamb of God in the courtyard. This is where we become “born again” into the spiritual nature by accepting Yahushua’s proposal of marriage by our baptism.

Sanctification: The holy place experience explains the growth of the spiritual newborn into the bride of the only begotten Son. It is in the holy place experience where the bride of Yahushua units her spirit with her Bridegroom’s spirit allowing Him to be “Lord” of her life. The indwelling of the spirit is what the Father calls the “earnest of the spirit” or down payment to an immortal life—to wit the redemption of our bodies.

Glorification: The most holy place experience is where the verdict of a judgment unto victory and eternal life is given to those who have united their spirit with Yahushua’s spirit. It is after this judgment that the bride can be in the physical presence of her Bridegroom and His Father fellowshipping with Them. It is also where Christian’s “in name only”, along with the wicked, receive a judgment unto eternal death.

Johnny Lingo & His 10-cow Wife

There is a short old movie that promotes the value of people called Johnny Lingo. It has been several years since I have watched it, so a few details may be fuzzy, but the story is a powerful illustration of what Yahushua does for us in loving us to be perfected in love.

There was an island prince name Johnny Lingo; it was heard that he was coming to a certain island to pick a wife. It was the custom to pay for the bride with cows. The higher the purchase price in cows, the greater the reputation of the young maiden’s family. The women would often brag about how many cows it had taken to purchase them.

All the girls of the island wanted to be chosen as Johnny’s wife. They were making themselves as pretty as possible waiting for the day he would arrive. One day a village boy came running calling out as he ran, “Johnny Lingo is coming, Johnny Lingo is coming!” The whole village started running to meet him, that is, the whole village except one. One young girl ran for the woods and climbed a tree to hide; she did not want to meet Johnny Lingo. This young girl was not naturally pretty and she had been degraded her whole life by friends as well as her father. She didn’t have any self worth.

When Johnny Lingo reached the village square, he looked through all the young maidens; the one he wanted for his wife was not there. Lo and behold, Johnny approached the father of the young girl in the tree and asked, “Where is your daughter?” The man did not know. Johnny told the father that it was HIS daughter he wanted for a wife. Everyone gasped, “Surely not!” While the young girl was being found, the men of the village went to the council chambers counseling the father all the way there. “Try for a good settlement. Ask for three cows, and hold out for two until you’re sure he’ll pay you one cow.” No one thought the young girl for which Johnny had asked for was worth anything. They encouraged the father of the girl to take what he could get, for this might be his only chance to receive a dowry for her!!

When the young girl was found and brought to the counsel chambers, the Father did not have to barter, for Johnny OFFERED 10 cows for the girl! No one could believe what they had just heard. The Father gladly accepted the price, and Johnny immediately took this young girl to his home.

At his home, he showered love and attention on his new bride. He gave her a gift of a hairbrush and comb. He respected her and gave her compliments that she had never received before. They spent time together fellowshipping with one other. Gradually the young bride began to change; she lifted her shoulders a little higher, she walked a little straighter. She was responding to the love she was receiving. But most of all, she always kept tucked in the back of her mind the price that had been paid for her. To this high calling she wanted to give her best.

Before Johnny began taking his wife with him on his travels, he gave her another present. It was a mirror to match the brush and comb. The girl stared in amazement at the reflection in the mirror. She wondered who it could be, surely it wasn’t she, but it was. The island people thought the same thing; they could not figure out who the woman was that accompanied Johnny. Surely it wasn’t the ugly girl from the village. When asked about it, Johnny responded, “Many things can change a woman. Things that happen inside, things that happen on the outside. But the thing that matters most is what she thinks about herself. My wife believed she was worth nothing. Now she knows that she is worth more than any other woman on the islands. I wanted to marry her; I loved her as no other woman, but I wanted a 10-cow wife.”

You may not have much self worth right now. You may have been trodden under foot most of your life like the young girl in the story. You may feel that you’re physical attributes are undesirable. Or you may be guilt ridden from the things you have done to others or yourself. You may feel you are beyond hope of restoration, or you might be indifferent to the gospel of YHWH and never have given it a thought. Please read on, and may you gain hope and assurance for the life to come.

The story of Johnny Lingo and his wife parallels the gospel of salvation. The gospel of salvation is an invitation to participate in the fellowship of YHWH, our Heavenly Father, and His dear Son. It is a gospel of power in that it has the power to change us into Their image.

Our Heavenly Father and His Son loved the earthlings they had created so much that they prepared a way for us to fellowship with Them always even if the earthlings should disobey YHWH and sin. We will learn in upcoming chapters that Yahushua not only has ownership of all heaven and earth, but that He also takes responsibility for what He has created. This responsibility included the greatest dowry ever paid for a marriage and also the largest inheritance ever given to a bride-to-be.

As we continue this series we will give a brief overview of the marriage parallels in the Bible, and then the topic will be discussed in greater detail.

Mankind's Spiritual Husband: The Courtyard Experience

Mankind's Spiritual Husband: The Holy Place Experience

Mankind's Spiritual Husband: A New Name

Mankind's Spiritual Husband: The Wedding Supper and Garment

Mankind's Spiritual Husband: The Marriage/Most Holy Place Experience and Honeymoon