Be Ye Doers. . . Of The Word!

Have you ever considered the beautiful images of Christ we find in the New Testament. Not drawings, paintings or pictures of Christ, but descriptions such as "shepherd," "bridegroom," or "cornerstone." The writers of the New Testament, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, painted many beautiful word pictures of Christ. These images personify who Jesus Christ is. They are truly beautiful, wonderful images that we can hold in our minds and hearts of our Lord and Savior.

Each of us have our own special way of praising our Heavenly Father and His Son in our prayer time. One of my favorites is to praise Him through reciting some of the many names we find in the Scriptures for Jesus. Some of these names are: The Lion of the Tribe of Judah, The Lily of the Valley, The Bright and Morning Star, King of Kings and Lord of Lords.

Let's take a closer look at some of the images of Christ we find in the Bible.

Christ as The Shepherd

"I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep." (John 10:11) Jesus described Himself as the good shepherd, one who willingly gives his life for the sheep. Jesus describes Israel as sheep without a shepherd. That is the reason He came to earth to die on the cross. Man had become like sheep without a shepherd, not knowing which way to go. Israel had lost its spiritual direction.

This is a picture of One who is kind and gentle and always providing the right care for His sheep. We are very much like sheep in a spiritualince. Often we go astray of what the Word of God says. But Jesus is there to help us and to be a mediator between us and our Heavenly Father. "For you were like sheep going astray, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls." (1 Peter 2:25) Isn't it comforting to know that Jesus is always there to comfort us and oversee our souls.

Jesus is not The Shepherd just for the Jewish people, but for all people who follow Him and do His will. "And other sheep I have which are not of this fold; them also I must bring, and they will hear My voice; and there will be one flock and one shepherd." (John 10:16) The "one flock" that Jesus speaks of here is the Church. There is one Church, and that church was established by Jesus.

Christ as The Vine

"I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit. You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you. Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me. I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing." (John 15:1-5) I don't know about you, but I can attest to the truth of this statement. Every time I start trying to do things myself I get them all messed up. It is only through Jesus that I can accomplish what I want to accomplish — His will.

Notice what Jesus says about God pruning the branches, "Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit." I am not sure exactly what Jesus means here by "pruning." He could be referring to the trials in life that we have. We read in other Scripture that these trials help us to grow as Christians. Or He could be talking about, as we mature as a Christian, we loose the desires of this world and have greater desire to please God. In either case the result is the same. We, as God's children, bear more fruit. However, don't forget the first part of this statement, "Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away." As a Christian who wishes to please God, we don't have a choice! We either bear fruit, or we simply are NOT a Christian!

Christ as The Cornerstone

"Therefore it is also contained in the Scripture, ‘Behold, I lay in Zion A chief cornerstone, elect, precious, And he who believes on Him will by no means be put to shame.' Therefore, to you who believe, He is precious; but to those who are disobedient, ‘The stone which the builders rejected Has become the chief cornerstone.'" (1 Peter 2:6-7) Have you ever noticed the cornerstone on some of the magnificent buildings in large cities. These "cornerstones" are usually quite decorative, perhaps with the date that the building was erected. This is NOT the picture that the Bible is painting of Christ. At the time that the Old and New Testaments were written, the cornerstone had a much different purpose. It was not for decoration nor was it to "date" the building. The cornerstone was the first stone that was put in place. If the building was to be straight and true and able to stand the strains of time, the cornerstone had to be put in position with much care. It is the cornerstone upon which all the other building stones were placed. If the cornerstone was not straight and true, the building would not be either. Jesus is our Cornerstone. He is the One who is straight and true. If we, as building stones, follow His pattern as we are put in place to become His church, then His church will be straight and true.

Christ as The Bridegroom

The picture of Christ as our (the Church's) Bridegroom is one which shows the beautifully intimate relationship that we shall have with Him. As a member of His Church, we know that He loves us with the same wonderful devotion that a husband-to-be has for his beautiful bride. Paul talks about this relationship in his letter to the church at Ephesus, "Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her, that He might sanctify and cleanse her with the washing of water by the word, that He might present her to Himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she should be holy and without blemish." (Ephesians 5:25-27) I've attended a few weddings during my life. I have never seen a bride that was not beautiful, glowing with a radiant love as she walked down that isle. That is the same picture we have of Christ and His Church. A church that is beautiful and has a radiant glow of love as we walk down that isle of time approaching eternity.

Have you ever really noticed a elder saint as they approach the twilight of their life. It seems as if they know that they will be seeing Jesus in just a short time. There seems to be a glow about them as they approach their entry into the heavenly realm. What a wonderful feeling that must be, to know that you have fought the good fight, that you have finished the race, that you will be seeing Jesus in just a few short days.

"And at midnight a cry was heard: ‘Behold, the bridegroom is coming; go out to meet him!'" (Matthew 25:6) Are we ready to go out and meet the Bridegroom? Jesus tells us to keep oil in our lamps so we can be prepared to meet Him when He comes. Rest assured, the Church will be ready!

These are but a few of the beautiful images of Christ we find in the Bible. There are many others. The Lamb that was slain, Mighty Warrior, Last Adam, Head of a many- membered body (the Church), High Priest, Prophet, King, Savior and Lord. All these are beautiful. All bring joy to our heart. But to me, the one that is most precious, is where Christ is called, "Rose of Sharon, and the Lily of the valleys. THE BELOVED." (Song of Songs 2:1) He is truly, the fairest of ten thousand to my soul.

All Scriptures quoted are from the New King James Version unless otherwise noted.

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