The love God has for the church is expressed through Jesus Christ. We will better understand this love which is wider and deeper than the ocean, to a certain level. Paul the apostle through the Holy Spirit gives us a picture of how we should view this love and this is given in the relationship between husband and wife. Someone who has gotten the experience will be able to understand better. Notwithstanding, in the light of the scriptures we will see the depths of this love.

For the husband is the head of the wife even as Christ is the head of the church, his body, and is himself its Savior.²⁴ Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit in everything to their husbands. ²⁵ Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, ²⁶ that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word,²⁷ so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish. ²⁸ In the same way husbands should love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself.

Ephesians 5:23-28

Christ is the head of the church

Every bride has a head. The relationship we have with the head is more like the one between husband and wife. And we are connected with Christ by the spirit which He gave us. Which made us to be called His own. We should see ourselves in the light of how he sees us. We are His bride and this grants us deeper access to Him than those in the world. He is the head that is He makes decision for His bride. We can trust His judgment because of whom we know Him to be. He is all for the church.

The church is to submit

The only mentioned requirement from the church is to submit to the head which is Christ. Here in is our rest if only we yield to this basic truth. Although we might have our own reasoning, God wants us to be subject to Christ. The only way the bride can successfully exercise His headship is in the submission of the church to His leadings.

See His love

Jesus did not give Himself to us without a reason. He really did it for reasons that will benefit us and in return bring glory to God

• To present the church in splendor

Logically, every husband wants his wife to appear in a magnificent appearance. In the same vein, Jesus offered Himself so that we can live a glory filled life. God did not want His children to appear lesser than the reason why Jesus gave Himself up. Daily we must endeavor to walk in this splendor as it is His will for us.

• To present the church in Holiness

This is the utmost the desire of our father that we be holy yet walking in splendor. This splendor include both physical and spiritual. Let no one despise the physical, this is what people see. What they see is what they judge us by, hence, the need to live a balanced life. Glorious in the spirit and in the body.

No man

 For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ does the church, ³⁰ because we are members of his body.³¹ “Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.” ³² This mystery is profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church

Ephesians 5:29-32

Yes no man! Also the man Christ Jesus does not. Do we still wonder why Christ said “I will build my rock upon this rock and the gate of hell shall not prevail against it” this is the extent of His love. He nourishes and cherishes us just as a man does his wife. Understanding this gives us a better view of ourselves and how valuable we are to Him that not even for once does it pleases Him to see us grieved.

Many lose sight of this kind of Christ-Church relationship which has made them comfortable living at the mercy of the occurrences of life. We must always remember we are member of His body and as long as His love which can never fails is existing we are secured and we will be nourished. We can always approach Him in prayer with the understanding of a submissive wife and a loving husband.

whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas or the world or life or death or the present or the future—all are yours, ²³ and you are Christ’s, and Christ is God’s.

1Corinthians 3:22-23