John Thiel mp3 – The Divine Prince and His Bride Conference – 2006
The Revelation of Jesus and His Bride
The Search for Truth
Welcome to this another special sacred convocation that we have all been looking forward to. We are richly blessed that in this time of earths history with so much confusion in the realms of Christianity that there is an assurance of pure truth. There is an assurance that the Lord Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit and the Father are going to satisfying the craving heart. We are living in a time which is very close now in which men will run to and fro to hear the Word of the Lord and no longer be able to hear it. They will be hearing preaching and teaching but not the Word of the Lord. Already as we see around us, the people who are looking for truth are becoming distressed because they are running from one to the next to the next and there is not true satisfaction and we are already seeing it around us. To come to something that is really deep and satisfying is a real blessing. May the Lord really do that for us that He will feed us with pure truth, with truth that is invigorating, that is life-giving. During this conference, we are going to not only listen, we are also going to participate.
The Prince and His Bride in Prophecy
The divine prince and His bride right through the ages and understand what we are really trying to learn at this conference. This is the overview. After this we go will into more details in the study of the prophecies. But not just the prophecies on their own, we are seeking to discern the picture right through the ages until we come to our point in time to be able to identify the bride that is ready for her prince.
Michael Your Prince
Where do we get the very term the divine prince from? The prince and His bride.
“But I will shew thee that which is noted in the scripture of truth: and there is none that holdeth with me in these things, but Michael your prince.” Daniel 10:21
Here is an explanation that the angel came to explain to Daniel in reference to the prophecy that was given him. It was a prophecy that’s most poorly understood by the Christendom today, the prophecy of Daniel chapter 11. It is a prophecy that is profound when you study it.
The Messiah the Prince
“Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks.” Daniel 9:25
Your Prince. Doesn’t it develop in the mind of a person that it is somebody whom they adore, somebody who they love to be subject to because they really love him? Believe it or not, the fairy tale stories carry the very thought of the prince and his beloved, which is pictured here in this scripture. When I did a little research, some of the fairy tale stories were actually developed to save. With all the fairies which were identified as fairies but they were actually angels, that was the idea behind some of these stories when they were told from way back there. But this story here in the Bible is beyond all that. It’s beyond all magical imagination.
The Greatest Love Story Ever Told
If you notice here that the Bible is, as it says here in that scripture, the greatest love story that has ever been told. It’s picked up in Ezekiel chapter 16.
God’s Love for His People
“6 And when I passed by thee, and saw thee polluted in thine own blood, I said unto thee when thou wast in thy blood, Live; yea, I said unto thee when thou wast in thy blood, Live. 7 I have caused thee to multiply as the bud of the field, and thou hast increased and waxen great, and thou art come to excellent ornaments: thy breasts are fashioned, and thine hair is grown, whereas thou wast naked and bare. 8 Now when I passed by thee, and looked upon thee, behold, thy time was the time of love; and I spread my skirt over thee, and covered thy nakedness: yea, I sware unto thee, and entered into a covenant with thee, saith the Lord GOD, and thou becamest mine. 9 Then washed I thee with water; yea, I throughly washed away thy blood from thee, and I anointed thee with oil. 10 I clothed thee also with broidered work, and shod thee with badgers’ skin, and I girded thee about with fine linen, and I covered thee with silk. 11 I decked thee also with ornaments, and I put bracelets upon thy hands, and a chain on thy neck. 12 And I put a jewel on thy forehead, and earrings in thine ears, and a beautiful crown upon thine head. 13 Thus wast thou decked with gold and silver; and thy raiment was of fine linen, and silk, and broidered work; thou didst eat fine flour, and honey, and oil: and thou wast exceeding beautiful, and thou didst prosper into a kingdom. 14 And thy renown went forth among the heathen for thy beauty: for it was perfect through my comeliness, which I had put upon thee, saith the Lord GOD. 15 But thou didst trust in hine own beauty, and played the harlot because of thy reknown, and pouredst out thy fornications on every one that passed by; his it was. Ezekiel 16:6-14
Are you picking up the love story? Here it is. The prince and his beautiful bride that He has been trying to bring about into a state of such purity and such beauty that finally He could have her.
The Love Story of Two Lovers
“I am the rose of Sharon, and the lily of the valleys. As the lily among thorns, so is my love among the daughters. As the apple tree among the trees of the wood, so is my beloved among the sons. I sat down under his shadow with great delight, and his fruit was sweet to my taste. He brought me to the banqueting house, and his banner over me was love.” Song of Solomon 2:1-4
Christ the Prince of Peace
“Christ taught that his church is a spiritual kingdom. He himself the Prince of Peace is the head of his church. And follow this beautifully. In his person, humanity inhabited by divinity was represented to the world. The great sacrifice had been made for the whole race of men, that provision might be made for the whole race of men. With a heart ever touched with the feelings of our infirmities, an ear open to the cry of suffering humanity, a hand ever ready to save the discouraged and despairing.”
Jesus, our Saviour, went about doing good. His words inspired hope. His precepts showed what kind of yearning He had for His bride, that he would do such enormous things to make her a beautiful bride. He did only good and He brought only encouragement to someone who was polluted in her blood, someone who was rejected. That’s what we’re here to do.
Zion: God’s People
God’s care and love for his people. How He regarded them, as we’ve just seen. Let’s appreciate further enlargements of this love story.
“But I am the LORD thy God, that divided the sea, whose waves roared: The LORD of hosts is his name. And I have put my words in thy mouth, and I have covered thee in the shadow of mine hand, that I may plant the heavens, and lay the foundations of the earth, and say unto Zion, Thou art my people.” Isaiah 51:15-16
Notice Zion, thou art my people.
“I have likened the daughter of Zion to a comely and delicate woman.” Jeremiah 6:2
The Comely and Delicate Woman
A comely and delicate woman. Zion, my people. He, who is the prince, has a people that He regards like a comely and delicate woman. Can you see, this is what a text we often use, to describe the prophetic pictures. A woman, the woman at the end, the woman at the beginning of Revelation. A woman that He loves. Can you see how easy it is to miss just by trying to prove prophecy? You miss this love story. But here is the touch of it.
“What thing shall I take to witness for thee? what thing shall I liken to thee, O daughter of Jerusalem? what shall I equal to thee, that I may comfort thee, O virgin daughter of Zion? for thy breach is great like the sea: who can heal thee?” Lamentations 2:13
Virgin daughter of Zion. This amazing story of God, of Jesus, the prince, with His comely and delicate woman, caring for her in this love story, there is a sad film that plays past our understanding as we go through the history and the prophecies that are displayed.
The Sad Story of Betrayal
When the Bride Became a Harlot
“But thou didst trust in thine own beauty, and playedst the harlot because of thy renown, and pouredst out thy fornications on every one that passed by; his it was.” Ezekiel 16:15
What is that? He’s just been talking about this beautiful relationship and what does this beautiful lady that He wanted to have as His own do? She plays the harlot. This is the sad love tone that comes in. Notice his plaintive cry. This beautiful people, this beautiful love relationship went sour.
“How is the faithful city become an harlot! it was full of judgment; righteousness lodged in it; but now murderers.” Isaiah 1:21
This beautiful city, kingdom, church that He had developed and brought to the point where He was ready to receive her, she became a harlot, self-centred. She became occupied with her own beauty and she became a harlot.
The Rejection of the Prince
That is the sad film story that runs through the scripture as well. History plays that sad picture through the prophecies. We come right through this beautiful city that God had beautiful plans for and in her harlotry, He kept on trying to bring her back to Himself again and again until finally, He brought his own Son, Jesus Christ, into their very city. How did this comely and delicate woman treat Him, her prince?
“The Lord wrought wondrously for the children of Israel. He finally sent to them his own son, the Prince of life, the Messiah, to whom all their sacrifices pointed. But they rejected him. The Lord turned to the Gentile world. Those who ought to have known God and Jesus Christ whom he had sent, who ought to have united with the sent in giving the message to the heathen world, would not themselves receive the invitation, and could not therefore say to others, come for all things are now ready. The disciples of Christ were commissioned to proclaim the message of God.” Review and Herald, April 2, 1895
Notice how He had made this wedding and had invited the people because it was about to take place and of course the people that were to be His people for the wedding were not there.
The Wedding That Was Rejected
“And Jesus answered and spake unto them again by parables, and said, The kingdom of heaven is like unto a certain king, which made a marriage for his son.” Matthew 22:1-2
Indeed, there would have been. If you read Sister White’s writings and the Bible, He would have stayed on earth and the city of Jerusalem would have become the metropolis of this world. The Jews could have been the ruling people on this planet with Jesus as their prince. But the wedding was rejected by these people. There was a marriage pending. It didn’t happen.
Fairy Tales
Filmmakers make stories that are very entertaining to the world, but here there is a story that is beyond all entertainment. It is really powerful. God has done everything for His bride and His bride spat Him in the face. His bride crucified the prince and so what does God do? I’m not going to stop the wedding. I’m going to continue to care for my bride. There were people, a remnant who continued. Although the greater part rejected, there were some servants of His that continued and they were:
The Very Small Remnant
“And the daughter of Zion is left as a cottage in a vineyard, as a lodge in a garden of cucumbers, as a besieged city. Except the LORD of hosts had left unto us a very small remnant, we should have been as Sodom, and we should have been like unto Gomorrah.” Isaiah 1:8-9I
Isn’t that what Jesus said about Capernaum? Sodom and Gomorrah are going to fare much better than you. But there was a little remnant, a very small remnant that continued. How many? Twelve disciples, and those that then were solicited by them, come to the wedding.
The Remnant of Israel
“I will also leave in the midst of thee an afflicted and poor people, and they shall trust in the name of the LORD. The remnant of Israel shall not do iniquity, nor speak lies; neither shall a deceitful tongue be found in their mouth: for they shall feed and lie down, and none shall make them afraid.” Zephaniah 3:12-13
A remnant. We look at the remnant that came from the time of Israel, and we know such people as Zechariah and his wife, Joseph and Mary, Simeon and Anna, John the Baptist, the disciples. Here was the remnant, but they were not a very powerful people. They had to gather more souls. The marriage feast was pending. It had not yet taken place. This comely and delicate woman is continued in the New Testament period. There she is, right at the very beginning.
The New Testament Church
Espoused as a Chaste Virgin
“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 Christ.” 2 Corinthians 11:2
Apostle Paul is saying, 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 Christ. A chaste virgin. The marriage hasn’t taken place yet. The espousal, the work of the apostle, was there to prepare them.
The Falling Away Begins
That is in Christ. Here is the sad story. The beautiful church that this chaste virgin that the prince wants to marry is already becoming corrupted. The story goes on in 2 Thessalonians 2:2 to 8. He says, don’t expect Jesus to come yet. Before Jesus can come, there is first of all going to be a falling away. It’s the same old story as in the Old Testament. The woman becomes a harlot again. It’s only a little remnant that has to be nurtured and carried on through. Because the wedding isn’t yet ready as there’s all these little remnants that need to continue to be tended and cared for to be washed from the blood to be brought to this beautiful wedding bride that can be ready for the marriage. Nothing happens yet. The time goes on. It happened already in the time of the apostles.
The Spirit of Antichrist Already at Work
“Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world. Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God: And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world.” 1 John 4:1-3
Shocking. As the Lord is developing his bride, already there is a falling away taking place among the very earliest church. We study carefully the book of Revelation. It is a revelation of Jesus Christ, the divine prince, and His bride. What is the message there?
The Book of Revelation: The Divine Prince and His Bride
The Revelation of Jesus Christ
“The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to shew unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass; and he sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant John: Who bare record of the word of God, and of the testimony of Jesus Christ, and of all things that he saw. Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand. John to the seven churches which are in Asia: Grace be unto you, and peace, from him which is, and which was, and which is to come; and from the seven Spirits which are before his throne; And from Jesus Christ, who is the witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the of the earth. Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood, And hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father; to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.” Revelation 1:1-6
Here is the revelation of the divine prince and His bride, the seven churches. If you study that one very carefully, you understand very clearly, according to Sister White’s writings in Acts of the Apostles page 585, that the seven churches are God’s church in seven different periods of time.
To Him That Overcometh, Not The Church
The angel of the church in the different periods always becomes corrupted every time. The same sad story, the picture of a beautiful woman that He loves so much, and then she becomes impure, repeated right through the history. Then He comes to Laodicea. Who are they? What period is that? Now; since 1844.
Laodicea: The Last Church
Lukewarm and Self-Satisfied
Again, there we see in Laodicea, you’ve become lukewarm. You’ve become, you think you’re rich and increased with goods and have need of nothing. The very thing that was written about the Jews, you became sure of yourself, but you became a harlot. Sister White says that the harlotry of the other churches applies to the Laodicean people as well.
The Judgment of Laodicea
“Will the churches heed the Laodicean message? Will they repent? Or will they, notwithstanding that the solemn message of truth, the third angel’s message, is being proclaimed to the world, go on and sin? This is the last message of mercy, the last warning to the fallen world. If the church of God becomes lukewarm, it does not stand in favour with God anymore than do the churches that are represented as having fallen and become the habitation of devils and the hold of every foul spirit and the cage of every unclean and hateful bird. Those who have had opportunities to hear and receive the truth and have united with the Seventh-day Adventist Church calling themselves commandment-keeping people of God and yet possess no more vitality and consecration to God than do the nominal churches will receive of her plagues of God just as verily as the churches who oppose the law of God. Only those that are sanctified through the truth will compose the royal family in the heavenly mansions Christ has gone to prepare for those that love Him and keep His commandments.” Manuscript Releases, Volume 19, page 176
The Seven Women
Do we see it true that the Laodicean people have become another harlot? How many women are there in Isaiah chapter 4:1? How many are there that say we will be called by your name, but we will eat our own food and dress in our own garments? How many of them are there?
“And in that day seven women shall take hold of one man, saying, We will eat our own bread, and wear our own apparel: only let us be called by thy name, to take away our reproach.” Isaiah 4:1
How many of them are there? The harlots of the seven church periods. Out of each church period there was only a little remnant, a very small remnant, just like it was when the church crucified Jesus Christ, only a very small remnant. The wedding is still pending. Jesus is still waiting for His bride to marry her. As He is waiting to marry her, how does He solicit her? How does he speak to her? Is this still part of the love story? Will you let me in He says to His bride.
The Beloved Knocking at the Door
I Stand at the Door and Knock
“I sleep, but my heart waketh: it is the voice of my beloved that knocketh, saying, Open to me, my sister, my love, my dove, my undefiled: for my head is filled with dew, and my locks with the drops of the night.” Song of Solomon 5:2
I’m standing at the door and knock. Notice it says I sleep but my heart waketh. Interesting. I stand at the door of the heart of the church. Open to me, my sister, he cries. For my head is filled with dew, my locks with the drops of the night. Now she’s speaking.
The Bride’s Delayed Response
“I have put off my coat; how shall I put it on? I have washed my feet; how shall I defile them? My beloved put in his hand by the hole of the door, and my bowels were moved for him. I rose up to open to my beloved; and my hands dropped with myrrh, and my fingers with sweet smelling myrrh, upon the handles of the lock. I opened to my beloved; but my beloved had withdrawn himself, and was gone: my soul failed when he spake: I sought him, but I could not find him; I called him, but he gave me no answer.” Song of Solomon 5:3-6
He’s so anxious. I’m trying to get in. I called him, but he gave me no answer. There is the seventh church. He was knocking on her heart’s door, and she was too sleepy. She was too languid, rich and increased with goods. Oh, it’s so cosy. I do love him, but I’m not jumping out of bed. I’m not coming to that door quick smart, slowly she goes to the door and when she finally opens up, He’s been knocking so long, He’s gone. The picture goes on in terrible detail.
Sick of Love
“I charge you, O daughters of Jerusalem, if ye find my beloved, that ye tell him, that I am sick of love. What is thy beloved more than another beloved, O thou fairest among women? what is thy beloved more than another beloved, that thou dost so charge us?” Song of Solomon 5:8-9
Then she describes my beloved. They’re talking together, the churches. Well, you know, we love Him too. Why is He just yours? We are all calling ourselves by the same name. This is the amazing love story. The Prince and His Bride. He keeps on slipping through His fingers and He has to rely on the remnant. He can’t have the wedding yet. There is such detail given for these last times, that when the wedding can be consummated. It started in 1844 and it continues through until the close of probation. Then finally when probation has closed then He can have His remnant that He can marry.
Waiting for the Perfect Bride
Christ’s Character Reproduced
“Christ is waiting with longing desire for the manifestation of Himself in His church. When the character of Christ shall be perfectly reproduced in His people, then He will come to claim them as His own.” COL 69.1
That’s when the wedding will be consummated; totally. He is waiting for His bride. During this conference, we will go into the depth of each prophecy that depicts this process of developing the bride. We will see it through the seven seals. We shall see it through, in Daniel, we will see it through the seven seals, we have seen it in the seven churches, we’ve just seen it in the seven churches and the seven trumpets, we will see it. Through all those prophecies, we will see it until finally He has a bride this ready that He can marry when probation is closed. Let us pay close attention and appreciate the prophecies like we’ve never appreciated them before because we’re looking at a love story of the divine prince and His bride. May we be amongst the people that can enjoy the festivity of that marriage. This is our prayer, this is our desire to understand how we can be among them. May God help us is my prayer, Amen.
