Joni And Friends Daily Devotional 12 June 2024, Wednesday Message
TOPIC: The Betrothal
“In my Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.” – John 14:2-3
In the old Jewish tradition, this is how a bride and groom became engaged: The young man traveled to the home of his loved one to ask for her hand in marriage. A dowry was agreed upon. It was the price paid by the groom to secure his loved one (it demonstrated to the father that the groom had the means to properly care for his daughter). The betrothal contract was sealed, culminating in a formal ceremony in which the bride and groom confirmed their covenant by drinking together from a cup of wine. After the marriage was established, an engagement period ensued, during which the two were officially married yet did not live together.
During this period the couple would prepare for the time when their marriage would be consummated. The bride-in-waiting learned all she could about being a good wife. The groom returned to his father’s house to prepare a place for them to live. Usually he constructed a large addition to the house, where they would live under the same roof with the family. After many months the groom would come for his wife!
This tradition provides a beautiful parallel. Jesus gave his life as his dowry. The cross shows us that he and his Father agreed on an exorbitant price. Every time we drink from the Communion cup, we remember him and the new covenant. As the bride of Christ, we prepare ourselves for his coming. In the meantime, Jesus has gone ahead and is presently preparing a place for us in heaven. It only required seven days for him to create the earth…and he’s had almost two thousand years to work on our rooms in his mansion.
Lover of my soul, I want to prepare to meet you…Thank you for preparing a place for us to live together for eternity.
Joni Eareckson Tada is an American evangelical Christian author, radio host, artist, and founder of Joni and Friends, an organization “accelerating Christian ministry in the disability community”.