Monday

Related Verses
Matt. 25:6
6 But at midnight there was a cry, Behold, the bridegroom! Go forth to meet him!

2 Cor. 11:2
2 For I am jealous over you with a jealousy of God; for I betrothed you to one husband to present you as a pure virgin to Christ.

Gen. 1:26
26 And God said, Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of heaven and over the cattle and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth.

Mark 12:30
30 And you shall love the Lord your God from your whole heart and from your whole soul and from your whole mind and from your whole strength.”

Eph. 3:14-19
14 For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father,
15 Of whom every family in the heavens and on earth is named,
16 That He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with power through His Spirit into the inner man,
17 That Christ may make His home in your hearts through faith, that you, being rooted and grounded in love,
18 May be full of strength to apprehend with all the saints what the breadth and length and height and depth are
19 And to know the knowledge-surpassing love of Christ, that you may be filled unto all the fullness of God.

Related Reading
In 1 Corinthians 2:9 Paul says, “Things which eye has not seen and ear has not heard and which have not come up in man’s heart; things which God has prepared for those who love Him.” To realize and participate in the deep and hidden things God has ordained and prepared for us requires us not only to believe in Him but also to love Him. To fear God, to worship God, and to believe in God (that is, to receive God) are all inadequate; to love Him is the indispensable requirement. To love God means to set our entire being—spirit, soul, and body, with the heart, soul, mind, and strength (Mark 12:30)—absolutely on Him, that is, to let our entire being be occupied by Him and lost in Him, so that He becomes everything to us and we are one with Him practically in our daily life. In this way we have the closest and most intimate fellowship with God, and we are able to enter into His heart and apprehend all its secrets (Psa. 73:25; 25:14). Thus, we not only realize but also experience, enjoy, and fully participate in these deep and hidden things of God. (Life-study of 1 Corinthians, p. 144) 

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If you have entered into the deep thought of the Bible, you will realize that the Bible is a romance, in the most pure and the most holy sense, of a universal couple. 

The male of this couple is God Himself…This very God, after a long process, has resulted in Christ as the Bridegroom. 

The female of this couple is a corporate human being, God’s redeemed people, including all the saints of the Old Testament and the New Testament. After a long process this corporate person results in the New Jerusalem as the bride. 

This holy romance is repeatedly revealed throughout the Old Testament…Several times…God referred to Himself as the Husband and to His people as His wife (Isa. 54:5; 62:5; Jer. 2:2; 3:1, 14; 31:32; Ezek. 16:8; 23:5; Hosea 2:7, 19)…Many times the prophets spoke of God as the Husband and of His people as His wife. Humanly speaking, we always think of God in a religious way as the Almighty, feeling compelled to worship Him. But do you married brothers expect this from your wives? Suppose your wife thought of you as a big body, as a giant, approaching you adoringly, bowing herself, and kneeling down to worship you. What would you say? You would say, “Silly wife, I don’t need such a worshipper. I need a dear wife to embrace me and kiss me. If you will simply give me a little kiss, I will soar in the air.” Our God certainly is the almighty God, and, as His creatures, we must worship Him. Many verses speak about worshipping God in this way. However, have you never read in Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and Hosea that God desires to be a husband? In ancient times God’s people built the temple and established a system of worship complete with priesthood and sacrifices. One day God intervened and spoke through Isaiah saying, “I am tired of this. I am weary with your sacrifices. I want you to love Me. I am your Husband, and you must be My wife. I want to have a marriage life. I am lonely. I need you. I need you, My chosen people, to be My wife.” 

Song of Songs is more than a romance; it is a fantastic romance…It speaks of two people who fall in love…In Song of Songs we find a woman falling in love with a man, saying, “Oh, that he might kiss me with the kisses of his mouth. I am thirsty for this.” Immediately, her beloved is at hand, and the pronoun changes from he to you (1:2-3). “Your name is sweet, and your love is better than wine. Draw me, my beloved. Don’t teach me; draw me. I don’t need a pastor or a preacher. I don’t need an elder or even an apostle. I need you to draw me. Draw me; we will run after you.” What a romance! (Life-study of Romans, pp. 1-4) 

Further Reading: Life-study of Romans, msg. 1