This will be the final lesson in the Bride of Christ study.

The Lord has used singleness to bring me to this place of deep dependency

on Him. That is the story I have lived with Him thus far.

What is yours? I wonder.

Perhaps it is a broken marriage. Perhaps it is the transition to

motherhood. Perhaps it is financial need. Perhaps it is a piercing loss.

Perhaps it is a diagnosis or a chronic illness or a lifelong struggle with

addiction. Perhaps, and this one is sometimes subtle, what has led you to a

desperate dependence on the Lord is the acquisition of everything you

thought you wanted—and the realization that it will never be enough.

This is what I’ve decided: He really is worth it.

Even our lack can be worth it if it leads to a deeper love.

We long for so many things, but the Creator Himself fashioned longing within the hearts of His children. We are meant to long, but many of our longings are unnamed and unidentified because we long for what we do not yet even fully know exists. We are not satisfied by this world, so we look around for something in it that might placate our wants. But the Lord, in His gracious practicality, names our longings. He tells us what He has promised to do for us. He gives us glimpses of what we are waiting for, and He gives us glimpses of Himself.

In this week's teaching, we will consider what it means that Jesus is working within the heart of His bride to cause us to be more faithful.

This week we consider the Lord's desire to present to Himself a pure and spotless bride--and the power of His Spirit to transform us into that bride that He desires us to be!

Last week, we explored the role of the New Covenant. In this lesson, we consider the role of the Old Covenant and the unending faithfulness of God.

In this lesson Cody discusses the role of covenants in the plans of God and the significance of the New Covenant as a betrothal of believers to our Bridegroom.

In this first lesson of the Bride of Christ, Cody discusses the reality that Jesus is called the Bridegroom and identifies us as His bride.

In this final lesson, we will reflect on the gift of drawing near to the King even as we await His return.

In Lesson 9, we continue in Jesus' Olivet Discourse, considering the weight of our salvation and what Jesus taught about choosing daily to be His disciple.