The Bride's Two Garments of Righteousness
Rev 19:7 Let us rejoice and
exult and give glory to Him, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and His
bride has made herself ready.
Rev 19:8 And it was given to
her to be clothed in fine linen, bright and clean: for the fine linen is the
righteous acts of the saints.
Rev 3:5 He who overcomes shall
be clothed in white garments: and I will by no means blot out his name from the
book of life, but I will confess his name before my Father and before his
angels.
Item |
First
Garment (Objective Righteousness) |
Second
Garment (Subjective Righteousness) |
Basic Definition |
Christ as the
righteousness of believers, enabling them to be justified objectively before
God when they repent and believe in Christ |
Christ as the
righteousness of believers, lived out from them as God's manifestation,
enabling them to be justified subjectively by God |
Essential Characteristics |
Outward
covering, objective justification, one-time |
Inward supply,
subjective justification, continuous |
Mode of Operation |
Putting on
Christ as outward righteousness |
Christ entering
within as life supply, lived out from us |
Temporal Nature |
One-time,
obtained at the moment of believing |
Continuous,
daily preparation needed |
Purpose |
Salvation,
justification |
Victory,
approval |
Biblical Types |
||
Luke 15 |
Best robe -
replaces prodigal's rags, makes him look good outwardly |
Fatted calf -
supplies life needs, causes facial transformation |
Psalm 45 |
Garment woven
with gold thread - gold signifies God's nature, enables us to come before God |
Embroidered
garment - embroidery signifies the Spirit's transforming work |
Revelation Applications |
||
Revelation 19 |
Bright and
clean fine linen - wedding garment given by God |
Righteousnesses
of the saints - righteous acts as Christ gradually grows and lives out from
us |
Revelation 3:4-5 |
Basic salvation |
White garments
- overcomers who have not defiled their garments walk with the Lord in white |
Revelation 3:18 |
Already
possessed salvation position |
White garments
to buy - necessity to cover naked shame |
The Spirit's Work |
||
Nature of Work |
Regenerating
work, causing us to put on Christ |
Embroidering
work, transforming work |
Mode of Work |
One-time
bestowal |
Continuous
transformation, daily pricking and changing |
Work Result |
Makes Christ
our righteousness |
The Spirit does
embroidering work on us, producing transformation |
Believer's Cooperation |
||
How to Obtain |
Repent and
believe, receive Christ |
Submit to the
Spirit, let Christ grow and live out |
Daily Practice |
Already put on
Christ, have righteous position |
Daily walk
according to the Spirit of life, live the Spirit's life |
Feeding Method |
One-time
receiving of Christ |
Continually
eating and drinking Christ, let Christ grow within us |
Characteristics & Materials |
||
Outward Features |
Covering,
beautifying appearance |
Bright,
shining, pure |
Material Symbolism |
Woven with gold
thread - God's nature |
Embroidery -
the Spirit's transforming work |
Composition |
Christ as God's
beauty given to us as our clothing |
Christ as
righteousness wrought into us, becoming our constitution |
Function & Results |
||
Justification Aspect |
Justified
before God |
Approved before
Christ's judgment seat |
Position & Living |
Righteous position |
Righteous
living |
Salvation & Victory |
Enables
salvation, ability to come before God |
Enables
victory, qualification to participate in the Lamb's wedding |
Covering & Transformation |
Covers sin,
accepted by God |
Inward
transformation, living out God |
Important Scriptures |
||
Justification Verses |
Rom 3:22; 2 Cor 5:21; Phil
3:9; Isa 61:10 |
Rom 8:4; Gal 5:16; Phil
2:13; Matt 5:20 |
Typical Verses |
Luke 15:22; Psa 45:13 |
Luke 15:23; Psa 45:14 |
Revelation Verses |
Rev 19:8a "And it was given to her that she should be clothed in fine
linen, bright and clean" |
Rev 19:8b "for the fine linen is the righteousnesses of the saints";
Rev 3:4-5; Rev 3:18 |
Warning Verses |
Without this garment, cannot be
saved |
Matt 22:11-12 - without wedding garment, cast out of wedding |
Mode of Production |
||
God's Work |
God's gift,
given once |
God's gift,
requires our cooperation to produce |
Transformation Process |
Immediate
putting on |
Gradual growing
and living out |
Mode of Experience |
Justified by
faith |
Approved by
works |
Significance for the Bride |
||
Nature of Bride |
Redeemed people |
Redeemed,
transformed tripartite people |
Preparation Level |
Basic salvation
preparation |
Complete
wedding preparation |
Beauty Level |
Basic covering |
Bride's beauty,
bright and clean fine linen |
Solemn Warnings |
||
Consequences of Lacking |
Cannot be saved |
Will miss the wedding |
Biblical Emphasis |
Foundation of
the gospel |
Revelation
especially emphasizes the second garment |
Qualification for Selection |
Basic condition
for salvation |
Only those
wearing embroidered garments will be selected to participate in the Lamb's
wedding |
Practical Application |
||
At Salvation |
Believe in
Christ, obtain Christ as righteousness, justified before God |
Christ enters
believers as life and life supply |
Daily Life |
Already put on
Christ, have righteous position |
Need to daily,
monthly, yearly live the life in the Spirit |
Wedding Preparation |
Christ as God's
beauty given to us to wear |
Daily prepare
bright fine linen to cover ourselves |
Ultimate Goal |
Not condemned |
When the Lord
comes, wearing bright and clean wedding garment, not found naked |
Distinctions & Connections |
||
Nature Distinctions |
Objective vs
subjective, outward vs inward, one-time vs continuous |
Both are Christ
as our righteousness, neither can be lacking |
Function Distinctions |
Justification
vs sanctification, covering vs transformation, position vs living |
First position,
then living; first justification, then sanctification |
Preparation Distinctions |
Given by God,
no preparation needed |
Daily
preparation and continuous practice needed |
Result Distinctions |
Salvation,
accepted before God |
Victory,
participation in the bride when Christ comes |
Conclusion
and Exhortation:
The
Complete Truth of Two Garments of Righteousness:
- First Garment: Gold-woven garment, best robe
→ Objective righteousness enabling salvation and justification
- Second Garment: Embroidered garment, bright and clean fine linen,
white garments → Subjective righteousness enabling victory and approval
Solemn Warnings:
- Without
the
first garment, cannot be saved
- Without the second garment, will miss the wedding
- Revelation
especially emphasizes the importance of the second garment
Practical Exercise:
1. Receive Christ
as objective righteousness (first garment)
2. Let Christ be
subjective righteousness (second garment)
3. Daily walk according
to the Spirit of life
4.
Continually eat and drink Christ, let Christ grow
5.
Be transformed under the Spirit's embroidering work
6.
Daily prepare bright fine linen
May we all put on these two garments, both
saved and victorious,
both justified and approved,
becoming His glorious bride when the Lord comes!
*Please refer to the 2025
Memorial Day Blending Conference. General Topic: Preparation of the Bride.
Chapter 5: Righteousness of the Bride.
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