Come Forth the Bride! by Chris Shreve

I consider this the best pencil drawing ever done.  It is called, “Come Forth the Bride” and the artist’s name is Chris Shreve.  At first glance we notice the beauty of the Bride, her wedding veil, her crown, the shape of her form, that she is naked, that she is coming forth.  We notice a tree is behind her and the sun and moon as well.  We notice a dove flying to her and the waves of the ocean all around, stars above and a man just behind her who has fallen asleep or died, it is uncertain which.  He is in the shadows and her leg is his leg is her leg is his.  They are one.  The touch of her foot as she comes forth brings a ripple effect for all time, to all the generations after her. 

Then if we look closer we see the side of a man, who has a cape on his back, like a King and a pierced side.  Then we understand that the man is not just Adam and the woman is not just Eve.  It is that Adam was put to sleep and out of his side came Eve.  Man and woman.  In the same way, Christ Jesus went into the sleep of death on the cross and His side was pierced, but out of his side was purchased His Bride, the Church.  And they are one. 

The Holy Spirit is the dove who birthed this.  The tree itself is gnarled and thorny, like Jesus’ crown of thorns, which compliments her crown of beauty.  It speaks of the Cross of Christ and a family tree.  There is a light above the sun and even the stars that shines down on all of it and this comes from the Father, who can never be pictured except that this light comes from Him. 

And this is a thing of beauty symbolizing beauty itself, the very greatest news of all for the universe that God became man that we might become one with God, that we might be married to the Son of God forever, with God as our father and the Holy Spirit giving us new birth.  Oh that everyone would say yes to the wedding invitation, the offer of God the Son to be one with us.  But we must have a choice, it cannot be love otherwise and the alternative will be hell for those who realized that they missed it.  So don’t miss it.  May all who read this be certain that they too join us at the Wedding Feast of feasts!

To see more of Chris Shreve’s work go to  http://www.chrisshreve.com or http://www.normiehead.com