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Monday, August 2, 2010

The Wedding of all Weddings

As Danny turned on the morning news to check-out the weather forecast,(important to roofers), the buzz seemed to be about the glitzy wedding that occurred in New York on Saturday. Now, whether celebrity nuptials peak your interest or not, it did stir up my thoughts as I made coffee of a wedding or should I say THE wedding that will take place in, I believe, the near future.  And, as details of Chelsea's were undisclosed and now, some being revealed, so is this one I will refer to today. I don't know yet when or how but Scripture gives us enough information to whet our appetite, to say the least. I surmise that few of us have been to or seen a million plus dollars wedding event but any festive occasion of this sort regardless of their celebrity status or the deep pockets of their parents  pales in comparison to the one I reference today. 

On all wedding invitations we receive in the mail, the first question answered for us is "who is getting married?" In Ephesians 5, we believers are referred to as the Bride of Christ. Verses 22-33 speak of the relationship of husbands and wives and Paul writes in verse 32- "This is a great mystery, but I speak concerning Christ and the church." John MacArthur notes "Marriage is a sacred reflection of the magnificent and beautiful mystery of union between the Messiah and His church." I love the imagery of us being the Bride of Christ.

It was Jewish tradition, I read, that the Hebrew wedding consisted of three phases- the betrothal or we would say engagement period, which was just as binding as the marriage contract itself, only there was no intimate relationship until the actual ceremony. That was why Joseph wrestled so much when Mary informed him that she was pregnant, until the angel told him the truth about the Child she carried in her womb, conceived in a manner that no other child ever has been. Matt. 1  We are betrothed to Christ and Paul referred to that in 2 Cor. 11:2. "For I am jealous over you with godly jealousy: for I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ." At this stage, in our American culture, we want to see the ring, the sign that the day is upcoming. In 2 Cor 1:22 and 5:5, Paul reminds his readers that the Holy Spirit has been given to believers as their earnest, our ring, if you will, the word in the Hebrew, being arrhabon, meaning "a pledge given in advance as security for the rest." Yes, dear one in Christ, we are the betrothed of our Savior and await the next phase and that being when the Bridegroom returns from His Father's house where He has been preparing a place for His beloved Bride. In the parable in Matthew 25, we hear the cry -"Behold the bridegroom cometh: go ye out to meet him." The message in this parable is of the importance of the bride being ready . "Watch, therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour in which the Son of Man cometh." vs 13.

This part of the marriage is expressed so beautifully by our Lord in a most familiar Scripture in John 14, preached often at funeral services. "Let not your heart be troubled; ye believe in God, believe also in Me. In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto Myself: that where I am, there ye may be also."  I read in our local paper at times of wedding announcements and they usually conclude with where the newly- wed couple will live. Well, Believers, we will live in the Father's house. Someone might ask-"Where is that, exactly, Deborah?" I don't know but actually, being in the Father's house with the One Who loved me enough to die, even on a cross, is good enough for me." Revelation 21 describes the New Jerusalem and I know our finite minds cannot come even close to imagining how grandeur our new Home will be. There is much beauty in this world of our pilgrimage, some of it God-made and some palatial places we have seen that man erected but let me assure you, "you ain't seen nothing yet!!"

In Revelation 19, we read of the third phase, the celebration, the marriage supper of the Lamb. Verse 7 says this -"Let us be glad and rejoice and give Him glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and His wife has made herself ready." Someone noted once that the Jewish wedding celebration often went on for days, many times until the father's funds and goods were depleted. ( I am sure some American dads can testify.)  That thought always makes me want to rejoice because I know our Heavenly Father owns it all and has never been depleted of anything. The more He gives, the more He has. He has lavished His grace on us the whole journey and will continue ceaselessly in eternity to do the same. We are His love gift to His Son. In John 17, several times, Jesus prays for those that the Father has given Him. In John 3:16, we are reminded that He gave His Only Begotten Son for us. The Father brought us together, praise His Name!  "What did the bride wear?" is always asked when the wedding is reviewed. Revelation 19:8 "And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints." So much better and more beautiful than Vera Wang or Oscar de le Rente( ?) , this Bride has had Christ's righteousness imputed to her and is living that out as she watches for her Bridegroom's return.  We women who have married remember how we wanted to be so beautiful and prepared when those doors opened and our husband saw us arrayed in our white dress, don't we? Why would we, as Christ's Bride, want to do any less?  1 John 2:28 "And now, little children, abide in Him; that, when He shall appear, we may have confidence, and not be ashamed before Him at His coming.:  3:2 "Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when He shall appear, we shall be like Him; for we shall see Him as He is. And every man that hath this hope in Him purifieth himself, even as he is pure."

Just a few simple thoughts today on weddings but let me close with this. On all wedding invitations, it is essential that the date be revealed. On November 6 of this year, Lord willing, Dan and I will celebrate forty years of marriage but the Father has not revealed the date of this upcoming event that we so look forward to. But, surely, we with spiritual ears, are beginning to hear the strains of the wedding march, aren't we? Instead of Here Come the Bride, our longing and prayer is to hear Here Comes the Bridegroom!  "And the Spirit and the Bride say "come"! Rev. 22:17. "He Who testifies to these things says "Surely I come quickly!"  Recently, as Alicia and I were asking Bible questions, (she loves for me to do that), I asked "Sweet girl, what is the last promise and prayer in the Bible?" There, you have them. He promises to come quickly and in verses 20-21, John prays "Even so, come, Lord Jesus. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen."

At all weddings, the bride is the center of attention and I believe that in this future event, she will be on display as the trophy of God's grace eternally but the ONE Who will be the focus, the ONE that our eyes will behold and be taken in awe of will be JESUS CHRIST, the RIGHTEOUS. HE, worthily and triumphantly will be praised forever and ever and ever. "Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God Almighty, Who was and is and is to come!" "Saying with a loud voice, Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom and strength, and honour, and glory, and blessing."   I can hardly wait!!

Looking up, Debora

3 comments:

  1. Amen and Amen...I love weddings...I think the last one I get to attend will without a doubt be the BEST!!!!! Dedene

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  2. Today would be a great day to hear those bells!

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  3. glad you reminded me of Nov 6 never can remember lol

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