I went to a wedding this weekend for a young lady that is as close to me as a daughter. It was such a beautiful ceremony for two people that I love so dearly. While I was there, it got me thinking about the institution of marriage and the story behind the images that we use at weddings.
The first, and most commonly explained, is the ring. I heard it explained a really cool new way this weekend. Gold is refined by fire to rid it of it's impurities. Jesus, when we accept Him as our Lord, cleans us up all the way to our inner parts as was customary for the High Priest to do to all sacrifices (living sacrifices, that is: Romans 12:1-2) in ancient Israel. The best cleaner of metal in the entire world is fire. After the cleansing by fire, the gold is at it's purest state, much like us after Jesus gets a hold of us. That pure gold ring is to be exchanged while the wearers are at their purest. Even, over time, if things come up and go wrong (that is, things get kinda dirty and messed up) they can always be easily cleaned up with a little bit of work maintained over a long period of time.
Next up is the changing of the bride's name. I am surprised how much this is overlooked. I didn't know about it until I was in my 30s and I was already married. It is commonly known that "Christians" are also known as the Body of Christ, and also the Bride of Christ. The Ten Commandments even mention taking the Name of God. What does that mean for us? Well, first off, in Hebrew, the word command, as one being ordered to do something, is no where in Exodus 20:1-18 which is where the Ten Commandments are at in the Bible. To the ancient Hebrews, this passage of Scripture was a "Katuba" with 10 conditions in it. It is NOT 10 conditions for God to love us. It is 10 proofs that he already does. You do not set relationship boundaries with someone that you do not already love. A Katuba was a basic marriage agreement, or a prenuptial agreement. It was the 4th step in the wedding process. The problem is that at Mt. Sinai they rejected God's marriage proposal. The day of Pentecost is the exact same day on the calendar. The upper room experience in Acts 2 is when the same thing happened as at Mt Sinai, the only difference is that they responded back and said "Yes" to the question from God, "Will you marry me?". Now, back to the taking of the name. In English, Leviticus 23 mentions 7 feasts. In Hebrew they are called the rehearsal feasts. Rehearsing for what?
Revelation 19:7-9 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.” And to her it was granted to be arrayed in fine linen, clean and bright, for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints. Then he said to me, “Write: ‘Blessed are those who are called to the Marriage Supper of the Lamb!’ ”
We are rehearsing for the wedding of the Lamb of God, Christ Jesus, to His Bride, The Church. What always happens after a wedding? We go to the reception and have a ....wait for it...wedding feast, also commonly called a Marriage Supper because of what time it takes place. We have taken the name of God on us as the Bride of Christ, then the Bible says, "You should not take the Name of the Lord in vain". Another way of saying that is, you should not disappoint the hope that rests upon it. You should not do or say anything, while wearing His name, that he would not do or say Himself. Act how He would act and treat others how He would treat them. Be the best example of Him that you can possibly be and you very well fulfill that command.
The third tradition at weddings that I would like to elaborate on is one of my very close friend's favorites. It is the reason that he goes to weddings in the first place, besides his loved ones being in the wedding. He told this to me and I have never looked at weddings the same way since. This part is for you Gene. As I said earlier, the wedding is simply a type and shadow of what will happen at the end of the age that is described in the pages of Scripture, particularly in the book of Revelation. It is not specifically mentioned, as far as I know in the Bible, but I can see it being hidden somewhere in there. Who is the first to dance at the wedding reception? The Bride and Groom, right? We will get to dance with Jesus. Who are the next to dance? The Bride and her Father! We get to dance with the Father of all Creation!!! That's pretty exciting to me. Someone asked at the wedding that I went to this past weekend, "When do we get to dance with the Holy Spirit?" I don't know the answer to that question, but it is quite a thought as well.
When we participate in weddings here on Earth, we are just simply practicing for the Wedding of the Lamb to His bride and the proceeding Marriage Supper of the Lamb. I hope that this helps to appreciate the weight behind all those little things that go into a wedding and reception. They idea came from somewhere. It is good to know that the major facets of the ceremony come straight from the Inventor of marriage, Jehovah God, Himself.
I bless you today to know that even though we are in no way perfect, that God wants to marry us anyway. I bless you to know that if you have taken part in a wedding you have walked in the eventual footsteps of God Almighty both as Father and Son, or The Church as the Bride. Oh what a glorious day that will be!!!
Grace and Peace
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