The Marriage of the REAL KING to His Bride
I’ll bet a lot of you – especially the women – spent some time watching the Royal Wedding with Prince William and now Princess Kate. Indeed it WAS exciting watching the pomp and ceremony, precision of everything, sharing in the joy of a kingdom with its royals as two bodies came together as one. All that preparation and rehearsing, all that hard work to make sure it came off without a hitch, the security protocols – and the love of each for the other that made it happen in the first place…. Priceless.
It got me thinking the whole time I was watching it: the real royal wedding yet to come will pale this one into a faint memory, as good as it was. In a few weeks I will record a sermon that will go into detail about this, and I’m thinking of titling it “I Go to Prepare a Place for you”.
At THAT wedding, which I believe will take place in the 3rd heaven in the Heavenly Jerusalem, can you – the Bride of Christ – hear it now? Can you see it now? Instead of London, we will have the heavenly Jerusalem, which would cover half the land mass of the USA today. Instead of Westminster Abbey, we will have the Temple of God and the sea of glass. Instead of the archbishop of Canterbury, who will perform this wedding? I’m sure it will be the only One of stature and rank and holiness – God the Father Himself will perform the marriage of our Savior to His Bride. After all, the scriptures say a “certain king put on a wedding for His Son” (Matthew 22:1-2). We know who the Son is. It surely is obvious who that King is!
It’s the Son’s Father! God Most High, Yahweh Himself, will surely perform this Royal Wedding.
As the doors open to the great sea of glass in the holy throne room of God Most High, can you imagine it? Can you hear the cheers and applause, and yes, the worship, of millions of angels, cherubim, seraphim and the 24 elders – as the King of Kings steps in the room? Then when the Bride comes in to be married to the Son of God – can you “see it” in your mind’s eye? As each is called forward and given his/her new name, what thrills, what tears of joy we will experience!
Nothing is worth risking losing any of this. There is no temporary pleasure of sin that should tempt us to stray from the Way we have been shown – and when we do stray, we should deeply repent and get back on course. No present discouragement or distraction should ever lead us to sell our birthright for the equivalent of Esau’s “bowl of lentil stew”.
As we come to Pentecost, which was the wedding of Israel to their God and also about the time of the wedding of Ruth and Boaz, picturing the church and our Master – let’s be thinking of OUR Royal Wedding as we watch the news about Prince William and Princess Kate.
Father, hasten the day! Master, fill us with your love and your Spirit that we always remain faithful and true to you. Our King, please bring your people together as one body – YOUR body-- in every way. Please, help us be among “the called, chosen, and faithful” (Rev. 17:14) who ride back to the Mt. of Olives with you.