The Marriage Supper of the Lamb Revelation 19:6-10 |
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INTRODUCTION:   Weddings can be a spectacular affair. Thousands of dollars are spent trying to produce a perfect moment in time that will join a couple together in marital bliss. The bride is dressed in her pure white wedding dress, the groom stands nervously at the front of the church. It is a special moment in the lives of those two individuals and for the people who know and love them. Weddings, here on earth, are a special thing! It is sad that a spectacular wedding does not assure a successful marriage. I have preformed some really nice weddings and within a few years the couple is divorced.
         Most couples are looking for a marriage that will last and make the couple happy! It is referred to as a "marriage made in heaven." Well, I just want you to know that while some marriages may have been made in heaven, they still have to be lived out here on earth. That, in itself, makes them all less than perfect.
         There is a marriage that is always 100% successful. It is an eternal marriage, made not between a man and a woman, but between the one would believers and receives Jesus Christ as their Savior. Matthew 12:25 tells us that there is no marriage in heaven and believers are like the angels who have no marriage relationship. But there will be a bride in heaven and that bride will be believers who by faith were saved by the grace of God and who the Bible says are the Bride and Body of Jesus Christ.
         Today, we come to an event in the future when Jesus will receive His bride. It will happen after the BEMA judgment and it will involve all of God's children who have been saved since Acts 2 and the Day of Pentecost. This event is commonly referred to as The Marriage Super Of The Lamb. It will be a time of great joy for all the redeemed people of God! You see, for those saved in this the Church Age, the end times shape up like this:
         In the Rapture, we will be Caught Up; at the BEMA Judgment Seat of Christ, we will be rewarded; and at the Marriage Supper of the Lamb, we will be Given the special place God has for us!
         My desire in preaching this sermon is to help those who are saved understand that there are some blessed days ahead for the people of God. Sometimes we get so caught up in the events of today....we forget the future God has for us.
         I also want those who do not know the Lord to know that they need to get ready to meet the Lord. He is coming and He will take His people to Heaven and we will forever be with Him.
         But, He will only take His people! The rest will be left behind to endure the Tribulation and face terrible time when God will pour His wrath out upon the earth. I would like to say that we will deal with the Tribulation in some detail in a later message, but we want you to know...that God's purpose in the Tribulation is two fold....One to bring millions of people to be saved and the second to purge the earth of sinner who refuse to receive Him as their Savior.
         To understand this we must understand the marriage customs of the Jews in Jesus' day.
I. The Four Stages of a Jewish Wedding.
Meanwhile the bride would be making herself ready so that she would be pure and beautiful for her bridegroom. During this time she would wear a veil when she went, out to show she was spoken for (she has been bought with a price)
When the groom and his friends got close to the bride's house they would give a shout and blow a shofar to let her know to be ready.
When the wedding party arrived at father's house the newly weds went into the wedding chamber for a seven day honeymoon and the groom's best friend stood outside waiting for the groom to tell him that the marriage had been consummated
Then all the friends really started celebrating for the seven days that the couple were honeymooning. When the couple emerged there would be much congratulation and the Marriage Supper could begin.
Matt. 26:28 "For this is my blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins." This covenant was not the one He made with Israel, but a new covenant made with those who would believe in Him in this age.
Hebrews 8:6 explains this covenant. " But now hath he obtained a more excellent ministry, by how much also he is the mediator of a better covenant, which was established upon better promises."
2. To Israel God promised the coming of the Messiah and the Messiah's kingdom where Israel would be a peace and prosper. He promised them they would finally have the land that he gave to Abraham that extends from the Nile river in the south to the Euphrates in the north.
3. To believers saved in the Church Age Jesus has promised something much better.
4. The Gospel is God's proclamation of the this new covenant. Jesus further revealed this New Testament or covenant when He gave us the Lord's Supper:
2. The New Testament is not a new way to be saved, but a new promise in what our salvation would bring. We become the body and Bride of Christ. We have a special close relationship with Him now and in eternity. There is no relationship closer than that of a husband and wife.
Ephesians 4:12 also states this: "For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ."
2. Writing to the Ephesians Paul tells them and us of this promise. Here he says we are sealed...with the holy Spirit of promise. Ephesians 1:13-14 "In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise, Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.
Luke makes it even clearer, " Likewise also the cup after supper, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood, which is shed for you." (Luke 22:20)
In other words all the bride has to do is accept the proposal of marriage.
When a person by faith receives Jesus Christ as their Savior it is a picture of the bride accepting the proposal of the Bridegroom.
3. Notice that He promises to come again and receive her unto Himself, that where the Bridegroom is so will be the bride.
4. The proposal of marriage is made to the Father, the bride accepts the proposal and officially the couple is betrothed. The bride is now "sanctified" or set apart to her husband. The only way to break the covenant was divorce and the only grounds for divorce was that the bride, had deceived the bridegroom and was not pure.
Yet, in the marriage of a believer to Jesus Christ there can be no divorce, because the only grounds of divorce, which is impurity....is completely removed by Jesus Christ. The believer is forgiven of all their sins and given eternal life.
If someone would ask the Bridegroom when was the day of the wedding he would reply "Only Father knows."
B. The bride not knowing when the bridegroom would come was to keep herself ready at all times.
The groom's arrival would be preceded by a shout. This shout would forewarn the bride to be prepared for the coming of the groom. The guests would be invited to the wedding. In the Marriage Supper of the Lamb, Israel is the invited guest to the ceremony and feast.
The bride would be adorned in her "wedding garments."
3. Shortly after arrival the bride and groom would be escorted by the other members of the wedding party to the bridal chamber (chuppah). Prior to entering the chamber the bride remained veiled so that no one could see her face. While the grooms men and bridesmaids would wait outside, the bride and groom would enter the bridal chamber alone.
The marriage supper takes place after the Second Coming of the Lord Jesus and the invited guests are Old Testament and the Tribulation saints. The marriage supper takes place in the Millennium, the one thousand year reign of the Lord Jesus on the earth.
It will be a glorious time for those who have believed and accepted the Bridegroom the Lord Jesus Christ.
What a wonderful thing it will be to have this special relationship and place of service to the Lord throughout eternity.
Like the biblical marriage the wife is to be the help meet of her husband. In her special relationship she has the privilege to serve Him. The bride is a joy to the bridegroom and she is an honor to him.
Could I ask you a question? Will you be there...will you accept the Lord's proposal of salvation and thereby assure you place in heaven and experience for all eternity the blessings and inheritance of the Lord Jesus.
Will you allow Him to wash you white as snow, forgiving your sins and giving you eternal life.