Bright and shining glorious...

Muttering: "Hallelujah! The Master reigns, our God, the Sovereign-Strong! Let us celebrate,let us rejoice, let us give Him glory! The Marriage of the Lamb has come; his Wife has made herself ready. She was given a bridal gown of bright and shining linen. The linen is the righteousness of the saints. The Angel said to me, "Write this:'Blessed are those invited to the Wedding Supper of the Lamb.' He added, "These are the true words of God." Rev 19:6-9 The Message


Do you ever have thoughts that linger with you all day long? You wake with them because you probably dreamed about them. Then you think about them on and off all day long. Sometimes, you may even go to sleep with them and probably dream some more. My thought life was penetrated today. I was totally blasted through and through. I have had lingering thoughts and imaginations about the Marriage of the Lamb to His Bride. God's people are viewed as God's betrothed bride in the Old and New Testament. (Hosea 2:19-20 and Ephesians 5:23, 32).The Lord will be glorified because the time for the marriage of the Lamb has come! This special Bride will be like no other. She will be beautifully glorious amd the one the Lamb has sacrificed Himself for. She will be dressed in bright and shining linen because she is righteous. Her virgin presence will have His full attention. In other words, she will be decked out like no other! She is very excited because she is entering into a state of perfect love.

The traditional Hebrew wedding is a reflection of scripture. I have learned a few things about the customs and preparation involved in a traditional Hebrew wedding. The bridegroom and his father are responsible for making all of the arrangements. The bridegroom is very eager to receive his virgin bride. The bride is intent on remaining righteously pure. She is a picture of expectant readiness. She is diligent in her preparation to make herself acceptable to the groom. The groom, two witnesses and the Rabbi sign the wedding contract.He wants to make her his alone. The bride does not sign anything. She remains posed and ready to be wed.
She prepares her body with a special ritual bath. The bath ritual is specific. It has to be taken with clean fresh water. The water has to be a living water. One source of living water is rain because it comes from heaven. The bride does not ignore anything on her body. She wants to be perfect for her bridegroom. She anoints herself with fragrant oils and the scents are lovely. She wears fine jewelry on her wedding day that is a gift from the groom and his father. (Jer 2:32)

The ceremony is conducted under a wedding canopy or Chuppah. The bride traditionally circles the groom under the Chuppah. She will circle him because she willingly serves him. We will serve the Lamb of God before His throne day and night. It will be a joy and blessing to do this!

The union of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden influenced the tradition of flowers at the wedding. The bride wears a veil over her face. Rebekah covered her face with a veil in Gen 24 when Isaac approached her. That is a beautiful story. Her family wanted her to remain with them a bit longer before she left to go meet her bridegroom and marry him. She was eager to meet her husband and to be his wife. She made ready to go right away. She served Isaac and he loved her.

Seven blessings are pronounced out loud to the bride and the groom during the wedding ceremony. The seventh blessing is always the same. It says, "Bless you Lord the builder of Jerusalem who will rebuild the Temple one day." The couple stomps on a glass and breaks it. This seventh blessing initiates a somber time of thinking during this time of great celebrating and joy. The celebrants are reflecting that their joy is incomplete because the Temple is not yet rebuilt and because of those who have been separated from them by death.

Many times in the New Testament, Jesus said the words, "Make my joy complete." New Testament believers ARE complete in Christ. We are satisfied because our loved ones in Christ who have died, will be with us at the Marriage Supper of the Lamb. Revelation 21:1-3 says there will be a new heaven and a new earth because the first heaven and first earth will have passed away. There will no longer be a sea. The first thing that comes to my mind is that there will no longer be land barriers between people. The Holy City, the New Jerusalem, will come down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. John wrote that he heard a loud voice from the Throne saying that God will live with man. Rev 21:22-23 said John did not see a temple because the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. The city does not even need the sun or moon to shine on it. The glory of the Lord gives it light and the Lamb is the lamp. There is never be night again!

The marriage supper of John's day would begin on the evening of the wedding. It might carry on for days. The Marriage Supper of the Lamb will be even a more glorious and joyous time of feasting. It will be enjoyed by the Church because the over comers will reign with Christ Jesus!Praise God!
blessings,
Elinda RN