Family and friends we are gathered here in the sight of God, and in your presence as witnesses, to join together ______and _____ in holy matrimony.
I pray that this ceremony today will not only be a time of celebration but also an inspiration to us all and our relationships with others.
Marriage is an honorable estate, instituted of God, and signifying unto us the mystical union that exists between Christ and His Church;
which holy estate Christ adorned and beautified with His presence at the wedding in Cana of Galilee. It is therefore not to be entered into unadvisedly, but reverently, discreetly, and in the fear of God. Into this holy estate these two persons come now to be joined.
PRAYER
Who gives this woman to be married to this man?
Then so do.
(Have bride and groom stand side-by-side facing the minister.)
_____ and _____, I require and charge you both, as you stand in the presence of God, before whom secrets of all hearts are disclosed, that, having duly considered the holy covenant you are about to make, you do now declare before this company your pledge of faith, each to the other. If these solemn marriage vows are kept, as God’s Word demands, and if a couple works at doing the will of their heavenly Father, God will bless a marriage, will grant fulfillment in it, and will establish a home in peace.
_____, do you promise to take ______ to be your wedded wife, to live together in the holy estate of matrimony? Do you promise to love her, comfort her, honor and keep her, in sickness and in health; and forsaking all others keep yourself only unto her so long as you both shall live? I do.
_____, do you promise to take _____ to be your wedded husband, to live together in the holy estate of matrimony? Do you promise to love him,
comfort him, honor and keep him, in sickness and in health; and forsaking all others keep yourself only unto him so long as you both shall live? I do.
Since you asked me to perform this ceremony today, it tells me that you want a Christian ceremony—one that is performed in God’s eyes and is pleasing in His sight. So for just a few moments I want to share a passage or two from God’s Holy Word that emphasizes the marriage union and how God sees it.
The Bible tells us that in the beginning, it was God who created man from the dust of the earth and breathed into his nostrils the spirit of life and man became a living being.
But the Lord soon saw that it wasn’t good for man to be alone and so He decided to make man a companion. God caused a deep sleep to come over the man. While the man slept, God removed one of the man’s ribs and fashioned it into a woman and brought her to the man.
And the man said, “This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh. She shall be called woman, because she was taken out of man. For this cause, a man shall leave his father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife, and they shall become one flesh. That is marriage.
That is precisely what is occurring here today. The two of you come to be joined together in holy wedlock and to make a commitment to one another. So today I remind you that not only are you vowing and making a covenant of commitment to each other, you are doing so in the sight of God.
You are therefore renewing this holy covenant with God—a covenant that is not to be taken lightly. You are promising Him that you will continue to make Him number One in this marriage. If you continue to do so, God will continue to bless this union today and forevermore.
And now concerning your relationship with each other:
If problems arise, and from time to time they will, you are to work together to resolve them. Divorce is NOT the answer. If you remember little else about today, do remember the words from the Bible in Malachi 2:16, “For I hate divorce, says the Lord, the God of Israel.” So divorce should never even be an alternative in this marriage.
The Apostle Paul gave further instruction in his writings to the Corinthians concerning divorce. “But to the married I give instructions, not I, but the Lord, that the wife should not leave her husband and the husband should not send his wife away.”
The husband is called to love his wife as he loves his own body. If the husband truly loves his wife and shows that love to her, it’s only natural that that same love will be returned to the husband.
The Scripture says, “Let each individual among you also love his own wife even as himself; and let the wife see to it that she respect her husband.” This action of love and respect between the husband and wife go hand-in-hand.
_____, if you truly love ______, and demonstrate that love for her daily, she will naturally respect you for that and love you in return.
Love is the strongest agent in any relationship. For any relationship to be successful, there must be love. The Bible once again emphasizes this fact.
The Apostle Paul wrote about this feeling we call love. In his letter to the Corinthians , Paul tells us of the excellence of love. A marriage, especially, should be patterned around the characteristics of love.
Paul states that “love is patient.” Your relationship with each other will become stronger as you learn to be patient with each other. Learn to accept each other’s differences. After all, God made each of us as unique individuals. Learn to be patient with what you feel are your partner’s weaknesses.
The Scripture tells us that “love is kind.” Dealing with each other with kindness in mind will get each of you a lot farther in the relationship.
“Love is not jealous.” Jealousy has broken up more marriages than we can count. Jealousy speaks of a lack of trust between marriage partners. Jealousy is a tool of the devil. He uses it to drive us apart. Don’t let the devil have any part in this marriage. Trust is something that should be a vital part of any marriage.
We listen to the rest of these words from the Bible
about love and we pray that you will take them to
heart. “Love doesn’t demand it’s own way. Love is
not irritable, and it keeps no record of when it has been wronged. It is never glad about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out.
Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails. Now abides faith, hope, and love, these three; but the greatest of these is love.”
The love that has begun and continues today is what allows us to be at this celebration right now. We commend the two of you for your devotion and love to each other and to God. We pray that it will grow even stronger from this day forward.
So it is with these thoughts in mind that we now begin the holy covenant of marriage with the sharing of your sacred vows and the exchanging of rings.
Bride and Groom face each other holding hands.
And now we come to the sacred vows. As the two of you share these sacred vows with each other, remember the promise made by the psalmist and let this be your promise as well to God: “I will come to your temple with burnt offerings and fulfill my vows to you—vows my lips promised and my mouth spoke . ”
_____, repeat after me. I, _____, take thee, _____, to be my wedded wife, to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish. I pledge thee my faith till death do us part.
_____, repeat after me. I, _____, take thee, _____, to be my wedded husband, to have and to hold, from this forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish. I pledge thee my faith till death do us part.
As a token of your love for each other, you have brought rings.
Minister takes rings.
The wedding ring is the outward and visible sign of an inward and spiritual grace, signifying to all the uniting _____ and _____ in holy matrimony, through the Church of Jesus Christ our Lord.
The wedding ring is a symbol of marriage in at least two ways: the purity of the gold symbolizes the purity of your love for each other.
And looking at the ring, one can see that it is a continuous circle. It has no ending. This makes it an excellent symbol for what occurs in a marriage as two individual lives became one and continue to be one.. Joined together in a never-ending union.
Let these rings be a constant reminder to you that this ceremony is more than each of you renewing vows and exchanging rings. But be reminded that God is among us and is aware of the covenant you are making with Him. A covenant that is not to be broken.
Blessing of the rings.
Groom places ring on bride’s finger and repeats:
In token and pledge of my constant faith and
abiding love, with this ring I renew my pledge of faith to you, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
Bride places ring on groom’s finger and repeats:
In token and pledge of my constant faith and
abiding love, with this ring I renew my pledge of faith to you, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
**********
_____and_____, may your marriage continue to bring you all the fulfillment a marriage should bring and may the Lord give you patience, tolerance, and understanding.
May it be full of Joy and Laughter, as well as comfort and support. May you continue to know the true depth of love through loving one another.
Remember to always look to Jesus to refresh and strengthen you.
May you always need one another, but not out of weakness. Rejoice in and praise one another’s uniqueness, for God is the Creator of both male and
female and differences in personality.
May you continue to be faithful to one another in your thoughts and deeds and, above all, be faithful to Jesus. May you remember that each time you speak to one another you are talking to someone that God has claimed and told, “You are very special.”
May God renew your minds so you look to draw out the best and the potential in one another. Look for things to praise, never take one another for granted. Often say, “I love you,” and take not notice of little faults. Affirm one another, and believe your partner.
If you ever have differences that push you apart, may both of you have good sense enough to take the first step back toward the other. May the words, “You’re right,” and “Forgive me,” and “I forgive you” be close at hand.
As God is in our presence today, may His blessings be continual upon this marriage.
Family and friends, forasmuch as _____and _____ have consented together in renewing their commitment to one another, and have witnessed the same before God and this company; and have pledged their faith to each other by joining hands, exchanging sacred vows and rings,
By the power vested in me and under authority and in the presence of Almighty God, I now pronounce their renewal as husband and wife, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. As Jesus Christ proclaimed, “Those whom God hath joined together, let no one put asunder.”
Prayer of blessing on the marriage.
_____, you may kiss your wife.
_____, you may kiss your husband.
Ladies and Gentlemen, I am pleased to be able to present to you:
Mr. and Mrs. ______.
