THE WEDDING FEAST
by Pastor James May
One of the most exciting and joyous events in life is the marriage of two people who have decided to come together as husband and wife and build a life together. Around the world, this is a time of celebration.
Weddings can be as simple as standing before a Justice of the Peace or a Minister and saying the vows with only a few people to witness the event, or they can be as extravagant as you want provided you have the money to pay for it.
Last night, at around 7:00 PM, Mr. Donald Trump was married for the third time. One headline read, “Will the Third Time be the Charm for Trump?” His marriage to Melania Knauss, a Slovenian model, is being billed as the wedding of the century. That’s a pretty boastful statement considering that this century has only just begun. Nevertheless, this is going to be one very extravagant wedding. Even though trump calls it a “small private affair”, he has spent literally millions of dollars. I found it funny to hear that he was getting such good deals and saving so much money on his wedding.
Melania’s wedding dress was made with over 300 feet of material. It has a 13-foot train and a 16-foot veil. The dress is so big that the bride will sit on a stool during dinner because she won’t fit into a chair. Then she will change into a specially made gown for the reception that Trump paid somewhere between $100,000 and $200,000 for. (Of course he got a pretty sizable discount). Most of us could probably live for a few years on the discount alone.
I’m not intending to judge Mr. Trump. If he wants to have that kind of wedding and he can afford it, more power to him. The one thing I did find strange is that the Trumps aren’t going on a honeymoon. Donald Trump said that he wasn’t the vacationing type. He likes to work and make more money and doesn’t have time for honeymoons.
I wonder how long this marriage will last? It sounds like Mr. Trump is more in love with his money than his new wife already. For their sakes I hope I’m wrong in my opinion.
Regardless of how you feel about weddings though, they are one of the most important events in life.
The Trump weeding is such an event that it makes headlines around the world. Not only does he have a wedding cake that is 5 feet tall, and a set of rings valued at over $1.5 million (he did get a discount on them too), but there are between 350 and 500 guests invited. It would be interesting to see the elite of society as they gather for this wedding. There will be a lot of important and well-known people there including:
Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and his wife Maria Shriver, Catherine Zeta-Jones and Michael Douglas, Bruce Willis, Prince Charles, Clint Eastwood, Oprah Winfrey, David Letterman, Vic Damone, Liza Minnelli, Elton John, Billy Joel and Luciano Pavarotti, Shaquille O’Neal, Muhammad Ali, Larry King, Howard Stern, Pat O’Brien, New York Gov. George Pataki, and Henry and Nancy Kissinger.
What does Donald and Melania Trump’s wedding have to do with us this morning? Not really very much at all except to serve as an example of what an extravagant wedding is like.
Today I want to talk to you about another wedding that is soon going to happen. This isn’t going to be the “wedding of the century”. No, it’s going to be even bigger than that. The grandeur of the ceremony and the wealth that will go into putting this wedding together would take far more than the wealth of Donald Trump and Bill Gates combined. It has been in the planning stage since the beginning of time and the Bridegroom has spared no expense in preparing the ceremony, the feast, the wedding garments and the dwelling place for his bride.
Of course I’m talking about the “Marriage Supper of the Lamb”. The day is coming soon when Jesus Christ, the Bridegroom, will come back to take his Bride away for that great wedding in Heaven. What a feast that’s going to be!
I don’t know what kind of food there will be but I believe it’s going to make the best and most expensive food on earth taste like nothing. I don’t know if there will be a wedding cake but if there is I can imagine that it will be a lot bigger than 5 feet tall because there are going to be a lot of wedding guests and no one will go away hungry.
We won’t be wearing a Christian Dior wedding dress, just a Christian robe of Righteousness that will outshine the sun and make anything that this world has to offer look like the rags that they really are.
There’s a good chance that we won’t see any of the guests that Trump has at his wedding but I can’t wait to see the guest list at the “Marriage of Jesus and the Bride of Christ”.
Who do you think will be there?
Moses, Elijah, Elisha, King David, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Joshua, Peter, Paul, my grandparents, and all of our loved ones who are there waiting right now for our arrival, and on, and on the list goes.
All of the heroes of the faith will be there, clothed in their robes of righteousness as well. What a glad reunion that will be!
Yes, there is a wedding that is being planned right now in Heaven and I wouldn’t miss it for the world. Are you ready for it? Are you watching for it? Are you anxiously awaiting the Bridegroom?
There is a story in the Bible that talks about those who are waiting for the Bridegroom to come and call his Bride away. Let’s read about it.
Matthew 25:1-13, "Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom. And five of them were wise, and five were foolish. They that were foolish took their lamps, and took no oil with them: But the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps. While the bridegroom tarried, they all slumbered and slept. And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him. Then all those virgins arose, and trimmed their lamps. And the foolish said unto the wise, Give us of your oil; for our lamps are gone out. But the wise answered, saying, Not so; lest there be not enough for us and you: but go ye rather to them that sell, and buy for yourselves. And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came; and they that were ready went in with him to the marriage: and the door was shut. Afterward came also the other virgins, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us. But he answered and said, Verily I say unto you, I know you not. Watch therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh."
Here we see those who are invited to the wedding as they prepare for the arrival of the Bridegroom. They are watching, waiting and hoping for his soon arrival so that the Marriage Feast can begin.
But they are waiting in the night, in a dark place, where they are required to carry a light with them to light the way.
Do you see the parallel with where we are right now? Those who have accepted Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, have accepted the invitation, and given our consent to become the eternal Bride of Christ.
The love that Jesus has for his Bride is compared to that of a husband and wife many times throughout the Bible, but the love that Jesus has for each of us is far greater and more pure than any love that we can feel in this world. My love for my wife is very strong, and I love her more with each passing day. But as great as that love is, it doesn’t compare with the Love that Jesus has for us.
I know one thing for sure, Jesus’ love is far greater for his Bride that that of Donald Trump. The Honeymoon with Jesus and His Bride is going to last for eternity. Every day will be like the first day and the excitement of the union of Jesus and His Bride will never go away and will grow stronger forever.
But for now we must wait for his coming. Our job is to be prepared, to be watchful, vigilant and sober. We are to be awake and not found slumbering or sleeping. We are to keep our light burning and be sure that we have what it takes to stay the course until the Bridegroom comes.
If we were to take the Parable of the Ten Virgins at face value, we might could say that, by this example, nearly half the church won’t be ready when the Bridegroom comes. I don’t want to take that much liberty to make such a statement, but I wonder just how many will be ready? I fear that it will be far less than the half that is expressed in the parable.
We are living in a dark place. This world is filled with darkness and sin. We must carry the light of the gospel with us everywhere we go.
Psalms 119:105 says, " Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path."
The lamp that we must carry is nothing less than the Word of God that is hid in our hearts. But there is something else that is necessary too. You see, unless we have the oil to burn in that lamp, the light will no burn brightly, or maybe not at all.
What is that oil? Let us read a few scriptures that will tell us what that oil is.
Ephesians 1:18, "The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints,"
Hebrews 6:4, "For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost,"
Can you see the oil here? The oil that lights our lamp is the presence of the Holy Ghost in our life that opens our understanding so that we can know that we have hope in Christ, and that we have an inheritance in Heaven as the Bride of Christ!
If you have accepted Christ as your Savior, you have that oil right now. Every one of us has been given a measure of that oil to make our light shine.
But what are we doing with that oil, or with the presence of the Holy Ghost in us? Are we seeking to keep our heart trimmed of sin, and filled with the Holy Ghost, or are we ignoring the light that is dimming within us? Are we becoming more concerned with the things of darkness and allowing the power of the darkness of sin to lull us to sleep? Are we slumbering, living a life that is half awake in Jesus and keeping us from fully knowing Him like we should?
Something that I want to bring to your attention is that these were “virgins” that were waiting for their Bridegroom. They had been invited to the Wedding Feast and they had accepted the invitation of the Bridegroom. They were all watching and waiting, and they had all began with their lamps burning brightly.
The fact that they were virgins tells me that they had kept themselves pure before God. We are to be a virgin for the Lord, keeping ourselves unspotted from the world around us. We are to be a separated people, holy unto the Lord. And we are to be faithful only to Jesus, not surrendering ourselves to the devil to do what he would have us to do.
2 Peter 3:14, "Wherefore, beloved, seeing that ye look for such things, be diligent that ye may be found of him in peace, without spot, and blameless."
Ephesians 5:25-27, "Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it; That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish."
That’s what it means to be a virgin, to keep ourselves only unto the Lord as we watch and wait for the Bridegroom to come and take us to the Marriage Supper of the Lamb.
While we are waiting, there are many virgins who are slumbering and sleeping. They still remain faithful. They haven’t given themselves over to sin and darkness, but they are not being fervent in their duties to keep their lamps burning brightly either.
How many Christians aren’t trimming their lamps this morning? It’s not that they don’t care about the church. It’s not that they aren’t waiting for the Lord to come. It’s not that they don’t have their lamp with them. The fact is that they are simply slumbering and not doing everything they can to keep the light burning brightly. Little by little the light is growing dimmer. The oil is slowly going away. It’s all happening so slowly that they don’t even notice because they are asleep or slumbering in a state somewhere between awake and asleep. There awareness is affected greatly and they just don’t realize what’s happening to them.
People that are slumbering and sleeping are really hard to reach and to warn. They think they are just fine. After all they have the light, they have the lamp and their oil is still there, but the light is dim and they just don’t seem to notice. Sometimes it takes a real shaking to wake them up. God knows how to shake us and we can only hope that they will wake up and be ready when the Bridegroom comes.
Finally, in the Parable of the Ten Virgins, the Bridegroom came and the wedding feast was ready to begin. All of the virgins heard His call. All of the virgins knew what was happening. They were all awake now! There was no sleeping, no slumbering anymore; they were wide-awake and well aware that the wedding feast was upon them, but there was a problem.
Those virgins who had slumbered discovered that the oil was gone, their wicks were burned away and the light was gone out. They could not longer see their way to the house of the Bridegroom. There was no time to go get any now. They begged the others to give them some oil but that was impossible to do because there it is impossible for me to give you easily what can only be had through perseverance and commitment and remaining ever vigilant.
Philippians 2:12, "Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling."
Now comes the sad point for those foolish, slumbering and sleeping virgins. They were still virgins, still loved the Bridegroom, still expecting to enter in, but they couldn’t go because the oil and the light was gone from their lamps.
They knocked on the door, pleaded and begged to be allowed into the Wedding Feast. They even showed their engraved invitations but all to no avail. The door was closed and it would not be opened again.
Once chance – that’s all we will get. One chance to go with the Bridegroom when he comes! There will be no time to get right then. There will be no space for repentance in that moment. There will be no one “grand-fathered in” because of past experiences. Your lamp has to be burning brightly right at that moment or it will be too late.
What happened to those who slept and slumbered? They were cast into outer darkness where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth.
Matthew 8:12, "But the children of the kingdom shall be cast out into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth."
Matthew 22:12-14, "And he saith unto him, Friend, how camest thou in hither not having a wedding garment? And he was speechless. Then said the king to the servants, Bind him hand and foot, and take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. For many are called, but few are chosen."
Matthew 24:50-51, "The lord of that servant shall come in a day when he looketh not for him, and in an hour that he is not aware of, And shall cut him asunder, and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth."
Matthew 25:29-30, "For unto every one that hath shall be given, and he shall have abundance: but from him that hath not shall be taken away even that which he hath. And cast ye the unprofitable servant into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth."
Luke 13:26-28, "Then shall ye begin to say, We have eaten and drunk in thy presence, and thou hast taught in our streets. But he shall say, I tell you, I know you not whence ye are; depart from me, all ye workers of iniquity. There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when ye shall see Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, and all the prophets, in the kingdom of God, and you yourselves thrust out."
Where is this place?
It is a place of agony, extreme disappointment, and unending sorrow. It is a place where we are forever separated from the presence of the Bridegroom.
Sadly there are a lot of people who fall into this category this morning. There are a lot of people who will be standing outside looking in and they will cry bitter tears. They will try to repent, try to get right, try to change, but it will be too late. Forever and ever they will be turned away and they will spend eternity in the same place as the demons, the devil, and every sinner who dies without God.
What a sad state they will be in. To be so close, to be invited, to be faithful in their believe in the Bridegroom, and yet, to be shut out forever. How terrible eternity will be for them. They will see Heaven and all its beauty. They will witness the Marriage Supper of the Lamb. They will behold the Wedding Feast, but they will not be a part of it, ever.
There may be some here who have not received your invitation to the Wedding Feast yet. Right now I am extending to you that invitation. Will you accept it and be a part of the celebration in Heaven? The invitation is like no other Wedding Invitation you have ever seen. This one comes dipped in blood.
Jesus came into this world and died on a cross, shedding his blood for your sin. He loves you and wants you to be a part of his Wedding Feast. Come to Him today, confessing that you are a sinner, asking Jesus to forgive you and come into your heart to live. Surrender your life to Jesus and He will give you a new lamp and fill you will the oil of the Holy Ghost. Then you can join the rest of us as we wait and watch diligently for the coming of the Bridegroom.
If you have already received your invitation and accepted it, then check your life right now. Are you a slumbering, sleeping virgin? Is your lamp trimmed? Is the oil of the Holy Ghost full in you? Are you ready to meet the Bridegroom right now?
My greatest prayer, for myself, and for each of you, is that we will be found ready when Jesus, the Bridegroom, comes to take His church, The Bride of Christ, away for the Marriage Supper of the Lamb. That’s one Wedding Feast we can’t afford to miss.
