Were You Invited to the Wedding?

Is Your Name on the Guest List?

When was the last time that you were invited to a banquet-feast wedding? Weddings, extravagant or simple are delightful celebrations focusing on a man and woman who will make a covenant to live happily ever-after, agreeing to a marital union for life - AND God is their witness! On this eventful day after months of preparation (spiritual, emotional, physical, psychological, financial), enduring pandora’s box of struggles hoping to make this day a historical moment to reflect on as years go by as being the best day in their lives - has arrived! The second best day will be the birth or the adoption of children.

Everyone is in place; all eyes are on the door waiting for the bride and her father to enter. The radiant bride looks romantically lovely in her spotless-white gown, embellished with organza, satin, chiffon, crepe, velvet, lace, tulle, and/or polyester. Her flowing veil symbolizes modesty, chastity, humility, respect for the vow she will be giving, understanding the Sanctity of Marriage. In times past – pagan ancient Rome - veils were worn to keep the bride from evil spirits who could steal her happiness before or after the wedding. The veil when pulled back, the Priest or Deacon announces the couple as man and wife; the bride leaves her previous residence on Unmarried Place and starts her journey to Motherhood Boulevard, landscaped with the beauty of giving life. Marriage is a vocation for both the man and woman to love, serve, respect, and obey each other and together they will love, serve, respect, and obey God.

The music begins and the groom is elated, anxiously awaits to see this beautiful woman that God has given him, anticipating a life of happiness, joy, and the sound of tiny pitter-patter running through the house. Together they have discussed their hopes and dreams; together they will love each other, putting their own needs aside, serving each other. Psalm 128:1-4: Blessed are all who fear the LORD, and who walk in his ways. What your hands provide you will enjoy; you will be blessed and prosper: your wife will be like a fruitful vine within your home, your children like young olive plants around your table. Just so will the man be blessed who fears the Lord.

The invited guests who know the bride, groom, relatives from the family tree, friends of their families, people they work with, are enjoying the abundance of delicious food and fine wine to toast the new couple embarking on their first step on their journey of life. These happy memories are captured as the cameras are clicking! There is never a sad face in any of the pictures. No tears at a wedding, unless they are tears of joy – I did that through the whole service, could barely speak my vows!

There were three weddings mentioned in the Bible. The first was in Genesis. You guessed it - Adam and Eve. The difference here, the wedding couple were naked. Monetarily, Adam got off easy! God Presided over the Garden of Eden Wedding. Genesis 2:19-25: So the LORD God formed out of the ground all the wild animals and all the birds of the air, and he brought them to the man to see what he would call them; whatever the man called each living creature was then its name. The man gave names to all the tame animals, all the birds of the air, and all the wild animals; but none proved to be a helper suited to the man. So the LORD God cast a deep sleep on the man, and while he was asleep, he took out one of his ribs and closed up its place with flesh. The LORD God then built the rib that he had taken from the man into a woman. When he brought her to the man, the man said: “This one, at last, is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; This one shall be called ‘woman,’ for out of man this one has been taken.” That is why a man leaves his father and mother and clings to his wife, and the two of them become one body. The man and his wife were both naked, yet they felt no shame. 

The second wedding is a beautiful wedding in the Gospel of John chapter 2. At this wedding, the Wedding at Cana, was the beginning of Jesus’ Ministry, Proclaiming the Kingdom of God. Jesus’ first miracle draws the attention of his disciples! They knew Jesus had to be the Son of God, turning water into wine…not just a glass of wine but enough wine to last a week. The first wedding happened in the first book of the Old Testament scribed by Moses and God was the Celebrant. The second wedding, the New Testament, reveals the Sonship of Jesus! Weddings are especially important to God. In fact, it appears that God loves a good wedding and so does the Blessed Mother, who motivates her Son, to begin His Ministry. We are invited to read what happened at the second wedding. There were no tears at this wedding celebration!

Reading the inspired words of John 2:1-11: On the third day there was a wedding in Cana in Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. Jesus and his disciples were also invited to the wedding. When the wine ran short, the mother of Jesus said to him, “They have no wine.” [And] Jesus said to her, “Woman, how does your concern affect me? My hour has not yet come.” His mother said to the servers, “Do whatever he tells you.” Now there were six stone water jars there for Jewish ceremonial washings, each holding twenty to thirty gallons. Jesus told them, “Fill the jars with water.” So they filled them to the brim. Then he told them, “Draw some out now and take it to the headwaiter.” So they took it. And when the headwaiter tasted the water that had become wine, without knowing where it came from (although the servers who had drawn the water knew), the headwaiter called the bridegroom and said to him, “Everyone serves good wine first, and then when people have drunk freely, an inferior one; but you have kept the good wine until now.” Jesus did this as the beginning of his signs in Cana in Galilee and so revealed his glory, and his disciples began to believe in him.

 POINTS TO CONSIDER

        The wedding was still going on after 3 days. The reason for this is that they didn’t have planes, trains, or automobiles. Those invited to a wedding traveled for days to get there. Giving the travelers time to rest-up and enjoy the festivities - it was a week-long celebration!

        Jesus had his disciples there. Some of the disciples heard John the Evangelist’s testimony about Jesus, Jesus was the Messiah, the Son of God. Others, when Jesus approached them, they saw something in Jesus, dropped their nets or left the tax office to follow Him, knowing he was the Son of God.

        Either the bride, groom or both were related to the Blessed Mother and Jesus.

        Notice there is no mention of Saint Joseph, Jesus’ earthly father. Joseph had died.

        Mary is Jesus’ first disciple. She knew her Son was to begin His ministry.

        Mary led the wedding servers to Jesus.

        Mary believed that something supernatural would happen – where would Jesus find this much wine to fill the goblets for 4 more days?

        Mary told the servers, and our Blessed Mother tells us - “Do whatever Jesus says”.

        Jesus’ disciples witnessed the first miracle of Jesus.

        Mary was an intercessor without the couple even knowing it. She asked Jesus to make them wine.

        If our devotion is to Mary, she will watch over us and bring us to her Son.

        Jesus knew it was time to start His ministry and provided a joyous wedding celebration for everyone!

        This is the only place in scripture where Mary takes the lead. Mary is the Bride of the Holy Spirit found in (Luke 1:35). Mary encouraged Jesus to take the lead. Mary encourages us to follow her Son.

        Jesus did exactly what His Mother wanted Him to do. The wedding couple would’ve been embarrassed if they ran out of wine. Jesus saved the wedding – Jesus saves us!

The Third Wedding is a bit more complicated. In the Gospel of John 3:28-30 – the inspired writer quotes what John the Baptist said: You yourselves can testify that I said [that] I am not the Messiah, but that I was sent before him. The one who has the bride is the bridegroom; the best man, who stands and listens to him, rejoices greatly at the bridegroom’s voice. So this joy of mine has been made complete. He must increase; I must decrease.”

John the Baptist called Jesus the Bridegroom but who is the Bride? Ephesians 5:23-27, the Apostle Paul gives further clarification. For the husband is head of his wife just as Christ is head of the church, he himself the savior of the body. As the church is subordinate to Christ, so wives should be subordinate to their husbands in everything. Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ loved the church and handed himself over for her to sanctify her, cleansing her by the bath of water with the word, that he might present to himself the church in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish.  If the Church is the Bride of Christ – when and where is or was the wedding? We’re getting there! But first, we must realize how important the Bride and Groom are to God!

It wasn't too long after the Wedding at Cana that something awful happened; John the Baptist was beheaded. Was it for telling people they must believe in Jesus? Not exactly. Yes, they were to believe in Jesus, but John the Baptist’s message was to repent of your sins and be baptized. John even spoke to those in authority, a tetrarch, one who ruled Galilee and Perea. John’s convicting words to the ruler are found in Mark 6:18: “It is not lawful for you to have your brother’s wife”. Mark 6:14-29 gives the details to this horrid and bloody violence on a holy man of God, involving greed, revenge, a grudge, lust, debauchery, pride, selfish desires, selfish ambition, sex-trafficking of a minor, pedophilia, to name the sins that led to the murder of John the Baptist. Herod’s wife had John’s head on a platter. 

With the same Conviction that John the Baptist’s Godly concept about the Sanctity of Marriage, the Roman Catholic Church also protects the Sacrament of Holy Matrimony. Marriage, divorce, and remarriage of God’s people, the Jews, was a huge concern for John the Baptist and it is still one of the main focuses on the Roman Catholic Church today – preserving the sanctity of marriage, regardless of who you are, what faith you profess or what faith you don’t profess.

Annulments are not “Catholic Divorces”. Matthew 19:3-12 Jesus gives the ruling on marriage. Some Pharisees approached him, and tested him, saying, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any cause whatever?” He said in reply, “Have you not read that from the beginning the Creator ‘made them male and female’ and said, ‘For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh’? So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore, what God has joined together, no human being must separate.” They said to him, “Then why did Moses command that the man give the woman a bill of divorce and dismiss [her]?” He said to them, “Because of the hardness of your hearts Moses allowed you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was not so. I say to you, whoever divorces his wife (unless the marriage is unlawful) and marries another commits adultery.” [His] disciples said to him, “If that is the case of a man with his wife, it is better not to marry.” He answered, “Not all can accept [this] word, but only those to whom that is granted. Some are incapable of marriage because they were born so; some, because they were made so by others; some, because they have renounced marriage for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. Whoever can accept this ought to accept it.”

We have read about two weddings, where is the third? Reading above, we saw that Jesus was the main provider of fine wine at the Wedding at Cana. We also read that that Jesus is the Bridegroom, and the Church is the Bride. Where does or did this wedding take place? Let’s read about it in the last book that John the Evangelist wrote, a vision that he saw while praying, being in bonds for preaching the Gospel of Christ. Revelation 19:5-9: A voice coming from the throne said: “Praise our God, all you his servants, [and] you who revere him, small and great.” Then I heard something like the sound of a great multitude or the sound of rushing water or mighty peals of thunder, as they said: “Alleluia! The Lord has established his reign [our] God, the almighty. Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory. For the wedding day of the Lamb has come, his bride has made herself ready. She was allowed to wear a bright, clean linen garment.” (The linen represents the righteous deeds of the holy ones.) Then the angel said to me, “Write this: Blessed are those who have been called to the wedding feast of the Lamb.” And he said to me, “These words are true; they come from God.”

Brothers and Sisters what was written above takes place 365 days a year at every Mass around the globe. Heaven and Earth meet and are united from the time the priest leads the procession to the Altar, until the procession leaves the Sanctuary. The Eucharist is the Supper of the Lamb – We are Called to the Wedding Feast of the Lamb! Why are we not dressing for this Holy Meal – the Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of our Savior (read all of John chapter 6)? Why are we wearing shorts, tee shirts, tank tops, miniskirts, sloppy clothing – immodest or inappropriate - yet to go out to dinner to a fancy restaurant we pull out our good stuff? That’s another soapbox discussion for another day. God doesn’t have to accept you the way you are! My gosh – this is a wedding feast! What we see in Revelation chapter nineteen is a snapshot of our Mass – Heaven embraces the Earth! We need to be transformed by the renewing of our minds. Romans 12:1-2: I urge you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God, your spiritual worship. Do not conform yourselves to this age but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and pleasing and perfect.

Moving on to Revelation chapter 21, the inspired writer John concludes this earthly banquet with the Eternal Wedding Feast which happens with the Second Coming of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Are we prepared for the Second Coming? Jesus said: No one knows the hour or the day. Matthew 24:36: But of that day and hour no one knows, neither the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone. Jesus continues this dialogue and ends with Matthew 24:44: So too, you also must be prepared, for at an hour you do not expect, the Son of Man will come.

Revelation 21:1-8: When I saw a new heaven and a new earth. The former heaven and the former earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. I also saw the holy city, a new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, God’s dwelling is with the human race. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people and God himself will always be with them [as their God]. He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there shall be no more death or mourning, wailing or pain, [for] the old order has passed away.” The one who sat on the throne said, “Behold, I make all things new.” Then he said, “Write these words down, for they are trustworthy and true.” He said to me, “They are accomplished. I [am] the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. To the thirsty I will give a gift from the spring of life-giving water. The victor will inherit these gifts, and I shall be his God, and he will be my son. But as for cowards, the unfaithful, the depraved, murderers, the unchaste, sorcerers, idol-worshipers, and deceivers of every sort, their lot is in the burning pool of fire and sulfur, which is the second death.” 

What are the Second Coming Scriptures? Here are a few, found in Mark 13:35-37, Matthew 24:44, Luke 12:40, 1 Thessalonians 5:2-3, 2 Peter 3:9-10, and Revelation 3:3.  

Continuing with Revelation 21:9: One of the seven angels who held the seven bowls filled with the seven last plagues came and said to me, “Come here. I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb.”  Concluding with Revelation 21: 22-27: I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God almighty and the Lamb. The city had no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gave it light, and its lamp was the Lamb. The nations will walk by its light, and to it the kings of the earth will bring their treasure. During the day, its gates will never be shut, and there will be no night there. The treasure and wealth of the nations will be brought there, but nothing unclean will enter it, nor any[one] who does abominable things or tells lies. Only those will enter whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life.

Jesus said if you’re name is not written in the book of Life – you are not invited to the Wedding Feast of the Lamb – the third and last wedding in the Bible. Luke 10:20: Nevertheless, do not rejoice because the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice because your names are written in heaven. Revelation 20:13-15: The sea gave up its dead; then Death and Hades gave up their dead. All the dead were judged according to their deeds. Then Death and Hades were thrown into the pool of fire. (This pool of fire is the second death.) Anyone whose name was not found written in the book of life was thrown into the pool of fire.

Were you invited to the Wedding Feast of the Lamb?

Is your name written on the guest list?

It is never too late!

Bobby Speers - God Bless