I have come into my garden, my sister, my bride; I have gathered my myrrh with my spice. I have eaten my honeycomb and my honey; I have drunk my wine and my milk. [ Friends ] Eat, O friends, and drink; drink your fill, O lovers. (Song of Songs 5:1)
Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory! For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready. (Revelation 19:7)
You’ve got to see this. A friend from Grad School posted this to her Facebook account. As with the Sound of Music video, I defy you not to smile. I defy you to resist the urge to move. It’s like a Bollywood movie. What a great way to start a wedding. Check out my thoughts after the jump.
Let me say a couple of things. First, if you want a picture of a Biblical wedding, there you go. The wedding feast was a party. The betrothal (engagement) was long. So when the long-awaited day finally arrived, the groom and his friends would go as a group to the house of the bride and fetch her and her friends. Then they would go as one raucous procession to the place of the feast. Then the marriage would be consummated and a feast lasting several days would follow. There would be music and dancing and wine. Weddings were not solemn occasions. They were blowouts.
That’s why Jesus uses the image of a wedding when he’s asked why his disciples do not fast. He basically says, “Why should they fast? The groom (Jesus) is here; it’s time to party (Mark 2:18-20)!”
Second, I wonder if we would do well to make more room for rejoicing in our church services. In one sense, we are still waiting for the groom to return. In another sense, the promise has been made. It’s just a matter of time. I’m a pretty serious guy, so I don’t always go to the rejoicing stuff very naturally. But how would our times together benefit if we could?
Just a thought for you this Friday. Keep reading the Good News according to Mark. Can’t wait to see you all on Sunday morning.
Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory! For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready. (Revelation 19:7)
You’ve got to see this. A friend from Grad School posted this to her Facebook account. As with the Sound of Music video, I defy you not to smile. I defy you to resist the urge to move. It’s like a Bollywood movie. What a great way to start a wedding. Check out my thoughts after the jump.
Let me say a couple of things. First, if you want a picture of a Biblical wedding, there you go. The wedding feast was a party. The betrothal (engagement) was long. So when the long-awaited day finally arrived, the groom and his friends would go as a group to the house of the bride and fetch her and her friends. Then they would go as one raucous procession to the place of the feast. Then the marriage would be consummated and a feast lasting several days would follow. There would be music and dancing and wine. Weddings were not solemn occasions. They were blowouts.
That’s why Jesus uses the image of a wedding when he’s asked why his disciples do not fast. He basically says, “Why should they fast? The groom (Jesus) is here; it’s time to party (Mark 2:18-20)!”
Second, I wonder if we would do well to make more room for rejoicing in our church services. In one sense, we are still waiting for the groom to return. In another sense, the promise has been made. It’s just a matter of time. I’m a pretty serious guy, so I don’t always go to the rejoicing stuff very naturally. But how would our times together benefit if we could?
Just a thought for you this Friday. Keep reading the Good News according to Mark. Can’t wait to see you all on Sunday morning.