Christians Are To Be Preparing for a
Heavenly Wedding Day
Revelation 19
May 5, 2013 PM
Pastor Craig Ledbetter
Revelation 19:7
Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him:
for the marriage of the Lamb is come,
and his wife hath made herself ready.
I.
Introduction (Revelation
19:7)
A.
Weddings are a lot of fun!
B.
A Wedding can be a load of work!
1.
Think for a moment of all the
work, planning, preparation that goes on in the planning stages of any wedding
2.
The Bride gets stuck with most of
the planning! The men just kind of
go along for the ride.
3.
Think with me for a quick moment
as to all that needs to be involved in getting ready for a wedding:
a.
Choosing the bridal party – who
will be a part of this most wonderful event
b.
Getting the wedding dress and
bridal party dresses
c.
Compiling a guest list
d.
Finding the place for the
reception
e.
Choosing the meal
f.
Invitations designed, printed,
addressed and mailed out
g.
Flowers ordered
h.
Cake ordered
i.
Decorations
j.
Planning the wedding service
itself
k.
And 1000 other things
C.
Now, as you know, the thing
called “church”, (that group of saved, born again believers) is referred to as
the future “Bride of Christ”
1.
One of these days a trumpet will
sound and …
2.
The church (all of us alive at
the time) will be raptured (pulled out of this world) 1 Thes 4:16,17)
3.
And then there will be 7 years of
tribulation on this earth (Mt 24:15-21; Rev 4 - 19)
a.
Two parts of 3 ½ years each
b.
The Tribulation
c.
The GREAT Tribulation
4.
At that same time, all New
Testament believers (the church) go trough the Judgment Seat of Christ (2Cor
5:10; Mt 16:27)
a.
A time of rewarding all the
faithfulness of God’s people to His will
b.
And a time of loss of rewards
5.
But after the Judgment Seat,
there is going to be a “WEDDING of WEDDINGS” in Heaven!
a.
The Church will be married to the
Bridegroom, the LORD JESUS CHRIST
b.
When is says we are the bride of
Jesus Christ, it is describing our relationship with Jesus
1)
It does not described us as
slaves, peons, dirt-balls, subjects, or possessions!
2)
But as sons and daughters of God,
as kings and priests, AND as His Bride – most precious of relationship
D.
OH what a glorious wedding that
will be.
1.
There has been some pretty
spectacular weddings on this earth (Kings, Dignitaries, Princes, Wealthy people)
2.
BUT those weddings were nothing
compared to soon coming wedding day of the simple Church, and the LORD JESUS
CHRIST!
a.
Not the BUILDINGS that people
normally refer to as Churches
b.
Not the hierarchies – popes,
bishops, cardinals, etc
c.
But the group of humble,
obedient, living, breathing believers in the Lord Jesus Christ!
E.
Now, allow me to take you to my
text for the message tonight
II.
Background (Read Rev
19:1-8 comment on each verse as read)
A.
The Fall of
1.
What is all the excitement in
heaven about?
a.
The FALL of
b.
There is little info in
Revelation concerning the How and When this Babylonian city is re-BUILT.
Just be sure that God is very concerned with its FALL! (Rev 18:1-2)
2.
The world will mourn the
destruction of
a.
Loss of revenue
b.
The entire world economy will be
ruined by this one event
3.
BUT when it falls, there is great
rejoicing in heaven (19:1)
a.
Why: 18:5 (sinful, therefore she
is overthrown b/c of the magnitude of her sinfulness), 18:9 (the world
leadership has been in bed with her),
b.
Therefore heaven rejoices at her
fall & destruction – 18:20- end
c.
All of heaven is shouting for
joy! That tells me that all of
heaven is still interested in what is going on here on earth.
Think of all the prophets like Jeremiah, Ezek, Isaiah, Dan, etc…they have
waited so long for the fulfillment of their words and preaching.
d.
From one end of heaven to the
other rejoicing is going on…the flags are run the poles that adorn the turrets
and towers along the walls of Jasper!
e.
The Hallelujah Chorus is sung in
heaven that day b/c the judgment of the Great Whore has finally come.
f.
Think about it today.
Evil and filth and wickedness is so entrenched in OUR society today…no
amount of “legislation” can root it out…the rot has gone too deep.
Think how YOU would shout and praise if it happened today in your day!
g.
Those 4 & 20 elders do a bit of
shouting as well! They did it the 1st
time in Rev 4:10-11 when the Throne of God is introduced in Revelation… and they
appear now at the end of the book to shout a hearty “AMEN!”
There they are, prostrate, on their faces before God in worship.
B.
The Voice of a Great
Multitude (See verses 5-6)
1.
Hey!
You may be in the “minority” today here on earth, BUT one day (soon) you
will not only be in the Majority, but you will be THE ONLY!
In other words, there will be NO-ONE and NOTHING that opposes you as a
Christian, or opposes truth or righteousness.
2.
Halleluiah!
3.
Everything and everyone in the
universe is going to be shouting in heaven.
That shout will reverberate and roll and echo and grow, and swell and
resound until it will shake every star in the heavens! That will be one
thunderous roar of “Hallelujah!”
4.
People like victories! Well, that
will be one that day!
C.
Now in the remainder of this
chapter we see TWO main events taking place.
I will speak briefly of one and focus on the other.
1.
A WEDDING (Rev 19:7-9)
2.
A WAR (Rev 19:11-16)
3.
The War will be a one sided war -
Armageddon. The Lamb of God…the
Lord Jesus Christ will do all the fighting and Christians will just go along for
the ride (see the verses)
D.
But tonight let me focus on
the WEDDING.
1.
Revelation 19:7
Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of
the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready.
a.
Let us be glad and rejoice (why?
The wedding day has finally arrived)
b.
Give honour to him (HE is the
only one to whom any honour is due)
c.
For the marriage of the Lamb is
come (Whoopie! What our soul has been waiting for)
d.
His wife hath made herself READY
(made HERSELF ready)
2.
I’d like to spend our time on
this point …the Bride (church, Christians) getting READY for the wedding Day.
a.
The BRIDGROOM is the LORD JESUS
CHRIST Himself
b.
The BRIDE is the Church.
Saved, Born again, Blood bought children of God by the miracle of God
called being Born Again!
c.
There is much the bride will do
to get ready for their wedding day:
1)
Some will go on a diet so they
look better in their dress.
2)
They get their hair done…nails
done
3)
They pick out their wedding dress
etc
4)
In other words, they do a bunch
of things in order to be a beautiful bride.
5)
When that Bride walks down the
aisle of the church all eyes are on her.
She is the centre of everyone’s attention
6)
She wants to be as beautiful as
she can be…
a)
NOT FOR THE WITNESSES AND THE
guests, BUT FOR THE MAN AT THE END OF THAT AISLE… HER BRIDEGROOM
b)
She only has her eyes upon him.
c)
And guess what, the GROOM ONLY
HAS HIS EYES UPON HER.
d)
TO HIM SHE IS THE MOST BEAUTIFUL
WOMAN IN THE WORLD (just as Adam said to Eve, “You are the only woman in the
world for me.”
E.
Now let me say a few things to
the church tonight concerning your getting ready for your wedding day that is
coming, when you meet your LORD
JESUS CHRIST.
III.
Message
A.
We Are Reserved for Jesus
Christ - We are Not Married Yet
1.
First of all, you who are saved
here tonight are not the bride yet.
a.
Yes, you are in that you are part
of the bride of Christ, but, the wedding day has not arrived yet.
b.
Technically you are a Future
bride.
2.
You Have been Espoused (2 Cor
11:1-2)
a.
The Church is ESPOUSED.
What does that mean?
b.
Do you notice the word SPOUSE in
there? It means a married person!
1)
We say “my mate” now, or my
“partner”
2)
God says she, he is your SPOUSE
c.
ESPOUSE, (Mary was espoused to
Joseph. Matt 1:)
1)
To betroth; to promise or engage
in marriage, by contract in writing, or by some pledge;
2)
Espoused is like our term for
“engagement” but it is much stronger in that you could break off an “engagement”
and not marry that person. BUT
espoused is so strong a word when God uses it that it is almost as if you were
married but yet you are not. It is
a binding eternal promise from God to His future Bride that He WILL marry you…
no doubts about it.
3.
Now I need to say this.
Just because you are a church attender, or member does NOT mean that you
will be at that heavenly wedding to Christ.
a.
You MUST be born again to be part
of that Bride.
b.
Have YOU been saved?
c.
If not, you have only an eternity
in Hell and then the
d.
What are you waiting for?
Get READY! Get saved!
e.
The LORD JESUS CHRIST is INVITING
you to Himself. Just as a man asks
a woman to be his wife. Have you
ever accepted the Lords invitation to be wed to Him?
f.
Revelation 3:20
Behold, I stand at the door, and knock:
if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup
with him, and he with me.
g.
John 1:12
4.
The church (not the building, or
religious system, but the people) is the dearest object in all the universe to
the Lord Jesus, for she is His bride.
5.
At the moment of our salvation we
are espoused to Him.
a.
He puts and engagement ring on
our finger so to speak, and we receive the earnest (the first gift) of the Holy
Spirit to seal our future in Heaven with Him. (Eph 1:13)
6.
He is coming BACK to get us! See
John 14:1-3. He is preparing your and my mansion, and He IS coming again to
catch His Bride away for the wedding Day
B.
We Are Supposed to Be, and
Remain a Chaste Virgin (2Cor 11:2)
1.
The church is referred to as a
“Chaste Virgin”
2.
This has tremendous application
for us today.
a.
First let me say this… As far as
the Lord is concerned we already ARE a chaste virgin in that HE has washed, and
cleansed and purified us when we got saved.
b.
The filthiness of our sin and
iniquity has been purged, and we have been made pure in His sight.
c.
Humanly speaking we are still
sinners… BUT as far as God is concerned we have been cleansed by the blood of
the Lamb
1)
Before you and I were saved we
were selling ourselves to this world…prostituting ourselves to this world.
2)
We were far from being a chaste
virgin.
3.
We are supposed to REMAIN a
clean, virgin
a.
CHASTE:
Pure, clean, undefiled, incorrupt, virtuous
b.
VIRGIN: a woman who has never
known a man, pure, untouched, unused
4.
Are You Washed and Clean, or
LOST?
a.
This world only USES people for
their own satisfaction. See 2 Sam
13:1…
b.
This world will use you and tell
you they love you and want to be your friend, etc, BUT just as soon as they get
from you what they want they will cast you aside like a piece of dirt.
5.
Part of getting ready, is not
only getting saved, but STAYING Clean!
C.
We Are Supposed to be ROBED /
Dressed for the Occasion (See Rev 19:8)
1.
Go back to Rev 19 again and
notice. Not only is the Bride
READY, but she is also ROBED!
a.
See Eph 5: 26
That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the
word, 27 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.
b.
You see, there is a righteousness
that gets imputed to you at the day of Salvation.
That righteousness is not EARNED by you, but is given freely by Grace
from God. It is HIS righteousness
that gets you into heaven.
2.
BUT there are also some
garments…a wedding dress if you will, that is earned/purchased BY YOU as a
Christian by the life that you live as a chaste virgin.
a.
Listen. Humanly speaking, no man
wants to marry used material.
b.
Listen to me young ladies in
here.
c.
A man will tell you anything you
want to here so he can defile you and use you.
d.
SAVE YOURSELF for your husband.
(same holds true for your young men in here, read Proverbs 5-7)
3.
The Kind of WEDDING ROBE we
should want to wear!
a.
Fine White Linen (Rev 19:8)
1)
That’s why weddings usually have
a bride wearing WHITE!
2)
Her garments are the fine linen
of righteous living on this earth.
3)
Are you living your life in
preparation to be GRANTED some fine white linen when you arrive to heaven?
4)
Those garments will be handed out
at the Judgment Seat of Christ
5)
These garments that she is
arrayed in at that day, that beautify the bride, are said to be given to her
because of good works, righteous living.
In other words, she has not played the whore on her “intended” Bridegroom
(LORD JESUS CHRIST) by defiling herself with this world’s allurement. Spiritual
adultery - Hosea
6)
We live in this day and age of
the “NEW MORALITY”.
7)
Our society is drenched with SEX,
VIOLENCE, PORNOGRAPHY, DRUNKENNESS, LEUDNESS, UNGODLY DRESS AND SPEECH
8)
Christians see almost no problem
with much of that anymore!
b.
Modest Apparel (1Tim 2:9)
1)
It is not for showing off!
2)
Modest means “orderly,
well-arranged, decent, respectable.” It is an outward sign of an inward chastity
or purity.
3)
So many weddings today are way
out of bounds!
4)
Should be embarrassed,
shamefaced!
5)
We dress for no one else but HIM!
All of us!
c.
At the same time, we need to
dress up in a Glorious outfit (Eph 5:27)
1)
Pleasing in HIS sight (Rev 4:11)
2)
Dressed for OUR HUSBAND (Rev
21:2)
3)
It should stand out from the
world – be different than the darkness and blandness of the world
d.
Without Spot or Wrinkle (Eph
5:27)
1)
The church was made pure, without
spot or wrinkle, at the cross (
2)
But it gets wrinkly, and stained
while waiting for the wedding
a)
What do we see in our own lives
with our own eyes? A heart and life full of spots, wrinkles, and blemishes!
b)
And what do we see in ourselves
every day, but sin and filth and folly?
c)
What evil is there in the world
that is not in us, and in our hearts?
d)
If we would be honest, we see
STAINS, SPOTS, and WRINKLES
e)
THANK GOD that spots can be
removed, and stains can be washed out!
f)
To be free from spot or wrinkle
means to be free from any and all sin, and be holy and blameless before God.
That’s a good goal! The right goal!
1.
All the stains need to have been
removed by the wedding
2.
All the wrinkles ironed out
3)
Maybe you are spending a lot of
effort trying to iron out many past wrong choices and actions, but HEY! It is
worth it!
a)
Forgive all past hurts – make
sure you go back and personally forgive
That will wash away several long-standing stains
b)
Humble yourself to the people
around you – it will iron out some wrinkles – come down off your pedestal
c)
Allow God to direct your life
through the pressures TO IRON OUT SOME WRINKLES that you may not know are there!
Yield to the will of God
d)
Simplify – if you are carrying a
load of baggage around your clean new outfit, they will wrinkle it! Get rid of
as much baggage as possible!
D.
The RECEPTION – Marriage
Supper, and then some!
1.
The Marriage Supper follows the
Judgment Seat! Rev 19:9
2.
Then of course there is a 1,000
year honeymoon (called the Millennium)!
Imagine a honeymoon that lasts 1000 years!
Wow!
3.
But that will only be the
beginning, because eternal life goes on for eternity.
You talk about a FUTURE.
What a glorious time is ahead for us as Christ’s bride!
4.
If only we could get our eyes and
heart off of all the muck and mire of this would and plant our attention firmly
on our coming Bridegroom and all that is eternal!
IV.
Conclusion
A.
One of these days a trumpet will
sound and …
B.
The church (all of us alive at
the time) will be raptured (pulled out of this world)
C.
While 7 years of tribulation go
on, on this earth …
D.
At that same time, all New
Testament believers (the church) go trough the Judgment Seat of Christ
E.
But after the Judgment Seat,
there is going to be a “WEDDING of WEDDINGS” in Heaven!
F.
OH what a glorious wedding that
will be.
G.
The Bride (church,
Christians) is supposed to be getting READY for the wedding Day.
1.
You MUST be born again to be part
of that Bride. To be included!
2.
Have YOU been saved? What are you
waiting for? Get READY!
Get saved!
H.
We Are Supposed to Be, and
Remain a Chaste Virgin
1.
We are supposed to REMAIN a
clean, virgin
2.
Are You Washed and Clean, or
LOST?
I.
We Are Supposed to be ROBED /
Dressed for the Occasion
1.
Fine White Linen
2.
Modest Apparel
3.
A Glorious outfit
4.
Without Spot or Wrinkle
a.
Forgive all past hurts – make
sure you go back and personally forgive
That will wash away several long-standing stains
b.
Humble yourself to the people
around you – it will iron out some wrinkles – come down off your pedestal
c.
Allow God to direct your life
through the pressures TO IRON OUT SOME WRINKLES that you may not know are there!
Yield to the will of God
d.
Simplify – if you are carrying a
load of baggage around your clean new outfit, they will wrinkle it! Get rid of
as much baggage as possible!
J.
If only we could get our
eyes and heart off of all the muck and mire of this would and plant our
attention firmly on our coming Bridegroom and all that is eternal!