Our Wedding Day is Coming – August 3, 2025

OUR WEDDING DAY IS COMING

Scripture Reading: Rev. 19: 5-9 and 21: 1-7

August 3, 2025

We’ve come to the last few chapters of the book of Revelation. We’ve been studying this book for five Sundays this summer. We’ve discovered how John writes in apocalyptic style using many symbols.

Now, let’s look at another symbol.  

We’re engaged. But our Wedding Day’s coming!

Think about the Scripture we just heard.

Who is this bride John is talking about?

The bride is us, you and I, the church. We are engaged to be married to God. Our wedding day with God is coming!

This is good news for the people John is writing to. These people are struggling. They’re facing persecution for their faith by the Roman government. They’re also facing significant temptations to compromise their faith through associating with the Roman government, commerce and culture. John has been challenging them to follow this admonition: When in Rome, do as the Christians do, not as the Romans do.

John is encouraging them by painting a picture of what is to come. He uses symbols and word pictures to describe the wedding day that is coming. He reminds them that life will be different following our wedding day with God.

John’s word of hope is good news for us.

What was the most difficult thing you faced this week?

 When our wedding day comes you won’t have to deal with that one ever again.

We struggle. We face the pains of deteriorating bodies. We face the death of loved ones. We hear about the injustices perpetuated by those in power in our country. We hear about the suffering, not only in this country, but around the world. It can be so depressing. But the good news is this: Our wedding day’s coming!

And when that wedding day comes, there will be no more aches in our muscles. There will be no more suffering for us or for those around us or for anyone in the world. There will be no more injustice. There will be no more death.

Lori and I were engaged the first week of August in 1977. We set the date of our wedding for May 27, 1978. We spent the next ten months living in college dorm rooms. Now, I’m sure that most of you enjoyed your time in college living in a dorm room. But as for me, it was hard.

My first two roommates both left college after living with me for just one semester. I was surprised how hard it was to get along with them.

My third roommate and I got along okay during my sophomore year. I think it might have had something to do with hope. I was engaged by that time. I knew my wedding day was coming. I couldn’t wait to move out of that dorm. I couldn’t wait to move into a home with Lori. It gave me hope.  

This earth is somewhat of a dorm. It can be often difficult living together with all the people around us. The good news is: our wedding day is coming. We’ll be able to move out of the dorm. We’ll be able to move into a home with God.

John says, “Yes, God will make God’s home among God’s people.”

I like traveling, but there’s always something special about coming back home. The familiar surroundings. The comfortable bed. The atmosphere of peace and quiet. A place of acceptance and encouragement. If home is this good on earth, I can’t wait till my home in heaven. That wedding day’s coming when we can really return home.

There were a few times when my relationship with Lori was strained during those ten months of engagement. I remember a time when I made a very foolish decision. It was Valentine’s Day. I wanted to be creative. I wanted to do something different than anyone else had done for Lori. I came up with what I thought was a great idea.

 I told Lori that I had a very special treat in store for her. She envisioned being serenaded by a group of my friends and I. She visualized some wonderfully public display of my love for her.

I met her at the commons and told her to follow me. I walked her into the bookstore. Then I shared my wonderfully creative idea, “Lori, because I love you so much, I want you to pick out any card you would like for yourself for Valentine’s Day.”

Needless to say, though it was original, it was not a good idea. I had really messed up.

Fortunately Lori loved me enough to forgive me.

Our wedding day with God is coming. We want to express our love for God, but often we mess up. We say and do the wrong thing. But God loves us enough to forgive us. God is so gracious. Actually, God is passionately in love with us.

I’m so thankful for Lori’s love. But I know that God loves with an even deeper love. I believe anytime we speak, God listens. Anytime we ask, God responds. Anytime a tear appears on our cheek, God is there to wipe it. As much as we might want to see God, God wants to see us more. God is looking forward to that wedding day even more than we are. God is hopelessly in love with us.

The wedding rehearsal for Lori and I was planned for seven o’clock on the Friday night before the wedding. It was the day after college classes were completed for the year. This meant Lori and I drove back home from school on the day of our rehearsal.

I always planned things tightly back then so we didn’t waste any time. I remember about halfway home hitting some rock on the road. The next thing I know, the tire blows. I slow the car down and bring it off to the side. I was in none too good a mood at this point. This wasn’t a part of the plan.

We work as quickly as we can to get the spare on and get back on the road. We arrive at my house, late. Eventually, we make it to the rehearsal, a little late, but fortunately not so late that my bride has left. We walk through the ceremony and start really getting excited. Our wedding day’s coming – soon.

Our wedding day with God is coming soon. It is time to rehearse. It’s time to walk through what we’ll be doing. There are some road hazards we might have to overcome. But we’re not going to let some roadblocks stop us from getting to the rehearsal on time. We know we won’t be much good at the wedding if we haven’t rehearsed ahead of time.

What does it mean to rehearse today?

I think that rehearsing for our wedding day with God involves prayer. It means talking through with God what we need to do. It means learning to listen to God and not just talk. It also means just sitting quietly with God in prayerful meditation. On our wedding day, there will be a time when we’ll just hold God’s hand. We can practice ahead of time. We can practice being quiet with God, holding God’s hand.

Rehearsing for our wedding day also involves Sabbath. It means taking one day a week to be with God in a special way. One day a week to practice doing those things that will happen at the wedding. Expressing to God our love. Listening to God express His passionate love for us. Worshipping and honoring each other.

The final event before the wedding day is the rehearsal dinner. It’s a time to share a meal together with both families and all the friends standing up in the wedding. It’s a time of coming together. We come from such different places, but we come together as one around the table. 

The rehearsal dinner is a time for remembering. We remember times that we’ve shared with our family and friends in the past. We remember times that we’ve shared as a couple. We remember and celebrate those times. We thank God for the memories and the times we’ve shared already.

It’s also a time to anticipate the future. We look forward to the wedding ceremony. We look forward to married life together. We look forward to how good life will be. We ask for God’s blessing on our future.

The final event Jesus shared with his disciples before his crucifixion was the Last Supper. Jesus invited us to continue to share this meal. And so for two thousand years Christians have been celebrating this rehearsal dinner. It is a rehearsal dinner in preparation for the wedding and the wedding feast.

It’s time to share a meal together with all our families and all our friends standing up in the wedding. It’s a time of coming together. We come from such different places, but we come together as one around the table. 

Our rehearsal dinner or communion is a time for remembering. We remember times that we’ve shared with our family and friends in the past. We remember times that we’ve shared with God. We remember and celebrate those times. We thank God for the memories and the times we’ve shared already.

Our rehearsal dinner or communion is also a time to anticipate the future. We look forward to the wedding ceremony with God. We look forward to married life together in heaven with God. We look forward to how good life will be. We ask for God’s blessing on our future.

The apostle Paul said in that famous love chapter, I Corinthians 13: “Now all we can see of God is like a cloudy picture in a mirror. Later we will see God face to face.”

We’re engaged to God right now. All we can see of God is like a cloudy picture in a mirror. But our wedding day’s coming. A veil will be lifted. We will see God face to face.

God’s looking forward to the day when we can be united with Them.

I’m looking forward to that day. Our wedding day’s coming!

But for now, we’re invited to share again in that rehearsal dinner.