Around the world, wedding ceremonies occur in various locations, from church buildings to local parks. In this post-pandemic time, destination weddings are still popular, and couples decide to invite their guests to a favourite locale, be it tropical or in view of a snow-capped mountain. Nontraditional? You bet. Biblically sanctioned? It depends.
What Do Traditional Christian Weddings Look Like?
Christian wedding customs have varied throughout history and largely rely upon the culture where the ceremony occurs. Time-honored U.S. traditions include pre-wedding bridal showers after which easy or elaborate ceremonies in a church constructing or chapel. The celebrations have grown to incorporate groom’s and couples’ showers to honor and equip the person and woman for married life.
The wedding ceremony begins with music chosen by the couple and is timed based on the arrival of the guests. Honored invitees (close friends and relations) are given front or near front row seating to witness the marriage. A priest or other officiate settles within the front center, facing the assembled guests, and the groom stands and faces the spectators in front of the clergyman and to his left (spectators’ right). Once the groom is in place, his groomsmen accompany the bridesmaids to the front of the sanctuary and separate on the front — the boys go to the groom’s side and the bridesmaids go to the left, all facing the sanctuary. A special song begins (as chosen by the bride and groom) and the daddy of the bride accompanies his daughter to the waiting groom.
The usual progression is the daddy gives his daughter to the groom by placing her right hand within the groom’s. The officiating minister then performs the ceremony, thereby marrying the couple after which presents them to the assemblage as, Mr. and Mrs. __________.
A reception held after the marriage gives family and friends an off-the-cuff solution to honor and have fun with the newly married couple. Receptions are either at the marriage venue itself or at a distant location.
What Does the Bible Say about Weddings?
As expected, the weddings mentioned within the Bible were Jewish, and without explicit details, we will glean the next:
The father of the groom selected the bride for his son. The betrothal period (Deuteronomy 20:7) lasted as much as a 12 months and it was a covenant before consummation. The groom would make all preparations for the marriage day, and upon his father’s approval, the marriage feast day (which lasted as much as seven days) commenced when the groom went for his bride and brought her back to the home he had prepared for them.
Must a Christian Get Married in a Church?
Herein lies the crux of the matter. A wedding between a person and a lady (as created by God), is a covenant, and vows made between the person and the lady are within the sight of God. Because God instituted marriage, it must conform to His guidelines and purposes.
As such, a Christian couple is to:
1. Make sure they’re equally yoked (2 Corinthians 6:14). Both the person and woman are to be true Christians, that’s, individuals who have surrendered to Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior based on the Gospel. And each is to hope about and for the spouse the Lord has for them.
2. Meet and pray with their pastor for marriage counseling so there may be a greater understanding of what a Christian marriage entails. Once their pastor approves based on what the Bible says, they’ll then move forward.
3. Secure a wedding license from the authorities God has placed over us for our protection (Romans 13:1). In the sight of God and men, a person and a lady are joined in holy matrimony. This demonstrates the betrothed are endeavoring to maintain themselves from every form of evil (1 Thessalonians 5:22), which a public declaration of their union partially assures (so far as being wedded under the law).
4. Arrange for a date and a venue for the marriage ceremony to be performed by their pastor (or one other Christian officiate). And be very discerning to be sure that the pastor provides a biblical wedding ceremony. A solid Bible-teaching pastor will expect this and can probably give the couple an enormous “Attaboy” for his or her care in ensuring they’re entering a covenant which glorifies the Lord.
Whether the couple has their wedding in a church or some place else, the vital factor is meeting all the standards listed within the 4 points above. In marriage and in all of life, we’re to honor the Lord (1 Corinthians 10:31). God established marriage when He created Eve as an acceptable helper for Adam (Genesis 2:20). When a lady marries the person God has chosen for her, she is obeying the Lord in her submission to her husband because the spiritual head of their household, and every should honor the opposite as they love the Lord first (see Ephesians 5).
We are the church, so true believers at all times get married “in” the church irrespective of the situation of the ceremony (assuming a Christian couple wouldn’t select a questionable site). Weddings performed in a church setting, nevertheless, have a special nature about them since it’s where the church gathers every week to worship the Lord. The sacred setting lends itself to the solemnity of the couple’s vows as they make their covenant to one another before the Lord. But to reiterate, it’s the hearts of the couple that matters as they arrive before God to pledge their love and loyalty until death separates them.
A gorgeous saying that exemplifies the vows because the rings are exchanged is, “Before God, I provide you with this ring as an indication of my vow, and I promise to honor you within the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.”
Will There Be Weddings in Heaven?
While our thoughts are on weddings and spouses, let’s have a look at what the Bible says will occur after we are in glory.
The Lord Jesus answers this query about marriage in heaven:
“At the resurrection people will neither marry nor be given in marriage; they might be just like the angels in heaven” (Matthew 22:29).
“But those that are considered worthy to achieve to that age and the resurrection from the dead, neither marry, nor are given in marriage; for neither can they die anymore, for they’re like angels, and are sons of God, being sons of the resurrection” (Luke 20:35-36).
Pastor Don Stewart adds, “Marriage, as we comprehend it, shouldn’t be crucial in heaven because there is no such thing as a need for continuing the race. The number of individuals in heaven won’t increase or decrease – it’s going to remain the identical. Believers might be married to Christ and have even deeper relationships than we have now ever experienced on the earth.”
Instead, believers from all earth’s ages might be married to Christ. “’Let us rejoice and exult and provides Him the glory, for the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready; to her it has been granted to be clothed with fantastic linen, shiny and pure’ – for the fantastic linen is the righteous deeds of the saints. And the angel said to me, ‘Write this: Blessed are those that are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb.’ And he said to me, ’These are true words of God’” (Revelation 19:7-9).
A marriage is a ravishing affirmation of a Christian couple’s covenant to one another before the Lord. It ought to be a joyous event for everybody involved, irrespective of where the marriage ceremony takes place. When God is in the middle of all of it, He is bound to be glorified.
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