Word of Salvation – Vol. 46 No.25 – July 2001

 

Wedding of the Lamb

 

Sermon by Rev L Douma

on Revelation 19

Scripture Reading: Revelation 19

 

Beloved in the Lord. 

The story has been told that when Handel wrote the music for the Hallelujah Chorus, for the Handel’s Messiah, he was so overwhelmed by the music he was imagining in his mind, that he could no longer write down the music.  He stopped and cried at the wonder of his inspiration.  It gives us a sense of how John felt when heard the awesome song of victory we read of in our text.  John says in verse 1 “After this… I heard…”.  After what?

Well remember in chapters 17 and 18 John described his vision of “Babylon”, the prostitute dressed in purple, glittering with gold and jewels.  She symbolised the city, all of life, as a tempting beauty wanting to seduce the church away from her God.  You know, the temptations of money, power, luxuries, fame, even education, sports, politics, done in such a way that we forget God, ignore Him.  But Jesus, as “Lord of lords and King of Kings”, brought about the destruction of Babylon.

In chapter 18 we see Babylon deserted, left like a ghost town for the spirits and vultures.  Everything is destroyed.  Like the huge rock thrown into the sea, there’s the big splash and then nothing.  All the world was in mourning.  At least half of chapter 18 is lament, a song of weeping and wailing as the kings, merchants and sailors cry, “woe, woe”, because they have lost everything.

Our text is now the last part of the vision of Babylon.  But what a difference we see.  Now, in complete contrast, powerful contrast, to the lament of the unbelieving world, is this song of praise and overwhelming joy.  Verse 1: “After this (says John) I heard what sounded like the roar of a great multitude in heaven shouting…!”  The entire heavenly hosts are so joyous that, again and again, they shout at the top of their voices.  They sing in ecstasy, almost to breaking point, as they repeat the refrain “Hallelujah… hallelujah.”

Hallelujah is Hebrew for “Praise the Lord”.  It’s repeated four times in this scene – the only time we find the word in the New Testament – though the Psalms, of course, are full of Hallelujahs.  The repeated refrain sets the tone for this singing.  It’s about giving all honour and praise to God.  We notice that the Hallelujah chorus is sung by an amazing heavenly choir.  There are different parts that respond to each other.  The singing goes up and down with emotion until it bursts into a full crescendo.

The chorus opens with an exciting full voiced choir of thousands and thousands of angels, singing at the top of their voices – verses 1 and 2, “…shouting: Hallelujah.  Salvation and glory and power belong to our God, for true and just are his judgments.  He has condemned the great prostitute who corrupted the earth by her adulteries.  He has avenged on her the blood of his servants.”

We see there are three things that the choir rejoices in.

First, the angels praise God because “salvation and glory and power belong to God.”  It’s not Babylon that has the power, nor the beast, nor Satan, nor whatever power tries to take God’s people from Him, God has the power.  And in destroying Babylon, God has revealed His awesome power.  The glory of His being has been displayed for all to see.  And in destroying Babylon and its seductive power, God has shown the salvation of His people.  To bring the glorious kingdom of heaven, God must first destroy sin and evil.

Secondly, in destroying Babylon, “the great prostitute”, God has shown His justice.  God’s judgments are always “true and just”.  He does not make mistakes.  He knows very well the sin-driven spiritual forces behind so much of economics, politics, science, etc, that seek to shove God out of his own creation.  Babylon’s destruction is not an arbitrary thing.  It’s a matter of justice.

So is the third thing we see here: “He has avenged on her the blood of his servants.”  Remember the martyrs under the throne in Chapter 6 verse 10, “called out in a loud voice.  ‘How long, Sovereign Lord, holy and true, until you judge the inhabitants of the earth and avenge our blood?’”

Some churches are fundraising with the Bible League – “for the persecuted”.  We have read in the devotional material of those persecuted and killed simply because they express Christ as Lord.  The persecutors seem to get away with it.  But they won’t.  They won’t.  God will deal with everyone who lays a hand to his children.  He will “avenge the blood of his servants.”

What a deeply pastoral note John could give here to the persecuted and suffering churches he wrote to in his time – and the church in our day.  Salvation will come.  Sin and evil will be dealt with.  And when that day is seen in John’s vision, it’s no wonder that heaven sings even more.  Verse 3, “And again they shouted, ‘Hallelujah!’ The smoke from her goes up forever and ever.”  Babylon is gone for good.  Never again will it rise to seduce and harm the church.  Sin and its terrible consequences are finished – gone forever.  “It will be remembered…  no more,” says Isaiah 65.

Now after this powerful opening chorus from the heavenly hosts we see in verse 4, “the twenty four elders and the four living creatures”.  Remember from chapter 4 they symbolise the whole church and the whole creation.  Now it’s their turn to sing their praise of God.  We see that they are so overwhelmed with thanksgiving that they fall down before the throne and worship God.  They sing in a more subdued tone but with a lot more emotion, deep emotion.  For the church suffered under sin – its own and its persecution.  And the whole of creation “groaned” under the curse of sin.  But now it’s gone.  In their overcome state they sing only two words: “Amen!” – “so shall it be”, and “Hallelujah” – again, “Praise God!”

At this emotional moment all is quiet, as a soloist sings from the throne (vs 5).  It’s a beautiful clear voice that calls all creation to praise God.  It calls for worship because the great moment in all history has come.  “Praise our God, all you his servants, you who fear him, both great and small.”  Everything, everybody, from the highest to the smallest and seemingly insignificant – all are summoned to glorify God.

Then in answer to the call of the soloist the entire creation responds.  “Hallelujah, for our Lord God Almighty reigns.”  God’s power has not always been evident in this broken world.  We, too, have felt the pain of sin.  We, too, have had our doubts.  But now on the last day His Lordship is absolutely clear to all.  The Almighty has revealed Himself in the full majesty of His royal glory and power.

We notice that the final strain of this chorus is so incredible that John is searching for words to describe it.  Notice as he says three times, “I heard what sounded like a great multitude, like the roar of rushing waters, like the loud peal of thunder, shouting.”

Now, notice what they sing.  It’s no longer looking back at what has happened to Babylon.  Sin and evil is destroyed, totally removed from the scene, which now opens the way for the fulfilment of all the promises of God – that to which the whole Word of God is aimed.  Verse 7: “Let us…  give God glory!  For the wedding of the Lamb has come and His bride has made herself ready.”

When we read through the Bible we are struck how again and again the relationship between God and His people, or Christ and the Church, is compared with the love relationship between a bridegroom and his bride.  Now to understand the symbolism here, it’s important to understand the elements of a Jewish wedding.

First there is the betrothal.  It was more than our idea of an engagement.  In the presence of witnesses the marriage terms were accepted.  The couple were legally husband and wife.  Then there was the interval between the betrothal and the wedding feast.  During that time the groom had to pay the dowry to the father of the bride.  Sometimes that could take a while.  After the dowry was paid, there was the procession at the close of the interval.  The bride made herself ready, beautifully dressed.

The groom would get dressed in his best and, accompanied by his friends who would sing and bear torches, he would proceed to his bride’s house.  Then together there would be a returning procession to the groom’s house, and then, finally, the wedding feast which would go for seven days.

Now the church is “betrothed” to Christ.  And Jesus, by His death and resurrection, has paid the dowry for her.  He has bought his bride.  As Paul writes, “you are not your own, you were bought at a price”.  The hymn of Samuel Stone says it well:

“From heaven he came and sought her
 To be His holy bride;
 With His own blood her bought her,
 And for her life He died…”

We, today, are now in the period of the interval.  The entire period between Christ’s first coming and His coming again is the period where the church prepares herself.  In faith she “hears his footsteps”.  She knows the time is soon.  So she gets “herself ready”.  She puts on “fine linen, bright and clean.” (John tells us that the “fine linen stands for the righteous acts of the saints.”)  She is very different to Babylon.  The bride is sanctified.  She desires to live God’s way, to make God known in all of her living.  She encourages all people to come to God – not seduce them away from God.

But her righteousness is not her doing.  We see that the “fine linen, bright and clean was given her to wear”.  Yes, this is the day the whole church is yearning and aching for.  It’s the day when her groom will come and take her to the wedding feast.  On that day she will look absolutely radiant.  She will look so beautiful because she will be holy, sinless, pure.  On that day all her suffering and struggle, all her sin and ugliness, all her waiting and longing will be over.  It will be a glorious day for her.

But the praise that day will not be on her – and nor would she want it.  For she knows her beauty is “given”.  Her groom is the “Lamb”.  And throughout the Old Testament and Revelation, it’s the “Lamb that has been slain.”  So that’s where the praise is – with Jesus who has made it all happen – the complete restoration of the creation.  That’s why the glorious multitude says, “Give him glory!  For the wedding of the Lamb has come.”  The church is justified by Christ’s blood.  She is sanctified by Christ’s Spirit.  The church’s beauty on this wonderful day is all from her bridegroom.

Now the wedding feast begins.  But it will last longer than the usual seven days.  This wedding feast will last all eternity.  This is what it’s all about, the striving for the kingdom in all of living, being faithful to Jesus, growing closer in communion and fellowship with our Lord.  This is why we do it.  To be at the wedding feast.  And just what it’s going to be like we shall see in chapter 21, as there again we see the bride beautifully dressed for her husband.

But now back to reality.  Will this wonderful, awesome day be something you and I will take part in?  In verse 9 we read, “Then the angel said to me, write blessed are those who are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb…!”  The symbolism keeps moving.  The church as a whole is the radiant bride.  We as individuals are symbolised as the wedding guests.  The most important invitation you can have in your life – is to be invited to this “wedding supper of the Lamb.”  Have you been invited?  Will you be there on that day feasting with bride and groom, or left lamenting over Babylon the whore?  It may all seem a bit much this invitation – this event.  That’s why the angel added: “These are the true words of God.”

We see that John is over-awed at all this.  He falls down to worship the angel who showed him the vision.  Think of all he has seen in this vision.  All the seductive power and influence of Babylon the whore.  All the pomp and power of Satan’s activity in the world.  And then it’s all destroyed – with the long lament of all the devotees of the city.  The monstrous power of evil which tyrannises the world – is that all it will come to?  As Shakespeare said of Julius Caesar, “Dost thou lie so low?  Are all thy conquests, glories, triumphs, spoils, shrunk to this little measure?”  Is that all that is left of what has seduced and hounded the church all its life?

Seeing Babylon in that light sets perspective doesn’t it.  It restores our sense of proportion, and so, our courage and hope.  Christian — get in there and live for Christ – witness for Him, do all your work and play for Him.

John is astonished at the glory of the wedding day of the Lord.  He is astonished at how it will truly be for the church, for all who follow Christ.  Are we awestruck with what we see here in revelation?  John was told not to worship the angel – rather worship God.  We, too, should be driven to our knees, not at the vision, but in awe of God who will indeed bring all this to happen.

Trust Him, for He will do it.

Amen.