A Wedding Message

Would [the parents of the bride], and [the parents of the groom], please stand.

You have acknowledged that your children are a heritage from the Lord, and you have faithfully given of yourselves to bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord. Now, they have come to a time of mature Christian faith, and they are prepared to enter into responsible union as husband and wife. Do you now recognise the leadership of the Spirit of Christ in their lives, and do you now enter into their joy, giving your blessing to their marriage?

If so, would you please say, “We do.”

Happy and holy the hour when a man and a woman come together to seek the blessing of Almighty God on their union as husband and wife. Blessed and beautiful the day when that man and that woman share their commitment of love and faith with the people of God. And we are privileged to share in the public avowals of commitment and love shared by [the bride and groom].

[The groom and bride] will this day exchange vows, openly pledging and promising to share the future together, accepting whatever may lie ahead. They are convinced that they did not meet by change; they believe God directed them to be in the centre of His will, and it is His will that has helped them find one another.

As friends, as family, as well-wishers, it is a privilege to be here this day. However, our privilege also confers responsibility. You join in this celebration because you affirm this union, and you want to bless the new relationship formalised in these rites. You are saying, in a most tangible way, that you are willing to share yourselves in loving friendship, and that you will support them in time of need when they seek your help. Please be seated.

MEDITATIONS ON MARRIAGE

For an old man such as myself, this is a strange day in which we live. I am old enough that I can remember when everyone in our society stressed the permanence of the marriage union. Did married people never have a problem in those halcyon days that seem so long past? Of course, couples had conflicts and experienced tension. You can’t rub two hands together without generating heat. And two people moving in opposite directions can’t live together without generating heat. However, in the used-to-be time of which I am speaking, couples were encouraged to work through their differences. And they were assured that if they just hung in there, things would get better—and they did.

I recall a day, not that long past, when almost everyone living in our culture understood that stability in the home was necessary for a strong nation. That view of the stability of marriage flowed from a morality that was based upon an accepted faith that the teachings of the Word of God were valid and necessary for the endurance of the nation. Again, almost everyone understood that the nation was greater than themselves, and they weren’t willing to inflate their own importance at the expense of the nation.

But things have changed. It is a new day, and now the base desires of a distinct minority are callously imposed upon society. Our culture promotes a new morality that has no relation to that which marked us as a nation in earlier days. Now, the couple that holds to a view of marriage that reflects what is written in the Word of God are an exception. In this new cultural norm, the couple that refuses to give credence to the new morality, holding rather to their determination to honour the Risen Lord of Glory through their lives are the exception. Through their determination, they demonstrate courage and valour that once characterised Canada nationally.

Perhaps we should ask what the Bible does say concerning marriage. To make this determination, we will need to go back to the creation of our first parents. God has brought all things into being through His Word. The Lord GOD concluded creation week by creating the man Adam and the woman Eve. God gives a summary view of their creation saying. “‘Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.’”

“So, God created man in his own image,

in the image of God he created him;

male and female he created them.

“And God blessed them. And God said to them, ‘Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.’ And God said, ‘Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit. You shall have them for food. And to every beast of the earth and to every bird of the heavens and to everything that creeps on the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given every green plant for food” [GENESIS 1:26-30].