WEDDING CEREMONY
Parents Seated:
Vocal Solo: Surely The Presence
Greeting:
Friends we are gathered here today in the sight of God, and in the presence of these witnesses, to join this man and this woman in Holy Matrimony; which is an honorable estate, instituted of God, and signifying unto us the mystical union which exists between Christ and His church; which holy estate Christ adorned and beautified with His presence in Cana of Galilee. It is therefore not to be entered into unadvisedly, but reverently, discreetly, and in the fear of God. Into this Holy Estate these two persons come to be joined.
Who Gives This Woman in Marriage?
Prayer
Message to Couple:
Reading from The Message—Ephesians 5:22-33
Wives, understand and support your husbands in ways that show your support for Christ. The husband provides leadership to his wife the way Christ does his church, not by domineering but by cherishing. So, just as the church submits to Christ as he exercises leadership, wives should likewise submit to their husbands.
Husbands go all out in your love for your wives, exactly as Christ did for the church—a love marked by giving, not getting. Christ’s love makes the church whole. His words evoke her beauty. Everything he does and says is designed to bring the best out of here, dressing her in dazzling white silk, radiant with holiness. And that is how husbands ought to love their wives.
That’s how Christ treats us, the church, since we are a part of his body. And this is why a man leaves his father and mother and cherishes his wife. No longer two, they become one flesh. This is a huge mystery, and I don’t pretend to understand it at all. What is clearest to me is the way Christ treats the church. And this provides a good picture of how each husband is to treat his wife, loving himself in loving her, and how each wife is to honor her husband.
To think that Paul compares the relationship you are now entering to the relationship of Christ and His church gives understanding as to why marriage is such a sacred thing.
The covenants that you are about to make to each other are sacred and holy. This afternoon I would like to suggest three foundational stones on which to build your marriage.
The first foundational stone is:
1. CONSECRATION: “Christ is the head of the church”, and as the head of the church so also the Lord of our lives; the chief cornerstone. As you stand here today you are making a vow to God. A vow to keep him as the center of your home. If your marriage is to achieve the level of intimacy and success that you desire it will because of your deep consecration to the Lordship of Jesus Christ in your life.
2. COMMITMENT: For anything to be accomplished there has to be those who are committed to the task. Nothing worthwhile ever comes easy. True love is a commitment. , welfare: her mental, emotional, spiritual, physical, and material are all yours to care for. Make her see that she is the most important person in your life. Provide for her that sense of peace and security that she will free her to be the wife that she wants to be for you.
____ , acknowledge _____ as the head of your home, as the one who wants nothing more than to make your joy complete.
I was reminded of this level of commitment just this week. Most of us have no problem in the commitment to the part of our vows that say, “For better”. It is the “for worse” part that gives us some trouble.
Many of us, if asked to define the picture of love would point to a day such as today. Two people dressed in their finest standing in front of friends committing to a lifetime of loving each other.
This week, while visiting in the hospital, I seen a wife feed her husband of many years, every bite of his meal because he was too weak to feed himself. Wipe his face gently with the napkin. Sit by his bed and just hold his hand.
That’s the picture of love. That kind of love comes from commitment—not jut a feeling.
3. COMMUNICATION: Tell each other that you love each other. Never take it for granted. Discover what means the most to each other and use that to say, perhaps without a spoken work, “I love you.”
Often it is not what is said—but how it is said that is important.
Sounds easy. Consecration, commitment, communication, but it will require hard work. If followed you will have many years of great joy.
Vocal Solo: There is Love
Promissory Vows:
Vows are important in God’s sight. Will you join hands and face each other and repeat after me your vows to each other.
MINSTER TO GROOM:
I, _____ take you _____ to be my wedded wife,/ in the sight of God and these guests./ I vow to love you as Christ loves his church,/ to honor and cherish you,/ and to always seek the Lord’s direction for our lives./
I vow to lead you spiritually and to make Christ the center of our home./
I commit myself to serve your needs and to protect you./
I vow to submit myself to Jesus Christ and you in this act of marriage,/ until Jesus comes again or until death takes us to our heavenly home.
BRIDE TO GROOM
I ____ , take your ______ to be my wedded husband,/ in the sight of God and these guests./ I vow to submit to you as to the Lord./ I acknowledge you as the head of our home just as Christ is the head of the church./
I will love you, honor you, and reverence you./
Believing that God has joined us together/ I will never leave you./ In the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ I give myself to be your wife.
Ring Exchange:
________what have you brought as a symbol of this marriage.
Would you place this ring on __________hand and repeat after me.
With this ring I thee wed /and all my earthly goods I thee endow,/ thus committing myself to a lifetime of loving you.
Unity Candle
(Groom and Bride take lighted candle.)
You are now entering into that holy estate of matrimony, which is the deepest mystery of the human experience and a type of Christ’s love for the church. Your lighted candles are a symbol of your individual lives, each with its own personality and interests. Marriage is an act of loving surrender. You no longer go your separate ways. As you bring the flames of your candle together,**** to light the candle of a larger and fuller life, your lives are fused as one.
“ For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be
united to his wife, and they will become one flesh.” Gen. 2:24
(blow out smaller candles)
Vocal Solo: Only God Could Love You More
Announcement:
For as much as ______ & _____ have consented together in holy wedlock, and have witnessed the same before God, and this company, and thereto have pledged their faith each to the other, and have declared the same by joining hands and the giving of a ring; I pronounce that they are husband and wife together in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Those whom God has joined together let not man put asunder.
Kiss the bride!
Benediction:
Benediction:
Father, I thank you first of all that you have called __________and ___________ into a personal relationship with you through the grace extended through your Son, Jesus. I thank you that they have each evidenced their faith individually in the days that have passed. Now as they bring their lives together may that faith be strengthened even more.
I thank you now that you have brought them into this marriage covenant with you. As they grow in their relationship together, may their days be filled with the joy that can only come from Your hand.
I thank you for the children that will grace this home. As these families are blended together, may it be done so with the anointing of your Holy Spirit.
Protect them and keep them in the days to come. They are weak. You are all powerful.
They lack wisdom, but you know all things. They can walk but one day at a time, but you see all of their tomorrows.
Under gird them with your promises, anoint them with Your Spirit, surround them by Your presence, and guide them in making good decisions that will bring honor and glory to your name.
May the love of Christ be constantly evident in their home and lives. In the name of Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord, AMEN.
Presentation:
I now present to you ___________________________
