It may be possible that everyone in the world is aware of the marriage of Will and Kate. Prince William Mountbatten-Windsor, the heir apparent to the British throne, married Kate Middleton on April 29th, 2011 to an audience of 2 billion worldwide through television and internet. The event dominated the news for several weeks. Every nuance of the nuptials was analyzed, particularly the dresses worn by each of the female participants. Yet, for all its entertainment appeal, the wedding had much to commend itself to modern Christians, and especially to Christians who are considering a wedding themselves. Perhaps it is an appropriate consideration for Light of Life, as well. Soon we’ll have a “permanent” sanctuary. Undoubtedly there will be those who will stop in and see if “the reverend can do a wedding”.
William is the future head of the church of England. This legacy of the middle ages is hard for Americans to understand. It harks from a time when a regent held spiritual responsibility in his land. As the future King of England, Prince William submitted himself to a wedding under the ordinance of and under the blessing of God, and particularly the Triune God of the Christian Scriptures, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Now, I know nothing of the private faith of William and Kate. But I do know that they had enough respect for the God of their fathers that they were married in a ceremony that was very publicly Christian.
I took the time to view the wedding, (on replay). I was impressed. Here are some things that we can learn from their wedding:
· The wedding praised Jesus Christ. Hymns of praise were sung and these hymns were particularly Christ-centered. They did not play popular songs about their romance, and they did not play lyric-less music for the sake of the tune (although there was plenty of instrumental music for prelude and postlude). They sang the great hymn “Guide me ever, Great Redeemer”, a song about the Redeemer, Jesus Christ. Another was “Love Divine, All Love Excelling”
Jesus thou art all compassion, pure, unbounded love thou art;
visit us with thy salvation; enter every trembling heart.
And William and Kate SANG THE SONGS! They participated in the praise of God.
· They prayed to God, asking God’s blessing on their marriage. A recognition that God’s power and guidance are needed for a marriage to survive and prosper were an important part of the wedding. And, when the prayers were said, the couple reverently faced the altar and bowed their heads.
· They read the scriptures. For me the eloquent reading of Romans 12 by Kate's brother James was a highlight of the ceremony. This recognition that the God of the Holy Scriptures speaks to us through his Word was most welcomed. There are many famous British poets who have written on love and marriage (Shakespeare comes to mind). None of these were cited. But God spoke to the bride and groom.
· The wedding wasn’t about them. In the middle of the ceremony, they took a seat and sang a hymn of praise to God. They received instruction from God as their pastor applied God’s Word to them in the wedding message. They did not feel a need to “personalize” the service or make it about their romance, their personalities, or their potential.
There was plenty of fluff and feathers to the event, too. The media reported everything about all who were invited, what they wore, and who was snubbed. Networks hired lip readers to analyze what the groom said to the his brother at the altar. But even with all this we can learn something here.
As Light of Life enters a new era and faces couples who want to marry, we will encourage them toward the highest standards as we participate with them in a public ceremony that has profound spiritual implications. The weddings at Light of Life will:
· Be distinctly Christian. We praise God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit and will invoke that name and that name only during weddings. If couples have never worshipped with us and never want to worship with us, this is not the place for their wedding.
· Use hymns and songs that praise God and ask His blessing on the wedding. Music that falls short of this is as out of place in a wedding ceremony as in any other worship service of the church (for a wedding ceremony is a worship service). Music focusing on the romance of the couple is best saved for the reception.
· Pray God’s blessing on the couple and encourage the congregation to join in these prayers.
· Read the Scriptures as the basis for life together in Christ.
· Be all about Jesus, and not about the bride and groom. Yes, there will still be plenty to ooh and ah about. And weddings will be full of laughter and joyfulness. God can delight in all these. And our delight is most appropriate when we are delighted in what he is delighted about, that marriage is a blessed gift from him. That’s how we will do weddings.
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