Matthew and Anita’s Wedding Ceremony

A Ten-Minute Sermon

Outline

The Garden

Song of Solomon

The Garden

I love that this wedding ceremony is happening in a garden, because the first ever marriage was in the garden of Eden, which literally means “pleasure”. The garden was a place full of the beautiful presence of God. It was a place of rest, purity, authority, and partnership. Adam and Eve began their marriage in the presence of God, resting in His promises, pure in every way, confident in their authority as God’s children, and ready to partner with one another and the mission of God. They had love, purpose, peace, joy, and their whole lives ahead of them.

We know that they sinned and corruption entered creation, but Jesus has dealt with the sin and death and brought us back to the garden.

Today, we are witnessing Matthew and Anita enter into the marriage covenant in this beautiful garden. The beautiful presence of Jesus is here. They are both resting in the faithfulness of God. They are pure, and confident in their God-given calls and authority, and are ready to accomplish the mission that God has for them, and I am grateful to be a part of this wonderful journey.

I want to turn our attention to one passage in

Genesis 2:23–24 NASB95

The man said, “This is now bone of my bones, And flesh of my flesh; She shall be called Woman, Because she was taken out of Man.” For this reason a man shall leave his father and his mother, and be joined to his wife; and they shall become one flesh.

We see the man (ish) called his wife isha, which is directly tied to the Hebrew word for man. Adam saw her as a part of him, not a separate person. Later on after the fall he calls her Eve, because of what she does (mother of all the living). In other words, sin distorted Adam’s view of his wife, where he used to see her for who she is, but afterwards he sees her for what she does or can produce.

Matthew, you are called to always see Anita for who she is, your beloved bride, a part of you, and not for what she does. There will be times when she isn’t feeling well and cannot do much, but that’s when she will need you to love her for who she is and not what produces.

Anita, you are called to be his helpmate, and there will definitely be some times where he needs it! This is not a lower place, as this word in Hebrew is used primarily to talk about God being man’s helper. When he needs to be encouraged, you are right there to lift him up. When he needs someone to comfort him, you are by his side. When he needs to be humbled, you can definitely help with that as well.

This is God’s design. Matthew will sacrificially love and care for you, wash you with truth, whisper how beautiful you are, and protect you, and Anita will sacrificially respect and serve Matthew, reminding him who he is, being a needed support and incredible friend.

From this day on, you will no longer be two, but one flesh.

Song of Solomon

To end this word, let us turn our attention to the greatest book on love ever to be written; Song of Solomon.

Solomon wrote 1,005 songs in his lifetime, but this was the greatest one of them all. It describes the beautiful and passionate love that a man and a woman have for each other, and ultimately foreshadows Christ’s love for His Bride, the church.

I’ll spare you all some of the details, and just highlight a few important points from the book:

The story opens with a beautiful bride who loves Solomon, but is struggling with insecurities. Over time Solomon’s love keeps pursuing her, washing her with truth, hoping to win her heart completely over. It is a love that does not quit. Eventually, in chapter 2 verse 1, the Shulamite is won over and begins to see herself the way Solomon does.

Matthew, this is the love that you are called to walk in. It is a love that never quits or fails, that pursues until it heals and conquers. Even if insecurities rise up in her, you love her unto wholeness.

Anita, you’re to live vulnerable with your heart and receive the love that Matthew will nourish you with. You’re already such a strong and godly woman, but he along with the Lord will make you even more strong as your marriage progresses.

In chapter four we see the wedding day. The entire chapter is filled with Solomon obsessing over his beautiful and noble bride from head to toe. He could find no fault in her.

Matthew, do you see any fault in Anita today? I hope not. I charge you to see her this way until death do you part. She will always be your perfect bride.

Throughout the rest of the book we see that there love doesn’t weaken or grow cold, but get stronger all-the-more. In the last chapter we read:

Song of Solomon 8:6 NASB95

“Put me like a seal over your heart, Like a seal on your arm. For love is as strong as death, Jealousy is as severe as Sheol; Its flashes are flashes of fire, The very flame of the Lord.

Some marriages peak shortly after the wedding, but that is not God’s will and will not be the case here. I pray that your love only grows stronger as you get older, to where you are more in love in your eighties than in your twenties.