In Matthew
9:15, Mark 2:19-20 and Luke 5:34-35, Jesus refers to himself as the Bridegroom
when he says, "How can the
guests of the bridegroom mourn while he is with them? The time will come when
the bridegroom will be taken from them; then they will fast.” Similarly in
John 3:29, John the Baptism points to Jesus and says, “The bride belongs to the bridegroom. The friend who attends the
bridegroom waits and listens for him, and is full of joy when he hears the
bridegroom's voice. That joy is mine, and it is now complete.”
Weddings
were then, and still are, joyful occasions. The celebration often lasted a
week. That is why it was such a problem when the wine ran out too soon during
the wedding in Cana (John 2). It was a social faux pas for the food or drink to run out
before the celebration was over. Luckily, Mary asked Jesus to help out with the
situation. (Some speculate that the bride or groom were family members, but
there is no proof one way or the other.) Even though Jesus did not want to start his ministry in such a way, he does as his mother asks and the steward was amazed "You have kept the good wine until now."
A Jewish husband was given the title
of ‘lord’, not ‘master’ of the household. The title ‘Lord’ implies head of the
house, leader of the family or tribe not overbearing power. The shame of
failing to provide enough would have been on this groom and on the family. He would
have had a hard time living it down. Jesus, in taking up his role as head of the 'Household of God' provides the necessary wine.
It
is interesting that Jesus in all the Gospels is referred to as the Bridegroom.
As we saw last week, we (humanity) were chosen by God as bride for the Holy
Bridegroom. In the Gospels Jesus emphasizes that relationship, himself. He
accepts the role of ‘lord’ of the household as the Bridegroom. Part of that
role is protection of the family. He hints at that when he notes, “time will come when the bridegroom will be
taken from them…”
Because
we are a Resurrection people, we know that the Holy Bridegroom DID step in and
redeem us by his own death. And because we are an Easter people, we believe
that he made a ‘full, perfect and sufficient sacrifice and offering’ as the old
(1928 Episcopal Book of Common Prayer) Eucharistic prayer says. The bride (we) was
rescued and redeemed by the actions of the Holy Bridegroom.
The
Book of Revelation carries the analogy to the natural conclusion by calling the
entire Church the Bride of Christ. Revelation 19:7 says “For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself
ready.” Two chapters later (Revelation 21:2), John says, “I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem,
coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for
her husband.” At the very end of the Bible, we hear the glorious invitation
where “the Spirit and the bride say,
"Come!" And let the one who hears say, "Come!" Let the one
who is thirsty come; and let the one who wishes take the free gift of the water
of life.” (Revelation 22:17) The bride, we as the gathered Church, are
finally united with the Holy Bridegroom to welcome all creation!
In
our role as the bride, living today, let us remember that we owe allegiance to
our Lord, the One who protects, cares for, guides, provides, and most
importantly Loves each of us!
In
July, we’ll consider the steps between being chosen and becoming a bride.
