Revelation Now :
Daily Devotional Bible Studies in Revelation
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The Wedding of the Lamb : Day 71 
Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory! For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready. Fine linen, bright and clean, was given her to wear. "Fine linen stands for the righteous acts of the saints.) Then the angel said to me, "Write: 'Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb!' " And he added, "These are the true words of God." At this I fell at his feet to worship him. But he said to me, "Do not do it! I am a fellow servant with you and with your brothers who hold to the testimony of Jesus. Worship The Almighty! For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy." (Revelation 19.7-10)
Rejoice and Be Glad
The final shout is the praise of the host of the redeemed, "Let us rejoice and be glad." It is like "The din of a vast concourse, the roar of a cataract, the roll of thunder." (1)
Once again John finds his inspiration in the words of Scripture. He is remembering, "The Lord reigns, let the earth rejoice." (2) Then, "Let us rejoice and be glad." In only one other place in the New Testament do these two verbs come together, in Jesus Christ's promise to the persecuted, "Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven" (3). It is as if the multitude of the redeemed sent up their shout of praise because the promise of Christ to his persecuted ones had come abundantly true.Marriage of the Lamb to his Bride
Next comes the marriage of the Lamb to his bride. "The wedding supper of the Lamb" stands for the final union between Jesus and his Church. The marriage symbolism ,"denotes the intimate and indissoluble communion of Christ with the community which he has purchased with his own blood"(4). It is a communion which is "first reached in fullness by the host of the martyrs."
The thought of the relationship between God and his people as a marriage goes far back into the Old Testament. Again and again the prophets thought of Israel as the chosen bride of God. "I will betroth you to me for ever," Hosea hears God say, "I will betroth you to me in righteousness" (5). "Your Maker is your husband, the Lord of hosts is his name," says Isaiah (6). Jeremiah hears God say, "Return, O faithless children, for I am your master" (7).
The marriage symbolism runs all through the Gospels.
The marriage feast (8)
The bride chamber and the wedding garment (9);
The sons of the bride chamber (10);
The bridegroom (11);
The friends of the bridegroom (12).
Paul speaks of himself as betrothing the Church like a pure virgin to Christ (13), and for him the relationship of Christ to his Church is the great model of the relationship of husband and wife (14).
Intimate Communion
This may seem to us a strange metaphor. But it conserves certain great truths. In any real marriage there must be four things which must also be in the relationship between the Christian and Christ.
There is love. A loveless marriage is a contradiction in terms.
There is intimate communion, so intimate that man and wife become one flesh. The relationship of the Christian and Christ must be the closest in all life.
There is joy. There is nothing like the joy of loving and of being loved. If Christianity does not bring joy, it does not bring anything.
There is fidelity. No marriage can last without fidelity, and the Christian must be as faithful to Jesus Christ as Jesus Christ is to him.
God the Almighty
This passage calls God by a certain name; and says that he has entered into his kingdom. God is "the Almighty". The word is "pantokrator", literally the one who controls all things. The significant thing about this great word is that it occurs ten times in the New Testament. Once it is in an Old Testament quotation (15) the other nine times are all in the Revelation (16). In other words, this is the characteristic title for God in the Revelation.
There was never a time in history in which such forces were drawn up against the Church as when the Revelation was written. Christians were called upon to undergo such suffering and to accept so continually the prospect of a cruel death. And yet in such times John calls God, "pantokrator," the Almighty!
Faith and Confidence
Here is faith and confidence. The whole point of this passage is that that faith and confidence are vindicated. The Church, the Bride of Christ, is clothed in fine linen, pure and shining. There is a contrast with the scarlet and gold of the great harlot. The white linen represents the good deeds of God's dedicated people. It is character which forms the robe which arrays the Bride of Christ.
Words to meditate on
How do our lives reflect the holiness and righteousness of God the Almighty?
Words to pray
"Majesty, worship his majesty."(17)
Notes
(1) H. B. Swete (2) Psalm 97:1 (3) Matthew 5:12 (4) R. H. Charles (5) Hosea 2:19,20 (6) Isaiah 54:5 (7) Jeremiah 3:14 (8) Matthew 22:2 (9) Matthew 22:10, 11 (10) Mark 2:19 (11) Mark 2:19; Matthew 25:1 (12) John 3:29 (13) 2 Corinthians 11:2 (14) Ephesians 5:21-33 (15) 2 Corinthians 6:18 (16) 1:8; 4:8; 11:17; 15:3; 16:7,14; 19:6,15; 21:22 (17)
"The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show his servants what must soon take place."
