Fifth Sunday of Easter

Fifth Sunday of Easter (C)

The Holy Marriage of James Barrett and Lindsey Morey

May 15, 2022

Text: John 16:12-22

Alleluia!  Christ is risen!  He is risen, indeed!  Alleluia!

            Perhaps you were a little surprised this Sunday morning to find yourself at a wedding.  At Church.  During the regular Divine Service.  It is true, it’s not the way most people do it.  But it is an option.  And, in fact, it is an especially appropriate option that I would encourage couples to at least consider.  In fact, though I loved our wedding all those years ago, and cherish the memory of it, Sarah and I have both said that if we had it to do all over again, we would consider doing this very thing.  And why?  Well, for one, it’s cheaper!  So there is that.  But that’s not really the reason.  It is because our whole life as Christians flows from, and is lived under the shadow of, the font, the pulpit, and the altar.  Which is to say, in Christ, by virtue of His gifts, which He lavishes upon us here, in His Church, in Word and Sacrament.  This is why nominal, or even non-Christians instinctually want a Church wedding.  But even then, the common conception is that the wedding is all about the couple, and particularly the bride, and so we do the wedding on Saturday, or some other day, so the Church service doesn’t get in the way.  See, we have it all backwards.  Actually, for the Christian, the wedding is not all about the bride or the couple.  It is all about Christ for the couple, and for His holy Bride, the Church, of which the Christian couple now becomes a living icon.  And so, while having a wedding on Saturday, or any other day, is not wrong, and may be preferable for other reasons, there really is no more appropriate time for a wedding than right here and now in the Sunday morning Divine Service, where Christ gives Himself to His Church. 

            Now, in addition to all I’ve just said, James and Lindsey are getting married here this morning for some very specific reasons, and I told them I’d make these reasons clear to you, because this is a novel concept to so many, and because we don’t want you to walk away with the wrong impressions.  The wedding this morning serves as James’ and Lindsey’s legal ceremony, but also the ceremony they want to share with their Church family.  Next month they are gathering in Montana for the grand affair they will mark each year as their anniversary.  And, unfortunately, I'll be at District Convention that week, so I can’t do it.  And though Pastor Larry Comer has graciously agreed to be with them to perform that ceremony, our dear friends at Christ the King in Coeur d’Alene have decided not to perform legal ceremonies for reasons that are probably very wise in our current cultural climate.  But all of that is to say, we were left with the question, what do we do for the legal marriage?  Find a justice of the peace?  City Hall?  A sea going vessel and a willing captain?  Nah, I’ll do it.  And why not here, now?  Because that not only solves our legal question, it also gives me, as a pastor, the opportunity to ask the congregation to consider, to reflect: Why not here, now, in the midst of the things of Christ, and in the presence of Christ’s dear Bride, His Body, His Holy People?

            Here is where Jesus does what He promises in our Holy Gospel, for Christian couples, and for all of us whom He has gathered together here by faith in His Name.  He pours out His Spirit, the Spirit of Truth, who guides us into all the truth, and delivers to us the things that the Father has bestowed on us through Jesus.  Can you think of anything more important for a married couple, never mind everyone else gathered here today, than the Holy Spirit with all His gifts?  It is the Spirit who blows in on the preaching of Jesus’ Word, who hovers over the waters of the font, who enlivens you with the body and blood of Jesus.  It is the Spirit who is calling you by the Gospel, enlightening you with His gifts, sanctifying, and keeping you in the one true faith of Jesus Christ, along with all the members of Christ’s holy Bride, the Church.  It is the Spirit who daily and richly forgives all your sins, and those of all believers, by virtue of Christ's sin-atoning death and justifying resurrection.  And so He raises you to new life now, by faith in Christ, and on the Last Day, when He will raise you and all the dead, bodily, and give eternal life to you and all believers in Christ.  This is most certainly true.  You receive these gifts, here and now, and who wouldn’t want to receive them at your wedding, as your holy marriage is sanctified (that is, consecrated, set apart, made holy for God) by the Word of God and by prayer (1 Tim. 4:5)?

            And so, here is wisdom for you, James and Lindsey, and for all married couples (and, of course, this applies to all of you who are not currently married as well, but this is extraordinarily important as it is applied to marriage): Go to Church.  Bring your bride to Church.  Bring your groom to Church.  Build your marriage on the things of Jesus you receive here at Church, which is really to say, Christ builds your marriage here, by His Spirit, by His Word, and by His Sacraments.  Bring your children, if God so blesses you, here to Church.  To Holy Baptism.  To Sunday School.  To Catechism Class.  The Divine Service, which is for them… it is not just for adults.  Bring them here, and bring each other here, every week, as often as possible, together.  Make it a habit.  Make it a routine.  It really is no burden.  It is all gift.  The old cliché is, “The family that prays together, stays together.”  That may be.  But better, though not as trite or memorable, “The family that receives all that Christ here gives, as He pours out the Spirit of His Father in the Means of Grace, stays together.”  And yes, one such gift is prayer.  But so also, forgiveness of sins, eternal life and salvation, faith, hope, love, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control (perhaps you’ve heard that list somewhere, the fruits of the Spirit, Gal. 5:22-23, all of which are vital for a healthy marriage… you receive them as gifts here), courage and strength for daily living, perseverance under the cross and suffering, the mutual conversation and consolation of your brothers and sisters in the Communion of Saints, holy wisdom, the resurrection of the body, the New Creation, the very Kingdom of God… and this isn’t even close to a complete list.  So, go to Church.  It is that simple.  Go. To. Church.  Got it?  Not simply because it is a duty (although it is, the Third Commandment), but because this is where the party is.  This is where the Lord is, for you.  This is where the wedding presents are unwrapped, for the blessed couple, and for the Bride for whom our Lord Jesus has given Himself up in love into the death of the cross, to sanctify her for Himself, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the Word, to present her to Himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, holy, and without blemish (Eph. 5:25-27). 

            What you need most for your marriage, and for your life whether you are married or not, is Jesus Christ and His Spirit here in the House and Family of our Father.  There are many things in this sinful world that hurt, and even break, marriages, and Christians are not immune from these things.  But in every case, these malicious things are things that first of all break our connection with Christ and the gifts that flow from Christ… whether it be adultery, or cruelty, or abuse, or false notions of what love is or isn’t, or whatever it may be.  It is all sin.  It is all a breaking off of the life-giving connection to Christ.  So what is the answer in every case?  Repent.  Which is to say, come back to Christ.  Go to Church.  To be forgiven.  And to receive the Spirit, the wisdom, and the fortitude to repair whatever is breaking the relationship with Christ and your spouse.  The only One who can repair a broken marriage is Christ, our ever-faithful Bridegroom.  He can, and He will, do just that.  It is He who gives marriage in the first place.  And He will strengthen your marriage.  And He will repair your marriage whenever it is broken or hurting.  And He will make your marriage ever new by His unending grace.  Be in Him.  Abide in Him.  Live in Him.  Your life as a Christian, and your life together, flows from the font, the pulpit, and the altar.  It is the water and blood of Jesus’ redeeming wounds.  It is Jesus’ resurrection life. 

            A wedding this morning for Church?  Why not?!  Every Divine Service is a little celebration of the marriage feast of the Lamb and His Bride, the Church.  And today, flowing from that, the holy marriage of James and Lindsey, united in Christ.

            Alleluia!  Christ is risen!  He is risen, indeed!  Alleluia!  In the Name of the Father, and of the Son X, and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.