The Marriage Supper of the Lamb ~ Revelation 19:6-10

October 11, 2015 ~ New City Church of Calgary ~ Pastor John Ferguson
Recent Audiobook: How to Read Literature Like a Professor, Every story is about one thing: a quest. That is, a
person goes on a quest in which they must overcome seemingly insurmountable odds, defeat evil, often with
the guy getting the girl in the end. We love these stories. The better told the more inspiring, the more we love
them.
Think about popular culture and stories we watch: they are all about a quest of some sort.
The hero journey + some version of ..and they lived happily ever after.
I believe that one of the reasons why these stories resonate so deeply within us is b/c stories express the
longing each one of us has for our own stories; and maybe we love good stories b/c they give us hope for
something what we all long for, namely a better world.
Question: What if there really is a fairytale ending to all of history? Too good to be true?
The Scriptures are a story of how Gods beautiful creation was vandalized by the entrance of evil and how
the promise of the ultimate defeat of evil is given in the opening pages. The story turns on the crucifixion of
the hero of the story, Jesus of Nazareth, and and his resurrection from the dead deals a deathblow to our
great enemy.
But what many people dont know is that Bible ends with a glorious wedding in which the hero becomes a
Groom who marries his Bridedescribed as the Churchand together they live happily ever after.
If you are new to Christianity, I want to invite you to listen in on the end of the story of Scripture as it gives us a
cosmic view of where all history is heading with an unrelenting determination. And for those who are followers
of Jesus, I want you to take a deeper look at what the Bible describes portrays as a great celebration for the
agesa celebration with the fairytale ending that is designed to give you an unshakeable hope for your own
story, no matter what twists and turns you might encounter on the way.
The Marriage Supper of the Lamb ~ Revelation 19:6-10
Rev. 19:6 Then I heard what seemed to be the voice of a great multitude, like the roar of many waters
and like the sound of mighty peals of thunder, crying out, Hallelujah! For the Lord our God the
Almighty reigns. 7 Let us rejoice and exult and give him the glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has
come, and his Bride has made herself ready.
1. The Lamb is a description of the Lord Jesus Christ.
(1) John 1:29, Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!
(2) Revelation uses lamb to describe Jesus Christ 28x
(3) Rev. 5:11-13, Then I looked, and I heard around the throne and the living creatures and the elders
the voice of many angels, numbering myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands, saying with
a loud voice,Worthy is the Lamb who was slain,to receive power and wealth and wisdom and
might and honor and glory and blessing! And I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and
under the earth and in the sea, and all that is in them, saying,To him who sits on the throne and to
the Lamb be blessing and honor and glory and might forever and ever!
2. for the marriage of the Lamb has come.

Page 1 of 3

(1) Eph 5:31, Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and the
two shall become one flesh. This mystery is profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and
the Church.
Mystery = something that was once hidden but now revealed. From the beginning, God created
love, marriage, & sexuality to teach us about the union & communion of Christ with his church.
(2) John Piper, This Momentary Marriage: A Parable of Permanence: marriage, in its deepest
meaning, is a copy of Christ and the church. If you want to understand Gods meaning for marriage,
you have to grasp that we are dealing with a copy of an original, a metaphor of a greater reality, a
parable and a greater truth. The original, the reality, the truth refer toChrists marriage to the
church. And the copy, the metaphor, the parable refer to human marriage between a husband and a
wife.
7 and his Bride has made herself ready; it was granted her to clothe herself with fine linen, bright
and purefor the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints.
1.

Ephesians 2:8-10, For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not from your own
doing; it is the gift of God, not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his
workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should
walk in them.

2. workmanship = a work of art; Gods masterpiece.

9 And the angel said to me, Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the
Lamb. And he said to me, These are the true words of God.
1. Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.
The invitation is the good news about the life, death, & resurrection of Jesus.
Isaiah 25, On this mountain, the Lord of hosts will make for all peoples a feast of rich food, a
feast of well-aged wine, of rich food full of marrow, of aged wine well-refined.
Isaiah 55, Come, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and he who has no money, come,
buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. Why do you spend your
money for that which is not bread, and your labor for that which does not satisfy. Listen diligently
to me, and eat what is good, and delight yourselves in rich food.
2. These words are true. And they demand a response.
The Parable of the Great Banquet in Luke 14:12-24
3. The Apostle John was caught up in this vision, and overwhelmed, and needed to worship.
10 Then I fell down at his feet to worship him, and he said to me, You must not do that! I am a fellow
servant with you and your brothers who hold to the testimony of Jesus. Worship God.
1. We all long for glory. Thats why were moved by the beauty of a sunset reflecting off a lake in the
mountains. Thats why were thrilled by a perfectly executed downfield pass for a touchdown. Thats
what grabs hold of our souls when music grabs hold of us.
2. We are created for worship, that is, we are created to set the desires of our heart upon God. Thats why
the angel directs the Apostle to aim the delights and affections of his heart to the worship of God.
Page 2 of 3

Main Idea: The mystery of love, marriage, & sexuality points to the greater reality
of the marriage supper of the Lamb & His Bride.
1. Accept the invitation.
(1) It is no small thing to receive an invitation. But the invitation does you no good unless you act on it.
(2) You RSVP by believing the gospel of Jesus Christ.
2. Adorn the gospel.
(1) Titus 2:10b-14, that in everything they may adorn the doctrine of God our Savior. For the grace of
God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly
passions, and to live self- controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, waiting for our blessed
hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to
redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are
zealous for good works.
(2) For the Christian, good works are not viewed as a way to earn salvation or to get God off your back, but
rather, it is the natural overflow of a heart that has been dazzled by the extravagant grace of God that
has been lavished on us by Christ.
3. Heighten your anticipation.
(1) CS Lewis The Last Battle, And as He spoke, He no longer looked to them like a lion; but the things
that began to happen after that were so great and beautiful that I cannot write them. And for us this the
end of all the stories, and we can most truly say that they all lived happily ever after. But for them it was
only the beginning of the real story. All their life in this world and all their adventures in Narnia had only
been the cover and the title page: now at last they were beginning Chapter One of the Great Story
which no one on earth has read: which goes on for ever: in which every chapter is better than the one
before.
(2) 1 Corinthians 2:9, No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared
for those who love.
(3) Eternal life, the gift that Christ gives to his bride, is a steadily increasing, always expanding, never
ending experience of joy where one moment of ecstasy breaks open to another even more
breathtaking. Just when you think it cannot get any better, you are blown away with more wonder, love
and praise, b/c as Psalm 16 tells us, in Gods presence there is fulness of joy and at his right hand are
pleasures forevermore.

Conclusion: The story of the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ is the story with the perfect ending, one in
which the Bride and the Groom live happily ever after.
NCC, may you be a people who not long with great anticipation for that Great Celebration
the Marriage Supper of the Lamb, and may the Great Story strengthen you
and give you indestructible hope.

Page 3 of 3