Beyond Scriptural investigation of signs and facts. Beyond charts and ominous associations of the Great Tribulation. Beyond Premillennialism, Amillennialism, Postmillennialism, and endless debates concerning the timing of the rapture of the Church. Eschatology, foremost, is about a bridegroom receiving His’ bride. The Great Tribulation, in other words, is like a knight rescuing a princess from the fiery dragon’s keep. Jesus paid the ultimate price to secure the banquet feast, the wedding supper of the Lamb. It is important to analyze Scripture in the pursuit securing Biblical truth. However, the study of eschatology loses its sense of reality when disconnected from the Biblical narrative of the love of God. It should go without saying, no one in their right mind looks forward to the events of the Great Tribulation as though the intensity of this time should be ineffective upon the weight of the human soul. Nonetheless, as the pressure of chaos and global reckoning press the fabric of humanity, those who love Him will grow in affection and anticipation of their blessed hope, as though a bride anticipates the final days leading up to marriage. As tribulation absorbs humanity on a global level, it will be the judgment of love which overcomes the proverbial bride of Christ.
THE GOSPEL OF THE KINGDOM IS LIKE
Matthew 22:1-14 is a paradoxical-parable often used for evangelism purposes, rightly so. Furthermore, the vernacular parallel found in these Scriptures are as an identical summary of the Great Tribulation:
“And again Jesus spoke to them in parables, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who gave a wedding feast for his son, and sent his servants to call those who were invited to the wedding feast, but they would not come. Again he sent other servants, saying, “Tell those who are invited, ‘See, I have prepared my dinner, my oxen and my fat calves have been slaughtered, and everything is ready. Come to the wedding feast.’” But they paid no attention and went off, one to his farm, another to his business, while the rest seized his servants, treated them shamefully, and killed them. The king was angry, and he sent his troops and destroyed those murderers and burned their city. Then he said to his servants, “The wedding feast is ready, but those invited were not worthy. Go therefore to the main roads and invite to the wedding feast as many as you find.” And those servants went out into the roads and gathered all whom they found, both bad and good. So the wedding hall was filled with guest.
But when the king came in to look at the guest, he saw there a man who had no wedding garment. And he said to him, “Friend, how did you get in here without a wedding garment?” And he was speechless. Then the king said to the attendants, “Bind him hand and foot and cast him into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” For many are called, but few are chosen” (ESV).
“The kingdom of heaven” indicates the metaphor. Jesus is saying, summarily, “My Father is hosting a wedding celebration for my Bride and I (Rev. 19:6-9). My Father invited guests who were of expectation to attend such an event (i.e., Israel), however, their priorities were elsewhere. Rather than come to the celebration they mocked openly this occasion, and full of wrath, they killed my Fathers servants (i.e., disciples). My Father, in His’ righteous anger administered justice upon those who bore wrath against his servants. Then, my Father sent his servants out to gather those otherwise unexpected (i.e., Gentiles) to attend my wedding celebration. Though not all who came were worthy and were not permitted to partake of the wedding celebration.” Thus, the parallels are many. And certainly, the consequences of these passages have multiple applicational points for the Church. Whether it is with Israel and the Gentile Church, a general flow of rejection and acceptance to the Gospel invitation, or the eschatological ramifications found in similarity. The call of the Gospel is manifestly sent out to everyone by the hands and feet of His’ many disciples. In the past, present, and future, due rejection of the king, many servants are mocked and even killed. Our Trinitarian kingship will judge righteously in the day of His’ coming.
Furthermore, I believe the parallel of a seemingly unfair “man” who did not wear a “wedding garment” is that of the clothing of righteousness. Those who love the Lord are clothed in righteousness (Ps. 132:9; Isa. 61:10; Rev. 3:4). To be clothed in righteousness contextual to a wedding supper, is to be clothed in the garments of “God so loved” (Matt. 3:16). The love of God, when “rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God” (Eph. 3:17-19). There is a depth of love which builds the foundation of God’s servants to go into the highways and byways calling those who would rejoice gladly in the day of wedding celebration. Though tensions abound, rejection and acceptance collide, servants slaughtered, and God’s righteous judgement ensue, this is about love, this is about a wedding day!
MARRIAGE SUPPER OF THE LAMB
Revelation 19:6-10, “the marriage supper of the Lamb,” holds a popular verse: “For the testimony of Jesus is the Spirit of prophecy” (vs. 10). To this point, the great Tribulation has come to its end, and those who love Jesus are with Jesus at this celebration feast. The words of John are remarkable, verses 6-8 read: “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. 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; it was granted her to clothe herself with fine linen, bright and pure’-for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints.” It’s fun to apply this “For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy” as the central purpose of prophecy, rightly so. Nonetheless, contextual to its Biblical context is the return of Christ, the gathering of His’ saints, and the celebration feast of “the marriage supper of the Lamb.” This is “our blessed hope” (Titus. 2:13)! Verse 19:9 reads, “And the angel said to me, ‘Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.” The reception of this “blessed” is recorded in John’s witnessing “of a great multitude, like the roar of many waters and like the sound of mighty peals of thunder, crying out.” As the traumatic chaos of this age ends, those in Christ rejoice emphatically at this long-awaited marriage celebration. And therein lies an important recognition of Paul’s amplification, “Set your minds on things that are above, not on the things that are on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God” (Col. 3:2, 3). When we are “waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ” (Titus. 2:13), we are waiting as though a bride is awaiting her wedding day.
SONG OF SONGS
While it is certain disagreements abound, I believe one of the greatest testaments of Scripture toward developing and growing in the maturity of love is an allegorical reading of the Song of Solomon (the Song of Songs). In this reading one finds a demonstration of love, sanctification, and maturity found within the life of discipleship. The book opens with love awakened (v.s. 1:1-4a), which quickens the worship of onlookers (v.s. 1:4b). The journey of the Shulamite progresses as love is doubted by personal insecurity and unworthiness (v.s. 1:5-7). Followed by an affirmation of love which produces confidence in immeasurable grace which encompasses love (v.s. 1:8-10). The book of the Song of Songs, which is Solomon’s, navigates in this perpetual cycle of love, doubt, and affirmation; throughout this cycle a firmer foundation of love matured is gained. This theme is hollowed in Hollywood. Movies and television shows recreate this theme time and time again. Love awakened, love doubted, love affirmed. Love, beyond being highjacked by warm, fuzzy emotionalism grows through empirical challenges. And this cycle repeats itself until love accomplishes it goal (Phil. 1:6). As this cycle repeats itself in the life of the believer, as with the Shulamite, the fears, anxieties, and struggles of youth emerge into, namely, confidence to love and be loved. At the end of chapter-two into verse-three, the Shulamite lacks the confidence to go forth with her beloved, however, as verses 3-1-5 indicate, what began in “failure” produces an appropriate longing, a missing, of which true love aspires to bind the heart beyond one’s most damning doubt and fears.
At the end, readership witnesses astonishingly the production of matured love. Verse 8:5 reads, “Who is that coming up from the wilderness, leaning on her beloved?” And this is the picture of matured love and faith in Christ, that through the crisis, trauma, and pains of the wildernesses of this life, love prevails, and we come up leaning on our beloved. And the anthem of matured love, dependently leaning upon our Beloved, bellows loudly, “Set me as the seal upon your heart, as a seal upon your arm, for love is strong as death, jealousy is fierce as the grave. Its flashes are flashes as fire, the very flame of the Lord. Many waters cannot quench love, neither can floods drown it. If a man offered for love all the wealth of his house, he would be utterly despised” (v.s. 8:6-7). Wealth cannot buy the human heart; faithfulness and loyalty in the depths of love, forging through fiery trials of which the hells of this life attempt to quench love, steadfastness and grace, these are the currencies of love. The Apostle Paul sums this up wonderfully in Romans chapter-eight: “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus…For I consider that the present sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us…For in this hope we were saved…If God is for us, who can be against us…Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword…No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death not life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Rom. 8;1, 18, 24, 31, 35, 37-39). The cycle of love awakened, love doubted, and love affirmed, the sanctification of our faith, our resolve to depend on Jesus, to lean upon our Beloved is the definition of Biblical maturity. Certainly, good manners, appropriate behavior, responsibility, and adulting, in honor of the cultures we find ourselves amidst is helpful. And in no way should helpful cultural maturity cues be despised. Nonetheless, faith which progresses form dependence upon self to dependence on Jesus is real maturity. All other wonderful attributes of cultural maturity cues must take their cue from this.
CONCLUSION
From the parable of a king sending his servants out to gather guest to the cycles of love matured, eschatology is foundationally about a bride and the ultimate Bridegroom. Until Christ’ returns, and we enjoy the celebration of all celebrations, the bride has wedding preparation tasks, which is to make herself ready. To make herself ready is a combination of love matured and servant-hearted worship-based obedience. In many ways, today’s Western Church has the praise part of worship down. However, worship-based obedience goes beyond one’s inward expression of worship; worship-based obedience, fueled throughout this cycle of maturing love, is bound, and compelled to draw in onlookers.The problem is evangelism has become one of the Cinderella stories of the Church. We love hearing testimonies from the evidently “called-evangelist,” so long as we ourselves are not pulled out of our self-preserving comfort-zones. I’ll end with this final appeal from George Eldon Ladd. Eschatology is not preeminently about charts and endless debates so much so as eschatology is about gathering a lovesick bride for her wedding day. If we lose this, we lose it all!
“The one great mission of the Church is to evangelize the world. This is not a theory, this is a fact. Jesus gave the Church its marching orders to go and make disciples of all nations; and in carrying out the task, He promised to be with them even unto the end of the age (Matt. 28:19, 20). Matthew 24:14 conveys the same thought. The good news about the kingdom of God must be carried into the whole world for a witness to all nations. This is the divinely appointed task of the Church. The Church is not to save the world; it is not to Christianize the world; it is not to transform the world so that it becomes the kingdom of God. This will be accomplished only by the glorious second coming of Christ. Until Christ comes, this age remains an evil age (Gal. 1:4) under the influence of Satan (II Cor. 4:4). The Churches task must ever be carried out in frank recognition of the character of the age. Nevertheless, it has a task which is divinely given and in which the Church must be victorious: world-wide evangelization and the gathering of the saved into the body of Christ. Only when this commission has been completed will Christ return. Those who “love His appearing” are those who should have the greatest concern for the evangelization of the world. Christ is tarrying until the Church has completed its task. When Matthew 24:14 has been fulfilled, then Christ will come. There is no more notable “sign of the times” than the fact that the greatest impetus in world-wide evangelization since apostolic times has taken place in the preceding century. The world is nearly evangelized; any generation which is really dedicated to the task can complete the mission. The Lord can come in our own generation, in our life-time-if we stir ourselves and finish our task. Let us not be dissipating our energies in differences over the Rapture and the Tribulation. Rather let every believer who cherishes the Blessed Hope give himself in unstinted measure to the prosecution of world-evangelization; for then Christ will come” (Ladd. 147, 148).
Works Cited
ESV. English Standard Version. Wheaton, Ill: Crossway, 2001. Print.
Ladd, George Eldon. The Blessed Hope: A Biblical Study of the Second Advent and the Rapture.
Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co, 1956. Print.