Jewish Wedding and The Rapture
I did not write this, but had saved it from a website awhile ago and forget which one it was from :(
I did not write this, but had saved it from a website awhile ago and forget which one it was from :(
**Please remember I am not stating this as fact but am presenting it to you. Please pray about it.
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The rapture and the understanding of the Jewish wedding traditions is important. These will give insight into some of the Lord's actions and statements. The first major step in a Jewish wedding is the betrothal. The bridegroom traveled from his fathers house to the home of his desired bride. The groom would determine the price to be paid and make payment. From that moment the groom and bride were regarded as husband and wife. The bride was to be exclusively set apart for the groom. As a symbol of the covenant relationship the groom and the bride would drink a cup of wine as their betrothal benediction was pronounced.
The bridegroom then returned to his father's house to prepare living accommodations for his bride. The father would tell his son when preparations were satisfactory and he could go get his bride. The father didn't want his son to build a shabby hut on his property so he could rush back and get his bride. The father was wisely given this decision. When all things were ready, the groom, the best man, and other friends went to the house of the bride trying to surprise her but preceding their coming with a shout.
After the arrival back at the father's house the bride and the groom would be escorted to the bridal chamber or "huppah". Prior to entering the huppah the bride remained veiled so that no one could see her face. There in privacy the marriage was consummated. Then the wedding guests would feast and make merry while the groom and his bride remained in the huppah for seven days. At the conclusion of the seven days of huppah the groom revealed himself and his bride with veil removed so all could see her.
The picture of a Jewish wedding is perfectly seen in the Lord Jesus Christ and his bride, the Church. For 2,000 years ago he left his Father's house in heaven and traveled to earth. The cost to buy the bride out of the kingdom of Satan was his life and shed blood on the cross. Colossians 1 v 13 and 14 confirms this, "Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness (Satan's kingdom), and hath translated (adopted) us into the kingdom of his dear Son: In whom we have redemption (fully paid price) through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins." In 1 Corinthians 6 v 19 and 20 it says "What! know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's."
From the moment the price was paid, the Church has been set apart as the bride of Christ. 1 Corinthians 1 v 2 says, "Unto the Church of God which is at Corinth, to them that are sanctified (set apart) in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, with all that in every place call upon the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, both theirs and ours." Hebrews 10 v 10 says, "By the which will we are sanctified (set apart) through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all." As a symbol of the covenant relationship (betrothal) the Lord Jesus in the upper room with his disciples drank a cup of wine. 1 Corinthians 11 v 25 reads as follows, "After the same manner also he took the cup, when he had supped, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood: this do ye, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of me."
In John 14 v 1-3 we see the Lord Jesus tell his disciples that he was going to his Father's house to prepare a place for them. It reads as follows,
Verse 1 Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me.
Verse 2 In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.
Verse 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.
The Lord Jesus in Acts 1 v 7 and Matthew 24 v 36 reveals that God the Father would tell him when preparations were satisfactory and he could go get his bride. The day and the hour was the perogative of the father in the Jewish wedding. The two verses mentioned read as follows, Acts 1 v 7 says, "And he said unto them, It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power. Matthew 24 v 36 says, "But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only." Some have interpreted these verses to mean that a Christian shouldn't bother with the rapture and the Lord's coming because no one can know! They suggest that the prophetic part of God's word (about a third) is to hard to understand. However, an illumination of Jewish traditions with the help of the Holy Spirit brings proper understanding.
When does God the Father give his word for Jesus to go and get his bride? This event happens in 1 Thessalonians 4 v 15-18 which we examined earlier in this chapter. God the Father gives God the Son the word. The Lord Jesus comes to the air with a shout and the trump of God. The Christians both asleep and living instantly arise to meet the Lord in the air and to ever be with him.
Instantaneously the raptured saints receive their immortal bodies (1 Corinthians 15 v 50-54), then are evaluated for rewards at the bema seat of Christ. From here the church is veiled for 7 years while the tribulation is going on down on earth. This would correspond to the seven days of huppah mentioned earlier. At the conclusion of the seven years or 7 days of huppah the Lord Jesus reveals his bride to the world in Revelation 19 v 7-14. Colossians 3 v 4 says, "When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory."
