Onward!

How much better it is to know right from the beginning that this and every other marriage is under assault by forces that would tear it apart and destroy it.

I'm not going to list them now; we recognize them all around us.

What resources do Matt and Annika have for this flight?

1. They have the support of their families. I heard them express it last evening. That is wonderful.

2. In just a few moments, the wedding party will have its chance to give encouragement to them by giving their Amen to the pastoral blessing and then adding their own: “May you dwell in God's presence forever, may true and constant love preserve you.”

If Matt and Annika can't depend on these folks, it would be sad indeed.

3. And all the people here gathered will promise your solidarity with Matt and Annika by adding your Amen to the words of scripture “Those whom God has joined together let no one put asunder.”

4. Matt and Annika will likely put a photo and article in the newspaper. That publicly announces what has happened here today, that these two persons are available only to each other now and to no one else. And it also implicitly asks for the help of the whole community in honoring those vows.

5. But the greatest support is none of these, because each of them can be attacked and their support for Matt and Annika weakened.

Our foundation in marriage is the relationship of Christ and the church, which the New Testament describes as marriage.

Christ lives for her, loves the church, gives himself completely for her in an unbreakable promise to the church.

That is the pattern for our lives together in marriage, a pattern which Jesus himself wants to uphold.

And he did so in person.

Our icon in front of us today is of the marriage feast at Cana in Galilee, which Jesus took time to attend as a guest.

We see him here seated at the side of the table, not at its head; he is a guest.

There were problems at the feast, and his mother asked him to do something about it.

He does. He changes water into wine so that the festivities can continue, and in the ensuing conversation, changes roles.

Instead of being a guest, he is become the host, the one in charge of things, making sure that all of the arrangements are right.

And he is to be host of our marriages also,

offering his love for the church as the pattern for our love for each other in marriage,

offering his Holy Spirit to be nudging us back on course when we falter,

offering to feed us his holy banquet that will strengthen every fiber of our being against weariness in well-doing,

offering to arm us with the Word of God in order to stand against those who would try to re-define marriage as a purely human arrangement that can be used, changed, or discarded casually.

Matt and Annika, you have asked for marriage in not only in terms of human legalities, but also under God's blessing.

He grants it generously, abundantly, and with strength against every assault of evil and destruction.

Put on that armor gladly,

wear it proudly,

and let us rejoice in feast and song:

We have Christ's own promise,

And that cannot fail....

With the Cross of Jesus

going on before.

Let all who wish it and agree with it give your Amen....AMEN.

Please note: The preceding sermon is provided as a resource for the thought, prayer, and meditation of the members and friends of St. Mark's. It is the residue of a verbal event, and thus it does not have academic footnotes and other details that would be expected in a written document. The writer gladly acknowledges the prior thought and work of many Christians before him.