His Story...
As much as this wedding occasion might seem focused on Chelsea and Andrew's fairy tale and anticipate what possibly lies ahead in the pages of their own storybook, Chelsea and Andrew know that they are but two minor characters in the Greatest Story Ever Told.
In this story, they, along with the rest of mankind, are but human mirrors - images, designed to reflect an immaculate glory that surpasses all understanding. Chelsea and Andrew are nothing more, and yet certainly nothing less than images of God, offspring of Adam, who was the head of our race, and the priestly king of a garden paradise.
But it's a terrible thing when a king falls, and his kingdom with him. Worse yet, it is a terrible thing when any creature of God defies the Creator, failing to reflect His glory, questioning His Word, and begins to interpret all of reality for himself apart from the Creator and Sustainer of reality itself. This was the folly of Adam, and the rest of his progeny. This is Chelsea and Andrew's folly, and this is yours as well.
And so, at the outset of the Greatest Story Ever Told, a seemingly insurmountable challenge emerged. The human mirrors have been smudged and tarnished, dimly reflecting what they once reflected brilliantly. The consequences of this have been innumerable, some of which include relational conflicts, the reality of suffering, and the menacing threat of death, all stemming from a fundamentally broken relationship between God and mankind. For true and lasting joy, peace, and life cannot be enjoyed by people in rebellion against God. Those who are dead cannot experience life.
But God, being rich in mercy, with the great love with which He loved us, insisted on writing the Greatest Story Ever Told. But how could this story come to a happy ending? Who could face the ultimate nemesis of sin and death, and win?
Every great story needs a hero, a prince. In the Person of Jesus Christ, God wrote Himself into the story. He is a prince with a white horse, and He squared off with death all by Himself. The battle was violent. Although the prince never threw a punch, much blood was spilled - His own, the blood of the spotless Lamb of God. For three days, it even appeared that death had won. This was necessary because the debt incurred by the folly of God's people demanded payment.
But this isn't your everyday story. This is the Greatest Story Ever Told, and what makes it the greatest story ever told is the death of death, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Having paid for sins, not His own, in one fell swoop, the Lamb of God swallowed up death forever, and offers new life to all those who will trust and hope in Him alone. The broken mirrors, once considered irreparable, now reflect a glory more brilliant than ever before. The only evidence of brokenness that remain are the scars in His nail-pierced hands.
The prince has ascended to His throne on high as King, and on the last page of this great story, He will return for His bride, His beloved people. It will be the wedding feast of wedding feasts, and all of creation will rejoice when they hear Him say to His gleaming bride, face to face, "I am yours, and you are Mine. You will be my people, and I will be your God forever!"
This is Chelsea and Andrew's only comfort in life and in death. That they are not their own, but belong with body and soul, both in life and in death, to their faithful Savior Jesus Christ, who has fully paid for all their sins with His precious blood. And the desire of their hearts is that their wedding, and the rest of their fairy tale reflect the Greatest Story Ever Told.
You may or may not be at Chelsea and Andrew's wedding and reception. That's okay. But will you be at the Great Marriage Feast of the Lamb, who faced and conquered death on behalf of His people? Or will you face death by yourself and without Him?
What is your only comfort in life and death?