Lesson 464 - Senior
Memory Verse
"At midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him" (Matthew 25:6).
Cross References
I Hallelujah Chorus in Heaven
1. The heavenly chorus sings praises to God for His righteous judgments, [REV:19:1-3].
2. The elders and beasts worship God also, [REV:19:4].
II The Marriage Supper
1. The climax to all praises of God through the ages comes as the Marriage of the Lamb is announced, [REV:19:5-6].
2. The Lamb's Wife has made herself ready and is arrayed in white [REV:19:7-8]; [MAT:25:3-4], [MAT:25:7].
3. Blessed are they who are called to the marriage, [REV:19:9]; [MAT:25:10].
4. The angel refuses worship, [REV:19:10].
III The Army on White Horses
1. Jesus Christ heads the armies of Heaven, [REV:19:11-16].
2. The fowls of heaven are invited to eat the flesh of them who are to be killed in the Battle of Armageddon, [REV:19:17-18]; [EZE:38:17-20].
3. The allied evil powers are gathered together for the battle, [REV:19:19]; [REV:16:16].
4. The victory of the Lamb is accomplished, [REV:19:20-21].
Notes
We live in the Dispensation of the Holy Ghost. God has sent His Spirit into the world to seek a Bride for His Son. When the Bride has made herself ready and when the time on God's clock has rolled around to the hour that He has appointed, the Bridegroom, Jesus Christ, will appear in the azure above to catch away His Bride. Then the Marriage Supper of the Lamb will take place in the heavens while the Great Tribulation is running its course here on the earth. No wonder that the text tells us, "Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb."
God's plan of redemption and His dealings with man have unfolded down through the ages. We have seen the fulfilment of many of the prophecies of the Word of God. God sent the Law and the prophets; and then, in the fullness of time, His own Son to be made a sacrifice for our sins. He was rejected, crucified, and rose again on the third day and is now seated at the right hand of God making intercession for us. All these phases are part of God's original plan and not in any way a reading just meant of what God had meant to do for man's salvation. Every part of the plan for this age has been carried out and it is soon to be completed.
We who live in the time since Pentecost have a higher privilege than any who have gone before us, for we have felt the call of the Holy Spirit as He has gone through all the earth seeking a Bride for the Son of God. We have seen the pouring out of the Latter Rain upon the ripened harvest fields. Many of the prophets and worthies of old desired to see these things that we have experienced but they saw them only with the eye of faith as something that would come. It was then far off. We have seen the baptism of the Holy Ghost poured out upon those who were saved and sanctified and longing for the coming of the Lord. They made themselves ready by walking in the light of the Word and by receiving the armour that the Lord provided.
Wise and Foolish Virgins
In the 25th chapter of Matthew we have a wonderful lesson on being ready to have part in the Marriage Supper of the Lamb. The parable of the ten virgins paints a graphic picture of five who were ready for the bridegroom's coming and five who were unprepared. They were all together, but the wise were taken from among the foolish and went inside before the door was shut. Just so will the Bride of Christ, those who are ready to go up when Jesus comes, be taken from among those around about them. A knowledge that the Lord is about to come is no passport through the door. Only those who have the oil in their vessels with their lamps will be able to go.
It will be too late to prepare when the word has sounded, "Behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him." The Lord's coming for His Bride will be quick as the lightning shining from the east to the west, and will be in an hour when He is least expected, for the Word says that "in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh." The door will be shut.
Heavenly Chorus
Good music and singing are very enjoyable to most people here on earth, and they speak to all in spite of race or national origin. The beauty of melody is something that sets up a pleasant response in our very being. But the sound of this Hallelujah Chorus in Heaven will be the climax of all the praises that have been uttered, sung or penned by the saints of God of an ages. We sing about Him here, what He did, that He will come and what He will do; but this chorus, whether sung or spoken, will be sounded out by much people in Heaven and enjoyed by those who are caught up into the azure above to ever be with the Lord. What a chorus! We don't want to miss it.
The Marriage
Not everyone who is finally saved and goes to Heaven will have part in the Marriage Supper of the Lamb. This need not discourage any today, however, for it is the privilege of everyone to prepare now to be a part of the Bride. One can never walk back of the light that shines in his dispensation and be held blameless; so it is the privilege and duty of every Christian today to walk in all the light that it is possible for him to obtain. God will not judge those of the past dispensation as He will those of this; so it behoves everyone now to take advantage of the provision of God's designing and be saved, sanctified, and baptized with the Holy Ghost and fire, and to walk in all the light of the Gospel.
It was prophesied by the Prophet Joel: "And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions: and also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out my spirit" [JOE:2:28-29]). We are certainly living in the last days and have seen the fulfilment of this prophecy in our generation. This is the Latter Rain that was given to prepare the Bride of Christ. It is not for a select few only, but for everyone, men and women, servants and handmaids (an indication that it is for the rich and poor alike). When God dealt with Israel long ago He dealt with them as His peculiar people, and their servants from other nations had privileges only in a servant's place. But now, anyone who wills can be a part of the Bride of Christ.
We do not know all that will transpire at the Marriage Supper of the Lamb, but we do know that the Bride will be united forever with the One altogether lovely to her soul [SON:5:16]); the One who betrothed her unto Himself [HOS:2:19-20]); the One who said: "I go to prepare a place for you. And . . . I will come again, and receive you unto myself" [JHN:14:2-3]); the One who expressed His love for His church when He prayed, "That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, . . . that the love wherewith thou hast loved me may be in them, and I in them" [JHN:17:21-26]); the One to whom the Bride was faithful, praying and occupying until her Bridegroom comes back to earth again [PRO:31:10-31]). She does the things that her hands find to do, doing it as unto the Lord. Any privilege God gives her is done with a zeal and a vigour, as if the Lord Jesus Christ spoke the words and said, "Do it," and then stood there and watched until the job was finished; not to please man, but as a service that Christ expects of her and for which He will reward her. The Bride will be united with the Lord, her Husband, "For thy Maker is tine husband; the LORD of hosts is his name; and thy Redeemer the Holy One of Israel" [ISA:54:5]).
Christ Himself will serve His people at the Marriage Supper and it is thought that this will be the time when rewards for faithful service will be handed out. However that may be, it most certainly is a time to look forward to as a glorious blessing.
The End
After the Marriage Supper of the Lamb, and at the end of the Great Tribulation here on earth, the Lord will come back in power and great glory. He came the first time in lowliness and humility but this time He will come to execute vengeance upon those who slew the prophets and the godly. This is referred to as His revelation, the second appearance under His second coming. The first appearance will be in the clouds to call His Bride to the Marriage of the Lamb. Only those who have kept their garments pure and white will see Him then. At His revelation He will come riding at the head of the armies of Heaven, and every eye shall see Him.
He will be on a white horse, as will each one of those who make up the armies that follow Him. Then will take place the Battle of Armageddon. This will be a righteous battle, and the destruction that is brought will be the judgment of God. Christ will set up His kingdom on this earth and will rule the nations with a rod of iron. This will be a righteous reign of one thousand years. The beast and the false prophet, who had deceived those who took the mark of the beast, will be bound and cast into the lake of fire burning with brimstone.
At the revelation of Christ, the Jews will look upon Him whom they have pierced and will accept Him as their Messiah. They will be praying and mourning for Him during the Great Tribulation, which is also referred to as the time of Jacob's trouble. How tragic has been their history since they crucified the Lord! "He came unto his own, and his own received him not. But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God" [JHN:1:11-12]). The saints who come back with Christ and those who have been beheaded for their testimony during the Tribulation and were resurrected, will rule and reign with Christ during the Millennium.
Just as Noah and his family were making preparation to be saved out of the Flood, so is the Bride today. The people around Noah heard with their ears but understood not with their heart. Today people hear the Gospel message that the Lord is coming but they do not open their heart to the message, and as a consequence they "know not" that the Lord is about to appear. Those who are preparing themselves are counted as "missing lots of things in this world," but, thank God, that is exactly what they are labouring for. Soon will the Lord say, "Come, my people, enter thou into thy chambers, and shut thy doors about thee: hide thyself as it were for a little moment, until the indignation be overpass. For, behold, the LORD cometh out of his place to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity: the earth also shall disclose her blood, and shall no more cover her slain" [ISA:26:20-21]).
Let us earnestly strive to be at the Marriage of the Lamb and then we shall be among those who come back with Him to rule and reign a thousand years.
Questions
1. When will the Marriage of the Lamb take place?
2. What parable teaches us the importance of having oil in our vessels?
3. Who will rule this world during the Great Tribulation?
4. Who will rule this world during the Millennium?
5. What will happen to the beast and the false prophet at Christ's revelation?
6. What will be the purpose of the heavenly Chorus that sings in Heaven?
7. Who will have part in the Marriage of the Lamb?
8. Who will serve at the Marriage Supper of the Lamb?