Day 8 of the 24 Day Prophecy Study
Notes compiled by Steve McAtee and Marty Zide
A. There are two events recorded in Scripture which the church will participate in following the rapture:
1. The Judgment Seat of Christ - II Cor. 5:10. 2 Cor 5:10 - For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may be recompensed for his deeds in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.
2. The Marriage of the Lamb - Rev. 19:7-9. Rev 19:7-9 - Let us rejoice and be glad and give the glory to Him, for the marriage of the Lamb has come and His bride has made herself ready. It was given to her to clothe herself in fine linen, bright and clean; for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints. Then he said to me, Write, Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb (a different event). And he said to me, These are true words of God.
The Marriage Supper of the Lamb is different from the Marriage of the Lamb. The Supper takes place after the second coming, when Old Testament saints, along with tribulation saints, both human and glorified, enter into the millennium. They will be the invited guest who will be at this celebration supper. I believe that the marriage supper will be during the first part of the millennial reign of the Lord Jesus.
B. The New Testament speaks of Christ being the bridegroom and the church being the bride
2 Cor. 11:2 - For I am jealous for you with a godly jealousy; for I betrothed you to one husband, so that to Christ I might present you as a pure virgin.
Eph 5:28-32 - ...He who loves his own wife loves himself; for no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ also does the church, because we are members of His body. For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and shall be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh. This mystery is great; but I am speaking with reference to Christ and the church.
At the rapture of the church, the Lord Jesus is returning as the bridegroom to take His bride unto Himself, so that the relationship that was earlier established by a pledge might be consummated and that the two might become one.
C. The Time of the Marriage
The time of the marriage falls in between the rapture of the church and the second coming of the Lord Jesus to earth. In Rev. 19:7 we see the Marriage of the Lamb taking place and the second coming taking place in Rev. 19:11.
Rev 19:7 - Let us rejoice and be glad and give the glory to Him, for the marriage of the Lamb has come and His bride has made herself ready.
Rev 19:11,14 - And I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse, and He who sat on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and wages war. And the armies which are in heaven, clothed in fine linen, white and clean, were following Him on white horses.
The marriage of the Lamb is seen to follow the Judgment Seat of Christ since when the Bride appears for the marriage, she is already seen as righteous.
Rev. 19:8 - It was given to her to clothe herself in fine linen, bright and clean; for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints.
D. The Place of the Marriage
The marriage must take place in heaven. It follows the judgment seat of Christ, which is in heaven and takes place before the church returns to the earth with the Lord Jesus. It takes place in the heavenlies, during the seven-year period when the church is hidden from the world, while the tribulation is going on, on the earth.
E. The Participants in the Marriage
Only the members of the church, the body of Christ will participate in the Marriage of the Lamb. The church is made up of believers who were saved from the day of Pentecost until the rapture of the church. Others like the Old Testament saints and those who die during the tribulation period before this event takes place will observe it, but the marriage itself is only between Christ the Bridegroom and the church, the Bride of Christ.