By Les Ferguson, Jr.
Columnist

Last Wednesday night, I skipped our church gathering – with permission. But I wasn’t playing hooky, nor did I go churchless.

Instead, I drove north to hear an old friend as the guest speaker at a different church. I’m glad I did. First, it was a reunion of sorts. I hadn’t seen him in person in several years. Too many, in fact. So that was good. But when he spoke, I was blessed to see something in scripture I’d never seen or paid much attention to.

His lesson that night was about Jesus as the Bridegroom. That’s not a word we typically use much anymore. I recently wrote about a wedding I was privileged to participate in. As far as I know, no one used the term bridegroom. I certainly didn’t and don’t think I ever have.

Until now.

When I was growing up, the newspaper always had a section on society. It was filled with engagement announcements, pictures, and stories about recent weddings. The groom was most likely mentioned in some fashion, but the oohing and aahing were reserved for the bride or the bride-to-be. You’d read about her dress, her bouquet, what her attendants were wearing, the location of the nuptials, and sundry details.

In truth, the groom was not all that significant other than a wedding, which had to have a bride and a groom.

It’s funny, but I’ve been known to tell a prospective groom that the upcoming wedding wasn’t his. It may not even be the bride’s—instead, it’s her mother’s time to shine.

But I digress.

In our modern Western culture, the emphasis is on the bride. She’s the one who gets all the attention. As my friend reminded us of last Wednesday night, the bride is resplendent in a dress that costs a small fortune, while the groom stands there in a rented tux, just like the friends who stand with him.

Not so in Jesus’s day. The emphasis was on the bridegroom. Remember the story of the bridesmaids in Matthew 25? Their whole purpose was to greet the bridegroom when he arrived. Traditional theology correctly teaches that the bridegroom is Jesus, and the Bride is his church.

In that scenario, the emphasis is less on the bride and more on the groom. I don’t tell you this because I want to change our Western culture of weddings. On the contrary, I want to emphasize that the wedding of the bridegroom and the church is much more about Jesus.

As humans, we can be demanding and focused on ourselves. Not so at the wedding feast of Jesus. It’s not about me but about Him and His glory.

“Then the angel said to me, “Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding supper of the
Lamb!” And he added, “These are the true words of God.”” (Revelation 19:9 NIV)