A covenantal marriage
On August 26, my personal assistant, Mr. Peter Bradrick (son of Michael Bradrick, President of aWashngton state home school organization) married Miss Kelly Brown (author of Coming In on a Wing and a Prayer and daughter of NCFIC Director, Scott Brown).
In so many ways the marriage and the wedding was a defining moment for a community of Christians yoked in the bonds of love and friendship. The marriage meant the realization of years of hopes and dreams and prayers.
First, the marriage represented the coming together, not merely of two individuals, but of two families of generational vision, Gospel emphasis, and tremendous doctrinal and orthopraxic agreement. Both families have been at the forefront of the battle to restore the biblical family to the condition, status, law, and jurisdiction presented by our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ in Holy Scripture. Both families have demonstrated a life-time of love and self-sacrifice for the people of God. Both have suffered the slings and arrows of persecution for godly stands, and both have known the blessings of joyful spiritual victories. Both committed their children to the Lord early in life, and both specifically raised them with a vision for purity, for bold action, and for the strenuous life in Christ. For all of us, marriages like these are the blessed first fruits of a historic reformation which God is doing within His church, turning the hearts of sons and daughters to their parents, and parents to their sons and daughters.
Second, the marriage was conceived in moral purity. Long ago both Peter and Kelly had pledged their bodies and their hearts to the one true love with whom they would someday be yoked in marriage. Recognizing that the successive emotional relationships promoted through the dating culture of our era are fraught with trouble and lead to physical and emotional defrauding, they purposed to take the more difficult, but higher path, which involved receiving wise oversight, direction, and blessing from their parents in laying the foundations for a true biblical espousal.
Third, their marriage was a covenantal marriage. Both bride and groom have demonstrably lived lives as covenant keepers with the God of their fathers. Also, they have honored their parents and, as God has promised, “It is well with them.” Consequently, they have reaped not only the blessings which flow from a life of obedience to the Savior, but the benefits of receiving an enthusiastic and unqualified blessing on their marriage from both sets of parents. Moreover, both bride and groom have honored the Lord by keeping covenant with their local churches. To put it another way: They have been faithful churchmen, honoring their committments to the local church. Consequently, when bride and groom desired the support of their respective local congregations and their church elders. both received the public, verbal, enthusastic blessing of the people of God in their lives.
The Bible teaches that men reap what they sow. Covenant keepers reap blessings. Covenant breakers reap judgment. This couple reaped not only great blessings, but they inaugurated their life together by proclaiming to the world that their marriage is about more than themselves. It is about a joint dominion mission for the glory of God. It is about children and grandchildren yet to be born. It is about an unfolding generational vision which they will share together, as together they spend their life in the service of Christ.
And it is about the richness and permanence of the marriage covenant.
Update: More pictures and thoughts on the wedding from Kelly's dad are here, here, here, here, and here. There are also some incredible pictures here.
posted by Crystal Paine at 9:36 AM
1 Comments:
That wedding truly is inspiring. I am discussing it on my blog too!
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