There is an interesting dilemma that was presented to Jesus in Matthew 22. His answer will never be shared at a wedding service. The Sadducees, or religious leaders, asked Jesus about a case of a woman who had been widowed seven times. They asked, “At the resurrection, whose wife will she be of the seven, since all of them were married to her?”

Before hearing Jesus’ response, you can imagine how Hollywood would respond. “Of course with the man she loved the most.” Perhaps they would respond, “with her soul-mate.” How would you respond?

But as Jesus answered. “You are wrong because you do not know the Scriptures and the power of God. At the resurrection, people will not marry or be given in marriage, but will be like the angels in heaven.”

What? There is no marriage in heaven? But I thought that I would spend eternity with my beloved. Wouldn’t that be the perfect ending? So if there are no marriages in heaven, why get married now?

The Bible begins and ends with weddings. It is important to God. In the beginning, God provided Adam with a wife to remove his loneliness, for companionship (and perhaps to tell him what to do). When God asked, “Who gives away this bride?” God responded, “I do.”

The Bible ends with a wedding in Revelation between the church and Christ. Revelation 19:7,8 says, “Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory! For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready. Fine linen, bright and clean, was given her to wear.”

There is a program on television that we watch occasionally where brides choose their wedding dresses with members of their families. The dresses are very fine and resplendent, but there is no comparison with what will happen to the church (the bride) and Christ (the bridegroom) in the wedding of eternity (not just the century). In heaven there are no marriages, because we are all going to be married to Christ. In heaven we will not have that need nor desire, because we will be together with Christ in perfect unity.

So, in a way, there are no singles here on earth, because we are all pledged to our Savior. When Christ comes, we do not need marriage to remove our loneliness because the presence of God will satisfy all our longings. We will all live happily ever after.

Do you remember your time in the first grade of school? When they went out for a walk, the teachers gathered the children in groups so that no one would get lost. Or maybe they paired the children up and asked them to hold hands so as to not deviate from the group. God in a way has done the same with us with earthly marriages until we reach our final destination.

We are all on a walk, we have left the safety of our classroom, and we have not reached our final destination. To help us not get lost along the way, God created two institutions.

First, for many, he gave us a wife. A companion for the journey. Proverbs 18:22 says, “He who finds a wife finds what is good and receives favor from the Lord.” That person was created to help us prepare for when we get to heaven.

There is a word that the Bible uses for this transformation or preparation, it is called “sanctification.” As couples our job is to look at our spouses and imagine the image that God wants to create and is creating in them. That is, we must work with God in the process of sanctifying our spouses. So the mission of marriage is to help each other to reflect the new image of him, the image of Christ, the new creation that God wants to make in us. Our mission is to prepare each other for the heavenly wedding. Your commitment, your task within the marriage is holiness, perfection in your spouse.

That is why Paul says in Ephesians 5:26 that the husband’s goal is to make his wife “holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless.” That is why he also says in 1 Corinthians 7:14 that a Christian spouse can “sanctify” their non-Christian spouse with their good behavior.

The other group that God made for us is called the church. Here, it does not matter your marital status, race, or age. We take care of each other. Let us care for each other, encouraging them to love and good works as Hebrews 10:24 says.

Marriage is not our final destination, being married to Christ is. Revelation 19:9 says, “Blessed are those who have been invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb!” Have you responded to Christ’s wedding invitation? Our purpose in life, and in our marriages, is to accept the Lamb’s wedding invitation and prepare for this day.

Singles need this perspective to look for someone with whom they can have a companion along the walk of life until we reach our final destination. Married people need this perspective to know why and for what purpose they are married. We have a first love, and it is not our spouse.

I want to end with two questions. First, for the couples. Are you married, or are you just living together? Are you honoring marriage as Hebrews 13:4 says, “Marriage should be honored by all.” Marriage is very serious to God. The wedding, the marriage ceremony is important to God. It is so important that he has used it to illustrate his relationship with us.

My other question is for everyone. In Matthew 22, Jesus told a story about a wedding banquet. He said, “The kingdom of heaven is like a king who prepared a wedding banquet for his son. He commanded his servants to summon the guests but they refused to attend the banquet.” The history of salvation is the history of the wedding of Christ. God has sent invitations to everyone, but very few have attended. My question is, have you accepted the invitation? Are you preparing yourself for the wedding in heaven? As Christ said to the Sadducees, do we understand the scriptures and the power of God?