Wedding Ring

It was on the 10th of October, last Saturday, that a sister and a brother were joined together in marriage. The family had invited a brother and me to witness the marriage and also participate in the wedding in sharing the word of God and pray for the couple. My portion was to bless the ring and help them exchange the ring with a marriage vow. As brothers in the Lord taking care of the saints, we both participated and carried our assigned responsibility.

Since the marriage was conducted during COVID-19 where the restriction has been imposed on public gathering, no other saints in the church apart from both of us could attend. Moreover, this being a family arrangement, we complied with the arrangement. Our presence to grace the occasion and bless the couple with the family was the best that we could do.

My brother gave the word of God from the Bible explaining the spiritual significance of marriage, pointing to Christ and the church. And I gave the word on the significance of the wedding ring as a type of the sealing Spirit that seals the ones who wear the ring and claims the right of ownership. God, our Father, has sealed us, all His children, with His sealing Spirit  and claims His right of ownership upon us. Therefore, we all belong to God, as children of God. 

In a similar manner, when the bride and the groom exchanged the wedding ring, they exchanged the right of ownership of one another. The bride belongs to the groom and the groom belongs to the bride. They co-own one another, and they both are owned by God Himself who is the reality of the ring, the sealing Spirit. And I also prayed for the couple on the burden of ownership and oneness, that they both be one with God and one with one another all the days of their lives, that they both be faithful to God and faithfully to one another all the days of their lives, and they both love God and one another to one another all the days of their lives. That was the blessing bestowed on the newly wedded couple based on the truth. 

The Lord has been reminding me again and again of shepherding. According to His word, a shepherd shepherds the sheep by giving them all-inclusive care. When the Lord places one in the responsibility of a shepherd in a local church, he must function likewise, serving as a slave. 

Serving the Lord as a slave with all humility. Acts 20:19a

I am glad that I could be counted worthy to be one of the Lord's slaves to serve in coordination with other slaves in shepherding the saints with all-inclusive care. In fact, this was the second marriage I attended for the same family. The first one was when the elder son got married where we conducted the marriage and also shared the word of God and prayed for the couple. This time it was for the daughter. We did all these with the heart of love, care, and shepherding.  

May the Lord preserve the entire family for His testimony.