On Thursday I had the privilege of preaching at the wedding of two young friends ( they are in their early twenties). He has been a family friend all the time we have lived in Norfolk and shares my families passion for sailing! She is a wonderful and strong young woman, and they both share a vibrant and realistic faith.
I do understand their parents initial misgivings about them getting married so young and so soon, but I hope and pray and believe with some confidence that these two will make it, for neither of them are unaware of the tough stuff! They have been realistic about setting up their home and Tim and I have spent not a few hours helping them to collect kitchen appliances through the wonderful medium of free-cycle!
The wedding was a lively affair, with their friends providing the music for both the service and the reception. Friends and family offered prayers and readings during the service, and as I have said it was a real privilege to be invited to preach, and to help them find just the right scriptures.
In the end they chose Song of Solomon 8:7, and Colossians 3: 12-17
My sermon is here:
Clothe yourselves with love says the writer of this letter….
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Now I am sure that many of the ladies here agree that clothing is very important, bear with me here gentlemen, I promise you that you are not to hear a sermon about the virtues of shopping and nor do I have Trinny and Susannah hidden in the vestry ready to pounce on you all! But I suspect that everyone here gave some thought to what they were going to wear to B and N's wedding, suits may have been cleaned, shirts ironed, dresses specially chosen!
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But I wonder how many of us thought about the possibility of clothing ourselves with love? And if one or two of us did stop to think about the possibility did we stop consider how to do so?
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Love is a much misused word; it has been misunderstood and cheapened, neglected and abused. We have made it a shallow thing and too often the words I love you are easily said and easily discarded. The writer of this letter does not cheapen love for love he goes on to tell us is the thing that binds everything together, love brings harmony. When we love we are able to bear with one another’s faults, when we love fresh starts are possible, because through love true forgiveness becomes a possibility.
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Another translation of this passage tells us that regardless of what else we wear, we must put on love, for it is our basic all purpose garment! I like that rendition; it gives us a picture of an unfussy but durable and enduring garment that never goes out of fashion! Love, true love is such a garment, for true love out lives fads and fashions.
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We are here today to celebrate with N and B the love that they have for one another, and there is no doubt that, that love is very real and very strong. But human love has its limits, and it is then that we need to be clothed in the everlasting and supernatural love of God.
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Another of the letters tells us that: “God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”
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And also; “….hope does not disappoint us, because God's love has been poured out into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us”
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God demonstrated his love by giving us himself fully and completely, the only way that human beings can come close to loving as God loves is quite simply to accept that we can’t love like that.
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That is when we need to accept just how much he loves us, and in accepting that love, even though we are far from perfect we will find that a miracle begins to take place in our hearts and minds, as our inner selves are clothed and covered with the love of God.
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In God’s love we become new creations, in God’s love we find within ourselves depths and riches that we never thought possible, and through God’s love we are able to offer those depths and riches to one another.
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God’s love is nurtured in our lives as we acknowledge our need for his presence and power, as we seek him in prayer, find him through the scriptures and remain intentionally open to the Holy Spirits work amongst us. This is giving attention to love and through this attention to love we will find that it both grows and flourishes in our lives.
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B and N have made promises to one another in our presence and in the presence of God; together they are beginning a new phase of their lives, those that were two have become one. As they are bound together in love, they have acknowledged and accepted their need for God’s love. Today they wear their wedding garments, as they go through their lives they will wear many other different garments at different times, but the one they will need to wear again and again is that unfussy but durable and enduring garment that never goes out of fashion.
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B and N, I leave you with these words:
There will be times when you annoy one another, there will even be times when you don't like one another, there might be times when you wonder why you married one another, but if you choose the way of love, even in those difficult times you will find that love will overcome, for true love cannot be quenched.
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You have been chosen by God for this new life of love, so dress in the wardrobe God picked out for you: compassion, kindness, humility, quiet strength, discipline…..
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….. And regardless of what else you put on, wear love. It's your basic, all-purpose garment. Never be without it. (Colossians 3 The Message)
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Looking happy and relaxed (at last), their reception was held at the sailing club!
Again family and friends provided the buffet and a wonderful time was had by all...
