1 John 3:18-24
Little children, let us love, not in word or speech, but in truth and action. And by this we will know that we are from the truth and will reassure our hearts before him whenever our hearts condemn us; for God is greater than our hearts, and he knows everything. Beloved, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have boldness before God; and we receive from him whatever we ask, because we obey his commandments and do what pleases him.

And this is his commandment, that we should believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ and love one another, just as he has commanded us. All who obey his commandments abide in him, and he abides in them. And by this we know that he abides in us, by the Spirit that he has given us.

Why This New Testament Scripture Makes a Good Wedding Reading:There are lots of words about love in a marriage ceremony. In fact, too many people say their wedding vows without truly understanding their meaning. But the truth lies in your actions afterward: will you love each other when times are hard? Will you not just put up with each other, but completely cherish each other? The beginning of this New Testament wedding reading reminds us of this necessity. But then it also reminds us that though that task might be difficult, we won't be alone. God will abide with us.

1 John 4:7-12, 16b-19
Beloved, let us love one another, because love is from God; everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, for God is love.

God's love was revealed among us in this way: God sent his only Son into the world so that we might live through him. In this is love, not that we loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins. Beloved, since God loved us so much, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God lives in us, and his love is perfected in us.

God is love, and those who abide in love abide in God, and God abides in them. Love has been perfected among us in this: that we may have boldness on the day of judgement, because as he is, so are we in this world. There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear; for fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not reached perfection in love. We love because he first loved us.

Why This New Testament Scripture Makes a Good Wedding Reading:
The author of 1st John says the word "love" no less than 38 times in his epistle- that's more than any other book of the Bible! So, there are many beautiful passages in this book that might be appropriate for a marriage ceremony. Many people choose just 1 John 4:7-12 as their reading, leaving out the last few verses. But ending there omits a powerful sentence: "There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear." Think about that sentence and about times in your life when fear has gotten in the way of love. It might have been when you were afraid of being wrong, and couldn't admit to your mistakes. It might have been when you were afraid of commitment, or even when you were afraid of being vulnerable. Marriage alone doesn't conquer this problem; you've all heard of married folks fighting over money. jealousy, or insecurity. At the root of both those fights is fear. When we can realize that there is no fear in love, we can walk together through any problems.

Revelation 19:1, 5-9
After this I heard what seemed to be the loud voice of a great multitude in heaven, saying, “Hallelujah! Salvation and glory and power to our God,
And from the throne came a voice saying, “Praise our God, all you his servants, and all who fear him, small and great." Then I heard what seemed to be the voice of a great multitude, like the sound of many waters and like the sound of mighty thunder peals, crying out, “Hallelujah! For the Lord our God the Almighty reigns. Let us rejoice and exult and give him the glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready; to her it has been granted to be clothed with fine linen, bright and pure”— for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints. And the angel said to me, “Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb." And he said to me, “These are true words of God."

Why This New Testament Scripture Makes a Good Wedding Reading: In Christianity, the church is the bride of Christ. In marriage, we aim to reproduce the purity and excellence of that relationship. This reading reminds us of those motivations, and the great celebrations such weddings deserve. Hallelujah!

Old Testament Wedding Readings

Most Popular Wedding Readings from the Bible