Introduction: A wedding in any culture is a joyous occasion, isn't it? It is a celebration of love and of new life - a new chapter begins in the lives of a man and a woman as they vow to spend the rest of their lives together. And as such weddings are a big deal. Once a couple decides to get married, the preparations begin which sometimes seem to take on a life of its own. I remember my own wedding preparations: the endless planning and discussions - choosing the invitation cards, making the guest list, sending out the invitation cards, waiting for the RSVP ordering the flowers, getting the wedding clothes ready – for myself, Joachim, for rest of the family, and for the flower girls and page boy - getting the church ready, booking the hotel for the dinner, checking the menu, bugging my brother and Joachim to get their speech done, confirming the order of service, choosing the music etc, etc...the list was endless. And after all that preparation, if you ask me about that day, I can honestly tell you that it's all pretty hazy in my mind and if not for the video recording of the occasion, I would have forgotten many things about that day. So weddings are a big deal but if we think that they are a big deal today, it was even more of a deal in Biblical times. Jewish Wedding: On the evening of her wedding, (Jews began their day in the evening), the bride would be led from the home of her parents to the home of her husband. Joyful music would be played as they went. In a small village like Cana of Galilee, a wedding is be a community celebration. The bride would be surrounded by not only her friends but also the groom's friends and probably all the people in her village. So you can imagine the crowd. People would be carrying torches or lamps as they made their way to the groom's home. Once there, the bride is brought to her husband and someone would say: "Take her according to the Law of Moses and Israel". The groom would sign the "Kethubah", the marriage contract, stating that: "He would work for her, honour her, keeper and care for her. "Then he would pay 200 Zuz in cash (about 1400 denarri). After this they would wash their hands (Keep in mind this point about washing hands - we will be looking at it later). Finally, the benediction would be said and the marriage supper began. This is normally what happened at a wedding during Jesus' time and it was probably what happened at the wedding that He attended at Cana. St John's gospel is the only one that records this story of the wedding at Cana - the other 3 synoptic gospels don't. And his reason becomes crystal clear as we study his gospel: John’s primary reason for writing this gospel is to show his readers who Jesus is and what He was about - that Jesus is the incarnate Son of God, the pre-existent Word of God (that’s why he begins his book “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God and the Word was God…) who descended from heaven and returned to heaven by the way of the cross. Throughout his gospel, John develops the theme of the divinity of Jesus, gradually unveiling more signs of glory, until they culminate in the resurrection of Jesus – the ultimate sign of His divinity. John is telling his readers, especially the Jews, that Jesus indeed is the perfect incarnational Word that the prophets of old have spoken about - albeit imperfectly, therefore, believe in Him. Chap 20:30-31 reads: "And truly Jesus did many other signs in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book; But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God and that believing you may have life in His name." “Believe” is the key word in this book - if you put your faith in Jesus as the Son of God, you have eternal life; if you reject Him, then you are under the condemnation of God -(Jn 3:36). And in order to challenge his readers to make that decision of faith in Christ, John presents 7 carefully chosen miracles and the 7 'I am' statements - I am the bread of life, I am the light of the world, I am the door, I am the Good Shepherd, I am the resurrection and the life, I am the way, the truth and the life, I am the true vine. These signs combine to show that Jesus is indeed the Son of God. With that, let's go to the passage assigned for today: the wedding at Cana of Galilee. The passage begins with "On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee..." If we turn to our Bibles, and look at the events that had taken place in the first chap, we realize that the previous 3 days were pretty eventful ones for Jesus. Firstly, He was baptized in the Jordan River by John the Baptist and then secondly, He spent the next few days gathering His disciples. He had 4 brand new disciples with Him when he came to the wedding at Cana - Andrew, Peter, Philip and Nathaniel. While at the wedding, something disastrous happened. The wine ran out. There was still a couple more days of feasting to go and there was no more wine. Of course there were no corner convenient store like today where one could go and re-stock on the wine. So it looked as though the joyous celebration was going to turn into a major social disgrace. In the close-knit societies of Jesus’ day, failure to provide adequately for the wedding guests was an utter disgrace. It was a breach in hospitality, a terrible embarrassment. And the error would never be forgotten and would haunt the newly wedded couple for the rest of their lives. So running out of wine was not a trivial matter in those days. Mary who was also at the wedding, approaches Jesus and tells him of the situation. It has been suggested that the bridal family may have been Mary’s and Jesus’ relatives and that’s how she came to be in-the-know of things. As I read the passage, I am not sure whether she was just relating what the situation was or hinting that Jesus do something about it, even something miraculous. It is not clear. There are various interpretations. I’d like to think that Mary, being His mother was sharing with Him her concern, maybe hoping that He can come up with some solution or has some idea as to how to rescue the wedding from certain disaster. Mothers do have a tendency to look towards their eldest children to help solve problems. Or may be she was really looking for a miracle, now that He was baptized and has started choosing His disciples, which indicated the inauguration of His ministry. Jesus’ reply is pretty strange: ”Woman, what have that to do with us? My hour has not yet come.” I am not going to go into all the various interpretation that has been given to explain this sentence. We don’t have the time for that. I have done enough reading on this subject to be assured that Jesus was not being rude to His mother. And any way, Mary doesn’t behave as though she is offended by His remark. In fact, she seemed satisfied with His answer and goes on to instruct the servants, “Whatever He says to you, do it.” And so John goes on to narrate that there were 6 stone water jars there for the purpose of Jewish purification rites. And each of these jars could hold 20-30 gallons of water. Seeing them, Jesus told the servants, “Fill them up with water”. They filled them up to the brim. Then He says to them ”Draw some out now and take it to the headwaiter. So they took it to him.” After tasting the wine, the headwaiter or the master of the wedding ceremony was stunned. It was completely against custom. The best wine was always served first and then the lower grades. At this wedding, it was the opposite. The headwaiter, calls the bridegroom and congratulates him, thinking that the credit actually goes to him. But we know differently. What was John’s purpose in recording this miracle? And of what significance is this miracle to us today? At the end of the passage John describes this miracle as a “sign”. A sign by nature points to something beyond itself, something deeper. Edward Schillebeeckx says that ‘sign’ is an important work of Jesus, performed in the sight of the apostles, miracles in fact, which of their own nature lead to faith in Jesus, the Son of God. Signs therefore are to catch the attention of the viewer or reader and focus it on Jesus” John is using this miracle of turning water into wine as a sign. And we may ask – A sign of what? I. First and foremost, it was a sign of the change or transformation that was taking place in the world. More precisely, the turning of water into wine is a sign of God’s presence through Jesus in the world. Through Jesus, God was revealing His nature to the world. And what was His nature? God’s nature was one of infinite compassion. Jesus at the wedding changed the water into wine because He felt compassion for wedding couple and their families. John tells us that this was Jesus’ first miracle. And as far as desperate situations go, this wasn’t the most urgent of situations was it? There was no life or death situation here, no desperate healing that needs to take place. Merely social disgrace. And yet, Jesus rose to the occasion. Just as He had joined in their moments of joyous celebration when things were going well, He also sympathized in their moment of embarrassment and therefore desired to help them. He didn’t want their joy on this very special day to be marred by the lack of wine. He wanted their joy to be complete. And so He provided for their needs. So the picture of God in Jesus that this miracle provides us is this: He is one who is intimately involved in all of our life, in times of celebrations as well as in times of sorrow. And that teaches me that no matter is too trivial for the Lord; no need is too small or ordinary for His consideration and attention. It is His desire that we enjoy life and enjoy it to the fullest. II. Secondly, it points us to the abundant, extravagant nature of God. Ok, so there was no more wine. Jesus could have done a miracle that provided just enough wine for the wedding feast to be respectable. But that’s not what He did. There were 6 stone water jars that could hold 20-30 gallons of water and Jesus turned the whole thing into wine. How much was 20-30 gallons of water? That’s between 450 to 680 liters. That’s a lot of wine at any one party and there is no way, I am told, that the guests could have consumed all that amount of wine. And not just any wine either. It was of the highest quality. Why did Jesus do this? Was He encouraging drunkenness? Of Course NOT! It points to the extravagant giving nature of God. He never gives just enough for our needs. He always gives super-abundantly. This same attitude of extravagance and abundance that is seen in Cana is seen also in the feeding of the multitudes. Jesus multiplied 5 loaves and 2 fish to feed 5,000 men and their families. And when everyone had eaten their fill, there were 12 baskets of bread and fish left over. He provided far more than they could eat. Because that is the nature of God – not just in eating and drinking but in everything. God’s grace and love is an abundant, extravagant thing. Paul, having experienced this abundant extravagant grace writes, “Even though I was once a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent man, I was shown mercy because I acted in ignorance and unbelief. The grace of the Lord was poured out on me abundantly, along with faith and love that are in Christ Jesus” (1Tim 1:13-14). Jesus said in John chap 10:10 “I have come that they may have life, and have it abundantly”. In Ephesians 3:20, we read that God is able to do “far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think – immeasurably more than we can ask or imagine according to the power that is at work in us.” Over and over we see this extravagant grace at work:- To the dying thief on the cross, He gave the gift of paradise. To the woman caught in the act of adultery, He gave the gift of amazing grace and forgiveness. To a grieving father he gave back a child in the grip of death. To the one who denied Him, He gave the keys to the kingdom. Jesus is lavish with His gifts, His blessings, His grace, mercy and love. And to us who comes to Him with our requests, He gives the promise of abundant life here and now, and beyond this world – eternal life. And looking at ourselves, can we justify deserving any of the blessings He has given us? I think not. But still He gives, because it is His nature to give – abundantly and extravagantly. III. Thirdly, the changing of water into wine was a sign that God’s new age had arrived. Those at the wedding feast who knew their OT scriptures knew that an abundance of wine symbolized the arrival of God’s new age. Let me read some of these OT texts to you: Amos 9:13-14:- “The time is coming, says the Lord, when the mountains shall drip with new wine and the hills shall flow with it; when my people shall plant vineyards and drink their wine.” Isaiah 25: 6-10:- “On this mountain the Lord will make for all peoples a feast of rich food, a feast of well-aged wines, of well-aged wines strained clear…This is the Lord for whom we have waited. Let us be glad and rejoice in His salvation.” The transformation of water into wine points to the creative and transforming work of Jesus. The old order of religion has come to an end. Why? Because the way of worshipping, which God commanded to Moses and was recorded in the OT, was supposed to be a joyful celebration of God’s presence in the life of Israel. Instead, it had become a tedious and boring exercise in ritual which has lost its meaning. The Law of God which is the delight of the righteous, has become the teachings of the Scribes and the Pharisees. The joy of the people in their faith had run out just like the wine at the wedding. Jesus came to replace the old meaningless ways by the reality of His presence. The Pharisees were big on purification – it is hard to overemphasize the Jewish concern with water – Water and purification were the predominant daily rituals of their religion. Jews were always “dirty” – not with dirt but with sin. And the rituals of purification reminded them of that reality every day. There was purification ritual at every meal, for every child-birth, for every menstruation, for every time a Jew touched a dead or unclean thing. Some people in that society were considered perpetually unclean – like the lepers, hemorrhaging women or tax collectors. God is pure. God is clean. You can’t be close to God and be unclean at the same time. So, over and over, day after day, the rites of purification went on. Even, as we have seen, part of the wedding ceremony involved washing of hands. And in this miracle at Cana, we are told that there were 6 stone jars set there for the custom of purification. The water jars were mostly empty because each guest had been given water to wash their hands and feet as they arrived. But this was not so much for cleanliness as it was for ritual purity. The jars of water were there to fulfill the OT requirements for ceremonial washing. John here mixes events with metaphors – He is saying that the jars represent the OT Law and its inability to make a person truly clean. When Jesus came into contact with these jars used in ritual cleansing, He transformed their contents. The Wine of the Kingdom replaces the water of purification. The celebration of forgiveness replaces the ritual of cleansing. Jesus came to bring new wine out of the old rituals. He came to breathe new life into a dying faith. He was the best wine that God was saving for the last. Wine is the symbol of God’s grace that comes into our lives undeserved and transforms us from the inside out. The old system of having to live up to an impossible legal code has been replaced by the wine of God’s grace, which washes our sins away. We are cleansed from the inside out. This isn’t symbolically but in reality. Our sins are not just taken away. We are changed. We are transformed. God gives us new hearts - hearts that are willing to obey Him, hearts that desire to love God and live for Him. Conclusion: Jesus did not come into the world to give us information, He came to give us a transformation. He changes things. He has a way of taking ordinary things and making it extraordinary. He did not come to bring new ideas, He came to make new people. He came to give us new hearts. The water did not just appear to be wine; it was transformed into wine, and the best wine at that. Our little dribs and drabs of phony purity become an ever-flowing river of grace, our scarce righteousness is transformed into abundant holiness, our shameful sin into joyful forgiveness. Today, as we gather before the Lord’s Table, let’s rejoice in the abundant, extravagant, limitless grace of God that makes it possible for us to approach Him. As we partake of the Body and Blood of our Lord which was given for us, lets remember once again the costly price that has been paid for our salvation and truly repent of our sins. As we eat of the Bread of Life and drink from the Cup of Salvation, let us also remember that this is a love feast and what we do today is a foretaste of the great wedding feast of the Lamb, where we will be dressed like a bride and made ready for the bridegroom – beautiful, pure and lovely. Let us pray. [Top] |
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