John 2:1-11 Pastor Nathan P. Kassulke
“See the Glory of This Wedding Guest”
Epiphany 3 January 20, 2019
Special things happen at weddings. God joins a man and a woman together as husband and wife. He makes two people into one flesh. Through that relationship, he establishes a new family unit. And he blesses husband and wife and family in many ways. Because God does so many wonderful things at a wedding, it has long been a tradition for people to celebrate. They celebrate love, they celebrate the joy that they feel and that the couple feels regarding their special day. They join together to offer their prayers that God would extend that joy and love throughout the length of that marriage. Exactly what a wedding looks like and exactly what a wedding celebration looks like have changed through the years. These things depend not only on your context in time, but in some cases on the custom of the area or the people among whom you live. But, whatever the specifics, weddings are a special time, and they are often celebrated. Today in our sermon we are considering a very special wedding. But it is not special in particular because of the people who are getting married. Interestingly enough, we don’t know anything about them. While all weddings are special because of the importance God places on them, this one is not noteworthy because of the particulars of the planning or the ceremony or the banquet. This wedding is uniquely special because of one guest that attended and because of what he did during the celebration. That special guest, of course, is Jesus, and John’s Gospel tells us that what Jesus did at the wedding offers us a glimpse of his glory to see for ourselves. This wedding guest shows us his glory in power. As I mentioned, we know precious little about the wedding itself in this case. We don’t have names for the couple or for most of the guests who have joined them to celebrate. The names we know are Jesus, His mother Mary, and at least some disciples of Jesus. Immediately before the wedding is mentioned in John’s Gospel, we hear about Jesus calling these disciples, and the wedding celebration was just days later. We also know that the town of Cana was quite near Jesus’ hometown of Nazareth. What happened there in Cana to provide the opportunity for Jesus to display his power was that the wedding celebration ran out of wine. One of the features of a Jewish wedding celebration at this time was that it lasted for several days. And one of the customary aspects of not just a celebration like this, but many meals, was the drinking of wine. So it was certainly a difficult situation for the hosts to have run out of wine. Jesus was alerted of this need, and he was in a position to help deal with it. With the assistance of the servants at the feast, Jesus did exactly that. He had the servants fill with water six stone jars that were on hand for ceremonial cleansings. The servants knew very well that these jars were filled to the brim with nothing but water. Yet Jesus instructed them to draw some out and take it to the master of the banquet. When the master tried it, he tasted the best wine he had for the entire course of the banquet. It stood out to him so much that he even asked the bridegroom why he had not served the best wine first the way most people would have and then used the cheaper wine later. John doesn’t share with us how widely it was known among the people at the banquet what Jesus had done. The servants knew where this good wine had come from. Jesus’ disciples did, too. Did the bridegroom? Did the bride? Did anyone else? John makes sure that we know what happened. As true and almighty God, Jesus changed plain water into excellent wine. He who created water in the first place was able to, at his own determination, decide when it should be something else. This wasn’t an illusion or a magic trick. Jesus didn’t have wine hidden away that he could switch into the water jars when no one was looking. He through whom
water even existed simply stopped willing that in these jars the water should remain water and instead willed that it should be wine. He did the impossible. He did a miracle. He showed himself to be the allpowerful Lord over all things. He showed himself to be the same God who once decided that the Nile River should be blood instead of water. He showed himself to be the one who not only can do but does more than we ask or imagine. He displayed the glory of God. That glory, that awesome power of God himself, could be a terrifying thing. Just think how it was used in judgment over Egypt as we heard in our First Lesson. That power means that what God threatens he can accomplish. It means that God is to be taken seriously. And so it says to sinners that they ought to be terrified because of their sins against God. But what is so amazing is that Jesus came to earth not as a mighty judge, but as a seemingly ordinary human being. In this, his first miracle, he gives us a glimpse of the power he has as God, but most of the time during his earthly ministry, that power was veiled and hidden. He did not show his power at the wedding at Cana in order to terrify or to punish. He changed water into wine to help, to show love, to show mercy. He did it to provide for someone in need what they needed. He showed his glory in his love and mercy. That is exactly what we need to see. Yes, we ought to tremble before the all-powerful God because of the sinners we are and the sins that we commit. But we see in Jesus not an angry judge or a vengeful leader. We see in him the glory of his love and compassion for us. Just as he helped the couple at their wedding, so he cares about even the ordinary course of our lives. He is with us to provide and to bless. And above all he showed his mercy and his love by going to the cross to save us from our sins. See the glory of this wedding guest both in his power and in his love, and react with trust in him. That’s the message that the disciples took home from this wedding. John describes it: “This, the beginning of his miraculous signs, Jesus performed in Cana of Galilee. He revealed his glory, and his disciples believed in him.” The signs that Jesus performed, like turning water into wine, were not the only things that the disciples knew of Jesus. They had already answered his call to follow him. They were already convinced that he was the promised Messiah. But in this event and in many others to follow, the disciples saw that additional proof that Jesus was who he claimed to be. They were witnesses of his glory. They were witnesses of his power and his love. And they trusted him. They believed in him. That’s why we put the focus on a miracle like this for our Third Sunday After the Epiphany. It is recorded for us in Scripture, as all things are, so that we “may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing [we] may have life in his name” (John 20:31). Seeing Jesus put on display his power and his love bolsters our confidence. It deepens our faith. It gives us signs and testimonies. No, we weren’t there to stare into the jars of water and to wonder whether our eyes were playing tricks on us. We weren’t there to taste the best wine that had been served in the entire banquet. But we have the testimony of those that were. We have the message of the power and the love of Jesus. We have his promises that he would use that power and love for the good of the whole world. And we can have the confidence that he has kept his promises to use his power and his love for our benefit. And that conviction, that faith, changes our lives. It leads us to follow Jesus. It leads us to listen to his every word. It leads us to joyfully follow his commands. It leads us to tell others about what he has done for us and for them. Amazing and wonderful things happen at weddings on a regular basis. But only one wedding provided the site for the first miracle of Jesus. Only one wedding had such a special guest perform such a special act. See the glory of this wedding guest. See the power of Jesus. See the love of Jesus. Trust in him.
The Text: John 2:1-11 (EHV) Three days later, there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee. Jesus’ mother was there. 2Jesus and his disciples were also invited to the wedding. 3When the wine was gone, Jesus’ mother said to him, “They have no wine.” 4Jesus said to her, “Woman, what does that have to do with you and me? My time has not come yet.” 5His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.” 6Six stone water jars, which the Jews used for ceremonial cleansing, were standing there, each holding twenty or thirty gallons. 7Jesus told them, “Fill the jars with water.” So they filled them to the brim. 8Then he said to them, “Now draw some out and take it to the master of the banquet.” And they did. 9When the master of the banquet tasted the water that had now become wine, he did not know where it came from (though the servants who had drawn the water knew). The master of the banquet called the bridegroom 10and said to him, “Everyone serves the good wine first, and when the guests have had plenty to drink, then the cheaper wine. You saved the good wine until now!” 11This, the beginning of his miraculous signs, Jesus performed in Cana of Galilee. He revealed his glory, and his disciples believed in him.