"When Jesus Comes to a Wedding" (Wedding sermon on John 2:1-11)

When Jesus comes to a wedding, that’s a good sign. It was back in Cana, and it is here today. And it’s appropriate that Jesus be here, since God instituted marriage as a good gift for man and woman, and God’s Son, Jesus Christ, is here today to bless this union of Scott and Sarah. When Jesus comes to a wedding, that’s a good sign.

And it certainly was that back with the wedding at Cana. Jesus’ mother was there, Jesus got invited too, and he brought along his disciples. Jewish weddings back in that day, in that culture, were big, elaborate affairs that could go on for days, and for the host to run out of food and wine for the guests would be a huge embarrassment. But that’s what happened. They ran out of wine. Mother Mary alerts Jesus to the situation and asks if he can help. He will.

There were some big water jars there, and Jesus tells the servants to fill them to the brim. They do. Then Jesus tells them to draw some out and take it to the master of the feast. Big surprise! The water has turned to wine! And not just some cheapo stuff. No, this is the best wine served yet! “Everyone serves the good wine first, and when people have drunk freely, then the poor wine. But you have kept the good wine until now.”

The best wine, and not just a small amount, either. No, we’re talking six stone jars, twenty to thirty gallons each--that’s around 150 gallons of the best wine you could find! A superabundance! Like I say, when Jesus comes to a wedding, that’s a good sign.

And so, Scott and Sarah, it’s a good sign that Jesus has come to your wedding here--the wedding at De Soto, we could call it. And Jesus will be with you, not just for the wedding service today, but for your whole marriage, as well.

Because you will need him to be with you. Oh, I’m not suggesting that you will run out of food or drink at the dinner after the service. Although, I am kinda hungry, and Scott is a big guy too. But no, I’m talking about when you run out of other stuff along the way.

When you run out of patience with one another, Jesus will be there to fill up what you lack. Husband and wife running out of patience? Oh, yes, believe me, it can happen. Like when your husband throws his socks on the floor instead of in the laundry basket. Like when you ask your wife what’s wrong, and she says, “Oh, nothing. It’s fine.” That’s a sign that it’s not fine, and there’s something simmering inside. Each of you will need some extra patience in those situations, in order to bear with one another. And Jesus will be there to help you.

Likewise, when you run out of forgiveness, Jesus will be there, to fill up your lack. Believe it or not, sometimes husbands and wives have to forgive one another. We hurt one another in what we say and do. The other person feels the hurt. And rather than let that hurt linger and fester and turn into bitterness, we need to forgive. The more you’re with another person, the more occasions there are to rub each other the wrong way. Forgiveness is the lubricant in your engine that will keep a marriage running smoothly and not overheat from the friction. But Jesus will be there with you, to teach you how to forgive.

Because that’s what Jesus is all about: forgiveness. That’s why he came. To win that forgiveness for us. Notice a little detail mentioned in the story of the wedding at Cana. Those big stone water jars? What does it say? “Now there were six stone water jars there for the Jewish rites of purification, each holding twenty or thirty gallons.”

Interesting that it notes, “for the Jewish rites of purification.” The Jewish people had certain rites of cleansing or purification that they used, and those required a supply of water, of course. That’s what those six huge water jars were for. But Jesus takes those jars and fills them full, up to the brim. He literally “full-fills” them. And he transforms them into a superabundance of wine, the new wine of God’s kingdom, the best wine of all. Wine, which gladdens the heart. At a wedding, the most joyous of human occasions.

And this was a sign, a sign pointing to who Jesus is, the very Messiah prophesied of old. The prophet Joel had foretold: “And in that day the mountains shall drip sweet wine.” The prophet Amos had said likewise: “Behold, the days are coming,” declares the LORD, “when . . . the mountains shall drip sweet wine, and all the hills shall flow with it.” And Isaiah had written: “On this mountain the LORD of hosts will make for all peoples a feast of rich food, a feast of well-aged wine, of rich food full of marrow, of aged wine well refined. And he will swallow up on this mountain the covering that is cast over all peoples, the veil that is spread over all nations. He will swallow up death forever.”

And so this turning water into wine is a sign pointing to what Jesus will do. He will bring in the new Messianic age, where blessings will flow forth in superabundance. Forgiveness of sins, purchased by Christ on the cross, the Lamb of God who shed his holy precious blood to cover all our sins. Life everlasting, signaled by Christ’s own resurrection, showing that he will swallow up death forever. Jesus will bring us into the eternal joy of the wedding feast of the Lamb in his kingdom, which will have no end.

And Scott and Sarah, this is why it is so important for you to have Jesus with you throughout your marriage. Because when you run out of hope, when you run out of health, Jesus will be there to renew your hope and fill it full once again.

The wedding at Cana. The wedding at De Soto. Both places, Jesus comes to the wedding. And that’s always a good sign.

John 2:1-11 (ESV)

On the third day there was a wedding at Cana in Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. Jesus also was invited to the wedding with his disciples. When the wine ran out, the mother of Jesus said to him, “They have no wine.” And Jesus said to her, “Woman, what does this have to do with me? My hour has not yet come.” His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.”

Now there were six stone water jars there for the Jewish rites of purification, each holding twenty or thirty gallons. Jesus said to the servants, “Fill the jars with water.” And they filled them up to the brim. And he said to them, “Now draw some out and take it to the master of the feast.” So they took it. When the master of the feast tasted the water now become wine, and did not know where it came from (though the servants who had drawn the water knew), the master of the feast called the bridegroom and said to him, “Everyone serves the good wine first, and when people have drunk freely, then the poor wine. But you have kept the good wine until now.” This, the first of his signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee, and manifested his glory. And his disciples believed in him.

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