Are We Prepared For The Most Important Commitment We Will Ever Make?

Good Morning Friends,

 

Today we look at the gift of marriage, the gift of the Spirit, and the gift of Jesus through the story of the wedding in Cana of Galilee where Jesus turn the water into very good wine. And to make it a little more interesting we add a passage from Revelation on the marriage of the Lamb. On the surface, the passage about turning foot washing water into wine sounds like a cute story which demonstrates the compassion Mary and Jesus had on a bridegroom and his family when they ran out of wine at a wedding feast. But there is more going on here than an emphasis upon Mary’s intercession to what seems a somewhat reluctant Jesus to do something about it. Still the text is an appeal to intercessory prayer. Another approach to a message might be to say that we need to help the poor to take away their shame. And again, this is valid approach. But I think there is more to this text than that. It is part of seven signs in the gospel of John. It has its own story to tell but points to a greater reality as well. So, the details in the story might well have a deeper meaning. Two additional connecting clues come to mind that makes this position defensible. The first is that the passage unlike preceding passages uses the term, “On the third day.” And this I think refers to the day Jesus rose from the dead in addition to the story line related to the disciples’ calling. The second is the reality that Jesus calls his mother, “Woman”, in only two passages in the book of John. Here in the story of the Wedding at Cana and then at the cross. John was an eye witness to both events, so I think we need to take the connection seriously as part of the greater story of Jesus and the Kingdom. Interestingly, on the cross, Jesus leaves Mary in the hands of John, and not His earthly relatives who were still unbelievers. We see a new understanding of our spiritual family here and the need to identify with our Christian brothers and sisters as a priority…very much like a marriage. Are We Prepared For The Most Important Commitment We Will Ever Make?

 

Scripture: For Zion’s sake I will not keep silent, and for Jerusalem’s sake I will not rest, until her vindication shines out like the dawn, and her salvation like a burning torch. The nations shall see your vindication, and all the kings your glory; and you shall be called by a new name that the mouth of the Lord will give. You shall be a crown of beauty in the hand of the Lord, and a royal diadem in the hand of your God. You shall no more be termed Forsaken, and your land shall no more be termed Desolate; but you shall be called My Delight Is in Her, and your land Married; for the Lord delights in you, and your land shall be married. For as a young man marries a young woman, so shall your builder marry you, and as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, so shall your God rejoice over you.

 

Isaiah 62:1-5 (NRSV)

 

Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; and there are varieties of services, but the same Lord; and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who activates all of them in everyone. To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. To one is given through the Spirit the utterance of wisdom, and to another the utterance of knowledge according to the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit, to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another the discernment of spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. All these are activated by one and the same Spirit, who allots to each one individually just as the Spirit chooses.

 

1 Corinthians 12:4-11 (NRSV)

 

On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding. When the wine gave out, the mother of Jesus said to him, “They have no wine.” And Jesus said to her, “Woman, what concern is that to you and to me? My hour has not yet come.” His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.” Now standing there were six stone water jars for the Jewish rites of purification, each holding twenty or thirty gallons. Jesus said to them, “Fill the jars with water.” And they filled them up to the brim. He said to them, “Now draw some out, and take it to the chief steward.” So they took it. When the steward tasted the water that had become wine, and did not know where it came from (though the servants who had drawn the water knew), the steward called the bridegroom and said to him, “Everyone serves the good wine first, and then the inferior wine after the guests have become drunk. But you have kept the good wine until now.” Jesus did this, the first of his signs, in Cana of Galilee, and revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him.

 

John 2:1-11 (NRSV)

 

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, for his judgements are true and just; he has judged the great whore who corrupted the earth with her fornication, and he has avenged on her the blood of his servants.’ Once more they said, ‘Hallelujah! The smoke goes up from her for ever and ever.’ And the twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshipped God who is seated on the throne, saying, ‘Amen. Hallelujah!’ 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.’ Then I fell down at his feet to worship him, but he said to me, ‘You must not do that! I am a fellow-servant with you and your comrades who hold the testimony of Jesus. Worship God! For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.’

 
 

Revelation 19:1-10 (NRSV)

 

Message: The things that people do to get ready for a wedding vary depending on what part they envision the event to be. Weddings obviously are times to have fun and celebrate the bond of unity and commitment. They are events that are to mark the importance of family and community.
If you have ever participated in or planned a wedding, you know that a lot must go into the preparation. But first century weddings in the Jewish culture were more extensive than we might imagine. They were not a day or two but an extended event at which the whole family and community participated. It was a much bigger deal than most modern weddings and more like a royal marriage celebration. Now what is really interesting here is that the Bible tells us that Jesus Christ is going to be married and that the bride is the Called-Out Assembly of Believers and the Saints and the marriage supper is going to take place only when the Father determines that the time is right but also in a way when we remember Jesus and but ultimately and most important when Jesus remembers us. John, in the story of the wedding at Cana invites us to take what we know about getting ready for a wedding and connects it to the wedding that will end all weddings. He connects the Last Supper with the Eucharist and the wine with Jesus’ blood at the cross and the hope of Christ’s second coming. The beauty is that in it all we see Jesus becoming the Savior of the world in our collective communion in this age and the age to come, but also for us as individuals in our specific needs now. In Revelation the story is woven together so we might see the goal of our faith and commit to the cause of glorifying Christ in our small victories over sin as well as contemplating the celebration of Christ’s final victory over evil. The message of Revelation is “Jesus wins!” And so, it also reminds us that in the end we will win if we prepare. The message is meant to lift our spirits and restore our hope in what is yet unseen. So, imagine for a moment the great magnitude of the scale of the marriage of Jesus and the Church in its sanctified state. As you begin to answer the today’s question for yourself, I want you to first think about being ready to be a guest and then what is necessary to be a bride. Friends, you and I can only be ready for the wedding if Jesus has prepared us…cleans us up and dresses us in purity. Through his power and by his grace we need to stay ready for the time when God comes to claim us as His own.

 
 

Pray that we accept the invitation to the wedding feast. Pray that the Holy Spirit has prepared us for the wedding. Pray we bring our needs to Jesus. Pray we break with customs and save the best for last. Pray we have a more personal relationship with Christ. Pray we rejoice in the transformation of frowns into smiles…of fears into hope…of sorrow into joy. Pray we experience the joy of the abundance of new wine in Jesus. Pray we experience a Jesus that turns sin into grace and death into life. Pray we experience the joy of God’s love knowing it will always be more than we will ever need. Pray that in living for Jesus we learn to love Him. Pray that we leave behind sin, so we can follow Christ to a new home. Pray we are prepared through our experiences and relationships here now. Pray we are dressed in our wedding clothes of purity ready for the banquet. Pray we understand the grace, submission and love of Christian marriage.
Pray that we not resist the Spirit of God. Pray we not ridicule the Holy Spirit that has been placed in us as a down payment for our redemption. Pray we resolve to cooperate with the Holy Spirit. Pray we realize that our reward is based on what we can accomplish in this life in and through the work of the Holy Spirit. Pray we share the mysteries of love.

 
 

Blessings,

 
 

John Lawson