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1. Intro
a. Been looking at who Jesus is
i. The special baby: the king
ii. The incarnation
iii. Last week at the baptism and seeing him as one person of the Trinity: Father, Holy Spirit and Son
1. But it is as if all these have been the prelude to what he does
iv. Today we look at what is the first thing he did in his ministry
1. This is the first of his signs
2. The first thing he did
b. When you consider Jesus' ministry on earth in the three years he wandered around Palestine, you're likely to characterize it by his healing people, casting out demons, calming storms and walking on water, teaching, telling stories and parables, inspiring people to follow him.
i. But Whenever you read a story, a novel, or see a play, the first act sets the stage for the rest of it. It tells you what it's all about. It points ahead to what needs to be done, what needs to be solved. We get introduced to the characters and what they are there to do.
1. In that regard, we might have some expectations about Jesus would begin his ministry
a. Healing, teaching, doing something spectacular with the weather
b. Something big to announce his presence
ii. Here's the first story: Jesus is using the full force of his divine power to fix a catering disaster.
1. Quick point about it: No one would make this up as the beginning of his ministry and signs.
2. It's here because it happened.
c. But we also know from scripture, as surprising as some of the stories are, there are reasons for them. So we have to ask why?
i. Why did he do it?
ii. What did Jesus mean by it?
iii. What's the point, the teaching we can take from it?
d. Three questions that will help answer why Jesus starts his ministry with fixing a catering mishap
i. What does Jesus offer here? What is he coming to do?
ii. How does he provide it?
iii. How do we get in on it? How can we receive it?
2. First, What does Jesus offer here? What is he coming to do?
a. Weddings are a big deal
i. Years ago, my wife and daughter were enamored with the show "say yes to the dress".
1. It was a reality show of women shopping at a famous bridal shop for wedding dresses.
2. It was shocking for all the time, effort and expense that went into just the dress for the even bigger event of the wedding
3. And it made for great drama to hear all the opinions, see the sales, and finally get to the decisions and the weddings
4. Weddings are a big deal
ii. As big as they are now, in many cultures including the ancient culture during Jesus' time they were enormously bigger
1. They had seven days of feasting
2. And the key to the whole thing was the wine - 7 days of wine
3. And it was all up to the groom's family to supply it all
b. So if the wine ran out early, it really was a disaster
i. It was no joke
ii. Especially in a shame culture, if the family did not fulfill cultural expectations, it was a disaster for everyone
1. This is no small thing
c. Mary, who must have been close to the situation, finds out what is going on
i. She knows enough about her Son to know that he would be able to help
ii. And so she goes to him
iii. Then the first public sign that Jesus does is produce 150 gallons of wine - the best wine
1. I have to imagine it was the best wine ever
iv. And he sends it to the Master of the Feast
1. He's the wedding guru - the wedding planner orchestrating everything
2. The Greek word literally means, "ruler of the table" or "Lord of the banquet"
d. When you ask the question, what does Jesus offer? What is he coming to do? You see it here
i. As the source of the wine, he is the Master of the Feast
ii. So when Jesus brings the wine as his first act, he wants us to know he is the one who establishes the feast.
1. The feast is not a new notion to the Israelites.
a. - "you prepare a table for me in the presence of my enemies"
b. But especially
c. “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 the Lord God will wipe away tears from all faces, and the reproach of his people he will take away from all the earth, for the Lord has spoken. It will be said on that day, “Behold, this is our God; we have waited for him, that he might save us. This is the Lord; we have waited for him; let us be glad and rejoice in his salvation.”” (, ESV)
d. And we'll see this feast fulfilled in Jesus in the book of revelation
iii. The thing about a feast, it employs all the senses with a message and experience of well-being, contentment, satisfaction and joy
iv. Jesus begins his ministry with a feast to know that this is where it is all going to go
1. And it is not just having an opinion about God. This picture is of his people having the experience of satisfaction in the salvation, the love, all that God provides in a feast of joy
a. "let us be glad and rejoice in his salvation"
2. Tim Keller quotes the great theologian Jonathan Edwards:
Thus there is a difference between having an opinion, that God is holy and gracious, and having a sense of the loveliness and beauty of that holiness and grace. There is a difference between having a rational judgment that honey is sweet, and having a sense of its sweetness.”
Keller, T. J. (2013). The Timothy Keller Sermon Archive. New York City: Redeemer Presbyterian Church.
3. Keller goes on to paint a picture of trying to describe color to a blind person. It can never be the same as us having the eyes to see blue sky, a red sunset, and a blanket of white snow.
4. It's not just that Jesus is going to save us from a life of shame, he provides us the greatest of feasts, of joy, of ultimate contentment and satisfaction
5. That's what he comes to offer. That's what he's doing here.
3. Here's how he does it
a. His mom comes to him because she has some notion that he can handle this problem with the wine
b. Jesus responds to her brusquely. "Woman". It's as brusque in that culture as it seems today.
i. It may seem like he's the son who's saying, "aw, Mom. Do I have to?" and then gives into her wishes
1. That's like a mother/son interaction most of us would be familiar with
ii. But he asks a question of her: "What does this have to do with me?"
1. She probably thinks its just about the wine and the party
2. Jesus asks questions when he wants to point to things far beyond the obvious, beyond what is right in front of us
iii. And he goes on to say, "my hour has not yet come"
1. It's as if he sees all that is ahead of him - he sees all that's to happen in the next few years and to the very end
2. He points to what this all about - what this act of changing water into wine points to
c. There is a whole lot of foreshadowing going on in this scene - images we will see elsewhere in scripture and in this gospel of John
i. In the next chapter, some followers of John the Baptist are going to ask him why Jesus is getting all the attention that he used to have.
1. We've already mentioned that Jesus' action makes him the bridegroom. John explains to them that Jesus is the bridegroom in this situation. He, John, is just the best man. The bridegroom should be getting all the attention
2. We'll see Jesus as the bridegroom again in John's book of Revelation, in chapter 21,
ii. There were six stone water jars for that hold water for the right of purification
1. These jars held the water blessed for the purposes of ritually purifying people who were headed to worship
a. People recognized they are sinful and need to be cleansed to come into the holy presence of God for worship
i. We do prayers of confession
ii. They ceremonially washed.
iii. Jesus filled the jars of cleansing with his own wine
b. Next, whenever elsewhere in this gospel Jesus speaks of "the hour", he is speaking of his death
i. Jesus is looking at these water jars to be filled with wine, he speaks of "the hour" - he is looking ahead at his blood being shed for us on the cross, poured out as the water of cleansing, given to us as the wine of his blood for our purification.
ii. He's seeing all that
1. And now the water jars and the rebuffed mother and the filling them with what becomes the best of wines and the reference to the hour.
c. Jesus is pointing to his death - his death where the wine of his blood will be poured out and flow for the cleansing of the bride and the feast of his people
4. And here's how we receive it
a. I love how the Master of the banquet comes to the groom's family and compliments them on saving the good wine to last
i. He doesn't even know what happens, but he gives them credit for such good wine
ii. The groom's family actually blew it. They had run out of wine. They didn't have what they should have. Shame on them.
iii. But Jesus stepped in and turned the water into wine. He took away their shame
b. I didn't think much about weddings when I was a young man growing up. I hoped to marry and share a life with someone and God has been more than gracious
i. The only measure of weddings that I had were two
1. I had watched Princess Diana and Prince Charles get married on TV
2. And I loved the movie the Sound of Music where Maria marries the Baron in the beautiful cathedral with the choir of nuns singing exultantly
3. I thought that's what I'd want to express my love and devotion - the measure of the covenant we were making
4. I understand why the ancients made it a seven day festival
ii. Turns out, I'm neither an heir to the throne of Great Britain, nor am I living in a movie.
1. I'm not going to live up to this measure
c. In March, Veronica and I will have gotten married 25 years ago in the Presbyterian Church of the Big Wood River in Ketchum/Sun Valley, Idaho
i. It was a small wedding gathering just a few friends we'd made from the different places we'd lived around the country already by that point.
ii. And it was a highlight of my life.
1. It turns out, it's not about the size of the wedding, but about the joy of the relationship being established
2. The pastor, Al Oliver, spoke of the three stranded cord from Ecclesiastes.
a. It's the fact that we are stronger together
b. But not strong enough unless Christ stands right with us in our relationship
iii. Here's the thing, you can only manufacture and provide for so much joy in your life - only have so much wine ready for the ceremony. It won't be enough
1. But when Christ brings the wine, it's going to be really good
2. How do you join in the feast?
a. Know you can't provide for it enough for what it needs to be
i. You don't have enough wine
b. The key is to invite Jesus to provide the wine, cover the shame,
c. And the feast, the relationships, the life that we share will be more than
i. A royal wedding
ii. A grand movie wedding
iii. More than we could ever imagine
iv. It will be the wedding feast of the lamb