MASTER OF THE WEDDING BANQUET
John 2:1-11
A traditional Jewish wedding is full of meaningful rituals, symbolizing the beauty of the relationship of husband and wife, as well as their obligations to each other and to the Jewish people.
The dawning wedding day heralds the happiest and holiest day in the lives of the couple. This day is considered a personal Yom Kippur for the chatan (Hebrew for groom) and kallah (bride), for on this day all their past mistakes are forgiven as they merge into a new, complete soul. Custom forbids the bride and groom from seeing each other in the week leading up to their wedding ceremony .
It is a time of deep religious significance as well as joyous celebration with family and friends. There are two distinct stages of the marriage ceremony; one is the sanctification or dedication or in biblical language – the betrothal and the other is the marriage. A Rabbi pronounces seven blessings on the couple … they recite their vows to each other and exchange rings … and then the audience shouts "Mazel tov!" ("Congratulations") and then it is a time of celebration and feasting .
It is in this time of celebration and feasting that we find our next encounter with Jesus in John 2:1-11 NLT; The next day there was a wedding celebration in the village of Cana in Galilee. Jesus’ mother was there, and Jesus and his disciples were also invited to the celebration. The wine supply ran out during the festivities, so Jesus’ mother told him, “They have no more wine.” “Dear woman, that’s not our problem,” Jesus replied. “My time has not yet come.” But his mother told the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.” Standing nearby were six stone water jars, used for Jewish ceremonial washing. Each could hold twenty to thirty gallons. Jesus told the servants, “Fill the jars with water.” When the jars had been filled, he said, “Now dip some out, and take it to the master of ceremonies.” So the servants followed his instructions. When the master of ceremonies tasted the water that was now wine, not knowing where it had come from (though, of course, the servants knew), he called the bridegroom over. “A host always serves the best wine first,” he said. “Then, when everyone has had a lot to drink, he brings out the less expensive wine. But you have kept the best until now!” This miraculous sign at Cana in Galilee was the first time Jesus revealed his glory. And his disciples believed in him. After the wedding he went to Capernaum for a few days with his mother, his brothers, and his disciples.
The importance of the marriage is seen in that it is the first recorded event in the public ministry of Christ. Marriage is under great attack today especially marriage as ordained by God. This should not surprise us for the world does not want to do anything God's way. God places a tremendous importance on the institution of marriage. This does not mean that you must be married. What it means is that if a man and woman want to live together, they need to be married.
Cohabitation or shacking-up has become popular in our society today, but even sociology confirms that the separation rate is even higher than divorce for married couples. Sex outside of marriage is not endorsed in Scripture. If you want to live with a person of the opposite sex you get married or you do not live with them. That is God's message and God's message is the one that should guide our life if we would live an honorable life .
In our text, I think it is interesting that Jesus was invited to the wedding – his reputation had preceded him. On occasion, I have been asked to perform wedding ceremonies for people I do not even know. They simply want a minister to perform the ceremony. But that is not how Christ was invited to this marriage. Christ was known before the marriage. Christ needs to be in wedding ceremonies and marriages today!
Marriage puts a lot of stress on the married couple. Without Christ, the stress will be too much and too many end up tragically in the divorce courts. This marriage ran into problems early (at the marriage feast) which Christ solved. If you have Christ in your marriage, you have a counselor for your marriage problems.
In Jewish custom, a wedding was not so much about the bride and groom – it was more about binding the community together. The bigger, the stronger, and the more numerous the families of a community, the better its economy, the greater the military security, the more everyone flourished .
Much of the emphasis today is placed on the bride and groom and the wedding and the reception.
The most elaborate wedding that I have attended was estimated to have cost around $75,000, but the couple wouldn’t spend $300 on pre-marital counseling and were divorced just a few years after the ceremony.
I don’t know what a wedding cost over 2,000 years ago, but we do know it was a big event for the family and the community. It was a time when the couple was acknowledged as adults and welcomed into the larger community. Typically, the celebration lasted at least a week.
And with this background we see from the text that there is an immediate faux pas. Just three days into the celebration this wedding party ran out of wine – the single most important element in a Jewish feast. Essentially the party was over. It was not just a breach of etiquette but a social catastrophe and a psychological embarrassment, particularly in a traditional honor-and-shame culture.
And so in this encounter we see an immediate conflict between Jesus and Mary, his mother. Again, I think it is significant to note that this miracle was performed in Cana in Galilee and not in Judea. This is the beginning of his ministry – he has just selected the 12 men that would be his supporting cast. So, why would he chose to use this occasion as the source of his first miracle?
It was not a life-or-death situation; nobody was ill or infirmed; it was not about demon-possession, so what did this miracle signify what Jesus came into the world to do?
In verse 9 we are introduced to the “master of ceremonies.” It was his job to invite everyone to the celebration and to insure that every detail was taken care of – bottom line, he was to relieve the parents and the couple of any additional stress and to throw a great party.
But, in essence, Jesus is demonstrating, ‘I am the true master of the feast, I am Lord!’ Some might object to that notion by thinking that he came to be the humble servant. And while that is true – I think he is putting this party – gone badly into context.
He is setting the stage for the grand finale. Yes, he will suffer. Yes, he will be rejected and ridiculed. Yes, there will be tremendous sacrifice. But, it is all a means to an end – which is festival joy and celebration! It is all in the scheme of a cross and death; of resurrection and life; of heaven and eternal glory.
In Mary, we can relate to human pride. It is natural to think highly of your children. And because of previous encounters with Jesus, she is quite confident that he can save the day for this family and couple. So she instructs the servants “Do whatever he tells you.”
Come to think of it . . . those are the most important words that Mary ever spoke. They are just as relevant today as they were 2,000 years ago. But, her confidence and forthrightness were challenged by Jesus. Jesus asked her, “Why do you involve me?” Literally, he asked her “What is it to me and to you, woman ? This has troubled some folk because he neither shows adoration for her nor disrespect. He vividly establishes that his decisions are entirely his and the will of his Father.
Perhaps, as the people witnessed this situation they reflected on the words of the prophet Isaiah when he wrote, “On this mountain the LORD Almighty will prepare a feast of rich food for all peoples, a banquet of aged wine - the best of meats and the finest of wines .”
And while the people may have been thinking about that prophecy, Jesus may have very well been thinking about the remainder of this section of Scripture which reads, “On this mountain he will destroy the shroud that enfolds all peoples, the sheet that covers all nations; he will swallow up death forever. The Sovereign LORD will wipe away the tears from all faces; he will remove the disgrace of his people from all the earth. The LORD has spoken.”
At this occasion, Jesus is saying, “I am Lord of the Feast. I come to bring joy and celebration to a world in darkness and despair.” He rescues a family’s honor and a young bride and groom from a social gaffe. It sets the stage for what is to come in his short ministry on this earth.
Another interesting aspect of this miracle is how he did it. Did you catch the phrase for the vessels used? It says he ordered the servants to use “six stone water jars, used for Jewish ceremonial washing.” We know that OT Judaism held to many rites and regulations which required meticulous ways of physical cleansing and purification, so it was probably unthinkable that one would drink from these jars.
After offering animal sacrifices where blood and animal remains were on the priests – the jars were used for cleansing the outward body. It was a lesson that God is perfect and holy and that humans are imperfect and sinful.
Through both the supernatural power of the miracle and the imagery associated with it the disciples' confessions of Jesus in the first chapter are confirmed. Here indeed is the one they have been waiting for. He himself is the good wine that has been kept back until now .
For us living in America, known for its rugged individualism and independence, this story may not resonate. But, imagine how deep the humiliation must have been for this family to fail in a shame-and-honor culture. This family and young married couple were facing certain public embarrassment.
Can’t you just see the article the society editor wrote in the Galilean Gazette? “On Friday, the Klausner family began a weeklong celebration of the wedding of their son Daniel to Danielle but just after three days they had the unthinkable happen – they ran out of wine. However, the event was joyfully recouped by the man from Nazareth, named Jesus, who many believe is a rabbi. He quickly took six water containers reserved for ceremonial washing and miraculously created between 120-180 gallons of the best tasting wine in the region.”
Yes, we like stories with happy endings. Joy and celebration take us away from the mundane. News headlines are depressing. The actions of co-workers shock us. The way church members belittle and judge fellow Christians is disheartening. But, let’s face it - - we live in a sin-prone world.
We cannot appreciate the joy that Jesus brings until we understand sin. Without the blood of Jesus we are all ceremonially unclean. We are stained and need to be purified. We have guilt and shame and need to be rescued from it.
In our lives – why do we think that deep-down we can work to earn our salvation? Why must we be right all the time? Why do we worry about our finances or how we look?
Are we not trying to prove that we are worthy … trying to make ourselves ceremonially clean? The wedding party wanted to look good and so do we.
As we have already said, the interaction between Jesus and his mother is puzzling. She is concerned for the immediate needs of the wedding guests and he is already pondering his ultimate hour on this earth.
Mary may have sensed what he meant by his ‘hour’ as she sensed his emotional, sharp and to some, offensive response. But she doesn’t argue or ask him to explain or walk away hurt by the words of her son.
Mary saw the immediate, but Jesus is looking into the future …past his mother’s request … past the bride and groom and … past the entirety of the wedding festival. He is seeing something else. He is pondering the fact that he will bring a festival of joy to a dark and broken world. That he has the power to cleanse human-beings of their guilt and sin. Yes, mother, I can bring joy . . . but, I will have to die to do it.
Jesus rescued a wedding disaster, but more importantly he can rescue us. Too often, in our world we forget that joy comes from the Lord. Yes, there are those who are full of joy. But, there are others who have this dry, empty feeling inside.
Jesus took the water intended for ceremonial cleansing – the water in those jars was intended for external cleansing but Jesus is about internal cleansing . In this first miracle of Jesus, we see this truth … Jesus is not just the giver of joy … he is the giver of abundant joy. He did not make ordinary wine – he made the very best wine. The water in those jars was transformed into the finest wine the people had ever tasted.
We don’t need to focus on the ordinary clay jars or if the wine was intoxicating or not … we need to focus on the transformation. Jesus is about transformation! He can turn hearts that are heavy … lives enslaved to addiction and lust … people who are burdened into joyful – hopeful – peaceful individuals.
The story teaches us that Jesus offers an abundance of new wine … that He is all about transformation. That abundance is his grace.
Jesus produced over 100 gallons of wine but there is no measure to God’s grace. Changing people is what the message of Jesus is all about.
Custom dictated that the best wine was served first but in reality when our lives are an embarrassment – Jesus reserves the best for last. Has your joy run out today? Jesus wants to transform you. He is waiting to see if you know what to do when the wine runs out. Do you know the joy of your salvation today? If not, the miracle of his grace awaits you – only if you accept it. Will you not accept it as we stand and sing a song of encouragement?
Resources for this sermon include:
http://www.aish.com/jl/l/m/48969841.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jewish_wedding
Butler's Sermon Starters - Butler's Sermon Starters – Volume 2.
Timothy Keller, Encounters with Jesus, New York, Dutton, 2013
The College Press NIV Commentary – John
Isaiah 25:6-8 NIV
The IVP New Testament Commentary Series – John
Sermon by Eric Snyder, Farwell Church of Christ, January 26, 2002 – SermonCentral.com
