Wedding Surprise
Notes
Transcript
This is Frances and John
They were a couple and in 2012 they got married
And they had a pretty typical wedding, however there was one part of their wedding that was pretty special.
Because before the wedding they thought it would be funny to invite queen Elizabeth to their wedding.
And so they sent the invitation and thought nothing else about it.
They probably had some laughs with friends that maybe she would come.
Well come the day of their wedding at one point they were asked to come to the lobby of where the wedding or reception was.
And as they waited in the lobby out of no where Queen Elizebeth came to greet the newly wed couple.
And as you can imagine the couple was very excited, and while the wedding was a special day, there was a guest there that made the day a little more special.
And really her presence made the difference.
And you know today as we begin our new series called “Around the Table” we are starting out with an event that was not necessarily around a table, but it was at a wedding.
A place where there was food, drinks and people
And heres the thing, because at a glance this wedding was your pretty typical wedding for this time, but their was a guest at the wedding that made the difference.
And because of this we see that the wedding was not just an ordinary event, but an extraordinary event.
And so we are going to be in John 2:1-11 and my hope for us today is to see how in our lives there are times where our lives can seem somewhat ordinary, or even a little disorderly but there is someone who can make all the difference.
And so once again its John 2:1-11 and we will actually just be reading the entire passage together this morning. It says this:
1 On the third day a wedding took place at Cana in Galilee. Jesus’ mother was there, 2 and Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding. 3 When the wine was gone, Jesus’ mother said to him, “They have no more wine.” 4 “Woman, why do you involve me?” Jesus replied. “My hour has not yet come.” 5 His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.” 6 Nearby stood six stone water jars, the kind used by the Jews for ceremonial washing, each holding from twenty to thirty gallons. 7 Jesus said to the servants, “Fill the jars with water”; so they filled them to the brim. 8 Then he told them, “Now draw some out and take it to the master of the banquet.” They did so, 9 and the master of the banquet tasted the water that had been turned into wine. He did not realize where it had come from, though the servants who had drawn the water knew. Then he called the bridegroom aside 10 and said, “Everyone brings out the choice wine first and then the cheaper wine after the guests have had too much to drink; but you have saved the best till now.” 11 What Jesus did here in Cana of Galilee was the first of the signs through which he revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him.
So Jesus is at a wedding and before we even jump into the story it is so important to understand just how big of a deal weddings were in this culture,
Because first off a wedding would be a year in the making where the once a husband and wife were the equivalent of engaged, the husband would go away for a year
And during this year he was in charge of building a house, planning the wedding, getting all the food and drinks for the wedding, and really preparing for the rest of him and his brides life together.
And so the wedding is really a culmination of everything coming together for this one event.
And this was not just a big deal because of that but it was a big deal because they lived in a time where there was not a whole lot that would happen. They did not have Netflix, They did not have Sunday night football or Thrill on a Hill or any fun events.
And so a wedding would happen and it was a big deal and it was not just a one day occurrence but at this time it would last anywhere from 1-2 weeks long.
And it wasn’t just I am going to invite the people close to me, maybe just my family… but they invited everyone in the area.
And you get this picture of this wedding that has been going on and Jesus and His disciples are there,
And in verse three there is a big issue that comes up, and it is that the wine is gone.
And you are probably thinking well this doesn’t seem like a huge issue, but heres the thing…
since the groom was in charge of getting the drinks for the wedding and he was unable to prepare for the wedding, it actually was a sign that if the groom can’t provide in this area, than what other areas is he going to fail.
And not only that but this would have been an event that did not just shame the groom, but it would shame his entire family and it would have looked very rude to all the guest attending.
And so in verse 3 you see Mary comes up to Jesus and tells him they have no more wine.
And Jesus, response seems a little harsh doesn’t it?
Women, why do you involve me?
If I talk to my mother that way I think I would get in a little bit of trouble,
But its important to note that a lot of Scholars believe its not Jesus talking back, but he is actually politely saying this is not really my thing, is it?
I am the Messiah, not a drink supplier
And Jesus even says my time has not come,
And really he says this not because he does not want to help, but Jesus has not done any miracles yet.
And he recognizes that once he does this it is going to begin to show people their is something about him that is different and it would really change His life.
It would be like if someone found out you have a truck, all the sudden people are going to come to you for things right.
I need help moving a couch, I need help picking this up.
And Jesus is saying lets hold off. And not because He does not want to help people, but this will alter His life and will begin his journey to the cross.
But look what Marry says because in verse 5 she just says “do whatever he tells you”
Jesus got voluntold didn’t He?
But you know a lot of people believe its not that Mary was going against Jesus, but it was that she had faith her son would do the right thing.
And she believed Jesus would step into the place where there was a need.
And I know this point is a small part of this passage, but Jesus sees the needs in our lives and sometimes those needs and big, other times they are small, but He cares.
And I think sometimes we get this idea that well this is not this huge issue, so why would I bring it up to Him.
But He cares for you and He cares for even the small problems you go through and its amazing when you have faith that Jesus will move what will happen.
Because I don’t know about you but I have had things come up in my life and I never really say Jesus will you just have your way in the situation.
And sometimes He changes the situation, other times He changes you,
But I really pray that when I encounter a challenge or really in any area of my life I can say what Marry says:
“Do whatever He Tells You”
God do whatever you see fit in my life and in this situation.
And so look what happens because Jesus has the servants fill up these six stone jars that were actually used for ceremonial washing.
And all he says is to draw some and take it to the banquet.
And they taste the water, and something really interesting happens Jesus had actually turned it to wine
And not just wine, but it says it was the best wine.
And so I know I just talked about a lot, because at first glance this passagee could kind of seem a little irrelevant,
I mean it is Jesus’s first Miricle so its important but
What does this mean?
Because there are a few things that are here. Because while the miracle is amazing and Jesus is helping the groom out from being embarrassed the miracle is actually conveying a message.
And one of the first things that is powerful in our life is in verse 10 because this makes the miricle a little more provocative.
because we are told people often times bring out the nice wine first, but then once people have been drinking they give them the cheap wine that often was watered down.
And while this story is literal, I think there is some symbolic meaning as well, because often in life we try to strive for the things that are cheap.
I mean who here likes cheap things? I remember one time I bought a pair of fake Oakly Sunglasses and I think I haggled it down to only 5 dollars.
I looked so cool, I mean I was so happy, until later that day I was wearing them and and just sitting when the glass that was in the glasses literally popped out.
It was cheap, but it also was made very cheap.
And often times what we end up doing in our lives is we chase the cheap things
And we actually talked about this a few weeks ago because some of these things are good,
We chase our job, we can chase success, we chase after a nice car, (and they are not bad right?)
but here is the issue because these things can make us feel good at first,
But they ultimately will leave us at a place where we need more, and not just that but they will not last.
And I want you to notice another message this miracle is conveying to us, because the Miricle is actually forshadowing Jesus’s entire ministry, because Jesus takes water, which was ordinary and transforms it to somthing extraordinary.
And really Jesus’s ministry is one where He takes the things and people that seem ordinary and He uses them for something extra ordinary.
And this is good news isn’t it, because sometimes I look at my life and think it is a little ordinary.
But whats amazing is thats who God uses, in fact even in this miracle you will notice that the people Jesus uses are not the high up people attending the wedding, but it is the servants that are there.
The people who were probably considered a little lower in society.
And really heres the truth is God choses the people He uses not based off their skill or how high they are up in society
But He chooses who He will use based on their ability to say “Yes”
And look at this last part because I mentioned how Jesus tells the servants to fill up these 6 jars with water,
But the crazy thing is scholors believe that this would have been between 100-150 gallons of water.
And really Jesus probably did not need to create this much wine, but I believe He was saying my way is not just the best, but their is always enough.
And really let me just close with this, because in life we can look at our lives and feel ordinary, but we have God who can use you to accomplish the extra ordinary.
Even if you have settled for the cheap Jesus wants to give you His best.
And I know that this message did not have a ton of application points, but what would it look like to lean into the transformative message that Jesus gives.
Jesus can transform, we just need to say yes.