The Wedding Feast Ahead: Celebrating God's Next Movement at KBC

Introduction

The one time I led the pack at the Cross Country invitational as a Senior in High School.

Was mediocre my whole running career

Last invitational of the year and of my running high school career

At the gun I pushed through the pack and before the first 200m I found myself out front leading the whole group of 75 runners.

I FREAKED out… I slid back to third or fourth and finished the three mile race in the top 5 (highest I ever placed)

I ran up to my coach, “Did you see me leading the pack!!!?” He responded, “Yes! Why didn’t you keep going and set the pace?” I responded, “Oh… yeah… but did you see how I led the pack!!” LOL

Sometimes new things are scary:

We don’t know what to expect. It’s unfamiliar and we can feel out of control

Lack of control means that someone else is in control of our security and can we trust who that is

There is a real possibility of failure… our mistakes can make us feel or think we look incompetent

We are creatures of habit (because it’s safe and predictable), when that’s disrupted we can feel disregulated

What is unique about a follower of Jesus is that He invites us into these times of unpredictability and newness. He doesn’t do it for purposes of intentionally disregulating us or putting us in detrimental situations… no He’s good… He does it so that we can exhibit allegiance/faith in Him.

Hebrews 11:6 “And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.”

While this is not our text, I think it’s foundational in our understanding as to what Jesus is inviting us into through our text today.

Would you pray with me? Thank you.

Fasting

As our text was read this morning, we see three specific things in our text. There is the question of fasting and two parables (cloth and wineskins). They are all tied together. Two of these things maybe unfamiliar and one I think we might grasp easily.

The first of the two is the question around fasting and how Jesus responded with imagery of a wedding.

The disciples of John (the baptist) and the disciples of the Pharisees were fasting. The Torah (Old Testament law) prescribed fasting for all Jews on the day of atonement. Over the centuries, however, it had become customary for the Jews to fast on occasions of national importance, of mourning, and so on. Fasting also had become associated with repentance. If someone was guilty of a severe sin and came to repentance, he would manifest his repentance by fasting. John fasted even more frequently because he was an ascetic (one who would withdraw from society as a holy practice); he was given to self-denial, and his disciples emulated him in that. The Pharisees, however, made it a duty to fast twice a week (Mon and Thurs according to the Talmud) and saw it as a badge of their personal holiness. So when they saw that Jesus’ disciples were not fasting, they questioned Him about it. The implication is that the true holy and spiritual people, really committed to God, would do this… so why aren’t your disciples doing it?

He then gives us this imagery of a wedding… Mark 2:19–20 “Jesus answered, “How can the guests of the bridegroom fast while he is with them? They cannot, so long as they have him with them. But the time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them, and on that day they will fast.”

Weddings in the Ancient Near East were not small affairs. It wasn’t a 30 minute ceremony with a 2-hour reception… they partied like no one else! For 7 days they would party in celebration of the bride and groom! Everything would pause and family, friends, and guests would come and celebrate this union for a week! It was a time of joy, celebration, and rejoicing. They would eat, drink, dance, and be merry!

Illus: Crystal and I were married in 2003… we were married in Bremerton with a reception in Poulsbo. Such a fun ruckus time… As we met with the DJ, he was like, “I can sing too if you like while everyone was partying”. The energy was so high and everyone was having so much fun that wouldn’t you know it, the DJ couldn’t hold himself back… I remember looking over my shoulder and he slid out on the dance floor like Tom Cruise in risky business belting out the song we were all dancing to.

Jesus tells these who are questioning that they are guests of the Bridegroom… they won’t fast when there is a party to be had! There is a time to fast but this is not it!

Jesus does something interesting here… no where in the Old Testament do we see where the Messiah was likened unto the Bridegroom (the bride is the woman in a marriage ceremony and the bridegroom/or groom is the man)… Only God in the Old Testament likens Himself to a Bridegroom. Jesus is telling these disciples of John and the Pharisees that He is God in the flesh in this simple, but extremely profound, statement.

He does say that there will be a time when He will be taken away (pointing forward to the cross and then His ascension… though primarily the cross)… it’s in that day they will fast.

Jesus then moves into two parables.

Cloth

This first parable is that of the unshrunk cloth being put on an old garment. I think this something that we know today and take into account when we seek to repair an old garment or blanket.

If an unshrunk piece is attached to an old garment or blanket, it will rip and tear as it shrinks during wear and washing, while the rest of the garment stays the same size. This makes the final condition worse than the original.

The second parable might need a little more explanation.

Wineskins

In the ancient world, the standard wineskin was a goatskin. When new wine was put in a new goatskin, the wine would ferment, emitting gasses that would expand and stretch the wineskin. New wine went into new wineskins because the new wineskins could stretch and handle the expansion. But every Jew in Israel understood that new wine could not be put into old wineskins because the old wineskins had already been stretched to the max. New wine would ferment and expand an old wineskin to the point of bursting. Then both the wineskin and the wine would be lost.

The question posed by the image of the wedding feast and the two parables is not whether disciples will, like sewing a new patch on an old garment or refilling an old container, make room for Jesus in their already full agendas and lives. The question is whether they will forsake business as usual and join the wedding celebration; whether they will become entirely new receptacles for the expanding fermentation of Jesus and the gospel in their lives.

Edwards, J. R. (2002). The Gospel according to Mark (p. 92). Eerdmans; Apollos.

With these metaphors, Jesus was saying, in essence, “You cannot take the new and force it into the old structures because the old structures cannot bear it.” It’s important to understand that He was not condemning the Old Testament law of God. I’ve heard some preachers argue this and I think we misunderstand how the law is good news… He was not condemning the law… He was the fulfillment of the law. The law could never save but it did point to Jesus! Jesus fulfilled the law and the prophets.

The law pointed out our sin, it was a mirror that shows us who we are, and it lets us know we need a savior. In reading the law we know and see that Jesus is that savior. The second person of the trinity come in the flesh, because of God’s great love for us, that through His life, death, and resurrection we would be restored in our relationship to YHWH.

Jesus was condemning the traditions that had developed among the scribes and Pharisees that warped and perverted the law that kept it from being good news. He was warning them that their King had come, and they would not be able to deal with this King unless they got rid of the structures that made it impossible for them to receive Him. Something so transcendentally new had happened that they could not receive Christ into their lives without being made new themselves. It would be impossible to be a Christian and keep to the old ways (those who are taking notes, we see this play out in Acts 15 at the first Jerusalem council).

In short, He was warning the Pharisees that, when the heavenly feast came, they were not going to be ready because they were rejecting their King. They were rejecting the Son of God.

The message for us is that if we indeed have embraced Christ in all of His newness, we may look eagerly to the future, when people from all over creation will sit down with Him, celebrating the marriage feast of the Lamb.

Conclusion

We’ve been in prayer for you, Keyport Bible Church.

It is not an easy thing to bring on a new lead/senior pastor and any staff position really. Especially considering the circumstances you have all been through. I hope it is ok to say that out loud. Church-onboarding observers say that the first six months of any new position is what they call “the throw away time” (as far as productivity goes) in that the time is spent feeling out the new space, relationships, and assessing the culture of any new environment.

First off, you are to be celebrated for your continued steadfastness. You are to be honored for your commitment to the gospel, to one another, and to our community. These are the greatest commandments, Love God and Love People, and you have kept them as your guiding principle. From what I can tell from the outside, you have kept to that good and holy work.

A challenge that is quite possibly before you is honoring the past and embracing the move of the Holy in the Spirit as He leads you into the future. If there is one thing I’ve been impressed on by the Lord is to encourage you to join in the expanding work of God in the ministry here at Keyport Bible Church… dare I say that the best days are ahead for KBC!! It doesn’t take away from what God has done, let’s celebrate that… but may we together look forward to all that God has set up for you all to walk in and fulfill!!

There are real things that epigeneticists and neuroscientists tells us about the predicting brain. If we find ourselves in environments that seem similar to previous experiences, our brain in an effort to keep us safe, tries to predict what will happen. This goes for good/happy things as well with difficult/traumatic things. Depending on our experience, our brain will try to predict how those things will be interpreted. If we have had good experience with pastoral transitions, we’re excited and see the benefit for such things; not ignoring the hard but the results are more exciting than the hard things. If our experience has been bad, we can be leery and withdrawn, even pullback from participating in such things. While I would never advocate to put ourselves in a fight or flight trauma response, if we feel those apprehensive feelings of moving forward, that we would choose to lean into the community that is here… trusting in the Lord together that He will guide the members, the leaders, the elders, and all involved in the nomination and selection process.

The way that we are able to carve out new prediction pathways in our brain and be open to new outcomes is through a loving and understanding community to walk with. Keyport Bible Church is the best possible poised church to launch into a new adventure, yielded to the moving of the Holy Spirit, into reinforcing and sustaining current ministry but also launching into vibrant, exciting, and life-giving new ministry.

The purpose in sharing my Cross Country racing story was to encourage you to lean into the unfamiliar, the newness (and sometimes) scary adventure with whom the Lord brings to serve, love, teach, and pastor you. You will be out front in the race that God has laid out for you. It will be a dynamic and exciting time, meaning for some, you might be a little leery (understandably)… but if I can mix my metaphors, Jesus is setting a feast before us… He has led us to pray for His kingdom to come and His will to be done on Earth as it is in Heaven. That means that KBC is to be a reflection of the coming feast that will be culminated in the second coming of Christ. Not only that, but it’s a feast you’ll be inviting others into (taste and see the Lord is good…). This type of change can be scary but it’s the change that is worth giving our life for. It’s exciting, exhilarating, and scary all at the same time. This is why we’re not to do it alone, but lean on one another as we do it.

Admonish and encourage one another through out the process with Hebrews 11:6 “And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.” Write it down, highlight it, put it on your mirror, or in your car. Know that the Lord is very pleased with you… that He is faithful to meet you and bless you as you look to Him.

We are praying for you all, and have been. We are committed to walk with you and encourage your leaders as best as we know how. The success of Keyport Bible Church is the success of the capital “C” church in Kitsap.

I hope I have been able to communicate my heart clearly enough. We are praying, rooting, and cheering KBC on. I’m not unaware that if you call KBC home, you are going to have to do the heavy lifting of having a new pastor(s) lead, teach, and care for you. But know you are set up for success, City Chapel and others, are here to support in any way that we can. We are cheering you on as we are all seeking to run our race that God has set before us, well.

Let us pray.

Benediction

May we leave today ready to receive what God has for us next.

May we honor our past while embracing the future with courage.

May we trust that God is faithful to complete the good work He started here.

Remember Hebrews 11:6 - “Without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.”

Go in peace, with hearts open to the new thing God is doing.

Amen.