The Jews attached great importance
to the high moments of life. Thus a wedding was not just a brief ceremony, but
an experience shared by the entire community. The typical wedding feast could
last up to seven days. That sounds strange to our modern way of thinking, but
this offered a bright interlude in an otherwise dreary existence. The ceremony
would begin on Tuesday at midnight. After the wedding the father of the bride
would take his daughter to every house so that everyone might congratulate her.
It was a community experience. Weddings were a time of joy.
Years ago when Johnny Carson was the host of The Tonight Show he interviewed an
eight year old boy. The young man was asked to appear because he had rescued two
friends in a coalmine outside his hometown in West Virginia. As Johnny
questioned the boy, it became apparent to him and the audience that the young
man was a Christian. So Johnny asked him if he attended Sunday school. When the
boy said he did Johnny inquired, "What are you learning in Sunday school?" "Last
week," came his reply, "our lesson was about when Jesus went to a wedding and
turned water into wine." The audience roared, but Johnny tried to keep a
straight face. Then he said, "And what did you learn from that story?" The boy
squirmed in his chair. It was apparent he hadn't thought about this. But then he
lifted up his face and said, "If you're going to have a wedding, make sure you
invite Jesus!" The little boy was on to something. Weddings are time of Joy.
At the wedding, which Jesus attended in Cana of Galilee, there was great joy but
a problem developed. There was a shortage of wine. Not only was that a social
embarrassment, it was also a symbol. For a wedding to run out of wine was an
omen that there was little chance of this particular marriage reaching its full
potential, maybe joy was not meant for this couple.
So Mary approaches Jesus and asks him to do something. His response? "Why do you
involve me woman?" Sounds harsh, so unlike him, and it has long puzzled biblical
scholars. But you have to look at this scene in its historical context. Jesus,
at this moment, had not performed a single miracle. He was thirty years old and
he had just gathered together his disciples. He knows that if he performs a
miracle, a clock will start ticking and it will not stop until he gets to
Calvary. Crowds will flock; investigators will be dispatched. Is this the
appropriate moment? Jesus thus makes his move and gives his first public sign
that he is different; he transforms water into wine. It is a crucial moment for
Jesus and the disciples. Let's take a look at:
1. The Miraculous Sign
2. His Glory Revealed
3. Their Faith Begun
The
rest of this sermon can be obtained by joining
eSermons.com. When you sign up you will get immediate access. Sermon Prep
resources are offered by www.sermons.com