Since we are having multiple weddings this season, it is only fitting that tonight we look at one in the New Testament.
‘ On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding. When the wine gave out, the mother of Jesus said to him, “They have no wine.” And Jesus said to her, “Woman, what concern is that to me and to you? My hour has not yet come.” His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.” Now standing there were six stone water jars for the Jewish rites of purification, each holding twenty or thirty gallons. Jesus said to them, “Fill the jars with water.” And they filled them up to the brim. He said to them, “Now draw some out, and take it to the person in charge of the banquet.” So they took it. When the person in charge tasted the water that had become wine and did not know where it came from (though the servants who had drawn the water knew), that person called the bridegroom and said to him, “Everyone serves the good wine first and then the inferior wine after the guests have become drunk. But you have kept the good wine until now.” Jesus did this, the first of his signs, in Cana of Galilee and revealed his glory, and his disciples believed in him. After this he went down to Capernaum with his mother, his brothers, and his disciples, and they remained there a few days. ‘
-John 2:1-12
Let’s break down what is happening in this scene.
This takes place in Galilee with Jesus, his mother, and his disciples. Eventually, there was no more wine. Jesus’ mother comes to him and tells him there is none. How does he react?
“Woman,” that is obviously a translation and cultural difference. Imagine saying “woman” to start a reply to your own mother, especially us here in the south. Anyway, he continues, “what concern is it to me and you? My hour has not yet come.” This encounter gives us a few details.
In this scene, Jesus’ mother (Mary) knew that he could fix the lack of wine issue. She trusted in him that much. By Jesus’ response of “my hour has not yet come” he is telling her and us as readers that he isn’t ready to be public about WHO he is. It wasn’t time for him to bring the “good news” to the world. The Gospel. The New Covenant.
Jesus ends up solving the wine problem. Obviously. I mean his mom asked! This is part of the story where Jesus turns water into wine. He turns something so different into water. Into a vital aspect to the wedding ceremony and their culture. Wine is used in a variety of Jewish ceremonies, it isn’t about getting drunk. Think of Passover or for Christians it would be Communion or The Lord’s Supper. There is symbolism to the wine. It isn’t about excessive drinking, to be clear. There are even commandments in the Old Testament (the Old Covenant) against too much alcohol. But that’s not what I want us to focus on here. Let’s look at John 2: 10-11 again.
“Everyone serves the good wine first,” or rather what is PERCEIVED as the good wine anyway, “and then the inferior wine after the guests have become drunk. But you have kept the good wine until now.”
The author of John adds a line after this quote to explain why Jesus did all this, “…the first of his signs, in Cana of Galilee and revealed his glory, and his disciples believed in him.”
The whole point of this wedding scene was for Jesus to step out of the “closet” as the Messiah, to reveal who he was. He was bringing New Wine, a New Covenant. But what does he say about new wine?
‘ Then they said to him, “John’s disciples, like the disciples of the Pharisees, frequently fast and pray, but your disciples eat and drink.” Jesus said to them, “You cannot make wedding attendants fast while the bridegroom is with them, can you? The days will come when the bridegroom will be taken away from them, and then they will fast in those days.” He also told them a parable: “No one tears a piece from a new garment and sews it on an old garment; otherwise, not only will one tear the new garment, but the piece from the new will not match the old garment. Similarly, no one puts new wine into old wineskins; otherwise, the new wine will burst the skins and will spill out, and the skins will be ruined. But new wine must be put into fresh wineskins. And no one after drinking old wine desires new wine but says, ‘The old is good.’ ” -Luke 5:33-39
“No one puts new wine into old wine skin.” These verses are where Jesus is responding to religious elites trying to bate him. They do this quite a bit throughout the Gospels. These people were comparing Jesus’ disciples to John the Baptist’s. They are asking “Why does his disciples fast and pray a lot while your’s don’t?” Jesus uses parables of sorts comparing a bride and groom. Why would he make the wedding attendants deprive themselves when the bridegroom is literally there?! He was saying “Why would my disciples put themselves into a state of want when I, the reason for all things, am in the midst of them?” There will be a time for it. But not now.
Now, the verses we quoted about the new wine, this is a parable that follows right after the bridegroom one. He has already alluded to the fact that he is important. He is so important that he causes people to not fast and pray as much while he is with them. That already is a bold statement.
He is saying you can’t put new wine into old wine skin. For these ancient people, this is common knowledge. The skin used to hold wine needs to age WITH the wine. Duh! They would have known this already. Of course it would have burst! It wouldn’t have been able to handle the fermentation process. Have any of you tried brewing alcohol? What is the process? It’s not easy right? A lot of moving parts. You have to release the gas or it’ll explode. Right? That’s the idea. New wine MUST go into new wine skins. It can only work that way.
But what does this have to do with weddings? Well, this concept is about covenants, much like how marriages are covenants. Vows before God and other witnesses. To make something new. New wine.
Jesus brought the New Covenant for all people. Because the old one needed to pass away for a new beginning and different types of people. So they could be welcomed into God’s Kingdom.
Weddings can have this theme as well. A New Covenant. Bringing together two different beings, people to be bound before God. Into one, a new creation. A promise. The Old way of living is no more. The past has to be surrendered. Old baggage left at the door.
Much like Jesus’ New Covenant, many still tried to cling to the old, old ways, old laws. But that can poison the new. It can keep people living in the past. It can cause people to compare. To keep looking back instead of ahead. We can see this even outside of marriages. In our own lives. To things we or others want to hold us to in the past. Mistakes. Choices. Hardships. Abuse. Fears.
But in these new covenants. New paths in our lives…if we try to cling to the old ways…old relationships, old choices, old hurts, old habits…in light of the new? It’ll burst!
And so, I want to leave you all with a reading to end out tonight’s sermon.
‘For surely you have heard about him and were taught in him, as truth is in Jesus, to put away your former way of life, your old self, corrupt and deluded by its lusts, and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to clothe yourselves with the new self, created according to the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness. ‘ -Ephesians 4:21-24
Live within the New Covenant. Our past is no more. It is washed away by the blood of Jesus.
Amen!
Pastor Alex
Email him via
RevAlexBurchnell@ChristsRedemptionChurch.com