The Message, January 19, 2025: "The Wedding Planner," John 2:1-11

Author: Rev. Scott W. Cousineau
January 20, 2025

 

“The Wedding Planner”
A Message by Rev. Scott W. Cousineau
John 2:1-11

            As we sit in these bitter, cold January days, we know that there are couples that are spending their evenings and weekends planning their weddings. Spring and summer are right around the corner.

            Did the scripture lesson this morning bring any memories to mind? Did it make you think about your own wedding? Or your child’s wedding? Did you think about those beautiful celebrations during which everything went smoothly? Or … did the passage make you think of those certain occasions where things went slightly awry?

            I have mentioned previously that over the course of my ministry I have officiated somewhere between two hundred to three hundred weddings. And just by the law of averages, you know that a certain percentage of them fell into the “slightly awry” category. And as I began remembering … the memories began cascading.

            For example …

            There was the wedding that we had to pause in the middle because the groom’s rented tuxedo did not come with a belt … and his pants … fell down. Yes, that really happened.

            There was the couple that got married at a golf course in Massachusetts, and I do not know if they realized or not, that the course was next door to a gun range. The entire ceremony was punctuated by gunfire.

            Dan and Carrie got married at a beautiful inn in New Hampshire. The wedding went as smooth as silk, including grandma who got driven down the aisle in a golf cart. The problem came during the reception … it POURED. Water ran under the sides of the tent, wedding guests used the tables themselves as umbrellas huddling together and walking beneath them. The owners of the inn shuttled guests back to their cars using that same golf cart. And the caterer had to have his van towed out the next day because it was stuck in the mud.

            There was the wedding that was supposed to take place on the porch of the Mount Washington Hotel in April. However, Mother Nature had other plans.

            And there was the wedding that I performed in Shaker Heights, Ohio. The bride’s family was Russian Orthodox, and the ceremony included the couple sharing a glass of sacramental wine. Unfortunately, someone forgot to actually bring the wine with them, so the father of the bride drove home to retrieve it … while all of the guests waited … and waited … and waited.

            I could go on … and on … and on. There are plenty more stories that I could share. But let us turn our attention to the story that we heard this morning.

            Weddings in ancient Palestine were a really big deal. They were typically several days long, and the entire community was involved. There was feasting and celebrating that led up to the ceremony. After the ceremony itself, the couple would take the longest route possible to their home so that they could be greeted by as many people as possible. Couples did not go on extravagant honeymoons. Instead, they stayed in town and the community literally treated them as king and queen for an entire week.

            Just like the weddings of today, families would scrimp and save their meager earnings so that they could provide enough food and drink for the occasion. And as one might imagine would be the case in an honor and shame culture, running out of provisions would have brought great shame and disgrace upon the family. The bride and groom would have been humiliated, and it was believed that they would also experience bad luck in their marriage. So, we can see that this was a big deal.

            This little bit of context gives us some idea as to why the mother of Jesus would report the situation to him.

            In Bible study discussions over the years, there has been speculation from time to time about whether or not Jesus ever displayed his powers to his family as he grew up. There are some accounts in sources outside of the canonical books of the Bible that indicate that he did indeed display his power. However, as we read the Gospels there is no mention of it, so we are left to imagine. However, Mary’s report of the situation to Jesus would seem to indicate that she knew that he possessed the ‘resources’ to resolve the dilemma.

            But, as we heard, Jesus seemed to say, “My good woman, why is that my concern? I am not the one that planned this party. My hour has not yet come.”

            Now, at this point, we could talk at great length about what was happening here. Was Jesus beginning to distance himself from his family as he prepared to begin his ministry? Was Jesus indicating that he did not want to perform some little party trick as the first sign?    We could consider the reasons why Jesus seemingly changed his mind and chose a wedding ceremony as the moment when he would begin revealing to the world who he really was.

            But we have a meeting to go to. [Note: For those reading this, our Annual Meeting was after the worship service.]

            When John wrote his Gospel record, he was very intentional about using the word “sign” as opposed to the word “miracle.” That is because the miracles that Jesus performed were not mere miracles … they were not events that stood in isolation. Rather, they had meaning and significance. They were all signs that pointed to something greater, they pointed people toward the revelation of who Jesus was and is.

            So then, what was revealed in this event? What was Jesus showing us?

            Jesus was showing us the extravagance … the abundance … of God’s grace, and he was showing us the power of transformation.

            John made an intentional decision to tell us about abundance. He pointed out that there were six stone jars that held twenty to thirty gallons each. The fact that they were empty means that the wedding celebrations were well along the way. (The water that they had contained had been used to purify the guests as they arrived as well as between courses as they ate.) The servants filled the jars meaning that they now contained one hundred and twenty to one hundred and eighty gallons of water … which became more wine than the villagers would not even come close to consuming. And not just any wine … not some cheap bought-it-at-the-gas-station wine … the best wine!

            In the world and culture of the ancient Hebrew people, an abundance of wine was a powerful symbol. It was a sign of the joyous arrival of the new age of God.

            Listen to these words from the prophet Amos:

            “The time is surely coming, says the Lord, when the one who plows shall catch up with the one who reaps and the treader of grapes with the one who sows the seed; the mountains shall drip sweet wine, and all the hills shall flow with it.
            I will restore the fortunes of my people Israel, and they shall rebuild the ruined cities and inhabit them; they shall plant vineyards and drink their wine, and they shall make gardens and eat their fruit.
            I will plant them upon their land, and they shall never again be plucked up out of the land that I have given them, says the Lord your God.” (Amos 9:13-15)

            Jesus’ first sign was the beginning. It was more than a powerful act on his part to save the bridegroom’s family shame and disgrace. It was far more than that. This abundance of good wine was a sign to the people that God’s new age was dawning. It was the fulfillment of their hopes and dreams that the promise of God’s salvation was coming. Jesus’ sign SHOWED the people, rather than TOLD the people, what abundant grace is. The servants and the guests were invited to experience extravagant, abundant grace so that they might begin to see.

            And what else did those gathered there experience? They witnessed the power of transformation. They witnessed the very first sign of what effect Jesus has on the lives of people and the world. Jesus took water, that which is the giver of life, and transformed it into a lesson about God, the Creator, the Giver, the Sustainer of Life.

            As we continue to read the Gospels, we see that wherever Jesus went, he turned the common or ordinary into the extraordinary. When the Word of God was transformed and became the Word Made Flesh, the world was transformed.

            The people who lived in darkness … saw a great Light.
            The sick … were made well.
            The blind … were given sight.
            The lame … were made to walk.
            The fearful … were given courage.
            The possessed … were set free.
            The dead … were given life. Mourning was turned into dancing.
            Hearts of stone … would be broken and turned into hearts for love alone.
            The hungry … would be fed. The thirsty given enough drink that they will never thirst again.

            Last week, we focused upon the water of baptism. Those who entered the waters were transformed. They left their old lives in the water and emerged to walk in newness of life; lives directed toward and centered upon God. Today’s passage is also about newness of life. Wedding ceremonies celebrate two hearts coming together to journey together, two souls coming together. At the wedding in the village of Cana, Jesus invites our hearts into relationship with his. Jesus continues to show us the abundant blessings and extravagant blessings of life with God.

            Each of us is a vessel of God’s creation. We are filled to overflowing with the abundance of God. God’s power, God’s grace, God’s Spirit draw us closer to God and to one another. May we now use these blessings in ways that will reveal God’s glory, and the glory of Jesus Christ. Amen.

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