IMPORTANT WEDDING INVITATION

Jesus performed His first miracle at a wedding in Cana of Galilee as recorded in John 2:1-11.  Jesus, His disciples, and Mary, the mother of Jesus, were among the people invited to this wedding. The wedding among the Jews is not a few-hour affair.  A typical Jewish wedding ceremony includes three significant events. The first event is the marriage feast and the ceremony.  The second event is the escorting of the couple through the streets to their home.  The third event is a week-long celebration of feasting and drinking at the couple’s home. Jesus honored marriage, and so He was part of the rejoicing with the couple.

 For Jesus to be present at this joyous event demonstrates that Jesus loves people. Despite Jesus’ enormous assignment to save the whole world, He showed us He loves us to be festive. However, as we socialize, we must strive to maintain a balanced life. Our rejoicing must be rooted in our relationship with the LORD. During the grand celebration, they ran out of wine. This will be a considerable embarrassment to the couple. Mary, the mother of Jesus, told Jesus about the problem. “When the wine was gone, Jesus’s mother said to him, ‘They have no more wine.” John 2:3.

The physical needs were met.

To meet the needs of both the couple and the guests, Jesus instructed six stone jars to be filled with water.  Each jar would hold twenty to thirty gallons of water. That is a lot of wine!  When Jesus gives, He gives abundantly. The servants were asked to take the water to the master of the ceremony. They obeyed, and the miracle happened. In the distance between the servants and the master of the ceremony, water was turned into wine. By the time the master of the ceremony tasted the water, it was no more water but wine. He was amazed at the quality of the wine. 

The miracle was not publicized. The LORD continued throughout His life on earth, and after a miracle, would ask the recipients of the miracle to be quiet.  Why? Jesus does not want the miracle of the physical needs of the people to hinder them from the real miracle of His coming into the world. Although Jesus still went ahead and provided the wine to respect His mother, He did not allow it to be broadcast.  A greater miracle is coming for all humanity, the hour of Jesus.

The hour of Jesus.

The answer of Jesus revealed something more profound than the wine Mary was thinking about. The answer of Jesus was like a riddle. 

“Jesus replied, “My hour has not come.” John 2:4b.  

Jesus has something more profound for humanity that is greater than the wine Mary is pleading for. Jesus is waiting for the hour. The hour when He will go to the Cross to meet the spiritual needs of man. Jesus came to the world because of that hour.  Jesus was always focused on His purpose for coming to the earth – to face the hour, to die for man’s salvation. Finally, the hour came.  The prayer of Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane, as recorded in John 17, before His arrest, reveals the mind of Jesus as He prepared for the hour.  The Bible says,

“After Jesus said this, he looked toward heaven and prayed: ‘Father, the hour has come. Glorify your Son, that your Son may glorify you.” John 17:1.

The hour of Jesus was when He was crucified on the cross, suspended between heaven and earth.  Jesus had prepared for this hour before the Garden of Eden when God told the devil that the Seed of the woman would crush his head – Genesis 3:15. The hour is when Jesus crushed the head of satan on the Cross and gave victory to all who will put their faith in Jesus.  The hour is when eternal life will be available to as many as believe in Him.  The Bible says, “who gave himself for our sins to rescue us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.” Galatians 1:4-5.

The importance of the six jars.

Also, we must not overlook the use of the jars.  The water in the jars is used for ceremonial and religious cleansing (v. 6). The miracles we receive through the blood of Jesus shed on the Cross include cleansing and the purification of our lives.  The blood of Jesus is the powerful detergent that washes us clean from all unrighteousness.  

The Christian wine.

Before the ascension of Jesus Christ, He told His disciples to wait in the upper room for the infilling of the Holy Spirit. On the day of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit came and filled all of them. Some of the people mocked and said they were drunk with wine. Peter, with the Eleven, replied to the mockers and said,

“Fellow Jews and all of you who live in Jerusalem, let me explain this to you; listen carefully to what I say. These people are not drunk, as you suppose. It’s only nine in the morning! No, this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel: In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people.” Acts 2:14-17a.

The sweet wine is still available to Christians today.  Our wine is the Holy Spirit.  Just as the guests at the wedding in Cana of Galilee were satisfied with the wine of Jesus rather than the wine of man, so the LORD is still doing the same. When we are filled with the sweet Holy Spirit, our lives will be filled with spiritual qualities of gratitude, joy, love, and peace, rather than a state of debauchery, characterized by recklessness, indulgence, and a lack of self-control.  

The Bible says, “Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another with psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit. Sing and make music from your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.” Ephesians 3:18-20.

Conclusion

There is a wedding that awaits all believers.  Jesus wants us to attend the wedding, but only those who believe in Him will be allowed to participate in it.  We must not allow satan to distort our perspective by making us focus on physical needs and not on God’s final plan for our lives. The wording of our invitation to this special wedding is recorded this way:

“Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory! For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready.Fine linen, bright and clean, was given her to wear.” (Fine linen stands for the righteous acts of God’s holy people.) Then the angel said to me, “Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb!” And he added, “These are the true words of God.” Revelation 19:7-10.

Jesus met the needs at the wedding in Cana of Galilee. He revealed His glory. His power to create anew was demonstrated. The result of this miracle was that the faith of the disciples was strengthened, and they came to believe in Him.  More than what the disciples witnessed at the wedding in Cana is what we are going to witness at the wedding of the Lamb. The hour of Jesus had been revealed to us. We have seen the victory of Jesus over satan on the Cross. Have you washed in the blood of the Lamb? Check your invitation card, which is in your heart, have you RSVP? Use this very moment to open up your mind and invite Him to your life. Again, this is far greater than our social needs, as it pertains to our eternity. I pray you will not miss the wedding of the Lamb.

Please let me know how you are preparing for the wedding of the Lamb, and let us learn from one another.