(Trent Driver and Ashley Washelesky were married this afternoon at Concordia City Lake. It rained 20 minutes before the wedding, but cleared up for a beautiful service. The readings were: Genesis 2:18-25, Colossians 3:12-17, and John 2:1-11. Here is the sermon on the text from John 2.)
In the Name of Jesus, who brings Joy to
your marriage, dear fellow redeemed,
Especially to you, Trent and Ashley, on
your wedding day
The
passage we’ve chosen for our text today is Jesus’ first miracle. Given the
weather forecast at the beginning of this week it seemed like Jesus stilling the
storm might have been a better choice. But here for now, things seem to be
okay.
The
weather is one of hundreds of extra details you and your families have to worry
about with an outdoor wedding. There are a lot of details to take care of and
in two thousand years that doesn’t seem to have changed. Although here, the
detail they seemed to have overlooked is one that I’m sure you’ve got covered.
They ran out of wine. I’m sure you guys are well stocked for tonight.
Just
on that note, this is worth mentioning. Jesus’ gift of over abundant wine shows
that God is not opposed to drinking alcohol. Psalm 104 says that God gives “wine
to gladden the heart of man.” We do, however, need to be mindful of what is
good both for ourselves and for our neighbors. So let’s not drink tonight in a
way would make us regret what we do or hurt someone else. That’s not the memory
these two want for their wedding.
If Jesus cares about the
beverage supply at a wedding, then we can be certain that He cares about
everything that goes into a marriage. After all, we heard in Genesis 2 just a
few moments ago about how God created marriage and blessed Adam and Eve as they
began their life together.
The same thing is true
for you on your wedding day. Jesus Christ is here to bless you as you begin
your life together. The unnamed couple who received this wine needed Him there
and so do you. You, like the rest of us, need to be forgiven each day. God’s
forgiveness for you overflows in Christ Jesus.
To see how God’s love
for you overflows, take a look at how much wine this actually is. There were
six jars, each held twenty or thirty gallons. If we take an average, that’s one
hundred fifty gallons of wine. What does that look like? That’s seven hundred
fifty six bottles of wine or sixty three cases. That’s a lot. That was more
than enough to finish the party. When Jesus gives, He gives fully and
completely.
Here’s the good news
for you. Jesus has more than enough forgiveness and love for you. Every sin you
will ever sin against each other, every fight you will ever fight, every
argument you will argue, all is settled.
Jesus says, “My hour
has not yet come.” Jesus’ hour would come. When He talks about His hour, He’s referring
to His death. In that hour, Jesus took your sins and the sins of the whole
world with Him to the cross. He paid for them all there long before you were
even born. He rose from the dead so that you would be forgiven.
Because Jesus forgives
you, you can come to Him in prayer. As a married couple, you can go to Him
together united in faith. Ashley, a lot of people can claim to be baptized,
confirmed, and married at Holy Cross Lutheran Church. But very few can claim that
it happened all in one year. We’re glad to have you.
So since you are united
in your faith, Jesus is with you as you pray. In this text, Jesus’ mother gives
us a good example of what faithful prayer looks like. Jesus is actually testing
Mary here. You have to imagine Mary saying this with a twinkle in her eye. “They
have no wine”
Jesus’
response seems harsh. “Woman, what does this have to do with me?” Compare this
to the answer we get when we pray. Today you are promising to love each other “for
better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health.” Quite
often in those worst times, we may think God doesn’t care about what we’re
asking.
When
that seems to be the case, what should we do? This is where Mary is a good
example. She doesn’t scold Jesus. She doesn’t think that Jesus will forget. She
goes and tells the servants, “Do whatever He tells you.” Mary shows that she
trusts that Jesus will do something. She doesn’t know what. She doesn’t know
when. But she trusts that it will be good. Jesus does not let her down. He
responds to the need in His time and in His way. It was more amazing then Mary
would have imagined at first.
This
is an interesting choice for Jesus for His first miracle. Most of Jesus’ other
miracles were directly helping someone who was suffering or dead. Here the
people are just out of wine.
It’s
helpful to think of it this way. With each of Jesus’ miracles He’s giving us a
glimpse into what eternal life is going to be like. The blind will see, the
deaf, will hear, the lame will walk, and the dead will live. All of these
things happen and there will be joy! There will be lots of joy! There’s going
to be a wedding reception that never ends!
It
isn’t going to end because Jesus is coming back to death under His feet once
and for all. We will be with Him and all of things that make like here in this
broken world unbearable will be over.
So,
today, as you say your vows, you will pledge to love each other until death
parts you. Even when that happens you know that Jesus’ love for you overflows
from this life into eternity. Already through baptism into His death and
resurrection, you have eternal life with Him.
Jesus
disciples believe in Him because He did this miracle. As you hear about what
Jesus has done for you, trust in Him as you begin your marriage.
Jesus
takes what is ordinary in life and makes it amazing. With that, your marriage
becomes more than just the permanent step in your relationship. Your marriage
becomes the highest calling you will receive in your life. You are called to
love each other, your children, and your neighbors together. With Jesus’ help
and overflowing grace, He will do it. Amen.
