Attending a wedding for the first time, a little girl whispered to her mother, "Why is the bride dressed in white?"

Her mother tried to explain, keeping it simple. "Because white is the color of happiness, and today is the happiest day of her life,"

The child thought about this for a moment, then said, "So why's the groom wearing black?"

Why is it that we have so many negative stereotypes about weddings? Batchelor parties are painted as the last night of fun before the man gives up all his freedom. Getting married has been labeled as “Being tied down.” Sadly, for many marriages, these stereotypes become self-fulfilling prophecies. In many marriages, the spouses are living parallel but separate lives – each doing his or her own thing without much connection with the other. They live for years with the vague sense that there should be much more abundance and joy, but they have not the foggiest idea how to get there. They feel stuck in a rut. The passion has been sucked out of their lives, and there is a hunger for renewal, a hope for a fresh start, a yearning for something new.

In our scripture lesson for today Jesus performs his first sign. What is a sign? It commonly referred to as a miracle. Why was this Jesus’ first miracle? Out of all the signs or miracles that Jesus could have done? He could have healed a person of leprosy, opened the eyes of the blind, parted the sea. But no, Jesus choses to keep the party going. But in this first sign there is a wonderful message for you and me.

First, God cares about our problems. In ancient Isreal weddings were a big event to attend. In fact, in ancient Israel a typical wedding would last seven or more days. During the whole time, the parents of the couple oversaw keeping their wedding guests fed, drunk and comfortable. They had to provide everything that their guests needed. In a guilt and shame society (which Israel was) to not meet their guests’ needs would bring shame to their family name for generations to come. This family, on only day three, found that they had already gone through their entire batch of wine.

Thank God that Jesus answered. He brought this family out of the bond of shame. The same is true for you and me. No matter your past, in God we are free from shame and guilt. Because of what Jesus did on the cross, His death made it possible for you and me not to be controlled by shame and guilt. Even though there are consequences to our actions, God can still work through them and bring good out of them.

God meets our needs, but secondly, we have a new relationship. Mary, Jesus’ mother, was a very blessed woman, but she did not have any special abilities or powers. But she knew who did. And so, she comes to the one who she believes can take care of this problem. But Jesus’ response was not what I would have expected. He said: “Woman, what concern is that to you and me” If my mother ever asked me to clean my room and I would respond, “Woman I’m busy.” I would be in big trouble.

What can we learn from Jesus’ response. First, the word “Woman” here in this text was not meant as a derogatory word. In fact, Jesus used this word “woman” twice when referring to His mother in John’s gospel. This was the first time, and the second was in John 19 when Jesus was on the cross. Jesus saw his mother and He says in John 19:26, “Woman, here is your son.” referring to John, the only disciple who was there at the cross. When Jesus says “Woman,” He was not putting Mary down. In fact, you could translate this to mean “Dear woman.” Jesus is respectfully and gently distancing Himself from His mother.

Rather than addressing her as mother, He calls her “Woman.” He subtly indicates that the nature of their relationship is changing. Until now, she had enjoyed special the privilege as Jesus’ mother, but now she had to begin to learn how to be a disciple. This process would be painful for her. She would feel rejected; she would watch Jesus die; and she would also come to realize that she, too, had to kneel at the cross of her King. She would have to let go of some of the privileges of a mother, but in so doing, the new relationship would give her something greater and deeper than before.

This is not to say that Jesus stopped being Mary’s son, but only that the nature of the relationship changed: the old transformed into something new. If that was true for Mary, then it is also true for us. When our relationship with Christ is the most important relationship in our life, it transforms all our earthly relationships into something new. Not only does Christ give instructions for relationships in this book, but He also renews and transforms us from the inside. This inner transformation enables us to view our relationships less from the perspective of “What can this person do for me?”, and more from the perspective of “How does our relationship bring glory to God?”

Not only does Jesus meet our needs, and we have a new relationship, but thirdly, we have a new way to become whole. Look at verses 5-10. The six stone jars contained water used for the ceremonial washing of guests’ hands and cooking utensils. These washings were not just to take care of dirt. God’s demand for purity was administered through countless sacrifices and washings. The unspoken belief is that through proper observance of the ritual for cleansing the outside, we become clean on the inside. Christ comes on the scene and blows rituals away. He takes the instruments from the ritual and uses them in a totally new way. Rather than the jars being used as instruments through which man can reach towards God, the jars become vehicles for God’s to bless man.

What once held water that man used to wash and to approach God, now held wine generously provided by God for man’s enjoyment. Whereas wholeness was once achieved through ritual, it now comes through relationship with a living, breathing person who provides the best wine for the feast. Jesus gives us a new way to become whole.

There is always this sense that something is missing. We may not always notice it, but there are moments in our lives when we feel alone, ashamed, forgotten, or just not quite right. It is not until we choose to put our faith in Jesus and enter into that relationship that we can be made fully whole. This is why Jesus came.

James reminds us in James 1:4, “Let your endurance complete its work, so that you may be complete and whole, lacking nothing.”

One’s soul could look like a jigsaw puzzle with the pieces dispersed and scattered on a table; it is a scattered and broken mess – there is much work that needs to be done. That is where Jesus comes in, to fill that void and to line up the pieces so that a picture can clearly be seen and it is absolutely beautiful.  Because God cares for our problems, creates a new relationship, and makes us whole.

Fourth and last point is that acts done in great love have amazing results. A miracle is called a sign, and at this sign His disciples believed. Jesus’ words and deeds were signs about who He is. In the same way, the Scriptures themselves and the transformed lives are signs proclaiming Christ as King. So, we have seen that Christ brings renewal to all things, and that this passage highlighting this act brought about an amazing result. The disciples believed.

As I said before, this was done in the context of a party. This was not a somber occasion – this was a celebration! Similarly, the renewal that Christ works within us is a cause for celebration. We in the church should be celebrating and partying because of what God has done and is doing in His people.

                                                                                                Until next week when we meet at the P.E.W.

                                                                                                Pastor Joel