The Bridegroom Provides New Wine

The Bridegroom Provides New Wine

Epiphany 2 T John 2:1-11

INI

Jesus said that new wine can’t be put into old wineskins. If you do, it’ll just bust open. The new wine can’t be held by old wineskins because they’re incompatible. They’re fundamentally different. When examining the Scriptures, wine is in a lot of Jesus’ stories – including the Gospel lesson from today when Jesus turned water into wine. In that story, Jesus turns approximately 120-180 gallons of water from 6 stone jars into wine. If we take the reading for its face value, we’d miss the important message that Jesus is showing us.

This story is assigned in our lectionary in the season of Epiphany because Jesus reveals who He is and what His purpose is through this miracle. So, as the text tells us – this isn’t merely a miracle, or a spectacle that’s supposed to ‘WOW’ us – though it is that – and it isn’t supposed to lead us to think that Jesus endorsed drunkenness – which He didn’t. Yes, Jesus blessed this wedding celebration and party – and invites us to the party, too. But we rejoice not because of the great abundance of wine, but because the bridegroom reveals Himself to us through it, and what He’s come to do.

Through this miracle, Jesus shows us who He is. He’s the bridegroom. And the church is the bride. How fitting that He chooses to teach us this at a wedding! Weddings in Scripture are filled with symbolism – because they are a picture of an even more important relationship. They point us to the covenantal relationship between God and His people. And here, Jesus breaks into space and time to make it clear: the time for the divine wedding celebration is now. He is the ultimate bridegroom who’s come to cleanse His bride, the Church, making us holy through His sacrificial blood-shed on the cross.

You see, it was the duty of the groom at the wedding at Cana to provide enough wine for all his guests to drink. These wedding celebrations would last anywhere from 5-7 days, so as you could imagine, it can be difficult to have the right amount of wine for the celebration. To run out is a bit of a social ‘faux pas’, causing great embarrassment to the groom as the provider to the feast. It would cause the celebration to be cut short, thus, incomplete.

Jesus’ mother saw this situation unraveling and asked her son to step in. Jesus’ reply seems disrespectful – but in reality it’s not – but it does distance Himself from her. He says – “Woman, what does this have to do with me? My hour has not yet come.” Jesus is saying that it’s not quite time to reveal Himself as the true bridegroom to the church – at least, not in the consummation of its fullness. But as the end of the story suggests – it is the first, and thus the most important of His signs.

Mary gives the best bit of advice to the servants of the feast – and also to us – “Do whatever [Jesus] tells you.” Jesus told the servants to fill the six stone purification jars up to the brim with water. Then, they were told to draw some out and take it to the master of the feast, and he praised the groom saying – ‘Everyone serves the good wine first then the bad stuff after everyone drank freely, but you have saved the best wine for last.’

But of course, this wine didn’t come from the groom. It came from Jesus. So the spiritual reading of this story is this: The old covenant given to Moses on Mount Sinai was good. But the best was yet to come. It revealed God’s will to mankind through the Law – such as the purity laws, the 10 commandments, the nationalistic laws of God’s people that set them apart from everyone else, as well as God’s law for marriage. However, God’s people couldn’t ever be saved by this Law alone. God’s Law was meant to serve as a mirror, to show them how unworthy they were to be with God. And that’s what the Law shows us too. It shows that God’s standards are too high for us to accomplish alone. Thus, our relationship with God cannot be restored by the keeping of the old covenant. Not even if we filled those purification jars to the brim with our good works. The old wine always runs out.

That is until, until Jesus brings the new, good wine, which symbolizes the new covenant. That new covenant was established on Maundy Thursday, through His self-sacrificial blood. The water that was in the Jewish purification jars at the wedding of Cana were used for the ritualistic cleansing of people or objects according to the Old Covenant. But now, the blood of the new covenant is contained in these purification jars, which cleanses us from all sin. That blood is now given to you and me in the Sacraments, through which baptism cleanses us, and the Lord’s Supper gives us the foretaste of the wedding feast between Christ and His bride, the Church.

This is all to say – the righteousness and purity required to be with God is not gained through the old covenant, but the new. The invitation for all to join this wedding feast is now, and it was done to bring you to Himself. So, here He is now – offering this invitation to you, which is received by the gift of faith.

This story should cause us to reflect: Am I clinging to old wineskins? Am I trying to live out the faith in ways that’s incompatible with the new life that Jesus offers in the new covenant? Perhaps it’s bad habits, old grudges, or old ways of living that keep us from fully embracing the grace and freedom we have in Christ. But this story points us to the purity we have in Christ in the New Covenant, and the new life He calls us to live – just as He also commanded His disciples on Maundy Thursday – “A new command I give to you: love one another […] By this, all people will know that you are MY disciples, if you have love for one another (John 13:34-35).”

As the bridegroom, Jesus gives Himself sacrificially for His bride. This is certainly beneficial for our salvation. Yet, Paul mentions that Jesus gives us a practical example to live up to in our marriages. Husbands – just like how God initiates and institutes a right marriage relationship with His bride, so it is also where the key to a good and successful marriage begins with you. It requires you to be selfless and sacrificial towards your wife, just as Christ is towards you.  You are to be patient, and nurturing, just as Christ is to the Church when He washes her clean. So, husbands are to act in humility and service, not dominance.

Wives – submit to your husbands’ selfless care for you. While service goes both ways in marriage, submission doesn’t mean inequality, but it does mean He’s treated with respect, love, devotion, and trust. This is an image of Christ’s love to the church – where the relationship is rooted and sustained by grace and forgiveness. So, husbands, ask yourself – ‘Am I leading my marriage with the selflessness, sacrificial love of Christ? Do I put her needs above mine?’ Also wives, ask yourself – ‘Do I respect and trust my husband’s leadership to reflect Christ in our relationship?’

            Although Jesus is an example, He isn’t merely that. Most importantly He’s our bridegroom who brings the new wine, the new covenant established in His blood shed from the cross. This wine cleanses us from all our sin, and purifies our hearts and minds as we live out the freedom we have in Him. The old has gone, and new has come. So, Live in the fruit of your faith. For the wedding feast has begun, and the invitation is for you.

INI