All of you, it's good to be together today. And we trust that by the Holy Spirit that the Lord will speak, right? He might use fallen creatures such as myself, but ultimately it's the Holy Spirit that speaks through the Word of God. And we do continue our exposition in the Gospel of John. If you'll find your place there, John chapter 2. We'll be taking up verses 1 to 11 of John 2. And really what we have here is that Jesus attends an ordinary common event, a wedding, a marriage, right, in first century Palestine. And he uses this occasion to demonstrate his first sign, and which, as it says in verse 11, he manifested his glory through this. Weddings are glorious occasions, aren't they? Most of us have been to several weddings throughout our lives, even as a young child. They bring a smile to your face. I love attending weddings. They're glorious. I even look back on our own wedding 26 and a half years ago and remember the details very, very vividly. Namely, when she was walked up the aisle, I just had tears. It was a waterfall. I couldn't stop. Anyway, and I love officiating weddings as well, and so it's exciting that we have two coming up in the next two months. These two in less than a month now, or less than four weeks now, coming up very quickly. Jennifer and I actually assisted in planning three weddings of our adult children just a couple of years ago in the span of eight months, if you can imagine that. That was crazy. One of the most exciting things about officiating weddings is doing that premarital counseling beforehand, where you get to know the couple a lot, and to help equip them that they might have a successful marriage that would glorify God. And even to celebrate the wedding shower last night, I think there was 20-plus ladies there in attendance for that. Well, all this talk about weddings, there's always expectations at weddings. There's social dynamics and expectations. Expectations that sometimes can be difficult to attain. So it's always good once a wedding's over to take a sigh of relief. everything went okay. Well the same expectations and high emotions were true of weddings even 2,000 years ago in Cana. The customs were different, but the expectations were many. Working out your invitation list, of course, is an important facet of that. And here we have this wedding in Cana of Galilee, and lo and behold, Mary the mother of Jesus, Jesus, and his disciples are on the guest list, and they're invited to come to this wedding. Jewish weddings were some of the most important events that would occur in your life. And so a lot of time and devotion, and we'll talk more about what that looked like later, went into it. The great social significance of it is vitally important as well. But let's read the text. If you'll find your place, John 2, the first 11 verses. On the third day, there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there, and both Jesus and his disciples were invited to the wedding. When the wine ran out, the mother of Jesus said to him, They have no wine. And Jesus said to her, Woman, what does that have to do with us? My hour has not yet come. His mother said to the servants, Whatever he says to you, do it. Now, there were six stone water pots set there for the Jewish custom of purification, containing 20 or 30 gallons each. Jesus said to them, fill the water pots with water. So they filled them up to the brim. And he said to them, draw some out now and take it to the head waiter. And they took it to him. And when the headwaiter tasted the water, which had become wine, and did not know where it had come from, but the servants who drew the water knew, the headwaiter called the bridegroom and said to him, Every man serves the good wine first, and then when people have drunk freely, then he serves the poorer wine. But you have kept the good wine until now. This beginning, this beginning of His signs, Jesus did in Cana of Galilee and manifested His glory and His disciples believed in Him. Our Father in heaven, we pray that you would manifest your glory in this place, even this very day, through the proclamation of your word. Lord, we pray, especially for any who do not know you, that they would see and believe in his name and be saved. Lord, we pray that you would meet with us. We pray that you'd give us clarity and to this very important passage of scripture, and we ask in Jesus' name, amen. You'll remember last time from John 1, 19 and on, the structure is that on this day, and then the next day, and on the next day, and this wedding of Cana is still just the first week of Jesus' ministry. It's fascinating to me. But you have John the Baptist who's a faithful witness, right? And what does he do? He points away from himself to another. Even though he had his own disciples, he points away. Behold, the Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world. And then we saw last time the methods of evangelism, how Andrew becomes converted, he goes to Simon Peter, Jesus calls Philip, and then Philip goes to Nathanael, and the whole idea of that, and we were challenged to that we can all share our faith. You don't have to be a theologian, you don't have to have a seminary degree, all you need is a basic testimony that I was once dead, now I'm alive, and this is the means by which that took place. And so, And then that takes us up to this. Now, as we come to our text, we're still in the first week of his ministry. We're going to see the first of seven signs of Jesus' ministry. In fact, chapters 2 to 12 have been called the Book of Signs. John, carefully, some think he targets seven specific signs. There are seven signs that are contained there. Chapters 13 to 21, the whole Upper Room Discourse, the last week of our Lord's life, the really last day or two, has been called the Book of Glory. So John uses this word, there's other Greek words for sign, wondrous, miracles, there's a few different words. He uses this word, a simeon, which is a sign, and pointing to Jesus and who he is. The idea is it's a physical, powerful act that has deeper spiritual meanings. And so these signs are meant to do something. Even as we saw in verse 11, He manifested His glory, and what? His disciples believed in Him. These are authenticating acts that Jesus does that you might believe in Him. And we'll see several as we go through here, even the raising of the dead. So I want you to see something of the glory of Christ today. I want you to see something of that. And if I failed and you don't see that, then in a sense I failed. But on the other hand, we know that God is sovereign, and He'll open your heart at just the right time that He wants to. It is a glory that the world does not see. It's a glory that the world does not esteem. It's a glory that the world could care less about. But those of us who are the children of God, We want to see his glory. So we're going to look at this under four points. Jesus invited to a wedding, the problem described, the supernatural miracle, and the glory manifested. So let's look here at the first two verses. It says on the third day, so what that means is there was a day or two of traveling from the four days of chapter one, right? And so we're still in the first week. And notice it says that his mother, the mother of Jesus, was there. Now why doesn't John just say Mary? Why is he the mother of Jesus? Why not use the term Mary? Well, most think that the synoptic Gospels, the other three, had already been written, Mary's well-known, and so it's not necessary to name her by name. Probably Joseph is already dead. And notice it says here that, and the mother of Jesus was there, and then Jesus and the disciples were invited. Some think that she may have even been like the wedding coordinator. We have a wedding coordinator in our church who's not here today, but you know, sort of like a wedding coordinator, and that's why when the wine ran out, she knew that that reflected on her, and she goes to Jesus. It's remarkable that God chooses this insignificant town, a town of, remember we said, 2,000 to 3,000 that Nathanael was from, 2,000 to 3,000 people, to manifest his glory. Jewish wedding celebration is considered one of the most grand things in all of life, especially to the poor. It was the one ceremony that they had where they would go all out. Now remember, the betrothal was a time like an engagement that went on oftentimes for one year. And you remember when Joseph wanted to separate from Mary, though he would have had to write her a certificate of divorce. So it's a It's not just an engagement where these nowadays people break their engagements here and there and whatever. It's a commitment. But after that time, the wedding day comes, and the bridegroom's party comes to the home of the bride. takes her, takes her wedding party, and returns to his house. And this took place late in the night. It was a procession that had torches. There was celebration. It was a time of joy. It was festive. And then there would be a great feast. And that great feast would last up to a week long. Most often, it would last a week long. And there were important social obligations at these weddings. the guests were expected to bring a gift. So if you come in four weeks to their wedding and you choose not to bring a gift, you could actually even get in trouble with the law. There was fines and that kind of thing. But also for the host, you had to provide an abundance, you're taking notes, food and wine. So an abundance, and if that ran out, that would be a social disgrace to the host, and there could also be legal ramifications. Our second sub-point, Jesus participates in this celebration by his presence. It's really remarkable when you think of marriage mentioned in the very beginning of the Bible, the very end of the Bible, right? wedding feast at a lamb, and then everything that takes place in between. So by his presence, Jesus is honoring the institution of marriage. Of course, we know marriage is a glorious picture between Christ and the church. Hebrews 13.4, marriage is to be held in honor among all, and the marriage bed is to be undefiled. And by the way, The Roman Catholic Church and some other religions that prevent church leaders from getting married are wrong. That's not in the Bible. In fact, Daniel just read in 1 Timothy 4, three men who forbid marriage and advocate abstaining from certain foods. These are extra-biblical things, limitations that these men seek to do. In fact, it was said of Jesus by the Pharisees and the religious rulers of the day, that the Son of Man came eating and drinking. And right, it says in Matthew 11, 19, the Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, behold, a gluttonous man and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners, yet wisdom is vindicated by her deeds. I find it remarkable, I don't encourage you to look at images of Christ, right, the second commandment, but when you see religious art, right, and just think of all the religious art, especially I grew up sort of in a loose Roman Catholic home, you know, the pictures of Jesus, right? Is he ever smiling in this? No, it's always that gloomy look, it's that depressive kind of look, and it's incredible. We need to realize that Jesus accepted this invitation to a party, and guess what? I think he enjoyed himself. It was a time of celebration. He wasn't sitting in the corner, I'm waiting for this to get over me, right? It's away with all that silly art, away with the images anyway, right? We know from the other accounts of the gospel that Jesus was a popular dinner guest. He was invited over to many people's house, some tax collectors, some sinners. He's coming near to them to display his ministry. Also children were naturally drawn to him so he didn't look all grumpy and ugly and you know and all of that. We readily admit that the Christian life is one that involves discipleship and it's serious business, right? Mortifying sin, seeking to honor and glorify the Lord. But the Bible does provide certain times of celebration, gifts of God, weddings, wedding feasts. Think of the book of Ruth. at harvest time. What does Boaz, this righteous man, do? There's a feast of celebration, of recognizing that God is the one that has brought this harvest around. True religion is never meant to make men melancholy all the time. Rather, true religion, if you know that your sins are forgiven, ought to bring joy to your hearts. Jesus said, I've come to give you joy, and that abundantly, right? Charles Spurgeon said some preachers would make better undertakers, more suited for burying the dead than for influencing the living by their demeanors. Good old Spurgeon. The Old Testament feasts, which there were three, were meant to be a joyful occasion, a foretaste of heaven. It was a celebration, remembering God's great deliverance for them. And a wedding is an appropriate celebration for when the Lord returns with the marriage feast and His bride. There's an anticipation, as it's prophesied even in Isaiah, this lavish banquet and then the marriage feast with the Lamb in Revelation 19 and verse 9. Third, under this point, Jesus made wine for this celebration. And I think it probably is important to mention something about that. First of all, the Bible does not forbid the use of all alcoholic drinks. Ecclesiastes 9.7 says, Go then, eat your bread in happiness, drink your wine with a cheerful heart. God has already approved your works. Wine in the first century was a common table beverage. Water was often impure. Of course, it was more watered down. It was sometimes one part wine to two or three parts water. but having that alcohol in it would, as it were, sanitize the water some. Timothy's told to take a little wine for the ailments in his stomach. Wine is a symbol of abundance and blessing from God. Psalm 104 verse 15, and wine which makes man's heart glad, so that he will make his face glisten with oil, and food which sustains the heart. Even in the law in Deuteronomy 7, he says, he will love you and bless you and multiply you. He will give you and bless the fruit of your womb and the fruit of the ground and your grain and your new wine and your oil. However, the Bible condemns drunkenness. Abusing alcohol has destroyed many families and many individual lives. Paul tells us clearly in Ephesians 5, do not be drunk with wine, but be filled with the Holy Spirit. So balance is needed when we're considering this topic. And there is some liberty. Now there's some on the one side that are legalists, that go beyond scripture, that would actually say they forbid many of the pleasures that God allows. Sometimes dietary, some fundamental churches say you should absolutely never have a drop of wine, or go dancing, or all these other things that are kind of man-made rules that are not contained in the Bible. Right? And they're free to exercise their liberty to not practice whatever things they might be talking about, but when they impose that on other Christians, that's when it's wrong. when they want other Christians to conform to their standards. In fact, 1 Timothy 4.4, we read it also, says, everything created by God is good. Nothing is to be rejected if it is received with gratitude and it is sanctified by means of the word of God and prayer. Now on the other side of the legalist, you have living a licentious life, a libertine that takes scripture and perverts it as an excuse for excess and pursuing pleasure excessively. They're just as wrong, right? And so balance is needed. The Bible doesn't condemn the use of wine. Jesus made a whole lot of wine, about 180 gallons at this occasion. Now let's get back to the text. Verses 3 to 5, our second point, the problem described. When the wine ran out, The mother of Jesus said to him, they have no wine." Now what happens in these verses is that Mary is learning that her relationship with her eldest son is beginning to change. She's going to have to loosen her grip, as it were, on him. Not that she had a grip, he's 30 years old, but you understand what I'm saying. Recognizing that his earthly ministry is commencing and But I already mentioned there's no mention of Joseph. It's most likely that he's passed on and that Jesus has taken over the family business as the oldest son, probably training his brothers in the carpentry business. And so when there was an issue, when there was a problem, Mary was in the habit of going to the oldest son throughout those years. And so now here she is. She's going to her son. We have a problem here. They have no wine. Jesus, right? And look at verse 4 here. Wait, I better get back to my notes. I'm going to skip something important. Oh, yeah. Some claim that, well, Mary saw all kinds of miracles, like when he was 18 to 30 or whatever. Even there's some apocryphal writings that talks about when Jesus was a toddler, he turned clay pigeons into living birds and all that, away with such rubbish. It says clearly, this is the first of his signs. I don't think he was performing miracles here and there all through his 20s and now it's like ready to let other people see. So some claim that Mary had already seen miracles and that's why she comes. I think she's more just coming to inform him that there's a crisis in a sense here. There's a crisis that they have no why in the social disgrace. And most think that she was either a coordinator or was some close family member. These are small towns around there, Nazareth and Cana, 2,000 to 3,000 each. They probably knew a lot of people. So Jesus in verse 4, Jesus said to her, woman, what does that have to do with us? My hour has not yet come. Now it might be better if you thought of it, dear woman, but even that is an an unfamiliar way for a son to speak to his mother. It's not as derogatory as it sounds, necessarily. And then I think the best rendering, and this is a Hebrew idiom here, if you look in your margin, it says, what to me and to you, what to me, what to you. It's a Hebrew idiom. The best rendering is, what have I to do with you? Yeah, that sounds sort of rude. Remember in Matthew 12, paraphrasing when they come to him and say, behold, your mother and your brothers are outside. And what does he, he doesn't say, oh, I'll be right back, let me tend to them, right? Or he doesn't say, usher them up to the front. He says, who are my mother and brothers? Those who do the will of God. So he's detaching himself from his earthly family. And he says here that my time, my hour, has not come yet. That's a term that would occur six more times. Once again, seven, the number of completeness in the Gospel of John. And it's referring to the crucifixion. It's referring to the cross, which is his ultimate destination. John already told us, "'Behold, the Lamb of God who," what? "'takes away the sin of the world.'" My hour is to take away the sin of the world, and that can only occur on a Roman cross. My hour has not yet come. What to me to you? You know, is another way that that could be phrased. This must have been difficult for Mary, who had nursed not only all of her other siblings, but this, the virgin birth, nursing him, tending to him, teaching him all manner of things. And so this must have been difficult for her. But now he's entering into the purpose for which he has come. Now there seems to be an indication to me that Mary understands what's happening. Because look in verse 5. His mother said to the servants, who must have been nearby, whatever he says to you, do it. So there's a sense in which she's recognizing his own authority, him separating, as it were, from his mother. And there seems to be a demonstration of persevering faith. She responds as a believer. She doesn't get on her back and wail and kick her hands and feet, right? She responds as a believer. This is the anointed one. She was already told before he was even born why he would come and what he would do. And so the command, just do it, right? Whatever he says, do it. Don't hesitate. And that's something for us. This is a memory verse, kids. Whatever he says to you, do it. Do it. Don't hesitate. Mary's recognizing the authority of Jesus. Mary sets an example for us to entrust every situation to the Lord Jesus. Every difficulty, every problem, that we can go to Him and He will be there for us. Well, thirdly under this point, people need to know Mary's proper place. I think you all know that she was a sinner. She was not perfect. She was not sinless. In Luke 1, in her song that's recorded there, she declares her own need of a Savior. She is not a co-mediator, as the Roman Catholic Church would say. There's one mediator between God and man, the man Christ Jesus. And there's an irony that many today make the same mistake about Mary, thinking that somehow she's got extra pull with Jesus, like we see even demonstrated here. That people will pray to Mary and then say, will you take that to Jesus? It's folly. And it's blasphemy to think that somehow she's more compassionate and more understanding than Jesus, who's hard-hearted. Mary, use your influence over your hard-hearted son, you might think. But we learn in Hebrews that Jesus is full of divine compassion and mercy. He is our great high priest. It tells us twice in that book that he understands us. that He can sympathize with us like no other, certainly like no other sinner. Well, our third point, verses 6 to 10, here we see the supernatural miracle. It's pretty straightforward here. Jesus gives clear commands here. Now, there were six stone water pots. Why do they tell us that? Well, there's earthenware water pots that were very common, but those would become unsanitary more quickly than the stone ones. They were set there for the Jewish custom of purification, containing 20 or 30 gallons. So these six purification water pots, these did not hold drinking water. These pots were used, as it says here, for the custom of purification. It would be for the washing of your hands, it would be for the washing of your feet, perhaps the washing of even the utensils and the smelly feet of the wedding guest as they were going in. I don't think the disciples or the servants had any clue what Jesus was going to do when he commands them, fill the water pots with water. The problem is, is that we don't have wine. Why are we filling the water pots with water? Nobody has a clue as to what's going to happen, what's going to take place, and the quantity of the water turned into wine becomes symbolic of the lavish provision that Messiah brings to his children and to his church. So John records three imperatives in the original in verses seven and eight. Jesus said to them, fill the water pots with water. So they filled them to the brim, we're told. And then he said to them, draw some out now and take it to the head waiter. And they took it to him. Fill, draw, and take are all imperatives. And so he's commanded them to fill the water pots. And they did. They gave a hundred percent of their effort to the filling of these water pots. The obedience that would lead to blessing for these servants who would come to have insight into what Jesus had done. It's not as though all the dinner guests at the wedding knew what was taking place, but the servants knew especially. And John MacArthur puts it this way, this seemingly insignificant tale that the water was up to the very, very top shows that nothing was added to the water, and that what followed was indeed a transformation miracle. By our ordering the jars filled completely before he transformed the water into wine, Jesus displays his magnanimous grace. You think about the quantity. 20 to 30 gallons times 6 is 120 gallons to 180 gallons. So we could round it and just take it in the middle, 150 gallons. The quantity of the blessing that he made, and then obviously we know from later when the head waiter tasted, it's the quality as well. Jesus not only rescued the bride and the groom from this embarrassment, right, but the leftover wine would have been a very generous wedding gift for the couple. The word that's used here that John records for us for draw is the same word that's used in John chapter 4 with the woman at the well. Sir, you've got nothing to draw with. And it's used twice in that passage. No doubt when they drew the water to fill up the water pots, they needed to go to a nearby well. And so they drew from there. And then they're told to take draw some and take it to the head waiter. The head waiter would have been the superintendent of the entire banquet. He was the one that was the steward managing the whole feast. You know, if you've gone on a cruise ship, you're instructed to give tips to All these people and there's like three in the dining hall, right? You've got the server that actually brings you the food You have the waiter that takes your order and then you have the head waiter And so you're designated how much to give they have suggestions But the head waiter is in charge of perhaps, you know dining halls are on different floors the entire floor dining hall The waiter might be in charge of maybe four to six tables and the server may be in charge of a couple, right? And so but he's the head waiter. He's the guy that's over it all Another thing we see here is this miracle can only take place through the path of the obedience of the servants. The servants' obedience led to further service and opportunities, and the same truth holds true for us. Faithfulness and obedience to Christ lead to future opportunities that we have to serve Him and to glorify Him. Jesus, by performing this miracle in those stone water pots, was testifying that the old religious rituals of purification are now being set aside, and the filling up to new life. In fact, that's the theme of chapter 2 to the end of chapter 4. It's a theme of the out with the old and in with the new, as it were. Just think about it. You have the old water purification compared to the wine of the kingdom of God. And next week, we'll see, you've got the whole temple discussion here, where to destroy this temple in three days, I'll raise it up. And so the old temple is going to be done away with by the new risen Lord. You have in John 3, the exposition of the new birth, and then chapter 4, the contrast of the water from Jacob's well to the living water that Christ gives us. out with the old and with the new, Messiah has come on the scene. FF Bruce says Christ is changing the water of Jewish purification into the wine of a new age. In verse 9, it says, when the headwaiter tasted the water which had become wine, John's very specific, there's no questions, nuances. By the way, there's some that try to say that Jesus just provided pure water, and really it was just water that was taken to the headwaiter. You've got to do a lot of exegetical gymnastics to come up with that. And so it says here that when it was brought to him, he did not know where it came from, and then in parentheses, but the servants who had drawn the water knew. And the head waiter called out to the wedding groom and said to him, every man serves the good wine first, and when the people have drunk freely, then he serves the poor wine, but you've kept the good wine until now. You have saved the best for last. Christ is the one who worked this miracle, and yet just think about it. Did he do anything? Did he say anything? The servants are doing all the footwork, right? They're the ones that go to the well, draw out the water, they're the ones to fill up the pots, they're the one that draws out and takes to the head weeder. Jesus is just in the background. There's no physical exhibition putting forth of divine power. Christ did not pronounce a magical formula. He did not command the water to become wine. No such thing took place. There was no incantation. There was no spell given by Jesus. And none of that had taken place. What was witnessed by the spectators as men at work, not God creating out of nothing. And so too, God is pleased to use our feeble efforts. That was an application from last week. He could have sent angels to declare the Gospel, but yet He uses weak and frail men, and here He uses these servants, plain servants in the background, and He manifests His glory so that they see it. A.W. Pink says, it was the servants, not the disciples, nor yet Mary, who were nearest to the Lord on this occasion, and who possessed the knowledge of His mind. What puzzled the head waiter was no secret to the servants. So the head waiter calls out to the bridegroom. Apparently this was some quality wine. He recognized it. Besides, it would be a social embarrassment if the wine had run out and there was not quickly more wine. And then notice it says here in verse 10, when people have drunk freely, then he serves the poor wine. That word literally means to become intoxicated in the Greek, and it's pointless for us to try to determine what level of intoxication there may have been. But we know this, that it was not to the point to where you could not tell that this wine was superior to the previous wine. That's John's point. That's what John is clearly pointing out, that it was superior. And so too, the messianic age that Jesus is bringing. Jesus was saying that He brings joy to life, and joy that He gives is abundant and overflowing with the best coming last. And John 15, later in his life, a few hours before his death, our Lord said, I have told you this so that your joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. The Lord does not take away the natural joys of life, but lifts them up and emboldens them to make them far more enjoyable. And then at verse 11, this beginning of his signs, Jesus did in Cana of Galilee, notice the repetition, book ended, and manifested his glory and his disciples believed in him. This was the first of his signs. I already mentioned John uses this particular term out of the different Greek words that are there. Some claim that John even planned this unfolding of signs and only records seven of them to make the number of completion. It's obvious to us that this was the first sign, and it's linked to that summary paragraph that we see in chapter 20 that we referred to a few times, where John says, therefore, many other signs Jesus also performed in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book, but these have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that in believing you may have life in his name." That's the purpose for which he schemes together, and he only reveals many other signs he's done. He could have recorded them all, He could have picked other signs, but he carefully crafts these particular signs leading up to the raising of Lazarus from the dead, he who had even been dead for four days. Why that we might believe that Jesus is the Son of God. And so it says here that he manifested his glory. You remember back in John 1.14, we already saw that the Word became flesh and dwelt among us. And what does John say? We beheld his glory. We saw his glory. Glory of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth. He reveals His glory. And the disciples and others believe in Jesus. His disciples believed in Him. And the focus now, the story, it's been really centering around Mary and Jesus, but then the servants, right, doing all the footwork. But now there's a shift to the disciples. Apparently they were the only ones who truly perceived the significance of the sign. The servants knew how the water had become wine, but it had no theological or spiritual benefit to them as far as what we know. But the disciples see and believe." So what a wonderful account that we have here of this celebration that had taken place. Jesus, as it were, saves the day, but it's all pointing to the idea of this greater messianic age that's coming that Jesus ushers in for us. So a couple of concluding applications. First of all, Old stone pots with dirty water is a picture to me of external religion. External religion and formality is bankrupt of spiritual life and joy. A system of works, such as the Roman Catholic Church, or even today as we'll hear about the cults, more of the cults in our Sunday school class, cannot bring joy and life. Arthur Pink says this, Judaism still existed as a religious system, there were still purifications within Judaism, but it ministered no comfort to the heart. It had degenerated into a cold, mechanical, routine, utterly destitute of joy and God. And what Pink has written here in his commentary on John is of this one religion, but there's so many other religions that if Jesus Christ is not at the center, if he's not at the core, it's bankrupt from true spiritual life and joy. Apart from him who is the source of life, he himself who is life, religion is cold and lifeless. Are you holding to an external religion? Are you holding to a formality? Yes, even Protestants can hold to some formality. That I do this, I tick this box, I do that, I do that, and it's a formality. There's no spiritual life. flowing through your veins, or do you have Christ at the center and experience the joy that only He can give? He alone can satisfy your hunger and thirst after spiritual things. He alone. Secondly, you are invited to a true messianic feast. How'd you like to go to a celebration like this? Well, there's going to be one that far exceeds this, right? Isaiah prophesied about it, the Lord of hosts will prepare a lavish banquet for all peoples on this mountain, a banquet of aged wine, choice pieces with marrow and refined aged wine. Revelation 19 verse 9, right, blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb. And he said to me, these are the true words of God. Will you be there? Will I see you there and you there and you there at this feast? Will you be there? You're invited. The invitation goes out each and every week from this pulpit. No matter who is preaching, believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you shall be saved. You have an invitation that's already been given to you. In fact, your reservation and your seat at this banquet is reserved for you by believing and trusting in Jesus Christ. You believe and you trust in Christ, you know you have a reservation that's secure, that cannot be taken away, that will not fade away. But you must repent of your sins and turn. You need to cast yourself upon the mercy of God. That's the only way you can be saved. And then this idea of saving the best for last is really something that takes place even in our own Christian lives. The longer we walk with the Lord, the more we appreciate the things of God. The old expositor Alexander McLaren says this, Jesus keeps the best till the last. His gifts become sweeter every day. No time can take them away. Advancing years makes them more precious and more necessary. When we pass into the heavens, the Lord will come to her lip. You have kept the best until now. The words that we, when we enter heaven, and we hear, well done, thou faithful servant. Entering into the rest, we will say, you've kept the best until last. You've blessed me my entire life, but this far exceeds. And that's why Paul can say, just as it is written, things which eye has not seen or ear heard and have entered even into the heart of man, all that God has prepared for those who love Him. It's an amazing thing to consider all of these things that He has prepared for us. Things get sweeter every day. The more we walk with the Lord, the more we know the Lord, the more we're under the means of grace, the more we encourage one another and build one another up in our most holy faith. The things of God become sweeter and sweeter every day. Now, just as a servant, did not understand, really. I mean, they knew that Jesus had done something, apparently, but it didn't have an effect for them to believe. Well, God's given us various important signs as well. He's manifested His glory to us by saving us, and we have the privilege of taking of the Lord's Supper this morning. So begin preparing your hearts for that. It's a foretaste of this heavenly feast that we have, and it's a glorious thing. It's folly to the world, right? The world sees us take a cracker that represents the body of Christ, and we take the wine that represents Jesus' blood. The world looks at that and sees it as folly. It's a glory that does not impress the world whatsoever, but it's a glory that we can feast on by faith. It's a feast for believers, not for unbelievers. That's why the world can say, what folly! But this is a covenant sign, just like baptism. Jesus gave two ordinances. Baptism, a glorious thing where we die with Christ, we're risen in newness of life, we make a profession that we are His. And then, week by week, taking of the supper of the Lord, remembering what He's done. Our Confession of Faith says this, the supper of the Lord Jesus was instituted by him the same night wherein he was betrayed to be observed in his churches unto the end of the world for a perpetual remembrance and the showing forth of the sacrifice of himself and his death. a confirmation of the faith of believers in all benefits thereof, their spiritual nourishment and growth in Him, and further engagement in and to all the duties which they owe to Him, to be a bond and a pledge of their communion with Him and each other." That's just paragraph 1 of chapter 30 of the Lord's Supper in our confession. It's a mouthful. It's the idea of abiding with the Lord. We're communing with Him as we take of the bread and the cup to the degree that we know the gospel accounts and the description of the agony of the cross and the burial and the resurrection and the ascension of the Lord Jesus Christ. As we take of the bread and the cup, we're agreeing that we believe these things to be true. And as we take that bread in the cup, it strengthens our faith. So it's a communion that's vertical, it's a communion that's horizontal. Because you, you, you, you, all my brothers and sisters here that are in Christ, we're commuting together and we're professing these truths together. And so it's a communion that is both vertical, first and foremost importance, but also horizontal. As I said, this is for believers and it would