Christmas Eve 2024 | John 2:1-11

I'm so glad you made it this morning. I want to ask all of the kids to look over here. If tonight or tomorrow morning you were to open up a present and were to receive a Dude Perfect hat, who would think that's a good gift? Okay, several of you. Now, what if I told you the reason I'm giving you this hat is you're going to need to wear it to the Dude Perfect tour this summer because I bought tickets for you and all your family to go to the Dude Perfect tour? I didn't, but if I did, that would be pretty great. Right? That would be an even greater gift.

Now, what if I gave you this Super Mario Bros. stuffed animal? Anyone here think that's a good gift? Yes, some of you guys think that's a good gift. Now, what if I told you the reason I'm giving you this stuffed animal is so you can set it next to you as a good luck charm for playing Mario Kart on your brand-new Nintendo Switch I'm going to give you for Christmas? I'm not doing that, but that would be pretty great. Right?

Or what if I gave you this Minions key chain? Is anyone here like, "Now, that's a good gift"? Okay, a few of you. Less of you. But what if I told you I'm giving you this Minions key chain to attach the car keys to the brand-new car I got you for Christmas? That would be a pretty great gift. The reason I'm doing that is I want to put something in your mind, and here it is. Sometimes…not all the time, but sometimes…something already great points to something even greater.

The reason I'm telling you that is, right here on Christmas Eve, I want to look at a famous story in the Bible. It's the story of Jesus turning water into wine. You might hear that and be like, "That feels odd for Christmas Eve. Why would we be talking about the story of Jesus turning water into wine?" Well, the reason we're studying this passage is because it's referred to or known as Jesus' first sign.

All throughout the book of John, Jesus performs signs or miracles, and these signs are great moments that are meant to point to even greater realities. The fact that it's his first sign… Scholars interpret that word first as primary. It's his primary sign. What would make Jesus turning water to wine his primary sign? It's because this sign is a declaration from Jesus as to who he is and why he even showed up in a manger, why he was actually born.

So, what I would tell you this morning is this passage is actually the most covert Christmas passage in the Bible, because it's going to show us exactly why we're even here today, why we celebrate Christmas and Jesus being born. So, if you have a Bible, I want to invite you to turn with me to John, chapter 2.

If you haven't been with us at all during the month of December, we've been looking at different stories in the gospel of John because it helps us plainly see all who Jesus is and what he has come to do. This story this morning is going to show us three reasons Jesus was, in fact, born. Let me read it to you. Here we go.

"On the third day there was a wedding at Cana in Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. Jesus also was invited to the wedding with his disciples. When the wine ran out, the mother of Jesus said to him, 'They have no wine.' And Jesus said to her, 'Woman, what does this have to do with me? My hour has not yet come.' His mother said to the servants, 'Do whatever he tells you.'

Now there were six stone water jars there for the Jewish rites of purification, each holding twenty or thirty gallons. Jesus said to the servants, 'Fill the jars with water.' And they filled them up to the brim. And he said to them, 'Now draw some out and take it to the master of the feast.' So they took it.

When the master of the feast tasted the water now become wine, and did not know where it came from (though the servants who had drawn the water knew), the master of the feast called the bridegroom and said to him, 'Everyone serves the good wine first, and when people have drunk freely, then the poor wine. But you have kept the good wine until now.' This, the first of his signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee, and manifested his glory. And his disciples believed in him."

Some believe this is Jesus' primary sign that tells us exactly why Jesus even came in the first place, why he was born. Today, it's going to show us three reasons Jesus was born.

1. Jesus was born to rescue us from shame. Here's what you need to know. This wedding feast in John, chapter 2, was about a week long. The groom's family…not the bride's family, but the groom's family…was responsible for providing food and drink for all of the guests for the entirety of the week. For them to run out of supplies was a massive failure. It would have resulted in their small town rejecting them. It would have been social rejection, so shame was most certainly in their future.

Jesus is coming to rescue them from their shame. It shows us that Jesus was born to rescue us from shame. Now, when I talk about shame, what am I even talking about? Let me explain it this way. If guilt is "I did something bad," shame is "I am something bad." The way shame will manifest itself in our lives is with thoughts like, "I'm not enough. I'm not who I should be at this point in my life" or "I'm a failure." That's shame. Jesus came to rescue us from our shame.

You'll know if this point is for you by answering this question. This is a question we ask around Watermark a lot. If you were to die tonight, on a scale of 1 to 10, how sure are you that you'd go to heaven when you died? You probably didn't plan to answer that question this early in the day, but just think about it. Think of a number in your mind. On a scale of 1 to 10, if you were to die, how sure are you that you would go to heaven?

If you are somewhere between a 1 and a 9, this point is for you. The reason it's for you and the reason you're between a 1 and a 9 is most likely because you fear that what was true of the groom's family is true of you, that there is a shortage in your life. Maybe there's a shortage of goodness. You look in your past and see a mess. Maybe it's a shortage of generosity, a shortage of wholesomeness, a shortage of commitment. There's not enough commitment to God. There's not enough faith.

Maybe the way you choose to deal with this fear is to ignore it. You busy yourself and just think about today, or maybe you look at other people around you, and you find people who aren't doing life as well as you, and it makes you feel better about yourself. But here's what we have to understand. Listen to the words of Romans 3:23. It says, "…for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God…"

Do you know what that's doing? It's confirming our fear. And it's not just you; it's for all of us here. The reality for the groom's family is the reality for every single one of us here. There is a shortage in our lives of what God requires. God is perfect; therefore, he requires perfection. We are water, and God requires wine.

What the groom's family deserved is what we deserve. They deserved rejection and shame. What we deserve is eternal rejection and eternal shame before God. Aren't you glad you came to Watermark this morning? Merry Christmas. But remember the point. The point is Jesus came to rescue us from our shame. He's going to rescue the groom's family from shame. How does he do it? He does it by turning water into wine.

Now, this is where I need you to follow me. I need you to track with me here. I need you to follow me, because I want to share a little bit more about the historical context so you can see just how Jesus rescues us from shame. The fact that Jesus turned water to wine by filling up six stone water pots is important. Scholars believe those stone water pots represented the Old Testament law and customs.

The fact that Jesus had the pots filled to the full was to signify the Old Testament way of doing things is done, and the fact that Jesus turned water into an abundance of the best wine people had ever experienced was a declaration from Jesus of "I've brought something so much better than the Old Testament way of doing things. Instead of ceremonial washings that can only cleanse the outside, I want to make you new on the inside."

Instead of having to physically go to the temple to be near to the presence of God, the God of the universe wants to come and live inside of you. This is crazy. Jesus is saying, "I've brought something new. I was born for the sake of newness." So, just how does Jesus rescue us from our shame? Why was he born? Well, to be specific, it's so we could experience at least three things. Don't miss them. God's pardon, God's provision of righteousness, and God's presence.

What did Jesus bring that was new? He brought God's permanent pardon in our lives. This is incredible. I don't know if you remember in the story. Jesus says to his mom, "What does this have to do with me? My hour has not yet come." In the gospel of John, Jesus refers to his hour several times. What does his hour refer to? It refers to his death. This is Jesus saying, "Look. My focus is on dying. I was born to die so others can live."

Jesus Christ died to be punished in our place. So, when you put your faith in Jesus Christ, when you give your life to Jesus, the result is complete forgiveness for anything you have ever done or will do. He doesn't just forgive it; he completely pays the penalty for it. He cancels the record. He wipes our slates clean. No matter where you've been or what you've done, it's possible for nothing to separate you from God's love, because Jesus has brought God's pardon.

But not just that. Jesus has been born so we can experience God's provision of righteousness. Listen to what Paul says in 2 Corinthians 5:21. "For our sake he [God] made him [Jesus] to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him [Jesus] we might become the righteousness of God." This is pretty important. This is telling us we don't just have God's pardon, his forgiveness from sin; we actually have God's provision of righteousness in our lives.

This is known as the great exchange. The great exchange is that Jesus gets all of our sin and we get all of his righteousness. I just want to invite you to repeat after me. I want everyone to say, "Our sin to him." Nice. Well done. "His righteousness to us." That's the great exchange. Jesus doesn't just take our sin; he actually gives us his righteousness.

What's righteousness? It's Jesus' perfection. It's Jesus' right standing with God. That becomes ours. What this means is the water of your life instantly becomes wine before God, and now there is an abundance of what God requires. When he looks at you, he sees Christ's perfection, Christ's right standing, and now that counts as yours.

So, Jesus rescues us from shame by bringing God's pardon and God's provision for righteousness, but also God's presence. When you know Jesus Christ, the God of the universe actually moves into your life. He comes and lives inside of you. Just think about that. Have you ever thought about that, that the God of the universe wants to make you his home? He wants to live every day of the rest of your life and all of eternity with you.

Just think about Christmas for many of you. For the next 24 to 72 hours, some of you guys are going to be with some family you don't want to be with. If you're honest, you are going to tolerate some people for the next 24 to 72 hours. The reason you're going to tolerate them is either you haven't forgiven them or you just can't stand them.

You're going to be with them, but you don't want to be with them, and you might spend the bulk of the time avoiding them. It's the opposite with God. It's impossible for God to be with you and just tolerate you. It's impossible, because for God to just tolerate you is to just tolerate himself. He has given you Christ's righteousness. He has come to live in you and with you.

In Christ, your life is so intertwined with Christ it's impossible to untangle the two. I tell you that just to say here is the beauty: Jesus Christ brings the delight of God into our lives. Does that hit you in an interesting way? The God of the universe delights in you. If you know Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, the God of the universe delights in you.

You know, I started this point by talking to the people who are a 1 through 9. I want to speak to the 10s. I talked about this a few weeks ago. Many of you are a 10 on the question, "If you were to die tonight, do you know you'd go to heaven?" You're like, "I'm a 10." Okay. Another question. Scale of 1 to 10 on how much God delights in you. Where are you at? See, I think a lot of you know you're going to heaven when you die, but until then, God is just going to tolerate you. He loves you, but he doesn't really like you. No. Jesus was born to rescue us from shame.

2. Jesus was born to fill us with joy. Wine was associated with joy during the first century, and Jesus brings an abundance of wine to signify bringing an abundance of joy into the lives of his people. That's what Jesus has come to do. Jesus was born to fill us with joy. Growing up, December 26 was the most depressing day of the year. Why? Because it meant it was going to be a whole other year until I got more presents.

It didn't matter how many amazing gifts my parents gave me on the 25th. There was always room for more. There was something in me that wanted more. Why? Because satisfaction can't be found in some thing. This is going to be really disappointing for some of y'all to hear. Some of y'all are going to get a gift tonight or tomorrow that you've been wanting for a long time. You have researched it. You can't wait to have it. You are longing for it.

I just want you to think about a year from now. That thing you're longing for is either going to be in the trash, broken, or in a lot worse shape than it is today. Why? Because it can't satisfy. You won't want it nearly as much a year from now as you want it today. Why is that the case? Saint Augustine tells us why. He essentially says, "You have made us for yourself, O Lord, and our hearts are restless until they rest in you."

I just want to make sure everyone is clear. You have actually been made for relationship with Jesus Christ. You have been made to be satisfied by the person of Jesus Christ, and nothing can fully satisfy you until you find Jesus. He has come to fill us full of joy. So, let me ask you, right here at the end of the year… If Jesus was born to fill us full of joy, is your joy still intact? Just think about that. Right here at the end of the year, is your joy still intact, or did you lose your joy at some point during the past year?

I think about Christmas for me a couple of years ago. I had lost my joy. I had allowed my joy to be stolen. Why? Because I had attached my joy to my circumstances and my circumstances weren't what I wanted them to be, so I lost my joy. Maybe that's where you are right now. Maybe your joy has been attached to your circumstances and your circumstances aren't that great right now.

Or maybe you've attached your joy to something you're longing for, yet you don't have it yet. So, maybe you're hoping Christmas is going to bring it. Or maybe it's something Christmas can't bring. Maybe it's a job or more money or a spouse or physical healing. Whatever it might be, maybe you've attached your joy to your circumstances.

I'm going to tell you what changed everything for me two years ago. It was one verse, Psalm 34:5. It says, "Those who look to him are radiant…" I read that, and I was like, "I'm definitely not radiant." Radiant is a description of those who have joy. Those who look to him, to Christ, the one who was born to fill us full of joy…those are the ones who are radiant. It changed everything, because I realized my joy wasn't found in something; it was found in someone…not just anyone, but the one who was born to fill me full of joy.

Do you know who wrote the words to the hymn "It Is Well"? It was a guy named Horatio Spafford. Do you know when he penned those words? It was right after all four of his daughters died in a tragic accident. How is it possible for someone in the midst of deep darkness to write the words, "It is well with my soul"?

Or think about people who live in countries where they can either be imprisoned or killed for believing in Jesus, yet you could give them no amount of money to choose to resettle in the States to be comfortable. In fact, they are giving their lives to knocking on doors to share the gospel with people, knowing that every knock could be life or death. How is that possible?

Have you ever met someone who has very little in life, yet they seem content and actually joyful? Or I think about some people in our church who received a bad diagnosis, yet they're not rattled by it. They trust the Lord. They're at peace. How is that possible? Is there still sadness? Is there still heartbreak? Absolutely. There's no fake putting on a happy smile just to pretend, but there's joy. Why? Because each of those people knew joy wasn't found in something; it was found in someone…not just anyone, but the one who was born to fill us full of joy.

3. Jesus was born to give us hope. Here's what I want you to think about. Jesus' ministry begins with a wedding. The Bible culminates at another wedding. It's referred to as the marriage supper of the Lamb. Think about this. Jesus' ministry begins with a groom failing to provide. The Scriptures culminate with Jesus, the groom, providing unending joy for his bride. That's us. For anyone who knows Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior, the Bible would refer to them, and to us, as the bride of Christ.

Here's what I want you to know. In the first century, marriages had three stages to them. They started with the betrothal phase. That was the phase where a man and a woman would be legally married, but they would live separately for anywhere from two months to a year. Then there was the second phase where the groom and his friends would come at night. It would be a torchlit procession where the groom would come to take the bride home, and then the weeklong feast of celebration would begin.

If you know Jesus Christ, you're in the betrothal stage. You're married to Christ. Christ has already gone to the cross to purchase you to be with him, yet we're physically apart from him. A day is coming where the sky will split open and Jesus will come back for his bride, and he will come to take us home to be with him, and then the eternal celebration will begin.

Here's what that means. It means life in this world is the closest you will ever get to hell if you know Jesus Christ in a personal way. Jesus has come to give us hope. As I was preparing, I thought about this movie poster I saw years ago. It was a movie poster for the movie The Truman Show. The poster is a picture of Jim Carrey's face, but this picture is actually a mosaic. It's made up of all of these different squares, and each square is actually a scene from the movie. Some of those scenes, those boxes, were moments full of joy, and other moments were full of sorrow and heartache.

Here's the reality. We're all stuck in one little box right now. All we can see is the one little scene we're in right now. For some of you, the box or the scene you're in right now is full of joy. It's incredible. It's a good season of life for you. For others of you, the box or the scene you're in is devastating. It's full of depression. It's full of anxiety. It's full of pain. Here's the good news: Jesus sees the entire mosaic, and he sees that a day is coming where he is going to come back for us, take us to himself, and make everything right. Jesus Christ was born to give us hope.

I want to show you how the story ends. Listen to verse 11. "This, the first of his signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee, and manifested his glory. And his disciples believed in him." Why does Jesus perform this sign? To manifest his glory. What is the glory of God? The glory of God is the infinite and supreme goodness of God. Jesus came to demonstrate and display the infinite goodness of God. And what was the response? The response, at least of the disciples, was to believe.

But here's what I want you to notice. There were different people at the wedding. There were the guests, there were the unnamed servants who filled up the water pots, and there were the disciples. The text only tells us that the disciples believed. We don't know about anyone else. So, it at least leaves the door open to the possibility that there were people there who beheld the goodness of God and still didn't believe.

Don't let that be your story. The right response to the goodness of God, the right response to the Son of God, who was born to die so we could live and experience rescue from shame, fullness of joy, and hope for eternal life with God… The right response is to believe. What does it mean to believe in Jesus? It's to give your life to him. It's to turn from a life without God. It's to embrace life with God.

It's to invite Christ into your life to save you and be your King. That's the right response. Have you responded to him today? Have you believed in Jesus Christ? If you're here and you have, my question to you is…Are you enjoying his delight? Are you enjoying him and experiencing his joy, and are you living as someone who has hope? Let's pray together.

If you're here this morning, and you want to begin a relationship with Jesus Christ… You're just like the disciples right now, and you're realizing the goodness of God. God brought you here today because you want rescue from your shame. You want to leave today knowing you're a 10, that if you were to die, you're going to heaven. You want the joy that can only come from Jesus. You want hope for eternal life.

If that's you, I want to invite you right now to pray and say, "Lord Jesus, would you come into my life this morning? Thank you, Jesus, that you died on the cross for me. Thank you that you rose from the dead for me. Would you come into my life? Would you forgive me of my sin, and would you begin to lead me in a new life?"

If you know Jesus, what's he saying to you right now? What do you want to say to him? Maybe you just need to receive his delight. Ask him to restore your joy. Or maybe you just put your hope in him.

Lord Jesus, we celebrate you as the one who was born. You were born to die so we could live. We praise you and thank you. In Jesus' name, amen.