The Lord's Sermons
- Sermon 8 -
Second Sunday After Epiphany. The Wedding in Cana
St. John II, 1-11: "And the tird day there was a marriage in Cana of Galilee; and the mother of Jesus was there: And both Jesus was called, and his disciples, to the marriage. And when they wanted wine, the mother of Jesus saith unto him, They have no wine. Jesus saith unto her, Woman, what have I to do with thee? Mine hour is not yet come. His mother saith unto the servants, Whatsoever he saith unto you, do it. And there were set there six water-pots of stone, after the manner of the purifying of the Jews, containing two or three firkins apiece. Jesus saith unto them, Fill the water-pots with water. And they filled them up to the brim. And he saith unto them, Draw out now, and bear unto the governor of the feast. And they bare it. When the ruler of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and knew not whence it was: (but the servants which drew the water knew;) the governor of the feast called the bridegroom, and saith unto him, Every man at the beginning doth set forth good wine; and when men have well drunk, then that which is worse: but thou hast kept the good wine until now. This beginning of miracles did Jesus in Cana of Galilee, and manifested forth his glory; and his disciples believed on him."
This chapter of John begins with the wedding at Cana in Galilee, where I performed the first miracle by transforming water into wine.
With this event, which took place at the beginning of My teaching years (although I had not yet begun to teach publicly), I wanted - particularly through the combination of circumstances at this wedding - to draw the attention of many toward Myself, because within a short time My way of living in obscurity was to come to an end.
The marriage ceremony is, of course, a frequently performed act and, although it holds much spiritual meaning, most people regard it as completely material and celebrate it in that manner.
Had this been only such a wedding, one would not have found Me there. However, I had much greater things in view which had to be achieved through not too conspicuous events. The Jews' attention was to be gradually drawn to My forthcoming teaching and activities.
As concerns this act and all of the following, their spiritual repetition in these present days must be understood in a greater and deeper sense, because now also the periods of time will be greater than during My short years of teaching and sojourn upon your dark earth. Then I had been given only a short time to achieve great things of eternal duration. Now, when the future perfection of mankind's spiritual education is at stake, the stream of events is flowing more slowly, but all the mightier, - overcoming all the obstacles, which might arise against My plans until My final Advent.
Reverting to the wedding at Cana, I must first explain what a wedding actually is, how it is celebrated by you and how I would like to have it celebrated, so that you may later recognize its spiritual significance for all mankind, and that the union of two people has in its correspondence a deep significance for all men.
A wedding is the conclusion of a previous agreement by two people of different sexes who, attracted to each other, yield to the impulse of their souls and are resolved not to relinquish during their lifetime this once-begun spiritual bond, but -becoming more and more one with each other - to bear joy and sorrow jointly. Therefore, since they are of one mind, the marriage is sealed through a legal act, and as a result the individual ceases to be that but prefers now a joint life, the life of the family.
Such an act between two souls, who have found each other, and their permanent bond is to be valid not only for this short life on earth but also for the life in the beyond where both partners, thanks to their striving for the same goal, unite more and more and, finally, become - as you say - like "one heart and one mind".
Such a union should be founded on true spiritual and moral love, the basis for a family life with mutual respect. Through My established natural law, the Law of Pairing, I purposed not only the living together of two individuals, but wanted also fruits to be propagated out of such love, which were to reproduce and ennoble the better mental qualities of the one and the other.
Thus the Marriage Law, which I implanted in nature as an urge for propagation, was the cause for an everlasting gamut from being to being right up to Me. That was what I wanted, and what have you people made of it? A market with human flesh and the selling of souls.
It was certainly not the physical-material aspect which made Me accept the invitation to this wedding. On the one hand I wanted to comply with the wishes of the mother of My flesh, but on the other hand I intended already there to lay the foundation stone for My great spiritual realm. That I made wine out of water, and a wine which the wedding guests declared to be the best, is in its spiritual correspondence of particular significance for the present time.
Behold, what I told you about the marriage bond of two people shall now take place spiritually between the various Christian sects, based on the teaching of love as defined in the Gospels. They, too, are to unite through love to one only family. Approaches are already made and spiritual communication is improving. The small differences in opinions and interpretations of the ever invariable Bible, which were the cause of the division, are gradually beginning to diminish and will one day disappear altogether. At the present time preparations for a life together are being made and will be leading to the celebration of a union, a marriage, for which it is truly the highest time.
Once this unification nears its goal I shall again change the present water of faith into My spiritual wine of love. And as once the steward at the wedding asked, those who have been waiting will then ask: "Why did we drink the poor wine first and save the best until the end?" - And I shall reply: "Because earlier you were incapable of properly appreciating My wine of love and the result would have been misuse. But now when you have drunk your fill of the poor man-mixed wines, now, when your drinking-urge has calmed down and you are able to distinguish good from bad, - now I am coming to give you something that is not new to you but actually the same wine you used to drink, only purified - a divine drink, which only those deserve who have left sensuality and what is matrial far behind, have recongnized their spiritual nature and crave only for spiritual drink and food."
Men are now fed up with the poor brew offered to them as a divine drink. They feel that there is something better, each believing the other has what he lacks. This seeking and questioning is removing the obstacles of religious fanaticism making a union possible. Then I shall come and there will be only one shepherd and one flock.
This is the spiritual meaning of the wedding in Cana. Watch the religious movements and see how like-minded spirits find each other to celebrate the wedding day when all, united, will strive towards Me to earn that name which I have reserved for those who practise My teaching and have adopted the basic principle of My entire spiritual and material creation, to become worthy .spiritual children of the heavenly Father.
Keep this well in mind! Amen.