Transcription downloaded from https://services.pcumc.org/sermons/27545/wedding-at-cana/.

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[0:00] знак a magnus Are bright yes Thank you.

[0:47] Thank you.

[1:17] Thank you.

[1:47] Thank you.

[2:17] Thank you. Thank you. Please fill out our little friendship card. Include your name, contact information, especially if you would like one of our church newsletters.

[2:30] On the back, you can ask for prayer requests, share blessings, or leave notes for our staff. Enjoy the service and welcome to Pendleton Center United Methodist Church.

[2:43] Good morning. Good morning. This is the day the Lord has made. We will rejoice and be glad in it as soon as Sue gets to the organ.

[2:56] Hey, it's not snowing yet today. Woo-hoo! But it will be this afternoon. It's not yet. Sorry. This is the day.

[3:10] This is the day. This is the day. That the Lord has made. That the Lord has made.

[3:21] Let us rejoice. Let us rejoice. Let us rejoice. And be glad in it. And be glad in it. This is the day. This is the day that the Lord has made.

[3:35] Let us rejoice and be glad in it. This is the day. This is the day. This is the day that the Lord has made.

[3:50] You join me in prayer. Dear Father, we do thank you for today. Thank you for your love for us and for your care and watch care over us. Be with us throughout the service.

[4:02] Put your hand on Pastor Lisa as she brings your word to us today, Father. Just be with each one of us who are here today as we return to our homes. Watch over us and guide us.

[4:14] In your name we pray. Amen. Now I'd like to invite you to stand as we sing, Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee. Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee, God of Glory, Lord of Love.

[4:58] Hearts unfold like flowers before Thee, opening to the sun above. Melt the clouds of sin and sadness, drive the dark of doubt away.

[5:16] Giver of immortal gladness, fill us with the light of day. All Thy works with joy surround Thee, earth and heaven reflect Thy rays.

[5:35] Stars and angels sing around Thee, center of unbroken praise. Field and forest, vale and mountain, flowery meadow, flashing sea.

[5:53] Chanting bird and flowing fountain, call us to rejoice in Thee. Thou art giving and forgiving, ever-blessing, ever-blessed.

[6:13] Wellspring of the joy of living, ocean-depth of happy rest. Thou our Father, Christ our brother, all who live in Thee are Thine.

[6:31] Teach us how to love each other, lift us to the joy divine. Mortals, join the mighty chorus, which the morning stars began.

[6:50] Love divine is reigning o'er us, binding all within its span. Ever singing, march we onward, victors in the midst of strife.

[7:09] Joyful music lifts us onward in the triumph song of life.

[7:21] You may be seated. Our clipboards today that we're passing around are for our Joshua Connection, which Joshua Connection is what we call our two churches.

[7:35] Pendleton Center Church, just take one, and Niagara Falls First Church. And the two of them together are called Joshua Connection. And so our special offering this week, which the envelope you'll find in your bulletins, goes to help people that are in need in both areas of our churches.

[7:54] So if you feel so moved, we encourage you to give to that offering. And we have lots to be thankful for today. I'm thankful the sun is out.

[8:05] Like I said, it's not snowing right now. We've had crazy weather this year. But you know what? It gives us something to talk about. Isn't that something to be thankful for? We have something to talk about. Who else has a joy they'd like to share?

[8:19] Oh, Karen Krasinski had her surgery on Wednesday. She did very well. And she got to go home that day. And I'm told she even stopped by to say hi to the choir on her way home from the hospital. Your daughter is here from Utah.

[8:40] Wonderful. Yes, Randy. Yes, I'm a woman of L.A. I'm a bachelor. Oh, that's good. Out to L.A. I bet you wish you could. Why couldn't you bring the weather back with you from there?

[8:51] Yeah. Good. Good. Anybody else? Here. Yes. Jan is here today. And she's thankful for all of your prayers to help her be here today.

[9:02] Ron Elman is also back with us in worship today, which is wonderful to have them back. Anybody else? All right. Well, as we're thankful for all of these gifts, we return our gifts, tithes, and offerings to the Lord now.

[9:18] Oh, I've heard a thousand stories of what they think you're like.

[9:39] But I've heard a tender whisper of love in the dead of night. And you tell me that you're pleasing, that I'm never alone.

[9:56] You're a good, good Father. To you are, to you are, to you are And I'm loved by you To I am, to I am, to I am Oh, I've seen many searching for answers Far and wide, but I know We're all searching for answers Only you provide us, you know Just what we need before we say a word You're a good, good father To you are, to you are, to you are And I'm loved by you

[10:57] It's who I am, it's who I am, it's who I am You are perfect in all of your ways You are perfect in all of your ways You are perfect in all of your ways To us You are perfect in all of your ways Lord, you're perfect in all of your ways You are perfect in all of your ways To us Love so undeniable I can hardly speak He's so unexplainable I can hardly think as you call me

[12:00] Keeper still as you call me Keeper still as you call me Keeper still into love Love, love, love, you're a good, good father It's who you are It's who you are It's who you are And I'm loved by you It's who I am It's who I am It's who I am You're a good, good father It's who you are It's who you are It's who you are And I'm loved by you It's who you are It's who you are It's who you are It's who I am It's who I am You're a good, good father It's who you are It's who you are It's who you are It's who you are And I'm loved by you

[13:01] It's who I am It's who I am It's who I am You're a good, good father It's who you are It's who you are It's who you are It's who you are and I'm loved by you.

[13:19] It's who I am. It's who I am. It's who I am. It's who I am.

[14:15] It's who I am.

[14:45] It's who I am. It's who I am. It's who I am. In your name we pray. Amen. Thank you, Julie.

[15:03] I wonder if the gathering band knew I was preaching this morning. That is one of my absolutely favorite worship songs ever. Thank you, Julie.

[15:17] that you would keep them lifted up. And the first one, before I get into the personal ones, I want to remind you that our United Methodist Church special general conference is beginning this Saturday, and it'll go through Tuesday.

[15:31] These are delegates gathering from all over the world to make some decisions for the church that are going to impact the entire denomination, or they actually might do absolutely nothing and just leave things as they are.

[15:47] In any case, what we want is for God's will to be done in our church, amen? So if you would be willing to pray this week, and especially from Saturday through Tuesday, heading into next week, just be praying for all of those folks who will be there.

[16:05] There's a little yellow half-sheet paper. It's been around for about the last month. There are a few left on the back table. If you don't have it, it's information about what general conference is. And the delegates from our annual conference are listed on the back.

[16:20] So feel free, as the Lord leads, to pray for them and for the decisions and the deliberations that will be going on there. Cindy Smith is going to be having surgery this week, and we want to keep her lifted up in our prayers.

[16:34] As you heard from Julie, Karen Krasinski is home. Went home the same day with a hip replacement. I was in the hospital like three days, and then I went to rehab when I had my hip done. God bless her. God bless her.

[16:44] God was with her. Bob Dimig is also home and hanging in there. We want to keep them in our prayers for continued healing. And I don't know if everyone has heard, but Bill Edmister had emergency open heart surgery on Friday.

[16:59] He is at Buffalo General. He's doing very well. The surgery went great. He's doing fine. Jean is hanging in there, so let's keep them both in our prayers and all of their family, of course, as he recovers.

[17:12] And we want to remember the Meland family, Gidget and Will, the just sudden and sorry death of Jenna.

[17:23] The flowers that you see are in her memory. The service was Friday, I believe, and we want to keep that family in our prayers and all of Jenna's friends as well as they're missing her.

[17:34] And I found out this morning that we want to keep the Jesse family, Rick and Kelly and Eric and all of their relatives also in our prayers. Kelly's mother passed away just yesterday, I think.

[17:48] Yes, yesterday. So we want to keep that family in our prayers as well. What concerns do you have this morning that we should bring up before the Lord? Carol. Carol. Carol. Carol. Carol. Carol.

[18:04] Carol. Carol. Carol. Amber. Carol. Ah. Carol. Carol. Oh, okay. For Bill and Bonnie who are transitioning into assisted living and are having all kinds of health issues and problems that are making it difficult to get that settled.

[18:24] Any others this morning? Yes, go ahead. Cousin having a double mastectomy, we will lift her up in prayer.

[18:34] Thank you so much. Yes. Yes. That's a wonderful thing.

[18:54] We have, amen, amen. So this is a week from Tuesday that you're heading out, a week from Tuesday. Yeah, the Wheelings who have been such a blessing to this church, the boys and Jennifer has been involved in like everything.

[19:08] She just dove in with both feet from the moment she got here. That family is going to be together again with Chad where his new job is. But it's hard. It's hard, guys, isn't it? Yeah.

[19:19] Well, we're going to keep you all in our prayers. We're going to keep you lifted up. We love you and we're sorry to see you go, but glad you all are going to be together again. And no, we know that God is going to use you to bless people where you're going to be.

[19:32] So God bless you. God bless you and thank you for your service in the church. Any others this morning? Well, I know that there are concerns on our hearts as well that we haven't voiced, but God knows what we need before we even ask.

[19:47] He hears and answers our prayers. Yes, Mark? Yes. Ah, okay.

[19:58] Thank you for Joy, who's had shoulder surgery, and her son, who's missing. How old is he? Yeah, but he's just not anywhere.

[20:11] Okay, well, thank you. Thank you. We will pray for him. We will pray for him that he be found. Any others this morning? Let's turn to the Lord in prayer. Amen. Lord God, we know that you have heard everything that we've spoken and that you know what is in our hearts.

[20:38] We thank you that we can come before you and pray, Lord God. We thank you that you hold each and every one of us in the palm of your hand and love us with an everlasting love.

[20:51] So we know that all of those we are lifting up are in your care. But we pray for them that you would bring them healing.

[21:04] We pray for them that you would give them peace. We pray for them that all who are lost would be found.

[21:17] We lift up, Lord God. Lord God, this general conference that's going to be happening. We just pray for each and every delegate, Lord God, who is going to be deliberating, who is going to be voting, who is going to be deciding.

[21:32] We pray in Jesus' name that all personal biases be set aside and that each and every one diligently and with pure heart seeks your will for what you would have to be the results of this special conference.

[21:52] We pray for the bishops as they preside and ask in Jesus' name that you would give them wise voices in leading.

[22:06] Thank you, Lord. Our church, you have given us such blessings in and through this church. We just ask in Jesus' name that you would continue to bless it, that you would continue to work in and through it for the blessing of the people of this world.

[22:26] We pray, Lord God, for all of those now in our hearts and those we have mentioned who are recovering from surgeries, who are home, who are in need of more healing.

[22:38] We just ask that you would touch them with your healing power, give patience to their caregivers. Just let your love be shed abroad everywhere where healing, a healing touch is needed.

[22:55] We pray for those who are going into surgeries that they would be guarded by your spirit, that they would have the blood of Jesus covering them and protecting them from all harm.

[23:06] We pray in Jesus' name for those who are grieving losses. We just ask, Lord God, for your peace and your comfort to surround each and every one for those who have lost loved ones and are missing them because they've left this world and for those who are in a place where their loved ones just don't know where they are.

[23:43] In any of the ways, Lord God, that loss can manifest, we just pray for comfort in Jesus' name and we pray for protection. Father, we pray for protection.

[23:58] Father, we pray in Jesus' name for those who need a place to be, whether it's employment or a home, whether it's a place where they can receive the medical and living care that they need.

[24:20] We just ask in Jesus' name that you would provide. You are Jehovah Rapha, the Lord our healer.

[24:31] You are the God who provides. You are the God who saves. Be with each and every one in our hearts, Lord God, and be with us.

[24:44] Transform us into the people you need us to be, the people you have called us to be. Lord, we pray as we continue in our worship that the songs we sing, the prayers we pray, the word we hear spoken would be a blessing to you and to us.

[25:08] We pray that our worship would be pleasing in your sight. In Jesus' name, amen. Shall we hear from the word of the Lord?

[25:20] Amen. Good morning.

[25:46] Good morning.

[26:16] When the wine was gone, Jesus' mother said to him, They have no more wine. Dear woman, why do you involve me? Jesus replied, My time has not yet come. His mother said to the servants, Do whatever he tells you.

[26:31] Nearby stood six stone water jars, the kind used by the Jews for ceremonial washing, each holding from 20 to 30 gallons. Jesus said to the servants, Fill the jars with water.

[26:46] So they filled them to the brim. Then he told them, Now draw some out and take it to the master of the banquet. They did so. And the master of the banquet tasted the water that had been turned into wine.

[26:59] He did not realize where it had come from, though the servants who had drawn the water knew. Then he called the bridegroom aside and said, Everyone brings out the choice wine first, and then the cheaper wine, after the guests have had too much to drink.

[27:19] But you have saved the best till now. This, the first of his miraculous signs, Jesus performed in Cana of Galilee. He thus revealed his glory, and his disciples put their faith in him.

[27:32] This is the word of our Lord. Thanks be to God. Thank you, Amy. Good morning, church.

[27:44] Are you ready to celebrate? Are you ready for about... Are you ready to celebrate? Yes. Oh, good. I'm so glad. Are you also ready for about the shortest sermon you've ever heard in this sanctuary?

[27:59] Yes. Okay. Here's why. Here's why. Not because longer sermons are a bad thing. They are not. They're a good thing, because we need to hear the word of the Lord. We need to hear what it means, right?

[28:11] But today, today we're going to a wedding. Today we're at a celebration that is an amazing thing, and we all get to participate in it. We are going to a time, a wedding, that is a time of a great joy and a great celebration.

[28:27] Weddings are celebrations of love and commitment, the commitment to spend the rest of your life together. In good times and in bad, in sickness and in health, we promise to love and to cherish until death.

[28:43] At a wedding. Weddings can be simple ceremonies with just a few family and friends, or they can be the most elaborate, most expensive events of our lives, running into tens and even hundreds of thousands of dollars before that final toast is made.

[29:02] Today's American weddings often go on for days between the parties before and the wedding ceremony itself and all the parties afterward. Weddings in Jesus' day were kind of similar in that way.

[29:16] They went on for days and days too, with music and dancing and singing, eating and drinking and sharing laughter and love. Even for people, in very small towns like Cana, weddings were celebrations that the whole community was involved in.

[29:36] They were celebrations of love and commitment for everyone in the town. And families and friends came from all over to enjoy the hospitality of the bride and groom.

[29:50] Cana was very near to Nazareth, where Jesus grew up, where Jesus had lived most of his life. He was part of the community that was celebrating the wedding story that Amy read for us today.

[30:06] So, as part of that community, he was invited and he showed up. What happens when Jesus shows up? Today's sermon is continuing our series about the life of Jesus and what the events recorded here in John's Gospel tell us about him.

[30:29] What Jesus does at this wedding says something very, very important about who he is and about our relationship to him as disciples.

[30:41] In Jewish culture, hospitality was always a sacred duty. Especially, though. Especially at a wedding.

[30:53] The bride and groom would have been humiliated if the provisions for their guests had run out. Wine was a symbol of life.

[31:04] It was necessary to that celebration as it was necessary and still is today to so many celebrations of the Jewish faith.

[31:15] The rabbis taught that without wine, there is no joy. The Old Testament uses the symbolism of an abundance of wine to mean the arrival of a new time with God.

[31:31] A time of forgiveness of sin and restoration to a right relationship with God. Abundant wine meant the fulfillment of God's promise to the restoration of Israel.

[31:49] At a wedding, it symbolized the joy of marriage, the joy of family, and a community that held God at its center.

[32:03] So the fact that the hosts of this wedding had run out of wine in the middle of the celebration was a big, big problem. And it was a problem that the mere human beings present at the wedding couldn't solve.

[32:22] When Jesus arrived, his mother told him about the problem. She didn't tell him what to do about it. She simply trusted that whatever he did would be right and good.

[32:35] Mary knew who Jesus was, even if she didn't completely understand what that all meant. I think Jesus used the word woman when he addressed her instead of mother as an indication that in order to accomplish what he needed to do, he would not be allowing Jesus Mary's son to be acting.

[33:07] But he would have to allow Jesus, the son of God, to be acting. Because what needed to happen was beyond what a mere human person could do.

[33:21] Jesus was asserting for the first time who he needed to be as God apart from his mother. And maybe he was looking forward to another time later on in the story when he would address his mother as woman from a cross as he gave her over to the care of his disciple John.

[33:53] Still, even in the midst of this, Jesus used familiar things that God had taught the people would prepare them to be in God's presence. He used the Jewish ceremonial jars that were at the house where the feast was being held.

[34:10] They were very large stone jars. Now this is a nice representation of the kind of a jar, but this one, if I look at it, it's probably about maybe four gallons, four, maybe five.

[34:22] I think Amy read that the stone jars we were talking about were 20 to 30 gallons. Considerably larger, but you get the idea.

[34:35] These very large stone jars were kept for only one purpose. They held the water that people used for ceremonial washing so that they would be temporarily pure and able to be in God's presence when they ate.

[34:52] This ritual washing of the hands was a way of maintaining devotion to God, but it had to be done over and over and over and over.

[35:07] Table fellowship, the family around the table in the home, had taken place of the ritual animal sacrifice in the day-to-day life of many Jews of Jesus' day because when they had been exiled into Assyria and into Babylon, they couldn't get anywhere near the Jerusalem temple and it had been destroyed.

[35:32] They had to figure out ways to be devout, ways to worship God. The ways devout Jews celebrate the Sabbath supper today comes from this shift of worship away from the central temple in Jerusalem to the homes of individual families where God's presence was welcomed after the family had washed, the candles were lit, the prayers were spoken, and the bread and wine shared.

[36:03] Jesus told the servants to fill the enormous clean jars to the brim with water and then, we don't know exactly at what point it happened, but then, there was abundance of the best wine they had ever enjoyed.

[36:26] Jesus began a new thing in the midst of old traditions. He didn't get rid of the tradition, he expanded its meaning. The cleansing water in the jars that made the people clean for that family fellowship became the best wine.

[36:46] Jesus also used wine at another celebration that we'll read about another week in this series where the wine represented the blood he was about to shed for the forgiveness of sins for the whole world.

[37:05] Because Jesus changed the water into wine, the bride and groom were saved from humiliation in their community. because of the shedding of Jesus' blood which we remember with wine, all people may be saved, forgiven of sin.

[37:25] All this happens when Jesus shows up. The scripture tells us that this was the first of Jesus' miraculous signs.

[37:35] It was not yet time for Jesus to completely fulfill the prophecies through his death and resurrection, but it was a sign that gave the people who were paying attention a glimpse of Jesus' glory.

[37:53] Although they didn't completely understand, what Jesus did at that wedding was a miraculous sign that the hope of God's promise of salvation would be fulfilled.

[38:07] This wasn't just a nice thing Jesus did to please his mother or to keep the party going at that point in time. This was the Son of God revealing how the redemption of the whole creation was about to happen.

[38:24] This was Jesus showing up to do what the people couldn't do for themselves and ever since, Christians have celebrated what Jesus has done for us in his life, his death, and his resurrection.

[38:42] Because without God's grace breaking into our lives, we would still be stuck in our sin and separated from God because of it.

[38:56] Jesus changing the water into wine saved the couple being married from disgrace in their community. But this sign also points to another wedding to come far in the future that we haven't even seen yet when the holy city, the new Jerusalem, will come down from heaven prepared as a beautiful bride made ready for her husband so they may live together.

[39:25] As Revelation tells us, the voice from the throne of heaven will loudly proclaim, now the dwelling of God is with people and God will live with them.

[39:35] They will be God's people and God will be with them and be their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning, no more crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.

[39:57] I am making everything new. All God has done for us and all God promises to do, that's something to celebrate.

[40:10] Amen? The miracle of turning water into wine was something that only Jesus could do. But it wasn't only about that moment in time, in that place, for those people there.

[40:25] So often we think only about the here and now, about what we think would be good for us right now. We think of this existence here, this is it.

[40:38] But the miracles of God aren't about that. They point us to much greater things of God, things we can only begin to imagine for our lives here on earth as we look to the future beyond this time and place.

[40:57] Changing, cleansing water into amazing wine was the first miraculous sign that revealed Jesus' glory and it caused his disciples to put their faith in him what happens when Jesus shows up is that things happen that cause us to put our faith in him.

[41:27] Miracles that shatter the boundaries of this natural world. God breaks through the boundaries, breaks into the world, into where we live and breathe and shows us a glimpse of who he is and who we can become with God in us.

[41:46] Our salvation is possible because of what God has done. Like the people who ran out of wine at the wedding, we cannot help ourselves.

[41:58] So, like Jesus showed up and provided the wine, in Jesus, God provided the way for us to be saved.

[42:09] God's that's not not all it means. To the bride and groom at Cana, it meant they would not be ashamed in their community. When the new Jerusalem comes, the wedding will mean an eternally new creation, perfect and always together with God.

[42:26] But, what about now? How do present-day disciples of Jesus Christ fit into God's work of transforming water into wine to bring about salvation?

[42:40] Church, we carry Jesus. Because he lives in us, we carry Jesus in us wherever we go.

[42:53] We are the pure stone jars filled with water for cleansing that Jesus turns into wine. We are set free from our sin, delivered from humiliation and by God's grace, through the Holy Spirit, we are entrusted by God with the same trust Mary had in Jesus.

[43:17] That whatever we do will be good according to what God leads us to do. If it is God who is leading us by the Spirit, it will be good.

[43:31] Christ in us is the hope of God's glory fulfilled. Church, that is something to celebrate. That's why I said, are you ready to celebrate?

[43:44] Are you ready to celebrate that Christ is the bridegroom? That the church is his beautiful bride? This is a cause for great celebration. So, what do we do?

[43:55] We come here. We come here week after week to celebrate all that God has done, all that God is doing, and all that God will continue to do. We celebrate the eternal promise that you know so well.

[44:10] Christ has died. Christ is risen. Christ will come again. We celebrate that we carry the presence of the living God within us so that Jesus' glory can shine through us.

[44:26] God has set the church apart like good new wine. And the world looks to us to see what God will do in us, to see what will happen when Jesus shows up in us.

[44:46] We're in the process of being made into the best wine. And on the way, we need to allow Jesus to shine through. In a minute, we're going to take time to celebrate, and I hope we do celebrate loud and joyfully all God has done and all he continues to do through us.

[45:07] We're going to celebrate like we're enjoying the best wedding we've ever been to. But first, let's just take a moment in silent prayer.

[45:19] Let's reflect on what God is speaking to us today. Although God's work is complete in Christ, we don't always do everything as perfectly as God would have us do it.

[45:34] We are not always being perfect as Jesus is perfect. But we have hope and faith that God in us is continuing to change us like water into wine because of God's great love for us.

[45:50] so let's just pray silently now that God will show us where we have let Jesus shine through and where we need to ask God to change us.

[46:03] And if you've never asked God for forgiveness before, this is the time. Let's pray. now, as an act of love and gratefulness to God, we're going to sing.

[46:36] We're just going to sit there in our seats and sing that beautiful hymn, My Jesus, I love thee. Let's let it be a song that's a prayer. Tell God how much we love him and how much we need him.

[47:08] I invite you to stand if you're able.

[47:29] for thee, all the follies of sin I resign.

[47:47] My gracious Redeemer, my Savior art thou.

[47:59] live ever, I love thee, my Jesus, tis now.

[48:10] I love thee because thou hast first loved me and purchased my pot on Calvary's tree.

[48:28] my love thee, my love thee, my loving, my loving, the bones on thy brow.

[48:40] live ever, I love thee, my Jesus, tis now.

[48:50] in mansions of glory and endless delight.

[49:00] I'll ever adore thee in heaven so bright.

[49:10] I'll sing with a glittering crown on my brow.

[49:21] If ever I love thee, my sins of namely.

[49:34] Because of God's saving grace at work in us, before we ever knew that we couldn't save ourselves, we can see God's love and forgiveness. And so, because of that forgiveness, we can confidently say to one another, in the name of Jesus Christ, your sins are forgiven.

[49:53] In the name of Jesus Christ, your sins are forgiven. Glory to God. Amen. Now, let's be on our feet as we're able. Let us join in a celebration of who God is, how God loves us.

[50:07] We have come to worship God. So let's get to it. Let's be worshiping. Light of the world, you step down into darkness.

[50:33] Open my eyes and we see Beauty that made in his heart adore you Hope of all lives spent with you So here I am to worship Here I am to bow down Here I am to say that you're my God Altogether lovely Altogether worthy Altogether wonderful to me King of all days So highly exalted Glorious in heaven above

[51:34] Longingly you came to the earth You created All for the sake Became poor Here I am to worship Here I am to bow down Here I am to say that You're my God You're my God You're my God Altogether lovely Altogether worthy Altogether worthy Altogether wonderful to me And I'll never know I'll never know How much it cost To see my sin Upon that cross I'll never know I'll never know How much it cost To see my sin

[52:36] Upon that cross Here I am to worship Here I am to bow down Here I am to say that You're my God And you're my God Altogether lovely Altogether lovely Altogether worthy Altogether wonderful to me Here I am to worship Here I am to worship Here I am to worship Blessed be your name In the land that is plentiful

[53:37] While your streams of abundance flow Blessed be your name Blessed be your name When I'm found in a desert place While I walk through the wilderness Blessed be your name Every blessing you pour on us Turn back to praise When the darkness closes in Lord Still I will say Blessed be the name of the Lord Blessed be the name Blessed be your name Blessed be the name Of the Lord Blessed be your glorious name Blessed be your name Blessed be your name When the sun's shining down on me When the world's all as it should be

[54:40] Blessed be your name Blessed be your name On the road marked with suffering There's pain in the offering Blessed be your name Every blessing you pour out on Turn back to praise When the darkness goes with it, Lord Still I will say Blessed be the name of the Lord Blessed be your name Blessed be the name of the Lord Blessed be your glorious name Blessed be the name of the Lord Blessed be your name Blessed be the name of the Lord Blessed be your glorious name

[55:41] You give and take away You give and take away My heart will choose to say Blessed be Your name You give and take away You give and take away My heart will choose to say Blessed be Your name Blessed be the name of the Lord Blessed be Your name Blessed be the name of the Lord Blessed be Your word of faith

[56:42] Blessed be the name of the Lord Blessed be Your name Blessed be the name of the Lord Blessed be Your word of faith Thank you.

[57:28] This is my desire to honor you. Lord, with all my heart I worship you.

[57:47] All I have within me, I give you praise.

[57:59] All that I adore is in you. Lord, I give you my heart.

[58:14] I give you my soul. I live for you alone. Every breath that I take.

[58:25] Every moment I'm awake. Lord, have your way. Lord, I give you my heart.

[58:36] I give you my soul. I live for you alone. Every breath that I take.

[58:46] Every moment I'm awake. Lord, have your way in me. Lord, I give you my heart.

[58:57] I give you my soul. I live for you alone. I give you my soul. I give you my soul. Every breath that I take.

[59:08] Every moment I'm awake. Lord, have your way in me. Amen.

[59:33] We're forgiven. We're joined to Christ. We're going to the wedding. Amen? Amen. Amen. As forgiven, dearly beloved children of God who are called to love one another.

[59:46] Let's share the peace of Christ as we prepare our hearts to receive the sacrament. God's peace be with you. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Peace.

[59:58] Peace. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen.

[60:08] Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen.

[60:21] Amen. Amen. Amen.

[60:38] Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Thank you.

[61:09] Come and quench this thirsting of my soul. Bread of heaven, feed me till I want no more.

[61:25] Fill my cup, fill it up and make me whole. Fill my cup, Lord, I lift it up, Lord.

[61:41] Come and quench this thirsting of my soul. Bread of heaven, feed me till I want no more.

[61:57] Fill my cup, fill it up and make me whole. Amen.

[62:12] God has filled us up. He fills us up full of cleansing water and changes it to wine. He fills it to overflowing so that we can fill others and be that blessing.

[62:25] He calls us to his table to celebrate with him, to that table fellowship that he enjoyed with his disciples so many years ago.

[62:37] He enjoyed the table fellowship at the wedding at Cana and he enjoyed it with them even on that night before he gave himself up for us.

[62:48] Everyone is welcome at the table. If you love God, repent of your sin and seek to live in peace as a disciple of Jesus Christ, you are welcome at the table to share in that love, to share in God's transforming power, to meet with him.

[63:07] You're invited. You're invited. So come today. The Lord be with you. Lift up your hearts. Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.

[63:23] It is right and a good and joyful thing always and everywhere. To give thanks to you, Father Almighty, creator of heaven and earth. Before the mountains were brought forth or you had formed the earth, from everlasting to everlasting, you alone are God.

[63:40] You created light out of darkness and brought forth life on the earth. You formed us in your image and breathed into us the breath of life.

[63:51] When we turned away and our love failed, your love remained steadfast. You delivered us from captivity, made covenant to be our sovereign God and spoke to us through your prophets.

[64:03] And so with your people on earth and all the company of heaven, we praise your name and join their unending hymn. Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of power and might, heaven and earth are full of your glory.

[64:19] Hosanna in the highest. Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest. Holy are you and blessed is your son Jesus Christ, in whom you have revealed yourself, our light and our salvation.

[64:35] In his baptism and in table fellowship, he took his place with sinners. Your spirit anointed him to preach good news to the poor, to proclaim release to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, and to announce that the time had come when you would save your people.

[64:56] By the baptism of his suffering, death and resurrection, you gave birth to your church, delivered us from slavery to sin and death, and made with us a new covenant by water and the spirit.

[65:09] On the night in which he gave himself up for us, Jesus took bread and he gave thanks to you. He broke the bread and gave it to his disciples. He said, take and eat. This is my body, which is given for you.

[65:31] Do this in remembrance of me. And when the supper was over, he took the cup. Again, he gave you thanks and praise and gave it to his disciples.

[65:41] He said, drink from this, all of you. This is the cup of my blood. The blood of the new covenant poured out for you and for many for the forgiveness of sin. Do this as often as you drink it.

[65:59] In remembrance of me. And so in remembrance of these, your mighty acts in Jesus Christ, we offer ourselves in praise and thanksgiving as a holy and living sacrifice, in union with Christ's offering for us, as we proclaim the mystery of faith.

[66:18] Christ has died. Christ is risen. Christ will come again. Pour out your Holy Spirit on us gathered here. And on these gifts of bread and wine.

[66:29] Make them be for us, the body and blood of Christ. That we may be for the world, the body of Christ redeemed by his blood. By your spirit, make us one with Christ.

[66:40] One with each other and one in ministry to all the world. Until Christ comes in final victory. And we feast at his heavenly banquet. Through your son, Jesus Christ, with the Holy Spirit in your holy church.

[66:53] All honor and glory is yours, almighty God. Now and forever. Amen. And now as dearly beloved children of God. Let's pray the prayer Jesus taught us.

[67:07] Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.

[67:18] Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.

[67:32] For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever and ever. Amen. Will those who are serving please come forward. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen.

[67:43] Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen.

[68:23] Amen. Amen. Amen.

[68:57] Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen.

[69:11] Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen.

[69:22] Amen. Thank you. Thank you.

[70:22] Thank you.

[70:52] Thank you.

[71:22] Thank you.

[71:52] Thank you.

[72:22] Thank you.

[72:52] Thank you.

[73:22] Thank you.

[73:52] Thank you.

[74:22] Thank you.

[74:52] Thank you.

[75:22] Thank you.

[75:52] Thank you.

[76:22] Thank you.

[76:52] Thank you.

[77:22] Amen. Amen.

[77:52] You know, I wanted you to notice that all the way through the worship service today, every single song we sang was us singing to God, not about God.

[78:03] A lot of songs sing about God and they teach us about God. John Wesley, John Wesley, John Wesley, John Wesley, John Wesley, and we're going to sing to God, and we're going to sing to God.

[78:13] And that's a wonderful thing, and we need to sing those songs, but sometimes, sometimes, I just want to sing to my God, amen? Amen. I just want to sing to him. I just want to sing, because here's why.

[78:24] It's a wedding, right? Can you imagine, there's Romney over there. We love Romney. Can you ever say hi, Romney? Can you imagine Romney and I sitting on the couch, having a conversation, and me saying to Romney, Romney got up this morning, and Romney went to work.

[78:44] And Romney did his work, and he did it really, really well. And it was such a blessing to the people who were all there. And then Romney came home. Can you imagine that? What kind of a conversation is that to have with someone you love?

[78:59] Talking about God is a wonderful thing. We talk about God to all the people we meet so that they will come to know him too, so that we can call them to him and introduce them to him.

[79:12] But then, then, we need to talk to God too. We need to worship God. We need to say thank you for going to work and bringing home a nice check so that I can make food.

[79:24] Thank you so much for all of the blessings that you are to me in my life. Thank you so much for being with me every day, day in and day out, for going on 36 years, right?

[79:36] Yeah. It's an amazing and wonderful thing when we can remember that we talk to God, and that if we wait, if I just shut up long enough, he will say something to me.

[79:48] It's an amazing thing. Let's remember that relationship we have with God, it is the closest wedded relationship anyone can have with anybody.

[80:01] So let's go forth with God in our hearts. Let's be the ones who show up so that Jesus in us shows up wherever we go. And let's shine that light wherever it is that God leads us.

[80:14]  Amen? Amen. Amen. Go in his peace and be a blessing. Amen.