OCTOBER 15th, 2023 PASTOR DON PIEPER
ONE AT A TIME Luke 5:27-32 / John 2:1-12
“A PARTY WITH A PURPOSE”
As followers of Jesus, we seek to not only learn from him, but to be like him, to be on the same page with Jesus, sharing his heart for those around us. And if there's one thing that the Scriptures repeatedly reveal about God........., it's that He loves to party with His people!
That's probably not what you thought I was going to say there, was it? It doesn't sound very reverent! It reminds me of a scene from the play, Greater Tuna, in which Vera Carp takes her young, mischievous son with her to the funeral home. As she leaves him in the entreway, she warns him...: “Be reverent”! A couple minutes later he knocks something over with a loud crash, and she yells at him, “Virgil, I swear, I'm going to knock you into next week!”
It's what you could call ironic humor, seeing as Vera wasn't very reverent herself!
The idea that God loves a good party, may sound irreverent to our ears, but it is, nonetheless, absolutely true. The Old Testament lifts up one festival, or party, after another as what God was calling his people to do. Every year they were to gather together with family and friends and celebrate the Festival of Trumpets, the Feast of Unleavened Bread, (or Passover), the Feast of Weeks, and the Feast of Booths. It seems like God's people were always having a party!
In Old Testament times, feasts and festivals were occasions of great joy and featured singing new songs played on an assortment of musical instruments, with dancing and elaborate meals. God's people were to come together to celebrate what God had done and had promised yet to do. God made it clear that he wanted his people to practice gratitude and live in joyful expectancy – to party!
In the New Testament, Jesus upholds these celebrations, looking for any and every excuse to gather with others to party with a purpose. So much so, in fact, that it led to accusations that his adversaries made against him: “He is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of sinners and tax collectors!” (Matthew 11:19)
Now why do you think they'd say that, if Jesus wasn't known for being the life of the party?
People wonder about what God's will might be for this or that. At some point, the apostle Paul was apparently asked such a question, to which he wrote: “Always be joyful. Never stop praying. Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you who belong to Christ Jesus.”
(1 Thessalonians 5:16-18)
Here we're told that God's will for us includes our being joyful – always. In just over two months Christians will gather in churches all over the world. and the very same text will be read, a pronouncement of God's will and purpose in sending Jesus to us, heard from the lips of angels: “Don't be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people!” (Luke 2:10)
Jesus came to bring great joy. He came to launch a celebration. As he said, “I've told you these things so that you will be filled with my joy – so that your joy will absolutely overflow!” (John 15:11)
It's no coincidence that Christians have observed the birth of Jesus with all manner of festivities, with feasts and decorations, lights and music! God's will it turns out, the Good News of Jesus, is all about experiencing and sharing his joy. How sad that our reputation is lacking in this area. As one observer noted: “Christianity is the haunting fear that someone, somewhere, is having a good time.”
-2-
That's not good. How sad, if that's how we're coming across! It reminds me of a scene from My Big Fat Greek Wedding. Ian is being introduced to Tula's Greek family, starting with Aunt Voula.
“Why don’t you come to my house and I cook for you,” Voula says after manhandling his hair. It would seem the party being thrown for them isn't enough. She wants to host one of her own, but Toula is concerned. “That may be a problem,” she answers on Ian's behalf.
“Why it a problem? Don't you tell him I'm the best cook in the family?”
“Oh, I did. Twice, but Ian is a vegetarian. He doesn't eat meat.”
Voula is taken back. “He don't eat no meat? WHAT DO YOU MEAN, HE DON'T EAT NO MEAT?!” Her loud family standing nearby goes silent. “Oh, that's ok; that's ok. I make lamb.”
Nothing against being vegetarian but sometimes we're better known for what we're against than for the joy of the Lord. At one point, Ian's parents are invited over to meet her parents. When they arrive they're met with a raucous party, with lamb being cooked in a pit in the front yard. Ian's mom shyly presents Tulla's mom with a bunt cake. Tula's mom is confused. “What is it?”
“It's a bunt?”
“A butt?”
“A bunt!”
“It's burnt? It's– a b-boont?” Finally, her sister explains, “It's a cake!”
“Oh, it's a cake; I know!” And then whispering as she walks away, 'This cake has a hole in it!'
Some times our joy has a hole in it and as a result those looking from the outside in draw false conclusions about Jesus and what it means to trust in him, to follow him. Not only does a joyless faith misrepresent Jesus and the will of God but it is also utterly unattractive to those seeking to know God.
Jesus' joy must'be been quite the draw. It speaks volumes that people wanted him at their parties. We've seen already how Simon the Pharisee invited Jesus to his. Now we read this morning about two others. John tells us that “Jesus and his disciples were also invited to the celebration.” (John 2:2)
Think about how amazing that is. How many people today, when coming up with their invitation list, would say to each other, “Now let's see. We want to have fun so who's the most religious person we know? Say, let's invite that dude who claims to be God's son! I bet he's a fun guy!”
Who does that? I attended a wedding reception once of a couple whose service I officiated at. As I was getting ready to leave, I overheard someone say, “Look! The preacher is leaving. Now the party can really get started.” I was seen as a party pooper. Such is most people's impression of the religious guy in the room and yet Jesus' reputation somehow made him a popular party guest.
Not only that, but Jesus was prone to accept such invitations. Personally, I find that surprising. Wedding parties back then were weeklong events. Imagine his itinerary assistant's reaction: “Teacher, there's so little time and so much to do. You need to get your sermon written, there's a multitude of hungry mouths to be fed, and your entourage are in desperate need of training! Frankly, some of them seem pretty clueless... There's just so little time – so going to a weeklong party is a no can do!”
But for Jesus, it was a must do! He made time for people, one party at a time! In Cana, his mother informs him they've run out of wine. Doesn't sound so big, but back then it was a disaster. At that time, wine was a symbol of joy. “God made wine to bring joy to the human heart.”
(Psalm 104:15)
-3-
So it is that Jesus intervenes. His heart goes out to the family of the bride who would've been deeply ashamed. The implications were obvious – a joyless wedding means a joyless marriage. His mother's words to the staff are timeless: “Do whatever he tells you!” (John 2:5) Wise words, yes?
The result was Jesus' first miracle. It was foretold that the Christ child would bring great joy to all the people and so fittingly Jesus' ministry began with his seeking to bring joy to the bride & family.
Later we see that Jesus' followers were not just to attend parties, they were to throw parties. In Luke 5, Jesus is walking along when he “saw a tax collector by the name of Levi sitting at his tax booth. 'Follow me,' Jesus said to him, and Levi got up, left everything and followed him.”
(Luke 5:27-28)
As we heard last week in the story of Zacchaeus, tax collectors were hated for being the traitors and thieves that they were. The religious leaders wouldn't let them enter the temple as a result, but Jesus sees something in Levi that they don't, and invites him to join his Kingdom building ministry.
The first thing Levi does is he leaves everything behind to do so. That is, he makes following Jesus his number one priority. And what's the second thing he does? What does he do to show that he gets what Jesus is all about? Luke doesn't leave us wondering: “Later Levi held a great banquet in his home with Jesus as his guest of honor. Many of Levi's friends and fellow tax collectors, as well as many other guests, also came and ate with them.” (Luke 5:29)
In short, he throws a huge mixer party. He invited Jesus and his friends to mix with Levi and his friends so that those who were disconnected could get a close-up picture of who Jesus really is. When the religious leaders protest that Jesus is once again eating and partying with blatant sinners, Jesus responds with yet another mission statement. “Healthy people don't need a doctor – sick people do! I have come to call, not those who think they're righteous, but those who know they are sinners!”
(Luke 5:31-2)
“This is why I'm here!” he's saying. “That's why my followers throw parties, and why I keep showing up at them and why these parties are filled with people who don’t feel particularly religious!”
What if you were to throw such a party this Fall or Winter? Find a non-religious reason to do so. Maybe a Halloween costume party, or a Seahawks Party, or a Christmas party! How can you help your unchurched neighbors and friends, family and colleagues, connect with your friends here? My guess is you probably don't want to invite a party pooper, but how about a party Pieper?
Jesus repeatedly compared God's kingdom to a party and, in a famous trilogy of parables, taught that when someone turns to God, a huge party breaks out in heaven. (Luke 15:7, 10) I love that! It reminds me of Don Piper's experience that he shares in his best seller, 90 Minutes In Heaven...
“A Light enveloped me with a brilliance beyond earthly comprehension or description. Joy pulsated through me as I looked around and found myself surrounded by a large crowd of people. I knew all of them and each had died during my lifetime. They enthusiastically rushed to my side.
Everyone was smiling and welcoming me. Some hugged me and a few kissed my cheek, while others pumped my hand. Never had I felt more loved. My childhood friend, Mike Wood, put his arm around me. Mike was 19 when he'd been killed in a car wreck. It was Mike who invited me to Sunday School and was influential in my becoming a Christian. My pain and grief vanished in his presence.”
-4-
“The joy of that place wiped away all questions. Person after person told me how excited they were to see me and to welcome me to heaven and to the fellowship they enjoyed there.” (from Don Piper's 90 Minutes In Heaven)
No wonder Jesus' followers were so quick to throw mixer parties. It furthered Jesus' Kingdom of Heaven ministry, helping others connect here so that one day, in the Kingdom yet to come, we can be welcomed there, and reconnect with those who invited us or who we invited. Ask yourself this: How can I follow Levi's lead, who “held a party in his home with Jesus as the guest of honor”?
(Luke 5:29)