Virginia citizen. (Irvington, Va.) 1891-1921, 1900-07-06
JOY Ar THE WEDDING
THE MIRACLE OF CANA REV. Or. TAT
MAGE'S THERE.

MAGE'S THERE.
Lesson OF Changing the Water Into
Wine - Christ Teaches That We
should Not Shadow Joys OF Others
with Our own Griefs.
WASHINGTON. July IA remarkable
illustration of the ubiquity of English
speaking people is furnished by the re,
quests that have reached Dr. TaImage
In northern Europe for n sermon in out
of the way places where he did not ex-
pect TO. find single person who could
understand him. There. as here, he
presents religion as a festivity and liz
vites all the world to come as guests
and join in its holy merriment: text.
John II. 10. Thou hast kept the good
wine until now
This chapter invites us TO a marriage
celebration. 1t is wedding in com
mon life. two plain people having
pledged each other. hand and heart.
and their friends having come i'm for
congratulation. The JOY is net the less
because there is no pretension. In each
other they find all the future they
want The daisy in the cup on the tn.
bic may mean as much as score Of
artistic garlands fresh from the hot
house. When daughter goes off from
home with nothing but a plain fathers
blessing and plain mothers love. she
is missed rs much as though she were
n princess. 1t seems hard. after the
parents have sheltered her for is years,
that In n few short months her affec-
tons should have been carried off by
another, but mother remembers how il
was in her own case when she was
young. and so she braces up until the
wedding has passed and the banquet
ers are gone. and she has a cry all
alone.
Well, we are today at the wedding in
Cana of Galilce. Jesus and his mother
have been invited. 1t is evident that
there are more people there than were
expected. Either some people have
come who were not invited or more in
vitationS have been sent out than it
was supposed would be accepted. OF
course there is not 4 sufficient supply
of wine. You know that there is moth
ing more embarrassing to n housekeep-
er than scant supply. Jesus sees the
embarrassment. and lie comes up i'm
mediately to relieve it. He sees stand
ing six water pots. He orders the
servants to fill them with water; then
he waves his hand over the water, and
Immediately il is wine-real wine
Taste of it and see for yourselves; no
loCvood in it, no strychnine in it, but
first rate wine. 1 will not now be di-
cd in my own country whether it is
right TO drink wine. I am describing
the scene as IT was. When God makes
wine, he makes the very best wine,
and 100 gallons of it standing around
in these water pots-wine SO good that
the ruler OF the feast tastes ii and
says: why. this is really better than
anything we have hadl Thou hast
kept the good wine until now" Beau
tiful miraclci y prize was offered TO
the person who should write the best
essay about the miracle in Cana. Long
manuscripts were presented in the
competition. but a poet won the prize
by just this one line descriptive of the
miracle: "Thc conscious water saw its
God and blushcd."
The Fest Adviser.
We learn from this miracle. in the
first place. that Christ has sympathy
with housekcepers. You might have
thought that Jesus would have said:
Il cannot be bothered with this house
hold deficiency Of wine. IL is not for
me. Lord Of heaven and of earth, TO be-
come caterer TO this feast. have vast
or things than this TO attend to-" Not
so said Jesus. The wine gave out. and
Jesus. by miraculous power, came to
the rescue Docs there ever come a
scant supply in your household? Have
you TO make 4 very close calculation?
Is II hard work for you TO carry on
things dcccntly and respectfully? II
so. don't sit down ard cry. Don't go
out and fret. but go to him who stood
In the house in Cana CT Galilec. Pray
In tie parlor, Pray in the kitcheni
Let there be no room In all your house
unconsecrated by the voice OF prayer.
III you have microscope put under II
one drop OF water and see the insects
floating about. and when you see that
God makes them and cares for them
and feeds them come TO the conclusion
that he will take care OF you and feed
you.
n boy asked II he might sweep the
snow from the steps OF n house. The
lady OF the household said. YES; you
seem very poor" He SAYS, II am very
poor She says. Don't you some
times get discouraged and feel that
God Is going TO let You starve?" The
lad looked up in the woman's face and
said. do you think Gcd will let me
starve when / trust him and then do
the best l camp Enough theology
Tor older people. Trust in God and do
the best you can. Amid all the worri.
ments OF housekeeping go 10 him. He
VIII help you control your temper and
supervise your domestics and entertain
your guests and manage your home
economies. There are hundreds OF wo-
men weak and nervous and exhausted
with the care OF housekeeping. | COM
mend You 10 the Lord Jesus Christ as
the best adviser and the most efficient
aid-the Lord Jesus who performed
MS hrst miracle TO relieve a house
keeper
learn also from this miracle that
Christ docs things in abundance. l
thlhk q small supply OF wine would
nave made mp for the deficiency.
think certainly they must have had
enough for half the guests One gal
Ion OF wine viii do; certainly FIVE gal
Ions Will be- enough; certainly ten. But
Jesus gees ON. and lie gives them 30
gallons a"a 90 gallons and 80 gallons
and 40 gallons and loo gallons and $50
gallons or ;he very best wine. 1t Is
lust like him doiry everything on the
largest and most generous scale. Does
christ, our Creator. go forth to make
leaves! He makes them by the whole
forest fuli-notched like the fern or sill
Vered like the aspen or broad like the
palm, thickets in the tropics, Oregon
forests Does he go forth to make
flowers? He makes plenty of them.
They flame from the hedge, they hang