Only the good die young (Really?)

Only The Good Die Young.  Maybe you heard that.  It was playing in my car yesterday.
In case you don't remember or never heard of it, I'm talking about the song by Billy Joel.
Complete lyrics are available at http://www.sing365.com/music/lyric.nsf/Only-The-Good-Die-Young-lyrics-Billy-Joel/956D520953E906A248256870001B64DD.  Sorry - the link is no longer secure, so I' disabled it.

Actually, it wasn't really yesterday.  It was almost five years ago - March 31, 2012.  I'm moving to a new site, and doing updates as part of the process.  I'll put the new stuff in text like this, so you can tell what's new.

Here's the line that caught my attention yesterday -

I'd rather laugh with the sinners than cry with the saints
the sinners are much more fun

I have to say, that's probably a pretty common feeling -
that the saints cry -
the sinners have more fun -
and the good (the saints) die young.

I mean - look at Jesus.
He died in His thirties.
And He didn't have any fun -
no one wanted to be near Him, right?

Oh - but wait

Wasn't there something about water and wine?

Jesus Changes Water to Wine

Jn 2:1 On the third day a wedding took place at Cana in Galilee. Jesus’ mother was there, 2 and Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding. 3 When the wine was gone, Jesus’ mother said to him, “They have no more wine.”
Jn 2:4 “Dear woman, why do you involve me?” Jesus replied. “My time has not yet come.”
Jn 2:5 His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.”
Jn 2:6 Nearby stood six stone water jars, the kind used by the Jews for ceremonial washing, each holding from twenty to thirty gallons.
Jn 2:7 Jesus said to the servants, “Fill the jars with water”; so they filled them to the brim.
Jn 2:8 Then he told them, “Now draw some out and take it to the master of the banquet.”
They did so, 9 and the master of the banquet tasted the water that had been turned into wine. He did not realize where it had come from, though the servants who had drawn the water knew. Then he called the bridegroom aside 10 and said, “Everyone brings out the choice wine first and then the cheaper wine after the guests have had too much to drink; but you have saved the best till now.”
Jn 2:11 This, the first of his miraculous signs, Jesus performed at Cana in Galilee. He thus revealed his glory, and his disciples put their faith in him.

Huh - that doesn't sound too boring - sounds like fun, no?

Jesus performs His first miracle, and it's to make really good wine for a wedding banquet.

Well - maybe that was just a one time thing.
Was there anything else?
What about the part that no one wanted to be with Him -
especially not the fun people - the sinners?

The Calling of Matthew

Mt 9:9 As Jesus went on from there, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax collector’s booth. “Follow me,” he told him, and Matthew got up and followed him.
Mt 9:10 While Jesus was having dinner at Matthew’s house, many tax collectors and “sinners” came and ate with him and his disciples. 11 When the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and ‘sinners’?”
Mt 9:12 On hearing this, Jesus said, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. 13 But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’ For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”

Oops -
those fun loving sinners were eating with Jesus so much that the Jewish leaders were getting upset.

There's a few more lines from the song to bring in now -

You got a nice white dress and a party on your confirmation
You got a brand new soul
mmmm, And a cross of gold
But Virginia they didn't give you quite enough information
You didn't count on me
When you were counting on your rosary

Interesting -

they didn't give you quite enough information

Well - if there's a lack of information - it would seem to be on the part of the people who think that saints don't have fun - that fun's something had only by the sinners.

Whatever it was that Jesus had - these "sinners" wanted it more than the fun they were having up to that point.

How's that for quite enough information

Oh yeah -
and then there's the dying part -

you know that only the good die young
that's what i said
i tell ya
only the good die young