September 25, 2023

John 2:1-12 (HCSB)
The First Sign: Turning Water into Wine
2 On the third day a wedding took place in Cana of Galilee. Jesus’ mother was there, and 2 Jesus and His disciples were invited to the wedding as well. 3 When the wine ran out, Jesus’ mother told Him, “They don’t have any wine.” 4 “What has this concern of yours to do with Me, woman?” Jesus asked. “My hour has not yet come.” 5 “Do whatever He tells you,” His mother told the servants. 6 Now six stone water jars had been set there for Jewish purification.Each contained 20 or 30 gallons. 7 “Fill the jars with water,” Jesus told them. So they filled them to the brim. 8 Then He said to them, “Now draw some out and take it to the chief servant.” And they did. 9 When the chief servant tasted the water (after it had become wine), he did not know where it came from—though the servants who had drawn the water knew. He called the groom 10 and told him, “Everyone sets out the fine wine first, then, after people have drunk freely, the inferior. But you have kept the fine wine until now.” 11 Jesus performed this first sign in Cana of Galilee. He displayed His glory, and His disciples believed in Him. 12 After this, He went down to Capernaum, together with His mother, His brothers, and His disciples, and they stayed there only a few days.

Kim Ivey
Spoiler alert: This week we’re looking at miracles and we’re going to see what these miracles tell us about Jesus. Today’s passage is the recounting of Jesus’ first public miracle. He turned water into wine. This seems like an odd choice for a first miracle, doesn’t it? Let’s look closely at what’s going on here. Jesus’s family has been invited to a wedding. When you or I go to a wedding, we know that we’ll be there for an afternoon or evening.  In His time, the wedding celebration lasted an entire week! Can you imagine? It was a real event, and the families hosting the wedding were responsible for providing for all the guests that had come to celebrate the happy couple - for a whole week! To run out of something showed a lack of respect for the wedding guests and brought disgrace upon the married couple and their families - and wine was running out. Mary was certainly concerned. Maybe this was a family member getting married, we don’t know. What we do know is that Mary wanted to avoid disgrace for the wedding couple and she knew that Jesus could help. Jesus wasn’t worried, but He was sensitive to the needs of His loved one. There is one more thing to consider. Prior to this wedding, Jesus had begun selecting His disciples and the Bible tells us that they were there with Him at the wedding. That means that they were able to witness this miracle of changing the molecular composition of water into premium quality wine with not even a word. They witnessed His humility of meeting a need without drawing attention to what He’d done. What an introduction to all that they would experience walking with Christ! Recap-Jesus saw a need that He had the means to meet and He did so in a quiet, almost anonymous way. He did not require recognition for His action. Also, Jesus performed a scientifically impossible task without lifting a finger, effectively encouraging His new recruits with the assurance that He is indeed the Messiah.