John 2:1-11 Water Turned to Wine
“On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. Now both Jesus and His disciples were invited to the wedding. And when they ran out of wine, the mother of Jesus said to Him, “They have no wine.”
Jesus said to her, “Woman, what does your concern have to do with Me? My hour has not yet come.”
His mother said to the servants, “Whatever He says to you, do it.”
Now there were set there six waterpots of stone, according to the manner of purification of the Jews, containing twenty or thirty gallons apiece. Jesus said to them, “Fill the waterpots with water.” And they filled them up to the brim. And He said to them, “Draw some out now, and take it to the master of the feast.” And they took it. When the master of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and did not know where it came from (but the servants who had drawn the water knew), the master of the feast called the bridegroom. And he said to him, “Every man at the beginning sets out the good wine, and when the guests have well drunk, then the inferior. You have kept the good wine until now!”
This beginning of signs Jesus did in Cana of Galilee, and manifested His glory; and His disciples believed in Him.”
In Jesus’ day, few things were more embarrassing at a wedding than running out of wine. Generally, the bridegroom would bring out the best wine first and later the wine of lesser quality, once the guests’ palates had been dulled by alcohol; however, there always had to be sufficient wine to last for the entire wedding feast.
We don’t know anything about the couple being married-were they Jesus’ friends or relatives? We only know that the bridegroom was about to face supreme embarrassment. In a village setting, failing to provide sufficient wine might lead to an undeserved life-long reputation as a miser. The bridegroom’s family would also suffer extreme embarrassment and shame. Realizing all these things, Mary quietly informed Jesus of the problem. What did Mary expect? Up to that point, Jesus had never done any miracles. But Mary knew who Jesus was and she believed that Jesus could and would help alleviate this situation.
Jesus’ response to Mary’s request is interesting: “Woman, what does your concern have to do with Me? My hour has not yet come.” Jesus knew that eventually he would work miracles; yet, he didn’t expect to begin so soon. But when Mary instructed the servants to take orders from Jesus, Jesus obliged, water became highest quality wine, and the situation was saved. Why did Jesus change his mind?
Jesus changed his mind because of Mary’s faith. Mary was filled with the Holy Spirit when God impregnated her, and that infilling never left. From childhood, Jesus maintained a continuing dialogue with his Heavenly Father. As Mary was advising the servants to follow Jesus’ instructions, Jesus was looking heavenward and received a simple release from God the Father. “Jesus, what can We do when your mother exhibits so much faith? Remember that commandment to honor your father and your mother? It’s all right. Go ahead. It’s time. Forever afterwards, what you are about to do will be known as your first miracle, and I, Elohim, approve.” You can practically hear God the Father chuckling and see Him shrugging His omnipotent shoulders as He gives Jesus permission to act.
Jesus did something so simple that at first, nobody realized they were witnessing a miracle. “Now there were set there six waterpots of stone, according to the manner of purification of the Jews, containing twenty or thirty gallons apiece. Jesus said to them, “Fill the waterpots with water.” And they filled them up to the brim. And He said to them, “Draw some out now, and take it to the master of the feast.” And they took it.” Suddenly, 180 gallons of water becomes 180 gallons of the best wine the master of the feast had ever tasted. Upon tasting the wine, the master of the feast accused the bridegroom of saving the best wine for last, rather than bringing it out at the beginning of the feast.
Jesus didn’t draw attention to himself or make a big display of waving his hands around while he muttered something; in fact, Jesus gave simple instructions to the servants and then withdrew back into the crowd of wedding guests. But ordinary water became extraordinary wine, saving the reputations of the families involved and blessing the guests.
What must it have been like to be one of those servants? “I’m telling you, Jacob, I know I filled those jars with water from the village well, but as soon as I dipped a container in to fetch some, I could see that it was wine and not water.” For the rest of their lives, those servants must have believed in Jesus because of witnessing that miracle.
Why is this story important for us? Most of us live quiet lives of obscurity. We go through daily routines, not expecting that anything marvelous will suddenly crop up. But when God enters our situations, the ordinary can become something far more. In this story, the servants are simply carrying out orders. When we are doing God’s will, we too are simply carrying out God’s orders, but it is that obedience that fits us for miracles.
During our first mission term, money was tight. We kept our funds in a briefcase locked in a wardrobe. In those days, wire transfers into Ghanaian banks took a long time and obtaining the money was an all-day affair. One day, a friend needed a small loan, and I gave him the last Ghanaian cash we had, emptying the briefcase. But a few days later, when my husband asked me about something, I checked the briefcase and found the equivalent of $100, enough to tide us over until the next transfer from our mission. Neither of us had prayed specifically for money; however, God knew that we were living by faith and that we were sharing our resources with others. At other times, we have seen God multiply our foodstuffs, so that we have been able to share with needy patients and their families.
Hudson Taylor, founder of the China Inland Mission, was fond of saying, “Where God guides, God provides.” From its inception, CIM ran totally on faith donations, with missionaries praying in the funds they needed to work. That principle still holds true. We have been in missions since 1987, and God has continued to provide for us in various ways. As I write these words, I continue to remind myself of God’s provision in the past. This past year was the second disastrous farming season in our area and we are gravely concerned about malnutrition for adults as well as for children. But we are trusting that God, who has seen us thus far, will continue to transform the ordinary into the extraordinary and will help us to help those around us.
May God help all of us, that we will continue to look to Him and not become discouraged or disheartened. God is still on the throne, and the One who turned water into wine is still working miracles.
PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and for caring for us. Lord, help us to trust You, even when things are difficult, remembering that You are our Provider and that You can use anything to do a miracle. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.
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