Wine in abundance
John 2:1-11
On the third day a wedding took place at Cana in Galilee. Jesus’ mother was there, and Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding. When the wine was gone, Jesus’ mother said to him, “They have no more wine.”
“Woman, why do you involve me?” Jesus replied. “My hour has not yet come.”
His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.”
Nearby stood six stone water jars, the kind used by the Jews for ceremonial washing, each holding from twenty to thirty gallons.
Jesus said to the servants, “Fill the jars with water”; so they filled them to the brim.
Then he told them, “Now draw some out and take it to the master of the banquet.”
They did so, 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 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.”
What Jesus did here in Cana of Galilee was the first of the signs through which he revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him.
Title: Saving The Best for Last,
(time to burst open these barrels!)
Let's explore the first miracle of Jesus, the turning of water into wine at the wedding in Cana, which we read in John 2:1-11.
At this wedding feast, we see Jesus in three roles,
firstly the Guest,
secondly the Son,
and finally as the Host.
In this simple miracle Jesus reveals to us his glory and outlines the stage for his public ministry.
Our setting is a wedding feast in Cana of Galilee. Weddings were and still are, significant social events in Jewish culture, often lasting upwards of a week! A celebration of two lives joined together and it's here that we see Jesus’ first miracle taking place in the midst of joy, matrimonial love, and community celebration!
Let's delve into our text where we find Jesus as a Guest, (V 1-2)
Here we see that Jesus wasn’t a recluse like John the Baptist living out in the desert.
Jesus accepted invitations to social events, even though his enemies would cast up his party-going and try to use them against him! For example
Luke 15:1-2
Now the tax collectors and sinners were all gathering around to hear Jesus. But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law muttered, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.”
At this point Jesus, His mother Mary, and the six disciples that he'd gathered together where also present at the wedding and their attendance highlights the importance that Jesus placed on community and relationships in his ministry.
We know that Jesus was born into a humble family, which was likely very poor, so it’s reasonable to assume that their family friends weren’t wealthy either!
Perhaps this was one reason for the shortage of wine, who knows, but the groom had provided all he could afford and it was gone in a flash!
It's worth remembering that at this point in Jesus' wasn’t very well known, as he was only starting out on his earthly ministry! He might have known the bride and groom personally, but perhaps the reason he was invited was because of Nathanael, as we learn in John 21:2 that he was from Cana!
“Nathanael from Cana in Galilee”
Now up to this point, Jesus hadn’t performed any miracles, so it’s likely that he was invited because Nathanael knew him and maybe because Mary knew the family, for she was also present! Whatever the connection, Jesus was a welcome guest.
Jesus the Son V3-5
Jewish wedding feasts would often last a week or more, and so it was necessary for the Groom to have adequate provisions for the celebrations!
Running out of food or wine would have been highly embarrassing, a social disaster to say the least!
But that’s exactly what happened here with the wine!
Imagine the murmurings as the guests tried to have their glasses topped up!
No wine, are you serious???
And so Mary discreetly comes to Jesus to tell him the wine has run out!
Mary knows only too well how embarrassing this was for the bride and groom in front of all their friends and neighbours as they celebrate their wedding feast!
But then we read in verse 4 Jesus’ response:
“Woman, why do you involve me?” Jesus replied. “My hour has not yet come.”
*The footnote in our Bibles tells us that the Greek word used for “Woman” doesn’t denote any disrespect.
But here Jesus’ response indicates a shift in His relationship with Mary his mother, as he moves from familial ties to His divine mission!
By this, Jesus makes it clear that he’s a grown man and no longer under his mothers supervision!
“Why are you getting me involved in this matter”
"My hour" refers to the timing of His public ministry which was just starting out and would ultimately lead Him to the Cross!
But ask yourself, why did Mary come to Jesus with this problem?
Did she expect him to do something special and step in to meet the needs of the bride and groom?
Without doubt, she knew who He was before she even gave birth to Him. We know this from Luke 1:30-32
But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favour with God. You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High.
Jesus was the Son of the Most High, so, we can be certain that Mary believed that her son could sort out this wine shortage and save the bride and groom’s embarrassment!
But notice also that she doesn’t tell Jesus what to do, oh no!
In her belief and faith of who her Son was, Mary simply goes to the servants and tells them
V5 "Do whatever he tells you."
'Do whatever he tells you'. Mary’s words to the servants reveal that she's willing to let Jesus do whatever he pleases and that she trusts Him to do the right thing!
Her faith in Jesus’ ability to save the day reveals her faith in him and it serves as a model of faith for each of us today!
Simply, tell Jesus our problems and let Him decide what to do about them!
Then we move in verse 6-11 where we see Jesus the Host
Jesus’s first miracle wasn’t very spectacular!
By that I mean that not everybody at the wedding witnessed it! Come on, thinks about it!, you can’t save the bride and grooms' blushes by telling everyone that you've just provided the wine!
Yes, Mary, the disciples, and the servants all knew what had happened, but no one else at the feast had any idea that a miracle had just occurred.
So, Jesus’s first miracle was discreet! In the first instance, it saved any social embarrassment the bride and groom would have suffered at the outset of their married lives together,
But it was so much more than this, for it also revealed what Jesus was bringing to the entire world!
Let’s look at the Water Jars v 6-7
Each of the six stone jars could hold between 20 - 30 gallons, they were used in the Jewish purification rites, but in this situation, Jesus instructs the servants to fill them with water.
Now using some basic maths: 6x20 is 120 gallons in total, which equates to just over 600 bottles of wine that you can buy today, that's a lot of wine!
600 bottles at the bottom estimate, in this miracle Jesus intervened by providing wine in abundance! The top end estimate is 900 bottles, (now that's some party!)
Then in verses 8-9: we see the Miracle Unfold!
The servants draw the water from the stone jars, which through Jesus' word has now turned into wine,
and they bring it to the master of the banquet!
There’s no fanfare in the transformation process, it happened quietly
which highlights the gentle yet profound nature of Jesus as he steps into this every day crisis to meet the bride and groom's immediate need.
Then in Verse 10, we read about the master of the banquet, he's astonished as he tastes the new wine, declaring that they've saved the best wine to last!
the best to last!
600 bottles, such abundance, more than enough to meet their needs and the quality of the wine, well it’s simply the best!!
But think about it for this goes against the natural order of things!
Which is?
The natural order is to start with plenty and then over time it's consummed.
Everything in this life moves from excess to lack!
But not here, here Jesus reverses our normal order of decline!
We see this best described in John 5:24
“Very truly I tell you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be judged but has crossed over from death to life.
' But has crossed over from death to life'
Think about it for a moment and it's easily missed, and it's wonderful, it’s absolutely incredible!
The natural order of human life is to move from life to death, and ultimately in the end, this is where we all end up”
But Jesus our Saviour, came to reverse this, to make us new creations, just like the wedding at Cana, he came to turn water into wine!
And in Jesus' order, the best is kept until the last!
For Christ's order is not from life to death, rather it's death to life!
Death to life!
None of us have to live in the past looking back to when we were fit and healthy, with the promise that our lives lay ahead of us!
Christ came to turn 'water into wine', he turns 'death into life', and in His order, the very best is kept to last!
When we invite Christ into our lives, we are made new, we're just like that water that's been transformed into wine! But it's only through Him that we no longer move from life to death,
Because Jesus turns the natural order of life around, he turns death into life, life in abundance, eternal life, and in this, He saves the best life to the last!
Life with so much abundance, that's it’s eternal life,
No more aches, no pains, no more suffering, no more death, as we live forever in the presence of the Almighty!
In Jesus’ first miracle, we find such a wonderful message of hope, right at the very outset of His ministry. Jesus tells us what He will provide for His bride, which is us His Church who believe in Him
Finally, in verse 11 John concludes by stating that this was the first of Jesus' signs. A sign that revealed His glory and led His disciples to believe in Him. The miracle serves as a sign pointing to Jesus' divine identity and mission which was to turn water into wine, and death into life in eternal abundance for all who would believe,
Application:
1. We need to Trust in Jesus’ Timing:
Like Mary, we must trust in Jesus’ timing and wisdom, even when we don’t fully understand His plans. His responses to our needs may not always align with our desires, but ultimately, His responses are in our best interests,
2. We find Transformation through Jesus:
The transformation of water into wine symbolises the transformative power of Jesus in our lives. He takes the natural order of things, the dregs at the last and turns that order around making the last extraordinary, as he gives us new life and joy.
3. Faith and Obedience:
Mary’s instruction to “do whatever he tells you” is a call to faith and obedience. We are invited to follow Jesus’ commands, trusting in His ability and that He knows best what wonders to work in our lives.
Conclusion:
The miracle at Cana is a powerful reminder of Jesus’ glory and the new beginning He offers each of us. As we reflect on this miracle, may we open our hearts to His transformative power and live in the joy and abundance of His grace. So that we like the disciples, deepen our trust in Him, and embrace the new life that He brings as we follow Jesus more closely.
Amen,
have a great week, and God bless,
He calls you to be 'new wine'1
Trev.