John 2:1-11 (NIV) 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.” 4 “Woman why do you involve me?” Jesus replied. “My hour has not yet come.” 5 His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.” 6 Nearby stood six stone water jars, the kind used by the Jews for ceremonial washing, each holding from twenty to thirty gallons. 7 Jesus said to the servants, “Fill the jars with water”; so they filled them to the brim. 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.” 11What 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.
Glory is a moment of revelation when God seems to push aside the veils that hide God from us and we see and sense God’s presence. The glory of God might come to us as to Moses in the Burning Bush, or as to Isaiah in the Temple, or as to the world in the person of Jesus Christ. John says that God lived in this person Jesus who turned the water into wine. God’s glory is seen clearly, completely, and truthfully in the person Jesus.
Do not get distracted by the person on the curb who is holding a sign saying Jesus turned the water into grape juice because He is against drinking. Do not get distracted by the sign on the other side of the street that says Jesus turned the water into wine and we have a right to drink if we want to. Don’t let some of these signs in our society and possibly in our minds distract us.
The Greek literally says the wine failed. If we glance back over our shoulder we can see where John was coming from and see what the wine says about the God we see in Jesus. But, we may not be interested in seeing what the wine says about Jesus if we are still sipping on the wine of achievement, the sweet wine of a relationship, the wine of money, the wine of good health, the wine of self-sufficiency. We live in a connoisseur world that offers us a wide variety of wines to drink from. We live in a time when many people are turning to spirituality, but not to Jesus. To many today, Jesus looks simply like one more failed wine.
What do we do when the wine of life fails us? Put Jesus to the test. Listen to Mary, the mother of Jesus who says do whatever He tells you. Do the next right thing you think Christ may be calling you to do. This is not a call to heroic or sacrificial obedience. Do whatever He tells you. Make the phone call, send the email, take a moment, stop, ask God, and pray. Do whatever He says and see if Jesus turns the water into wine.
From a sermon preached by Henry Dobbs Pope January 14, 2001
© Rhonda Hinkle Mitchell
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