New Wine

John 2:1-11

“They have no wine.”

I love reading a familiar passage in Scripture and finding something new.  I see the story from a different angle, ponder words I had previously skipped over, and I learn lessons I missed before.   Sometimes I realize that I will never get to the bottom of a passage, there will always be something more to understand.  John 2:1-11 is one of those places.

Jesus and his disciples went to a wedding.  Now, weddings were a really big deal; invitations went out to as many people as possible.  This groom was obligated to make sure that enough wine was provided to last through the whole wedding celebration.  The master of the feast was charged with managing the supply so that it would not run out.  But it did.  The groom was unable to meet his obligation.  He did not have enough.  He was facing public disgrace, and it appears, he didn’t even know it. 

The Bible is so true to life, and here we have a great example.  How often can everyone else see that we are face to face with disaster?  We plan and prepare, thinking we’ve ‘got this,’ but still find that we are utterly unable to meet our obligations.  We are easily blinded to the gaping deficits in our own lives.

But this is what I love.  In John 2:3, we read that Mary saw the problem.  She knew her son well enough to know that somehow, he would help.   She went to Jesus. “They have no wine,” she said.   Oh, how I must learn from Mary’s example not to criticize or stand back when something or someone is lacking.  How I must learn to go straight to Jesus.  Did Mary expect a miracle?  Did she expect that Jesus would finance the purchase of additional wine?  The text does not say.  But it is clear that she knew he would not stand back.  He would know what to do, and he would help.

Wine is a significant symbol.  Hundreds of years earlier, the Old Testament prophets told of a Day when there would be plenty of new wine.  The old struggles would pass away and the new would come.  (Joel 2:24; 3:18; Amos 9:13; Jeremiah 31:10-14).  A few short years after this wedding, Jesus will use wine to remind us that our salvation comes through his blood that was spilled for us. Wine is the sign of a new covenant, new joy, new abundant life and blessing, bought with great pain and sacrifice. 

On this particular wedding day, wine was the need.  “They have no wine.” Jesus looked around and saw six very large jars used for the Jewish rites of purification.  The jars were not full, so Jesus asked that they be filled with water.  All six.  The servants filled them to the brim.  Following instructions, they drew some out to take to the master of the feast.  It was wine.  It was better than what they had started with.  They had a great abundance of new wine! 

The disciples saw and believed.  They knew what the prophets had said.  They knew what new wine meant.   Surely this man, who could turn need into abundance so easily would be the One to make right everything they saw wrong in the world.  Surely He was the Messiah!  The servants must have believed.  Who turns water into 180 gallons of wine, anyway?  Jesus.  Only Jesus.  Who He Was had everything to do with what He did with the water in those jars.  At that wedding feast, what they had was not enough.   They needed something more.  Only Jesus could meet their current need so completely and abundantly.

When I read this passage, my heart cries out, Lord Jesus, what I have is not enough!  I have no more wine!  However pure my traditions are, no matter how I plan, it is not enough.  But you are the One who was promised, the One who fulfilled, the One who was poured out and emptied, the Fullness of His Glory who reigns at the Father’s right hand.  You have enough.  You meet my need.  You bring forgiveness, life and joy to the full.  You sustain my life in every way.  You turn emptiness into abundance.  You make all things new! 

“This is the first of his signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee, and manifested his glory.  And his disciples believed in him.”  John 2:11

A Lens Adjustment

Sometimes doctors give you good news. This doctor’s appointment was not without good news.  In fact, it was without bad news.  But I had trouble focusing on that because of the Other News the doctor gave us.  Healing would come, he thought, with a little work, a little change and a little patience.  I didn't want a little work or change. I didn't want a follow-up appointment six weeks from now.  I just wanted this to be fixed.  So, even though there wasn't any bad news or expensive news, I left the office thinking only of the Other News: a little work, a little change and a follow-up appointment.

Be careful what you focus on. 

“Philip found Nathanael and said to him, ‘We have found him of whom Moses in the Law and also the prophets wrote, Jesus of Nazareth the son of Joseph.’ Nathanael said to him, ‘Can anything good come out of Nazareth?’  Philip said to him, ‘Come and see.’ Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward him and said of him, ‘Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom there is no deceit!’  Nathanael said to him, ‘How do you know me?’ Jesus answered him, ‘Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you.’ Nathanael answered him, ‘Rabbi, you are the Son of God!  You are the King of Israel!’  Jesus answered him, “Because I said to you, ‘I saw you under the fig tree,’ do you believe?  You will see greater things than these.’ And he said to him, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, you will see heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man.’   John 1:45-51

Some of us see the glass half-empty.  I am one of those.  I focus in on details which signal things probably won’t end well and should be different.  So, when Philip informs Nathanael that he found the Messiah and then invites him to meet him, I identify with Nathanael’s response.  ‘Can anything good come out of Nazareth?’  He is not convinced that this guy Philip is so excited about will amount to anything. Why?  He zeros in on the unlikely town of Nazareth.  I can’t blame him.  Israel had waited for the Messiah for 400 years.   Maybe Israel had strayed too far.  Maybe hope was out of reach.  The present didn't look good and the future didn't look better.  Nazareth?  No.  Maybe Help would not come.

But Nathanael follows Philip to Jesus anyway.  He probably thought of Nazareth the whole trip, listing all the reasons why it was the wrong place for anyone significant to be from.  Philip should have realized this.  Maybe Nathanael is even rehearsing his “I told you so” as they walk.  How could someone like Nathanael continue to hope?  Then, Jesus calls out to him as they arrive.  And Nathaniel asks, “How do you know me?” Jesus says that he has seen him underneath the fig tree.  He knows what went on there.  No one else knew.   And Nathanael believes! 

But, Jesus questions, “Because I said to you, ‘I saw you wonder the fig tree,’ do you believe?  You will see greater things than these….Truly, truly, I say to you, you will see heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man.’”  After all the coming, seeing, telling, following and believing that has happened since Jesus came on the scene, why is He not completely satisfied with Nathanael’s belief? 

This was the passage.  This was the question I pondered on the day of the doctor’s appointment.  As I drove home, still grumpy about the Other News, I thought about Nathanael and Jesus some more.

Nathanael zeroed in on the amazing truth that he was known by Jesus as he could be known and understood by no other.  That is something to rejoice over!  But Jesus knew that Nathanael needed even more.  He needed a Savior, a Way to Life with God. So, Jesus refers back to Israel’s beginnings.  He zooms out and reaches far back in history.  He says, Nathanael, I know you.  Yes, that is important.  But don’t stop there.  Keep watching.  Like Jacob, you will see the heavens opened!  I am the Way to restoring the relationship with God that was lost.

Be careful what you focus on.

 Have I been looking through my zoom lens for too long? Is it possible that, when focusing solely on the presence or absence of small miracles and provisions in life, I run the risk of thinking God too small or relying on faith that is too weak?

Jesus knows our every thought and sees our smallest, most secret needs.  But Jesus invites me to look beyond those.  I am saved to Life beyond circumstances, Life with Jesus.  Not only does He know me, but I can know Him.  Making my way home, I decided.  I cannot do it myself, so I looked up asked Jesus to re-adjust my lens.

 ‘Lord, what do You want me to focus on?’  You will see greater things than these.  

It's About the Tomatoes

"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control..."
                                     Galatians 5:22, 23

Today I uprooted my favorite tomato plant ever.  It is November, and winter really is around the corner.  The time had come to cut the plant down.  I took my time, more time than I imagine a real gardener would.  First, I picked all the tomatoes that had ripened, despite chilly temperatures.  I was surprised at how many big, beautiful cherry tomatoes there were.  Then, I began clipping vines.  I worked in small sections, discovering hidden ripe tomatoes, tossing away empty vines, and carefully saving green tomatoes.  (They will sit in the garage and continue to ripen.)

As I slowly made my way through the bush, I noticed that the best tomatoes came from vines tangled up in the small tree that the plant had grown into.  The tree seemed to sigh in relief each time I clipped and carefully disengaged a vine from its slender branches.  It was more than ready to see the plant go.  I uncovered the tomato cage which had proved inadequate.  I discovered morning glory pervasively trying to choke the plant.  But ripe tomatoes tangled into the weed, regardless.   I rediscovered sprinklers, and worn out flowers that had been covered up with tomato vines for months.  And I continued to work.

As much as I love this silly plant, I realized that my concern was not for the vines, but for the fruit.  I did not preserve any of the leaves, vines or roots, but I cared very much about saving the tomatoes.  The tomatoes were important.  My plant seemed to know this.  Tomatoes grew everywhere, in the midst of weeds, along the ground in the dirt, in the middle of the tomato cage, and all the way up the vines through the tree.  They grew regardless of their surroundings.  The vine was created to produce tomatoes, and it did. 

The Hebrew word “glory” means “to add weight to.”  The Greek word means to “give praise and honor.” I have been thinking about what “glory” looks like in my Christian life all week.  And I don’t have a firm handle on it.  Still, something struck a chord as I lifted heavy clusters of tomatoes out of the tree.  Maybe glorifying God has to do with living as I was designed to live and doing what I am called to do, regardless of my surroundings and circumstances or potential distractions.  Could I glorify God simply by producing the fruit He is growing me to produce? And not just a little fruit, but a lot of fruit.  Consistent fruit.  I am put on this earth to glorify God.  It is not about my happiness, my comfort, my agenda, or my contributions to the world.  If I were a plant, I would be a Glorify God Plant.  And I would need to produce Glory To God Fruit.  My tomato plant knew…and I believe my tree knows, too…it’s all about the fruit.

"By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples.  As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you.  Abide in my love."
                    John 15:8-9

This Tomato Plant

 I am not successful in growing much .  But, now I have grown a tomato plant that produces tomatoes I actually enjoy!  It is a huge triumph among endless gardening failures.   I have never had another plant like it. I have never had a plant that lived so long!   The vines have grown over and out of the tomato cage, climbing all the way up to the top of a tree growing close by.  They wrap around the tree branches and loop around the trunk.  Tomatoes hang heavy from tree limbs, which now sag lower than they should.  I’m sure the tree is stressed out by the presence of this new garden pest.  And the flowers and bushes probably feel the same.  My dear tomato plant has moved and spread out in all the wrong places, over the tops of flowers, in spite of weeds, and regardless of anything else in its path.  It sure can grow, but I am sorry to say, it is not pretty. It’s a mess.

Last week, a light frost covered the grass.  I decided that I really should work on pulling that tomato plant out of my “garden”.  But I needed to pick the ripe tomatoes first.  As I picked, my resolve to pull up the plant weakened.  Didn't the weather man say it would be warmer next week?  Maybe it’s too early to pull it up.  Maybe I could just give it a really good trim.  I worked for a long time, picking, trimming, untangling vines from tree branches.  The more I worked on it, the more problems I saw.  This plant is a wreck.  It’s wrecking my flowers and my tree!  It looks terrible.  But I love it.  I dearly love it.  Why?  Because I planted it.  And it grew.  And there are yummy tomatoes.

I identify with my imperfect, unorganized plant.  Like it, I am unable to even appear as if I have everything together.  Like it, I am a tangled mess.  I thought about this as I worked, wondering if my imperfect life was producing as many “tomatoes” as this plant is.  It might not be doing everything perfectly, but it sure is doing what it was planted to do…producing tomatoes!  

I love you like you love this plant.

 I felt that message loud and clear as the Lord spoke to my soul. 

 I see your imperfections, your short-comings, your over-reaching, your accomplishments, disappointments, all that is unfinished, and what is yet to come. You may not be perfect, but even imperfect plants can produce tomatoes.   I love you because I planted you.  I made you.  You are mine. 

The tomato plant didn't get pulled up last week.  God lifted up my discouraged heart, instead.

It turns out, the weather man was right.  It has warmed up again.  My tomato plant is much the same.   New tomatoes ripen every day.  I need to trim it.  It is still too big.  The tree is still stressed out.  The  plant looks like a giant obnoxious weed.  But now, the thought of uprooting it makes me sad.  Whenever I look at it, I see myself, a tangled mess who wishes so much to somehow keep growing in Christ. And I remember that God loves me.  He loves me like I love my plant.  Mess and all.

"As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you.  Abide in my love."
John 15:9

Start at the Beginning...Skip to the End

John 1:1-18 and John 21:1-22

I never skip prologues, prefaces or introductions when I read a book.  I also read epilogues, afterwards, postscripts, and bibliographies with great interest. The book of John contains my favorite prologue, as well as the most thought-provoking epilogue I have ever read.  As I read John and organized it into a general chart, I saw that there are just four major sections in the book, including a prologue and an epilogue.  I have the book of John printed out, double spaced with wide margins.   This helps me read the book with fresh eyes, and it gives me the freedom to scribble all over the packet.  If my notes begin to bother me, I can re-print the page.  If I see that I have written something brilliant, I can transfer that note over to my Bible.  The first page of John has torn off my stapled packet.  (I hope I don’t lose it.)  Recently, it landed beside the page containing chapter 21.  It gave me an idea: What would it be like to read the prologue and then skip straight to the epilogue? 

Prologues provide important information and back-story so that the reader better understands the narrative to come.  The eighteen verses of this prologue are brilliantly written. Need context?  Clarity?  The big picture?  Here it is!  John carefully crafts his thoughts to communicate theological truths that are foundations to faith.  In just eighteen verses, he covers the trinity, the incarnation, creation, salvation, the covenants and more.  John, who wrote with the purpose of helping us to believe, tells us immediately the truth about Jesus.  As a result of reading the prologue, we know all the way through John’s gospel what we are invited to believe in. 

Fast-forward to the Epilogue in John chapter 21.  Epilogues are written to show us what happened to the characters after the main story concludes.  I find myself reading this one again and again, pondering the scene, the breakfast, the disciples at the campfire, Peter walking along with Jesus and John following behind.  As broad as the prologue is, with epic themes and timeless scope, this epilogue is narrow.   Here we zero in on a few men, a single meal, and a short conversation on the beach.  While John’s prologue outlines what we need to believe, the epilogue gives us insight into our new life in Christ.

 “But these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name,” John 20:31.  What does life with Jesus look like?  It is not without some uncertainty.  The disciples didn't have all the answers right away.  It took time to recognize that Jesus was even on the scene as they looked toward Him in the early dawn light.  Real life is like that.  Things are not always clear at first. Life with Jesus is full of provision and invitation.  Jesus invited them to “Come and have breakfast.”  No one said, “No, I need to get these fish over to the market.”  They all sat down with Jesus to enjoy his presence and provision for them.  Life with Jesus is full of forgiveness, restoration and love.  Peter might have thought himself outside Jesus’ inner circle of trusted friends after denying him.  Instead, he finds himself in a heart-to-heart conversation with his Savior.  It is this forgiveness, this love, this complete restoration of relationship with God that causes us to love in return.  (Remember, the prologue says, “We have received grace upon grace from the fullness of Jesus Christ. “) Jesus asked Peter, “Do you love me?”  And because of Jesus, Peter answered, “Yes!”   Life with Jesus means following Jesus.  “Follow me,” Jesus said.  No matter the cost.  The love that Jesus pours out on us, the fullness of his grace, the life-giving truth, his unfailing mercy and his divine glory compel us.  How can we NOT follow Him?  We won’t be able to help it!  It will be as natural as it was for John to rise from his spot at the campfire and follow Jesus as he spoke to Peter.  But, will we follow Jesus wherever He leads? 

Peter says it.  The question we all ask.   He hears the call, but slows his step to turn his head and look at John. “What about him?”  Will he have the same experience I will?  We have all asked it.  Will he have the same pain, joy, mission, impact, circumstance, challenge, success, failure, rejection, disappointment, loss, gain, talent, favor, opposition, contentment, frustration, stuff, relationships, that I have?  That I lack? Oh, how we have been there.  How we have asked and wondered and known better than to ask, but couldn't help but wonder anyway….So Jesus narrows the scene even further.  Now Peter no longer sees the disciples or smells the fire or hears the water.  Now he looks away from John and turns his head toward the One who called him ‘Child’.  It is just Jesus and Peter now.  And Jesus says, “You, Follow Me!”  

In the prologue, I see The One True God.  Three In One, The Creator, The Word, The Only Son who came to save us.  And in the epilogue I find myself eye to eye with Jesus alone. I hear him extend an unbelievable invitation!  How is it that we could follow one so great?  And yet, we can!  Jesus comes to each of us and extends his personal invitation of forgiveness, fellowship, and purpose.  He asks us to believe and have life! Follow Me! How will you respond?

 “In him was life, and the life was the light of men.  The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it….To all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God…. From his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace….No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father’s side, he has made him known.”  “You, follow me!”

Believe and Live

John 1-21

Need something to believe in?  Read the Gospel of John.  Read it more than once.  Read it straight through, cover to cover.  In it, I find Jesus.  He reveals Himself to any who would recognize His signs and listen to his testimony.  Those who looked at Him and asked “Is he it?” got their answer.  Jesus is the Son of God!  John finds this to be of first importance.   The pages of his Gospel are filled with this message: Believe and live. 

Who is the Son of God?  He is the I Am.  He is the bread of life, the light of the world, the door of the sheep, the good shepherd, the resurrection and the life, the way, the truth and the life, the true vine!  My soul is hungry and I cannot satisfy it.  I need Jesus!  Life is dark.  I cannot find my way and I have no hope.  I need Jesus!  I cannot get past my sin.  I need Jesus!  I need someone to care for me. I need Jesus!  I am dead inside.  I need Jesus!  Nothing sustains me.  I need Jesus!  John shares the truth that Jesus is not just anyone, He is the only One uniquely able to save.  He is the Only One uniquely able to give life to every man, woman and child who will believe.

 Jesus does not leave us to wonder what new life looks like.  John records Jesus’ words to the disciples just before he is handed over to the authorities, the final words and prayer he wants all believers to remember.  Jesus spoke to them about love.  God loves each one of us to the end.  We are to love one another. 

Life is complicated.  It is easy overlook what is essential.  John saw that, perhaps, in his own day.  He writes with laser-beam focus.  He records signs that we may see, testimony that we may hear, and he bears witness that we may believe.  Jesus is the Son of God!  Believe and have life!  What will that life look like?  It will be filled with love.  I cannot wait to dive in to John and study the book more closely, because after reading John with a broad lens, looking for major themes and the big picture, I find myself wrestling with these questions that reach the core of who I am.  What do I really believe about Jesus?  Am I taking hold of the gift of life I have been given?  Do I love with the love the Son of God himself has shown to me?  Or have I lost sight of the essential?


What is my Bible open to right now?  The Gospel of John. I will read it again, studying it section by section, writing down questions and looking for answers. I hope you will have your Bibles open, too!  

I Repeat...

Psalm 18 and 2 Samuel 22

“For it is you who light my lamp;

  The LORD my God lightens my darkness.

For by you I can run against a troop,

And by my God I can leap over a wall.”

-Psalm 18:28-29

 In life, I find myself repeating things.  It is not enough to say “I love you” only once.  (Too often, it is not enough to say “Clean your room” only once!)  If I want what I say to be remembered, I find that repetition helps.   When I find something repeated in the Bible, I sit up straighter and read more carefully, because God must really want to drive his point home.  When I discovered that Psalm 18 is almost identical to David’s song found in 2 Samuel 22, I thought “this must be important!” They are.  These songs are amazing!

2 Samuel 22 is David’s personal song of praise for God’s deliverance in his life, and then he adapted the song to be used in public worship, which is how we find it in the Psalter.  Both songs are found in the scriptures—not just one of them.  Pondering this, I see how important it is to stop and personally praise God for his faithfulness in my life…when no one else is watching.  This personal song, found in 2 Samuel 22, is no short thank you note jotted on the back of a note card.  No.  I realize that I need to stop for a while and allow my heart to sing God’s praises!  In Psalm 18, David shared his experience by adapting his song so that it might be used in public worship.  I'm so glad he did!  I wonder how many have read these verses and found strength, hope and encouragement through his testimony of God’s faithfulness. 

What promise I find in this psalm!  The LORD my God lightens my darkness.   When my heart is sad and dark, when I don’t see what is ahead and cannot make sense of what is around me, I whisper, “I need a lamp, Lord!”  It is He who is my lamp. Only He can give me hope!  When I come to a wall in my life, an obstacle I can’t fathom scaling, I can trust that with God by my side, in His strength, I can leap over anything. 

We would not be encouraged by this at all if our God was weak, if he was unwise, if he was not good.  But David takes the time to remind us, vividly, that our God is Almighty and All-Wise.  He is Good!  Two times, in 2 Samuel 22 and Psalm 18,  God calls out to us in the pages of His Word.  Let us sit up straight and hear His Almighty, All-loving Voice!  Whatever danger you encounter, whatever difficulty you face, in whatever hopelessness you are entangled, however desperate your prayer, I HEAR!  I RESPOND!  I RESCUE!

Heavenly Father,

            Please, light my lamp!  My way is dark.   I cannot see you.  Help me remember who you are.     I am in need!  I call to you for help and look to you for deliverance.   There is a wall.  Help me scale it!  You are my Answer.  I love you, O LORD, my strength!

“This God—his way is perfect,

The word of the LORD proves true;

He is a shield for all those who take refuge in him.”

Psalm 18:30