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
