WATCHWORD:
1 The next day there was a wedding celebration in the village of Cana in Galilee. Jesus’ mother was there, 2 and Jesus and his disciples were also invited to the celebration. 3 The wine supply ran out during the festivities, so Jesus’ mother told him, “They have no more wine.” 4 “Dear woman, that’s not our problem,” Jesus replied. “My time has not yet come.” 5 But his mother told the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.”
6 Standing nearby were six stone water jars, used for Jewish ceremonial washing. Each could hold twenty to thirty gallons. 7 Jesus told the servants, “Fill the jars with water.” When the jars had been filled, 8 he said, “Now dip some out, and take it to the master of ceremonies.” So the servants followed his instructions. 9 When the master of ceremonies tasted the water that was now wine, not knowing where it had come from (though, of course, the servants knew), he called the bridegroom over. 10 “A host always serves the best wine first,” he said. “Then, when everyone has had a lot to drink, he brings out the less expensive wine. But you have kept the best until now!”
11 This miraculous sign at Cana in Galilee was the first time Jesus revealed his glory. And his disciples believed in him. John 2:1-11
Meditation:
Do Whatever He Tells You
Recently I heard a theologian talking about the first miracle recorded and credited to Jesus, the wedding at Cana where water was turned into wine, high quality wine. The pastor went on to explain that in his research, and in the mind of many highly respected theologians, the wedding was likely a family affair, possibly for John, the Apostle, the self-proclaimed disciple that Jesus loved. John’s mother was Salome, the sister of Mary, Jesus’ mother. So, a family affair.
We could conclude that Mary wanted the wedding feast to go without a hitch. To run out of wine would be a major faux pas for the family, for the ceremony and the celebration that would continue for a full week.
In response to Mary’s comment about running out of wine, Jesus replies, “Dear woman, that’s not our problem. My time has not yet come.” Sounds pretty abrupt, doesn’t it? Dear woman, instead of “Mom” or “Mother”. Mary then turns to the stewards with Jesus standing there, and tells them “Do whatever he tells you.”
How does Jesus respond? He tells the stewards to fill the six jars with water. Then draw some out and take it to the master of the feast. The master, of course, is amazed at how good the wine is.
Mary’s instruction to the stewards rings true to our walk in faith. “Do whatever he tells you”, profound and powerful words which can easily serve as a foundation for our spiritual lives. It doesn’t take much imagination to rephrase it to “Do what Jesus tells us to do,” to follow his commandments, to love others as he loved us, to trust God. To do what he would have us do.
My friends, think about our lives, lives in Christ, symbolized by water turned into wine. Before we accepted Jesus as Lord and Savior our lives were as water, mostly clear, cool, refreshing, but, possibly, without substance. The presence of Jesus, the Holy Spirit within each of us, is a transformation into holy wine, lives with substance, purpose and love. Rich, testifying that God is a God of abundance who will give us what we need to fulfill his purpose in our lives. Make of our lives a reflection of Jesus Christ to others. Amen.
Closing Prayer:
Heavenly Father, Paul has told us that “If anyone is in Christ he is a new creation and the old has passed away and the new has come”. The life of your son Jesus has given us the model when he turned water to wine, he was changing lives, from ordinary, without substance, into those who are guided by your will and strengthened by your graces. And so we come before you with grateful hearts that we are your children, you took away the darkness that used to be part of our lives, in its place the Light of the Word, the sacred Word through your son Jesus, it’s in his name that we pray. Amen.
