21 Day Challenge – Day 19
The First Miracle | Matt Dawson
Scripture: John 2:1-11
The next day there was a wedding celebration in the village of Cana in Galilee. Jesus’ mother was there, and Jesus and his disciples were also invited to the celebration. The wine supply ran out during the festivities, so Jesus’ mother told him, “They have no more wine.” “Dear woman, that’s not our problem,” Jesus replied. “My time has not yet come.” But his mother told the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.” Standing nearby were six stone water jars, used for Jewish ceremonial washing. Each could hold twenty to thirty gallons. Jesus told the servants, “Fill the jars with water.”
When the jars had been filled, he said, “Now dip some out, and take it to the master of ceremonies.” So the servants followed his instructions. 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. “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!” This miraculous sign at Cana in Galilee was the first time Jesus revealed his glory. And his disciples believed in him.
Observation
It’s the first miracle. Wine.
The wine is gone. Everyone panics, and Jesus’ mother says ‘I got this”. Jesus says it’s not yet my time WOMAN (this was not disrespectful like we think of it today). He tells them to fill the jars (160 gallons total) with water. He performs his first miracle and the party is back on.
I love when the master of ceremonies says “most host will serve the cheap stuff later after everyone is drunk – but you’ve saved the BEST until now”. WOW. What a message to those at the wedding – that Jesus doesn’t slouch at the end of the party when people might not have even noticed – he brings the BEST even at the end.
It’s a story about a wedding. Jesus. Marriage. The Best at the END.
Application
Personally – this application applies to my own marriage. I believe my wife and I brought wine into our marriage. We brought as much as we had with us (all our love, expectations, and hopes) and we were convinced it was never going to run out. I’ve had friends run out of “their wine” after 5 years of marriage, some 10, some 15 and crisis hits. When we run out of wine, we get frantic, we stray, we get angry, we start looking for ways to compensate. This is were we have the option of asking Jesus to step in.
When Jesus steps in, he takes what we have (water – the life giver that we take for granted) and turns it into MORE than we could even imagine in our lives. NEW WINE. When Jesus gets involved in our marriages – our love doesn’t have to get old, stale, and cheap versions of the real thing. Those things we take for granted everyday can become something new as He brings out the BEST even towards the end when we are at our most desperate.
Man… I love some of the new wine I’ve had in the last 20 years of marriage. Here’s to knowing that even when I run short on what I have to offer – Jesus is there to bring out something BETTER!
Prayer
Jesus, show us where we need some new wine in our lives. Don’t allow us to settle for cheap imitations or worse – hop from wedding to wedding trying to sustain ourselves on the wine we bring to the table. Help us know you are there… just waiting for the invitation to step in and deliver a miracle. Fill us with wonder as we taste what you can do in our lives if we simply ask for your help.
Amen.