John 2:1-12

21 Aug 2013, CMA

(Disclaimer/Warning: The following has been prepared in informal english/style. Also they are not entirely original. You may see word-by-word cut-and-paste from other sources, without even proper credit/reference. Also some of the presented thoughts could be wrong - so use your own judgement)

Jesus Changes Water Into Wine

2 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,[a] 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.[b] 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.” 11 What 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. 12 After this he went down to Capernaum with his mother and brothers and his disciples. There they stayed for a few days.

Some notes on above:-

-1- This is the first recorded miracle from Jesus . He will continue to do more miracles. Heard of Tomlin’s song: “Water you turn into wine, open the eyes of the blind, out of the ashes we rise … there is no one like You … None like You ”? As you read about this miracle, and other miracles to follow (dead being raised, lame start walking, lepers and sick being healed) and everything Jesus did … they all affirm that there is no one in this world like JESUS ... He is the ultimate God ... King of the Universe! He is totally worthy of giving our whole life to …

-2- Talking of transformation: I am sure you have areas in your life that are broken. Such as, maybe you are struggling in some relationships or confused about your future. Take all your brokenness first to Jesus ... go to His Word, and pray for healing and transformation. Because, He is the Lord of the life and ALL at the end of the day. He can even raise people from dead. He is the ultimate authority and always in complete control …

-3- Jesus is always in transformation business. For instance, in previous weeks we saw how he called his disciples and said upfront: He will transform them to make them into “fishers of men” (Matthew 4:19). The disciples did not start as perfect followers of Christ. They started as they were - some were just fishermen (not evangelists like John the Baptist). Jesus began transforming their lives. Same happens to us, as followers today - transformation that Jesus starts in our lives - the kind of transformation we cannot bring about by our own strength (we cannot turn water into wine). Jesus is wanting to transform us into “fishers of men”. Our part is to not resist/ignore the transformation & calling that Jesus has for us. We should not try to run away from it like Jonah did to his calling. And then, our job is to also pray for transformation of people around us (people who do not have eternal life). Even pray for situations around us: our community, classes, workplaces (such as, you look around and see wow this is not God honouring .. it has to change ...) … At CMA we will be talking a lot about application … and also constantly encourage you to live this book out and see life and situations around you change/being- transformed and become God honoring …

-4- One commentator pointed that it was not a coincidence that the water Jesus transformed came from jars used for ceremonial washing. The water signified the Jewish system of purification, and Jesus replaced it with pure wine, representing his spotless blood that would wash away our sins. Similarly, another commentator said: this miracle signifies the transformation of the old order (symbolized by the stone water jars used for ceremonial washing, v. 6) into the new (the wine standing for eternal life in God’s kingdom) through Jesus Christ (cf. 2 Cor. 5:17).

Another commentator said, Jesus turning water to wine at the wedding, indicated what He came to offer us - as Jesus said in John 10:10: "I came to give life, life in abundance".

One commentator pointed that one of the marks of messianic age, prophesied by OT prophets was overflowing wine (Jeremiah 31:12) , Hosea 14:7, Amos 9:13-14.