2 On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. 2 Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding. 3 When the wine gave out, the mother of Jesus said to him, “They have no wine.” 4 And Jesus said to her, “Woman, what concern is that to you and to me? My hour has not yet come.” 5 His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.” 6 Now standing there were six stone water jars for the Jewish rites of purification, each holding twenty or thirty gallons. 7 Jesus said to them, “Fill the jars with water.” And they filled them up to the brim. 8 He said to them, “Now draw some out, and take it to the chief steward.” So they took it. 9 When the steward tasted the water that had become wine, and did not know where it came from (though the servants who had drawn the water knew), the steward called the bridegroom 10 and said to him, “Everyone serves the good wine first, and then the inferior wine after the guests have become drunk. But you have kept the good wine until now.” 11 Jesus did this, the first of his signs, in Cana of Galilee, and revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him.
This miracle of Jesus turning water into wine is sound very odd on the surface because most miracles have to do with Jesus meeting a desperate need, such as blindness, illness, disability, and hunger of a large crowd. But this one has to do with wine at a wedding, which seems to be a luxury item.
First, we need to understand the cultural setting. The Jewish wedding feast usually lasts seven days, and wine is a must in a wedding party. It is a major embarrassment for the host to run out of wine during the feast and in some cases the local authority could even fine the family for their disorderly conduct.
I grew up among the Yunnanese Chinese—the type of Chinese from the Yunnan Province—and their wedding usually lasts three days. They can get permission to block the entire section of the street to pitch a large tend on the road; pretty much looking like a block party. The actually wedding day is the middle day. On the first day, most of the long distance guests arrive and it is a joyous occasion for family and friends reunion. The next day the wedding ceremony takes place and the evening banquet is the main banquet and alcohol is generously served. If you can only come to one meal, this is the main one. The third day is the clean up day, where people come to eat the leftovers and help clean up.
My own wedding, however, didn’t last three days because my family is a little more modernized. I asked my uncle to officiate the wedding since he is the minister in the family and the priority goes to him. He said he would do it under one condition, that we must not serve any liquor. We agree, but at the last moment, he told us that he rather not officiate the wedding because he thought it was awkward to do it for his own relative, so we asked another minister.
But, the wedding we as planned and there was no liquor served. Some of the guest started to complain, saying, "How could a wedding be a wedding without liquor?" So after the banquet, I took them to a hotel restaurant and let them drink to their satisfaction.
The reason I am telling you this is because in some culture wine is a must in a wedding banquet and the guests would take offense without it.
This is the situation Jesus’ mother, Mary, is concern about in this story. It could be a wedding of a relative or a close friend because she must be helping out taking a major responsibility in order to know what’s happening in the back. Even the head waiter didn’t know the situation based on verse 10.
Secondly, we need to understand John as the author. John is very selective in including the miracles in his gospel. There are only seven miracles recorded in the gospel according to John, and this is the first one. That means John regard this miracle as an important one. The reason is this is a miracle that tells the story of God’s grace through Jesus Christ. John started by telling that it was on the third day, which indicates the grace of God revealed later on the third day after the crucifixion.
Let us look at the practical lessons from this passage.
1 – Tell God Your Concern
3 When the wine gave out, the mother of Jesus said to him, “They have no wine.” 4 And Jesus said to her, “Woman, what concern is that to you and to me? My hour has not yet come.”
We are in the season of Epiphany, a season in the church year that we focus on the revelation of the divine nature of Jesus Christ. To me one of the most revelatory evidence of Jesus’ divine nature is in the life of Mary. The way Mary act and talk and behave reveals her confidence in her Son’s identity as the Promised One.
When she found out that there wasn’t enough wine for the banquet, she came to Jesus and told him as if she knew that Jesus could do something about it. Jesus joked about her confidence, saying, "Woman, what concern is that to you and to me? My hour has not yet come." This statement is loaded, and probably only Mary could understand the implication.
By the way, the use of the term "woman" is not disrespectful in that culture. It is a common term an adult male used to address any lady.
The part that I think only Mary would understand is when Jesus said, "My hour has not yet come." This statement has a great deal of connotation and humor that only Mary could understand. Remember, John’s gospel tends to depict Jesus as a person full of the sense of humor. Jesus is saying, "Mom, you want me to provide wine? It is not time yet. You and I know that there will be a day when I will give people the wine of grace through my blood. My hour has not yet come." Mary seemed to ignore Jesus’ joke and order the servants to prepare to do what Jesus told them to do.
What we can learn from Mary is that she knows who Jesus is and she knows what Jesus can do and she knows that Jesus would do what is the best and her job is to report to him with trust.
What is your concern today? Are you concern about your health, or your wife’s or husband’s health? Are you concern about your children’s behavior, their upbringing, or their education? Even if you are concern about something that you might think trivial, in Mary’s case it was about wine, a luxury item, but the main concern is about embarrassment, tell Jesus. Tell him about your concern for being embarrassed, being shamed, being put down, because he cares about you.
2 – Prepare to receive God’s answer with faith
5 His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.”
I guess Mary might have smiled or wink at Jesus for his joke. Or Mary might just feel upset to be reminded that her son would one day give his life to save the world. Mary’s didn’t respond to Jesus’ challenge. Maybe Jesus was testing his mother’s faith by saying that "This is none of my business."
Remember the story of the Canaanite woman that came to ask Jesus to heal her daughter. Jesus said, you are a Samaritan, so your daughter’s illness is none of my business. Jesus actually said something worse, "’It is not fair to take the children’s food and throw it to the dogs.’ She said, ’Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.’ Then Jesus answered her, ’Woman, great is your faith! Let it be done for you as you wish.’ And her daughter was healed instantly." (Mat 15:21-28) The Canaanite woman was so focused that she doesn’t feel hurt, nor even distracted by Jesus words.
Mary here expresses her faith by telling the servants to prepare to receive the answer to her prayer.
1 Peter 5:7 says, "Cast all your anxieties on him, for he cares about you." Notice it says "all" your anxieties, not just some of them. For some people casting your concerns to God is like casting a fishing line; you cast it out and reel it back.
The Bible says, "Without faith, no one can please God." The way you act after your prayer shows how much faith you have. What do you do after you cast your concerns to God? Are you prepared to claim the answer?
There is a story about a man that went to heaven, and St. Peter gave him a tour of heaven on the first day. They tour the entire place and at the end the pass by a huge building. The man asks St. Peter, what building it is. St. Peter said, it is a ware house, and come take a look. So he took him in to the hug warehouse as big as the New York City. He sees millions and millions packages on the shelves in the warehouse and he asks, "What are these packages?" Peter said, "Unclaimed blessings, and unclaimed answers to prayers."
Many people pray and never expect God to give them. Of course, God sometimes doesn’t always answer the prayers the way you want it. But God would always give you better than what you ask for because he knows exactly what you need. So don’t just pray and ask for blessings, be prepared to receive from God.
3 – Enjoy God’s abundant gift
6 Now standing there were six stone water jars for the Jewish rites of purification, each holding twenty or thirty gallons. 7 Jesus said to them, “Fill the jars with water.” And they filled them up to the brim. 8 He said to them, “Now draw some out, and take it to the chief steward.” So they took it. 9 When the steward tasted the water that had become wine, and did not know where it came from (though the servants who had drawn the water knew), the steward called the bridegroom 10 and said to him, “Everyone serves the good wine first, and then the inferior wine after the guests have become drunk. But you have kept the good wine until now.” 11 Jesus did this, the first of his signs, in Cana of Galilee, and revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him.
Jesus must be moved by his mother’s faith. He asked the servants to fill in six huge stone jars that each can hold twenty or thirty gallons. Can you imagine a total of around 120-180 gallons of wine? It is not only plenty, but also good. The headwaiter was surprised by the quality of the wine and jokes about it to the bridegroom, “Everyone serves the good wine first, and then the inferior wine after the guests have become drunk. But you have kept the good wine until now.”
God doesn’t give you sparingly, but he gives you abundantly. This story signifies that the best is yet to come. This is a story of the messianic banquet that is about to come. According to the Old Testament prophecy, two things are going to happen in heaven: there will be a wedding banquet (Isa. 61:10; 62:5; Jer. 33:10–11; Matt. 25:1–13; Rev. 19:6–9), and there will be abundance of wine, (Joel 3:18; Amos 9:13; Isa. 25:6; Luke 22:18; for wine producing joy, see Ps. 4:7; Eccles. 9:7). The point is that the best is yet to come.
God’s extravagance is raveled in John 3:16, “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life." Nothing can be more extravagant than sacrifice God’s own son to save the world. If God doesn’t spare his own Son for you and me, what else wouldn’t he give you?
Jesus said, "I came so that they may have life and have it abundantly." Invite Jesus into your heart because he wants you to have a life and have it abundantly
