Jesus Revealed His Glory at a Wedding Celebration based on John 2:1-11

Let us pray: Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, O Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer.  Amen.

     Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

     I. Changes. Changes are all around us in the world we live in today. A lot of people do not like changes. Some changes are bad and some changes are good. When a winter blizzard hits our area and shuts down schools and businesses, then we are forced to stay at home. For people who are traveling, that change in the weather is a bad thing. For students in school that like to have a few days off from school, that change is a good thing. Whether we like changes or not, things are constantly changing. Our bodies change as we grow older. Our lives change after we graduate from high school or college and leave home. Our lives also change after we get married and have children and those children have children. Our lives change when we have health problems and we have to take medicine or eat different kinds of food than we are used to eating.

     II. Read John 2:1-3 and comment. Jesus made some changes at a wedding celebration in Cana. John’s Gospel tells us, “On the third day there was a wedding at Cana in Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. Jesus also was invited to the wedding with his disciples. When the wine ran out, the mother of Jesus said to him, “They have no wine” (John 2:1-3). Wine was an important part of wedding celebrations at that time. Running out of wine too early would be embarrassing for the bride and groom. In those days wedding celebrations lasted for about a week and about everyone in a small town like Cana would have probably attended the wedding and the wedding celebration. The words Jesus’ mother spoke to Him are words that expected Jesus to do something about the fact that there was no more wine. She said to Jesus, “They have no wine.”

     III. Read John 2:4 and comment.  Jesus seemed a little reluctant to do anything about the lack of wine at first. Jesus replied to His mother, “Woman, what does this have to do with me? My hour has not yet come” (John 2:4). Mary did not give up on her belief that Jesus could change things for the better at the wedding celebration though.

     IV. Read John 2:5 and comment.  John’s Gospel continues, “His mother said to the servants, ‘Do whatever He tells you’” (John 2:5). Mary did not know exactly what Jesus would tell the servants to do, but she had confidence that Jesus could solve the problem in some way.

     V. Read John 2:6-10 and comment.  Jesus used what He saw around Him to solve the problem at the wedding at Cana. John’s Gospel states, “Now there were six stone water jars there for the Jewish rites of purification, each holding twenty or thirty gallons. Jesus said to the servants, ‘Fill the jars with water.’ And they filled them up to the brim. And he said to them, ‘Now draw some out and take it to the master of the feast.’ So they took it. When the master of the feast tasted the water now become wine, and did not know where it came from (though the servants who had drawn the water knew), the master of the feast called the bridegroom and said to him, ‘Everyone serves the good wine first, and when people have drunk freely, then the poor wine. But you have kept the good wine until now’” (John 2:6-10).  Jesus saw the six stone water jars and He had the servants fill them up.  Jesus miraculously turned that water into the best of wine.  The master of the feast was amazed that the good wine had been saved for this time.

     VI. Read John 2:11 and comment. Jesus made a change for the better, so that the wedding celebration could continue with better wine than the first wine that was served. As a result of this change for the better, John’s Gospel informs us, “This, the first of his signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee, and manifested his glory. And his disciples believed in him” (John 2:11). On this second Sunday after the Epiphany we are reminded about the first of the miraculous signs Jesus performed at Cana. The glory of Jesus was revealed and His disciples that were with Him believed in Him.

     VII. More miracles in the future. The miraculous sign at Cana was the beginning of many more miracles to come later. Jesus continued to make changes for the better by healing people of diseases and teaching people about the kingdom of God. One of the greatest changes for the better involving Jesus took place after Jesus had died on the cross for all of the sins of the world. On the third day, Jesus was raised from the dead never to die again. By Jesus’ conquering of sin, death, and the devil for us, we are forgiven, given God’s undeserved mercy, and our lives are changed for the better.

     VIII. Jesus and changes for the better in our lives. Jesus has made changes for the better in our lives and He continues to do so. The first change Jesus has made in our lives is the change from unbelief to belief in Him. For most of us, Jesus made that change in our Baptism as infants. Through the gift of faith in Jesus we have our sins forgiven. Every one of us who continues to grow in that faith relationship with Jesus through believing in the truths of the Bible and believing in the renewing power of Holy Communion, can look forward to one day enjoying everlasting life in heaven with Him and all believers in Him.

     Jesus does not stop making changes for the better in our lives either. Because we are His followers, He is continually turning the “water” of our lives into “excellent wine”. He helps us learn from our sins and mistakes in life. He helps us each time we turn to Him in prayer for guidance day by day. He encourages us to look to Him in every time of trouble or need we have.

     IX. Conclusion. Today we thank Jesus for the many changes for the better He has brought about in our lives. We are thankful for His gifts of faith and hope and love in the challenging times we live in today. We boldly trust in Jesus, not simply because He once turned water into wine, but also because “He died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again” (2 Corinthians 5:15). Through the pages of the Bible we have seen the glory of Jesus at a wedding celebration and we believe in Him. Amen.

     The peace of God, which surpasses allunderstanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.  Amen.