Worship Call 0614 The Best Wine

New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update (Chapter 26)

26 While they were eating, Jesus took some bread, and bafter a blessing, He broke it and gave it to the disciples, and said, “Take, eat; this is My body.”27 And when He had taken a cup and given thanks, He gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you;28 for this is My blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for forgiveness of sins.29 “But I say to you, I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it new with you in My Father’s kingdom.”

Just as we will know how the garden was when the Lord restores the world back to its intended order prior to the flood we will know what the wine at Cana will taste like. I can image our Lord handing me a cup with himself with a cup and say to Me,

Here try this.

and he smiles as he watches my expression.

oh what a great friend we we have in Jesus

and this is another fine day in the Lord.

John 2:1–6 (NASB95) — 1 On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there;

A Jewish wedding by custom started with the signing of the contract between the Parents probably the Father of the bride and the father of the bridegroom. They would meet, and over a meal would discuss the bride price and any other arrangement or deal. when the bartering was over, the two fathers would have sealed the covenant. and the two would be contractually married. Though what we would call being engaged, the contract could not be broken except though a divorce.

the bridegroom would return back to His Father’s house to build on to the house a place where he would bring his wife and live. the Bride would return to her father’s house and wait. the engagement would last a year. the bride would have to have to be ready. by the end of the waiting period she knew the time was short and she would have to be ready because she would not know the day or the hour by which her bridegroom would come to receive her. Finally at any particular hour of day or night there would be a loud commotion with music and laughter and celebration as a procession strolled though town to the house of the bride. She would immediately light her lamp if it were night and put on her wedding garments and be taken home to where the wedding feast would take place and the marriage would consummated.

Remember that the bride did not know, when the bridegroom will come. At best there would be an expectation not only be the bride but also but the friends and family who would be anticipation that a year is close to passing and the two who were betroth would soon be celebrating their formal wedding that would last a week. this said that there would be no formal invitations to go out in the fall for a spring wedding. Nothing that would way, “Save the date!”

If the people were to stop what they were doing and put their own lives on hold to celebrate this wedding celebration there better be plenty of food and wine on site. To run out would be an embarrassment that would be talked about for a long time after. In so to stretch out the supply of wine, the best wine would be served first. then as the wedding continued then the wine would be watered down, weakened.

But is that not like life. The best whatever it is loses its value. depreciation. Never is as good as it was. But what we learn is that with Jesus things do not depreciate but only gets better.

2 and both Jesus and His disciples were invited to the wedding.

By now we might be looking at, James and John the sons of Zebedee. Simon Peter and his brother Andrew and two other brothers Phillip and Nathaniel. Cana was the home of Nathaniel.

3 When the wine ran out,

Now this was a crisis. it was not that they were running low on the wine. It was that they were completely out. There would be grumblings of now drunk guests who would be waiting to fill their empty cups. How Mary god involved or why is not certain but she goes to her son for a solution.

the mother of Jesus said to Him, “They have no wine.” 4 And Jesus said to her, “Woman, what does that have to do with you and with me? My hour has not yet come.”

Jesus Call His mother, Not μητερ [mēter] (Mother) But Woman (γυναι [gunai]). This demonstrated that Jesus was no longer under parental authority. Mother Mary was no longer in Charge. And she was not a part of the Lord’s Messianic work.

What does that have to do with me and thee was the expression. It seems to express that this outside of the immediate concerns of the bystanders even the guest. it kind of denotes, “well that is their problem what do you want me to do about it.

Jesus is under the authority of His Heavenly Father. and there is a time coming, the right time, on the Father’s timing that the signs of Jesus’ Messiahship will be manifested. this is not now and it is not the mother who will initiate the actions of her son to reveal his identity.

My hour has not yet come.”

Enhanced Strong’s Lexicon 5610 ὥρα

5610 ὥρα [hora /ho·rah/] n f. Apparently a primary word; TDNT 9:675; TDNTA 1355; GK 6052; 108 occurrences; AV translates as “hour” 89 times, “time” 11 times, “season” three times, and translated miscellaneously five times. 1 a certain definite time or season fixed by natural law and returning with the revolving year. 1A of the seasons of the year, spring, summer, autumn, winter. 2 the daytime (bounded by the rising and setting of the sun), a day. 3 a twelfth part of the day-time, an hour, (the twelve hours of the day are reckoned from the rising to the setting of the sun). 4 any definite time, point of time, moment.

the question has been asked, as one’s own frustration increases along with the ever growing evil within the world.

“When is God ever going to have enough, and do something about it.”

Evil is certainly having its say. and it seems that the Lord is awful quiet while evil is prospering. God’s plan and will also is stamped with time stamp. we my think that the Lord is slow or late but never is that the case. and when he does not show up with immediate answer to our prayers God is no genie with an immediate response to every given prayer.

The Revelation of the Lord Jesus Christ the messianic king was not yet. this would answer to so many questions of what Jesus would repeatedly tell others after healing them, not to tell anyone. It may also been why Jesus would later on Lay on a obscure dialogue of eating his flesh and drinking his blood which caused the multitude to turn and walk way. It was time to weed out the people who wanted to make him King.

5 His mother said to the servants, “Whatever He says to you, do it.”

Is the Mother expecting a miracle? Or is the Mother simply putting into the hands of Jesus a responsibility to solve a problem. She did not say to Jesus, if you are the son of God turn this water into wine.

What we will learn is that Jesus had the volitional control over his divine nature. Jesus at any point could call upon his deity to solve an earthly problem, as he is about to here. This will be a secretive event something for only the eyes of a few but not to bring any attention to himself.

Mother said

“Whatever He says to you, do it.”

where will we hear those words again?

the mount of Transfiguration where Jesus takes Peter James and John. He is transfigured and there is the showing up of Moses and Elijah. Peter offered to construct three tabernacles when the Father spoke out of the clouds and said

Matthew 17:5 (NASB95) — 5 While he was still speaking, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and behold, a voice out of the cloud said, “This is My beloved Son, with whom I am well-pleased; listen to Him!”

6 Now there were six stone waterpots set there for the Jewish custom of purification, containing twenty or thirty gallons each.

The stone pots were used for ceremonial cleansing. A ritual washing before and after a meal was part of Jewish teaching and custom.

Mark 7:1–5 (NASB95) — 1 The Pharisees and some of the scribes gathered around Him when they had come from Jerusalem, 2 and had seen that some of His disciples were eating their bread with impure hands, that is, unwashed. 3 (For the Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they carefully wash their hands, thus observing the traditions of the elders; 4 and when they come from the market place, they do not eat unless they cleanse themselves; and there are many other things which they have received in order to observe, such as the washing of cups and pitchers and copper pots.) 5 The Pharisees and the scribes asked Him, “Why do Your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders, but eat their bread with impure hands?”

The number of empty pots of water indicate that there had to be a large number of people at this wedding to not only drink up the wine but to empty Over hundred gallons of water for purification.

Mary left the problem in the hands of her son, and probably went on in confidence that her son would figure out the situation.

John 2:7–9 (NASB95) — 7 Jesus said to them, “Fill the waterpots with water.” So they filled them up to the brim. 8 And He said to them, “Draw some out now and take it to the headwaiter.” So they took it to him. 9 When the headwaiter tasted the water which had become wine, and did not know where it came from (but the servants who had drawn the water knew), the headwaiter called the bridegroom,

What we call a Miracle John calls a sign. When we think of a miracle we think of that which defies the Laws of nature. So let me ask you a question,

who wrote the Laws of nature? and if the sovereignty and the power of the one who can speak the universe into existence can with but a though change the properties of any substance to be something different is, it may be a miracle to us but in reality is God being God and doing God stuff.

So here we see some attributes of Jesus’ divine Character

Sovereignty God rules over every molecule. He can shape and change all at his will to do so.

Omnipotence all power. what his sovereignty wills He has the power to do so.

Yes, Jesus could have turned the stones into bread. and Jesus can turn the water into wine. Not so much of a miracle to the one who can so easily doing it. As easy for jesus as it is to take in a breath of air.

John 2:10 (NASB95) — 10 and said to him, “Every man serves the good wine first, and when the people have drunk freely, then he serves the poorer wine; but you have kept the good wine until now.”

At what was about to be an embarrassment of running out of wine, turns out to be commendatory to the Host to save the better wine for later with lasting joy throughout the festive occasion.

The wine was no welshes grape juice. the Headwaiter would not have been commended for serving grape juice but coming from Jesus you can bet that it was the best of all wines. We will be able to taste the wine of Jesus at the Marriage supper of the Lamb, I am sure of it.

John 2:11 (NASB95) — 11 This beginning of His signs Jesus did in Cana of Galilee, and manifested His glory, and His disciples believed in Him.

A sign is the revealing of the Messiah. that which points to His identity. it would be in the book of John which is the first of seven major signs which leads to the seventh which is the raising of Nazareth which will be news that would spread quickly throughout the land.

Turning water into wine brought blessing and gladness to the people.

Psalm 104:15 (NASB95) — 15 And wine which makes man’s heart glad, So that he may make his face glisten with oil, And food which sustains man’s heart.

Contrast that to Moses who turned the water into Blood which was the Judgment from God.

Ladies and gentlemen the bridegroom has come and it is time to celebration.