Theme: The first of the signs
Text: Is. 62:1-5; 1 Cor. 12:4-11; Jn. 2:1-11
Weddings are and have always been considered a major event. Human history began with a marriage ceremony in the Garden of Eden and human history will end with the marriage ceremony between the bride and groom. Jesus also began His ministry at a wedding ceremony in Cana. In Jesus’ day a wedding celebration could take several days. The bride and groom would return to the groom’s house after the bridal ceremony and celebrate with their friends for as long as a week. During such a celebration in Cana, the wine run out and Jesus used the occasion to demonstrate His power for the first time by performing a miracle that was also a sign. Signs are not merely miracles. They are miracles with a meaning and with a message. They are intended to convey truth that would otherwise not be known and to manifest something significant that might otherwise be hidden. A sign is the outcome of the combination of human and divine activity. Men can dill water jars but only God can turn water into wine. Men perform the ordinary, normal activity but God touches it supernaturally and brings it to life giving it flavour, fragrance and effect. This sign at Cana was indicative of what the ministry of Jesus was going to be like whenever He touched a human life, not only during His lifetime on earth but also throughout the centuries to come when ever His ministry would be present in the world. Thus it affects us today as well. Bringing God into a situation touches everything with a new power that manifests His glory and ensures joy and gladness. The signs that Christ performed were special actions to reveal His glory to those who believed and confronted others with the need to make a decision about Him. They point us to who He really is. Jesus performed many signs to demonstrate how we could obtain the fullness of His blessings. The signs served to reveal Christ and what He came to do and changing water into wine was the first of the signs
The purpose of a sign is to point the way, to draw attention to or to give information about something. Today we all rely on signs that are placed in various places to give us information or point us in the right direction. In a variety of ways each of the miracles recorded by John points the way to Christ, draws attention to Him and gives information about Him. Signs are important but we have missed the point when we only focus on the signs and do not reach the destination they are pointing to. The signs in the gospels are pointing to the person of Christ, telling us about Him for the express purpose of leading people to faith in Him. Instead of focussing on the signs they should lead us to the belief that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God and that through faith in Him we receive eternal life.
Street signs are very helpful and many countries make it a priority to prevent people from getting lost. We often do not value signs till we find out how difficult it is to meet a need without them. On many occasions while trying to locate houses in areas unfamiliar to us we find ourselves looking for non existent signs and end up asking for directions. If those signs were available we would have no trouble finding our way unless we cannot read the signs. The first of the signs turning water into wine is very significant. Many Old Testament prophecies about the Messianic age talk about a time when wine would flow liberally. In Isaiah 55:1 the prophet declares “everyone who thirst come to the waters; and you that have no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price”. He talks about a time when everyone shall see the glory of the Lord and this is repeated by Amos in the words “the time is surely coming, says the Lord, when the one who ploughs shall overtake the one who reaps, and the treader of grapes the one who sows the seed; the mountains shall drip sweet wine, and all the hills shall flow with it. I will restore the fortunes of my people Israel, and they shall rebuild the ruined cities and inhabit them; they shall plant vineyards and drink their wine, and they shall make gardens and eat their fruit”. So Jesus’ miracle is in a sense an announcement of the coming of the Messianic age. It is also significant that the responsibility for providing the wine belonged to the bridegroom and Christ is the bridegroom announcing the birth of the Messianic age. Jesus used the occasion of the wine shortage to reveal God’s plan of salvation and redemption to the world. He takes an embarrassing situation, a situation of need and wants and turns it into a time of Joy and happiness. He redeems the situation and this was the purpose of His coming to earth.
A sign not only points the way but also meets a need. Jesus turning water into wine met a very important need at the time. Wine in the Scriptures often speaks of joy. Having no wine is a description of men and women who have never been saved and serves as a reminder of the emptiness of our life without Christ. There is no lasting joy for the unbeliever. “Do whatever Jesus tells you” is the best advice that anyone can receive who is facing life’s problems. When we reach the end of the line there is only one thing that we can do – do whatever He tells us. Jesus does not only give joy but abundant joy. He not only provided wine He provided it in abundance. He went beyond meeting their immediate need. The world often offers men and women its best at the onset by holding out its most attractive offers. Then when they have wasted their lives in empty pleasure it has nothing more to offer. The Christian life is the very opposite. It gets better all the time. Christ keeps the best wine until the last.
The six stone water jars used in this sign were jars that were being used for the Jewish rites of purification. The act of changing water into wine was symbolic of the passing away of the old order of law and tradition and the coming of a new and living way of providing purification from sin. The jars being filled to the brim signifies that the time for ceremonial purification was now completely fulfilled and that purification would now come from the saving power of Jesus’ blood signified by the wine. The wine as testified to by the chief steward was not just any wine but wine of very superior quality. In other words there is a qualitative difference between the old order and the new. The old order could only give a picture of what it meant to be cleansed from sin. The new order actually accomplished the cleansing from sin. In his vision of the throne room of God in revelations John sees a great multitude dressed in white and when he asks who they are is told: “these are they who have come out of the great ordeal’ they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb”. Only the blood of Christ can cleanse from sin and Jesus wants to transform us just like He transformed the water into wine. He does not only want to meet our need but wants us to have an abundance of His blessings
One lesson we learn from the first of the signs is that to experience the life-changing presence of Christ we begin by finding Him. Mary’s words were “to search everywhere in the house till they found Him”. He is here but we have to find Him and go to Him without any pre-decided agenda of what He should do for us. We need to come to Him willing to trust whatever He intends to do in our lives. This means that we should obey everything He says. When we find Him we should do whatever He tells us. We should listen to His words because our lives depend on it. We should go wherever He sends us and not question, debate or argue about what He says.
When one is lost he or she would either look for a signboard or ask directions. No one would come to a signboard pointing in the right direction and then go the opposite way because he or she believes they are right. But this is often what we do when we come to Christ. We cannot come to Christ and dictate to Him what He should do. What we should do is bring our need to Him and then trust Him to respond and He definitely will. Jesus Christ is still in the business of turning water into wine. He wants to perform this miracle in our lives and He is looking for servants who will listen and obey Him. Why not put your life in His hands and watch Him transform you into the wonderful, incredible and extraordinary creation He has always intended you to be.
The first sign Jesus performed revealed the truth about the Messiah and His mission. Here was the One who could handle life, One who could take something ordinary like water and turn it into wine, One who could turn sadness into joy. Here was One who could change people and make them pure and holy and acceptable to God. These signs of God’s presence are still present with us in the God given talents and abilities He has given us for service. Jesus Christ is still transforming water into wine. He continues to transform the ordinary elements of our lives into extraordinary vessels to demonstrate His power and love and to serve as a sign. May we all surrender our lives to Him and become signs pointing others to Him. Amen!
