Water into Wine

You may have noticed that the graphic I loaded with yesterday’s post was six clay jars. One of the weird-nesses I have found with using Blogger – especially in the last six months or so – is that in order use Blogger’s servers to store my images, I have to load them prior to typing any words in the post. If I type first, then the image pretends to load, but never appears. Why is that? Does anybody know?

Anyway, so I had intended to write about John 2:1-11 yesterday, which is the description of Jesus turning water into wine at the wedding in Cana. I loaded the image, and then just stared at the screen. Nothing. Nada. Not a single thought. I can only sit with the computer on my lap for so long before I decide that the topic will have to wait for another day. I liked the image, though, so I left it.

This morning I spent some time re-reading the Miracles chapter of The Jesus I Never Knew for class this week. Maybe now I have my thoughts in order enough to write this post.

I was reading a post by the Cheesehead in Paradise, a Presbyterian minister, who called the incarnation of Christ “the great do-over” – our second chance. I kind of like that metaphor. Joe preached about this miracle yesterday, and he called it “Out with the old and in with the new.” He compared the water in the clay jars, which was to be used for ceremonial cleaning to the Old Testament laws and ritual. Jesus, by turning water into wine, changed the burden on the laws into the new covenant, symbolized by the wine of communion – the blood of Christ.

It’s good symbolism. Yancey used it as well, except he equated the wine with celebration. I think I may like that, too. Jesus changed the heavy burden of the laws and rituals to a celebration – JOY. There is now JOY to be found in our relationship with God through Jesus. It’s the great do-over. It’s the coming of Grace.

The question which always occurs to me when I read this passage, is why Jesus changes his mind. At first he tells his mother, in effect, not now. It’s not his time, and she doesn’t need to be concerned with the wine at the wedding banquet. And yet, he performs the miracle. Why is that? Why does he change his mind. Yancey says that this was the first, but surely not the last time in Jesus’ public life that “he changed his plans to accommodate someone else.” Is it as simple as that? She asked him to do it, so he changed his plans, and did it?

This action was not just running down to the nearest WalMart and restocking the pantry with extra wine. This action would reveal Jesus to his disciples and to the servants who helped him. Surely rumors of the miracle would leak out? This was the launch of a series of events which would eventually lead to crucifixion. Did he change his plans just because she asked him to?

It does illustrate to us a particular point, however. How often are we so set in our ways and dug deep down in our own plans that we fail to hear God speaking to us? Do we recognize that sometimes God’s guidance comes to us from other people? Do we even notice that the words or advice coming from someone else might be God’s leading?

And then there’s Mary (thanks to Jeff for pointing this out). She just hands Jesus her concern. She has faith that he can do something to fix the problem – she never questions that he CAN. She just hands him the problem and walks away. She doesn’t question him, she doesn’t come back and check on him. She surrenders what is wrong and never picks it up again. Do we do that? No, not usually.

It’s the great do-over. The difference is that this time, we have grace. This time, God is only waiting for us to listen – to trust and obey.

Image: From Hermanolean, as was yesterday's image.