“Jesus’ Miracle at a Wedding Reveals His Glory”
(John 2:1-11 – Epiphany 2 – January 19, 2025)
John 2:1-11 – 1On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. 2Now both Jesus and His disciples were invited to the wedding. 3And when they ran out of wine, the mother of Jesus said to Him, “They have no wine.” 4Jesus said to her, “Woman, what does your concern have to do with Me? My hour has not yet come.” 5His mother said to the servants, “Whatever He says to you, do it.” 6Now there were set there six waterpots of stone, according to the manner of purification of the Jews, containing twenty or thirty gallons apiece. 7Jesus said to them, “Fill the waterpots with water.” And they filled them up to the brim. 8And He said to them, “Draw some out now, and take it to the master of the feast.” And they took it. 9When the master of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and did not know where it came from (but the servants who had drawn the water knew), the master of the feast called the bridegroom. 10And he said to him, “Every man at the beginning sets out the good wine, and when the guests have well drunk, then the inferior. You have kept the good wine until now!” 11This beginning of signs Jesus did in Cana of Galilee, and manifested His glory; and His disciples believed in Him.
Dear Redeemed in Jesus Christ, who has revealed His glory as our Savior:
In our text, we hear of the first miracle Jesus performed during His public ministry. He addressed the down to earth needs of a newly married man and wife, as well as guests who were present to celebrate with them. Jesus turned water into wine; and by this He “manifested His glory; and His disciples believed in Him” (vs. 11).
How often in the Gospels, we see Jesus mingling with people where they are at, in the midst of everyday life. He shows concern for their needs by healing the sick, comforting the sorrowful, providing for the hungry. Then He takes it to a higher level, teaching them about the kingdom of heaven and revealing His glory as their Savior. Jesus’ miracles testified to His power to provide the most important need of fallen mankind – in the forgiveness, salvation, and eternal life He came to win.
As He begins His public ministry, “Jesus’ Miracle at a Wedding Reveals His Glory.” We see how 1) He blesses marriage with His presence, 2) He lovingly provides in a time of need, and 3) He strengthens the faith of His followers.
1) He blesses marriage with His presence
A few days before this, Jesus had called several disciples to follow Him. Then, one of the first things He did was to attend a wedding to which they had been invited. Jesus was present to bless the marriage and bring joy to the home of the newlyweds.
What a great blessing God has given in the estate of marriage. Yet often, marriage is not honored as it should be. Many try to replace God-given marriage with man-made arrangements – living together in fornication, adultery, homosexuality, etc. Certainly Jesus is not present to bless such relationships, which His Word calls sin. Nor can He bless any form of sexual immorality, including even hidden lusts. But God blesses marriage as He has given it. Before the fall into sin, before desires became corrupted, in His perfect creation God instituted marriage as a holy union of one man and one woman as one flesh for life (Genesis 2:21-25). God’s gift of marriage provides for the closest loving companionship, sexual fulfillment; and if God wills, the blessing of children. Through His gift of marriage and family, God provides for countless down to earth, everyday needs.
A Christ-centered marriage and home receives God’s blessing in a special way, for it also pictures heavenly things. God shows high regard for marriage by comparing it to Christ’s love for His Bride, the Church. Ephesians 5:25 says: “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her.” As the heavenly Bridegroom, Jesus would bring greatest blessing by giving His life in love for us. On the cross, He would shed His precious blood to redeem us from all our sins. Then He would rise to present us as His Bride, “holy and without blemish” (Ephesians 5:27), clothed in His wedding garment of righteousness. What a joyful occasion it is for our heavenly Bridegroom, as He unites us to Himself for eternal life by baptism and faith. And what a joyful occasion it will be one day when He brings us to live in the place He is preparing for us in His Father’s house in heaven (John 14:2).
Whether married or single, let us invite Jesus as the honored Guest in our homes, that He might bless us in the highest way. What a blessing it is to share His gifts of love and the truth of His salvation, with spouse and children, brothers and sisters. And what a blessing it is to share His gifts of truth and love here in the house of His Church, as the family of God, as brothers and sisters in Christ. Jesus is pleased to dwell with us each day as our Savior and bless us with His gifts of love, both temporal and eternal.
2) He lovingly provides in time of need
Jesus demonstrates this here. A Jewish wedding celebration could last a week, and during this time the wine ran out. The newlyweds could have been faced with a stressful and embarrassing situation, in the midst of their joyful occasion. But Jesus revealed His glory by lovingly providing in their time of need.
Jesus’ mother Mary brought the need to Jesus, telling Him: “They have no wine.” She knew He was the Son of God, conceived by the Holy Spirit and born as the Savior of the world. She knew He could help. But Jesus replied: “Woman, what does your concern have to do with Me? My hour has not yet come” (vs. 3-4). Jesus spoke with respect, but He set matters straight about proper authority. Mary addressed Him as her earthly Son, whose help she had been used to having around the home. Jesus responded according to His relationship as the Son of God. His earthly mother had no say in matters related to His work as the Savior of the world. Every word and deed, every time and occasion in Jesus’ earthly mission, had already been set by His Father.
Having heard the words of Jesus as her Savior, Mary humbly submitted in faith. She presented the need and left the outcome to Jesus. She told the servants: “Whatever He says to you, do it.” In answer to such prayer, Jesus provided abundantly more than asked (Ephesians 3:20). The six waterpots used for purification could hold 120-180 gallons of water, when the servants filled them as Jesus instructed. When they drew some out and took it to the master of the feast, they knew Jesus had turned the water into wine. And not only did He provide abundantly; He provided the very best. The master of the feast exclaimed to the bridegroom: “Every man at the beginning sets out the good wine, and when the guests have well drunk, then the inferior. You have kept the good wine until now!” (vs. 5-10).
Jesus is present in our homes and daily lives too, lovingly here to provide for us, just as He was there in the home of those newlyweds. Is there some unmet need causing us distress, leading us to wonder how we will get by? Is there some shortcoming in our life that is causing us shame, leaving us unable to fulfill certain expectations? Have the joys we once knew in marriage and family given way to loss, loneliness, and sorrow? Are we burdened by concerns of health? Are we wondering how our need will ever be fulfilled and work out the right way?
Jesus invites us to pray in every need, for He cares for us (1 Peter 5:7). Yet as we see in His response to Mary, sometimes His answer is: “My time has not yet come.” We are not always ready to hear that. Sometimes we want to tell the Lord how and when He should provide for us. And if He does not answer as we like, we may begin to pity ourselves and feel we deserve better, or despair and feel forsaken. Jesus needs to set us straight by His Word. The authority is His. The answer must come in His time. And it will be the best way, the most loving way, for our temporal and eternal blessing.
Truly Jesus’ hour of greatest blessing did come when, by His Father’s will, He provided the answer to our most desperate need. That hour was when He went to the cross to give His life for us. There He suffered for all our sins. He paid for all our faithless responses to life’s challenges, for all the ways we have questioned God and tried to take matters into our own hands. Jesus paid with His precious blood, innocent suffering, and death. He filled all our shortcomings by His own perfect life, which God now counts to us. Now Jesus lives to fill the highest needs of our soul, to give us life more abundantly (John 10:10); He lives to give us His gift of salvation and eternal life.
What greater proof of God’s love do we need, when it comes to trusting Him for daily needs? “He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?” (Romans 8:32). Jesus is present each day, blessing our homes, lovingly providing our needs the best way. Like Mary, having heard the words of our Savior, by faith we can present our need to Him in prayer and entrust our whole life to His care.
3) He strengthens the faith of His followers
Sometimes the Lord lets us go through time of trial and need, that we might see His glory in a new way as He provides for us. He leads us to cling all the more to His Word of promise; and here, He reveals His true glory as our Savior and strengthens our faith.
This was the result here, as it says: “This beginning of signs Jesus did in Cana of Galilee, and manifested His glory; and His disciples believed in Him” (vs. 11). Already, the disciples had been brought to saving faith. John the Baptist had pointed them to Jesus as the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. As Jesus called them to follow Him, they confessed Him as their Messiah and Savior (John 1:29-51). Now as Jesus revealed His glory by a miracle, their faith was strengthened. His miracles were signs to prove the real authority and power behind His Word of salvation. As the disciples took His Word to heart, their faith was strengthened by His Gospel’s power.
Today Jesus is here to minister to us through His Word and Sacraments. In these, Jesus gives us signs of His saving grace and glory, and the Holy Spirit powerfully works faith in us. In Baptism, Jesus washes away our sins, unites us to Himself in faith, and presents us as holy children of God. In His Holy Supper, Jesus gives us more than the finest wine; He fills His cup of salvation abundantly, giving us His own precious blood for the remission of our sins. As Jesus works His miracle of grace in our lives, showing us His true glory as our Savior, He strengthens our faith as His followers.
Dear family of God in Christ, beloved Bride of our heavenly Bridegroom: rejoice! Jesus is present to bless us in our marriage, family, and home. He is present to bless us in His Church with His gifts of salvation. He is here to answer our prayers and provide every need of body and soul in the best way. He is here to strengthen our faith by His loving promises. And at last, the faithful Bridegroom will bring us home to celebrate His marriage feast in heaven and joys forevermore (Revelation 19:7-9).
Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be. Amen.