John 2:6-8 "And there were set there six waterpots of stone, after the manner of the purifying of the Jews, containing two or three firkins apiece. (7) Jesus saith unto them, Fill the waterpots with water. And they filled them up to the brim. (8) And he saith unto them, Draw out now, and bear unto the governor of the feast. And they bare it."
Mary had come to Jesus and stated the governor of the feast had run out of
wine. She simply stated the situation and then turned to the servants to say,
"Do whatever He tells you to do." This is the first of the many
miracles performed by Jesus. Mary has observed Jesus for 30 years. He has not
performed any miracles to this point; yet, she had the utmost confidence that
her Son was fully capable of remedying this situation. I admit to you that I
would love to know the interactions in the household during those 30 years.
What did Jesus share with Mary? Had He told her about "In the
beginning"? Did He share with her what it was like before God had said,
"Let there be light"? Did He talk to her of the angels and their
chorus of praise, "Holy, Holy, Holy"? Something inside Mary
assured her that her Son would take care of this situation. Do you and I have
that same assurance when we take our burdens to the Lord? Are we confident that
Jesus is able to take care of any and all circumstances of life?
Jesus turned to the servants to tell them to fill the waterpots... with water.
"What? But Jesus, they have no wine. They have plenty of water. They need
wine." He said, "Fill the waterpots with water."
"Mary told us to do whatsoever He said. He said fill them with water. We
will fill them with water." They filled the pots to the brim. We are going
"all-in" with obeying Jesus. We have no idea what He is going to do
with six waterpots of water, but we are not going to hold back anything.
Do you and I have that same commitment to our Lord? When He tells us to do
something, do we go "all-in" or do we go "half-way"?
Now comes the real test: "Draw it out and bear (give) it to the governor
of the feast." "What? But Jesus they need wine, not water.
Anyone can tell the difference between water and wine!" I'm afraid
that might be my response, but these servants took to heart that which Mary had
said. "Whatsoever he saith unto you, do it." They began to
serve the wine. The guests of the wedding feast began to taste this wine and
were amazed. There is a word that is used quite often concerning Jesus in the
accounts of the Gospel. That word is "astonished". I have no doubt
the guests were astonished at what they were tasting. In fact, they said to the
governor, "Most people bring out the good wine at the beginning and then
they begin to mix in the cheap wine afterward. But you have saved the best for
last." He was stating this was the best wine he had ever tasted.
What is our response when Jesus answers our prayers? Are we astonished? I'm
afraid that, all too often, we have lost that edge of astonishment.
What does this have to do with us? What lesson can we draw from this wonderful
miracle? First, I see this took place three days after Jesus was baptized. We
know baptism is the representation of death, burial, and resurrection. This
water was placed in stone pots and wine was drawn out. Jesus' earthly body was
laid in a stone tomb and His glorified body came out. Our bodies shall be laid
in earthen tombs and glorified bodies shall one day come out. That is the first
and most beautiful lesson. But as noted in the devotion, we can learn to trust
the instructions of our Lord. We should be willing to do whatever He leads us to do.
We should be "full-on" committed to obeying and then trusting Jesus
for the outcome.
May I be fully committed to my Lord in all matters of life.