Friday, April 4, 2025  

Today's Scripture
John 2:1–12

On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding. When the wine gave out, the mother of Jesus said to him, “They have no wine.” And Jesus said to her, “Woman, what concern is that to you and to me? My hour has not yet come.” His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.” Now standing there were six stone water jars for the Jewish rites of purification, each holding twenty or thirty gallons. Jesus said to them, “Fill the jars with water.” And they filled them up to the brim. He said to them, “Now draw some out, and take it to the chief steward.” So they took it. When the steward tasted the water that had become wine, and did not know where it came from (though the servants who had drawn the water knew), the steward called the bridegroom and said to him, “Everyone serves the good wine first, and then the inferior wine after the guests have become drunk. But you have kept the good wine until now.” Jesus did this, the first of his signs, in Cana of Galilee, and revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him.

After this he went down to Capernaum with his mother, his brothers, and his disciples; and they remained there a few days. (NRSV)

Reflection

Jesus’ first miracle in the Gospel of John — which John goes on to highlight as the first of the “signs” that reveal Jesus’ glory — seems relatively mundane when compared to his later “signs,” like Jesus walking on water or his raising of Lazarus from the dead. Sure, the transformation of six jars of water into high-quality wine may have helped the newly wedded couple and their family avoid a great social faux pas, but the text makes clear that Jesus is not terribly interested in helping in that regard: “They have no wine.” “Woman, what concern is that to you and me?” (John 2:3–4).  

So, what are we to make of this? Why is John the only Gospel to include this passage, particularly when Jesus seems reticent at times to perform miracles in John’s Gospel — not because he is incapable of performing them, but because he wants the faith of those witnessing them to be grounded in something beyond pure amazement?  

Though scholars caution about reading too much symbolism into the text, Professor Gerard Sloyan notes in the Interpretation commentary series that there was a running tradition in and around Judea in the centuries leading up to Jesus’ arrival that equated God’s future as one flowing with wine and abundance, contrasting it with the present age of water and scarcity. This miracle, performed at the outset of Jesus’ ministry, was a sign and symbol that God’s promised future had indeed arrived for all those who believe. So whether at ancient weddings or in sharing a Communion meal like we will this upcoming Sunday, we give thanks for the gift of God’s abundant future that Christ came to usher in.

Prayer
Holy God, as we remember Christ’s ministry this Lenten season — and remember the glimpses of your abundant future he came to share — help us to live lives of abundance and grace, that we too may witness to your glory. Amen.

Written by Matt Helms, Associate Pastor for Children, Family, and Welcoming Ministries

Reflection and Prayer © Fourth Presbyterian Church

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