The First Miracle of Jesus

Introduction

If we were to select a first miracle for Jesus to perform, no doubt we would pick something grand such as Jesus on the Mount of Transfiguration or, as Peter suggested, have Christ call down lightning from heaven. Maybe we would have Jesus perform a healing or raise someone from the dead, or have him feed the 5000. But God chose to use a social gathering for Christ’s first miracle. An ordinary couple had an unimportant need. The miracle was done secretly, so few people even knew it had occurred. This is not what we would have chosen for Christ’s first miracle, but it’s what God chose for the first miracle. And it reveals to us God’s love and compassion for us, even for our unimportant needs.

Verses 1-2
On the third day a wedding took place at Cana in Galilee. Jesus' mother was there, and Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding.

Verse 1 tells us that a wedding took place. It tells us where, but doesn’t even mention the people involved. Who were the groom and bride? What were their names? Which family in Cana were they? Are these people relatives of Jesus? Were they rich; were they poor? All we know is that there was a wedding in Cana.

Due to the fact that Mary and Jesus were at this wedding and that in verse 3 Mary seems to know intimately the situation of the wedding party, it is reasonable to assume that the groom’s family were relatives of Mary. This was a family gathering. Certainly this was not very important in God’s grand scheme of things, and yet he chose this family gathering to be the place where Christ would perform his first miracle.

Verses 3-4
When the wine was gone, Jesus' mother said to him, "They have no more wine." "Dear woman, why do you involve me?" Jesus replied. "My time has not yet come."

The translators have done a great disservice to this verse. They make it sound like Jesus is rebuking his Mom. The Greek is Ti, evmoi. kai. soi,( gu,nai Ti emoi kai soi gunai which means literally "What I for you, woman?" The meaning of this phrase is far from clear. To get the correct meaning, we need to look at the rest of this verse where Jesus states (literally), "My hour is not yet come." This was a common phrase used in the gospels, and especially in the Gospel of John, to indicate that the hour of Jesus’ death, or fulfillment of his ministry, had not yet arrived.

Mark 14:31 , "And he cometh the third time, and saith unto them, Sleep on now, and take your rest: it is enough, the hour is come; behold, the Son of man is betrayed into the hands of sinners." John 7:30, "Then they sought to take him: but no man laid hands on him, because his hour was not yet come." John 8:20, "These words spake Jesus in the treasury, as he taught in the temple: and no man laid hands on him; for his hour was not yet come." John 13:1, "Now before the feast of the passover, when Jesus knew that his hour was come that he should depart out of this world unto the Father, having loved his own which were in the world, he loved them unto the end." John 17:1, "These words spake Jesus, and lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, Father, the hour is come; glorify thy Son, that thy Son also may glorify thee."

It seems to me the clear meaning of this verse is that Jesus is saying, Of course I’ll do it, I am not crucified yet. Notice that in verse 5, Mary does not respond as if she were rebuked. I believe that Christ purposely chose this event for his first miracle so we would learn something very important.

Verses 5-7
His mother said to the servants, "Do whatever he tells you." Nearby stood six stone water jars, the kind used by the Jews for ceremonial washing, each holding from twenty to thirty gallons. Jesus said to the servants, "Fill the jars with water"; so they filled them to the brim.

Mary tells the servants to do whatever they’re told. This indicates that she expected they would not understand what they were going to be told. They might think it’s too unusual or strange to do. But they were told, and they were willing to obey. Sometimes God is going to ask you to do something that you think is crazy. We need to be like the servants and willingly obey Christ’s every command. We may not understand everything God is asking us to do, but he may actually be preparing us to experience a miracle.

MacDonald points out about Mary’s instructions to the servants, "Her words are important ones for every one of us. Notice that she did not direct men to obey her, or any other human being. She pointed them to the Lord Jesus and told them that He was the One who should be obeyed. The teachings of the Lord Jesus are given to us in the pages of the NT. As we read this precious book, we should remember the last recorded words of Mary, ‘Whatever He says to you, do it.’ "

Verses 8-9
Then he told them, "Now draw some out and take it to the master of the banquet." They did so, and the master of the banquet tasted the water that had been turned into wine. He did not realize where it had come from, though the servants who had drawn the water knew. Then he called the bridegroom aside

It might have been fairly easy to be willing to obey Christ’s command to fill the jars full of water, but now he asks them to take the water to the master of the banquet. This probably seemed scary. They didn’t want to be yelled at by the master because they couldn’t tell the difference between water and wine. But they willingly went. They must have sensed something about the way Christ told them to do these things. I’m sure they did not comprehend what they were doing, but for some reason, they didn’t argue with him either. Perhaps they felt a stirring deep inside their soul that made them realize this was no ordinary man whom they were obeying.

McGee writes, "This holds a great spiritual lesson for you and me. Jesus uses us as water pots today. We’re just beaten and battered water pots. We’re not attractive and ought to be pushed to the side and covered up. But He wants to use us."

Verse 10
And said, "Everyone brings out the choice wine first and then the cheaper wine after the guests have had too much to drink; but you have saved the best till now."

It is my firm conviction that Jesus purposely chose a social event for his first miracle. He wanted us to realize that he cares for our everyday needs. They may not seem very important. Certainly, running out of wine at a wedding would not be considered a world crisis, but God loves us so much that he wants us to know that he cares about the little things in our life. He wants to meet the needs in every area of our life. There is no prayer that is unimportant to God. Christ came to bring redemption to the soul, healing to the body, and joy to the spirit. But he also came to help us with socially embarrassing situations. How wonderful and marvelous is God’s love toward us!

Verse 11
This, the first of his miraculous signs, Jesus performed at Cana in Galilee. He thus revealed his glory, and his disciples put their faith in him.

Notice that these verses never say that the groom’s family knew anything about this miracle. Apparently the only ones who knew were the disciples and the servants. Jesus performed a miracle, and yet took none of the compliments away from the groom. This day was not a day for Christ to reveal his glory. This was a day for the bride and groom. Jesus cared that much about this family that he would keep his first miracle a secret.

But I’m sure the disciples and the servants never forgot this event. It was a miracle which displayed God’s love and concern for our everyday problems. No matter what you may be facing, it is not too unimportant for God. He always has time for you. Come to him in prayer, and you too will experience Christ’s miracle-working power. Even if all you need is help with a party. God loves you that much!

Footnotes:

Scriptures on "his hour was not yet come" all from the King James Version



	A Study of John 2:1-11