Week of August 1

Abundance that Lasts

Read: Isaiah 63-64; Psalm 107; John 2
 
“And Jesus said to her, ‘Woman, what does this have to do with me?
My hour has not yet come.’”
John 2:4, ESV

Introduction

Jesus will not be herded in the direction that we choose, nor will He be corralled by any of our life circumstances. There! I have stated a core truth about the Lord. This means that the Savior, the one who would not utter a word to call down angels to feed him while He was being tempted with hunger, or a legion of the heavenly host to rescue Him from suffering on the cross, will not speak one word when we desire for Him to deliver us from that which is contrary to God’s purposes for our lives. He will not be manipulated by us in any way, and must refuse to bend to our earthly wishes. Permit me to explain today why this is important.

Let's See What the Bible Says

We need to know where we are to know where John is taking us. Cana is believed to have been a small town about 9 miles north of Nazareth. It was set in the hills of Galilee and, according to John’s account, this would have been the first stop for Jesus and His disciples following His baptism. He arrives in time for a wedding. Such events in many cultures are community-wide celebrations and refreshments would be provided for all guests. Furthermore, to fail to provide adequately for those in attendance would be considered a social disgrace. In a village like Cana, such an error would never be forgotten, and the faux pas would follow the newlyweds and their families throughout their lives.
Tension at the Wedding or Pay Attention to the Point?
Jesus’ reply to his mother in chapter 2, verse 4, raises a question for many people: “Who speaks to his mother in such a way!?” To be most accurate, He literally says, “What to me and to you?” Jesus was in no way rebuking His Momma, though. Jesus had embarked upon His kingdom mission to fulfill the Father’s redemptive will (cf. 5:30; 8:29). This meant that even the one who had given birth to Him would sense the separation from Him in this calling (cf. Matthew 12:46-50). He did not dismiss her from His life, as His words on the cross showed us, but He would not be steered awry by her requests (cf. John 19:25-27). We may conclude, then, that not even she was able to redirect her eldest son’s life purposes even though He had assumed the lead role in decision-making and family provision following the death of His earthly father, Joseph (cf. Pillar)! So, what was Jesus doing?

Gerald Borchert aids us in understanding the idea here. Geography and time mean different things in John’s gospel. We must not read the book as though it was written by a newspaper reporter. This story is about a sign. The three “next day” references in chapter one form a triad and the “third day” here could point forward to the coming third day (cf. v. 19). The third day in Christian thinking has deep theological significance. Tie this idea to the word “hour” in the wedding at Cana (v. 4) and we will begin to have our eyes open to a wonderful awareness of God’s eternal plan for redemption unfolding in the ordinary events of our daily lives.
Drink the New Wine that Lasts
The point in the miracle is the resurrection and the new life that it makes possible (cf. NAC). This passage introduces us to the mighty power of God at work in the life of His Son, Jesus. John shows us the Old Testament glory of God (cf. 1:14; Greek, doxa, and Hebrew, kabod) as being operative in Jesus of Nazareth. God was acting anew in the Savior! We might say, “Therefore, what was Jesus here for?” Jesus was not directed by His mother or brothers or by any temporal cultural standard (2:2-5; “Why do you involve me?”). He lived to fulfill the Heavenly Father’s purpose (1;18, 5:19-20, 30, & 36). The point? We also live best when we are possessed by a “third-day belief.” In other words, live resurrection lives—newness—in Christ.

John’s purposes in writing the gospel make use of what scholars tell us is “prolepsis” (Pillar). John was likely using this event to develop a theme that would later become important or indicating an event that would occur later in the narrative. Furthermore, we know that the “hour” of Jesus’ death, resurrection, and exaltation to glory would fulfill the “not yet” in our account. The hour would not come until the arrival of the Gentiles in 12:20 (Pillar). It was then that He claimed the time of His death had arrived (13:1; 17:1, Pillar). We may conclude at Cana that the hour of the new wine, messianic glorification, was coming, but it was not yet time.

Let's Deepen Our Walk

I have always enjoyed weddings because they remind me of the wedding at Cana. Receptions that follow the ceremony are times of great celebration. I have enjoyed everything from mixed nuts, cake, and punch to full course meals. All who know me well will know that my favorite food is shrimp! I have dined on shrimp at breakfast (no exaggeration), enjoyed them at lunch and dinner, and even snacked on them throughout the day, but I digress.

I will never forget a wedding reception where there was an enormous “mountain” of shrimp for guests to enjoy. It literally was shaped like a peak and was at least four feet tall. I was thrilled at the “shrimp-abilities,” but I barely got to eat one or two because the moment the buffet was open people descended on that table like locusts. The shrimp vanished before my eyes, and I was left well short of the “abundance.” Here is the spiritual truth. Jesus offers all guests at His banquet feast the new wine of abundant life. There is no shortage, but there are important considerations.

What are the implications for our spiritual growth? First, when we take Jesus as our Lord, and receive the new wine He provides, we relinquish the freedom to tell Him how He must carry out His Lordship in our lives. For example, Jesus’ mother wanted Him to end the wedding embarrassment of wine shortage, but He used the event to indicate the birth of new wine in the Messianic age (Jeremiah 31:12; Hosea 14:7; Amos 9:13-14). Jesus showed a perfect balance between the temporal and eternal, and He would permit nothing to upset it. The hour of the new wine, messianic glorification, was coming, but it was not yet time. Our eternal deliverance has come, but it will not be evident only in temporal answers to our prayer requests.

Secondly, as was the case with Mary at the wedding feast in Cana, sometimes Jesus’ answers to our requests must be viewed considering the cross (“My time has not yet come”). We often focus on the temporal desire, but we must not overlook the eternal purposes of God when we pray (Matthew 6:10, “Your kingdom come, Your will be done, On earth as it is in heaven”).

Let's Think and Discuss

1. Take a moment to review several of your most recent prayer requests. Have you leaned too much toward the temporal? How would you rephrase and restate those requests in light of Jesus’ teaching on new wine?

2. For families: Children will grow in their awareness of eternal truths as they mature in their daily Christian lives. Many of these truths may become more evident in how we teach our children to trust and wait on God through prayer. Parents, you may model the truth in John 2 by teaching your children to pray and wait upon the Lord to bring a close family member or a friend to new life in Christ. I [Larry] recall praying for many years that a neighborhood friend would receive Jesus Christ into his life. He was mainly interested in playing sports, attending school, and enjoying his friends. I knew that there was something missing in his life. I was thrilled many years later to be reunited with that friend at a church where I was speaking. He had become a Christian.

May all your paths be straight,
Larry C. Ashlock