John 2:1-11 (NRSV)
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Chapter 2On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. Verse 2Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding. Verse 3When the wine gave out, the mother of Jesus said to him, "They have no wine." Verse 4And Jesus said to her, "Woman, what concern is that to you and to me? My hour has not yet come." Verse 5His mother said to the servants, "Do whatever he tells you." Verse 6Now standing there were six stone water jars for the Jewish rites of purification, each holding twenty or thirty gallons. Verse 7Jesus said to them, "Fill the jars with water." And they filled them up to the brim. Verse 8He said to them, "Now draw some out, and take it to the chief steward." So they took it. Verse 9When 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 Verse 10and 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." Verse 11Jesus did this, the first of his signs, in Cana of Galilee, and revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him.
Devotion
For centuries, the Temple in Jerusalem represented the presence of God in the midst of the people. But the wedding in Cana shows us that, in Jesus presence among us, God was doing something new.
Jesus did the first of his many signs at this wedding. His friend would have faced certain embarrassment and social ridicule if he were to run out of wine at the wedding he was hosting. So Jesus turned water into wine. In one way, this isn’t nearly as dramatic as felling the walls of Jericho or calling down fire to burn the water-drenched offering to Baal. Yet, in another way, this event turned everything upside down. God was not just present in a building or a place; God was now present in the person of Jesus Christ, God's son, living among us.
What's more, God’s presence was not only to be understood in grand, larger-than-life events. Jesus' turning water into wine shows that God is present in our regular lives as we marry, party and live day-to-day. In the person of Jesus Christ, God is present with us both in the celebrations and the ordinariness of our daily lives.
Prayer
God, we celebrate your presence with us today. Help us to see you in things big and small, through your son, Jesus Christ. Amen.