John 2:1-11
You name it … God can change it. If Jesus can change water into wine, surely he can change your heart, surely he can change our world. You name it, God can change it.
This is a Bible story that is so familiar to us that we already know the happy ended before we even finish the first verse. “There was a wedding at Cana … “, and we know that at the end of the story Jesus changed the water into wine, everyone is happy, and it’s the first of his miracles in the Gospel of John.
Many years ago I was in a church where during the communion service, the wine ran out. We had more guests that day than the deacons had expected when they set up the serving trays. I could see that we were in trouble when I saw the people in the back rows huddling together and breaking the little bread cubes in half to stretch out the supply, but there wasn’t anything we could do to split a little juice glass in half. But the church members in back made sure that the guests were served, even if they had to go without.
That moment where the wine ran out was a good reality check for us, and it got us thinking about the other times in our lives where what we need is lacking. What could be lacking in your life? Money? Employment? Good Health? A place to live? Love? Friendship? Hope? Peace?
The wedding was in a village called Cana, not far from Nazareth. It began with an invitation, like most weddings do. Jesus had been invited to attend. Mary, his mother, was there too. Maybe the bride and groom were relatives of theirs, maybe close friends or just neighbors. A lot of time has passed since the birth in Bethlehem, Jesus is now about 30 years old, and he appears to have reached adulthood working as a carpenter in his home village.
But today, something surprising had happened. Jesus also brought some people Mary had never seen before, who we would recognize as his first disciples, Phillip, Nathanael, Andrew, Peter. So Mary was watching them. Don’t forget, Mary had been told by an angel that her son would change the world, but so far in his life things had been quiet and uneventful.
While thinking like that, she heard word from the kitchen - "No wine! This is the last jug. What are we going to do?" Too many guests had responded to the invitation and there was not enough wine.
Mary saw this as the moment that her son could make a name for himself. Mary went right to her son and said, "They have no wine!" and he looked at her and said: "Not yet. Now is not the time." But she went to the kitchen and ordered: "Do whatever he tells you." After some time Jesus stood up, went to the kitchen and told them to fill six large stone jars with water. They filled them up to the brim, wondering what in the world he was up to. And then the amazing results: the caterer ladled up a sample of the liquid from one of those big stone jars, tasted it … doubtfully … and then picture his astounded look as he announced to everyone, “That’s not water, it’s wine!”
At weddings I enjoy telling the story, because it helps us discover that God is a part of the marriage, even if, especially if, things go wrong at the reception or at any other point in life. There was a wedding at Cana in Galilee ... and then the wine ran out. The story helps us expect that there will times in a marriage when things go wrong. Jesus came to join in the celebration, and he responded when called upon to save the wedding from disaster. He still does. Our resources may be exhausted, we’re worn out, tired, fed up, stuck, lost, angry, scared ... but God’s love is never depleted, there’s always at least a little more available to us to save the day.
This first miracle gives a big hint about what is to follow. In the same way that Jesus provided the wine after the wedding feast ran out of it, at the cross he offers his own blood for all of us who really need help finding our way to God. The cup we share this morning is a sign of Jesus’ trying to save our day, of his adding abundantly to whatever we lack. When we share in the Lord’s Supper we try not to focus on our worthiness to receive, instead we think of how richly and abundantly Jesus aims to bless our lives. The cup, the wine, is not offered to those who have worked hard to earn it; it is offered to any who need it.
Finally, there is this: as surely as Jesus was able to change the water into wine, he can transform stubbornness and bad habits, he can change hatred and anger. You name it … God can change it. If Jesus can change water into wine, surely he can change your heart, surely he can change our world. The story is an invitation to you, to name the thing that Jesus can change. “That’s not water ... it’s wine!”
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