Glory Revealed
John 1:14, 18; 2:1-11
In the Old Testament, miracles are signs that reveal the glory of God. They are the visible manifestation of God’s mighty acts.
In the Gospels, Jesus’ miracles reveal his glory, the glory of God’s only Son (v. 1:14), and contribute to the clearest image we have of the invisible God (v. 1:18).
Jesus embodies the divine glory. Raymond Brown states that Jesus is “the visible divine presence exercising itself in mighty acts” (p. 503, The Gospel According to John I-XII, Doubleday, 1966). This is evident in Jesus’ first miracle, which was performed at a wedding in Cana.
Jesus attended the wedding with his family and disciples. Jesus’ mother, Mary, informed him that the wine had run out. He responded to his mother in what seemed a rude manner.
Addressing her as “woman” (a normal, polite address to women), he responded with a Jewish idiomatic phrase (literally “What to me and to you?”).
This common, but ambiguous statement conveyed his understanding of the situation. Jesus’ reference that his hour had not yet come was a declaration that the Father alone determines his service to God’s kingdom; not even his mother could intrude on that.
Jesus saw empty jars used for purification rituals (as described in Mark 7:3-4) and instructed the servants to fill them. The ritual cleansed the hands, but did nothing to cleanse the soul.
Mary’s statement “They have no wine” expressed more than the crisis of the hosts; it is a moving reflection of the deficiency of Jewish purification that left its followers wanting for more (compare to Mark 7:1-24).
By turning the water into wine, Jesus demonstrated that he was sent from the Father to replace a worn-out, barren practice of purification. Jesus not only changed the water into the best wine, he provided it in abundance – 120 to 180 gallons.
Jesus’ first public act revealed that he provides the purification needed for an abundant, eternal life with God. Jesus’ miracle also completed the call of the disciples to follow him.
Beginning in John 1:37, we find the first of Jesus’ followers. Chapter one ends with a promise from Jesus that they “will see greater things than these” (v. 50). The wedding at Cana is the fulfillment of that promise and culminates in the disciples believing in Jesus. Their faith was strengthened.
Scudder– Lessons in the BSL series for the fall quarter are being written by Steve Scudder, director of missions for Savannah River Association since 2006.