The story of Jesus turning water into wine is very familiar to most of us. It even enters popular culture fairly often, usually in comical ‘even Jesus appreciates a good drink’ kind of ways. However, this recounting of Jesus’ early ministry, and its positioning in John’s Gospel, really serve to distinguish Jesus and the ministry of His Kingdom from the kingdoms and values of the world around us.

The passage comes right after Jesus has recruited his early disciples in John 1, which makes this the first account of Jesus’ miraculous ministry to the world. As the account goes, it seems the first public miracle was not strategically planned, but the result of some newlyweds’ misfortune. There they were, publicly hosting the celebration of their union with friends, family, and neighbors when they embarrassingly run out of wine to serve their guests. Such a thing may be more forgiving in our culture today, but in that time it was bad enough for Mary to effectively say, “Jesus, won’t you do something to spare them?” 

In a way, Jesus responds saying, it is not yet my time and the social faux pas of this world are not what I’m here for. However, he then proceeds to turn this story into a profound parable for a key feature in his Kingdom teaching: abundance. What Mary likely expected of Jesus, and what the wedding guests expected of their hosts, was for the wine to continue to flow well into the celebration. The worldly custom and strategy for this (as noted in verse 10) was to serve the best wine you had first, and then serve a lesser wine as the drinking went on. It makes practical sense. People are less likely to notice or care if the wine isn’t as good after they’ve already had a few. 

But Jesus turns this worldly notion on its head. Rather than miraculously solve the problem with the standard vintage of wine, he provides the wedding with the finest wine (likely much more costly than the family could have afforded) and takes them from being social outcasts hosting an under-prepared wedding party to being the talk of the town. This is the Kingdom of God. This is what Jesus does for us every day. He brings a better vintage than we ever could have imagined into our lives. The world’s values are to be shrewd, calculating, and frugal- but the Kingdom’s values are to be generous and overly extravagant in service to others.

This is the first ‘lesson’ Jesus brings us in the Gospel of John. He says, My ways are not your ways and I’ve come to give you so much more life than what you could imagine or hope for. So in the hustle and bustle, and juggling of our day or week, be sure to constantly check your posture. Ask God, am I approaching this day from a world-view of scarcity and self-preservation (for me and my family) or am I living in the abundance of a risen Christ?

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photo by Ben Vaughn on Unsplash

Sometimes it can be easy to get stuck inside our own heads. For some of us, fears, doubts, insecurities, and bitterness can continually spiral and fold in on themselves, leading us further into negativity and fruitless patterns. 

For others it’s constant internal evaluation, thinking over and over-thinking, judging, categorizing, and strategizing to fit our world into nice boxes and plot the best course ahead for ourselves.

Or maybe you’re that type to carry-on imagined conversations with your partner, friends, or co-workers- working out what you would say and guessing how they might react (whether such a conversation is ever intended to come to fruition or not).

Fortunately, the God of the universe has so much more to communicate to us than what we can come up with in our own heads. He knows all the ins and outs, the hidden details, and hearts of those around us. He has promised to guide us in His infinite wisdom:

“Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, ‘This is the way; walk in it.’” (Isaiah 30:21, NIV). 

Yes, God is always listening and always speaking to us. The Carmelite monk, Brother Lawrence, famously led his simple life endeavoring to include God in every moment, even those as mundane as sweeping the floors and washing dishes. Since God continually speaks, we must endeavor to be continually listening for His voice.

“My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.” - John 10:27

Just ahead of this verse Jesus chastises the Jews who were questioning Him as the messiah. He told them by way of scriptures they would recognize and showed them by way of miracles and wonders, but they did not listen and they did not believe. These, Jesus notes, are indicators that they are not His sheep:

“Jesus answered them, “I told you, and you do not believe; the works that I do in My Father’s name, these testify of Me. But you do not believe, because you are not of My sheep.” - John 10:25-26

We must make sure we are behaving like Jesus’ sheep. Make sure we’re listening and acting as though we believe we’re invited into the heavenly conversation. Take some time today to intentionally listen, and invite God into your inner thought-life. Strive to be in a constant, vibrant conversation with the living God (instead of merely talking to yourself). 

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**For more on Brother Lawrence, see the book, Practicing His Presence, which is online free.

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