A study of Jesus’ miracles is challenging in itself, and we know that these miracles were designed to inspire faith and to teach about the very nature of Jesus. The wedding feast at Cana, however, can present a challenge. It occurs on the fourth day of Jesus’ ministry, and, in many ways, it seems very mundane and unnecessarily secretive or private. Yet this is the first way Jesus chose to reveal His miraculous powers. Nothing in Jesus’ ministry was accidental or haphazard, so there must be lessons about Him and ourselves in this seemingly simple act.
We begin at a wedding feast. Think about times in our lives we hold dear and cherish in our memories; how many of these center around friends, family, and a shared meal? In Matthew 22:1 and Luke 14:15, Jesus compares God’s kingdom with great feasts, and, in Matthew 9:10-11, we see Jesus sharing meals with tax collectors and sinners. Time and again in Jesus’ ministry, meals play a part of the message of His ministry, so it should be no surprise that Jesus would begin His miracles at such an occasion.
The Importance of the Feast
This was more than any wedding feast, though. This first miracle occurred during a Jewish wedding feast, a celebration that could last up to seven days, the first time the new couple has an opportunity to extend hospitality to family and friends. This feast was a sacred duty, and failure of provisions would bring shame and disgrace. When they run out of wine at the feast in Cana, it is not a small problem.
This wine was seen as a symbol of blessings, peace, prosperity, and the Lord’s blessings. In Deuteronomy 7, God promises blessings upon the flocks and the vineyards of His people with their faithfulness, and this imagery is repeated in Deuteronomy 11:13-14, Deuteronomy 33:28, as well as numerous other passages. New wine was an indicator of God’s presence, and the absence thereof would indicate the removal of God’s blessings as illustrated in Deuteronomy 28:30 and Joel 1:10.
The Significance of the Miracle
In this context, we come back to John 2 and a wedding feast in which Jesus’ disciples were involved. The wine runs out; Jesus makes His first statement regarding “my hour;” Mary commands the servants to follow Jesus’ every command; the water is changed; and the miraculous wine is better than any served thus far in the feast. What was the point of all of this? Here, Jesus shows Himself to be the Messianic bridegroom. He steps in and intercedes to supply that symbol of God’s presence and blessings.
In Acts 3:19-20, Peter calls on his listeners to receive seasons of refreshing from the Lord, again making reference to the rest and refreshment offered in our meals. A physical element is used to teach a spiritual lesson. He supplies for every spiritual need, and Jesus’ first miracle illustrates that power of provision. He is the bridegroom whose refreshments never run low, and John 3:25-30, while John the Baptist is discussing purification (the same purification for which the water pots in John 2 had been purposed), John refers to Jesus as the Bridegroom.
Finally, consider Jesus’ reading of Isaiah 61 when He returns to teach in Nazareth. By verse 10, the Messiah of that chapter refers to Himself as the bridegroom who provides garments of salvation. What does the miracle at Cana tell us? It tells us that Christ came to bring God’s peace and protection. It tells us Jesus came to bring seasons of refreshing to His people.
We begin at a wedding feast. Think about times in our lives we hold dear and cherish in our memories; how many of these center around friends, family, and a shared meal? In Matthew 22:1 and Luke 14:15, Jesus compares God’s kingdom with great feasts, and, in Matthew 9:10-11, we see Jesus sharing meals with tax collectors and sinners. Time and again in Jesus’ ministry, meals play a part of the message of His ministry, so it should be no surprise that Jesus would begin His miracles at such an occasion.
The Importance of the Feast
This was more than any wedding feast, though. This first miracle occurred during a Jewish wedding feast, a celebration that could last up to seven days, the first time the new couple has an opportunity to extend hospitality to family and friends. This feast was a sacred duty, and failure of provisions would bring shame and disgrace. When they run out of wine at the feast in Cana, it is not a small problem.
This wine was seen as a symbol of blessings, peace, prosperity, and the Lord’s blessings. In Deuteronomy 7, God promises blessings upon the flocks and the vineyards of His people with their faithfulness, and this imagery is repeated in Deuteronomy 11:13-14, Deuteronomy 33:28, as well as numerous other passages. New wine was an indicator of God’s presence, and the absence thereof would indicate the removal of God’s blessings as illustrated in Deuteronomy 28:30 and Joel 1:10.
The Significance of the Miracle
In this context, we come back to John 2 and a wedding feast in which Jesus’ disciples were involved. The wine runs out; Jesus makes His first statement regarding “my hour;” Mary commands the servants to follow Jesus’ every command; the water is changed; and the miraculous wine is better than any served thus far in the feast. What was the point of all of this? Here, Jesus shows Himself to be the Messianic bridegroom. He steps in and intercedes to supply that symbol of God’s presence and blessings.
In Acts 3:19-20, Peter calls on his listeners to receive seasons of refreshing from the Lord, again making reference to the rest and refreshment offered in our meals. A physical element is used to teach a spiritual lesson. He supplies for every spiritual need, and Jesus’ first miracle illustrates that power of provision. He is the bridegroom whose refreshments never run low, and John 3:25-30, while John the Baptist is discussing purification (the same purification for which the water pots in John 2 had been purposed), John refers to Jesus as the Bridegroom.
Finally, consider Jesus’ reading of Isaiah 61 when He returns to teach in Nazareth. By verse 10, the Messiah of that chapter refers to Himself as the bridegroom who provides garments of salvation. What does the miracle at Cana tell us? It tells us that Christ came to bring God’s peace and protection. It tells us Jesus came to bring seasons of refreshing to His people.
Then I heard what seemed to be the voice of a great multitude, like the roar of many waters and like the sound of mighty peals of thunder, crying out, Hallelujah!
For the Lord our God the Almighty reigns. Let us rejoice and exult and give him the glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and his Bride has made herself ready; it was granted her to clothe herself with fine linen, bright and pure – for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints.
And the angel said to me, Write this: “Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.”
- Revelation 19:6-9
