John 2:9-11 (NIVUK)
…[the master of the banquet] did not realise where it had come from, though the servants who had drawn the water knew. Then he called the bridegroom aside 10 and said, ‘Everyone brings out the choice wine first and then the cheaper wine after the guests have had too much to drink; but you have saved the best till now.’ 11 What Jesus did here in Cana of Galilee was the first of the signs through which he revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him.
Yesterday morning I was out on my bike, and suddenly the chain went slack. It didn’t matter how fast I pedalled, the wheel didn’t turn. It transpires that the cartridge on my back wheel had become gunked up with grot, stopping it from engaging properly. Cleaning it out with a good squirt of WD40 did the trick, and now it’s like new, if not better. This story in John’s Gospel tells us that Jesus offers us the best, not the cheapest or merely adequate, but the best. Of course, the passage isn’t really about wine, it’s about life, the life that Jesus offers us through the Cross. The miracle at the wedding acts as a sign pointing to this greater meaning, as were the ceremonial pots used to hold the water; just as being squirted by WD40 cleansed my wheel so it worked properly, so being ‘washed clean’ by Jesus, we have access to this best life.
Thank you for the wonderful life that you offer us Jesus and for all you did to achieve it for us.
Leave a Reply