Creative Power

On the third day there was a wedding at Cana in Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. John 2:1

“On the third day” indicates a progression of events as Jesus began His public ministry with His disciples.
Day one was when John the Baptizer introduced Jesus as the Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world, John 1:29.

Day two – “the next day,” John 1:35. John encouraged his own disciples to go with The Lamb of God, and Jesus found a few other disciples to join His work.

Now comes “the third day,” of Jesus’ public ministry. Those who are with Jesus, as well as those who are watching Him are about to see a demonstration of His power, at a social event. That would provide a built-in audience of people just having a good time together, most likely in an amiable mood; not expecting anything from Him. Jesus’ mother was there, which is probably the reason He was invited.

Jesus also was invited to the wedding with his disciples. When the wine ran out, the mother of Jesus said to him, “They have no wine.”  John 2:2-3

Mary seems to have known her son could do something about this. It is not from her observation about the wine that we get this, but from Jesus’ response, indicating that He knew she wanted Him to remedy the situation.

The issue in this passage is not the wine and is not even the wedding. The issue is the creative power (omnipotence) of God the Son.

  

And Jesus said to her, “Woman, what does this have to do with me? My hour has not yet come.” His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.” John 2:4-5

He referred to her as “woman,” not mother. The tone was sharp, not intimate. It was like a warning, as in “don’t rush me, Madam.”  Mary was the mother of the humanity of the God-Man, and she knew Who He was. Like any typical mother, she ignored His statement and calmly instructed the servants to follow Jesus’ instructions. This party was about to be spoiled by a lack of wine, and she knew He could fix it. She didn’t want her friends to be embarrassed. Perhaps more than that, here was an opportunity to show off her first-born, before He embarked on His mission to the nation and the world. Even if this was not the appropriate time for His divine debut, Jesus graciously accommodated the mother of His humanity and saved the celebration of her friends.

Now there were six stone water jars there for the Jewish rites of purification, each holding twenty or thirty gallons. Jesus said to the servants, “Fill the jars with water.” And they filled them up to the brim. And he said to them, “Now draw some out and take it to the master of the feast.” So they took it. When the master of the feast tasted the water now become wine, and did not know where it came from (though the servants who had drawn the water knew), the master of the feast called the bridegroom and said to him, “Everyone serves the good wine first, and when people have drunk freely, then the poor wine. But you have kept the good wine until now.” John 2:6-10 

The water in those jars was there for cleansing hands and feet before entering the house.  Jesus instantaneously fermented the wine by the same power He had used to create original life in the universe. This manifested the omnipotence of God. It announced the presence of the Messiah.

There is interesting symbolism here:
Water Jars – empty human souls
Water – salvation, Holy Spirit, Word of God
Wine – happiness, joy, dedication

“the good wine.” The master of the feast had to approve the wine before it could be offered to the guests. This was robust, fermented, real wine; served at social celebrations. It was not the unfermented juice used at the Passover.

This, the first of his signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee, and manifested his glory. And his disciples believed in him. John 2:11

His first public miracle gave His disciples confirmation of His power. Therefore, it strengthened their faith in Him. They believed John when he introduced to them The Lamb of God, and every Jew knew exactly what that title meant. This was the One sent by the Father to be the atoning sacrifice. The One represented by the Passover lamb in ceremonies commemorating their freedom from slavery. John's witness was of great value to them, but now they had actually seen His power at work in the world. They were ready to accompany Him anywhere. 

John 2:12 After this he went down to Capernaum, with his mother and his brothers and his disciples, and they stayed there for a few days.  

Mary had several other sons, after Jesus. It is assumed that Joseph had died by this time, and as the firstborn, Jesus would see to the familial needs before setting out on His incomprehensible mission. This visit may have been an emotionally charged send-off for the team. His brothers were ordinary, fully human men with Old Sin Natures. They didn’t really grasp their older brother’s purpose, as of course, no one did but Himself. Their brother was perfect, sinless, always well-behaved, authoritative, somewhat peculiar….decidedly different. It must have been difficult for them to live with at times.

What a blessed few days that must have been, with Mary and His half-brothers and maybe some sisters, as He prepared to begin the journey that would take Him and His disciples through the fire of religious persecution and would lead to His humiliating death with all of His family and disciples watching. It must have been bittersweet for Him, being the only one of them who knew for certain what awaited them. His execution was 3 years away, but that is not a long time in the human scheme of things, and they would endure unrelenting oppression while having wonderful times of spiritual awakening and precious fellowship as they learned from the Sovereign Lord of the Universe.