{"id":2653,"date":"2021-03-08T13:41:23","date_gmt":"2021-03-08T21:41:23","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.Bob4God.com\/?p=2653"},"modified":"2021-03-08T13:41:23","modified_gmt":"2021-03-08T21:41:23","slug":"devotion-john-21-12-not-so-simple-part-1","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.Bob4God.com\/?p=2653","title":{"rendered":"Devotion John 2:1-12 Not So Simple Part 1"},"content":{"rendered":"

John 2:1-12\u00a0<\/b>–\u00a0On the third day a wedding took place at Cana in Galilee.\u00a0Jesus\u2019 mother\u00a0was there,<\/i><\/span>\u00a02\u00a0and Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding.<\/span>\u00a03\u00a0When the wine was gone, Jesus\u2019 mother said to him, \u201cThey have no more wine.\u201d\u00a0<\/span>4\u00a0\u201cWoman,\u00a0why do you involve me?\u201d<\/span>\u00a0Jesus replied.\u00a0<\/span>\u201cMy hour\u00a0has not yet come.\u201d\u00a0<\/span>5\u00a0His mother said to the servants, \u201cDo whatever he tells you.\u201d 6\u00a0Nearby stood six stone water jars, the kind used by the Jews for ceremonial washing,\u00a0each holding from twenty to thirty gallons. 7\u00a0Jesus said to the servants,\u00a0<\/span>\u201cFill the jars with water\u201d<\/span>; so they filled them to the brim. 8\u00a0Then he told them,\u00a0<\/span>\u201cNow draw some out and take it to the master of the banquet.\u201d\u00a0<\/span>They did so,<\/span>\u00a09\u00a0and the master of the banquet tasted the water that had been turned into wine.\u00a0He did not realize where it had come from, though the servants who had drawn the water knew. Then he called the bridegroom aside<\/span>\u00a010\u00a0and said, \u201cEveryone 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.\u201d 11\u00a0What Jesus did here in Cana of Galilee was the first of the signs\u00a0through which he revealed his glory;\u00a0and his disciples believed in him. 12\u00a0After this he went down to Capernaum\u00a0with his mother\u00a0and brothers\u00a0and his disciples. There they stayed for a few days.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

\u201cOn the third day a wedding took place at Cana in Galilee.\u00a0Jesus\u2019 mother\u00a0was there,<\/i><\/span>\u00a02\u00a0and Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding.<\/span><\/i>\u201d\u00a0\u00a0It is commonly believed that this was the wedding of a family member of Mary and Jesus.\u00a0\u00a0When a family member got married, it was a family affair, everybody chipped in.\u00a0\u00a0It is very possible that Mary was a host of the wedding.\u00a0\u00a0There are many ideas about why Mary thought that asking Jesus to supernaturally help out was something she should do.\u00a0\u00a0Let\u2019s look at a few.\u00a0\u00a0One, was that this was probably family and that Jesus should be willing to help out family.\u00a0\u00a0Hadn\u2019t she raised Him to be a good Jewish boy?\u00a0\"\"\u00a0\u00a0She knew His heart and how He loved people and had a desire to help. Another thing is that we know this was the start of His public ministry, but nothing says that He hadn\u2019t supernaturally helped her privately in supernatural ways.\u00a0\u00a0Perhaps she already knew that He was fully able because He had blessed His mother privately?\u00a0\u00a0Everything we know about God, about His intrinsic nature, about His command to honor our parents, and about the great love that lived in Jesus seems to easily point that Jesus may have privately helped out His mother with supernatural blessings.\u00a0\u00a0Besides, Joseph may have already passed away.\u00a0\u00a0Doesn\u2019t the Word tell us that we should take care of the widows and that one should take care of their own parents? (1 Timothy 5:3-16<\/b>)\u00a0\u00a0How much more so should Jesus help His mother out who was also a host of the wedding?<\/p>\n

Also many believe that Jesus was establishing the importance of biblical marriage in our relationships here on earth and as a symbol of our relationship with Him. (Ephesians 5:22-32<\/b>)<\/p>\n

There are more symbolisms which we can draw.\u00a0\u00a0The six water jars that were used were typical of Jewish ceremonial washing jars.\u00a0\u00a0They were used for washing of hands and to draw from for washing of utensils.\u00a0\u00a0These jars were part of Jewish ceremonial tradition.\u00a0\u00a0Jesus was using these jars to show that when their instituted traditions ran dry, when what was once useful had fulfilled its purpose and now that Jesus had come, it was time to move from living by law and tradition to living by the Spirit and Truth that Jesus brought as the teaching that He gave to the Samaritan woman at the well. (John 4:4-26<\/b>) Especially note\u00a0Vs 21-24<\/b>\u00a0in which He notes the changing of times.\u00a0\u00a0Also see His statements of \u201cYou have heard it said\u201d and \u201cBut I tell you\u201d in verses\u00a0Matthew 5:21-22, 27-28, 31-32, 33-34, 38-39<\/b>, etc.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0He was telling them that He was bringing a greater understanding and way.<\/p>\n

It was not that Jesus came to abolish the Law, but to fulfill it. (Matthew 5:17<\/b>)\u00a0\u00a0An underlying understanding is that when your past ceremonies fail you, He has come to fulfill the Word of God to bless you.\u00a0\u00a0So the old ways must give way to the complete plan of God.\u00a0\u00a0The new way is Jesus.\u00a0\u00a0Jesus is not to be fitted into their understanding of the old ways.\u00a0\u00a0The true meaning of the commandments and instructions of God are to be found in Jesus Himself.\u00a0\u00a0Their understanding is an old wineskin that cannot contain the wine that is the Holy Spirit.\u00a0\u00a0In trying to put the Gospel into the Law the old wineskin will burst and what can be understood will run on the ground and not be of no value.\u00a0\u00a0Both the wine skin and the wine will be of no use. But if the Law is rediscovered through Jesus, through the Holy Spirit within which is a sign of new life through Jesus, then a fuller and richer knowledge of the Law and the Lord will be known.\u00a0\u00a0The Law leads us to Jesus and once we have kneeled to Jesus the Law will be found to be within us because the Holy Spirit is within us.\u00a0\u00a0Then we live out the Law not from servitude but through the freedom and love of God within.\u00a0\u00a0It is Him making us new that enables us to not strive to obey the Law, but to by nature of being a new creature we do the Law as it flows from our new nature given to us by the Holy Spirit within.\u00a0\u00a0(2 Corinthians 5:17<\/b>)<\/p>\n

So by the doing of the miracle the ceremonial jars served a purpose just as the Law had.\u00a0\u00a0Once the jars were filled to wash away the dirt of the world just as the Law was used to free us from the sin of the world.\u00a0\u00a0Jesus gave the jars new use.\u00a0\u00a0Jesus then put them to new use to give people the wine, here representative of the Holy Spirit.\u00a0\u00a0The jars once washed away dirt.\u00a0\u00a0But they had to be constantly refilled with water to fulfill their purpose.\u00a0\u00a0Jesus filled the jars with the wine, as He filled us with the wine that is the Holy Spirit.\u00a0\u00a0Once received, we don\u2019t have to be refilled. (John 4:13-14<\/b>)\u00a0\u00a0If anything, we are now vessels to pour forth to Holy Spirit to others.\u00a0\u00a0The Spirit continually fills us to overflow as we overflow on to others.\u00a0\u00a0Beautiful!\u00a0\u00a0We are free from the Law by the Spirit of God who makes us new that we fulfill and understand the Law as men could not before.<\/p>\n

This miracle was no simple miracle to help out in a social situation to avoid embarrassment, though that it did.\u00a0\u00a0It, like everything Jesus did was so much deeper, so much richer, so very much more beautiful.\u00a0\u00a0In considering how great our God is, let us bow lower to Him who is so much higher in every way.\u00a0\u00a0Praise our good and loving God!\u00a0\u00a0Praise God!\u00a0\u00a0His Word and His ways are amazing.\u00a0\u00a0Praise God!<\/p>\n

John 1:5<\/b>\u00a0\u201cThe light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.\u201d<\/i><\/p>\n

Psalm 150:6<\/b>\u00a0–\u00a0Let everything that has breath praise the Lord.\u00a0 Praise the Lord!<\/p>\n

Micah 7:7<\/b>\u00a0–\u00a0But as for me, I watch\u00a0in hope\u00a0for the\u00a0Lord, I wait for God my Savior; my God will Hear\u00a0me.<\/p>\n

Micah 6:8<\/b>\u00a0–\u00a0He has\u00a0shown you, Oh man, what\u00a0is\u00a0good; and what does the\u00a0Lord\u00a0require of you, but\u00a0to do justly, to love\u00a0mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.<\/p>\n

Numbers 6:24-26<\/b>\u00a0The\u00a0Lord\u00a0bless you and keep you; 25\u00a0The\u00a0Lord\u00a0make His face shine on you and be gracious to you; 26\u00a0The\u00a0Lord\u00a0turn His face\u00a0toward you and give you peace.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

John 2:1-12\u00a0–\u00a0On the third day a wedding took place at Cana in Galilee.\u00a0Jesus\u2019 mother\u00a0was there,\u00a02\u00a0and Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding.\u00a03\u00a0When the wine was gone, Jesus\u2019 mother said to him, \u201cThey have no more wine.\u201d\u00a04\u00a0\u201cWoman,\u00a0why do you involve me?\u201d\u00a0Jesus replied.\u00a0\u201cMy hour\u00a0has not yet come.\u201d\u00a05\u00a0His mother said to the servants, \u201cDo…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1192],"tags":[129,1841,100,101,94,1874,17],"class_list":["post-2653","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-devotion","tag-corinthians","tag-ephesians","tag-john","tag-matthew","tag-micah","tag-numbers","tag-psalm"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.Bob4God.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2653","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.Bob4God.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.Bob4God.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.Bob4God.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.Bob4God.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2653"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/www.Bob4God.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2653\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2654,"href":"http:\/\/www.Bob4God.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2653\/revisions\/2654"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.Bob4God.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2653"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.Bob4God.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2653"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.Bob4God.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2653"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}