This is the big launch, the public unveiling, and the
beginning of the end. In this chapter of John, having gathered his disciples to
him in John 1, we see Jesus’ first recorded miracle. And what a place to
choose!
Picture the scene, a wedding banquet: the home of
tradition and the place where customs are made and followed to the letter. A
virtual disaster awaits the bridegroom – he runs out of wine for his guests and
there is only water remaining. It’s clear that Jesus does not necessarily want
to get involved but, following his mother’s prompting, requests 6 jars of
water. The result is an incredible miracle and, as John says, “the first of
the signs through which [Jesus] revealed his glory; and his disciples believed
in him.”
I imagine it had already taken a lot for the disciples
to follow him when called in John 1. Jesus’ response to their questions in that
chapter was: “Come and see”. Well, they didn’t have long to wait because they
saw His glory revealed – and yet we know that they didn’t fully understand for
a few years yet. In contrast, several years later (as we will see tomorrow),
Stephen was “a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit” who came, saw
and followed Jesus to the ultimate sacrifice of his own life.
What does/would it take for us to truly believe and
follow? Are there doubts that hold us back? In the rest of John’s gospel he
invites us to come and see – are we prepared for the consequences?
(member of a homegroup)