“Jesus said to the servants, ‘Fill the waterpots with water.’ So, they filled them to the top. Then he said to them, ‘Now dip out some water and take it to the man in charge of the feast.’ So, they did what he said. Then the man in charge tasted it, but the water had become wine” (John 2:7-9)
The first sign is about Jesus providing a supernatural, abundant source of joy in a situation of poverty and shortage. He was invited on a wedding, but the wine was running out. That meant the feast was over. What an embarassing situation for the bridal couple and their guests…
But Jesus told the servants to fill large jars with water, draw some out and take it to the master of the feast. This man was amazed by the quality of the wine, even without knowing that this wine was just ordinary water moments before. Jesus’ wine surpassed everything the bridal couple and their friends had bought themselves.
We humans all experience spiritual poverty and a lack of joy. We can’t keep the feast going. The world mourns and groans. “The years of our life are seventy, or even by reason of strength eighty; yet their span is but toil and trouble” (Psalm 90:10). But Jesus has come to change our lives. In his presence there is fullness of joy (see Psalm 16:11).
This sign reveals Jesus as the sovereign Ruler over the natural world and as our gracious God who provides abundantly for the joy of his children.