¹¹ This, the first of his miraculous signs, Jesus performed at Cana in Galilee. He thus revealed his glory, and his disciples put their faith in him.

The story of Jesus changing water into wine is a familiar Bible story. Now some good evangelical Christians will say the wine was really grape juice. I don’t mean to start a controversy, but if it had been grape juice it would have said so. He changed water into wine, and very good wine at that.

In verse 11 it says He revealed his glory to his disciples. Not many people who knew about this miracle. Just the people who filled the water pots and the disciples.

It was a sign for them, and as it says, they put their faith in Him. Up to this point they only had his words to believe in, now they had miraculous evidence. Later in John we see that when he did his public miracles, some believed, some didn’t and some were undecided

This was about a week after the first calling of the disciples in chapter one. Things will start happening rapidly now as Jesus presents himself to Israel as the Messiah.

One might wonder why Mary went to Jesus, he was a guest after all, and guests are not usually responsible for food and drink at a wedding party. Some have suggested that Jesus was invited and he brought his disciples along, and so perhaps that meant more than the expected number of guests and they had used up all the wine. That is just speculation. However, Mary, Jesus’ mother, knew what Jesus could do and as the eldest son, he would have been the one expected to do something.

When Jesus says his hour has not yet come, he could be referring to the cross, or he could be telling his mom that he is not under her authority.

Mary, in total confidence in Jesus, tells them to do whatever Jesus said. These must have been people that Mary and Jesus knew because they seem so familiar with the people holding the wedding feast.

There is also some symbolism here.

The pots Jesus referred to were ceremonial pots. Jews always washed in those carefully before eating or drinking. This, they thought, made them clean. Jesus perhaps was showing that he intended to change the way of cleansing.

The water pots represented the old purification system, but Jesus was changing the water of the old system into the new wine of the kingdom. Cleansing, or baptism, was on the outside of a person, but Jesus was ushering in the new wine of the Kingdom of God, which is based on faith in Him. It is based on a changed heart and not on outward cleansing or water.

The miracle also showed that Jesus, as God, is in charge of time. It takes a long time to make wine, but time is no factor for Jesus as he is Lord of time as well.

When the disciples saw this, they put their faith in him. Perhaps we too see God in action in various ways in our lives. When we do, it should inspire us to have greater faith just as it did the early disciples.