Charles Spurgeon once said,
"You expect that you will be married, and then your troubles will be over; some say that then they begin. I do not endorse that statement, but I am sure that they are not over, for there is another set of trials that begin then.
Married life is not all sugar, but grace in the heart will keep away most of the sours."
Did you know that the 1st MIRACLE of Jesus happens in a wedding?
If Jesus hastened to honor marriage as His first miracle, then there must be something special about this that husbands and wives must also be quick to honor each other as well.
It's easy if it's all sugar, but what if, as Charles Spurgeon says, sours will come along the way?
And not just the sours, but the bitterness is also on its way.
Worst, a poison! - There's betrayal, unfaithfulness, abuse, and so on.
It feels that if we stay and continue what we have started, then we are not doing ourselves any favor but injustice.
Since marriage is the most intimate relationship we could ever have on earth.
This is also the reason why it cuts us so deep when we are hurt by our spouses, not just the sour and bitter hurts, but especially those we can call "poison" in our hearts.
Then what can we do if there are no more sweets and joy, or worse, poison has been poured into our marriages?
I guess that's why the Bible says "MIRACLE"
We do not do the miracle - Jesus does.
John 2:1-11 ESV
On the third day there was a wedding at Cana in Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. 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.” 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.”
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.” This, the first of his signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee, and manifested his glory. And his disciples believed in him
Let's start digging this story a little deeper...
John 2: 1-3
On the third day there was a wedding at Cana in Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. 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.”
1. SHARE with Jesus our problems
When the wedding celebration runs out of wine, Mary tells her son that they've got a problem.
We've got to tell Jesus that we have a problem.
Like Mary, she didn't go to anyone but Jesus.
Why? Because she believes that Jesus can do something.
Don't go anywhere else - seek Jesus first, His comfort, His wisdom, His counsel, His strength.
It is also important to note that she did not tell Jesus what to do; she just simply said her concern.
In the same way, we do not dictate how we want the problem to be solved - it should always be His way and not our way.
And we trust His way.
John 2:4-7
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.”
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.
2. OBEY what Jesus said
Mary told the servants to do what Jesus told them because she believed Jesus would do something.
And so when Jesus asked the servants to just fill the jars with water, they followed without delay.
We might expect that when we tell God our problems, they will disappear in an instant.
Well, God wants our participation, too.
While He wants us to learn that there is a blessing in obedience.
He is also after our hearts.
God's main concern is to teach our hearts to love like Him - sacrificial and giving.
He also wants us to exercise our faith by trusting what He says in His words, and that He can do the impossible.
John 2:8-11
3. SURRENDER the result
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.” This, the first of his signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee, and manifested his glory. And his disciples believed in him
When the servants were done filling up the jar, they were asked to bring it to the groom.
And to everyone's surprise, the wine tasted better - it tasted better than the 1st day of celebration.
And this is the miracle - Jesus did not just solve what was lost - He replaced it with even better.
When God restores for sure it is even better than before.
Why? Because God has to manifest His glory before all the people around us.
And now to end this, did you know that wine symbolizes joy and celebration?
In life, we might run out of reasons to celebrate our spouses or marriage in general.
No more joy we felt.
No more surprises to anticipate.
No more love to share.
But this story is a great reminder that Jesus is the one who could only fill the emptiness of our jars, which are our hearts.
Share, Obey, Surrender.
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