I’ve always found Jesus’ first miracle to be rather puzzling. Turning water to wine at a wedding? Seemed a bit insignificant to me for His premier miracle. Since I believe that there had to be some great significance to it, I kept searching and listening to sermons and podcasts. One said it was to show that Jesus had mastery over nature. Another said it was to show Jesus gives joy, since wine always represents joy in the Bible. One said it was to show He could save any situation or He could provide gifts. While no doubt these were part of it, they never seemed sufficient to me.

Recently, I heard a song on the radio called, “Your Grace Finds Me.” It speaks of grace on the wedding day and I wasn’t sure if it was speaking of that wedding day, or the singer’s own wedding day or just every wedding day. I was thinking about that story in John and the miracle and, as if God had put the idea directly into my head, I realized that Jesus was taking the old provision for the body (water from the rock in Exodus) and turning it into the new provision for the soul (the wine from the Rock, which represents the new testament in His blood). He was showing the grace that marked the change from the Old Testament to the New Testament. The old testament had water and manna; Jesus brought us the bread and wine of Communion. That is significant enough for His first miracle. Even if those present didn’t understand it at the time, John obviously got it later. What a wonderful picture of God’s great grace and what He was going to offer.

Image: http://www.foundationsforfreedom.net

God’s Grace

God’s grace is all around us now
As it has always been.
He shows us love we don’t deserve
And rescues us from sin.
That wedding day so long ago
In Cana far away,
He showed His grace to them–and us!–
On such a joyful day.
In Exodus, the water came,
Sustaining from the rock.
In John, the water turned to wine
Once poured into the crock.
It was a way for Him to show
Life was about to change
And grace would now come from the Rock
Through wine. It might seem strange,
But Jesus gave disciples the
First hint of what would come.
The wine would symbolize His blood,
Salvation, sweet, for some.
For those who will accept His gift
Of love and grace so free,
His death proclaimed eternal life
For sinners: you and me.
So Jesus gave us brand, new grace
That flowed from wine (His blood),
Replacing old grace (water, pure)
To wash us in a flood
Of love and mercy, hope and truth
And overwhelming grace.
To help us live our lives for Him
And then to win the race!

©2013 Denise McKenney

Feel free to print, share or repost anything on this blog. I do ask that you let me know if you use one of my poems on your blog or at your church somehow. It might give me an idea of better ways to spread His words, which I am always looking to do. And of course, always keep the copyright symbol and my name with the poem so I continue to have the right to use them. You may not realize that if something is posted enough times without the copyright notice, I could lose the copyright and then someone else could conceivably file for a copyright and I would no longer be able to use my own poems! It has happened, so please make sure the (c) is always on the poem whenever you repost. Thanks!

God bless,
Denise McKenney

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