February 23, 2026

GOD’S WORD FOR TODAY:

“ On the third day a wedding took place at Cana in Galilee. Jesus’ mother was there. Jesus and His disciples had also been invited to the wedding. When the wine was gone, Jesus’ mother said to Him, ‘They have no more wine.‘”

(John 2.1-3)

TODAY’S REFLECTION ON GOD’S WORD:

The Apostle Paul, wrote to the faith in Christ community of Corinth, “But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of  the power may be of God, and not of us.“ (2 Corinthians 4.7) With this scripture in mind, I reflect back on the miracle at the wedding in Cana. John invites us to experience a eucharistic event before there was a eucharist. We know what the master of the banquet, the caterer, declared after tasting the wine which Jesus brought into being. How surprised he was that the bridegroom would say the best wine for the last. It was totally against protocol and tradition. Hear what had happened and then let’s apply it to the miracle of God’s grace given to all believers. The bridegroom followed protocol and tradition. He did nothing that was out of place or character. It was a typical Jewish wedding. When it came to the wine, he served the very best wine for all the toasts. Once that had been completed and the meal was in full service, then less expensive and more common wine was served. But the party continued, the guests refused to leave and the resources were running low. This would have been an embarrassment to the bridegroom and his family. Mary, sensing the situation, invoked her Son, Jesus, to remedy the problem. Reluctantly, Jesus complied. He pointed out the six large stone jars used for ceremonial washing (i.e. baptism) and had them filled with water. From that, Jesus turned the water into wine. We know from the steward’s testimony that it was the very best wine of all. Now let me recapture Paul’s affirmation of “…we have this treasure in earthen vessels.” What was that treasure? It is the Word of God and the Holy Spirit which empowers the “earthen vessel,” our bodies, to declare it to all the world. The gospel is that treasure and Jesus was that earthen vessel. In this one story we have baptism, the Lord’s Supper and the ministry of the gospel of reconciliation all in one. We are intended to be that treasure in earthen vessels along with Christ. We are to be shared as the very best wine of truth to a world that is “hungering and thirsting” for righteousness. It is the essence of our weekly communion instituted by Jesus Himself as the Christ, the Messiah, our Lord and Savior.

This is also our call in discipleship to be followers of Christ. He has set the example before us that we might accomplish the good for which we are created. Our daily lives are meant to be living expressions of the gospel, the good news. Strange, isn’t it, that this gospel good news has always been available? Even in the Garden of Eden as it was in the Garden of Gethsemane as it was in the Garden Tomb, the gospel was always ready to be served as “a treasure in earthen vessels.” Sadly, it took the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus to bring this truth to bear so poignantly in our lives. I wonder how much we truly recognize it even today. Do we really connect what happens at baptism as the outpouring of Heaven, via the Holy Spirit, to be the indwelling of that same Spirit? Do we really understand what Jesus asks us to do “in remembrance of Him” as we celebrate the Lord’s Supper with the bread (the body of Christ) and the wine (the blood of Christ)? Where do we think the wine comes from but in the “fruit of the vine”? What is the wine but the pressed out liquid from a grape. What is the body of the grape but the flesh, or meat, of it which contains the juice. Only when the flesh is pressed, stomped and crushed does it release the liquid which then becomes wine upon fermentation. In worship yesterday, I listened as in a communion meditation the image of Jesus being poured out was placed against Jesus’ blood being spilled out. We love the ceremony and cleanliness of being “poured out” like wine from a bottle to a glass. The steward is careful not to spill a drop. Yet, the last 18 hours of Jesus’ life was anything but clean and sterile and grandiose. He was beaten, whipped, slapped, spat upon, nailed, scourged, stabbed and pricked by thorns. When the final breath was exhaled, so too, was the last ounce of blood. “No greater love is there than this that a man would lay down his life for the sake of another.”

What we are exposed to in John is the transition of “come and see” to “go and do likewise.” Interesting, is it not, that in the beginning of John’s gospel, we are invited to a wedding where the first miracle is revealed. Interesting to me because in John’s Revelation, it is a wedding where the final consequence of saying “I do” is revealed as the Bride and the Groom say “come and see.” It is the true life of discipleship for which we must be prepared to be and to do.

TODAY’S PRAYER OF THANKSGIVING:

Father, in these days we are finding the need to believe even more than ever before. We all have known trouble, some in greater ways than others, but You are offering us the assurance that we will not be consumed by it forever. Regardless of the “time” we are in and the “time” we have been given, we ask for Your Holy Spirit which Jesus asked You to share with us, to lead and guide and direct us in the paths we should go. Teach us what we still need to learn. Empower us to put that learning into action. Bless our actions not as a works righteousness but as righteous works of faith, hope and love in Jesus’ name. AMEN.