Cups Running Over
?Cups Running Over
Zac Poonen |?30 July 2023
?The wedding at Cana, on the other hand, gives us a glimpse of the blessedness that comes through honouring God (John 2:1–11). It is significant that it was at a wedding, that Jesus decided to manifest His glory for the first time. Even today, He desires to manifest His glory at every wedding and in every marriage. Sex, love, and marriage are among His most precious gifts to us and can be the means whereby He reveals His glory not only to us but through us to others as well – if only we will let Him.
"When the wine failed at Cana, they turned to the Lord and He did not let them down. He will not let you down either, if you turn to Him in your need."
The shortage of wine at Cana indicates that problems and needs will arise in every marriage. These problems can ultimately lead both husband and wife to a point of continued frustration and despair. But when Jesus is given the pre-eminent place in a marriage, He very soon solves the problems and meets the needs – as He did at Cana.
It is not enough for Christ to be invited as a guest into the home; He must be Lord. It is mere mockery to hang a placard on the wall which reads, “CHRIST IS THE HEAD OF THIS HOUSE”, if in actual fact the husband (or the wife!) is the real head. But wherever Christ is truly acknowledged as Head and Lord, He manifests His glory as really as He did at Cana two thousand years ago (verse 11).?
“Whatever He says to you, do it”,?was the advice given by Mary to the servants there?(verse 5).?They heeded that advice and obeyed Jesus implicitly and immediately – and soon the problem was solved. If only married couples (as well as young people contemplating marriage) would heed the same advice and render the same implicit and immediate obedience to the Lord’s commands, how soon their problems would find a solution.
The water was transformed into wine at that wedding. That which was tasteless and colourless and ordinary was changed in a moment into something sweet and sparkling and costly. This symbolizes how the common things of married life (including the monotonous drudgery of daily routine) can begin to sparkle with a luster, when the Lord is given full control of the home. The tasteless becomes sweet, and infinite value begins to be seen in that which was formerly despised as common.
The needs of many people were met too, as a result of that miracle. A Christian marriage never fulfils its purpose by providing happiness merely for both the partners. God’s intention is that married couples should have their cups “running over” constantly (Psalm 23:5). They should be the means of blessing to many others – in fact to every one they meet. God once said to an obedient servant of His –?“I will bless you… and you shall be a blessing – dispensing good to others…?(and) in you shall all the families and kindred of the earth be blessed”?(Genesis 12:2, 3). That blessing of God is for us too, according to?Galatians 3:14. What greater aim could one have in marriage than that? But the measure in which we become a blessing to others will depend on the measure in which we obey God in our daily life.?“In your seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed, because you have heard and obeyed My voice”, said the Lord to Abraham (Genesis 22:18).?
The miracle at Cana holds out a message of hope too, for those who have blundered and failed in the realms of sex, love and marriage. When the wine failed at Cana, they turned to the Lord and He did not let them down. He will not let you down either, if you turn to Him in your need – no matter how great your failure may have been. He only asks you to be honest about that need (as those in Cana were) and to tell Him of your failure. Have you through your foolishness, allowed things to go too far with that girl (or that boy)? Have you blundered in the matter of love – perhaps through ignorance? Are you, as a result, facing embarrassment and frustration now? Do others misunderstand you and reproach you – or perhaps malign you? Then turn to the Lord at once, without a moment’s delay. He is the Friend of sinners. He waits not only to forgive your sin but also to clean up the mess that Satan has made of your life. It was to fulfil these two purposes that He came into the world (1 John 3:5, 8). Don’t give way to discouragement, for there is hope even for you. The Lord more than made up for the lack at that wedding in Cana, and He can more than make up for every lack in your life. The Lord manifested His glory at Cana, and He can do the same in your case.
If you have faced disappointment, take heart from the fact that true blessedness in the Christian life comes through renouncing and not through possessing (Acts 20:35). God can make all things work together for your good, and help you to live a full life for His glory in spite of unfulfilled desires.