December 18
Jesus Revealed His Glory Through Miracles
What Jesus did here in Cana of Galilee was the first of the signs through which he revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him. John 2:11
During Advent, we remind ourselves not to let shopping, decorations, and party planning distract us from our true focus. Advent and Christmas are about Jesus, the Savior revealed to us in God’s Word.
But could God’s Word itself become a distraction?
Let’s recall the account of the wedding at Cana and some details that might catch our attention. By his attendance, does Jesus teach us to honor marriage? Yes, he does. Does he provide gallons of excellent wine for the occasion? Is wine a good gift from a generous God? Yes and yes. Does this story help us understand Mary, the mother of Jesus, without making too much of her? It does.
All of those lessons are valuable in their place, but they would become distractions if we would miss the main point of the story. To help us see the main point, John finishes the story with these words: “What Jesus did here in Cana of Galilee was the first of the signs through which he revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him.”
The miraculous sign of changing water into wine revealed Jesus’ glory. Important as it is that he is our human brother, that fact by itself would not enable him to save us. We need a brother who is also God’s divine Son, so that his obedience, death, and new life have divine power to save us.
When Jesus does miracles, this revelation of his divine glory produces and strengthens the faith that connects us to him and his blessings. The disciples believed in Jesus, and so do we. Faith is essential to our Advent preparation. Faith finds and keeps the blessings of Christmas.
When we read or hear God’s Word, we do not seek random bits of information or ideas for a do-it-yourself religion. We keep in mind what John wrote toward the end of his gospel: “Jesus performed many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name” (John 20:30,31).
Lord Jesus, let nothing distract us from seeing your glory with the eyes of faith, so that we may serve you now and see you face to face in the glory of eternal life. Amen.
Rev. Joel Fredrich serves Martin Luther College as a professor of Greek.
