The Adventures of Jesus Christ
Episodes from the Life of Jesus for Young Readers
by Vincent Cheung
[ Contents ]
Chapter 11. Jesus Turned Water into Wine
HE SAVED THE BEST FOR LAST
One day, Jesus and his disciples were invited to a wedding in a town called Cana. A wedding is a special celebration where a man and a woman get married, and families and friends come together to have fun, share a meal, and celebrate. Mary was also at the wedding.
As the party continued, a problem arose. The wine ran out! This was a big deal because it was important for the hosts to have enough wine for their guests. People would be very disappointed, and it could bring shame to the family.
Mary noticed the problem and went to Jesus. She assumed that he could help, even if she did not know how. “They have no more wine,” she told him. At first, Jesus answered, “Why do you involve me? My time has not yet come.” Mary decided to trust Jesus with the matter and said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.”
Nearby stood six large stone jars that were used for washing. Each jar could hold about 20 to 30 gallons of water. Jesus told the servants, “Fill the jars with water.” Then Jesus said, “Now draw some out and take it to the master of the banquet.” That was the person in charge of making sure everything at the feast went well.
When the master of the banquet tasted it, he was shocked. What had started as ordinary water was now the best wine. It was a miracle. The master of the banquet called over the man who was getting married. He said to him, “Everyone brings out the best wine first and then the cheaper wine after the guests have had too much to drink. But you have saved the best until now!”
The miracle saved the wedding celebration. Later, one of the disciples called John said that it was the first sign through which Jesus showed his glory, and his disciples believed in him. This miracle was just the beginning of many amazing things Jesus would do.
The miracles of Jesus really happened. They were not stories or fables to teach us spiritual lessons, but real events that took place at specific times and places. When we read about Jesus healing people, those people really were sick, and Jesus truly made them better. When Jesus stopped a storm, there really were winds and waves, and Jesus made them stop.
These miracles were real, and they show us the power of God. Anyone who uses these miracles mainly as symbols or pictures to teach spiritual lessons is not respecting what Jesus did. Such a person is not a good follower of Jesus Christ.
It is true that when God does something, it can teach us a lesson on what God is like. But we must remember that he still did that thing. Strange people sometimes focus only on the lesson and throw out what God actually did, saying that it is not important or that we cannot expect to experience the same thing. We should indeed make lessons out of God’s actions, but never forget that God can do those actions in our lives too.
Jesus really turned water into wine. It was a miracle. A miracle is something that God can do and that humans cannot do without God. It is something more than our normal experience. Notice that Jesus did not do a miracle only to show people his power, and he did not do a miracle only to help people in a life-or-death emergency. He did a miracle to help the people avoid embarrassment and to help the celebration continue. Many people might think it was not important enough for God to do a miracle. Jesus did not agree with this.
The miracle of turning water into wine also has a deeper meaning. It was a sign that Jesus was bringing something new and wonderful. The religious leaders at that time had added many rules and traditions that did not come from what God said. They had made their religion about following teachings made by people instead of God.
Their way of life was about pretending to love God, but in reality, it was about following their rules and feeling good about themselves. Jesus came to change that. He wanted people to love God in a real way, not just follow empty rules and doctrines made by people. He came to turn people’s faith into something powerful and flavorful, something real and exciting.
Doctrines are teachings and ideas. Good doctrines come from God. Bad doctrines come from people who invented them to make them feel good about their own ideas and actions, and to make other people follow their wrong ideas and actions.
Even today, you will hear many people teach doctrines that they invented. They do not follow Jesus or obey him, but they want to convince themselves and other people that they are the best followers of Jesus, so they invent their own doctrines and follow them instead. Make sure the doctrines that you learn is really what the Bible teaches.
Jesus was not afraid to stand up to people who were doing wrong, even if they were religious leaders. He once went to the temple and saw people selling things and making money in God’s house. Jesus was angry because they were disrespecting God, so he made them leave, even using a whip to drive out the animals they were selling. Jesus showed that God’s house should be a place of worship, not a marketplace.
This shows us who Jesus really is. He was not always gentle. Sometimes he needed to be strong to do what was right. He stood up for what was right, and he wants us to do the same. Jesus came to set people free from empty religion and to bring them closer to God. He wants us to have a real relationship with him, not just follow a bunch of rules.
Jesus showed that he always knew what he was doing. He never panicked or got scared. All the prophets before Jesus made mistakes – Abraham, Moses, Samson, and David all had flaws. But Jesus was perfect. He was holy, not just like a prophet, but like God himself.
Today, many churches have also lost their way. They have run out of wine. They have lost the real joy and power of following Jesus. Some churches focus more on pleasing people and following traditions than loving and obeying God.
But Jesus can still bring new life to the church, just like he turned water into wine. He wants us to learn true teachings and have faith for miracles. He wants us to come back to a simple and true devotion to him, without all the extra rules and traditions that people have added.