Save the Best for Last

John 2:1-10

It has baffled many Bible scholars for years, why Jesus would perform as His first miracle, the changing of water into wine. It brought no healing to a broken body and no salvation to a lost soul. In fact, it didn’t even bring glory to Jesus at the time, as everyone at the marriage supper gave credit to the host for bringing the best wine out at the end, while not even acknowledging Jesus’ miracle (verse 10).

God first dealt with man with grace, demanding nothing of Abraham but faith, and that was counted to him for righteousness (Romans 4:3). Even when Abraham sinned in bringing Lot with him, or going in to Hagar to bear a child, or lied to Pharaoh about his wife, there is no evidence that God reprimanded or punished him. Grace and mercy was God’s original default position.

When Israel arrived in the wilderness between the Red Sea and the Promised Land, they informed God that they were well capable of doing whatever God demanded of them (Exodus 19:8), and in their self-righteousness God gave them the Ten Commandments and the rest of the Law. Of course no man can keep the Law, so humanity plunged into the wrath and judgment of God.

Then came Jesus, who lived perfection in every way, fulfilling all of the demands of the Law and who laid down His life as a sacrifice for the entire world. He took the full brunt of God’s wrath against sin and became sin for us so that we could become the righteousness of God in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:21).

When Jesus turned the water to wine as His first miracle He was doing it as a metaphor for the message that He was to proclaim. As the giver of the law, Moses becomes synonymous with that Law (John 1:17), while Jesus is the bringer of grace. Moses touched the water in Egypt and it turned to blood (Exodus 7:20) which produced death. Jesus touched the water in Cana and it turned to wine which produced joy and merriment. Jesus is showing us that the introduction of the Law brought death and condemnation, while the introduction of God’s amazing grace brings life and peace.

God truly saved His best way for last. Grace is God’s final method of dealing with mankind. When you accept Christ by faith you return to the original promise that God made to Abraham which was not dependent upon His obedience but only y upon his faith (Galatians 3:29). This is not an admonition to be disobedient, for God’s grace truly teaches us how to live and when we accept His grace we will see His righteousness come out of us (Titus 2:11, 12).

Christ has filled you with His goodness, just like the water pots in the story were filled with water. Jesus has transformed who you used to be so that you can bring Him glory now through who you are in Christ. Let Him touch your soul today and bring greatness out in the mighty name of Jesus.

Dressed In Our Best

Isaiah 61:10

Every little girl dreams about her wedding day. She fantasizes about her wedding party, her bridesmaids, the church, and the guests and of course, that perfect groom. Of all of her intricate details that she works out in her head, probably none are as important to her as finding and wearing that perfect wedding dress. The dress represents the culmination of the entire day; beautiful, pure and perfect.

When God clothes His saints, He does so with the very best garments, not unlike our wedding day attire. In Isaiah 61:10, we find what we are covered over with and the comparisons to brides and grooms are fitting due to the fact that all of us dress our very best on our wedding day. As God looks at us, He sees us in the best garments which are given to us by the righteousness that is in Jesus Christ. Let’s look closer at these garments as Isaiah lists them:

“Clothed me with garments of salvation” – It’s Hebrew meaning is closer to “He has covered me over with deliverance and victory”. The believer is literally dressed up in the delivering power of the cross.

“Covered me with the robe of righteousness” – Singular “righteousness”, not plural “righteousness’s” as in Isaiah 64:6. It is not indicating that we are covered over when we DO righteousness, but rather that we are always covered over by a robe of HIS righteousness. This is the same garment that the Father has placed upon the prodigal son when he returns home (Luke 15:22), identifying him as his Father’s son.

“As a bridegroom decks himself with ornaments” – The Hebrew word for “decks” is the same word used to describe the ministry of a priest. This illustration shows us the seriousness that is in this attire. The “ornaments” are better translated “beauty”, as it is the same word used earlier in the chapter to show what Jesus came to do: “To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes…” (Isaiah 61:3).

“As a bride adorns herself with her jewels” – Did you know that there is no Hebrew word for “wife”? This is due to the fact that God always views the woman as a “bride”, for this is when she is at her loveliest. You are the “bride of Christ”, not the “wife of Christ”, for Jesus sees you in your best every moment of every day. Even when you know that you are not at your best, no worries, He still sees you as a bride on her wedding day. Hallelujah!

Believer, be blessed today with the knowledge that your Heavenly Father has clothed you over with deliverance and victory and that when He sees you, He sees the very best thing about you: Jesus Christ and Him crucified!

Save the Best for Last

John 2:1-10

It has baffled many Bible scholars for years, why Jesus would perform as His first miracle, the changing of water into wine. It brought no healing to a broken body and no salvation to a lost soul. In fact, it didn’t even bring glory to Jesus at the time, as everyone at the marriage supper gave credit to the host for bringing the best wine out at the end, while not even acknowledging Jesus’ miracle (verse 10).

God first dealt with man with grace, demanding nothing of Abraham but faith, and that was counted to him for righteousness (Romans 4:3). Even when Abraham sinned in bringing Lot with him, or going in to Hagar to bear a child, or lied to Pharaoh about his wife, there is no evidence that God reprimanded or punished him. Grace and mercy was God’s original default position.

When Israel arrived in the wilderness between the Red Sea and the Promised Land, they informed God that they were well capable of doing whatever God demanded of them (Exodus 19:8), and in their self-righteousness God gave them the Ten Commandments and the rest of the Law. Of course no man can keep the Law, so humanity plunged into the wrath and judgment of God.

Then came Jesus, who lived perfection in every way, fulfilling all of the demands of the Law and who laid down His life as a sacrifice for the entire world. He took the full brunt of God’s wrath against sin and became sin for us so that we could become the righteousness of God in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:21).

When Jesus turned the water to wine as His first miracle He was doing it as a metaphor for the message that He was to proclaim. As the giver of the law, Moses becomes synonymous with that Law (John 1:17), while Jesus is the bringer of grace. Moses touched the water in Egypt and it turned to blood (Exodus 7:20) which produced death. Jesus touched the water in Cana and it turned to wine which produced joy and merriment. Jesus is showing us that the introduction of the Law brought death and condemnation, while the introduction of God’s amazing grace brings life and peace.

God truly saved His best way for last. Grace is God’s final method of dealing with mankind. When you accept Christ by faith you return to the original promise that God made to Abraham which was not dependent upon His obedience but only upon his faith (Galatians 3:29). This is not an admonition to be disobedient, for God’s grace truly teaches us how to live and when we accept His grace we will see His righteousness come out of us (Titus 2:11, 12).

Christ has filled you with His goodness, just like the water pots in the story were filled with water. Jesus has transformed who you used to be so that you can bring Him glory now through who you are in Christ. Let Him touch your soul today and bring greatness out in the mighty name of Jesus.

Dressed In Our Best

Isaiah 61:10

Every little girl dreams about her wedding day. She fantasizes about her wedding party, her bridesmaids, the church, and the guests and of course, that perfect groom. Of all of her intricate details that she works out in her head, probably none are as important to her as finding and wearing that perfect wedding dress. The dress represents the culmination of the entire day; beautiful, pure and perfect.

When God clothes His saints, He does so with the very best garments, not unlike our wedding day attire. In Isaiah 61:10, we find what we are covered over with and the comparisons to brides and grooms are fitting due to the fact that all of us dress our very best on our wedding day. As God looks at us, He sees us in the best garments which are given to us by the righteousness that is in Jesus Christ. Let’s look closer at these garments as Isaiah lists them:

“Clothed me with garments of salvation” – It’s Hebrew meaning is closer to “He has covered me over with deliverance and victory”. The believer is literally dressed up in the delivering power of the cross.

“Covered me with the robe of righteousness” – Singular “righteousness”, not plural “righteousness’s” as in Isaiah 64:6. It is not indicating that we are covered over when we DO righteousness, but rather that we are always covered over by a robe of HIS righteousness. This is the same garment that the Father has placed upon the prodigal son when he returns home (Luke 15:22), identifying him as his Father’s son.

“As a bridegroom decks himself with ornaments” – The Hebrew word for “decks” is the same word used to describe the ministry of a priest. This illustration shows us the seriousness that is in this attire. The “ornaments” are better translated “beauty”, as it is the same word used earlier in the chapter to show what Jesus came to do: “To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes…” (Isaiah 61:3).

“As a bride adorns herself with her jewels” – Did you know that there is no Hebrew word for “wife”? This is due to the fact that God always views the woman as a “bride”, for this is when she is at her loveliest. You are the “bride of Christ”, not the “wife of Christ”, for Jesus sees you in your best every moment of every day. Even when you know that you are not at your best, no worries, He still sees you as a bride on her wedding day. Hallelujah!

Believer, be blessed today with the knowledge that your Heavenly Father has clothed you over with deliverance and victory and that when He sees you, He sees the very best thing about you: Jesus Christ and Him crucified!

Save the Best for Last

John 2:1-10

It has baffled many Bible scholars for years, why Jesus would perform as His first miracle, the changing of water into wine. It brought no healing to a broken body and no salvation to a lost soul. In fact, it didn’t even bring glory to Jesus at the time, as everyone at the marriage supper gave credit to the host for bringing the best wine out at the end, while not even acknowledging Jesus’ miracle (verse 10).

God first dealt with man with grace, demanding nothing of Abraham but faith, and that was counted to him for righteousness (Romans 4:3). Even when Abraham sinned in bringing Lot with him, or going in to Hagar to bear a child, or lied to Pharaoh about his wife, there is no evidence that God reprimanded or punished him. Grace and mercy was God’s original default position.

When Israel arrived in the wilderness between the Red Sea and the Promised Land, they informed God that they were well capable of doing whatever God demanded of them (Exodus 19:8), and in their self-righteousness God gave them the Ten Commandments and the rest of the Law. Of course no man can keep the Law, so humanity plunged into the wrath and judgment of God.

Then came Jesus, who lived perfection in every way, fulfilling all of the demands of the Law and who laid down His life as a sacrifice for the entire world. He took the full brunt of God’s wrath against sin and became sin for us so that we could become the righteousness of God in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:21).

When Jesus turned the water to wine as His first miracle He was doing it as a metaphor for the message that He was to proclaim. As the giver of the law, Moses becomes synonymous with that Law (John 1:17), while Jesus is the bringer of grace. Moses touched the water in Egypt and it turned to blood (Exodus 7:20) which produced death. Jesus touched the water in Cana and it turned to wine which produced joy and merriment. Jesus is showing us that the introduction of the Law brought death and condemnation, while the introduction of God’s amazing grace brings life and peace.

God truly saved His best way for last. Grace is God’s final method of dealing with mankind. When you accept Christ by faith you return to the original promise that God made to Abraham which was not dependent upon His obedience but only y upon his faith (Galatians 3:29). This is not an admonition to be disobedient, for God’s grace truly teaches us how to live and when we accept His grace we will see His righteousness come out of us (Titus 2:11, 12).

Christ has filled you with His goodness, just like the water pots in the story were filled with water. Jesus has transformed who you used to be so that you can bring Him glory now through who you are in Christ. Let Him touch your soul today and bring greatness out in the mighty name of Jesus.