Who Is Jesus? (John 2)

John 2: 1-11
I want to approach some questions that I have always had about this second chapter of John. Let me begin: Why did Jesus seem so detached from his mother? She appears in John’s gospel two times; once at the wedding at Cana and at the cross (19:26). Both times, Jesus refers to his mother as “Woman”. He then says to her in John 2, after her command to do something about the lack of wine, “Woman, what have you to do with me? “ “My hour has not yet come.” I think that this response can sound like Jesus was dismissive towards his mother. However, what we are hearing from Jesus is a reminder that he is not only the “son of this mother” but also the “Son of God”. In John 19, when John refers to his mother once again as “Woman” he is introducing her to her “new” son, the beloved disciple. Jesus challenges the typical understanding of family by reframing the family around God. He is also reminding us that we cannot dictate God’s timing. His “Hour”, his suffering and death was in God’s time.

My second question was, “Why is turning water into wine Jesus’ first ‘sign’ (miracle) in John’s Gospel and what does it mean?” The miracle connects the sign of an abundance of wine with the coming of the Messiah. According to Jacob’s blessing of his sons, a ruler was to come from the tribe of Judah and there would be an outpouring of wine – his robes would be washed by the “blood of the grapes” (Genesis 49:10-12). Several prophetic writings also speak of an outpouring of divine favor upon its ruler who will bring peace, comfort and God’s everlasting love (Isaiah 25: 6-8).

Jewish tradition associated the outpouring of wine with the coming of the Messiah. In addition, Jesus accepted Messianic titles from his disciples and followers. His identity is not confined to Jewish expectations. John is very clear that the Greeks would also grasp that the miraculous gift of wine reveals the presence of a god. Throughout the Mediterranean world, wine was associated with the Greek god Dionysus. He was credited with cultivating the first vine and fermenting its fruit. There is a record of a town named Andros which held a festival each year celebrating the gift of wine. The town had a spring that bubbled water, but every year on the festival of “Theodosia” (the gift of god), the water would turn to wine. Jesus’ turning water into wine at the wedding at Cana communicates the significance of Jesus’ Messiahship to the Jews and his divinity to the Gentiles.

The theme that I have lifted up is “Who is Jesus?” One underlying theme that underscores this issue is the relationship of Jesus’ identity to the culmination of his mission (his death and resurrection). When we think about the relationship between the body and blood of Jesus with the bread and the wine of communion, I find it intriguing that at the cross his death is marked by the separation of water and blood from his body. So the earthly reign of the Messiah begins with water becoming wine and the end of his earthly ministry is described by his blood and water having separated.

John 2: 13-25
Jesus then goes to Jerusalem for the Jewish Feast of the Passover and is angered by the merchants selling oxen, sheep and pigeons and money changers conducting their business inside of the Temple complex. As he chases out the merchants and overturns the tables of the moneychangers, he says, “Take these things away. You shall not make my Father’s house a house of trade.” The Jews who see this ask him “What sign do you have to show us for doing this?”, not recognizing or witnessing the sign that declared his Messianic identity at Cana.

As we continue we see more references that help us to identify who Jesus is. Some Jews expected the Messiah to come and purify Israel’s worship, thus appearing first in the Temple (Malachi 3:1). Others expected the Messiah to completely purge the whole city of Jerusalem, making it holy. When Jesus said “Destroy this Temple and in three days will raise it up” may have been familiar to some of the Jews. According to various sources, a new temple would be erected in Jerusalem in the new age of salvation. Jesus’ interchange with the crowd however, shows that he is not fully understood. People found Jesus words about raising a new temple difficult to believe. It had taken 46 years to construct the existing second temple.

Some questions to ponder:
1. Who is Jesus to you?
2. Why is his identity important for us as believers/followers?
3. What causes potential believers to become conflicted in their beliefs?
4. What does the Spirit have to do with confessing Jesus as Lord?