I realize that it seems a little early in the Advent season to go ahead and read the account of Jesus’ birth. Well, the truth of the matter is that we are going to read this exact same text each time we gather leading up to the celebration of Christmas and we’re going to ask ourselves the very same question each time: Mary, did you know? Yes, the very same question as the title to the very popular Christmas song written by Mary Lowry back in the mid-1980’s and rerecorded many times since then. Each Sunday, we’re going to ask if Mary had any idea about a particular aspect of what her son Jesus was actually going to do during his earthly ministry (and even beyond to some extent). We’re going to ask if she had any idea who he really was. This Sunday we’re going to ask ourselves if Mary had any idea about the signs and miracles that her son would perform and what they meant.
I’ve often said that having a child becomes real for a mother long before it becomes real for a father. Whether it’s the moment that the test comes back positive or someone buys that first present, the woman feels like a mother. Maybe it’s that first battle with heartburn or the first sleepless night or even the joy (that quickly turns to pain) of the baby kicking in her stomach, the woman feels like a mother. Do you want to know when a man feels like a father? For some, it’s that moment when they hand your baby to you after delivery. However, for most men it’s that first moment when all of the hustle and bustle quiets down and we are left holding our precious gift from God in our arms. Now, I’ve been blessed to experience this three times in my life, but there was something different about when Ashby was born that the boys didn’t have (something more than just the fear of being a parent and realizing that someone else’s life was my responsibility). I can remember looking into her bluish/grey eyes and wondering who she was going to be. It was something that I had never known with any person in my life. The possibilities were (and are) literally endless for who that little girl might become and what she could do with her life.
Over the last almost seven years, I remember that moment every time I read this passage and the same question roams through my mind each time: I wonder what Mary was thinking when she looked into Jesus’ eyes. Obviously, she knew from the fact that the angel Gabriel had revealed to her who Jesus really was that her son was someone unlike any the world had known before. We know that she understood that Immanuel (the name that the Lord revealed to Joseph in a dream) literally means God with us. However, I’ve often wondered if even she had any clue who Jesus really was and what he came to do. Did she fully know and believe that her son was the long awaited Messiah of God’s people? For example, what did she think each time that her son performed a miracle? If we look at the second chapter of John’s gospel, we find one of Jesus’ most famous miracles, his turning water into wine at the wedding in Cana. One thing that is different about this miracle that isn’t necessarily present with all the other miracles is that Jesus’ mother was actually present while this miracle was performed. Also, keep in mind that this was his first miracle to perform. So, it’s not like Mary had heard of all of the wondrous things that Jesus had done elsewhere prior to this. John 2 reads, “On the third day there was a wedding at Cana in Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. Jesus also was invited to the wedding with his disciples. When the wine ran out, the mother of Jesus said to him, ‘They have no wine.’ And Jesus said to her, ‘Woman, what does this have to do with me? My hour has not yet come.’ His mother said to the servants, ‘Do whatever he tells you.’”
Now, we know that Jesus goes on to turn the water from six large stone purification pots into not just wine, but the best wine of the evening. We’re not going to dissect this miracle for the specific details that are contained within it. We did that only a few years ago when we walked through John’s gospel. However, I will remind you of what a miracle really was; Jesus’ miracles where much more significant than the physical action that is recorded in Scripture. When Jesus performed a miracle, what he was ultimately doing was pointing to the greatest miracle that was to come, his work upon the cross and his glorious resurrection. In fact, the Greek word that is translated miracle can also be translated as sign (something pointing to something else). His reference here to his hour having not yet come is a reference to the hour of his crucifixion not being at hand. Sure, he turned water into wine, but the ultimate purpose behind this miracle or sign was to point to himself as the promised Messiah. We can’t make the mistake of separating the miracles that he performed during his earthly ministry from his work upon the cross. It’s just like how we can’t separate Jesus’ calls for compassion, mercy, and love from his call to leave all the things of this world and follow him. It’s foolish to appeal to any one aspect of Jesus’ mission and not all of the call to be a follower of Christ, especially when the aspects that we want to appeal to are merely signs that are pointing towards his primary purpose. I’ve heard folks say recently that certain works of compassion and caring are the most Jesus-like things they’ve ever seen. My response has continuously been, “No, the most Jesus thing to do is to die upon the cross so that mankind might find forgiveness of sins.” You see it’s simple: you can’t have Jesus without the crucifixion and resurrection. Without these aspects of Christ’s work, we’re simply being moralists and not followers or disciples of Jesus.
Now, as far as this particular miracle goes and it’s pertaining to our specific look at Mary’s understanding of who her son was, did you notice what she told the servants at the wedding after Jesus reminded her that his time had not yet come? Mary told the servants to do whatever Jesus told them to do. I’ve often found it interesting that Mary would even go to her son in the first place when it came to the issue of having no wine at this wedding. After all, Jesus wasn’t in charge of this event, but an invited guest just like everyone else. Also, we know that Jesus’ trade was in carpentry and not wine-making. Why would she go to him with this problem unless she knew that he had the power to do something about it? John Calvin suggests that Mary had no expectation of Jesus producing more wine but instead was looking to him to give some pious exhortation that would relieve the guests of their uneasiness. After all, it was seen as an insult to them for there not to be enough wine. However, because of his having done no prior signs, it’s highly unlikely that Mary expected anything along the lines of the events that took place.
Regardless of her expectations, she knows that whatever Jesus is about to do is for the good of everyone. Imagine how much better the world would be if we just took Mary’s words to the servants in a general sense. “Do whatever [Jesus] tells you.” Mary realizes that Jesus, even though he is only a guest, is in control of this situation. We see an understanding on her part that there is no authority other than Jesus. We’re not told of her going to the host of the party, the father of the bride, or any of the servants. We’re told of her seeing a need and running directly to Jesus and laying the matter at his feet. We see from this example that if we desire anything from Christ, we will not obtain our wishes, unless we depend on him alone, look to him alone, and do whatever he commands of us.
Now, as I’ve said already, this was much more than a mere transformation of one substance to another. This was much more than a taking of something natural and common and making it into something that was synonymous with joy. This was something to point the way to Jesus as Messiah and Lord. If we look at the closing words of this account in John’s gospel, we read, “This, the first of his signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee, and manifested his glory. And his disciples believed in him.” The works of Jesus are great and wonderful. We love reading about his healing people of their infirmities, his driving out demons, and things like that. However, we cannot miss the ultimate reality that they are much bigger than the actions themselves. They are signs that are pointing the way to the cross, to the Messiah, and to God.
So, did Mary have any idea about the miracles that her son would perform? Well, we can assume from the text in John 2 that she didn’t know on that starry night there in the manger in Bethlehem. However, she did come to see the power of Jesus’ works and the sign in which they were pointing to. She grew in her understanding of who her son was just as we must grow in our understanding of who he is. We can’t reduce Jesus down to his miracles or his teaching or his good works, but we must come to know him for the totality of who he is. He is our One True Hope, the promised Messiah, the Prince of Peace, the eternal prophet, priest, and king. Jesus Christ is the Son of Man, the Lion of Judah, and the Good Shepherd. Jesus Christ is everything to us.
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