On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there; and both Jesus and His disciples were invited to the wedding. (1-2)
It is important to remember that Jesus lived in an everyday world like the people of His time. He was not hidden away from the world but fully participated in the day-to-day life around Him. Yet, He lived as no man before Him because He always kept in step with the Spirit, following His father’s plan for Him. This fact gives us great insight into how we should live our lives. Even though He was the Messiah with His own agenda, He valued certain things, which gives us a clue as to the ordinary things we should value.
First, we see here that Jesus valued family. He loved His mother and cared for her throughout the period of His ministry recorded in the gospels. She sometimes accompanied Him on His itinerant preaching ministry and cared for Him physically and emotionally. She was there at the cross, and He was concerned about who would care for her after He died. And now, in this text, we see Him attending a wedding with His mother. He was not too busy to spend time with her, but He was always in step with His Heavenly Father and never forgot His calling.
Second, we see in this text that Jesus valued the institution of marriage. We know from other passages that Jesus saw marriage as something established by God. However, here we see that He even valued the wedding ceremony. Knowing that His time was limited and His ministry would be difficult, He still took time away to visit this wedding, which is significant. This story is obviously about much more than just a wedding. Jesus turned water into wine, performed His first public miracle, and revealed Himself for who He really was. The wedding was an occasion for Him to do all of this. Yet, we can also see He valued marriage and weddings, so it seems that we should too. Marriage is an institution created by God and it should not be taken lightly. It is something that deserves celebration. Weddings are a good thing and please God when He is the center of everything and the most honored guest.
