“You’re just trying to take all the fun out of life!” That’s what many unbelievers say about Christians, and it is easy to see how they might draw such an incorrect conclusion. After all, our allegiance to the Lord Jesus requires us to uphold His standards of morality and conduct, thus condemning the promiscuous sexual activity and the illicit drug use that many people think are the way to find happiness in life.

But notice that the very first miracle Jesus did was not something practical like healing the sick or raising the dead. No, the first “sign” Jesus gave to His followers was keeping a party going, creating enough wine, and good wine at that, so that everyone could have a good time celebrating a marriage. In short, Jesus didn’t come to ruin everyone’s fun, but to increase our joy – or as He says in John 10:10, “I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.”

But we also need to realize that the joy of Jesus comes as part of a package deal, and his first “sign” points to that truth as well. For remember, the raw material for His miracle was the water in six stone jars, jars which held water used in purification rituals (2:6). The Law of Moses was filled with many of these kinds of regulations which pointed to people’s need for cleansing for sin. But at the same time the need to repeat the same sacrifices and offerings over and over indicated people’s inability to make themselves pure and holy by their own efforts. No matter how many times the people at that wedding washed themselves from those stone jars, they could never make themselves clean in God’s sight.

In the same way, modern people may look to their careers or families to give them meaning in life. They may look to booze or sex or drugs to find happiness in life. But none of these fleeting things can provide permanent joy, for there will always be another disappointment, another letdown, another hangover. None of the water in any of our purification jars can make us really clean.

And so Jesus comes along, and replaces all of that. By His miraculous power, He makes it clear that we don’t need to seek peace or joy in anyone or anything else. We simply need to rest in His gracious provision, relying on His perfect sacrifice offered for us, and enjoying His welcoming presence.

But make no mistake – by replacing the water in those purification jars with wine, Jesus also made it impossible for any of the party guests to go back to their futile old ways, trying to earn their own righteousness. After all, they couldn’t very well wash themselves in wine, could they? Just so, following Jesus and finding rest in His grace does require us to leave our old ways behind – even those self-destructive ways that unbelievers find fun.

But instead of starting with all the “don’ts” of Christianity, why don’t we do what Jesus did? Why don’t we invite unbelievers to come and see what a life of real joy looks like (1:39)? Why don’t we invite them to Jesus’ party? For once they’ve had a taste of the really good wine of grace, why would anyone want to go back to the water of self-destructive legalism that the world has to offer?

John 2:1-12 (ESV)

On the third day there was a wedding at Cana in Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there.
2 Jesus also was invited to the wedding with his disciples.
3 When the wine ran out, the mother of Jesus said to him, “They have no wine.”
4 And Jesus said to her, “Woman, what does this have to do with me? My hour has not yet come.”
5 His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.”
6 Now there were six stone water jars there for the Jewish rites of purification, each holding twenty or thirty gallons.
7 Jesus said to the servants, “Fill the jars with water.” And they filled them up to the brim.
8 And he said to them, “Now draw some out and take it to the master of the feast.” So they took it.
9 When the master of the feast tasted the water now become wine, and did not know where it came from (though the servants who had drawn the water knew), the master of the feast called the bridegroom
10 and said to him, “Everyone serves the good wine first, and when people have drunk freely, then the poor wine. But you have kept the good wine until now.”
11 This, the first of his signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee, and manifested his glory. And his disciples believed in him.
12 After this he went down to Capernaum, with his mother and his brothers and his disciples, and they stayed there for a few days.