How many of us like being told what to do? I guess not many! Often as children we are given instructions, and quite often we resent them, but usually these are given for our own benefit. And so it is in life, instructions are usually given for the greater good of everyone around.
The Bible is, as we know, full of instructions. Instructions on how to live our lives, how to treat others, how to pray, how to share the Gospel, how to behave towards those who treat you badly, how to love one another… the list goes on.
Many of you will be familiar with the story of the wedding at Cana in John 2. Jesus was at a wedding when they ran out of wine. This was a real social faux-pas for the host. Mary tells Jesus what has happened and Jesus steps in. He gives the servants instructions to fill the wine jars with water and then take some and serve it to the master. When the master tastes it, he is astonished to discover that the water has been turned into the best wine they've ever tasted.
When we look at this story we often think of the miracle of turning the water into wine. But in order for that to happen, something else had to happen first. Jesus said to the servants, “Fill the jars with water”; so they filled them to the brim. Then he told them, “Now draw some out and take it to the master of the banquet.” They did so. ~ John 2:7-8
Jesus told the servants to fill the wine jars with water and to serve it to their master. He gave them an instruction. To the servants this instruction would have made no sense at all. Firstly, these jars were reserved for good wine. Secondly, serving water to their master in front of his guests was bound to get them into trouble!
But notice those last 3 words of verse 8 - they did so. For this miracle to take place at all, someone first had to fill the jars with water. That's actually really important! For Jesus to perform the miracle, someone had to do the ground work first. From a seemingly useless task a great miracle took place.
I hope this is an encouragement for you. Sometimes we may feel like God is prompting us to carry out a seemingly worthless or uncomfortable task. But if we are faithful and carry out His simple instructions, it is then that
He can perform miracles and transform lives. Often God's instructions may make little or no sense to us. But God can achieve great things in those quiet steps of obedience.
So trust Him even when the outcome seems unclear. Obey Him even in the simple things. The wine that had been transformed from water was the best they'd ever had. God wants the best for each one of us. He's working on something far greater and far better than we can ever imagine. Remember, before the water turned into wine, someone filled the jars.
May we all be blessed with servant hearts so that we can see God's miraculous work and lives transformed. Which jars does God want you to fill?
Nigel