Many Christians are confused by Jesus’ first miracle documented in the book of John, where he turns water into wine at a wedding at his mother’s request. If Christians are called to refrain from getting drunk, then why would He make more wine, increasing the possibility of drunkenness?
Is this not a contradiction?
Jase and Al Robertson and Zach Dasher, BlazeTV hosts of “Unashamed,” addressed this common question on a recent episode.
“Alcohol is never said to be bad in the Bible … but getting drunk is always bad,” says Jase.
To explain God’s command against drunkenness, he points to Ephesians 5:18, which says, “Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit.” He also cites Galatians 5:22, which lists “self control” – the opposite of drunkenness – as one of the fruits of the Spirit.
However, these verses, while certainly true, “have nothing to do with John 2,” says Jase.
When He turns water into wine, “Jesus is revealing a picture of who He is and what He’s going to do.”
“Jesus turning water into wine is directly connected to the new wine that Jesus says He’s bringing. … So it’s no accident that He’s doing this miracle, making new wine at a wedding ceremony, right? Because we’re the bride of Christ. There’s all kinds of imagery here that’s being played out,” Zach explains.
The wedding party, Jase adds, is also reflective of the reality that “we’re participating in the greatest party of all parties in Jesus.”
Further, in John 2, Jesus is, for the first time in His ministry, showing that miraculous change can only be done through Him. By turning water into wine with a mere thought – an act none but God Himself could accomplish – Jesus is “giving you a picture [of]: If you want to know how to change something, I’m your guy,” says Jase.
Al then brings up another point: The passage is also about Mary’s faith.
“I mean His mom believed in Him enough [that] she said, ‘Do something about this wine situation.’ I mean, that blows me away that she had enough faith in who He was in the moment to think He could do something, which He did,” he says.
John 2, says Jase, is a passage where many Christians, especially new ones, go off in the weeds debating what the text is saying about alcohol, when in reality, the story is about who Jesus is and what He came to do.
That said, it’s still important to abide by God’s command against drunkenness.
People who have a history of alcohol abuse probably “shouldn’t touch it at all,” Zach advises.
“Also, I mean, I wouldn’t have a drink around somebody that I knew had an issue with it,” he adds.
“The more you get to know this Jesus and what He is really not only offering you but what He’s given you … it becomes not the ‘do’ and ‘don’t do,’ but this is who I live for,” says Al.
To hear more of the panel’s conversation, watch the episode above.
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