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2 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.[a] 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 Now concerning[a] spiritual gifts,[b] brothers,[c] I do not want you to be uninformed. 2 You know that when you were pagans you were led astray to mute idols, however you were led. 3 Therefore I want you to understand that no one speaking in the Spirit of God ever says "Jesus is accursed!" and no one can say "Jesus is Lord" except in the Holy Spirit.
4 Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; 5 and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord; 6 and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who empowers them all in everyone. 7 To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. 8 For to one is given through the Spirit the utterance of wisdom, and to another the utterance of knowledge according to the same Spirit, 9 to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit, 10 to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another the ability to distinguish between spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. 11 All these are empowered by one and the same Spirit, who apportions to each one individually as he wills.Abraham's wife Sarah had a maid servant named Hagar. Sarah was impatient in waiting for God to bless her and Abraham with a son… so she had her maid servant Hagar (Egyptian) sleep with Abraham. Hagar gave birth to Ishmael. Later, Sarah was jealous of Hagar and the attention that Abraham gave to Ishmael and got Abraham to send them away. God promised Abraham that Hagar and Ishmael would be taken gave of… as well as the fact that God promised Abraham that through Ishmael he would be the father of many.
The followers of Islam trace their linage to Mohamad and then back to father Ishmael… who they state is the 'rightful' son of Abraham and that the birthright given to Isaac (passed down to Israel) belongs to Ishmael or to the Arab/Islamic nation. That's why they have been fighting for the land in Jerusalem for hundreds of years. The current Muslim mosque, the Dome of the Rock, sits where the Jewish temple of Solomon once stood.
From Don Nolte: Ishmael was Hagar's son and the illegitiment son of Abraham.
62 For Zion's sake I will not keep silent,
and for Jerusalem's sake I will not be quiet,
until her righteousness goes forth as brightness,
and her salvation as a burning torch.
2 The nations shall see your righteousness,
and all the kings your glory,
and you shall be called by a new name
that the mouth of the Lord will give.
3 You shall be a crown of beauty in the hand of the Lord,
and a royal diadem in the hand of your God.
4 You shall no more be termed Forsaken,[a]
and your land shall no more be termed Desolate,[b]
but you shall be called My Delight Is in Her,[c]
and your land Married;[d]
for the Lord delights in you,
and your land shall be married.
5 For as a young man marries a young woman,
so shall your sons marry you,
and as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride,
so shall your God rejoice over you.
Throughout Scripture God uses the image of a marriage to describe his relationship with us. It is usually that he is the husband and we are the bride. As old fashioned as it may sound, in Scripture the husband is responsible for the care and nurture of his wife, and is to submit his will to the needs of his wife.
If it is done right, the husband will be a reminder to the wife of God's love for her. God takes care of all of our needs, loves us, and protects us. He has submitted himself to us to give us heaven.
At the same time, if it is done right, and the husband loves his wife as Christ loves the church, the wife will then have no problem submitting herself to the will of her husband and respecting him for the loving and caring husband he is.
Unfortunately it isn't always done right. Husbands sin. Wives sin. And so the Lord God has provided the biggest way that we can remind each other of the true and real love of God. He gives us the power of forgiveness. There is no greater show of God's love than that. When your wife hurts you with her words or actions, and is devastated in her guilt over what she's said or done, there's no better healing than speaking the words "I forgive you", and showing that you truly do. In so doing, you show the love of God for us, that while we were still in our sin, Christ died for us!
Read this passage again, and see how God is truly the perfect husband!
Prayer: Lord God, thank you for marrying yourself to us and for being committed to us all the way to eternal life. Amen.
128 Blessed is everyone who fears the Lord,
who walks in his ways!
2 You shall eat the fruit of the labor of your hands;
you shall be blessed, and it shall be well with you.
3 Your wife will be like a fruitful vine
within your house;
your children will be like olive shoots
around your table.
4 Behold, thus shall the man be blessed
who fears the Lord.
5 The Lord bless you from Zion!
May you see the prosperity of Jerusalem
all the days of your life!
6 May you see your children's children!
Peace be upon Israel!
That word blessed is a loaded word. It can mean so many different things. To one person it means physical blessings, money, creature comforts, health. To others it means spiritual blessings like peace, joy, and love.
What does it mean to David here in this Psalm? It looks to me like it means relationship blessings. Your wife will be like a fruitful vine, your children like olive shoots. In other words your family will bear fruit, in this case fruit of righteousness.
So how do we get this blessing of good relationships? We get it by fearing the Lord and walking in his ways. What does this look like? What are the Lord's ways? Well.... what does Jesus say? He says, "A new command I give to you, LOVE ONE ANOTHER." And "Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends." And "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me, therefore go and make disciples of all nations baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. And one more, "Jesus breathed on them and said, "Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive anyone their sins it is forgiven them."
Do you want to be blessed with good relationships with your family and friends? It is very simple! Fear the Lord and walk in His ways of loving, making disciples, and forgiving.
There is no bigger blessing than bringing someone to Christ. There is no bigger blessing than giving and receiving forgiveness. There is bigger blessing than loving the people that God has called you to love. Even if the people you love don't love you back, and even if the person you forgive doesn't want your forgiveness, and even if it is difficult to bring people to Christ, which it most definitely is, there is no better blessing than these things! Praise the Lord today for the ability to give and receive love and forgiveness!
Let us pray: Lord, help me to be a blessing so that you may bless me. Amen.
