^2:1 On the third day there was a wedding at Cana in Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there … 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.”

– John 2:1-12

The Bible is sometimes misunderstood as a book of rules — a divine list of dos and don’ts. Admittedly, there are rules in the Bible. The ancient Israelites were commanded to keep the “rules and statutes” of the Lord their God. They were to be a peculiar people. They were not to follow the rules and cultural mores of the nations and people around them.

Yet, it would be a great mistake to think of the Bible as primarily a divine rulebook. The Bible is first and foremost a book about relationships, not rules. The unique thing about the biblical God is that He enters into covenant with a particular people in order to teach them to live in relationship with Him. Ultimately, God wants loving relationships, not rigid rule keepers.

Jesus was not fastidious about keeping the biblical rules of the Law. He ate and drank with sinners and didn’t scrupulously observe the Sabbath. He rubbed shoulders with the unclean and this drove the religious legalists crazy. It could even be said that Jesus was unbiblical — at least as concerned the letter of the law. Jesus probed the depths of the spirit of the law. Mary knew this about her Son. She knew this because she lived in relationship with Him. She had mysteriously conceived Him in her womb, nursed Him as an infant, remembered how as a boy He amazed the religious leaders in the temple, and watched Him grow in stature and wisdom. She knew Him and therefore said to the servants at the wedding in Cana: “Do whatever He tells you.” Jesus didn’t give new rules. He gave new wine.

We Lutherans (as opposed to Martin Luther himself) have unfortunately often forgotten Mother Mary. In our concern that Mary is sometimes given too much devotion, we give her no devotion at all. But she is Jesus’ Mother and she knew and loved Him deeply. Since we are Jesus’ brothers and sisters, then in some sense she is our mother too. Therefore, we need to listen to her motherly admonition, “Do whatever He tells you.”

Prayer: Heavenly Father, we thank You for the witness of the blessed Virgin Mary. She found favor in Your sight and conceived our Lord and our Brother. As she herself learned to listen to Her Son, so teach us always to listen to Him and to do whatever He says. In His holy name we pray. Amen.

Lenten Response: Stop a moment and ask yourself, “What is Jesus asking me to do?”

Devotion written by the Rev. Dr. Eric Riesen