New or Mature Wine?
by David Cross
In this amazing story, Jesus miraculously created wine at a wedding party. The headwaiter was surprised at the quality. He goes on to say how it’s very unusual to keep such good wine until the end of the celebrations. Had the headwaiter analyzed the wine he would no doubt have been able to define the variety of grapes. No doubt he could have described the history of the wine going back to a vineyard on some hillside.
Although his expertise and analysis might well have arrived at an indisputable scientific origin for this exceptional wine, he would actually have been totally wrong. The servants who witnessed the miracle were the only ones, besides Jesus, who knew for certain that this apparently mature wine had been created just minutes before.
It’s just the same with this extraordinary world around us. Scientific analysis will always discover, and apparently prove, a substantial history going back countless numbers of years. However, if we believe the story of the miracle at the Cana wedding, it’s only a very small step to believe in God’s creation of this complex world.
When landscape and life came into being, they inevitably came with an apparent history, just like the wine at the wedding feast. By every test available to the headwaiter, the wine had a significant maturity. But really it had only been in physical existence from the moment Jesus miraculously created it. This world appears to have a certain maturity which some say they can prove, but the Bible tells us that it began at a different point in time - the moment of God’s creation.
We have the choice to view the origin of this world either like the headwaiter, who depended on his own experience, or like the servants who had the amazing privilege of discovering the supernatural ability of Jesus!
Prayer: Thank you Lord for creating the amazing world in which we live. Help me to turn my awe to worship as I look at the wonders of your creation. In Jesus, Amen.
David Cross David is part of the Executive Leadership of Ellel Ministries, with particular responsibility for the Ellel centres in Western Europe. He is married to Denise and they have three grown up children and eight grandchildren. David has been a civil engineer and ski-touring instructor in the Highlands of Scotland. He is passionate about the teaching and practice of the healing and deliverance ministry of Jesus and has written several books: Soul Ties, Trapped by Control, God’s Covering, The Dangers of Alternative Ways to Healing(co-authored with John Berry), an A to Z Guide to the Healing Ministry, What`s Wrong with Human Rights? and, most recently, God`s Way out of Depression. You can follow a daily thought from David on Twitter: @dmcross62
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