The Good News of Easter - Part 1: A Sign Something Better is Coming
Adrian Thornton

The Easter story can sometimes feel familiar: "Yeah, yeah, Jesus died and rose again. I’m saved. That’s great. Now, where’s the easter eggs and hot cross buns?" I think we all know it is bigger and better than that.

Easter can feel like just another religious event because it gets caught up and forced to fit into a larger Western cultural story. Culture forces our faith to become a private set of values rather than the public truth of God’s bigger story.

To help prepare us for Easter, we will take a bit of a run-up to launch ourselves into the celebration of Resurrection Sunday and feel its impact more deeply. That runup involves going back into the Old Testament. But before we go there, let’s look at the first miracle John records in his gospel account.

In John 2, we see Jesus at a wedding in Cana, where the host runs out of wine for the guests. In this story, Jesus miraculously turns water into wine, surprising the host, who didn’t expect better wine to come out after the first wine ran out.

This miracle isn't just a party trick. John includes this story because it is a sign that points to who Jesus is and what He is about to do. This sign points to something that is about to run out, for which Jesus will replace, is related to ceremonial cleansing, and is about something better and more abundant.

This leads us back to the Old Testament. In the Old Testament, God made covenants with Abraham (Genesis 15) and with Moses (Exodus 19–20), establishing a committed relationship with His people. With Abraham, it was about choosing a people group to outwork His purposes. With Moses, it was about putting in place a system of law that would allow God’s presence to dwell with them.

The Old Testament (another word for covenant) can sometimes get a bad rap because it is full of laws, lists, and rituals that aren’t required anymore. However, the old covenant was good. If the Israelites fulfilled their side of the covenant, then God would provide, protect, and presence Himself with His people.

The Old Covenant really was good, but it did require regular sacrifices to atone for the people’s sins, and the presence of God was only in the Holy of Holies within the Tabernacle. It was good, but something better was coming.

In Jeremiah 31:31–34, we read about a future covenant that will be established between God and humanity: "I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people... For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more." Can you see the connections between this prophesy and the sign of Jesus turning water into wine?

At Cana, Jesus was pointing people to a better covenant that was soon to take place. The Jewish people’s experience of God was about to be changed entirely from something good to something much better. Something better is coming!

Bible Discovery Story:
John 2:1-12 Water into Wine

Questions:
What would you say is the “comprehensive cultural story” our world wants us to believe? Do you think your faith has been broken into bits to fit into that story?

Have a go at describing the true story of God that we are a part of.

Have there been things in the past (or now) that you have been ‘drinking from’ but haven’t really satisfied?

What is it about Jesus that is better than what the world offers us?

Watch Sunday’s message below on YouTube.