John Chapter 2 – Jesus is at a wedding and turns water into wine.   Isn’t it wrong for people to get drunk?  Why did He do this?

This is a very good question, and many people ask it.  Here’s my understanding of the whole alcohol/drinking/drunkenness problem:

1. Acutally, The Bible does not say it is wrong to drink alcohol.
2. There are many well-meaning people who think when Jesus made water into wine it wasn’t actually alcoholic in content, but I think that’s too big a stretch.   Most people in Jesus’ day (and before) drank wine with their meals, because the water of the day was not clean, and would easily make people sick.  The wine (because of the alcohol content)  was not so full of germs as the water.
3. The Bible does say drunkenness is wrong.  To drink wine to excess is what is wrong.   Drunkenness would be defined as drinking so much alcohol a person is not making coherent decisions, or is feeling free to act in sinful ways.
4. So, in answer to your question, Jesus turned water into wine because they needed it for the wedding – but it was each person’s responsibility to monitor their own drinking limits.

Does that help?  It might not answer every possible angle of your question, but maybe it gives you a good starting point to continue to think it through.

In John chapter 1, Jesus saw Peter, and called him “stone”.  Why did Jesus change people’s names?

It was sort of like He gave them knicknames.  He wasn’t aloof and untouchable.   He loved them as individuals, and let them know that by giving them special names which meant something to Him and them.  He saw their hearts, and He saw what was in their future, so He gave them these special names based also on what He knew they would someday accomplish for Him.

Did you know He loves each one of us just that much, too?  Enough to have special names for us – knicknames.   Look at Revelation 2:17  – a promise made by Jesus to Christians who are trusting in Him:   ” To him who overcomes I will give some of the hidden manna to eat. And I will give him a white stone, and on the stone a new name written which no one knows except him who receives it.”

Since He loves all of us that much, you can see why He had to do something to solve our sin problem – He wants a relationship with us…but He knows we are hopeless sinners and can’t make ourselves good enough for Him.

The purpose of reading your Bible and asking questions is so that Jesus can begin to show you Who He is and you can begin to have a relationship with Him.  You and I always have to come to the Word of God admitting we are sinners and we need God (Jesus) desperately.  We come to the Bible asking Him to help us understand how to be right with Him.   If we know we can’t clean ourselves up, that’s the first step.  After that, He continues to show us what He has done to solve our sin problem for us.

Ask yourself 2 questions at this point:

1. Do I know I can’t be good enough to be worthy of a relationship with God?
2. Do I want to know what He can do to solve this huge problem?

If you answer yes to each of those questions, you are on your way.  The next step is to read your Bible – every day – He will meet you there.