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The Desire of Ages
the lower nature into subjection. His whole life was an example of
self-denial. In order to break the power of appetite, He suffered in our
behalf the severest test that humanity could endure. It was Christ who
directed that John the Baptist should drink neither wine nor strong
drink. It was He who enjoined similar abstinence upon the wife of
Manoah. And He pronounced a curse upon the man who should put
the bottle to his neighbor’s lips. Christ did not contradict His own
teaching. The unfermented wine which He provided for the wedding
guests was a wholesome and refreshing drink. Its effect was to bring
the taste into harmony with a healthful appetite.
As the guests at the feast remarked upon the quality of the wine,
inquiries were made that drew from the servants an account of the
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miracle. The company were for a time too much amazed to think of
Him who had performed the wonderful work. When at length they
looked for Him, it was found that He had withdrawn so quietly as to
be unnoticed even by His disciples.
The attention of the company was now turned to the disciples. For
the first time they had the opportunity of acknowledging their faith in
Jesus. They told what they had seen and heard at the Jordan, and there
was kindled in many hearts the hope that God had raised up a deliverer
for His people. The news of the miracle spread through all that region,
and was carried to Jerusalem. With new interest the priests and elders
searched the prophecies pointing to Christ’s coming. There was eager
desire to learn the mission of this new teacher, who appeared among
the people in so unassuming a manner.
The ministry of Christ was in marked contrast to that of the Jew-
ish elders. Their regard for tradition and formalism had destroyed
all real freedom of thought or action. They lived in continual dread
of defilement. To avoid contact with the “unclean,” they kept aloof,
not only from the Gentiles, but from the majority of their own peo-
ple, seeking neither to benefit them nor to win their friendship. By
dwelling constantly on these matters, they had dwarfed their minds and
narrowed the orbit of their lives. Their example encouraged egotism
and intolerance among all classes of the people.
Jesus began the work of reformation by coming into close sympa-
thy with humanity. While He showed the greatest reverence for the
law of God, He rebuked the pretentious piety of the Pharisees, and
tried to free the people from the senseless rules that bound them. He