When the Wine Runs Out
“My God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.” - Philippians 4:19
There comes a moment when you realize you have reached your limit. What you had is gone. Energy runs low. Patience wears thin. Resources dry up. You planned as best you could, but now the supply is not enough. Those moments can feel exposing because they reveal what you cannot fix or replace on your own. Shortage has a way of stripping away confidence and reminding you how fragile control really is.
Running out often feels like failure, but Scripture shows it is often an invitation. When you come to the end of yourself, you finally see clearly where God is needed. As long as you believe you can manage everything, dependence stays optional. Shortage removes that illusion. It forces honesty. You stop pretending you have more strength, wisdom, or answers than you do. That humility becomes the doorway for God’s provision to enter.
God’s provision rarely shows up before the need exists. He meets you in the gap, not ahead of it. When the wine runs out, so to speak, God steps into the moment where human effort can no longer carry the weight. His power does not compete with yours. It replaces it. What feels like an ending becomes a turning point when you invite Him into what you no longer have.
Many people panic when they run out because they believe shortage means God is absent. Scripture teaches the opposite. God often waits until resources are gone so His work is unmistakable. Provision that comes too early is easy to explain away. Provision that comes at the last moment points directly to Him. God is not limited by what you lack. He works through it.
If something in your life feels depleted right now, resist the urge to hide it or rush past it. Bring it honestly before God. Tell Him where you are empty. Tell Him what you no longer have. Trust that shortage is not the end of the story. It is often the place where God chooses to reveal His care most clearly.
When the wine runs out, grace is not far behind. God sees the need. He understands the moment. And He knows how to provide in ways that restore hope, not just supply.
There comes a moment when you realize you have reached your limit. What you had is gone. Energy runs low. Patience wears thin. Resources dry up. You planned as best you could, but now the supply is not enough. Those moments can feel exposing because they reveal what you cannot fix or replace on your own. Shortage has a way of stripping away confidence and reminding you how fragile control really is.
Running out often feels like failure, but Scripture shows it is often an invitation. When you come to the end of yourself, you finally see clearly where God is needed. As long as you believe you can manage everything, dependence stays optional. Shortage removes that illusion. It forces honesty. You stop pretending you have more strength, wisdom, or answers than you do. That humility becomes the doorway for God’s provision to enter.
God’s provision rarely shows up before the need exists. He meets you in the gap, not ahead of it. When the wine runs out, so to speak, God steps into the moment where human effort can no longer carry the weight. His power does not compete with yours. It replaces it. What feels like an ending becomes a turning point when you invite Him into what you no longer have.
Many people panic when they run out because they believe shortage means God is absent. Scripture teaches the opposite. God often waits until resources are gone so His work is unmistakable. Provision that comes too early is easy to explain away. Provision that comes at the last moment points directly to Him. God is not limited by what you lack. He works through it.
If something in your life feels depleted right now, resist the urge to hide it or rush past it. Bring it honestly before God. Tell Him where you are empty. Tell Him what you no longer have. Trust that shortage is not the end of the story. It is often the place where God chooses to reveal His care most clearly.
When the wine runs out, grace is not far behind. God sees the need. He understands the moment. And He knows how to provide in ways that restore hope, not just supply.
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10 Comments
I read this and am reminded of the story of Elijah and the woman with the child who kept him and her family fed with the miracle of the jar of flour and the jar of oil, neither of which ran out during the famine. God is so faithful.
Appreciate you Pastor Ed
I can not do this myself…. as a mama I sure want to! But God is my supplier and compass! Thank you Pastor!!
My God my savior I myself have felt many times that my wine has run out, But no my glass of holy wine is always full because You My Lord are always there for my family and me?? thank You Lord. My sons are in Your Hands ?? I love you My Lord my strength my healer my everything
Holding on
Glory to God! What a powerful Word! God is my great Need Meeter! He is my
nShepherd, I am His sheep and He takes care of me. The young lions do lack and suffer want, but they that trust in the Lord shall not lack any good thing. Thank you Jesus, I trust You!
I’m trusting in the waiting! Thank you Lord for your goodness & faithfulness! Christy Embry
Our Lord, let my Sister, Christy, know how much You love her! And all of those who have taken time to comment this morning. Give them an extra big hug and assurance that You ARE working all things together to those who love You and are called according to Your purpose. You are actively involved in orchestrating events for their benefit. The trials, the suffering, the pain, as well as the good things are conforming us to YOUR image which has an ETERNAL impact, not just a temporary comfort which pales in comparison. Let us see through an eternal lens, Lord. And may that perspective bring peace beyond understanding - more than any other thing we may be praying for. In JESUS' Name. Amen.
amén!
THE CUP
n
nThe second thing that stood out to Matthew from Jesus's last Passover Seder was what He said when He had taken a cup of wine.
n
nAnd when He had taken a cup and given thanks.
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nThis giving of thanks corresponds with the blessing that the Seder leader normally would offer to God upon taking one of the cups of wine. The word that is translated as thanks is a form of the Greek word, "eucharisteō," which means to "give thanks" or "gratitude." This word is transliterated into English as "Eucharist" which is what the sacrament of the "Lord's Supper" is sometimes called.
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nOnce again these would have been typical things for a Seder leader to do at a Passover meal. Traditionally, four cups of wine are poured during Passover Seders. (In some Seders a cup is poured and left undrunk for the Messianic forerunner, Elijah, as a demonstration of faith and hope).
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nEach of these four Seder cups has a name:
n
n"The Cup of Sanctification"
n"The Cup of Judgment/Deliverance"
n"The Cup of Redemption"
n"The Cup of Praise or Consummation"
nAnd each cup often corresponds to one of the four divine promises of Exodus 6:6-8,
n
n"I will bring you out (set apart/sanctify) from under the burdens of the Egyptians,
nand I will deliver you from their bondage".
n"I will also redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great judgments".
n"Then I will take you for My people, and I will be your God" (Israel becoming God's bride).
nHe gave it to them, saying, "Drink from it, all of you; for this is My blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for forgiveness of sins".
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nThe disciples would have expected Jesus to pour this/these cup(s) and they would have expected Him to comment and share insights about its/their meaning. Again, or as Luke said: in "the same way" as He revealed the bread to be a symbol of His life and body (Luke 22:20), so too did He reveal the cup to be a symbol of His sacrifice and costly forgiveness.
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nJesus said this cup is My blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for forgiveness of sins.
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nIn saying this Jesus identified Himself with the cup. We might expect that the cup that Jesus was taking about to be linked with the themes of the third cup of the Passover Seder. (At first glance it seems that Matthew only mentions one cup. But we know from Luke that Jesus poured multiple cups during His last Seder (Luke 22:17, 20). So, we know that Matthew is including only some of what Jesus said and did at this time). The third Seder cup is "the cup of redemption." It corresponds with the third promise from Exodus 6:6-8: "I will also redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great judgments."
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nThe reason this cup mentioned in Matthew (and Mark 14:22-25) is often associated with "the cup of redemption" is because Jesus said it represents My blood of the covenant… for the forgiveness of sins. Redemption and forgiveness of sins is made possible only through sacrifice. "And according to the Law, one may almost say, all things are cleansed with blood, and without shedding of blood there is no forgiveness" (Hebrews 9:22).