The last time we hear from the Blessed Mother in the New Testament, she has a profound lesson to teach us.
While St. Joseph is entirely silent throughout the New Testament, the Virgin Mary speaks on multiple occasions. What’s interesting are the final recorded words that she speaks in the entire Bible.
Her words are found in the Gospel of John and are in the context of the “Wedding Feast at Cana.” Mary, ever attentive to the needs of others, notices that the wedding couple have run out of wine. She apporaches her son, Jesus, and lets him know about the situation. Then she says her final words in scripture.
His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.” (John 2:5)
Mary’s words are profound and can provide an entire lifetime of meditation. Her words, “Do whatever he tells you,” do not only apply to the waiters at the feast, but to every Christian throughout history.
Her mission has always been to point others to her son, Jesus, and to urge them to follow his commands. Mary leads others to Christ and speaks those words to us today.
Furthermore, these words highlight the need for action in our lives of discipleship. It’s not enough to simply profess our faith in Jesus Christ, we must also live it out, following Jesus’ every word.
The Catechism of the Catholic Church explains this reality when discussing the sacrament of confirmation, “Confirmation perfects Baptismal grace; it is the sacrament which gives the Holy Spirit in order to root us more deeply in the divine filiation, incorporate us more firmly into Christ, strengthen our bond with the Church, associate us more closely with her mission, and help us bear witness to the Christian faith in words accompanied by deeds” (CCC 1316).
If we are to listen to Mary’s words, we must examine our own lives and consider how much we have obeyed God’s commands in our words and deeds.
As the old saying goes, “actions speak louder than words.”
