"My hour has not yet come." The phrase suggests that Jesus had hoped for a more carefully chosen setting for his first presentation of himself. In the political turmoil of first-century Judah, the way one called attention to oneself could be a matter of life or death. Jesus, understandably, wanted to take on the heavy mantle of leadership ha a considered manner. He did not want to stumble awkwardly onto the public stage.

Then came unexpected circumstances. He attended wedding; the celebration went on and on; the wine ran out. A host family faced serious embarrassment. Mary, put in the rare role of a stage-managing mother, was confident her son could redeem the situation. Jesus objected. "My hour has not yet come."

The story fails to mention one of its most surprising but covert features: the ease with which Jesus surrendered his preplanned strategy and embraced a new possibility. He surely preferred whatever had been plan A; but he moved smoothly into plan B--the opportunity presented by unexpected circumstances.

In the New Testament, the Greek word for hour, hora, is more often used in reference to kairos time than to cronos time: "The hour [hora] comes and now is when the true worshiper ..." Hora is used in many gospel stories of mighty works to identify the moment of healing, and in those cases it is usually translated "instantly."...You can read more.