John 2:1-11 (Water into Wine)

 

Intro: Here we have the first Miracle of Jesus:

A) Now I want you to think about this, if you were writing a letter to someone trying to convince them that Jesus was the Son of God

 

B) And you wanted to tell them about some of His miracles, which one would you start with?

1) Lazarus being raised from the dead

2) Demon possessed boy

3) Man at the tombs

4) Blind Bart

 

C) Water into Wine? – A Miracle at a wedding ?    Why?

 

D) Because it gets right the heart of what Jesus came to do, and that is to bring His Transforming Power into peoples lives.                   RD V. 1-11

 

Set the Scene: 3 days after Jesus meets Nathaniel – he is invited to a wedding celebration.

A)Jesus was invited to this wedding ceremony.

 

B) Encourage you invite Jesus to your celebrations – Weddings birthday

1) Bachelor parties / Bridal showers – Invite the Lord to be a part of that

 

C) I had to get on some of our young guys a few yrs ago – Pranks

1) Example to the younger guys

 

D) Jesus was invited to this celebration: Might have been for a relative -

 

The fact that Jesus went tells us that Jesus was into CELEBRATIONS.

A)Contrast to the religious leaders of the day.

 

B) They had a separatist mentality – Spiritual people didn’t associate in  that type of activity.

1) The message you got from them was that spirituality had to be separated from REAL LIFE. 

 

C) Spirituality couldn’t survive under normal conditions. 

1) But Jesus takes spirituality to the place where it is needed most{ everyday life!

 

This drove the religious leaders of his day – crazy! A)they called him a glutton and a drunkard -  friend of tax collectors and sinners

 

B) This doesn’t mean that Jesus got drunk:

1) but it means he enjoyed himself with everyday people – and this bothered the religious crowd.

 

C) Which are you more like the Pharisees or Jesus ?

1) You can be serious about Jesus but still have fun

Also the Fact that Jesus performed his first miracle at a wedding was a way of putting his stamp of approval on Marriage

A)He is saying that what God established in the garden of Eden – Stands even to this day.

 

B) Marriage is a union SACRED UNION – between one man and one woman

 

Genesis 2:24

“Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.”

 

Jesus speaking 2,000 yrs later said – nothing has changed

 

Matt 19:4-6

4 And He answered and said to them, "Have you not read that He who made them at the beginning 'made them male and female,'  5 and said, 'For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh'?  6 So then, they are no longer two but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate." 

 

C) Isn’t that obvious: But there are those in our society today who say: Doesn’t matter

1) As long as two people love each other – two men / two women /  Man and a young girl / boy

 

D) Marriage is under attack – This week vote in the senate { Define marriage in the Constitution …

1) Let our senators know

 

E) Reading the Paper yesterday: Democratic Senator was criticizing President Bush –

1) Tomorrow – encourage support

 

"Ages of experience have taught us that the commitment of a husband and a wife to love and to serve one another promotes the welfare of children and the stability of society," Bush said in his Saturday radio address. "Marriage cannot be cut off from its cultural, religious and natural roots without weakening this good influence on society."

 

Senate Minority leader Harry Reid Criticized President Bush & Senator Bill Frist for taking the time to address the amendment .

 

“Our country faces great challenges record high gas prices, sky rocketing healthcare cost and the war in Iraq.”

 

Basically what he is saying is the economy is more important than Morality ! WRONG -

 

CALL YOUR U.S. SENATORS TODAY AND ASK THEM TO VOTE FOR S.J. RES. 1, THE   MARRIAGE PROTECTION AMENDMENT

Call the U.S. Senate main switchboard below and ask to be connected

to the Senators from your state    (202) 224-3121

          FRC .org -  Sign Petition – take you 2 minutes

 

Back to the Story – In the course of the celebration they run out of wine.

A)A Jewish wedding was a huge ordeal, people would come from miles around, they would bring their whole clans, & so when they came, they stayed.

 

B)The average wedding feast lasted about 7 days officially and more often then not,

1)people hung around unofficially even longer.

 

B)And of course the host of the wedding, the bridegrooms father, had to provide everything for all who came. { Today 25-30 thousand – 3 day events

 

1) Father of two daughters I would like to go back to that tradition – Let the boy’s father pay for everything.

 

C) Hospitality was a huge thing in this culture, but beyond that, a family could actually be fined for inviting guests to come to a wedding feast and then not taking care of them.

 

D) So running out of wine  wasn’t like a small bummer – this was a major ordeal

1) There was a lot at Stake – Family fined / embarrassment of this couple

 

2) Not the way to start off life together.

 

Well Mary gets wind of the Problem and immediately goes to Jesus

A) She was expecting Him to do something.

 

Aa)Now don’t be thrown off by Jesus response to Mary v.4

 

"Woman, what does your concern have to do with Me? My hour has not yet come." 

 

B) That sounds harsh/ disrespectful  – WOMAN ……… It wasn’t

1) the word used here in the Grk is Gune { Respect and tenderness

 

2)  Same word Jesus used at the Cross – Woman behold your son

 

C) It was almost as if he was saying” Mother – you know my hour hasn’t come yet? Not time for me to be glorified

 

D) I picture a smile on his face as he says it – I think the text supports that

1) Mary immediately turns to the servants and says – Whatever he says do it

 

E) Great advice: Whatever he says do it.

 

Jesus instructs the servants to take 6 large stone water pots used for purification fill them with water and take it to the Master of ceremonies.

A)This whole scene is a wonderful picture of what can happen in a life / in a marriage.

 

B) Wine in scripture is symbolic of Joy { Lose our Joy

1) Joyless walk / Joyless friendship / Marriage

 

C) Sometimes our walks and our lives become like those stone water pots dry and lifeless – Sterile

 

D) We need the Joy of the Lord to fill us again.

 

Billy Sunday said, “If you have no joy in your religion, there's a leak in your Christianity somewhere.”

 

“Joy is the echo of God's life within us!”

“Joy is the most infallible sign of the presence of God!”

 

Joy is important! Are you joyful?

Romans 14:17 says “for the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.”

 

Many have the righteousness  down, & even the peace, but what about the joy?

 

One of the fruit of the spirit is JOY!

Psalm 32.11 “Be glad in the LORD and rejoice, you righteous; And shout for joy, all you upright in heart!”

 

Psalm 16.11 “In Your presence is fullness of joy;”

 

John 15:11  “"These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full.”

 

Nehemiah 8:10 The Joy of the Lord is your strength.

 

The life of the Christian is to be characterized by Joy! Marriage characterized by Joy.

A)Sometimes that is not the case – sometimes – Dry

 

B) Lose Joy for varies reasons:

1) Life : trials cares / concerns / responsibilities

2) Sin

3) Compromise

 

1 John 3:21

“if our heart does not condemn us, we have confidence toward God.”

 

C) Sin & compromise no confidence / no Joy

1) How do we get it back?

 

D)Listen again to the words of Mary to these servants – Whatever he says do it.

1) That is the Key – the answer is in following the Lord’s direction

 

What can be learn from these servants: 

#1 They listened to Jesus. A miracle was the result

 

A)Some people are willing to listen to everyone else but the Lord

 

B) Advice on life from Oprah / advice on marriage from Dr. Phil

 

C) Begins with listening to Jesus – His heart

 

D)Miracles are the hand of God extended into our world.

 

E) But notice, who facilitated the miracle, the servants.

1) The miracle came from the heart of Jesus, but flowed out through the lowly servants at this feast.

 

#2 They obeyed Jesus.

A)Note What he asked them to do wasn’t easy.

it was hard, physical work.

 

B)“fill up the water pots, all six of them” These pots were huge: held – 20-30 gallons – like a big trash can.

1) No faucets – They had to go to the well.

 

C) This was going to take some effort.

 

D) A lot of  people never see God move because they are too lazy to do the work that will allow God to move.

 

 We Pray, “ Oh God bring the miracle of salvation to our community.”

A) But then we are too lazy to get involved

 

B) The servants were willing to do the hard work that set the stage for the miracle to happen

 

#3 They did it with enthusiasm

A)They filled the pots up to the brim.

 

B)I like that, they didn’t just do the minimum, they did the maximum,

1) they filled them up as full as they could get.

 

C) You know what bugs me, it is seeing people labor for God with lousy attitudes,

1) putting out minimal effort in their service like they are doing God a favor.

 

D) When I see that I say, “Why even do it, God’s not stoked, and He is certainly not going to honor it.”

1) No, what pleases the heart of God is when we labor for Him with exuberance, with Joy and enthusiasm.

 

E)That is what sets the stage for the miracles of God.

 

#4 They stepped out in faith:

A)The test came when Jesus said – not going serve it to the master of the feast – Still water

 

B)they stepped out in faith and they drew out the water and gave it to the master of the feast

1) There will be no miracles with out faith.

 

Hebrews 11 Without faith it is impossible to please God

 

C) It took faith Peter and John had to say, “in the name of Jesus stand up and walk”.

 

D) It took faith Peter had to say to Tabatha who was lying stone dead, “Tabatha, arise

 

E) Crossing Jordan – Get feet wet

 

These are 4 things that sets the stage for the miracle working power of God to be flowing in you,

A)What do you think would happen in Vista this week if a few hundred of you went out and did this,

 

B)you followed this pattern? I think that we would see a move of God that would blow our minds.

 

C) What would happen in your marriage and family if you – did this.

 

Now John tells us in v.11  This beginning of signs Jesus did in Cana of Galilee, and manifested His glory; and His disciples believed in Him.

 

A) John says this miracle was a sign -  Signs are meant  to show us something

 

B)That is what John means when he says that this miracle was a sign.

 

C)  What it pictured was the normal outcome of the combination of human and divine activity.

1) Men can fill water jars; only God can turn water into wine!

 

D) Men do the ordinary, the commonplace, the normal activity,

1) but God touches it, and brings it to life and gives it flavor, fragrance and effect.

 

That is the meaning of this sign:

A)It is an indication of what the ministry of Jesus is going to be like whenever he touches a human life,

 

B) not only during his lifetime on earth, but also through all the running centuries to come, whenever his ministry would be present in the world.

 

C) Bring God into your situation and all the humdrum, commonplace activities are touched with a new power that makes them fragrant, flavorful,

 

 enjoyable and delightful, giving joy and gladness to the heart. That is the meaning of this sign.