John 2:1-11
Notes
Transcript
A little context before we begin.
Weddings were held in the couple’s home back then. The Bridegroom was responsible for everything. He was responsible for the house they were to live in. He was responsible for providing enough food and drink for whoever came to the wedding feast. This wedding party would last anywhere from 3 to 7 days. If there wasn’t enough wine and food, provisions, for the party guests then the bridegroom and his family could have a lawsuit brought against them. They were legally required to provide a feast of a certain standard.
See how things have changed. Today, the bride is stressed out over the wedding. She is stressed out about whether or not the dresses are pretty enough, what the cake looks like, how the decorations look, while the bridegroom could pretty much care less.
Not taking away from the stress of what a girl goes through now while she is putting on a wedding but she isn’t under the stress of what a bridegroom was under back in this day. NO one today is going to be sued if they run out of those little cheese sandwich triangles you people eat at weddings.
So thats the context of a wedding back then…now lets read our text:
On the third day there was a wedding at Cana in Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. Jesus also was invited to the wedding with his disciples. When the wine ran out, the mother of Jesus said to him, “They have no wine.” And Jesus said to her, “Woman, what does this have to do with me? My hour has not yet come.” His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.”
Now there were six stone water jars there for the Jewish rites of purification, each holding twenty or thirty gallons. Jesus said to the servants, “Fill the jars with water.” And they filled them up to the brim. And he said to them, “Now draw some out and take it to the master of the feast.” So they took it. When the master of the feast tasted the water now become wine, and did not know where it came from (though the servants who had drawn the water knew), the master of the feast called the bridegroom and said to him, “Everyone serves the good wine first, and when people have drunk freely, then the poor wine. But you have kept the good wine until now.” This, the first of his signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee, and manifested his glory. And his disciples believed in him.
Prayer:
On the third day there was a wedding at Cana in Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there.
And look at verse 12 real fast:
After this he went down to Capernaum, with his mother and his brothers and his disciples, and they stayed there for a few days.
Notice that they were in Cana and they went “DOWN” to Capernaum. Well, Capernaum was actually North of Cana.
Alright, I like maps and I know some of you in here like maps too…so check this out.
If we said we were going to Baton Rouge or New Orleans, we would say we were going DOWN simply because it was south of us. They said they were going “Up” or “down” based on the terrain of where they were going.
Imagine what that walk home was like…back to Capernaum. Imagine what they talked about.
Now, lets read verses 1 and 2:
On the third day there was a wedding at Cana in Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. Jesus also was invited to the wedding with his disciples.
So Mary, the mother of Jesus, was there and in verse 2 we see that Jesus and his disciples were also invited to this party.
Most likely this was a friend of the family. Most likely it was also a family connection that Jesus and his family had with Nathanael.
We read in John 21:2 that Nathanael was from Cana.
Simon Peter, Thomas (called the Twin), Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two others of his disciples were together.
So here is the scene:
There was a wedding going on in Cana. Jesus and his disciples (5 of them):
the two that were following John the Baptist which were Andrew and John, most likely (chapter 1:36-37
Peter
Philip
and Nathanael
they were all invited....and when they showed up Mary, the mother of Jesus, was ALREADY there.
So they are there doing their thing and we get to verse 3...
When the wine ran out, the mother of Jesus said to him, “They have no wine.”
Think about it…maybe Mary was there helping serve at this wedding. Maybe she is there to help out . Imagine, Jesus and his new disciples are standing over here and when Mary is serving the guests she hurries up to Jesus, her son, and says, “They have no wine”.
Why did she say this?
Notice what she didn’t say. She didn’t say, “they have no wine…make some!”
She doesn’t say, “They have no wine…do a miracle!”
YOU KNOW WHY SHE didn’t say, “do a miracle!”?
Because she had never seen him do one before!
Last week at the Aulds Community Group they were going over the Canon of Scripture.
We talked about the Apocrypha and how we can trust the Bible.
Some of you may have heard a story from one of these books called The Infancy Gospel of Thomas where Jesus, as a child, did miracles.
The Quran talks about Jesus as making birds out of clay.
But let me tell you why Mary, the mother of Jesus, did not ask him to perform a miracle when she said, “they are out of wine” and why these other books are wrong...
look down to verse 11.
This, the first of his signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee, and manifested his glory. And his disciples believed in him.
This was his FIRST miracle! His FIRST SIGN!
And what do signs do? They point to something GREATER than the sign itself. Hopefully we see some of what this SIGN is actually pointing at this morning.
So what was she really asking…if anything? I think she was panicking a little…maybe Jesus and his disciples were standing over in some room and she came hurrying in there and she just looked at her son frantically and said, “They are out of wine”. Like, what are we going to do.
She is worried how this is going to look on the bridegroom and his family....some of you are that way…worried about others all the time, worried about their feelings…Darcy. Sometimes I’m thinking, “are you MY wife or thiers?…what about my feelings?”.
But really, she looks at her son and says, “They are out of wine” as if “do something…help!”
Because she knows who he truly is. She has held this in for so long…for 30 years. Know John the Baptist is calling him out as the Lamb of God…people are noticing him…He was baptized and the Holy Spirit descended on Him like a dove…a voice from Heaven was heard....
Now she’s like… “They are out of wine!”…she feels that these people are in a hopeless situation but she remembers what the Angel Gabriel told her and she is needing some help here....
Do you remember what Gabriel told her?
In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. And the virgin’s name was Mary. And he came to her and said, “Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you!” But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and tried to discern what sort of greeting this might be. And the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.”
And Mary said to the angel, “How will this be, since I am a virgin?”
And the angel answered her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy—the Son of God. And behold, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son, and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren. For nothing will be impossible with God.” And Mary said, “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her.
Nothing will be impossible with God!
She is like, “look, I have NO idea what you are going to do but do something”...
And look what Jesus says to her in verse 4:
And Jesus said to her, “Woman, what does this have to do with me? My hour has not yet come.”
Woman!
Don’t! Don’t even! I know all of you want to but don’t!
This would be equivalent to us saying, “Ma’am”. Its endearing.
See, Mary was just thinking, “something needs to be done…they are out of wine” But Jesus always hears more…He thinks of the prophecies concerning the coming of the Messiah. Jesus knew that this was not the time for “his hour”, which refers to his death and resurrection.
This wasn’t the time for the public display of his hour but it was the time to bring in the Messianic Age...
Look here at the Scriptures:
They shall come and sing aloud on the height of Zion,
and they shall be radiant over the goodness of the Lord,
over the grain, the wine, and the oil,
and over the young of the flock and the herd;
their life shall be like a watered garden,
and they shall languish no more.
They shall return and dwell beneath my shadow;
they shall flourish like the grain;
they shall blossom like the vine;
their fame shall be like the wine of Lebanon.
“Behold, the days are coming,” declares the Lord,
“when the plowman shall overtake the reaper
and the treader of grapes him who sows the seed;
the mountains shall drip sweet wine,
and all the hills shall flow with it.
I will restore the fortunes of my people Israel,
and they shall rebuild the ruined cities and inhabit them;
they shall plant vineyards and drink their wine,
and they shall make gardens and eat their fruit.
So, Mary says, “They are out of wine”
Jesus says, “my hour has not yet come”
And look what Mary says next:
His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.”
She didn’t know WHAT he would do....she was gently rebuked by Him...
and she leaves the matter to Him…she still trusted that HE would do SOMETHING…and she says, “Do whatever he tells you”.
She expected something from Him obviously...
“Do whatever he tells you”! Mary…that will preach right there!
Look at verse 6:
Now there were six stone water jars there for the Jewish rites of purification, each holding twenty or thirty gallons.
6 x 20 = 120
6 x 30 = 180
So lets just say these jars could hold around 150 gallons of water.
Look at verse 7
Jesus said to the servants, “Fill the jars with water.” And they filled them up to the brim.
They’re probably thinking, “what? why?”…that was probably Peter. And one of the others said, “dude, did you hear his Momma…just do what he tells you!”
So we have about 150 gallons of water…at this wedding banquet…
there are 8 pints in a gallon…so 16 half-pints in a gallon
IF a glass was a half pint (or 8 fl.oz.)…we are talking about 2,400 glasses of whatever is in these jars…which is water right now.
Here we are…at this wedding banquet…Jesus tells them to fill all these jars full of water because he is about to show them something that is going to blow their minds…
Now verse 8:
And he said to them, “Now draw some out and take it to the master of the feast.” So they took it.
Jesus said, “Now…draw some out”....draw what out? what is the “some” that they drew out? It was the water that they poured into the jars!
Again…they are probably thinking, “what are we doing this for?”
“What is the point?”
“Why do you want me to give this guy water?”
Remember what his mom said, “Do whatever he tells you!”
so they took it to the master of the feast.
Verse 9
When the master of the feast tasted the water now become wine, and did not know where it came from (though the servants who had drawn the water knew), the master of the feast called the bridegroom
See…they drew water, the same water they put into the jars. Read it again real slowly...
(though the servants who had drawn the water knew).
Look at verse 10:
and said to him, “Everyone serves the good wine first, and when people have drunk freely, then the poor wine. But you have kept the good wine until now.”
But this is how it went back then…the host would serve the good wine first and once everyone had a few glasses they would serve the worst wine…because their taste buds were not so good…But who…this bridegroom, he’s different...
No we do not know if the bridegroom took credit for something he didn’t do or if he just stood there wondering “what in the world…who did this” look on his face.
Again, this was the first sign, the first miracle Jesus did...
look at verse 11 again:
This, the first of his signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee, and manifested his glory. And his disciples believed in him.
They believed in him before this but now they believed more confidently…they were more embolden in their belief.
And now check out verse 12
After this he went down to Capernaum, with his mother and his brothers and his disciples, and they stayed there for a few days.
What was that walk home like? whooping and hollering…high five’s…Mary, just looking up at her boy…looking over at his 5 new friends, his disciples as they are talking about what happened over and over again…and she eventually has to put her two cents in with a smile and says, ‘I TOLD you…just DO WHATEVER HE TELLS YOU”…walking back home in the sunset.
But what does this sign tell us about Christ? What does this sign tell us about ourselves? Where is the gospel in here?
Look at what the master of the feast said. And then I want to look at what Jesus is saying. I want us to see what this sign, this first sign that Jesus did, was pointing to.
First look at what the master of the feast said again, ...
and said to him, “Everyone serves the good wine first, and when people have drunk freely, then the poor wine. But you have kept the good wine until now.”
That is what sin does right? It always appeals to our flesh and it always starts in our hearts and our minds. We believe the lie that this sin is going to be good and satisfying don’t we.
See…EVERYONE serves the good wine FIRST. We serve up our lies even when we know we shouldn’t and we take a bite, or a drink at this banquet.
But what does sin always do?
“It always takes us further than we ever wanted to go and it makes us pay more than we ever wanted to pay” - Todd Wagner
Once we become numb to it we find ourselves serving up the worst of it. And we keep drinking it up!
Maybe that is where you are this morning. Maybe you found yourself flirting with sin, pornography, lying, cheating, stealing a little hear and there and now you have found yourself where you feel like there is no where to run, no way out. Maybe you feel like you are in too deep.
Now…let me tell you about the REAL BRIDEGROOM! Behold, “The Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!”
Leave the feast of this worldly bridegroom and enter the Feast of Jesus...
On this mountain the Lord of hosts will make for all peoples
a feast of rich food, a feast of well-aged wine,
of rich food full of marrow, of aged wine well refined.
And he will swallow up on this mountain
the covering that is cast over all peoples,
the veil that is spread over all nations.
He will swallow up death forever;
and the Lord God will wipe away tears from all faces,
and the reproach of his people he will take away from all the earth,
for the Lord has spoken.
It will be said on that day,
“Behold, this is our God; we have waited for him, that he might save us.
This is the Lord; we have waited for him;
let us be glad and rejoice in his salvation.”
This book begins with a wedding in a Garden…Adam and Eve…we all know that one.
But This book ends with a wedding too...
Look at Rev. 21
Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”
See, Jesus loves weddings and feasts and banquets! But the TRUE BRIDEGROOM NEVER runs out of wine....he never runs out of food for you ....The True Bridegroom is preparing the banquet feast for HIS people...
If you do not know him, if you have not TRUSTED in Him, If you have not BELIEVED IN HIM ALONE to save you from your sins and from your old wine...
Listen to His mother, and “do whatever he tells you”...
Repent of your sins, TURN TO CHRIST AND LIVE...
I WILL END WITH THE WORDS OF CHRIST:
“I, Jesus, have sent my angel to testify to you about these things for the churches. I am the root and the descendant of David, the bright morning star.”
The Spirit and the Bride say, “Come.” And let the one who hears say, “Come.” And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who desires take the water of life without price.
If you do not know him…COME!
Amen