John 2:1-11 A Consuming Crisis

23.11.08 John 2:1-11 (NASB)

Audio Sermon File: John 2:1-11

Going Deeper: Study Guide

A Consuming Crisis

Guinness World Records (TM) has made it official: Pittsburgh now holds the record for the most couples, 624 to be exact, to simultaneously renew their wedding vows. The attempt occurred on Feb. 10, 2008, when participants filled the Carnegie Music Hall for The World's Largest Wedding Vow Renewal Ceremony, and said "I Do" all over again.

Here is another wedding event of interest (believe it or not):

June 2006 - Carly O'Brien (16), of Gloucester, dreamed of a big wedding dress for her big day. And when she said big, she meant big. A determined young lady, she made sure her dream came true. The resulting wedding gown, which cost £25,000, had 30 layers of tulle, 3,000 Swarovski crystals, and a 60 foot long train. It measured 8 feet wide, weighed 25 stone (350 lbs.), and it took 9 1/2 hours to get her into the dress.

The bride arrived at the church in a glass carriage, pulled by six horses, and had to be lifted out by 3 men and assorted members of the wedding party. Her gown was so wide it became stuck in the church door, so she was tugged into the church. Then 20 guests had to push and pull Carly up the aisle toward her groom, Michael Coffey, 17. This took an hour and a half, possibly the longest bride walk in history. Afterwards, she was so exhausted that her new husband and 14 relatives had to carry her from the chapel.

Nevertheless, she was determined to wear the dress at her reception, though she spent most of the evening sitting down.

Today I invite you to another wedding which permanently shatters any record of Guinness World Records (TM) - which is found in chapter 2 of the Gospel of John - a wedding in Cana in Galilee.

2:1 On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there; 2 and both Jesus and His disciples were invited to the wedding. 3 When the wine ran out, the mother of Jesus said to Him, "They have no wine." 4 And Jesus said to her, "Woman, what does that have to do with us? My hour has not yet come." 5 His mother said to the servants, "Whatever He says to you, do it." 6 Now there were six stone waterpots set there for the Jewish custom of purification, containing twenty or thirty gallons each. 7 Jesus said to them, "Fill the waterpots with water." So they filled them up to the brim. 8 And He said to them, "Draw [some] out now and take it to the headwaiter." So they took it [to him]. 9 When the headwaiter tasted the water which had become wine, and did not know where it came from (but the servants who had drawn the water knew), the headwaiter called the bridegroom, 10 and said to him, "Every man serves the good wine first, and when [the people] have drunk freely, [then he serves] the poorer [wine]; [but] you have kept the good wine until now." 11 This beginning of [His] signs Jesus did in Cana of Galilee, and manifested His glory, and His disciples believed in Him.
At the beginning of chapter 2 we find Jesus at a wedding. As He was there a ‘CONSUMING CRISIS’ takes place. The narrative gives us several insights which challenge us.

In chapter 2 we are able to see how Jesus reveals His glory through:

The Culminating Crisis (v.1-3)
The Commitment of Purpose (v.4)
The Communication of Glory (v.5-10)
The Compensation of Faith (v.11)

As we enter into today’s text we will find that from this point on we will begin to see that Jesus’ ministry influence is gaining momentum. At Cana Jesus now demonstrates His power and gives us the first sign, which demonstrates His Deity. Once again there is a time reference. This event takes place ‘on the third day’ after the calling of the first group of disciples. So it would be on the third day after Philip and Nathanael were called by Christ in verse 41 of chapter one.
So let us enter in to the festivities as we look at:

1. THE CULMINATING CRISIS (v.1-3)

The context of today’s narrative is a wedding that occurs in a place named Cana. If you remember from last weeks sermon, that I mentioned that Cana was the home town of Nathanael (Jn. 21:2). Cana’s exact location has been lost over the years. Some people say that it could be the town named Khirbet Qana, which lies in ruins now, and is located about 9 miles north of Nazareth. But its exact location is not an important factor, but what takes place in Cana is.
This is the first of eight signs in the Gospel of John which give confirmation of whom Jesus is. There were many other miracles that Jesus performed, but John selects 8 signs, which lend to his purpose that ‘Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name’ (Jn. 20:31). Quite often the gospel of John is referred to as ‘The Book of Signs’ - revealing Jesus’ full identity.

A wedding in the ancient near east was always a major occasion in the life of the local people. This would have been a community celebration and invited guests would come from the surrounding areas. It seems probable that the mother of Jesus - Mary, knew the couple that was being married since the mother of Jesus was already present, being a guest of the celebrations. Jesus and His Disciples were also guests, but it is possible that He was invited because of His mother, as the Greek words give us a sense of this.

A wedding celebration in Biblical times, in its totality, would last as long as one week and in some cases longer. Before we would even get to any wedding festivities, the marriage would be preceded by betrothal. It is a common mistake to equate the betrothal of these times to our modern day engagement. The betrothal was an important and seriousness matter. The couple would be solemnly pledged to one another and complete faithfulness was to be present. Any violation of the betrothal would be treated as adultery and the prescribed penalty was the stoning death of the offender (Dt. 22:23-25). The betrothal was so binding that if one were to break it, divorce proceedings would be necessary (we have a glimpse of this in the account of the virgin birth of Christ - where Joseph was going to quietly seek a legal divorce to dissolve his betrothal to Mary - Matt. 1:19).

At the end of the betrothal period came the marriage. The bridegroom and his friends would make their way to the brides home. Often this was done at night which would allow for an impressive procession, utilizing torches which would light the darkened skies. At the brides home, it was customary to make speeches, and the people would express their well wishes for the couple. Following this the procession, which now would include the bride, would make their way back to the grooms home. The wedding ceremonies and festivities would be held here. And this is were we find ourselves in the opening verses of chapter 2.

During the course of all the festivities the wine runs out and Jesus’ mother informs Jesus that "They have no wine" (v.3). For a celebration of this kind, it was the responsibility of the hosts to provide sufficient food and beverages to their guests. Wine was a part of these provisions and now the wine was all consumed, even before the end of the festivities. This was not good. In fact it would be more than just an embarrassment, it was a social disgrace. The host family and couple would be held accountable for the shortfall and failure to discharge their responsibility of hospitality. Their reputation would be tarnished which haunt them for a long time to come. Why? Because this situation would be taken as an insult to all those present. The guests had given their gifts, and in some sense there were certain expectations involved. In addition the groom could face a possible lawsuit from the brides family as a failure to fulfill his obligations to them.

The reason for not being fully prepared in providing enough wine for the guests is not revealed. But we do know that there was not enough. Maybe this was an oversight, maybe they could not afford to provide, maybe they were too busy.

Isn’t it often like this in our life? We enter into something unprepared. We involve ourselves into too much, which in the end, causes a crisis.

The CULMINATING CRISIS - gives way to:

2. THE COMMITMENT OF PURPOSE (of Jesus’ ministry) - (v. 4).

So the situation was out of the ordinary and was urgent. It is not clear why Mary felt responsible to make this known to Jesus, but she does. This is Jesus’ response to the social crisis - He says to His mother - Woman, what does that have to do with us? My hour has not yet come. Jesus’ answer seemed to be harsh since He did not respond with terms of endearment - but Jesus calls His mother ‘woman.’ The word ‘woman’ is not a condescending word, and Jesus does not use it in a condescending manner. It can be equated to our modern day term ‘Ma’am’ which still involves a level of politeness. But its use does set Jesus at a certain distance apart from His mother and her request. This is reinforced by Jesus’ connected words - ‘what does that have to do with us?’ (v.4) - words which were abrupt, but not rude. Jesus is setting out clearly that there is a new relationship between Himself and His mother, especially at the outset of His public ministry.

Jesus was destined not to be known as the Son of Mary, but to fulfill His earthly mission that is to be the ‘Son of Man’ - the link between God and man as we discovered last week in the last verse of chapter one. This reference helps us to keep everything in context. A new relationship is founded. THE COMMITMENT OF PURPOSE is made by Jesus for He is no longer under the authority of His mother - and she understands this. Mary is not surprised by Jesus’ response, and she doesn’t take offense at His statement, but acknowledges that Jesus should act independently of her. She recognized that the son that she had raised… was indeed the Son of God, the promised Messiah.

Jesus is always in submission to the will of the Father, that He was on a Divine timetable as Jesus states - "My hour has not yet come." Jesus’ response therefore focuses upon the future - that is - upon His end goal of dying on the cross - as the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world (1:29) - and then being exalted through His resurrection from the dead - and His glorious ascension into heaven. These events had not come yet - nor were even imminent, and therefore Jesus, was not to be under the direction of people (his mother), but under the will of God. Jesus was to manifest His full glory at a later time, but not now. But in response to Mary’s request, He reveals only a part of His glory.

We can learn from Jesus here - that He always clearly had the will of the Father in mind, no matter the circumstances. He never lost focus of His ultimate goal. How often do we lose sight of the calling of our salvation? The phone is ringing off the hook at the office - and there are so many demands from my boss and people. The work is piling up on my desk and I just need more time to do it - so sacrifices must be made. So something must give…or should I say SOMEONE (point upward) must give… Jesus gets pushed aside…

Ephesians 2:10 tells us that we were saved from our sins: ‘For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we would walk in them.’ Often - more than we would like to admit - our purpose in life is lost in the shuffle of the life - with our careers - personal life - hobbies plowing ‘full steam ahead,’ and so we suddenly are reminded that there is no time left to serve our Saviour - I’ll just come to church on Sunday and that is enough.

Focus upon the Father’s will - is also lost in the recreational pleasures of a city such as Vancouver - it is the Sun Run…I can skip worship this Sunday to run for good cause - God will understand - our ultimate purpose as a believer is left behind.

Good works in Christ in response to our salvation - are left behind on the playing field of life - and our Christian witness is compromised. Life is busy and we lose sight… Life doesn’t do that to us - we do it to ourselves. Jesus never lost sight of His ultimate priority, and He is able to re-focus your attention upon Him if you let Him. Jesus never forces us to do anything.

What area in your life needs the priority of Christ, to be at the center? Jesus said to warn those who were unbelievers - For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? (Matt. 16:26). A reminder to us, as believers, is that we should not be seeking the things of this world. Our souls have been redeemed by Christ, so let us not neglect a fitting and proper response to such a great salvation.

Perhaps in the midst of your situation you are being reminded by God to get back to basics…get back to the foundation which sets your life in proper order…your spiritual foundations...the realm of your salvation in which you are to operate. Maybe you really need to rethink Jesus’ words to you - But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. 34 "So do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own" (Matt. 6:33-34). Jesus never lost sight of His purpose. Have you lost sight of yours?

Jesus’ COMMITMENT TO PURPOSE sets the stage for Him now to perform His first miracle as we unfold:

3. THE COMMUNICATION OF GLORY (v.5-10)

V.5 Jesus’ mother even in the face of Jesus’ mild rebuke, believes that Jesus will respond appropriately to the crisis at hand. We know this because Mary orders her the servants in this way - ‘Whatever He says to you, do it.’ As His mother, she knew Jesus very well, and she had confidence and faith in the powers that Jesus had. Mary is used to set the stage for Jesus to act in His own independent authority. Any actions that are to be taken to correct the crisis will be in response to Jesus’ commands.

The whole focus of this passage is upon Jesus’ glory, and not those around Him. Jesus acts in His own accord and in perfect submission to the Father’s will, and not in response to the whims of man. From this point on in Jesus’ first sign, Mary fades from the scene, for Jesus is to take center stage.

V.6 Jesus sees six stone water pots nearby, and calls to the servants that they should fill the jars with water. These water pots were not made of pottery, but of stone. Hand carved stone was necessary since these jars were used for ceremonial washing. Stone was the material to be used because it was more impervious, and therefore would not be subject to contamination. Any guest that came, would use these pots for the traditional ceremonial washing of their hands, before eating (Mk. 7:3). A large quantity of water was necessary to do this. These pots were of quite a large size because they were capable of containing twenty or thirty gallons each. As an average the pots would be able to hold about 150 gallons, which would be up to 750 liters. In comparison this would be about 20 tanks full of gas for a small car. In terms of servings of wine, it would be the equivalent of about 2400 glasses. This would be able to serve a large amount of people for the remainder of the marriage celebrations.

V.7-10 As the account continues, the jars are filled by the servants to the brim. They were completely full, and nothing more could be added into the jars. Jesus then instructs the servants to do this - Draw [some] out now and take it to the headwaiter. This was the person who was literally ‘the ruler of the table.’ Probably this is the superintendent of the dining room in which the banquet was being held. The headwaiter would be the one who would make sure that the room was set up properly. He would also be the one who tasted the food for quality purposes, so it was proper that the servants take the new wine to him to approve of.

When the headwaiter tasted the water which had become wine, he was surprised. He didn’t know where the wine came from, but he did recognize it to be of a high quality. And after tasting the wine he called the bridegroom to make a comment to him. It was common in those times to serve the better wine first. The guests palates would be more attentive to the quality of the wine at this point. It is like us, sitting down to a meal where we are trying something for the first time. Our taste buds are very anticipating and discerning, to see of it is to our liking or not. Or simply we want to try to figure out what ingredients are in the food. So it was with the guests of the wedding. After the good wine was served then a host would serve the poorer stuff (ie - cheap), when the guest’s senses were dulled and less caring of the quality. It would also be possible to say that the guests at this point would have had drunk freely - meaning that they had more than they desired.

Our text does not necessarily say that the guests were drunk, causing the lack of properly functioning senses. The statement serves to contrast the quality of the wine that Jesus made. So it was a surprise to the headwaiter of the banquet, that the best was saved and served last - the bridegroom spared no expense and cut no corners as was a typical practice. This just emphasizes the quality of the wine as a result of the miracle - this was perfect wine. Jesus through this first sign COMMUNICATES in a very tangible way HIS GLORY. Jesus does all things well.

One thing that Christians reading this passage think about is this - Does Jesus approve the consumption of alcohol, in this passage? Jesus after all turns water into wine, knowing full well that some of the guests already had drunk freely. The use of alcohol has continued to be a problem upon our society. It seems that nearly every few weeks we hear of another fatal car crash which is a result of driving under the influence. And even on the home front, some of us have been directly affected by the effects of alcoholism - whether on a personal basis or under the abuse of it by a family member. So what is the Biblical perspective of consuming alcohol?
It is important to note that this passage is a narrative and therefore we cannot come to any foundational principles about the use of alcohol based on this event. We must look to other clearer parts of Scripture. Some Christians force into this passage what they want to believe - that is they claim that what was produced by Christ was merely grape juice. This is incorrect because the Greek word in the text is the word for wine (oinos). There is another word specifically used for grape juice (trux).

In the historic context of this first sign, wine was not the same as what we have today. The wine used in Jesus’ time was normally diluted with water. It has been recorded in extra-Biblical texts that ‘…it is injurious to drink wine by itself…’ The ratio of dilution varied, but the usual mix was 1 part wine to 3 parts water. So the alcohol content was lower than our standards today.

What does the Bible teach about alcohol? The Bible never condemns the use of alcoholic products (Deut. 14:26). In fact it may be considered as one of God’s gifts which is able make the heart glad (Ps. 104:15; Eccl. 9:7). The Bible also gives some examples of its use - one example is in today’s passage - it is used for celebration. It also was used medicinally - Paul instructed Timothy to take some wine for his stomach and frequent illnesses (1 Tim. 5:23). The Bible does however regulate its use. It condemns drunkeness (Eph. 5:18), and cautions against its abuse especially by church leaders (Prov. 23:29-35; 1 Tim. 3:3,8).

So what is the bottom line - should I drink it or not? Well the principles are laid out also in the Bible. There is no text which calls for total societal abstinence, nor is there anything said regarding social drinking. The bottom line is that the Christian must decide for himself guided by conscience and Biblical principles. The use of wine is a Christian liberty. But as with any liberties, we are to be aware of its affect upon other believers. Christian liberty is always to be exercised with love and restraint (1 Cor. 8:9-13). Paul makes it clear in Romans 14:21 - ‘It is good not to eat meat or to drink wine, or [to do anything] by which your brother stumbles.’ Whatever your decision, we are not to cause a brother or sister in Christ to stumble and sin over food (Rom. 14:15). If you decide to use alcohol then you must set an example of self control through moderation and discretion. If you do not desire to use alcohol then you must be careful not to censure other peoples’ words or actions concerning responsible drinking. Above all we must not speak out for or against, alcohol in such a manner which rises above the revelation of Scripture.
The first miracle that Jesus performs achieves its desired ends, as we leave the wedding and discover:

4. THE COMPENSATION OF FAITH (v.11)

The culminating point of today’s passage is brought to light in verse 11. The apostle John as he concludes this account, does not refer to the turning of water into wine as a miracle, but as a sign. The text states - This beginning of [His] signs Jesus did in Cana of Galilee. John is driving home the point that this was not just a mere miracle - a mere display of power, a spectacular wonder to be seen.

But the emphasis is that this was a sign - yes it is a miracle, but it had deeper spiritual meaning. A sign points to a spiritual truth - it points to God and His provision in Jesus. Jesus used these signs, in order to demonstrate that He was sufficient for all specific needs that we have. Jesus in His signs reveals that He is the Son of God, revealing His own glory, a glory which reminds us of verse 14 - ‘And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.’

Jesus was fully doing the work of God, and revealing what God is like. And by this first sign, Jesus’ - disciples believed in Him. The six disciples that followed Jesus, whom we identified last week - their faith was now firmly fixed when Jesus manifested His glory. They had known quite a bit about Jesus before, as they willingly followed Him. But now their trust in Jesus Christ began to mature. Their FAITH WAS BEING COMPENSATED as they saw Jesus perform the miracle right before their own eyes. The disciples were able to draw from the sign the deeper spiritual significance, beyond the outward manifestation of power. Their eyes were spiritually open, and they realized in a deeper way that there before them was - the Lamb of God, the Messiah, the Son of God, the Son of Man, the King of Israel. Jesus substantiated Himself by His first sign - an act of mercy and power and glory.

Today we have seen Jesus perform His first miraculous sign. A sign which transitions us from John the Baptist’s witness in chapter 1, to the witness of Jesus Christ. We find from Jesus’ first miracle that:

Jesus never lost sight of His mission - and might we through God’s grace also keep on course.
and Jesus is able to meet peoples needs and likewise ours too - leading us to true faith and a deeper relationship with Him. Jesus does all things well.

What a wonderful Lord and Saviour we have in Christ Jesus.

(For a full explanation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ - click here - http://www.doihaveeternallife.blogspot.com/)
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