Sermon 02 - Where to go when youre running low - 2,1-11

INTRODUCTION:

1.      ((illus)) My oldest son sent me an article this week that gives a number of reasons for knowing that we living in 2004.

You know you’re living in 2004 when:

a.    Your reason for not  staying in touch with some family and friends is because they don’t have  e-mail.

b.     You have a list of 15 phone numbers to  reach your family of three.

c.    Your grandmother  asks you to send her a JPEG file of your newborn so she can create a screen  saver.

d.   You pull up in your own driveway and use  your cell phone to see if anyone is home.

e.    You buy a computer and 3 months later  it's out of date and sells for half the price, or less than you paid for  it.

f.     Leaving the house without your cell phone,  which you didn't have the first 20 or 30 years of your life, is now a cause  for panic and you turn around to go get it.

g.    Using real money, instead of a credit or debit card, to make a purchase  would be a hassle and takes planning.

h.    You just  tried to enter your password on the microwave.

i.      You consider second-day air delivery painfully  slow.

j.      Your dining room table is now your flat  filing cabinet.

k.    Your idea of being organized  is multiple-colored Post-it notes.

l.      You hear  most of your jokes via e-mail instead of in  person.

m.  You get an extra phone line so you can  get phone calls.

n.    You disconnect from the Internet  and you get this awful feeling, as if you just pulled the plug on a loved  one.

o.    You get up in the morning and go online  before getting your coffee.

p.    You wake up at 2  AM to go to the bathroom and check your e-mail on your way back to  bed.

2.      As we continue our study in the Gospel of John we find that Jesus wants to bring normalcy into our topsy-turvy worlds and He’s THE REAL DEAL.

a.    Last week we heard John state his purpose for writing:

i)        John 20:31 - But these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing in him you will have life.

ii)      John says, look at Jesus and believe him, because that’s where real, healthy living takes place.

b.    Today’s stresses have a way of draining the life out of life.

i)        So WHERE DO YOU GO WHEN YOU’RE RUNNING LOW?

ii)      Jesus wants to get intimate in his relationship with us and be invited into every part of our lives.

iii)    Much as he was for this couple we are going to read about.

3.      John 2:1-11 (NLT) (page      )

1 The next day Jesus’ mother was a guest at a wedding celebration in the village of Cana in Galilee.
2 Jesus and his disciples were also invited to the celebration.
3 The wine supply ran out during the festivities, so Jesus’ mother spoke to him about the problem. “They have no more wine,” she told him.

4 “How does that concern you and me?” Jesus asked. “My time has not yet come.”

5 But his mother told the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.”

6 Six stone waterpots were standing there; they were used for Jewish ceremonial purposes and held twenty to thirty gallons each.

7 Jesus told the servants, “Fill the jars with water.” When the jars had been filled to the brim, 8 he said, “Dip some out and take it to the master of ceremonies.” So they followed his instructions.

9 When the master of ceremonies tasted the water that was now wine, not knowing where it had come from (though, of course, the servants knew), he called the bridegroom over.
10 “Usually a host serves the best wine first,” he said. “Then, when everyone is full and doesn’t care, he brings out the less expensive wines. But you have kept the best until now!”

11 This miraculous sign at Cana in Galilee was Jesus’ first display of his glory. And his disciples believed in him.

4.      Prayer:

Lord, we are delighted that you chose to work your first miracle by turning water into wine at that wedding, because it showed your compassion for that young couple on their marriage day. Your act showed us that you are not a “churchy” God who confines his power within the walls of this place that is our sanctuary, but that you move easily in life and social settings and that you love to mingle with people – with us. Lord, on this weekend we pray that you would walk among your disciples here and reveal your glory as you did on that day of celebration long ago. Help us to see, by your Holy Spirit, that you Jesus is where we go when we’re running low on the needed resources for life. We pray this in Jesus’ name. Amen.

5.      BACKGROUND

a.    Imagine the scene with me.

b.    As at any wedding, we see a blushing bride,

i)        a grinning bridegroom,

ii)      teary-eyed parents,

iii)    perhaps even a freckle-faced kid brother tugging at his starched collar.

c.    After the ceremony, swarms of hungry guests descend on tables sagging beneath platters of steaming hors d’oeuvres.

d.   A local rabbi stands blessing batch after batch of beverage as it comes out of the kitchen.

6.      Yet for all the similarities to modern times, weddings in Jesus’ day were different from ours in one important way.

a.    At our weddings, who is the center of attention?

i)        Whose wedding is it really?

ii)      Generally, the wedding day is acknowledged to be the bride’s special day.

iii)    In our society girls start planning their wedding in the seventh grade, with generous input from their mothers.

b.    A few years later, they go out and find a young man to plug into their imagined scenario.

i)        On a couple of occasions, in the past, I’ve been asked to perform the marriage of a couple in which the groom is deeply invested in deciding the details of the wedding.

ii)      He wants to pick the colors or the menu or the reception hall – and I think to myself, “This does not bode well.”

iii)    Men, on the wedding day, it’s not about you.

¨      The bride processes down the center aisle on her father’s arm.

¨      The bride’s mother stands, as do we, the audience, to watch her progress.

¨      And the words of the song are “Here comes the bride.”

7.      If you turn the well-established conventions of our weddings upside down, you have a Middle Eastern wedding:

a.    everything centers on the groom.

b.    The wedding day is his special day.

i)        He goes to the house of the bride and together, under a canopy, make their way back to his house

¨      Winding their way through town

¨      To the congratulations and best wishes of onlookers.

ii)      But the wedding song might just as well be “Here comes the groom.”

iii)    The bride just sort of shows up. 

c.    Middle Eastern weddings like the one at Cana differed from our celebrations in another way: they were the kinds of parties that might be called “blowouts” today.

i)        Instead of the bride and groom going on a honeymoon, they stay for the wedding feast.

ii)      They usually went on for an extended time –two, three, four or even more days- and were, in the words of one commentator, “big, loud and expensive.”

iii)    So it’s easy to imagine how the wine might have run out.

8.      Last week we read from John 1 where Jesus was gathering his disciples.

a.    Verse one of chapter 2 reveals that it was just three days later that Jesus attended this wedding.

b.    He came, with his new disciples in tow, by invitation.

c.    Often whole town were invited.

i)        You can imagine the difficulty of this for a family of modest means – especially if too many uninvited guests show up.

ii)      They probably had carefully estimating food quantities down to the last cheeseball. Unexpected guests could really have upset their accounting.

iii)    On top of that, you get a man, like Peter, who is nicknamed the Rock;

¨      he may have been a very large man.

¨      And there he was hovering around the punch bowl at this Cana wedding.

9.      At every wedding, emotions run high.

a.    There are two main feelings at play: joy and tension.

i)        The occasion is joyful because a couple in love is getting married.

ii)      But there is also tension because the couple wants everything on such a special day to go “just right” – and it never does.

¨      When the longing for perfection is so great, inevitably something goes wrong.

¨      The father of the bride forgot to bring the bulletins, so he has to dash home and then locks his keys in the car.

¨      Or the flowers are mistakenly sent to another planet.

¨      Or the bride is having a bad hair day.

¨      Or they run out of wine at the reception.

10.  Tradition has it that Mary was the aunt of the groom.

a.    This would explain why she was in high gear at this wedding.

b.    Mary went to her son and said, “Jesus, they have no wine.”

c.    Biblical scholars debate:

i)        was Mary actually asking Jesus to perform a miracle when she told him this?

ii)      Most researchers say no, but that she was asking for help of some kind, if nothing more than to go to the nearest deli.

d.   I’ll leave the debate to others, only to say that:

i)        The way he addresses her in :4 as “woman,” he is not being crude or discourteous, even though it seems so to our English minds.

ii)      “what does that have to do with us?” or lit. “what to me and to you” was a common Hebrew figure of speech – idiom.

iii)    I think he is checking her motives.

¨      When we come in prayer to Jesus, it’s good to ask ourselves WHY?.

¨      He sees our hearts

¨      Let’s be honest.

e.    Jesus does use this occasion to stress

i)        That he is not just the son of Mary, but also the Son of God with an eternal time table he was working on.

ii)      Possibly Joseph is now dead.

iii)    :4 - My hour has not yet come.

iv)    This is repeated a total of 5 times in John with reference to his death, burial, resurrection and glorification.

11.  Whatever you want to believe about this issue is fine, but

a.    LET’S NOT OVERLOOK THE OBVIOUS.

i)        When Mary saw that there was a need, she went to the right person!

ii)      :5 - As a result of the interaction between her and Jesus, she response with submission and confidence to the servants: “Whatever He says to you, do it.”

b.    Friend, you and I will never go wrong if we bring our needs to Jesus and

i)        do whatever Jesus tells us.

ii)      Maybe the wine has gone out of our marriages.

c.    Where do you go when you’re running low?

d.   We’ll see miracles like the one those servants were about to see.

12.  What’s delightful to me about this miracle is the way Jesus stayed in the background.

a.    He did not want to take the spotlight off that young couple for one second on their big day.

i)        Jesus is a gentleman, he is courteous.

ii)      He respects you and me – his creation.

b.    Unlike many of us who work in his name, Jesus is so secure that he can stay behind the scenes.

c.    So he stood in the back of the room with a smile on his face, and maybe he gave his mom the OK sign.

13.  Meanwhile the master of the banquet was served a glass of this latest batch of wine from the kitchen.

a.    He held his wineglass up to the light, swirled the liquid gently, sniffed the bouquet, and let a mouthful of wine roll around on his tongue.

b.    Then he called over the groom and said, :10 -  “Why you sly dog … usually at these things they serve the 1951 Chateau Rothschild wine first.

i)        Later, when everyone’s had enough wine to dull their palates, they bring in the cheap stuff. But you have saved the best wine until last.”

14.  :11 - John closes by saying, This beginning of His signs Jesus did in Cana of Galilee, and manifested His glory, and His disciples believed in Him.

a.    Discount what you might hear or read about the miracles Jesus is said to have done as a child.

15.   Now, let me ask you, WHAT MEANING DOES THIS LITTLE STORY OF THE MIRACLE OF CANA HAVE FOR US TODAY?

a.    This story reveals Jesus’ glory and helps build our confidence in him.

b.    John’s use of the word “glory” was a reference to Jesus deity.

i)        Exodus 33:18 - Then Moses said, “I pray You, show me Your glory!”

ii)      NLT - “Please let me see your glorious presence,”

iii)    “Glory” is a “short-hand” word for everything God is.

iv)    When Jesus was praying the night before his crucifixion in John 17, he prayed 17:3 - “Now, Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was.”

16.  Jesus’ glory is revealed in three ways.

WHERE TO GO WHEN WE’RE RUNNING LOW

John 2:1-11

1.      WE GO TO THE ONE WHO HAS POWER OVER THE MATERIAL WORLD

a.    H20 is a substance that can be life or death to humans, is a plaything to Jesus.

i)        ((illus)) One night he wanted to get to his disciples, who were on a boat out on a lake. So he commanded, “Water, hold me up.” And water solidified for him to walk across to his disciples.

ii)      ((illus)) Another time he was sleeping in the back of a boat, and the water of the sea beneath him was raging out of control. He stood up and said, “Be still.” And the water lay down, as smooth as glass.

iii)    At a wedding in Cana, Jesus told

¨      The servants to fill up waters pots to the brim with water so that nothing else could be added.

¨      The water to “Become wine …” and it became very good wine, indeed.

b.    Water does whatever Jesus tells it to do, which is no surprise.

i)        1:3 - He created everything there is. Nothing exists that he didn’t make.

ii)      ((illus)) Later he told five barley loaves to “multiply yourselves a thousand times…”

iii)    ((illus)) He told the cells of dead Lazarus “Come forth…”

¨      And out of the tomb came his friend Lazarus, still wrapped in his graveclothes, hopping like a man in a sack race.

c.    Jesus is Lord over all.

i)        There is no one like him – is not now and never will be. The 17th century English poet, Richard Crashaw, describes this miracle at Cana with a beautiful and appropriate metaphor: “The modest water saw its God and blushed.”

¨      At most weddings the bride is the one who blushes.

¨      But at this wedding, with Jesus in attendance, even the water blushed in the presence of its creator.

Where to go when we’re running low:

TO THE ONE WHO HAS POWER OVER THE MATERIAL WORLD

2.      WE GO TO THE ONE WHO HAS AUTHORITY OVER RELIGIOUS LAW

a.    :6 - John’s text tells us that the six stone jars standing there at the wedding “were used for Jewish ceremonial purposes”

b.    Jesus told the servants, Fill the jars with water.  

i)        Between 120-180 gallons

ii)      In went the water.

iii)    Out came fine wine.

iv)    On went the party.

c.    The problem was, these six stone jars had been set aside and consecrated for Jewish ritual purification ceremonies.

i)        And Jesus came along and filled them with Chateau Rothschild!

ii)      That was scandalous.

d.   ((illus)) The nearest I can bring this to us is to imagine that some Saturday night we host a wedding reception here at Tringali.

i)         As one of the servers carries a big crystal punch bowl, it accidentally slips from his hand and shatters on the floor.

ii)      Someone says, “Don’t panic. I know something else we can use.” This person grabs a couple of friends and drives over to the local Luthern church sanctuary.

¨       They hoist their baptismal font into the back of their SUV and bring it back to the reception here at Tringali.

¨       The caterers fill it with Canada Dry and cranberry juice, and the baptismal font becomes a punch bowl!

¨      Frankly, I would be embarrassed and so would you.

e.    Yet Jesus did something very much like that at the wedding in Cana:

i)        Jewish purification jars became wine carafes.

ii)      Why?

iii)    Because Jesus felt like it.

f.     HE IS SOVEREIGN OVER ALL RELIGION AND OVER ALL TRADITION.

i)        There has never been a figure like Jesus – there is not now and never will be.

ii)      He is Lord.

iii)    He revealed his glory at this wedding.

g.    Maybe today your in a religious rut and don’t know it.

i)        Life has gotten dull and meaningless.

ii)      Where do you go?

iii)    ((illus)) Several years ago, another church sent me to the first PK pastor’s conference. I remember being touched by one speaker who told of a new worship experience he had as a result of visiting some churches in Africa.  There he had seen the believers dancing in their worship. On one occasion during his personal time with God, he had been prompted, by God, to worship in the same way.

The story was warming to listen to.  But several months later, I was alone before God myself, emotionally spent, and crying out to God.

My mind began to think back to that story and I sensed that God wanted me to dance before him. I looked around to see if there was an evil spirit in the room. This was not conservative-Christian David.

Soon I was dancing before God and then he told me to do something that only “those kind o Christians” do.  Raise my hands.

I realized that Jesus is Lord over religious law and in that act of worship his strength was renewed in me, and I worshipped.

- Maybe God wants you to get outside the religious box you have put yourself in?

- Maybe it’s time to freshen up your walk with him

- Invite him to do a new work.

- give you a ministry that will get you outside of yourself and keep you from imploding in on your own life.

Where do you go when we’re running low?

-TO THE ONE WHO HAS POWER OVER THE MATERIAL WORLD

-TO THE ONE WHO HAS AUTHORITY OVER RELIGIOUS LAW

3.      WE GO TO THE ONE WHOSE GLORY IS REVEALED IN HIS JOY

a.    I think that one thing John is telling us is that Jesus is like fine wine at a wedding.

i)        I’m not talking about happiness

ii)      Happiness is connected to the word happenstance – circumstances which go up and down.

b.    I’m talking about a rich, deep, abundant life that is applied to the hurts of life.

i)        A deep sense that our heavenly Father is right and can be trusted.

c.    Sometimes I think that we, in the Christian Church have been greatly mistaken in saying that whole point of Jesus’ coming to earth was just to forgive us of our sins.

i)        We hear this reason given all the time.

¨      We tell nonbelievers,

¨      “I have good news. You’re off the hook.

¨      God can’t think of a single reason to send you to hell.

¨      In fact, God allowed his son to die instead of you.

¨      Isn’t that good news?”

¨      And they say, “I think I’d rather sleep in on Sunday morning, or watch cartoons.”

d.   Friends, forgiveness is only a starting point.

i)        Its purpose is simply to remove what stands in the way of fellowship with God.

ii)      Our ongoing salvation is in discipleship – living day by day, moment by moment, in relationship with Jesus Christ.

iii)    John Piper neatly sums up the problem in valuing forgiveness over discipleship.

¨      ((illus)) He says that if you are drowning and the lifeguard who swims out to rescue you has a gloomy personality, you probably won’t mind too much. But if Jesus has a sour personality, it will bother you, because Jesus saves you to be with him.

¨      The fact is, Jesus has more joy than any person who ever lived.

¨      In John the parties keep on coming and coming.

¨      In John 15:11 Jesus says, I have told you this so that you will be filled with my joy. Yes, your joy will overflow!...

iv)    And this joy will begin to affect our emotional happiness.

e.    So many people are unhappy today.

i)        I’m sure each of us here has our own disappointments and struggles.

ii)      If you’re a guest here this morning, let me reassure that while some of our people may look like they haven’t got any problems or cares, appearances are deceiving.

iii)    None of us has it all together, including the pastor.

iv)    People in this very room may be entertaining unthinkable thoughts of adultery or suicide.

¨      Some may drink too much or can’t control their spending.

¨      Some may feel so dissociated from their jobs that getting dressed to go to work in the morning feels like putting on a costume for a play.

¨      Some act in roles we feel ill-suited for simply to put bread on our tables.

v)      People can feel empty, restless, and unsatisfied.

CONCLUSION:

1.      Friend, if you have similar thoughts or feelings, the missing piece of your puzzle is daily intimate contact with Jesus of Nazareth, the joygiver.

2.      Remember those three questions that grow out of John’s purpose statement?

a.    Who is Christ?

b.    What is faith?

c.    What is life?

3.      Who is Christ? – the infinite Giver of joy

a.    What is faith? – doing whatever He says.

b.    What is life? – 120 gallons of joy.

4.      Maybe God has allowed you to run out of your own wine/joy so that you might be desperate enough to let Him give you his wine/joy.

5.      We move through time at warp speed, and our great fear is that, like at Cana, we’re going to run out –

a.    not out of wine,

b.    but out of energy, out of solutions, out of ideas, out of money.

c.    And every day we worry that we will run out of time to do all the things we think we have to do.

6.      But friend, hurry is the great enemy of spiritual life.

a.    In Scripture, do you ever see Jesus in a hurry?

b.    Very seldom.

i)        You cannot listen to a child in a hurry.

ii)      You cannot love in a hurry.

7.      I confess I roll my eyeballs when I hear people say “I can make it without God.”

a.    I say, “Fine. But why would anybody want to?”

b.    Because Jesus is the wine at the wedding of life.

Lord, like that water in Cana, we blush in your presence this morning as we are being transformed by your power and your authority and your joy. Lord, in the coming weeks we don’t want to fall back into the dreary water of a hurried, joyless life. Change us into people who live with zest and sparkle, who taste the depth and richness of life as you intend us to live it.  Amen.

Where do you go when we’re running low?

-TO THE ONE WHO HAS POWER OVER THE MATERIAL WORLD

-TO THE ONE WHO HAS AUTHORITY OVER RELIGIOUS LAW

- WE GO TO THE ONE WHOSE GLORY IS REVEALED IN HIS JOY