Old Made New, Miracle at Cana

John 2:1-11

“The Old Made New” Wedding at Cana

Read John 2:1-11

Pray

Intro - I hate New Years resolutions. But that’s my problem. As a child and teenager I was pressed to have one each year and they seemed to always end in failure.

Mainly because the hardest thing for a child and teenager to do is be consistent.

In fact, I dislike New Years resolutions so much, that I saw New Years coming and decided to make a new commitment to exercise a month before the New Year started so it wouldn’t be a New Years resolution.

-Your pastor is a strange one.

Transition to Big Idea … Whether it is a New Years Resolution or not, God is in the transforming business. He is is about making he old in our lives new.

Coaching - By God’s common grace you have been given times during the natural cycle of the year where it is more natural to make changes. To make new commitments.

To make the Old - New.

New Years, Birthdays, Anniversaries, Changes of seasons

I want to challenge you to make a Spiritual Commitment at the beginning of this year.

Either in time with God- 1) in scripture or 2) Prayer, 3) Focus on sharing your faith.

God desires to constantly be reNEWing you.

Helping the Old become New.

Big Idea - Christ came to take what was spiritually old and ineffective in our lives and transform it to something new and glorious.

Our scripture today speaks of Jesus taking the old and ineffective and making it new.

Here is the set up to our story.

The Wedding and the water to wind miracle happened in Cana. Tiny tiny village in north Galilee with a population of maybe 15 people. Cana made Vidette look look like a metropolis.

It was 4 miles away from Nazareth.

Nazareth was an small town which had at most a population of 500.

Transition - Our passage today starts with this Wedding Party

Party, vs 1-2, Cana was a very agricultural area where people or families meet up. And not many people lived.

The people of Nazareth and Cana grew up together. It was a tight knit community.

Jesus and Mary would have known the families who’s daughter and son were getting married. It is even possible that Mary could have played a role in helping at the wedding party.

In Bible times wedding parties would last 3-7 days.

End with the bride and groom privately consummating their marriage.

Jesus is at this wedding with some of the disciples maybe John, Nathaniel, Simon Peter, James (Jesus brother).

I. Problem, vs. 3 & 5

The wine ran out.

Wine was a necessity. Water was impure and needed something to purify.

-Not having wine at a 3-7 day party is like losing your source of drinking water. Your party is over. This is a catastrophe.

In Bible times water was mixed with wine at a ratio of 1 to 3 or 1 to 10 to purify the water.

-The groom and his family is in charge of making the preparations for the week long party.

-The groom and family has royally dropped the ball.

-In an honor shame culture, running out of wine is a major embarrassment.

-Some historians say that this shame the groom brought on the wedding and the bride would be reason for a lawsuit against the groom and his family.

-No wine was a huge deal.

-It was a Problem.

Transition - It was not just a problem for the party, but Mary made it a personal problem.

II. Personal Problem, vs. 3-5

A. Mary turns to Jesus for a solution.

Why?

-Jesus is the greatest problem solver that Mary has ever encountered.

-Mary was in need of a great problem solver in her life.

-The last time that we saw Joseph (Jesus earthly Father) was when Jesus was 12 years old in the Temple. When Mary and Joseph lost Jesus.

-Joseph is never seen again in any of the Gospels.

-It is a very good assumption to think that Joseph has died.

-This would leave Jesus (the oldest) as the head of the household.

-Mary would have depended on Jesus to make money in carpentry to pay the bills.

-To provide practical leadership and spiritual leadership.

-To help give guidance to Jesus’ brothers and sisters.

-To be helpful and creative at solving problems.

-Don’t you know that Jesus was the greatest and most creative problem solver any son has been in the history of the world.

-He was the most intelligent, the most patient, the wisest, and the most creative problem solver ever.

-He never had a bad idea!

SO, when a massive problem arrises at a wedding, when one of your friends or distant family members could be humiliated by the lack of planning and not having enough wine it is only natural that Mary would turn to Jesus and ask for help.

-She could have easily been one of the hostesses.

Transition - And we see a very odd response by Jesus.

John 2:4 “4 And Jesus said to her, “Woman, what does this have to do with me? My hour has not yet come.””

Transition - The problem is much deeper than finding a solution to not having anything to drink.

-Things become personal.

B. Jesus relationship to Mary is changing

-Jesus responds to Mary in a very unusual and disappointing way.

-Mary will discover that Jesus intimacy and loyalty to the family is beginning to diminish. (x2)

- Vs. 4, Jesus responds to Mary as “Woman”.

-In the southern vernacular would us the word Ma’am in a non-intimate way.

Not as a child saying to his mother Yes, Ma’am. But as a stranger being referred to as Ma’am.

In the grocery store, to a worker, “Excuse me ma’am. Would you please tell me where to find the spices.”

-Jesus referred to Mary as “woman” in a non-intimate manner.

-Jesus is signaling that His formal ministry was beginning. His relationship to his human family (mother) was changing.

How is it changing?

-Jesus is no longer being influenced by His mother. He is now ONLY listening to His heavenly Father.

John 5:19 “So Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of his own accord, but only what he sees the Father doing. For whatever the Father does, that the Son does likewise.”

Matthew goes on to give us even a deeper sense of this family separation.

Matthew 12:46-50 says this, (Speaking of Jesus) “While he was still speaking to the people, behold, his mother and his brothers stood outside, asking to speak to him. 48 But he replied to the man who told him, “Who is my mother, and who are my brothers?” 49 And stretching out his hand toward his disciples, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! 50 For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother.””

Matthew 19 goes even further with this separation from family.

Susan, John Russel, and Laura Leigh - be comforted by this.

Matthew 19:29 “29 And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or lands, for my name’s sake, will receive a hundredfold and will inherit eternal life.”

Why would Jesus make strong statements like this about family?

Jesus is showing us that there is a better way to think of family. A New Way.

-He is demonstrating to us that the greatest part of our identity does not lie in our connection to our family, but in connection to our heavenly Father.

-The deep intimate connection that you have to your family is in this life.

-The intimate connection that you have to your Heavenly Father is forever.

Illustration - One day I’ll die and go to heaven. Later Susan will join me. When she sees me, she will be happy. But when she sees Jesus and the Father, our relationship will pale in comparison to her eternal affection for the Father.

-Hear me! Your relationship to your family is important. It is necessary, wonderful, and good.

-Your relationship to your heavenly Father is so much more important.

-The best thing you can do for your family now, is put your relationship with the Father before everything.

-When you do that, you will give your family the greatest gift they could have - a godly family member that points them to God.

-In John 2, Jesus is signaling to his earthly mother that His focus is changing.

-His relationship with Mary is changing.

Isn’t it notable that at a wedding, where a man and woman leave their father and mother and cling to each other, that the Son of God is seen leaving his mother and showing his commitment to bride, who Jesus heavenly Father is calling Him to love.

Transition - There is a miracle in our passage.

III. Miracle - vs. 6-8

Jesus had the servants take the stone water jars that were not for wine, but for ritual purification and fill them up to the brim.

These large jars were used for ritual cleansing - has nothing to do with real dirt or germs.

-This custom is no where given in the Old Testament.

-The custom included washing hands, feet, and plates.

-This washing is a way the people would try and purify themselves from sin.

-This was a man made rule given as way to work for and earn salvation.

-This custom is spiritually worthless & destructive.

Jesus has the servants fill these heavy pots to the brim with water.

-This water that are in these huge pots is worthless for drinking.

It has not been purified with wine.

Who purifies this water? Jesus purification.

How does He purify? He creates the best wine.

Jesus instantly turns the chemical properties of the water into something that would take months if not years to make.

We know that water doesn’t turn to wine on it’s own.

There is a long process that takes place.

-There must be harvesting (grapes), crushing and pressing, filtering, adding yeast, fermentation (up to a month), another filtering, then aging to get the best wine (which can last years).

-Jesus, the one who spoke the world and universe into existence, caused this chemical process to take place in a second, just by commanding it in his mind.

-Who can cause an intricate chemical process to take place in a second?

-God alone.

-Jesus Christ through this miracle is making a statement that He is the Son of God.

-Why did Jesus do this?

John 20:30–31 ESV

30 Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; 31 but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.

Jesus did this so that you would believe (Fully Trust) in Him.

-Christ Follower, do you believe more deeply? Do you trust more deeply?

-Non Believer, Will you believe right now? Will you trust Him right now?

Jesus took an old way of purification (the water and the pots) and did a miracle so you would believe that He is the only way to have your sins purified.

John 14:6 ESV

6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

Jesus took the failing, the man made and the old - and brought in the New.

Transition ...

IV. Response (Miracle), 9-10

Story Tell -

When the Head Waiter, The Party Manager, tasted Jesus wine he said to the groom, Most people serve the best wine first, and after some have too much alcohol and their sense of taste is not as sharp, the cheap wine is brought out … but you bring out the best now.

What Jesus has brought is the best.

The old man made way of purification from sins (by washing) was a lie. Trying to work (do good) to earn your purification.

Purification only comes through the wine - the blood sacrifice that Jesus provides.

Here are 2 observations about Jesus sacrifice.

1. Family relationship neither brings you closer or holds you back from Jesus.

-The ground is level at the foot of the cross.

2. Jesus sacrifice is more than enough.

-We also see that Jesus provides wine in excess. Jesus provided 150 gallons of the best wine. More than could be consumed.

-My friend, the sacrifice of Christ is more than enough to cover the worst sins that you have ever done.

-There are sins that if others found out about would cause you great embarrassment and shame. There are sins that have happened outwardly and sins that have happened inwardly that are so bad you hope no one will ever find out about them.

-Hear me clearly when I say this. Like the wine in the huge water pots, the payment for your sin is up to the brim and is overflowing for you.

-There is nothing more powerful than the overflowing blood of Christ.

-If you are not a Christ Follower, will you trust Him with your sin and give Him all of your life now?

-If you are not a Christ follower and your heart is now full of conviction - this is the Lord calling you to himself. Will you say, “yes” to Him today?

Closing - John 2:11

John 2:11 ESV

11 This, the first of his signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee, and manifested his glory. And his disciples believed in him.

Will you believe in Jesus?

Will you believe that He is the Son of God able to manipulate atoms and molecules to make wine?

Will you believe that He can not only purify water, but purify you of your sin?=