2.2.5 1.2.2022 Sign Me Up! John 2.1-12

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John 2:1–12 (ESV)

1 On the third day there was a wedding at Cana in Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there.

2 Jesus also was invited to the wedding with his disciples.

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 this have to do with me? My hour has not yet come.”

5 His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.”

6 Now there were six stone water jars there for the Jewish rites of purification, each holding twenty or thirty gallons.

7 Jesus said to the servants, “Fill the jars with water.” And they filled them up to the brim.

8 And he said to them, “Now draw some out and take it to the master of the feast.” So they took it.

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

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.”

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

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.

Entice: It was not the right time. It was not the proper environment. The party-goers were not in the proper, reverent, frame of mind to comprehend what they saw, or more accurately, what they drank. Those who knew, likely thought it was some kind of sleight-of-hand. A party-trick, which both entertained and fortunately, met an immediate need. The time was not right. Surely, the Word did not become incarnate to waste His religious "capital" on such a piddly exhibition as turning water into wine. Particularly when so few knew what really happened.

Engage: Can you imagine being one of the party-goers? You've drank and danced. You've "kissed the bride", hugged her Mom, and banged the bridegroom on the back. Suddenly the supply of wine, one of the few pleasures available to virtually everyone in this far off corner of the Empire, ran out. The chief steward who functioned both as host and caterer started to become red-faced with embarrassment when all of a sudden another pitcher was brought to him, he tasted it and a grin broke out upon his face!

Expand: The Word became flesh to explain God to us. How He did it will forever fill us with wonder. It began with potential embarrassment, quickly changed with the misguided timing of His mother, who, truth be told was behaving as a bit of a busy-body. Taking it all in stride Jesus determines that it may not be His time, it may not be the right time, but now

it is time.

And the eyes of His disciples began to see Him in a new way and the first growing conceptions of faith began in their hearts.

Excite: His first sign, His "archetypical" sign began that process then and can still awaken faith today for those of us who have eyes which are looking, ears which are ready, and hearts that are receptive.

Explore:

The circumstances may not be right, but for Jesus it is perfect.

Explain: What conclusions can we draw from this peculiar story that can lead us all to faith?

Body of Sermon:

The first conclusions is that...

Timing is Everything.

No Tricks no Treats?

Sorry, wrong holiday season! But the point is Germaine.

Jesus did not perform

tricks to amaze,

but

signs to awe and lead to faith.

Gathering and preparing disciples, takes time. His time was precious and He wanted to control it.

Flexibly Intentional

Jesus was intentional. He did not want circumstances and issues beyond His control to dictate the time of His disclosure to Israel. This is the only hint in all the Gospels that Mary may have been concerned to hasten this process. It would seem that after this time she lets Jesus take the lead until those circumstances when she and her other Children began to fear that Jesus was insane.

How can we be like Jesus, taking the time to grow in faith, seeing beyond the obvious, living a flexible yet intentional faith that allows room for God to move?

The next conclusion,

God's nature is overwhelming.

Even this miraculous sign, secretly performed and not broadly proclaimed provides important details about how the Word shows us God. In this simple act we see that like the Father, God-made-Flesh is...

Gracious.

Generous

Glorious

final conclusion

Believing is Best

Signs point.

John deliberately chooses the word sign, as opposed to the various other available vocabulary to describe Jesus' miracles. For John Jesus' wonderful deeds are always signs signifying something essential about Jesus.

Jesus revealed Himself.

When we read this text and consider the consequences we should think Not

"did you see what Jesus did?"

But rather

"did you see what Jesus did?"

His disciples believed.

Shut Down:

In the prologue John wrote "we beheld His glory." In John 2 the Disciples begin to see His glory. No one could look God in the face, until Jesus looked us in the face.

It may seem an odd way to break through and make headway in the hearts of men. Yet, it worked. They saw. They believed.

What about us? Are we perceptive enough to read this story, as familiar as it is, and to feel the flames of our own faith fanned anew?

It has been a hard year. We have had few parties. Yet, Jesus is among us. He still encourages us to believe by giving us a glimpse of God's glorious nature. And though we often forget, He's still right on time. This is God's Word for us today.

He gave them wine

Though it was not yet time.

He gave them sweetness,

In a world filled with bitter dregs,

And angels snickered

At the inside joke sublime.

The sommelier quivered

With ignorant bliss

When tasting the secret treasure

That the unknown sovereign delivered

On that jolly afternoon

When a Galilean feast

The finest vintage he could ever boast

The archetypical sign from

Our Eternal Host.