Glory Revealed
Come & See: The Gospel of John • Sermon • Submitted
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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.
INTRO
INTRO
Strange Metaphors:
He was as tall as a 6’3 tree.
The little boat gently drifted across the pond the way a bowling ball wouldn’t.
John and Mary had never met. They were like two hummingbirds who had also never met.
Sometimes there’s a deeper meaning to things in life. Sort of like these metaphors?
John is like that in so many ways. People have described John as deep enough for an elephant to bathe and shallow enough for a baby to swim.
Today we get introduced to some of that depth.
BODY
BODY
Before we go any further and get into our text, it’s important that we take a minute to talk about the uniqueness of John’s gospel.
John is the 4th gospel and the last one written (85-95 AD)
90% of material is unique to John!
John’s material is markedly different from that of the other gospel writers (Matthew, Mark, & Luke)
No birth account
No Sermon on the Mount
No Parables
No end time teaching
No Lord’s prayer
No demons cast out
This has led some to conclude John either; 1) did not know of the others; 2) set out to write a completely independent account of Jesus’ life
1) Highly unlikely someone in John’s position was unaware of the others
2) Too much interdependence among early Christianity for him to have gone rogue
Kostenberger: “Rather, he assumed much of the content of the earlier Gospels and theologically transposed various motifs to bring out the underlying significance of particular aspects of Jesus’ person or work...” (35)
We can see this in the generally accepted outline of John as it is divided theologically into the “Book of Signs” (John 1-12) and the “Book of Exaltation” in (13-20)
John was most likely in his 80’s when he wrote this gospel. Kostenberger: “he had half a century to reflect on his experience of following the earthly Jesus and to ponder the significance of what had happened.” (SotM, 32)
One of the most prominent examples of this comes in his presentation of Jesus’ miracles.
The other 3 gospels most often refer to Jesus’ miracles as “mighty works” (Matthew 11:20)
John records 7 miracles of Jesus and refers to them all as “signs”
Water to Wine (John 2:1-12)
Cleansing the Temple (John 2:13-22)
Healing the Centurion’s Son (John 4:46-54)
Healing the lame man (John 5:1-15)
Feeding the 5,000 (John 6:1-15)
Healing the man born blind (John 9)
Raising Lazarus from the grave (John 11)
John was communicating something deeper than just the surface act of power that the witnesses beheld as Jesus performed these works.
It was not just the validation of the message and the messenger
It was also a revelation of something greater, something deeper, something theological
With each of these “signs,” John was showing us something about Jesus’ Messianic Identity.
John 20:30-31 “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.”
John wasn’t going rogue, he was 50 years down the road, having grown in his own faith and understanding, having been sanctified by the Spirit over the decades, and so he wrote, adding a greater theological depth to the picture that had already been started by the synoptics.
So as we read and study John and come across these “signs,” it would behoove us to ask what deeper truth John was communicating about Jesus. It wasn’t simply to validate the message and the Messenger. Each of these signs had a purpose to pull back the curtain a little more on the person and work of our Savior.
P1: Read with John’s Purpose in Mind (John 20:30-31)
Illustrate: Kraft Mac & Cheese directions are there for a reason!
John 20:30-31 clearly tells us that John was intentional about what he included (as were the other gospel writers) But as we’re studying John, let’s make sure we pay close attention to what he includes and remember this was not random but purposeful.
16 All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, 17 that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.
We believe and fully affirm that the Bible contains the words of God not simply men’s thoughts about God
2 Timothy 3:16-17
We believe that in the original writings, every word recorded was precisely what God wanted recorded.
This is called verbal plenary inspiration
This means that every single word of the Bible without distinction or qualification was inspired by God.
We believe that through this process the personality and style of each human author was preserved.
2 Peter 1:21 “21 For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.”
Writers were “carried along” by the Holy Spirit
We believe that the Scriptures are therefore the authoritative standard for the people of God
17 Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth.
And, that means, that everything contained within the pages of the Word of God is there for a reason
So as we read and study John, this is different than getting together to read and study any other book or text.
Different from Tolstoy, or Shakespeare, or Dickens, or the Koran, or the Book of Mormon, etc.
This book contains God’s word, and no other book that has ever been or ever will be written can truthfully make that claim.
When you’re reading and come across a sign or miracle, remember the words of John 20:30-31 and ask how this particular sign was accomplishing John’s intended purpose.
Pentecost: “By His miracles Christ demonstrated His authority in the realms in which He will one day rule as King in His kingdom. Further, the miracles revealed conditions in the kingdom over which Messiah will rule...Thus in studying the miracles we must consider what they reveal about the person and authority of Christ, as well as the benefits that will be provided through His reign for those in His kingdom.” (The Words & Works, 118-19)
Recommended Resources:
Signs of the Messiah - Andreas Kostenberger
John (Pillar NTC) - DA Carson
John (Tyndale) - Colin Kruse
John (Boice Set) - James Montgomery Boice
John (MacArthur) - John MacArthur
John (NICNT) - Leon Morris
There is no filler material in the Bible
END P1
Now to our text.
As we come to John 2 we come to the beginning of what is sometimes called the Cana Cycle because of the bookend miracles that take place in Cana in our passage today and in John 4:46-54 with the healing of the Centurion’s son.
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.
Cana
Unknown precisely, but likely the modern town of Khirbet Cana about 9-10 miles due north of Nazareth (MAP)
Weddings involved grand feasts that may have lasted anywhere from a day to a week depending on the family and their resources
Jesus and the 5 disciples (Andrew, Peter, Philip, Nathanael, and John) he had gathered so far were invited to this feast, and it seems that his mother, Mary, had a significant role to play as well.
3 When the wine ran out, the mother of Jesus said to him, “They have no wine.”
Wine during Jesus’ time:
Wine was almost always mixed with water
It could range from 20 to1 all the way to 3 to 1
It was a way to purify the drinking water
Also, Rabbis would not bless any wine that was not first mixed with water
Wine was also a symbol of joy and celebration; it reminded people of their expectation of the Messianic age
Wine at a wedding
This was an honor/shame culture where hospitality was crucial to the honor of a family
It was the host’s responsibility to provide enough wine for the entire feast, with some ancient examples of people suing the groom’s family if the wine ran out too soon.
Mary’s expectation
Not that Jesus would do what he does as this was the first sign (John 2:11)
Possible Mary shared some responsibility in the provision of the wine?
Likely though, Mary knew enough of her Son to know he might be able to help
Angelic revelations
John the Baptist’s testimony
His baptism
If not directly, Mary was at least implicitly suggesting that this was the time for Jesus to reveal his full identity.
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.”
“Woman, what does this have to do with me?”
This is Jesus distancing himself from his mother in the traditional mother-son relationship
2 Kings 3:13 “13 And Elisha said to the king of Israel, “What have I to do with you? Go to the prophets of your father and to the prophets of your mother.” But the king of Israel said to him, “No; it is the Lord who has called these three kings to give them into the hand of Moab.””
Hos 14:8 “8 O Ephraim, what have I to do with idols? It is I who answer and look after you. I am like an evergreen cypress; from me comes your fruit.”
Carson: We must not avoid the conclusion that Jesus by rebuking his mother, however courteously, declares, at the beginning of his ministry, his utter freedom from any kind of human advice, agenda or manipulation. He has embarked on his ministry, the purpose of his coming; his only lodestar is his heavenly Father’s will (5:30; 8:29). D. A. Carson, The Gospel according to John, The Pillar New Testament Commentary (Leicester, England; Grand Rapids, MI: Inter-Varsity Press; W.B. Eerdmans, 1991), 171.
Jesus’ priority was always the Father’s will, but this was another marker that since his public baptism, things had changed, even down to his relationship with his own mother
“My hour has not yet come.”
hour = hour of glorification
John 17:1 “1 When Jesus had spoken these words, he lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, “Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son that the Son may glorify you,”
John had a purpose and for his gospel, and now we see that Jesus had a purpose for his ministry. It wasn’t the time yet for that purpose to be fully revealed, but that time would come.
P2: See Jesus’ Purpose in View (vv. 1-5)
The “hour”
Metaphor for the crucifixion and subsequent exaltation
One commentator made the point that this somewhat ambiguous statement “whets the reader’s curiosity” with questions about what the hour could refer to and when it will come. This in turn prompts us to read paying closer attention in our search for the answers to these questions.
The hour was not yet...
John 7:6 “6 Jesus said to them, “My time has not yet come, but your time is always here.”
John 7:8 “8 You go up to the feast. I am not going up to this feast, for my time has not yet fully come.””
John 7:30 “30 So they were seeking to arrest him, but no one laid a hand on him, because his hour had not yet come.”
John 8:20 “20 These words he spoke in the treasury, as he taught in the temple; but no one arrested him, because his hour had not yet come.”
The hour would come
John 12:23 “23 And Jesus answered them, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.”
John 12:27 “27 “Now is my soul troubled. And what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour’? But for this purpose I have come to this hour.”
John 13:1 “1 Now before the Feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that his hour had come to depart out of this world to the Father, having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end.”
John 17:1 “1 When Jesus had spoken these words, he lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, “Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son that the Son may glorify you,”
17 For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life that I may take it up again. 18 No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This charge I have received from my Father.”
Jesus was communicating multiple things here to both his mother, and his disciples, and by extension, as we read it, to you and me.
His relationship had changed with his mother
He had officially embarked on his formal public ministry, and his concern was for the things of the Father, specifically as it would relate to this hour and its eventual arrival.
Because of this, he was not concerned with any Messianic expectations for his activity that his mother or followers may have had
As such, his hour was not subject to them but to him and the Father
Still, could Mary and the disciples have understood all of this?
In short, no, but Luke and John both call attention to times when, after the resurrection, the disciples remembered aspects of his teaching and it fueled or produced greater faith.
Jesus may have been answering a question Mary didn’t ask to teach a truth in a real-life parable.
Wine had messianic implications
Amos 9:13-14 “13 “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. 14 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.”
Zechariah 10:7 “7 Then Ephraim shall become like a mighty warrior, and their hearts shall be glad as with wine. Their children shall see it and be glad; their hearts shall rejoice in the Lord.”
Weddings had messianic implications
Isaiah 54:5 “5 For your Maker is your husband, the Lord of hosts is his name; and the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer, the God of the whole earth he is called.”
Hosea 2:16 “16 “And in that day, declares the Lord, you will call me ‘My Husband,’ and no longer will you call me ‘My Baal.’”
In other words, he may have been revealing his identity for those with ears to hear
Either way Jesus knew his purpose, and it didn’t involve the expectations of Mary or the disciples, or the wedding guests. His purpose was to fulfill the hour that would come at the cross. This wasn’t that time, but still, in his grace, he acted to teach and to reveal a little more of his true identity to his followers.
END P2
Mary may not have understood, but her faith is commendable as she looked at the servants and instructed them to do whatever he said. (Also, this is another indication that she was somehow involved in or responsible for this wedding.)
5 His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.”
Before we progress to the rest of the account, we need to remember again that these are not just divine magic tricks or emphatic statements about Jesus authority. These are SIGNS. Symbols of something more. With that in mind, verse 6.
6 Now there were six stone water jars there for the Jewish rites of purification, each holding twenty or thirty gallons.
These were jars for ritual cleansing
The guests would have used these jars to wash their hands (Mark 7:3-4), and they were probably also used for cleansing the utensils used in service
This is why they were stone as stone was a material that could not contract uncleanness
This was actually not commanded of anyone but the priests (Ex 30:17-21)
They each held about 2-3 measures or 20-30 gallons of water
So this is roughly 120-150 gallons of water
7 Jesus said to the servants, “Fill the jars with water.” And they filled them up to the brim.
The jars are ordered to be filled to the brim
If the Jars were filled to the top nothing could be added?
The old way, the old system has been fulfilled, and now something greater, something better was here (c.f. Kostenberger [Baker] and Carson [Pillar])
8 And he said to them, “Now draw some out and take it to the master of the feast.” So they took it.
At some point between verses 7 and 8 it appears that the water in these jars had been miraculously transformed into wine.
There is another suggestion based on the word for “draw” here which is the word used for drawing water from a well (John 4:7, 15)
So rather than drawing the water from one of these jars to bring it to the master of the feast, they draw from the well which had become the source of the good wine
This would increase the impact of the miracle
Jesus hadn’t just made the 150 gallons of water into wine, he had transformed the very source of the water into wine
However, Chrysostom has pointed out that the word was used of draining wine vessels in other contexts.
Either way, this is significant! And as a sign, it was communicating something more than meets the eye.
The imagery then is communicating that the old way was being taken out of commission in favor something new, something better, something Messianic.
P3: Recognize What’s Better About Jesus (vv. 5-11)
Remember, John is intentional with his arrangement of these events and what he includes:
After this, we will see Jesus cleansing the Temple
After that, we will encounter Jesus’ interaction with Nicodemus (new birth)
Jesus had come on the scene and was sending notice that he was there to interrupt the status quo, to shake things up, to bring something new, to restore pure worship, to announcement of the fulfillment of what was old in the arrival of the new.
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.”
Whether the water was drawn from the stone jars or from the well itself, by the time it gets to the MC, it has been transformed into good wine.
The conventional norm at the time was to serve the good wine while the guests were still able to discern its quality and the cheaper wine after they had been sufficiently lubricated so as to lose some of that refined taste.
The quality of the wine provided by Jesus stood out as especially superior to the point that the MC interrupted the wedding proceedings to commend the bridegroom for his generosity.
Once again, at risk of pressing the allegorical too far, Jesus is introducing that which is superior even to what was previously thought good.
40 since God had provided something better for us, that apart from us they should not be made perfect.
12 It was revealed to them that they were serving not themselves but you, in the things that have now been announced to you through those who preached the good news to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven, things into which angels long to look.
1 Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, 2 looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.
11 This, the first of his signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee, and manifested his glory. And his disciples believed in him.
The ultimate revelation of the glory of Jesus would be at the cross.
This was a breadcrumb of glory meant to keep the disciples curious, to keep them following, to keep them seeking him
Have you discovered what’s better about Jesus?
10 For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.”
17 And when Jesus heard it, he said to them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.”
5 Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, 6 who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.
CONCLUSION:
CONCLUSION:
The servants were witnesses to the same sign as the disciples. Did they end up among Jesus’ followers after this? Maybe, but probably not all of them. And there are plenty of other miracles Jesus would do in the presence of masses, but not all would follow him.
The glory in view would only be understood through eyes of faith. Do you see his glory? Do you see that he’s better?