Sermon Tone Analysis

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

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.

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

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.

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.

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