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Questions of Jesus

What Does This Have to do with Me?

February 28, 2021

Scripture: John 2:1-12

I. Jesus has to do with dying for our sins to erase our shame.

A. We see the setting for Jesus’ first miracle in John 2:1-2. There is a wedding at Cana in Galilee. A problem arises at the wedding which Mary mentions to Jesus in verse 3. She says to her son, “They have no wine.” Mary was not just making a statement of fact to Jesus. She was probably desperate. She was saying, “I don’t know if you can do anything, Jesus. But if you can, fix this. Spare our family from this shame.” Jesus came to earth for a mission that was far more important than family weddings and the wine associated with those weddings.

B. The mission of Jesus is referred to in the word hour that Jesus uses in verse 4. Seven times in the Gospel of John there is a reference to the hour coming for Jesus. Every time, that hour refers to the time of Jesus dying on the cross to forgive us of our sins, remove from us our guilt and shame, and ultimately to be raised from the dead and seated at the right hand of God in heaven. Jesus then was very focused on his mission. Jesus was focused on going to the cross in order to erase our shame and guilt.

II. Jesus has to do with making all things new.

A. From John 1:19 forward we have recorded the first full week of Jesus’ ministry. The miracle of turning the water into wine occurred then on the seventh day of that first week of Jesus’ ministry. Why is this detailing of seven days by John important? In how many days did God create the heavens and the earth? Seven days. John is saying then that in the ministry of Jesus there is an echo of the creation story in Genesis. Jesus is not merely a magician who can turn water into wine. Jesus is Creator. Jesus is God.

B. Jesus can and does make all things new. Jesus can also make people new. We will see that in the next chapter in John’s Gospel in chapter 3 when Jesus tells Nicodemus that you must be born again to enter the kingdom of God. We discover the purpose for Jesus’ miraculous signs in John 20:30-31: “Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; 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.”

III. Jesus has to do with preparing us for the ultimate wedding.

A. At the wedding in Cana, Jesus made wine so the wedding party could celebrate. In the Bible, wine is a symbol of joy. In Psalm 104:15 we read that God made wine to gladden the heart of man. Jesus then was bringing the joy to this wedding by taking the wine from the water in the purification jars, Jesus was giving a sign. The purification rituals and the old order of Jewish law and custom have come to an end. They have been replaced. They’ve been replaced by something far better – by the wine of the joyful kingdom of God. We are going to be part of THE wedding. Rev. 19: 6-8: “Hallelujah! For the Lord our God the Almighty reigns.Let us rejoice and exult and give him the glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and his Bride has made herself ready;it was granted her to clothe herself with fine linen, bright and pure”— for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints.”

Application:
Don’t just see the signs of Jesus. See the glory of Jesus.

Sources:
The Gospel of John
Commentaries on John by D.A. Carson and Richard Phillips

Sermon Discussion Questions

  1. What did Jesus mean when he told his mother, “My hour has not yet come?” What problem would be caused for the groom’s family by running out of wine?
  2. What is the connection between John 1:1 and Genesis 1:1? Do you have a story of Jesus making you new?
  3. What was the expectation for what would happen for Israel when the Messiah came (see Jer. 31:12)? How can you develop more of an anticipation for the ultimate wedding – the marriage supper of the Lamb?