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19 April: My Hour Has Not Yet Come  John 2:1-11                     Taken from:  Jesus’ Miracles’  by Jason Elder

In studying God’s word, we can find many insights and directives for our lives. This is no less true with the very first miracle that Jesus brings about:

John 2:1-11 “On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. ² Jesus and His disciples had also been invited to the wedding. ³ When the wine gave out, the mother of Jesus said to Him, ‘They have no wine.’ ⁴ And Jesus said to her, ‘Woman, what concern is that to you and to me? My hour has not yet come.’ ⁵ His mother said to the servants, ‘Do whatever He tells you.’ ⁶ Now standing there were six stone water-jars for the Jewish rites of purification, each holding twenty or thirty gallons. ⁷ Jesus said to them, ‘Fill the jars with water.’ And they filled them up to the brim. ⁸ He said to them, ‘Now draw some out, and take it to the chief steward.’ So they took it. ⁹ When the steward tasted the water that had become wine, and did not know where it came from (though the servants who had drawn the water knew), the steward called the bridegroom ¹⁰ and said to him, ‘Everyone serves the good wine first, and then the inferior wine after the guests have become drunk. But you have kept the good wine until now.’ ¹¹ Jesus did this, the first of His signs, in Cana of Galilee, and revealed His glory; and His disciples believed in Him.”

This is the first of many signs which are recorded during His brief ministry here on this earth. Though brief and simple there are several details which we might look at and gain some insight.  Weddings in first-century Jewish culture were week-long celebrations of covenantal joy, symbolizing God’s blessing on family and community. To run out of wine was more than social embarrassment—it threatened the honor of the hosts and disrupted the symbol of divine joy. Fixing this problem was of paramount importance which apparently included Mary’s concern – especially since she believed that she knew of a solution to the problem. The problem as Jesus saw it was that this situation was not in His plan with regard to bringing glory to His mission and His heavenly Father.

Christians are frequently tempted, like Jesus’s mother was, to bring Jesus into situations that are focused strictly on this world’s concerns and issues. Thankfully, now, like then, Jesus does respond to our cries for help. I am reminded of Israel’s cries for help - time and time again - and how God hears their cries and responds with deliverance. While Jesus does provide for our physical needs, we should never forget the primary purpose Jesus has been assigned to accomplish on our behalf is our spiritual connection with our Father in heaven. If you remember in John 17 Jesus prays: “that they may all be one; even as You, Father, are in Me and I in You, that they also may be in Us, so that the world may believe that You sent Me”. (John 17:21).  Rom 5:1, 5 “Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ …. because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.”  His divinely appointed hour saves us from sin, death, and eternal judgment.

In looking more closely at the story we can see a couple important details.  

A) Plentiful & Good Wine:  Jesus does what His mother asks and produces the wine that is needed. But His provisions are noteworthy:  1) Jesus instructs that the six stone jars that are standing nearby for the purpose of purification ceremonies (each holding twenty to thirty gallons of water) be filled with water. With the marriage ceremony well into the week’s celebrations it can be imagined that these 120 – 180 galleons of wine should be more than enough.   2) The second noteworthy detail in this story is the quality of wine which Jesus produced. It was good enough to catch the attention of the chief steward who was so impressed that he felt the need to investigate.

Jesus’ provisions/blessings for us are likewise just as superior as illustrated here. Isn’t that one of the implications in Jesus’ statement that He has come to bring to us life – abundant life!   Christians are often times tempted to find  their  answers / satisfaction in the “cheap wines” of this world. This may be career success, family stability, the cheaper pleasures of food and drink, or any of the other worldly blessings that can be found in this world.   1 John 2:15,16 “Do not love the world nor the things of the world… For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father; but is from the world.” Our search for the blessings of THIS world will always fall short of providing fulfillment and contentment.

This wedding miracle of Jesus invites His followers to drink of the “good wine” and find its ultimate hope and identity in the One who gave His blood (wine!) to rescue and restore.

So what might be the ‘good wine’ which the Lord has provided for us – for you and me? What might be that ‘abundant life’ promised us?  1) God’s promise to be with us:          Isaiah 41:10 “Do not fear, for I am with you; do not anxiously took about you, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, surely I will help you, surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.”   Jer. 29:11 “ ‘For I know the plans that I have for your,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans for welfare and not calamity to give you’re a future and a hope.’” Heb 13:6 “so that we can confidently say: ‘The Lord is my Helper, I will not be afraid. What will man do to me?” Rom 8:26 ““In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us through wordless groans.”

2) God  WILL  provide:  John 15:7 “If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.     1 John 5:14, 15 “This is the confidence which we have before Him, that, if we ask any thing according to His will He hears us. And if we know that He hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests which we have asked from Him.”     Eph 6:10,11 “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might. Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil.”     Phil 4:19 “And my God will supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus.”    2 Cor 9:8 “And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that always having all sufficiency in everything, you may have an abundance for every good deed.”        Eph 1:3 “Blessed be the God and Father of Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ”.     Eph 2:8 “For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God”.

We know Scripture assures us of God’s protection and we see in Mary’s request and expectation a belief in her Son and what He was capable of. Against this backdrop, Jesus’ response reveals more than just compassion.

B)  A second detail that is worthy of consideration is Jesus’ Response: it refers to the arrival of the messianic age.   “My hour has not yet come”:   Jesus’s response to His mother may sound abrupt to modern ears (John 2:4), but it was probably more politely received in its original context. Jesus’ response reveals an unwavering commitment to the Father’s mission and resists the misplaced expectations His mother and we ourselves may often put on Him. Consider Jesus’ words recorded in John 14:13,14 “And whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. ¹⁴ If you ask anything in My name, I will do it.”    We can see here in Jesus’ words another example of a focus and intent which is centered on doing the will of the Father. In the Lord’s Prayer we are encouraged to desire God’s kingdom to be revealed and complied with. In this particular instance, God’s hour for Jesus refers to His eventual placement on the cross. John 7:6, 30 “So Jesus said to them, ‘My time is not yet here ….’  So they were seeking to seize Him; and no man laid his hand on Him, because His hour had not yet come.” In numerous other places the opposition tries to eliminate Jesus but because it is NOT His hour those situations are miraculously avoided (John 7:44; 8:59; 10:39; Luke 4:29; Mtt 12:14).

A third factor to consider is Our Response:  Jesus tells us to take up our cross and follow Him (Luke 9:23). To follow Him is to go about doing the will of the Father. Paul tells us to imitate him as he imitates Christ. Paul went about doing God’s will in sharing the gospel. 2 Cor 5:20 tells us that we are God’s ambassadors and are representing God’s righteousness.    Eph 2:10 “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.”     Rom 12:2 “And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.”   Col 1:9,10 “For this reason also, since the day we heard of it, we have not ceased to pray for you and to ask that you may be filled with the k knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so that you will walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, to please Him in all respects, bearing fruit in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God”.

 

 

This miracle story is more than a proof of Jesus’s divinity.  When we read the miracle stories theologically, we are invited to trust in God’s character, rest in His redemptive work, and hope in the restoration He has promised. The miracle stories provided give us the source needed to nourish us and grow us into being the disciples that the Lord desires us to be. John 20:31031 “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.”

May OUR belief in the Lord Jesus Christ be evident in our lives as we live for and with Him!

D)  Final Observation regarding this miracle:    John 2:8–10 – The Best Wine Last

When the master of the feast tastes the wine, he declares that the bridegroom has kept the best for last. This reversal illustrates the message of the gospel: God saves the best for the end. The old covenant prepared the way, but the fullness of grace and truth comes through Jesus Christ (John 1:17). The new wine represents the joy of the messianic kingdom, foretold by prophets who envisioned wine flowing freely in the age of salvation (Amos 9:13; Isaiah 25:6) leading us to eternal life with God. Titus 1:2 “in the hope of eternal life, which God, who cannot lie, promised long ages ago”.      1 John 2:25 “This is the promise which He Himself made to us: eternal life.”   Rom 6:23 “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

 

 

12 April:  “Do You Not Care That We Are Perishing?”          Mark 4:35 – 41

Last week we looked at two celebrations which illustrated God’s saving grace. The Jews had their ‘Feast of the Passover’ and Christians have the ‘Lord’s Supper’. Both celebrations honor and commemorate the salvation and redemption which God has provided for His children. The ‘Passover Feast’ honors the saving of the first-born male sons of the Jews that were not killed by the death angel   AND   it celebrates Israel’s release from slavery in Egypt. The ‘Lord’s Supper’ honors the redemption of mankind achieved by the self-less sacrifice of our Lord.

In today’s lesson I want to look at another group who thought that they were perishing and were subsequently saved by our Lord.           Mark 4:  “On that day, when evening came, He said to them, “Let’s go over to the other side.” ³⁶ After dismissing the crowd, they took Him along with them in the boat, just as He was; and other boats were with Him. ³⁷ And a fierce gale of wind developed, and the waves were breaking over the boat so much that the boat was already filling with water. ³⁸ And yet Jesus Himself was in the stern, asleep on the cushion; and they woke Him and said to Him, “Teacher, do You not care that we are perishing?” ³⁹ And He got up and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, “Hush, be still.” And the wind died down and it became perfectly calm. ⁴⁰ And He said to them, “Why are you afraid? Do you still have no faith?” ⁴¹ They became very much afraid and said to one another, “Who, then, is this, that even the wind and the sea obey Him?”

As I have encouraged you in times past, as you are reading God’s Word you should make an effort to do more than just read it. You should take time to reflect on what you read and how it applies to your life. Think about what it teaches you about God and who you are. What does 2 Tim 3:16,17 say: “All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.”

As you can see here, knowing God’s word changes and directs your life. A simple reading with no application may make you feel better but does not make you better and ‘equipped/prepared’ to do good work.  Journaling is one way to help you identify what stands out to you, identify questions that you have, and help you better see what the Lord may want to reveal to you in order to improve your life. It has been said by someone: “Thoughts disentangle themselves when they pass through your fingertips.” To write it down is to think about it and better understand it.                                                                                                

So in going back to our Scripture today This is the only place in Scripture where we read of Jesus sleeping. The detail highlights His true humanity, but the moment also served as a test of the disciples’ faith. All three Synoptic Gospels record the event in nearly identical words, yet Mark adds the striking phrase, “Don’t you care?”  and Matthew adds “O’ ye of little faith.”  Mark captures the very question that was likely in all their hearts, but Matthew exposes the foundational issue that generated this question and their fears. In reality, Jesus’ calm rest in the midst of the storm was the example they themselves should have followed, based on all they had already witnessed Him do.   ?

Jesus asking about their faith may trigger the question about our own faith. We should realize that testing is part of growth. Deut 8:2 “And you shall remember that the LORD your God led you all the way these forty years in the wilderness, to humble you and test you, to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep His commandments or not.”

James 1:2-3  “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.”   Romans 5:3-4  “Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.”    2 Corinthians 1:8-9  “We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers and sisters, about the troubles we experienced in the province of Asia. We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired of life itself. Indeed, we felt we had received the sentence of death. But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead.”  And Paul was told that his ‘thorn in the flesh’ would not be removed so that God’s grace would be sufficient to get him through his struggles.

You can clearly see the ‘faith’ – or maybe lack of faith – in these men when they come and awaken Jesus. But one thing we should acknowledge is that when the storm becomes desperate, they do come to the Lord for rescue. We see in this moment of difficulty that these men go to Jesus with their concerns.

We should get it in our hearts and minds today, when things are relatively quiet and peaceful that there are going to be storms in our lives. There will often times be storms and problems and seemingly insurmountable difficulties in our lives. The question is – what should we do with them?  The Psalm writer reminds us:   Ps 46:1 “God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.”    Heb 4:16 “Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.”     John 16:33 “I have told you these things, so that in Me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”    Romans 8:28 “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”   This assurance within our hearts and minds brings fulfillment of Paul’s desires for us: Romans 15:13 “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.”                                                                                                                                                                            We need to have Jesus on our speed dial with our spiritual phone. There should barely be a breath between our recognition of problems and our calling on the Father to help us and guide us.          In 2 Corinthians 1:3-4, the Apostle Paul writes, "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God."     Here, God is identified as the ultimate source of comfort, emphasizing His compassionate nature and His active role in providing solace to His children.      In John 14:16-17, Jesus promises, "And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Advocate to be with you forever—the Spirit of truth." The Holy Spirit dwells within believers, offering guidance, peace, and reassurance, especially in times of distress.

Throughout Scripture, there are numerous examples of individuals who experienced God's comfort in their trials. The Psalms, in particular, are replete with expressions of distress and subsequent divine consolation. Psalm 34:17-18 declares, "The righteous cry out, and the LORD hears; He delivers them from all their troubles. The LORD is near to the brokenhearted; He saves the contrite in spirit." This passage highlights God's attentiveness and proximity to those who are suffering.

Believers are encouraged to seek God's comfort through prayer, Scripture, and fellowship with other Christians. Philippians 4:6-7 advises, "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." This peace is a manifestation of God's comfort, guarding the hearts and minds of those who trust in Him.

The church, as the body of Christ, is also a vital source of comfort. Believers are called to bear one another's burdens and to offer encouragement and support just as it said in our Corinthians passage:  “so that we can comfort those in any trouble .”   Gal 6:2 instructs us, "Carry one another’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ." Through acts of love and service, the community of faith becomes a tangible expression of God's comfort to those in distress. What did Jesus say: John 13:35  “By this shall all men know that you are My disciples, if you have love one for another.” 

In our hearts and minds we should know that there are going to be problems, disappointments and struggles. But within our storms, like the eye of a hurricane, there should be a sense of peace, calm and trust. We should know that the Lord WILL bring us to the light at the end of the tunnel and there we will find our minds to be at peace, still and calm.