Services | The Beginning of Signs

Bulletin

Hymn # 475 “Victory in Jesus”
SCRIPTURE READING – 1 Corinthians 15:51 - 58

Giving of Selves and Our Offerings
OFFERTORY PRAYER
OFFERTORY MUSIC – Pru Hungate

Praise and Worship
“Crown Him (Majesty)”​​
“Love Is War”
“Homecoming”

Proclamation of the Word
Message by Pastor Joe
“The Beginning of Signs”

PRAYER TIME / Time of Reflection
“How Great Is Your Love”



Acknowledgements and Announcements
​

Benediction “There Is Freedom”



Sermon Notes


John 2:1 & 2
Jesus, His mother and disciples are invited to a wedding
John 2:3
A problem arises – the wine runs out. Jesus’ mother wants Him to intercede
John 2:4
Jesus, in essence, says it’s not My problem
John 2:5
Jesus’ mother tells the servants to do what Jesus tells them to do
John 2:6 & 7
Jesus tells the servants to fill 6 water pots with between 120 – 180 gallons of water
John 2:8
Jesus tells the servants to draw some water out and take it to the head waiter
John 2:9 & 10
The water turned into excellent wine
John 2:11
This sign was the beginning of signs which clearly showed His glory and His disciples beleived

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Scritpures

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Transcript of Service

The interesting thing is very few people at that. Event, which was a wedding reception in Canna. Knew about it. Only a few people and those who read. The Gospel of John. So we're going to get a good look at the authentication of who Jesus is by that first sign. Come and look with me as we investigate. His authentication. If you have your Bibles, if you please turn to John Chapter 2. We have. Ventured on this. Road to. Make sure that. If Jesus comes in our lifetime, that. He will find faith in us and into our friends and family members if we meet him before he comes. John is going to continue fighting about Jesus and the purpose is that we might find faith and he now takes us to a little town that's in Cana, which is about there's some. Questions is the exact place of where Canaan was located, but it's believed it is about 11 miles northeast of Nazareth. So when we last saw Jesus in his new disciples had journeyed from their where John, they testify, was baptizing. Up into Galilee. And now they are there on this occasion. So it says on the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee. And the mother of Jesus was there. So apparently she probably knew the family or or whatever, but but she was there present with with the wedding parties and then both Jesus and his disciples were invited to the wedding.



Now, so apparently Mary didn't need an invitation, because maybe family or whatever will run. But Jesus and the disciples were invited. UM. I'm one of those people who I don't mind going to the wedding because it lasts like about 30 minutes. I'm not a big. Person who likes to go to the reception. Because they never cut the cake on time, and then, you know, and it's when is this thing going to? Be over here but. But that's this is an opportunity in in the Jewish culture to meet your family and your friends and have a good time and to celebrate this, this. Uniting of this couple together and so both Jesus and his disciples attend not only the wedding, but apparently the reception and the and the good times that followed. This is when the wine ran out. The mother Jesus said to him they have no wine. So that's why I think maybe Mary is. A friend of the family or something because she takes it upon herself to say we got a problem. It's run out and in. In their culture. This is not just a. Social full path. This is something that years after the wedding everybody will say, Can you believe it? They ran out of wine. What a. What a bad party it was. And so there's this problem. And then Mary goes to Jesus saying they've run out of wine. And Jesus said to her woman, what does? That have to. Do with us. My hour has not yet come now. The first thing I want you to understand is. I have used the word woman. To my wife in the past once. Because she was not happy. Not only because they used the term, but because the way I used it. But in this case Jesus is not being flippant or disrespectful to his mother. He has used the word woman. I didn't get a couple instances. One in the sense of that she he is no longer under her authority. But he's not being disrespectful. And why do I? And by just coming to his rescue? When he is hanging on the cross. And he has been beaten and scourged and rock mocked and ridiculed. And is there on the cross he looks to which we believe is John, who is writing this and says, son, behold your mother. Woman, behold your son. So in this case he is being protective and making sure his mother is being provided for. So in this sense he is saying woman in that sense. OK, so it's not disrespectful. He's still. Falling under the the the law that says you're the honor your mother and. But he does make the point. What does that have? To do with us. It's not my problem. And on top of that, my hour has not yet come. He is. Not yet to. Go on his road to showing exactly who he is and what his ministry is because there is a particular timing that God the Father has set for his ministry. So he's saying. My time has not yet come. His mother said to the servants. Whatever he says to. You do it. Now Mary is such a mom. She doesn't take no for an answer. It reminds me when I was a kid, I was a teenager and I wasn't feeling good. And my mom goes, you need to. Mow the yard. I know, mom. I don't feel good. So that's OK. You'll feel better when you're finished. You know, Mom just don't take no for an answer. And so Jesus goes my tower. And now you come. What does it have to do with us? She doesn't take no for answer. She says to the servants whatever he tells. You to do you do that? Now there were six stone water pots set there for the Jewish custom of purification containing 3020 or 30 gallons each. So there's six of these things which, with the potential of having 120 to 180 gallons of water. And they're used for purification. And Jesus said to them. Fill the water pots with water. So they filled them up to the brim. So they fill them up. So there there's at least more than 120 to 180 gallons of water in these six water pots. Now I want you to remember there. Are six of them.



And he said to them, draws them out now and take it to the head waiter. So they took it to him. So everybody's doing what exactly what Jesus is told them to do. Jesus has told them to put water into it. He's told them to draw water out. Jesus hasn't done anything to the water pots. He is simply. Verbalized instructions. And when the head waiter tasted the water, which had become wine, he did not know where it came from. But the servants, who had drawn the water knew. And the head waiter called the Bride. And said to him. Every man serves good wine 1st and when the people have drunk freely then he serves the poor wine. But you have kept the food until now. So what is happened is. They have bought this and and no one knows that it used. To be water. And the head waiter goes well. Wait a minute. I've been to wedding receptions before and because people tend to be cheap, what they do is they serve the good stuff and then once you've drunk enough and your and your taste buds are a little desensitized and you bring out the cheaper stuff because it's cheaper and you learn and he's going, you guys have. Broken the custom you've held back until now, and now you're really serving the ex. This beginning of his signs Jesus did in Cana of Galilee. And manifested his glory, and his disciples believed in him. This is the first sign that Jesus performs. Which tells us of several things. Number one, it tells us. That the other pseudo gospels who talk about Jesus doing all these weird things are just that pseudo false gospels, because this is the first sign. This is the first miracle that Jesus performs. Signs and these scriptures are primarily for two reasons. One, their miracles to prove. That that authenticates. Who? The person says they are. It authenticates Jesus's claim that he is the Messiah, the son of God. It also authenticates their message. It authenticates Jesus's message that he is a good teacher, not simply because people don't want to not acknowledge him as Messiah. But because his message is true and these two, this sign authenticates who he is and what his message is. Has a number of important factors. That I want to discuss with you. Now, once you know it's because Jesus said my hour has not yet come. He has limited his the knowledge of what took place to his disciples. I'm going to assume Mary knew what's going on because. She said do whatever. And you and I. We're reading. Now I noticed I told you it was 6 water pots. With 20 to 30 gallons each. Jesus could have simply. Said bring one of them. And I'll solve the problem. But he has them fill all six. Because our God is a God of generosity. He freely loves us. He freely forgives us. He freely. Brings us joy and peace. He is a rich and generous. He doesn't just do just enough to get by. It provides probably. Way more wine that was ever needed throughout the entire reception, right alone. Now that the wine ran out. The second thing it tells us is that he does all things well. It is good, excellent wine. He doesn't just do things just enough to get by. He does them excellently. He makes excellent wine now. I'm not a wine aficionado. But this is what you need to do. Add wine. We got our harvest grapes. At a mansion. You've got to cause them to be fermented. You got to take some time and then you've got to clarify. So you come with a liquid that's clear. And this takes time. The miracle here is it goes from water to excellent wine and the time it takes, if you will, to go from drawing it out. The tasty. Which tells me. The reason that John started his gospel with in the beginning with the word and the word was with God, and the word was God is that this shine this sign tells us Jesus is God and he is creator. Because he does what takes time. And comes it down to simply saying do this. And it was done. So I want to give you kind of. An example to leave you with that you kind of get what I'm talking about. So we're going to do some science fiction. I've invented. A time machine. I don't believe you can do that because I don't think time is linear, but. I invented a time machine. And I decided it was time to see that I made so that we people can go. I'm going to go because I want to observe. What's happening and I made The Time Machine. 2nd, I'm going to bring a forensic pathologist. Is I want him to perform an autopsy. I'm going to bring a serial killer. Because I don't want to get my hands dirty. And I bring take the three of us back and I go the day after God creates the heavens. And the Earth and Adam. And I have the serial killer. Sneak up on Avon. And I have him kill Adam. Dealing with the whole paradox that I killed my ancestor. Now I proof because I never existed because I just killed the guy that we all started out with, but avoiding the paradox. We killed Adam. I didn't get my hands dirty. I just. I had the guy do it. And the forensic pathologist. Since Adam. And he's going to start his. Autopsy by saying. We have an adult male who appears to be between the age of 18. And 25. He's a day old. God didn't create Adam as a baby. He created at him as a man. He created the earth as if it was as we see it. Fully formed.



Fully, whatever. It wasn't and. So when you hear people talk about. Well the the. Earth has to be billions of years old. I laugh this morning. I I was watching this this television program on the Smithsonian and it was flying around. And in one of the scenes it shows that. This giant volcano. Made Mount Saint Helens like a just a blip. Decimated 40 miles area and hundreds of feet of ash or whatever. And this happened in in the dates important 1916. About 100 years ago. And while they're flying over, they said there's this river, this stream, they cut into the rocks. It was like. 40 feet deep. In 100 years. But yet we're. Told that the Grand Canyon has to have taken millions and millions. Of years old. So the conundrum of what came first, the chicken or the egg, I can solve it for. You it was the chicken. God didn't create eggs and then they happened to be chickens. He created chickens and then they laid eggs. You see, God is a God who not only does all things well, he does them completely and he does it. And so the earth may appear to be billions of years old. But it is as God formed it. Now science, because they can't say that there is a God come up with. Well, there's got to be billions of years, but all of a sudden now they're having problems with that because they're going. Of The Big Bang and you? Have the speed of light. Even in the billions of years we said, these galaxies are still too. To so they said, well, there's, there's it had to be faster than speed of light in the beginning. So I'm going to tell you how science is finally catching up with the scriptures, and when I use my handkerchief, the Scriptures say. That God has ruled out the heavens as a. Well as as a. So what they're finally saying is ohh. Space was like fabric and expanded, and it can go faster than the speed of light because space is like fabric expanding. Well said, I read the. Scriptures that had known that long time ago. You see, science thinks it's so smart. Word of God has already provided. And so Jesus and this first sign. Is claiming and authenticating. What John started the gospel with. That he is God, that he is the creator, and that we can trust him. And notice the sign was there, and his disciples believed. Now we were told before that when they came and they met him and they saw the Scriptures and the little thing, they started in their. OK. And they're continuing in that faith. They're coming. And like I said, when we start on faith, we're not completely done. It's a process we have full faith and we strengthen it and we strengthen it and we see what God does.



And we see what God does and when we're kind of in doubt that God might come to the rescue, he does. And then we. Our faith gets expanded and increased and strengthened. That's what's happening here. They're going OK, we. We talked to the guy. And he seems to match what the Scriptures say. Of what the Messiah is. He just turned the water. Into wine. He just then turn a cup of water into wine. He turned 120 to 180 gallons. Of water into wine, showing who he is, that he's not only God but a God who is complete, who is God, who does all things well, and that God. Who is not? One who just goes I'm I'm uninvolved but he. Sheds his race. Liberally upon us. People are so proud of the fact. That their own belief. And the sad thing is. And no wonder, our world is so messed up. Because I have no hope. Does this face it? You turn on the news this afternoon. It will be pretty depressing. The guy you like, who's in office or the guy who hates in office is going to do something that you either like or dislike, but but you're also somebody. Somebody's going to oppose him and there's going to be arguments and there's going to be all these things and people don't like people and and people don't like pronouns and people. Every everybody has a problem with something somewhere. Then you go through all that much. With no purpose. And no reason to be here. And you're told we're all going to die in 20 years anyway. No wonder. Evil world. Is the pressed launches. We have been called to a faith. In a God. Who sees and knows? And if he can turn water into wine instantaneously. You can deal with whatever issue you have. Our God loves you.

Not just so little. Not just even the look. As someone said, he loved you this much. This was the beginning of his signs Jesus did in. Cana of Galilee. And manifested made obvious made playing shown into his his glory. His glory. That he is. The maker of Heaven and her. And so. We're going to have the. Band come and we're going to sing as our reflection song. How great is your love? Because his love. Is more than 180 gallons of wash. His love was such that he came and considered the walk among us and to suffer. And to die. And to rise again.

Is that's.

Who he is. Is it God of love? Is it God of creation? Is it God of holiness? He's God. And I pray and I hope that as we continue our. Journey onto finding faith. And like his disciples, and maybe like. A servant. Who drew the water out?

We believe.

And all of God's people said.