Water to wine

Water to wine
Text:John 2:1-11
Key Points from the Bible
V6 - Nearby stood six stone water
jars, the kind used by the Jews for
ceremonial washing, each holding
from twenty to thirty gallons.

Water to wine
Notions to be dispelled:
Issues surrounding alcohol.
Too much alcohol is a destructive
force and when look around there
are a lot of evidence.
As a result of the above notion,
most Christians are interested in
saying that Jesus turned water to
grape juice.
This story in the Bible is not
referring to alcohol

Water to wine
Notions to be dispelled:
The writer of this book did not
write about the wedding to
exhibit the following:
Jesus blatant disregard for
authority.
Although Mary actions can be
likened to faith, I will leave that
for future discussions.

Water to wine
Story review about the book of John:
The book of John is a different
sort of Gospel.
John was written with the
assumption that people already
knew the facts about Jesus life.
There some suggestions that John
had be written as a commentary
for the first three gospels.

Water to wine
Story review about the book of John:
John is not looking to tell his
readers the happenings in Jesus
life but the Life of Jesus...what
the core message is really all
about.
To understand the Gospel of John
is to understand the world of
symbols and verses with a
smorgasbord of meanings.

Water to wine
Story review about the book of John:
John is very careful about the
materials included in this book.
People are not even aware of the
metaphor and symbolism,
Christians of today rather place
high priority on the details and
accounts of the wedding at Cana.

Water to wine
Story review about the book of
John:
Details like:
how dare Jesus to challenge his
mum.
People likened the wedding of
Cana to a story of empathy and
compassion.

Water to wine
Lessons to be Learnt
From V11, John noted this as a
first sign Jesus did.
He does not call it a miracle but
a sign.
In fact, all the chapters in John
talks about signs and not
miracles.
So there is the difference
between a sign and miracle.

Water to wine
Lessons to be Learnt
So there is the difference
between a sign and miracle.
Sign: Something that would inform
people about what they might
expect from this Nazarene,
something that would point them
toward a deeper meaning.
eg: Crucifixion of Christ.
Miracle: Event or action that
contradicts all known natural laws

Water to wine
Lessons to be Learnt
The early writers of the gospel
did not consider recording the
wedding in Cana but were much
impressed by other healings and
other miracles.
John however recorded this event
as a sign.
John saw a man who in this first
sign declared himself as an agent
of transformation.

Water to wine
How did Jesus do that transformation
One can answer by attaching some
importance to items used as
symbols:
Water: Signifies life.
Wine: Brings about abundance, joy
and celebration.
Hence Jesus changing wine to water
indicates or serves as a sign to clue
people on his mission. Jesus has
come to transform the world.

Water to wine
How did Jesus do that
transformation
Transformation goes beyond
change from bad to good.
There is another type of
transformation that is modeled
at Cana.

Water to wine
How did Jesus do that
transformation
At Cana, the object of
transformation is something
that is already good and pure
and necessary.
Water is good. The message of
transformation at Cana is not
about making the bad good, but
about making the good even
better.

Water to wine

What was the about transformation:

Jesus was making a statement
about the Law and Judaism. How?
The jugs that Jesus had filled
with water were the water jugs
used for ritual purification and
washing so that guests could
follow Jewish Laws.
He converts the ritual water to
something is incapable of
meeting the requirement.

Water to wine

The results of this transformation:

Jesus was making a statement
about the fact the Law is
essential, good and pure but He
came to change the Law to
something that was not just
necessary but joyful.
Formulae for this transformation
Law (Water) + through Grace +
put God back into it + put love
into it = Wine.

Water to wine
Jesus gave to the Jews at Cana he also
gives to us. This is not the message
about the transformation of the sinner.
This is the promise for us whose lives are
really pretty good.
This is the promise for us whose lives
are pretty much on the right track--those
with a basic level of faith in God, who
treat their neighbor with respect and
mercy, who live a life of basic
moderation, gentleness and self-control.
This is the message for those whose life
is like water--good, nourishing, and lifesustaining.

Water to wine
Applications of the message:
It is not Gods desire that we
live our lives with only a sense
of duty and resignation.
It is good that we obey the
commandments, but theres
more to life with Christ than
obedience.
John 10 v 10b, I came that
they might have life, and have it
more abundantly.

Water to wine
The message is:
John 10 v 10b, I came that they
might have life, and have it more
abundantly.
It doesnt mean youll never do
another task you dont enjoy.
But, it does mean, that when the
water of our lives becomes wine
through the touch of Jesus Christ,
that even the worst circumstances
that life can offer have a richness
and depth that they never had
before.

Water to wine
In conclusion;
Christian joy does not spring
from the same source as the
happiness of the world.
Christian joy springs from
realizing that once we have made
the decision to drink of the living
water of Christ, that water
becomes wine as it touches our
lips.
We serve a God whose name is
not duty but Love.

Water to wine
In conclusion;
Is there any indication in your
life that you serve a God who
turns water into wine?
Amen!!!