In What Manner Can I Love Jesus? Series

Sermon Brief

Date Written: January 14, 2011

Date Preached: January 16, 2011

Where Preached: OPBC (AM)

Sermon Details:

Series Title: Falling in Love With Jesus

Sermon Title: In What Manner Can I Love Jesus?

Sermon Text: John 2:1-11 [ESV]

Introduction:

If anyone ever had the right to be arrogant and cocky about their position and responsibility it was Jesus. Here was the Creator of the universe who had stepped out of heaven to wrap Himself in flesh… all knowing and all powerful, but had limited himself… to this fleshly body… but even with the limitation Jesus accepted, he was still a very powerful person.

He knew His capabilities and knew what He was going to have to do in His ministry, but at the time of this Scripture, His ministry was just getting under way. Jesus was still building His team… putting together a fellowship of disciples that He would train and disciple.

However, as powerful and all knowing as Jesus was, in this passage of Scripture we can see some principles that reveal His heart… principles that must guide us in our walk with Him! Let’s take a look at the heart of Jesus and what it takes for us to LOVE Him… READ PASSAGE HERE…

1 On the third day there was a wedding at Cana in Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. 2 Jesus also was invited to the wedding with His disciples.

3 When the wine ran out, the mother of Jesus said to Him, "They have no wine." 4 And Jesus said to her, "Woman, what does this have to do with me? My hour has not yet come." 5 His mother said to the servants, "Do whatever He tells you." 6 Now there were six stone water jars there for the Jewish rites of purification, each holding twenty or thirty gallons. 7 Jesus said to the servants, "Fill the jars with water." And they filled them up to the brim. 8 And He said to them, "Now draw some out and take it to the master of the feast." So they took it. 9 When the master of the feast tasted the water now become wine, and did not know where it came from (though the servants who had drawn the water knew), the master of the feast called the bridegroom 10 and said to him, "Everyone serves the good wine first, and when people have drunk freely, then the poor wine. But you have kept the good wine until now." 11 This, the first of His signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee, and manifested His glory. And His disciples believed in Him.

Background/Intro:

Scripture tells us ‘on the third day…’ which represents a timeline that is established back in chapter 1. This was the 3rd day since John’s confession that he is NOT the Christ!

However, I don’t believe the 3rd day reference here is without symbolic meaning. The 3rd day reference is special to the Christ story because it is on the 3rd day when Jesus rose from the dead… the resurrection that brings eternal life!

Here in this story… on the 3rd day the water is turned into wine… the ordinary is turned extraordinary! Jesus is the ‘new wine’ … the best wine… held for a time such as this!

Jesus and His disciples arrive in town and are invited to a wedding his mother has been invited to… and right off the bat there is an issue… the wine is running low! Now this could be because of poor planning on the part of the groom’s family or it could also be that Jesus and his disciples were last minute guests and they had not prepared for them… but it seems as if Jesus’ mother has something to do with it because she goes directly to Him for help!

She goes to Jesus, and simply relates to him that the wine is running low… I want you to notice what she does NOT say…

She did NOT demand Jesus to do anything…

She did not give Jesus suggestions of what to do…

She did not beg Jesus in any form…

She did not presume what Jesus would do…

Mary’s openness to Jesus’ capability and then her humbleness in allow Jesus to do what He believed best, reveal a great deal.

1st Mary knew where to go for help… but

2nd Mary did not presume to know what that help would be or what shape it would take… she simply believed it would be there!

What can we learn from this approach by Mary?

1st – we must learn WHERE to go for our help! Go to God… turn to Jesus!

2nd - we cannot presume to know what God is going to do, but accept that His help will meet our need…