Four Signs To Watch Out For Series

Four Signs To Watch Out For

John 2:11-25

Sign, sign

Everywhere a sign

Blockin' out the scenery

Breakin' my mind

Do this, don't do that

Can't you read the sign?

And the sign said

"Long-haired freaky people

Need not apply"

So I tucked my hair up under my hat

And I went in to ask him why

He said, "You look like a fine upstandin' young man

I think you'll do"

So I took off my hat and said, "Imagine that

me workin' for you"

Sign, sign, everywhere a sign. That was back in 1971. Today, we still have signs everywhere. Our church has two.

Today’s sermon is about signs.

The “sign, sign, everywhere a sign” song didn’t like signs, but signs are not all bad. Without signs, we would not know what is where. Our church has signs so that people know that this is a church, that it is an American Baptist church, that it has services and when they are, and other information.

Can you imagine a city without signs? How would you know what a certain building is? You wouldn’t. How would you know what the streets are? What the addresses are? You wouldn’t.

God also has put up some signs. We will look at four types of signs that are in this chapter. Then we will make a few observations.

1. The Unexpected Sign

The first part of this chapter is the story of when Jesus turned the water into wine. I have skipped over reading it because we all know what happened. Jesus and His disciples were at a wedding in Cana. They ran out of wine. Jesus’ mother came to Jesus and told Him that they did not have any wine. Jesus told the servants to fill the water jars up with water and take them to the head waiter. When he tasted the water, it was wine.

John 2:11 What Jesus did here in Cana of Galilee was the first of the signs through which he revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him.

This was the first sign. What was this first sign showing? Just as our church sign shows that there is a church here, this sign showed something. What does it say here? It revealed Jesus’ glory. To look at Jesus, you would think that He is an ordinary person. These signs showed differently. They showed that He had glory. He had greatness. He had magnificence. He was more than a human being. When the water turned to wine, it showed this. Who else could have done this? Only God.

This was an unexpected sign. No one thought that the water would turn to wine. No one saw it coming. No one announced it ahead of time. There was no thunder, no lightning, as the water turned to wine. Jesus even acted like He wasn’t going to do it. This sign was unexpected.

God still gives us signs today, signs that point to Him. Some come unexpectedly. Wahlah. A miracle happens. Something that we didn’t ask for, something that we thought was not possible, no lightning, no thunder, it just happens.

It is easy to overlook these unexpected signs. It happened. It was nice. But was it just a coincidence? Maybe God was in it, but we didn’t ask for it. We didn’t expect it. Maybe God wasn’t in it. How many things has God done for you that were unexpected. Maybe you didn’t even see them. Maybe it was great when it happened, but now it is just everyday life. That’s the unexpected sign.

2. The Subtle Sign

John 2:13 When it was almost time for the Jewish Passover, Jesus went up to Jerusalem.

John 2:14 In the temple courts he found people selling cattle, sheep and doves, and others sitting at tables exchanging money.

John 2:15 So he made a whip out of cords, and drove all from the temple courts, both sheep and cattle; he scattered the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables.

John 2:16 To those who sold doves he said, “Get these out of here! Stop turning my Father’s house into a market!”

John 2:17 His disciples remembered that it is written: “Zeal for your house will consume me.”

Nothing here says that this is a sign, but it is. It is subtle. Jesus is acting as if He is something more than a man. Who would go onto the temple grounds, a place where thousands of people are gathering, and kick out the sellers? Who would make a whip out of cords and start swinging it at people? Who would say that this place is His Father’s house? Only the Son of God. Only someone who is more than a man, someone who has glory.

Sometimes God sends us subtle signs, signs that point to Him without saying that they do. God brought the sun up this morning. A subtle sign. Your heart is beating, your lungs are breathing. A subtle sign. The birds are singing. A subtle sign. On and on, I could go. Subtle signs are all around us pointing to the glory of God.