Common Cana

Common Cana

John 2:1-11

Many people say,

“I’m too ordinary!”

“I’m nothing special!”

“I have nothing to offer!”

At some point in life, everyone reaches that place

That place of inadequacy

Especially when it come to doing something for God that you’ve never done before

Certainly there are others who are more educated and better prepared for such a task

Tonight God wants to tell you that he is the master of taking the ordinary person and doing extraordinary things

He illustrates his use of the common for the accomplishment of the uncommon in the story of the wedding at Cana.

READ John 2:1-11

I. The Setting (v1)

On the third day a wedding took place at Cana in Galilee.

The point is Jesus was in a very ordinary place on that day

It was not the first wedding

It was not the last wedding

There is no indication that it was someone special getting married

II. The Substance (v7)

Jesus said to the servants, “Fill the jars with water”

There is no more common substance on planet earth than water

7/10ths of the earth surface is water

It’s used for cooking, cleaning, drinking, mixing, growing things, killing things,

It has multiple uses

And Jesus used it to perform his first miracle

He didn’t use grapes

Or grape juice

Or gasoline for that matter

He used plain old water

Abundant and ordinary

He didn’t even use special bottled water

Or water from some far away place

Or sparkling water

Or flavored water

Just water

III. The Servants (vv5,7)

5 His mother said to the servants…

7 Jesus said to the servants…

Servants were fairly common in the Ancient roman world

Everyone either had servants or was a servant themselves

Servant’s out numbered masters

Probably by a very large majority

There were servants everywhere

In fact in most circles they were looked at as less than human

They were the least educated in society

They were common in almost every sense

IV. The Stone Jars (v6)

Nearby stood six stone water jars, the kind used by the Jews for ceremonial washing, each holding from twenty to thirty gallons

Remember, this story takes place in Jewish Palestine

For the Jew living under the Levitical Law ceremony meant everything

There were purification rites for nearly everything one did

Ceremonial washing was something they grew up with

V. The Savior (v11)

This, the first of his miraculous signs, Jesus performed at Cana in Galilee. He thus revealed his glory, and his disciples put their faith in him.

The result of Jesus performing this miracle is that he was revealed to be who he really was and People put their faith in him

Even those who had been following him for a time suddenly put their faith in him

Conclusion

In looking at each of these common things I am struck by the way Jesus uses them in a way no one had before

His ways are new ways

Whether you are a new graduate or an old saint

God can use you in new and exciting ways

However, I must point out that the success of this entire story hinged upon the obedience of the Servants.

They did what he wanted them to do

Not what they thought was the sensible thing to do