Jesus! The Giver Of Abundant Life Series

SERMON BRIEF

Date Written: February 2002, edited August 2010

Date Preached: August 29, 2010

Church: OPBC (AM – Lord’s Supper Service)

FOUNDATIONAL ELEMENTS

Series: Recognizing and Responding to the Living Word

Title: The Giver of Abundant Life

Text: John 2:1-11 [ESV]

Introduction:

When we read the Gospels, especially the Gospel of John, there can be NO doubt in the mind of the reader that the key to the ministry of Jesus in this world is that Christ came to this world to give life…and He promised us that He would give it more abundantly than we could ever imagine!

This morning we see a story about the very early moments of the ministry of Jesus and how that ‘abundance of life’ was manifested in a physical manner!

Jesus was invited to a wedding feast. Now when I read this passage I believe we can conclude that this was the wedding of a close relative of Jesus… and I want to point out 3 reason why I say this:

1st we can see that Jesus’ mother was there in attendance with Him, this was not some celebration that was foreign to her, but she was in attendance which leads us to believe that it was someone close to the family!

2nd we see that Mary also was very put out and took a personal interest in the embarrassment of the family when the wine ran out (v.3)

And 3rd, we can also see that Mary seemed to have a great deal of influence over the servants of the wedding because when she called them to do something, they responded as if she was family… (v.5)

As a pastor I know what it is like to work with the nervous families of a wedding celebration! I know just how UNEASY they can become if everything does NOT go well. I can remember MY own feelings of anxiety when Whitney was married here in this very church…

When we read this passage we can see that this particular wedding celebration was about to become a disaster of epic proportions!! It seems as if the groom’s family had NOT made the appropriate preparations for the celebration!

It could have been that they underestimated how many people would be there OR how much people would consume… OR it could have been that they had tried to save money on expenses and they chose to try to get by with as little as possible!

Either way… whatever the reason… they found themselves in a terrible position for hosts… they did not have enough wine for the guests! This was a terrible tragedy for a host in the 1st century… they would have been ridiculed and dishonored in the community and the couple

This was something that was just NOT done…it is like inviting everyone in the church to a barbeque and after one hotdog apiece, then you telling all there…sorry we ran out!

This family faced a problem in that it was going to affect them in the social arena as well. It would be a long time b4 they would be able to live down this embarrassment.

Now fast forward to today and our world. When we look at our world today we know one thing for sure that it is that things that come and go and nothing is permanent.

In our world today there are those who are satisfied with simply existing… they are not LIVING! Many in this world live by ritual and routine, and have little if any, true joy in their life. This applies to the physical world as well as the spiritual realm…

In viewing this outlook at this world… and knowing that there are SO many people today who are simply existing from day to day and have literally ZERO joy in their lives… I give you Jesus Christ! I present to you the One who has come to give us MORE than we can ever expect out of this life and into the eternal afterlife! Jesus is the abundance of ALL life… here and into eternity!

Today I offer to you, the One named Jesus who – in a world of people willing to settle for the minimum, seeks to improve our lives and give us God’s fulfilled life and maximum experience!

I give you the Jesus Christ who – in a world fixated on the routine and ritual of merely existing and surviving in this world – I give you the ONE is the TRUE source of life and joy. This morning I want to put forward the One who, in a world of little or no joy, He is the ULTIMATE source of joy…because He is bread of life!

The Bible is clear to us that Jesus came to bring life and He said He wants to provide us with a MORE abundant than what we have... a life filled with purpose and direction… a life that not only carries with it great meaning, but there is a valid rationale to our existence… to our living!