In the USA 145 million cards are sent,
$14.6 billion is spent on gifts and dinners, and more long distance
phone calls are made today than any other day of the year.
There is no doubt in my mind that
mothering is the toughest job that anyone could ever have. I am sure
my Mom would agree. While it is tough, I am positive that all of you
Mom's love 'almost' every minute of it and would not trade it for the
world.
Today I want to share about the most
famous woman in the Bible, Mary, the mother of Jesus.
In John chapter two we find Jesus and
his mother at a family wedding. We don't know who was getting married
but based on her reaction, Mary felt somewhat responsible for the
reception. In those days, it was the groom's family that took care of
the reception.
John 2:1-2
“2 On the third day a wedding took place in Cana of Galilee. Jesus’ mother was there, and Jesus and His disciples were invited to the wedding as well.”
Weddings are a big deal.
Girls start dreaming about their wedding at an early age, heck my
daughter has already decided that she wants to get married when she
is 21.
Wedding Days are BIG and
back in Jesus' day there were very important. As a matter of fact,
this chapter starts out with 'On the third day', this means Jesus and
His disciples had been traveling for 3 days so they could make it to
this wedding. It was common for people to come from all over to
attend a family wedding. They would walk, travel by camel, or ride a
cart, whatever means necessary to get to the wedding. Weddings were
also not a couple hour event, they were a week long celebration that
involved a lot of food and wine.
John 2:3-4
“3 When the wine ran
out, Jesus’ mother told Him, “They don’t have any wine.” 4
“What has this concern of
yours to do with Me, woman?” Jesus
asked. “My hour has not
yet come.”
This is a huge problem to the hosting
family. This would be seen as an major embarrassment especially since
some have traveled for days to be at the wedding and celebration.
Some may think Jesus' response is a
little on the rude side, but from what I read this week a better
translation would be something along the lines of.
''Mom, you don't understand. It's not
the right time.' She was saying, 'I know you don't think it's the
right time, but I need some help.'
Mom was asking for help. In that day
and age, running out of wine would damage their credibility in the
community. This wedding meant a lot to Mary.
John 2:5-8
“5 “Do whatever He
tells you,” His mother told the servants. 6 Now six stone water
jars had been set there for Jewish purification. Each contained 20 or
30 gallons. 7 “Fill the
jars with water,” Jesus told them. So
they filled them to the brim. 8 Then He said to them, “Now
draw some out and take it to the chief servant.”
And they did.”
Jesus understood that the
Old Testament law stays to honor your father and mother, so He does
what He can to help.
As the water was poured
into each cup, Jesus worked a miracle as He turned the water into
wine. This was the first miracle recorded of Jesus' ministry. Some
say His first miracle period, but then again Mary was pretty darn
sure that Jesus was going to be able to do something to help. This
miracle was done quietly, with only Jesus, His disciples, the
servants, and Mary knowing about it. A need arose and Jesus stepped
in to help. Jesus' mother needed help and He did what only He could
do. In essence Jesus Honored His Mother.
Mary was under a lot of
pressure for this family wedding to go well. When she looked at Jesus
with both of them knowing that He is the Son of God, and said they
were out of wine, they both know that He had the power and ability to
do something about it. When the Mother of Jesus says 'we have no more
wine', she is not making a stating she is asking Jesus to do
something about it.
There was a problem and
Mother Mary needed help.
Some of us are struggling
with problems. The pressure may be intense. The question is do you
expect Jesus to do anything in your life this morning?
Sometimes things will get worse before God makes them better. This is seen throughout the Bible.
Joseph had to go to prison
before he could be lifted up to lead Egypt and protect his family
from the famine.
David, who had been told
he was going to be the king of Israel, found himself hiding out for
his life in cold, dark caves before he was elevated to king of
Israel.
Peter had to fail and deny
Christ before he could experience God's grace, and before he could
lead 3,000 people to the Lord on the day of Pentecost.
Jesus had to die on a
cross before He could be resurrected and we could have forgiveness
for our sins and hope for eternal life.
Things sometimes get real
bad before God can make them better.
A lot of us are
experiencing bad things. We are out of wine. We are out of finances.
We feel like we are out of love in our relationships and our lives.
1 Peter 5:10
“Now the God of all
grace, who called you to His eternal glory in Christ Jesus, will
personally restore, establish, strengthen, and support you after you
have suffered a little.”
After you have run out of
wine, after the job offer did not come, after that last fight with a
loved one, after you have felt like you are lost. After you have
suffered, God promises that He will 'personally' restore, establish,
strengthen, and support you! God is going to show up and do as He
promised, but first we need to put our hope and trust in Him.
Some of us may be stuck in
verse three, we are out of wine. We are at the end of our rope. We
feel like we have run out of hope.
We have to do like Mary
did in verse five. She counted on Jesus to take care of her problem.
She KNEW beyond a shadow of a doubt that Jesus had the power to help
with her problem. Do you Know that Jesus has the power to help you
with your problem? What Jesus did at that wedding, He will do for you
if you are looking to and trusting in Him.
Through trusting in Jesus
we can move from the problem in verse three to verse ten where Jesus
saves the best for Last.
John 2:9-10
“When the chief servant
tasted the water (after it had become wine), he did not know where it
came from—though the servants who had drawn the water knew. He
called the groom 10 and told him, “Everyone sets out the fine wine
first, then, after people have drunk freely, the inferior. But you
have kept the fine wine until now.”
Things may get worse, but
Jesus save the best for last. God's best is coming! Don't let
despair take over, don't give up hope, don't throw in the towel. God
will show up and work in your life. This miracle is not about wine,
it is about putting our trust in God, knowing that He wants to work
in the behind the scene stuff, that He wants to work in our lives,
and having faith that He has the power to take care of whatever 'it'
is.
John 2:5
“”Do whatever He tells
you,” His mother told the servants.”
We have to ask for help,
listen for God, and then do what He says to do.
James 2:17
“In the same way faith,
if it doesn’t have works, is dead by itself.”
You can come to church,
have a Christian bumper sticker on your car, wear Christian clothing,
tell people you believe, but if your faith does not lead to action it
is dead.
We need to do what Jesus
tells us!
Mary came to Jesus and
told him that they were out of wine and that He needed to do
something about it. His initial response was to tell her no, that His
time had not come yet. That He was not supposed to be publicly
performing miracles yet.
Mary recognized how Jesus
felt but told Him she had a problem and He needed to help and then
she told the servants to do whatever Jesus told them to do. Mary took
that step in faith and Jesus understood the Old Testament
Commandments and knew that if He did not help He would be breaking
the one about Honoring His Father and Mother.
Now Jesus lived a sinless
life, so He did what His mother told Him. It did not matter what
anyone else wanted or thought. He needed to Honor His Mother. So He
did just that and worked a miracle. Quietly with only a few people
aware of His involvement a miracle was performed a need was met.
The servants obeyed Jesus
and followed His steps exactly. Mary put her faith in Jesus and the
servants followed His direction. This morning do you have faith in
Jesus are you obeying Him?
One of the best ways to
honor your Mother today, is to put your faith in Jesus Christ and to
obey Him!
Happy Mother's Day! May all the Mother's out there be blessed!
God Bless,
Robert
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