Jesus has the power to do the unexplainable, regardless of our belief...

This week, we are looking at an unexplainable event from the history of Jesus life that is recorded for us in an account of Jesus life in the Bible called the gospel of John Yesterday, we looked on as a man who had been paralyzed as a result of a debilitating illness for 38 years suddenly feels within him the ability to walk again. This man, even though he did not know who Jesus was, responded to Jesus unexplainable activity in his life by getting up immediately and walking. We looked on as this man does not even ask Jesus his name. And Jesus heals this man, even though He does not acknowledge what Jesus had just done for him or even ask his name. Jesus searches this man out and miraculously heals him and the man simply gets up and walks away without even thanking him or asking his name?

John then mentions that it was the Sabbath on that day. Now if we were watching this as a scene from a DVD, at this point some ominous music would begin playing. You know some “duh duh duh duh”. Some ominous music would begin to play in order to set the stage for what was about to happen as this man walks away from Jesus without thanking him or asking his name. Today, we see John record for us what happens next in John 6:10:

 So the Jews were saying to the man who was cured, "It is the Sabbath, and it is not permissible for you to carry your pallet." But he answered them, "He who made me well was the one who said to me, 'Pick up your pallet and walk.'"They asked him, "Who is the man who said to you, 'Pick up your pallet and walk '?" But the man who was healed did not know who it was, for Jesus had slipped away while there was a crowd in that place.

Now throughout the gospel of John, John uses the phrase “the Jews” to refer to a group of Jewish people who were self-righteous religious people who opposed Jesus and were far from God. John tells us that these self righteous religious people confronted the man who had been miraculous healed by stating "It is the Sabbath, and it is not permissible for you to carry your pallet." These self righteous religious people were calling out this man for breaking one of their religious rules that they had made that was in addition to God’s rules. Because that is what self righteous religious people do, isn’t it? 

While God had instituted the Sabbath to be a time when people would pause from their normal work routines to remember and look up to God as the creator and One who is large and in charge of all things, these self righteous religious people had added a whole list of additional rules when it came to what was considered “work”. And one such additional rule was that the moving of furniture was forbidden on the Sabbath. And this man was now breaking their rules by carrying his matt that he had been lying on paralyzed for 38 years.

John tells us that this man who had just been miraculously healed by Jesus responded to being confronted by these self righteous religious leaders for breaking one of their rules by blaming Jesus. The man basically says “It’s not my fault. The man who healed me told me to so I did. It’s not my fault, it’s his fault”. Notice the self righteous religious response here: "Who is the man who said to you, 'Pick up your pallet and walk '?"

You see, the self righteous religious people wanted to know so that they could go bust him for breaking the Sabbath, because these self righteous religious people believed that any healing was also a form of work that was forbidden. John tells us that the man responded by explaining that he did not know who had just healed him because he had walked away from Jesus. And now with the large crowds around, this man was unable to find Jesus in the crowds because Jesus had left the scene unnoticed by the crowd. We see what happens next in verse 14: 

 Afterward Jesus found him in the temple and said to him, "Behold, you have become well; do not sin anymore, so that nothing worse happens to you."

John explains that after being confronted by the self righteous religious people, Jesus searched for and found the man who He had miraculously healed in the temple, where he probably went to give thanks to God. Upon finding this man Jesus states "Behold, you have become well; do not sin anymore, so that nothing worse happens to you." But, why would Jesus say that? What is Jesus stalking about here?

When Jesus says "do not sin anymore", He is revealing for us that reality that this man’s prior debilitating illness was a direct result of his selfish and rebellious activity. You see this man was not born with this physically debilitating illness. Instead, this man had participated in selfishness and rebellion that had stricken him with this debilitating illness. And now Jesus had done the unexplainable by miraculously and permanently healing this man physically from the results of his rebellion so as to restore him to health. And now this man is in the temple thanking God for being physically healed.

However, while this man was focused on the physical healing that he had received from the consequences of his selfishness and rebellion, this man was not focused on the spiritual consequences of his selfishness and rebellion. And unlike the physical consequences of his selfishness and rebellion, the spiritual consequences of his selfishness and rebellion are eternal.

Jesus is basically saying to this man whom He had miraculously healed “You have now been made physically well, now you need to focus on where you are spiritually. You need to deal with your selfishness and rebellion that you are still continuing in. You need to stop the selfishness and rebellion so that you do not experience the far more severe spiritual consequences that your selfishness and rebellion will bring upon you”.

Now I want us to imagine ourselves in this event from history as the man who had just been miraculously and unexplainably healed. Place yourself in his shoes this morning. How would you respond to all that Jesus had done for you? How would you respond to all that Jesus had just said to you? We see how this man responded in verse 15:

 The man went away, and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had made him well. For this reason the Jews were persecuting Jesus, because He was doing these things on the Sabbath. But He answered them, "My Father is working until now, and I Myself am working."

John tells us that this man did not become a follower of Jesus. This man did not thank Jesus. This man did not even ask Jesus for His name. Instead this man went to the self-righteous religious people who opposed Jesus and were far from God and turned Jesus in as the one who was breaking all their religious rules. This man chose to align himself with those who opposed Jesus in spite of the fact that Jesus had healed him.

Now that leads us to the question that we asked earlier, which was “So why this man? And why only this man? Why did Jesus step over and around all the others to get to this man?” John never provides us an answer to these questions. Instead, John tells us that the self righteous religious people were harassing Jesus because He was breaking their religious rules.

However, Jesus was undaunted and undeterred by the constant harassment of the self righteous religious people of the day. Instead Jesus responded by making a powerful statement "My Father is working until now, and I Myself am working."

Notice that Jesus does not say our Father. Instead Jesus is saying my Father. Now you might be here this morning and you are thinking to yourself “Well, Dave is that really a big deal? Does that really matter? And what does Jesus mean by this statement anyways?”  If those questions are running through your mind, I want to let you know that they are great questions to be asking. And we find the answers to those questions as John concludes this section of his account of Jesus life in verse 18:

 For this reason therefore the Jews were seeking all the more to kill Him, because He not only was breaking the Sabbath, but also was calling God His own Father, making Himself equal with God.

John tells us that Jesus statement not only provoked increased harassment form the self righteous religious people of the day; Jesus statement provoked a desire in the self righteous religious people to kill Jesus. You see, by calling God His Father, instead of our Father, Jesus was making Himself equal with God. Jesus was basically saying “I don’t keep your self righteous religious rules because they are not the rules I made. You see, I am God and I am the One who made the rules and I am the One who knows how to keep the rules. And just like My Father, as God, I am continually at work to reveal who I am and My desire to bring people the physical and spiritual healing that can only come from Me”.

And it is in the unexplainable physical healing of a man who rejected the spiritual healing that Jesus offered that we see revealed for us a timeless truth when it comes to Jesus. And that timeless truth is this:  Jesus has the power to do the unexplainable, regardless of our belief. Just as it was with this unexplainable activity involving a man who had responded in disbelief after being healed from 38 years of suffering from a debilitating illness, just as it has been throughout history, Jesus has the power to do the unexplainable to overcome disease, regardless of our belief.

You see Jesus unexplainable and miraculous healing of this man was a sign. As we discovered in this series, signs are different than miracles in the sense that they point to something significant about Jesus. Jesus, in doing the unexplainable, was providing a sign that was designed to reveal and point people to something significant about who Jesus is and what He came to earth to do. And that sign was that Jesus has power as God to intervene and act by healing diseases that were untreatable. 

But not only does Jesus have the power as God to intervene and act by healing diseases that were untreatable. This sign also demonstrates that Jesus unexplainable activity does not always result in a response of belief. Think of it this way: How often does Jesus provide unexplainable evidences of His activity in our lives as followers of Jesus despite our unbelief? How often does Jesus provide unexplainable evidences of His activity in the lives of those who are far from Him despite their unbelief? How often does Jesus provide unexplainable evidences of His activity in the lives of those who are far from Him and who chalk up the unexplainable to chance or coincidence, or good luck?

However, regardless of our level of belief; regardless of our response to Jesus doing the unexplainable; Jesus has the power to do the unexplainable.

So here is a question to consider: How are you responding to the unexplainable evidence of Jesus activity around you? Do you chalk up the unexplainable evidences of Jesus activity in your life to chance? Coincidence? Luck? Or are you responding to the unexplainable evidence of Jesus activity around you by placing your confident trust in Jesus by believing trusting and following Him as Lord and Leader?

Do you believe that Jesus has the power to do the unexplainable to overcome disease, whether He chooses to or not? Do you believe that Jesus can use your life to bring glory to Him by you going through disease instead of overcoming disease?

A Cruel Contest Involving An Old Wives Tale...

At the church where I serve, we are spending our time together in a sermon series entitled unexplainable. During this series, we are spending the weeks leading up to Easter looking at seven unexplainable events from history in the life of Jesus that are recorded for us in an account of Jesus life in the Bible called the gospel of John. In the gospel of John that we see John, as he looked in the rearview mirror of his life, record for us seven events from history in the life of Jesus that are unexplainable. And as John gives us a front row seat to these events from history that seemed to be unexplainable, our hope and our prayer during this series is that as we look at these unexplainable events from history in the life of Jesus, we would discover several timeless truths about Jesus that have the potential to powerfully impact how we view Jesus.

This week, I would like for us to spend our time together by looking at the third of these events from history that seem to be unexplainable. And as John gives us a front row seat to this event from history, we will discover another timeless truth about Jesus that have the potential to powerfully impact how we view Jesus. So let’s look at this event from history together, beginning in John 5:1:

After these things there was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. Now there is in Jerusalem by the sheep gate a pool, which is called in Hebrew Bethesda, having five porticoes. In these lay a multitude of those who were sick, blind, lame, and withered, waiting for the moving of the waters; for an angel of the Lord went down at certain seasons into the pool and stirred up the water; whoever then first, after the stirring up of the water, stepped in was made well from whatever disease with which he was afflicted. A man was there who had been ill for thirty-eight years.

John brings us into this section of his account of Jesus life by proving for us the context for which this event from history would take place. John tells us that some time after doing the unexplainable by healing the royal official’s son, Jesus traveled to Jerusalem to participate in a feast of the Jews.

Now while John does not tell us exactly which feast this was, this would be a time where the Temple and the city of Jerusalem would be filled with out of town guests who had come to worship God. John then explains that in Jerusalem, there was a pool named the pool of Bethesda, which had five porticos, or entrances, to the pool. This pool actually consisted of two separate pools. Here is a rendering of what the pools looked like in Jesus day.

John tells us that a multitude of people who were suffering from various diseases gathered around these twin pools. These were people who were suffering either from a debilitating illness, blindness, a severe physical injury, or were paralyzed. We then discover that the reason that multitudes of people were gathering around these two pools was due to their belief that that the water of these pools were periodically disturbed by an angel. And as the angel disturbed the water of the pool, the belief was that the first person who was able to get into the pool would be miraculously healed from their injury or illness.

However, nowhere does the Bible talk about angels participating in such an event. You see, this was an old wives tale; this was a superstition. And like so many wives tales; like so many superstitions, people who were at the end of their rope, people who had exhausted all other means of experiencing healing, would come to the pool of Bethesda in hopes of being healed. The pool of Bethesda became a place where a cruel contest occurred between the many ill people lying there. These people were willing to do or try anything in order for the opportunity to be healed. So these physically damaged people would jockey for position to have the opportunity to be first in the pool when the angel appeared to stir the waters.

Now can you imagine seeing multitudes of people that are damaged in some way physically surrounding these pools? Can you imagine how desperate one must be in order to participate in this cruel contest? Can you imagine the disappointment of never being able to make it into the water? The disappointments of “false alarms”? The disappointment of never seeing anyone healed?

John explains that there was a man there who had been suffering from a debilitating illness that left him paralyzed for 38 years. And this man, at the end of his rope in total desperation, finds himself jockeying for position so that he could have the opportunity to be first in the water. Can you see him there? Can you see his eyes fixed on the water of the pool, waiting in hopeful anticipation to see ripples in the waters? Because it is into this context that John brings us into this unexplainable event from history in verse 6:

   When Jesus saw him lying there, and knew that he had already been a long time in that condition, He said to him, "Do you wish to get well?"

As this man who has suffered for 38 years from a debilitating illness remained focused on the water of the pool, we see Jesus approach and asked a seemingly obvious question: “Do you wish to get well”? Jesus basically asks this man “Do you want to be healed and restored to health”?  John explains that Jesus was fully aware that this man had been in this desperate position for a significant period of time.

Now a natural question that arises here is “Well Dave, if Jesus knew that this man had been in this desperate position for a significant period of time, then why is He even asking this question? You see, Jesus is asking this question in order to draw the man’s attention away from the water of the pool and on to Him. Most likely, the man hardly noticed that Jesus had shown up. After all he was focused like a laser beam on the water in the pool. So Jesus here is getting the attention of this sick man.

But here is something to consider: Why did Jesus choose this man? I mean, John makes it clear that there were multitudes of people by this pool. And most likely, Jesus had to step over and around others to get to this man. So why this man? And why only this man? We will come back to these questions a little later. We see how this man responded to Jesus question in verse 7:

 The sick man answered Him, "Sir, I have no man to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up, but while I am coming, another steps down before me."

Now this morning, did you notice something about this man’s response? Did you notice that this sick man’s focus and hopes for healing was based on the pool? “If I only could get to the pool, but I can’t get to the pool. If I only had someone to help get me to the pool, then the pool would heal me. But I have no one to help get me to the pool.” This man had a desire to be healed, but he also knew that he did not have the means to be healed. This man had no one to help him get to the pool, which he viewed as his savior and healer. We see John record Jesus response in verse 8:

Jesus said to him, "Get up, pick up your pallet and walk." Immediately the man became well, and picked up his pallet and began to walk. Now it was the Sabbath on that day.

Can you imagine what that must have looked like? Can you imagine the scene as a man who had been paralyzed as a result of a debilitating illness for 38 years suddenly feels within him the ability to walk again? This man, even though he did not know who Jesus was, responded to Jesus unexplainable activity in his life by getting up immediately and walking.

But did you notice that something is missing here? Did you notice that nowhere is there any mention of this man’s faith? I mean, this man does not even ask Jesus his name. And Jesus heals this man, even though He does not acknowledge what Jesus had just done for him or even ask his name. Jesus searches this man out and miraculously heals him and the man simply gets up and walks away without even thanking him or asking his name?

John then mentions that it was the Sabbath on that day. Now if we were watching this as a scene from a DVD, at this point some ominous music would begin playing. You know some “duh duh duh duh”. Some ominous music would begin to play in order to set the stage for what was about to happen as this man walks away from Jesus without thanking him or asking his name.

Tomorrow, we will see John record for us what happens next...

Jesus has the power to do the unexplainable regardless of the distance...

This week, we have been looking at an unexplainable vent from the history of Jesus life that is recorded for us in account of Jesus li8fe in the Bible called the gospel of John. Wednesday, we looked on as a royal official traveled 20-25 miles of changing elevation in total desperation that Jesus would return with you in order to heal your dying son. We looked on as this royal official repeated his request even after Jesus had challenged what he believed and trusted in Him for. We looked on as Jesus simply turns to this royal official and said “Go, your son lives”.

Jesus responded by posing an even stiffer test to this Jewish official. Jesus is basically saying to this royal official “Do you trust in Me enough to return home without Me. Do you trust Me enough to believe that I do not need to be present to heal your son?”

Now you are the royal official. What would you be thinking at this point? What would you be feeling? How would you respond? John records for us that royal official’s response in the second half of John 4:50:

            The man believed the word that Jesus spoke to him and started off

Now when John uses the word believe here, this word, in that language that this letter was originally written in, literally means to entrust oneself with complete confidence to someone or something. The royal official placed his confident trust in Jesus ability to do the unexplainable. And to demonstrate his confident trust in Jesus ability to do the unexplainable, the royal official began to make the 20-25 mile journey back to Capernaum.

Now imagine yourself as this royal official? What would be running through your mind at this point? Can you imagine how fast your heart would be beating? Can you imagine how long that trip must have seemed at this point? I mean, do you think that the royal official was returning home at a slow leisurely pace? However, as the royal official traveled towards home, he was met by some people he did not expect to see in verse 51:

  As he was now going down, his slaves met him, saying that his son was living. So he inquired of them the hour when he began to get better. Then they said to him, "Yesterday at the seventh hour the fever left him."

John tells us that as the royal official traveled back to Capernaum, he was met by the slaves that he owned and that managed his affairs. These slaves had traveled to meet the royal official in order to let him know that he did not need to bother to bring Jesus to Capernaum because his son was no longer near death. Upon hearing the news, the royal official asked when this miraculous event had occurred. The slaves, unaware of their master’s encounter with Jesus, explained that his son began to get better at the 7^th hour, which was 1 p.m. in the afternoon.

Now, a natural question that the slaves probably were thinking at this point is “why does it matter what time his son got better? Shouldn’t he just be happy that his son did get better and is not dead?”  John provides for us the answer to these questions as he concludes this section of the gospel of John in verse 53:

  So the father knew that it was at that hour in which Jesus said to him, "Your son lives"; and he himself believed and his whole household. This is again a second sign that Jesus performed when He had come out of Judea into Galilee.

John tells us that the royal official quickly connected the dots between Jesus statement and his son’s healing. And after connecting the dots that revealed that the healing of his son occurred at the exact time that Jesus spoke with him, the royal official recognized that what had occurred was unexplainable apart from the reality that Jesus was the Messiah.

And as a result of connecting those dots, John tells us that the royal official, along with the entire household, responded to Jesus doing the unexplainable by believing, trusting and following Jesus as Lord and Leader. The man who went looking for the spectacular and miraculous physical healing came away with a spectacular and miraculous spiritual healing that resulted in his entire household experiencing the forgiveness and relationship with God that they were created for.

John then concludes this section of his account of Jesus life by explaining that this was the second sign that Jesus had performed in Galilee. As we discovered last week, signs are different than miracles in the sense that they point to something significant about Jesus. Jesus, in doing the unexplainable, was providing a sign that was designed to reveal and point people to something significant about who Jesus is and what He came to earth to do.

And it is in the unexplainable healing of this royal officials dying son that we see revealed for us a timeless truth when it comes to Jesus. And that timeless truth is that Jesus has the power to do the unexplainable regardless of the distance. Just as it was with this unexplainable activity involving a journey of a desperate father for a son over an elevated distance, just as it has been throughout history, Jesus has the power to do the unexplainable regardless of the distance.

You see, so often we can find ourselves in a place where we feel distant from Jesus. So often we can find ourselves buying into the idea that God is up in Heaven distant, detached and disinterested about what is happening in our lives. So often we can find ourselves believing that Jesus needs to be physically present in our lives in order to bring healing in our lives. So often, we can find ourselves in a place where we believe that the distance between where we are at physically, spiritually, emotionally, or relationally and where others are at physically, spiritually, or emotionally, or relationally is too great for Jesus to enter into and do the unexplainable.

But the timeless reality is that Jesus has the power to do the unexplainable in our lives regardless of the distance.  The timeless reality is that distance is not an issue for Jesus. The timeless reality is that Jesus has the power to do the unexplainable in our lives physically, regardless of the distance. The timeless reality is that Jesus has the power to do the unexplainable in our lives spiritually, regardless of the distance.

The timeless reality is that Jesus has the power to do the unexplainable in our lives emotionally, regardless of the distance. The timeless reality is that Jesus has the power to do the unexplainable in our lives relationally, regardless of the distance.  Jesus has the power to do the unexplainable regardless of the distance that you may feel between you and Jesus. And Jesus has the power to do the unexplainable regardless of the distance that you may feel between you and others.

So here is a question to consider: Is there a part of your life where you feel that the distance is too great between you and Jesus?  Is there a part of your life where you feel that the distance is too great between you and others? Physically? Spiritually? Emotionally? Relationally?

Because as Jesus has the power to do the unexplainable regardless of the distance.

An Unusual Challenge to a Desperate Man...

This week, we are looking at an event from the history of Jesus life that is recorded for us in an account of Jesus life in the bible called the gospel of John. Yesterday, we looked on as Jesus, upon returning to Cana of Galilee, was approached by a royal official who was a Jewish government official who worked for King Herod Antipas who had a son who was sick in a town called Capernaum. This royal official heard that Jesus was in Galilee, he decided to travel from Capernaum to Galilee in order to implore Jesus to come back with him to Capernaum in order to heal his son, who was suffering from a severe fever that had brought him to the point of death.

This royal official had probably exhausted all of the options that were available in Capernaum. And this royal official had heard about Jesus. This royal official heard that Jesus had performed the miraculous in the past. And in his desperation, this royal official made the decision the leave his son, who was on his deathbed, to travel the 20-25 mountainous miles in order to ask Jesus to do the miraculous for him. Today, we see John record for us how Jesus responded to this man’s desperation in John 4:48:

 So Jesus said to him, "Unless you people see signs and wonders, you simply will not believe."

Really? That’s how Jesus responds to this desperate man? I mean where’s the grace? Where’s the love? So, why did Jesus respond this way? What is happening here? When Jesus says "Unless you people see signs and wonders, you simply will not believe.”, the you here is plural. In other words, Jesus response was addressed not only to the man but to the Jewish crowds that had gathered around Him from the moment that He had arrived in Cana.

You see, the crowds that had surrounded and had been following Jesus simply wanted to see the spectacular; they were not following Jesus because they recognized who He was as the Messiah. When Jesus speaks about signs and wonders, he is referring to miraculous actions that are amazing and that point to something significant about the person who performs the miraculous.

Jesus statement here, if communicated in the language we use in our culture today, would have sounded something like this: Unless you all see something that is unexplainable apart from God’s miraculous and supernatural activity, you simply will not place your confident trust in Me as your rescuer, your deliverer, your Messiah”. You see, the royal official came to Jesus in desperation because he was looking for physical healing for his son. The royal official did not come to Jesus in desperation because he was not looking for the spiritual healing from Jesus from the selfishness, sin, and rebellion that separated him from God.

Jesus here is challenging the royal official, and the crowds that were following Him to place their confident trust in Him for their deepest needs, not to simply come to Him in order to meet a temporary need or be entertained. We see how the royal official responded to Jesus challenge in verse 49:

 The royal official said to Him, "Sir, come down before my child dies."

Instead of being defensive; instead of being offended, this royal official simply responds by repeating his request. This official is focused solely on his dying son and his belief that if Jesus would only come with him to Capernaum, the Jesus could heal his son. This royal official is basically saying “Jesus I do trust in your ability to heal my son. That is why I want you to come with me to Capernaum because I trust that you can do the unexplainable and miraculously heal my son”. However, what the royal official was probably not expecting to hear from Jesus was the exact response that he received from Jesus in verse 50. Let’s look at it together:

Jesus said to him, "Go; your son lives."

Now imagine yourself as this royal official. Place yourself in his shoes. You have traveled 20-25 miles of changing elevation in total desperation that Jesus would return with you in order to heal your dying son. You have persistently pleaded and begged Jesus to return with you. You have repeated your request even after Jesus had challenged what you believed and trusted in Him for. And now Jesus simply turns to you and says “Go, your son lives”.

You see, unlike the Roman Centurion in Matthew 5:8, this Jewish royal official came to Jesus and asked him to go return with him to Capernaum because he believed that Jesus needed to be present in order to heal his son.

Jesus, however, responded by posing an even stiffer test to this Jewish official. Jesus is basically saying to this royal official “Do you trust in Me enough to return home without Me. Do you trust Me enough to believe that I do not need to be present to heal your son?” Now you are the royal official. What would you be thinking at this point? What would you be feeling? How would you respond?

Friday, we will see the royal official’s response...

The desperate journey of a desperate man...

At the church where I serve, we are spending the weeks leading up to Easter looking at seven unexplainable events from history in the life of Jesus that are recorded for us in an account of Jesus life in the Bible called the gospel of John. The gospel of John was written the person who had perhaps the closest relationship with Jesus while He was on earth, a man named John. And it is in the gospel of John that we see John, as he looked in the rearview mirror of his life, record for us seven events from history in the life of Jesus that are unexplainable.

And as John gives us a front row seat to these events from history that seemed to be unexplainable, our hope and our prayer during this series is that as we look at these unexplainable events from history in the life of Jesus, we would discover several timeless truths about Jesus that have the potential to powerfully impact how we view Jesus.

This week, I would like for us to spend our time together by looking at the second of these events from history in the life of Jesus that seem to be unexplainable. And as John gives us a front row seat to this event from history, we will discover another timeless truth about Jesus that have the potential to powerfully impact how we view Jesus. So let’s look at this event from history together, beginning in John 4:43:

After the two days He went forth from there into Galilee. For Jesus Himself testified that a prophet has no honor in his own country. So when He came to Galilee, the Galileans received Him, having seen all the things that He did in Jerusalem at the feast; for they themselves also went to the feast.

John brings us into this unexplainable event from history in Jesus life by proving for us the context for which this unexplainable event would take place. John tells us that two days after Jesus had an unlikely encounter with a Samaritan woman who was an ostracized outsider that was far from God and far from others that resulted in many Samaritans placing their confident trust in Jesus as Lord and Leader, Jesus continued on His journey from Judea, which is in Southern Israel, to Galilee, which is in Northern Israel.

John then proceeds to make two statements that seem to be contradictory to one another. On the one hand, John tells us that Jesus Himself testified that a prophet has no honor in his own country. In other words, Jesus proclaimed that no spokesperson for God who proclaims the truth about God is respected or honored by his fellow countryman, in this case the Jewish people. On the other hand, John tells us that when Jesus came to Galilee, the Galileans received Him. In other words, the Galileans, who were Jesus fellow Jews, welcomed and accepted Him.

Now an immediate question that arises here is “well Dave which one is it? Did they respect Jesus or not? Did they accept Jesus or not?” John here is revealing for us the reality that while the Samaritans responded by giving Jesus respect and honor for who He was, that would not be the case for those who were Jewish and should respect and honor Him for who He was. John unpacks this reality by explaining that the reason why the Galileans welcomed and accepted Him was due to having seen all the things that He did in Jerusalem at the feast; for they themselves also went to the feast.

When John refers to the feast here, he is referring to the feast of the Passover, which was one of the times that every Jewish person had to travel to Jerusalem in order to attend church at the temple. And in the second chapter of the gospel of John, John had recorded for us how Jesus had responded to the greed of the moneylenders that were in the temple courtyards by turning over their tables and confronting the self righteous religious leaders of the day. John also records for us that Jesus also preached in the Temple during the Passover and said and did many things that weekend that were designed to reveal the reality that He was God in a bod who had come to earth as the Messiah.

However, while those who lived in Galilee had seen Jesus turn over the tables, while those who lived in Galilee had heard Jesus confront the self righteous religious leaders; while those in Galilee had seen what Jesus had said and done, they missed the point of what He had said and done. While the Samaritans responded to what Jesus said and done by recognizing and accepting Him as the Messiah, the Jewish residents of Galilee welcomed and accepted Jesus simply as someone who could do the spectacular. The Jewish residents of Galilee welcomed and accepted Jesus with the expectation that He would do in Galilee what He had done in Jerusalem. And it is in that context that John brings us into this unexplainable event from history, beginning in John 4:46:

 Therefore He came again to Cana of Galilee where He had made the water wine. And there was a royal official whose son was sick at Capernaum. When he heard that Jesus had come out of Judea into Galilee, he went to Him and was imploring Him to come down and heal his son; for he was at the point of death.

Now to fully understand what is happening here, we first need to understand a few things. The first thing that we need to understand is the significance of the city of Cana in Galilee. John helps us understand the significance of this town by reminding us that Cana in Galilee is where Jesus had previously done the unexplainable by miraculously changing between 120 and 180 gallons of water from the garden hose into high quality wine. Cana is where Jesus had miraculously turned a potentially embarrassing situation into an abundant blessing for a poor couple. 

John tells us that upon returning to Cana of Galilee, Jesus was approached by a royal official who was a Jewish government official who worked for King Herod Antipas. Now King Herod ruled the northern region of what is now modern day Israel from 4 B.C. to 39 A.D. under the auspices of the Roman Empire. As a royal official for the king, this would have been a man who had the position, the power, and the resources to get things done. John explains that this royal official had a son who was sick in a town called Capernaum.

Now that leads us to the second thing that we need to understand, which is where Capernaum is located in relation to Cana. Capernaum was located on the shore of the Sea of Galilee. By contrast, Cana was located on central Galilee. Now the distance between Capernaum and Cana was between 20-25 miles. However, this was not 20-25 flat miles to travel. Instead this was 20-25 miles of changing elevation. To give you a little bit of perspective, this would be like traveling from Bullhead City Arizona to Kingman Arizona. Without a car. In the dessert. Most likely in the summer. Without air conditioning.

John tells us that when this royal official heard that Jesus was in Galilee, he decided to travel from Capernaum to Galilee in order to implore Jesus to come back with him to Capernaum in order to heal his son. What is so interesting is that the word implore here, in the language that this letter was originally written in, implies a continual and persistent request.

You see, the son of the royal official was suffering from a severe fever that had brought him to the point of death. And this royal official was desperate.  This royal official had probably exhausted all of the options that were available in Capernaum. And this royal official had heard about Jesus. This royal official heard that Jesus had performed the miraculous in the past.

And in his desperation, this royal official made the decision the leave his son, who was on his deathbed, to travel the 20-25 mountainous miles in order to ask Jesus to do the miraculous for him. Now I want us to place ourselves in this story as the royal official. Can you imagine what he was thinking as he traveled on that mountainous road to Cana? Can you imagine what he was feeling?   Can you imagine the desperation?

This man’s position, power, and resources to get things done were not getting it done. Can you imagine the determination that was driving him?  “If I can only get to Jesus. If my son can just hold on. Please hold on.” Can you imagine the scene as this royal official begins to implore Jesus to return with him to Capernaum to heal his son? If you were this royal official and if this was your child, can you imagine what you would be saying at this point? What you would be feeling? What you would be thinking?

Tomorrow, we will see Jesus response to this man’s desperation…

Jesus has the power to do the unexplainable in even the small things in our lives...

Last week, we looked at a section of an account of Jesus life in the Bible called the gospel of John where Jesus, along with His mother and His disciples attended a wedding in Cana of Galilee, which is located in what is now Northern Israel. However, there was a problem at the wedding. And that problem was the wedding reception ran out of wine. Not only would this be embarrassing but in the culture of the day, this would result in the family of the bride being slurred by the rest of the community.

Like any good mother, Jesus mother, sensing the potential embarrassment to this newly married couple, approaches Jesus and makes the statement “they have no wine”? Jesus, however, reminded Mary that He is God in a bod. And as Messiah, as God-in-a-bod, Jesus does not submit His kingdom mission and will to anyone, even His earthly mother. Jesus reminded His mother of the reality that, in Jesus adult life and ministry as Messiah, all must recognize His status and place, even His mother Mary.

Mary responded to Jesus statement to her by telling the servants to do whatever Jesus requested. Instead of arguing with Jesus; instead of attempting to direct Jesus to fix the embarrassing situation and problem, Mary humbly allows Jesus to decide what He was going to do. Here we see the mother of the Son of God humbly submitting to the will of the Son of God. Here we see Mary provide us an amazing example of how a Godly woman lives in relationship with Jesus. Mary was a very godly example of a woman who did the right thing and trusted in God throughout her life, even though it was not the easy or popular thing to do.

Today, we will see John then reveals for us what Jesus decided to do when it came to this embarrassing situation in John 2:6:

 Now there were six stone waterpots set there for the Jewish custom of purification, containing twenty or thirty gallons each. Jesus said to them, "Fill the waterpots with water." So they filled them up to the brim. And He said to them, "Draw some out now and take it to the headwaiter." So they took it to him.

Now to fully understand what is happening here, we first need to understand what John is referring to when he mentions the Jewish custom of purification. In the Jewish religious system, before any Jewish person ate a meal, they would wash their hands in an elaborate ritual that was conducted to make their hands physically and spiritually clean to participate in a meal.

So what would have happened is that as the people arrived and were seated at the wedding reception, servants would have come around and poured water over the hands of all of the guests so that they could participate in this Jewish custom of purification. John tells us that there were six stone waterpots that had been used for this ritual and were now empty. Each waterpot held between 20-30 gallons of water.

So the servants used between 120 and 180 gallons of water in order to ensure that those in attendance at this wedding reception were able to participate in this custom of purification. So this was not a small wedding reception. Jesus, upon seeing the empty waterpots, directed the servants to fill all six waterpots to the brim with water. John tells us that the servants responded by filling all six waterpots to the brim.

Now to the brim is to the brim. In other words, these waterpots were filled to their maximum capacity. To add any more water would simply result in that water spilling over and being wasted.

Here is something to consider: Do you think the servants used high quality drinking water to fill those waterpots? After all those were waterpots that were used for washing hands, not drinking. The servants most likely got water from our equivalent of a garden hose. So you can probably imagine the surprise on the faces of the servants when Jesus told them to draw out some of that water to take to the headwaiter to sample. The headwaiter was the wedding planner of the day. The headwaiter had the responsibility to make sure that the wedding reception went off without any problems.

Now imagine that you are one of the servants that Jesus has just asked to take the water to the wedding planner. Place yourself in their shoes. What would you be thinking at this point? How would you respond? “But Jesus that is hand washing water out of the garden hose, not drinking water. You want us to take that water from the garden hose and have the headwaiter drink it? O.K. if you say so”.

Would you tell the wedding planner that you were giving him handwashing water from the garden hose to drink? Would you say “hey wedding planner, here is some water out of the garden hose for you to drink”. Some of you are like “what’s wrong with that?” I don’t think so. You would not tell him where you got the water from. You would probably hand him the water and get away as fast as you could. And that is exactly what they did.  John then records for us what happened to the wedding planner as he drank the water that came from the garden hose in verse 9:

 When the headwaiter tasted the water which had become wine, and did not know where it came from (but the servants who had drawn the water knew), the headwaiter called the bridegroom, and said to him, "Every man serves the good wine first, and when the people have drunk freely, then he serves the poorer wine; but you have kept the good wine until now."

Now the wedding planner’s statement to the groom, if communicated in the language we use in our culture today, would have sounded something like this: “In every wedding that I have ever attended or planned for, the family always serves the best wine first in order to impress their guests. Normally the Quintessa, or the Corison Kronos wine is served first. Then, after the reception has gone on for a while and the senses of the guests are no longer functioning as well because they have had a lot of wine, then the family brings out the Boones Farm or the wine that comes in a box, because at that point they are unable to notice the difference. But that’s not what you have done. Instead you started off the reception with good wine, and then you brought out the great wine.”

Now can you imagine what must have been running through the mind of the servants at that point? Can you imagine what must have been running through the mind of the family of the bride at this point? Can you imagine what must have been running through the mind of the disciples? Can you imagine what must have been running through the mind of Mary?

Jesus had just done the unexplainable. Jesus had just miraculously changed between 120 and 180 gallons of water from the garden hose into high quality wine. Jesus had just miraculously turned a potentially embarrassing situation into an abundant blessing for the couple. Jesus had just provided this very poor couple a very generous wedding present. What would you have been thinking at that point? How would you explain the unexplainable?

Now, while John does not tell us what was running through their mind, I am pretty confident that this was not running through their mind: “Can you believe that Jesus provided alcohol to these people? Someone needs to tell Jesus that He was wrong because having a drink of wine is a sin”. I don’t think that anyone who knew what had happened had that thought in their mind.

And while the Bible makes it abundantly clear that being controlled by wine and being drunk is a sin, here’s something to consider: if Jesus changed water into wine at a wedding reception, do you think Jesus considers having a drink of wine or a beer with a meal a sin. Just something to think about. John concludes this section of his letter in verse 11:

  This beginning of His signs Jesus did in Cana of Galilee, and manifested His glory, and His disciples believed in Him.

Now a natural question that arises here is “why did John refer to Jesus miracle as a sign? Is there a difference? And if there is a difference what is the difference between a miracle and a sign? If you are here this morning and that question is running through your mind, I want to let you know that you are asking a great question. And the answer to that question is this: Signs are different than miracles in the sense that they point to something significant about Jesus.

Jesus, in doing the unexplainable, was providing a sign that was designed to reveal and point people to something significant about who He is and what He came to earth to do. The unexplainable turning of water into wine was a sign that pointed people to the reality that Jesus was beginning to usher in something that was new and better than what the people had previously experienced, which was the kingdom of God here on earth that would provide all of humanity that opportunity to experience forgiveness and the relationship with God that they were created for through Him.

But here is the interesting thing; how many people were actually aware that the unexplainable had taken place? How many people that day were aware that Jesus had revealed a glimpse of His splendor and majesty as God-in-a-bod? We already know that the wedding planner was not aware that the unexplainable had happened. The bride and groom and their family were not aware that the unexplainable had happened. All they knew was that Jesus, His mother, and His disciples had provided them with a generous wedding present that avoided a potentially embarrassing situation.

Those attending the wedding reception were not aware that the unexplainable had happened. All they knew is that they had some more really good wine to drink. You see, only Mary, the disciples and the servants were aware that Jesus had done the unexplainable. Jesus kept a low profile and had quietly worked behind the scenes to do what was unexplainable.

I mean, if you think about it, in the grand scheme of things, Jesus unexplainable activity here went virtually unknown. Jesus unexplainable activity did not involve a big thing. Instead, Jesus unexplainable activity involved just a small thing. Jesus unexplainable activity did not have a large impact; instead Jesus unexplainable activity had very little impact.

But it is here, in the event from the history of Jesus life that is unexplainable, that we see revealed for us a timeless truth when it comes to Jesus. And that timeless truth is this:  Jesus has the power to do the unexplainable in even the small things in our lives. Just as it was with this unexplainable activity at a rural wedding party, just as it has been throughout history, Jesus has the power to do the unexplainable in even the small things in our lives.

You see, so often we think of Jesus power to do the unexplainable as only involving the big things. We think of Jesus power to do the unexplainable as only involving the things that have huge impact and implications for all of eternity. But the timeless reality is that Jesus has the power to do the unexplainable in the things that we consider to be little things that have little lasting impact over all of eternity. How often can we see unexplainable evidences of Jesus activity in the seemingly small details of our lives?

And the timeless reality is that Jesus is concerned about everything in our lives and every detail of our lives. Jesus is concerned about the big things and the little things. Jesus is concerned about the things that have a large impact in our lives and that have little impact in our lives. Jesus is concerned about the things in our lives that are well known and that are unknown. And as we have seen today, Jesus has the power to do the unexplainable in even the small things in our lives as He calls us to experience something new and better in our lives.

So here is a question to consider: Is there a part of your life that you think is too small and insignificant for Jesus to be bothered with?  Is there a part of your life that you think is too small and insignificant for Jesus to do the unexplainable? A small hurt? A small habit? A small hang-up?

Because Jesus has the power to do the unexplainable in even the small things in our lives.

A Mother's Response to a Potentially Embarrassing Situation and Her Son...

Have you ever had to explain the unexplainable? For example, did you realize that there are things that we do every day as we live life here on earth that are unexplainable? Have you ever tried to explain why we yawn? I mean what purpose does yawning fulfill? And have you ever tried to explain why yawning is contagious? While there are many theories, scientists disagree as to why we yawn and what purpose yawning serves.  Have you ever tried to explain to a teenager why there is a stage of life called adolescence? And why does adolescence seem to be getting longer and longer? While there are many theories, scientists disagree as to what purpose adolescence serves.

Have you ever tried to explain why we experience dreams? Or what dreams mean? While there are many theories as to why we dream, science is still at odds as to the true purpose of dreams. Have you ever tried to explain why people blush? Do we blush because we are embarrassed? Do we blush because we are angry? And what is the purpose behind blushing? No one is sure.

And then there are great mysteries that are left unexplained. Mysteries like the Bermuda Triangle. While there have been many theories that have tried to explain the wide range of incidents that have occurred in that region of the world, the Bermuda triangle remains unexplainable. And how do you explain the mystery of Stonehenge? While we know how the rocks got there, the point and purpose behind that collection of rocks remains unexplained.

Have you ever tried to explain the unexplainable feeling of déjà vu? This morning, have you ever tried to explain what it means to fall in love with someone? I mean we cannot see love, we cannot measure love on a scale, yet love exists and is powerful.  The reality is that there are things that we experience in our day to day lives; there are historical and geographical mysteries; there are feelings and emotions that we have difficulty explaining. Instead they seem to be unexplainable.

And in the Bible, we see events in history that defy scientific explanation. Events in history like Moses parting the Red Sea in Exodus 14.  Events in history like the day that God made the sun stand still in Joshua chapter 10. Events in history like a teenage girl who was a virgin giving birth to a child who claimed to be God. Events in history from the life of the man who claimed to be God that are recorded in the accounts of His life in the Bible called the gospels.

And, at the church where I serve, we are going to spend our time together in the weeks leading up to Easter in a sermon series entitled unexplainable. During this series, we are going to spend our time together looking at seven unexplainable events from the life of Jesus that are recorded for us in an account of Jesus life in the Bible called the gospel of John. The gospel of John was written the person who had perhaps the closest relationship with Jesus while He was on earth, a man named John. John is referred to as the disciple Jesus loved. John was Jesus best friend.

And it is in the gospel of John that we see John, as he looked in the rearview mirror of his life, record for us some things that he experienced while living in relationship with Jesus that seemed to be unexplainable. And as John gives us a front row seat to these events from history that seemed to be unexplainable, our hope and our prayer during this series is that we would be able to see how these unexplainable events from history that occurred through Jesus reveal for us several timeless truths about Jesus that have the potential to powerfully impact how we view Jesus.

So let’s launch into this series by looking at the first of these events from history that seem to be unexplainable, which is recorded for us in John 2:1:

On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there; and both Jesus and His disciples were invited to the wedding. When the wine ran out, the mother of Jesus said to Him, "They have no wine."

John brings us into this unexplainable event from history by providing us the context in which this unexplainable event took place. John tells us that three days after inviting Phillip and Nathaniel to follow Him, Jesus, along with His mother and His disciples attended a wedding in Cana of Galilee, which is located in what is now Northern Israel.

However, to fully understand what is happening here, we first need to understand what a wedding looked like in Jesus day. During Jesus day a bridegroom would make a wedding proposal to the bride and her family. The bride and her family would then agree to the wedding proposal. At this point, the bridegroom would then go back to where his family lived and would prepare a place for them to live, with his family. The bridegroom would basically build an addition on his parent’s house for them to live in.

 After the addition was completed, bridegroom would then come back with his entire family banging pots and pans in a loud parade-like celebration. The parade would then stop at the bride’s house, where a wedding ceremony and reception would take place, which would often last up to a week. At the end of the celebration, the bridegroom would pick the bride up, and take her to be with his family.

However, there was a problem at the wedding. And that problem was the wedding reception ran out of wine. The family of the bride had failed to have the proper amount of wine on hand. Most likely, the reason why the wedding reception ran out of wine was due to the fact that they were poor. 

Now as you might imagine, this would have been quite embarrassing. But not only would this be embarrassing; in the culture of the day, this would result in the family of the bride being slurred by the rest of the community. In the culture of the day, this could result in the family of the bride being sued by those in attendance for failing to provide enough resources for the wedding reception.

And like any good mother, Jesus mother, sensing the potential embarrassment to this newly married couple, approaches Jesus and makes the statement “they have no wine”? But why would Mary make that statement to Jesus? I mean, what did Mary expect Jesus to do? Was she expecting a miracle? After all, Mary knew that He was the Messiah. 

I don’t know if Mary was expecting a miracle here. You see, at this point in Jesus life, Jesus had not performed any miracles. Instead, I believe that Mary was looking to Jesus with the expectation that Jesus would fix the problem. I mean, Mary knew that Jesus had the ability to fix this problem. After all, He had twelve disciples following Him around.

Surely Jesus could do something, whether miraculous or not, to fix this situation so that the bride and her family would not suffer embarrassment and scorn from the community. John records for us Jesus response to His mothers request in verse 4:

And Jesus said to her, "Woman, what does that have to do with us? My hour has not yet come."

Well, that sounds harsh, doesn’t it? So what is going on here? Did Jesus really call Mary woman instead of mother? Did Jesus really say “Woman, what does that have to do with us?” Is Jesus disrespecting His mother here? I do not believe that is what happened here. You see, Jesus is not a teenage boy mouthing back to his momma. At this point in Jesus life, Jesus was a thirty year old man talking to His mother who was most likely in her mid forties. These are two adults having a conversation.

You see, the reason that Jesus called Mary woman, instead of mother, was to remind Mary that her relationship with Jesus was more than simply a mother and a son. Jesus here is reminding Mary that He is also the Messiah. Jesus here is reminding Mary that He is God in a bod. And as Messiah, as God-in-a-bod, Jesus does not submit His kingdom mission and will to anyone, even His earthly mother.

Jesus is basically saying to Mary, “Mary, I love you and you are my mom, but make sure that you do not forget who I am. Make sure that you do not forget that I am God. Make sure that you do not forget that I am an adult who has been given a mission to accomplish. Make sure that you do not forget that I am the one who sets the agenda when it comes to what I do and how I do it. I am now an adult who has been given a mission to accomplish. And what you are asking Me to do in terms of disclosing who I am at this point in time to everyone who is at this wedding is not a part of that mission.”

Jesus here is reminding His mother of the reality that, in Jesus adult life and ministry as Messiah, all must recognize His status and place, even His mother Mary. Now I want us to take a minute and imagine yourself as Mary. Place yourself in her shoes. You are the mother to God. You are responsible for making sure that God-in-a-bod makes it to adulthood.

And now your Son, who you changed diapers for, who you cuddled and held when He was sick, reminds you that He is now an adult. Your Son reminds you who He is and the He has a mission much bigger than your little request. You are Mary. How would you respond? We see Mary’s response in verse 5:

  His mother said to the servants, "Whatever He says to you, do it."

John tells us that Mary responded to Jesus statement to her by telling the servants to do whatever Jesus requested. Instead of arguing with Jesus; instead of attempting to direct Jesus to fix the embarrassing situation and problem, Mary humbly allows Jesus to decide what He was going to do. Here we see the mother of the Son of God humbly submitting to the will of the Son of God. Here we see Mary provide us an amazing example of how a Godly woman lives in relationship with Jesus.

While evangelicals are often critical of Catholics for making too much of Mary, as evangelicals we often make the mistake of making too little of Mary. Mary gave up the life that she could have had in order to live a life that was often marked by gossip and ridicule as a result of being the mother of Jesus. Mary is a very godly example of a woman who did the right thing and trusted in God throughout her life, even though it was not the easy or popular thing to do.

Friday, we will see how Jesus decided to do when it came to this embarrassing situation...