Thursday, June 14,
2012, 6:30 a.m. – The Lord woke me with this song:
Full Release / An
Original Work / April 15, 2012
Walking daily with my
Savior brings me joy.
Loving Father;
precious Jesus;
He’s my Savior and my
Lord.
Gently leads me;
follow Him.
I’ve invited Him
within.
Now abiding in His
presence, oh, what peace.
From my self-life He
has brought me,
By His mercy, full
release.
Hope and comfort,
peace and safety Jesus brings
When I daily bow
before Him;
Obey freely; do His
will.
Follow Him where’er He
leads.
Listen to Him; His
words heed.
Now obeying his words
fully, oh, what love
That He gives me
through salvation,
By His Spirit, from
above.
Loving Father;
precious Jesus, He’s my friend.
With my Savior, by His
Spirit,
I will endure to the
end.
Share the gospel, tell
what’s true.
Witness daily; His
will do.
Tell the world of how
their Savior bled and died.
On a cruel cross He
suffered
So that we might be
alive.
Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening. I read John 2:1-11 (NIV 1984):
On the third day a
wedding took place at Cana in Galilee. Jesus’ mother was there, and Jesus and
his disciples had also been invited to the wedding. When the wine was gone,
Jesus’ mother said to him, “They have no more wine.”
“Dear woman, why do
you involve me?” Jesus replied. “My time has not yet come.”
His mother said to the
servants, “Do whatever he tells you.”
Nearby stood six stone
water jars, the kind used by the Jews for ceremonial washing, each holding from
twenty to thirty gallons.
Jesus said to the
servants, “Fill the jars with water”; so they filled them to the brim.
Then he told them,
“Now draw some out and take it to the master of the banquet.”
They did so, and the
master of the banquet tasted the water that had been turned into wine. He did
not realize where it had come from, though the servants who had drawn the water
knew. Then he called the bridegroom aside and said, “Everyone brings out the
choice wine first and then the cheaper wine after the guests have had too much
to drink; but you have saved the best till now.”
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
My Understanding: Jesus,
his mother and his disciples were all attending a wedding. Weddings at that
time in history and in that culture often lasted several days. The wine had run
out. Mary presented Jesus with the problem. Jesus replied, “Why do you involve
me? My time has not yet come.” Yet, his mother told the servants to do whatever
he told them.
I have read several different interpretations of this
passage of scripture. The best one I’ve read, in my estimation, comes from “The
Bible Knowledge Commentary,” out of Dallas Theological Seminary. It said that
the phrase, “Why do you involve me?” was an expression of Greek origin, and
that it made reference to differences in realms or relations.
A realm is “a defined area of interest or study” or “a
kingdom” (Encarta). Jesus was from a different realm, i.e. his kingdom was not
of this world, but of the kingdom of heaven, and his interest was in seeking
God’s kingdom first. Whether or not they had run out of wine at a wedding was
not in his realm of interest, concern or kingdom. That is why it did not
involve him. Jesus answered to God the Father, and his life and ministry were
on God’s timetable. So Jesus was letting his mom know that he had to be about
his Father’s business, and on his Father’s timetable, and that his realm
(kingdom) was not of this world.
Mary’s response to Jesus seems a little confusing. His
comments to her suggested that this problem with the wine was not his concern and
not in his realm, and yet she told the servants to do what he said. I don’t
think any of us can know for sure what was going through Jesus’ mind at the
time or through Mary’s. Mary didn’t push the issue with Jesus, yet her response
seems to suggest that she still gave him the option to do something if he
wanted to. The BK Commentary suggests that Mary’s response to Jesus “revealed
her submission to her Son. Even though she did not fully understand, she
trusted him.”
Transformation
The BK Commentary also said that the water jars were used
for Jewish purification rites, and that the change of the water into the wine
symbolized the contrast between the old order (old covenant; the law) and the new
way (new covenant; grace), i.e. the old way of purification under the law vs.
the new way of the Spirit. How fitting!
The Zondervan NIV Commentary suggested that Jesus’ ministry
was one of conversion, and that the change of the water into wine symbolized
the transformation from sinners to saints. This also brought to mind what Jesus
said about new wine:
“No one sews a patch
of unshrunk cloth on an old garment, for the patch will pull away from the
garment, making the tear worse. Neither do men pour new wine into old
wineskins. If they do, the skins will burst, the wine will run out and the
wineskins will be ruined. No, they pour new wine into new wineskins, and both
are preserved.” ~ Matt. 9:16-17
You can’t put the new system inside the old; the way of the
Spirit inside the old way of the law. Both the wine and the wineskins will be
destroyed and of no use.
New Way is Oldest Way
At Bible study last night, someone suggested that the new
way of grace is really older than the law, because it comes through the
promise, which was made to Abraham. Then, today, when I was looking at the idea
that the wine Jesus made was not newer wine, but was older than the wine they
had been drinking, because it was the best, this man’s comment from last night
came to mind. The promise concerning the “seed,” Jesus Christ, and to spiritual
descendants numbering more than the stars in heaven or the sand on the seashore
was given to Abraham. The law came later through Moses. So, the new wine (the
new way of grace) was instituted of God long before the law came, and the law
was given to lead men to Christ. So that is why the best wine (the new wine)
was truly the oldest wine, because this was God’s plan all along. Cool! Through
this miracle Jesus revealed his glory, i.e. that he was the promised seed, and
his disciples put their faith in him.
The New Way?
I know many modern churches today are pulling away, they
think, from the old way of doing things and are using new techniques to try to
reach people for Christ, yet they are still very much tied into the old way of
the law and they don’t even realize it. And, they don’t realize that their “New
Way” is just another version of the old way.
Under the law, the people of God had one day a week set
aside to honor God, to rest from their work and to worship God corporately with
others of like-faith. They met in a building called a temple where priests were
in charge. They followed many rules and regulations that were ceremonial,
traditional and/or that God had established for them to follow. Yet, when Jesus
Christ died on the cross for our sins, and was resurrected, he did away with
that old order.
We no longer have to go to a physical temple, because the
temple of God is within the hearts of true followers of Christ. We no longer
have to go through human priests to hear from God, because we are all priests
of the new covenant. Jesus’ death tore the veil in two that stood between us
and the Holy of Holies, and now we can come boldly into God’s presence by the
blood of Jesus Christ. We no longer have to go to a particular place on a
specific day in the week in order to worship God. We can worship him “in spirit
and in truth” all day, every day, and any place. We should honor each day as
holy unto God.
The church is not a building. God does not dwell in church
structures. The sanctuary in church buildings is not the sanctuary of God and
we do not enter God’s house or into his presence when we enter a physical
building. There is nothing more sacred about the day Sunday than there is any
other day of the week. The church is the body of Christ, the people of God, the
temple of the Holy Spirit. Whenever two or more are gathered together in God’s
name (in his divine character, purpose and will), he is in the midst. That is
church. We are all one body and we all have a part in that body, and it is God
who determines that part, not man. The gifts of the Spirit are not our human
talents nor are they to be confused with positions or ministries within an
organization or a human-business called a church.
Even the new modern churches that have pulled away from what
they consider “traditional” churches are still “traditional” and are still
following man’s ways, just a new way of men with new rules that are not of God.
One man usually does all the preaching, and there is no discussion concerning
his “prophecy” to see if it really is scriptural and of God. And, in fact,
there is a wave of teaching among today’s pastors that encourages them to
discourage any kind of checks and balances with regard to their teaching, and
to raise themselves above all others. Even modern churches are not following
the Biblical model for what church is supposed to be, but they are holding on
to traditions of men, and are adding new traditions and teachings of men onto
the old system to try to make it better, but it is still the old system with a
new look.
We need to get back to Jesus’ teaching and to the scriptures
and away from studying the teachings of men, often to the exclusion of the
teaching of the word. We need to follow the Biblical model for church,
spiritual gifts, and for the body of Christ, where the body can function as God
intended it, with every part doing the work God assigned us. And, we truly need
to operate in the freedom of the Spirit and not the old way of the written code.
Jesus set us free, not just from bondage to sin or from the ultimate judgment
that stands against our sin, but he set us free to follow him in the new way of
the Spirit, not in the new way of men, men’s teachings and men’s marketing
schemes. There is a HUGE difference! We need much discernment from the Holy
Spirit to know that difference. The truth of God’s Holy Word will set us free!
He Gives Purpose
/ An Original Work / June 9, 2012
“Listen to Me when I’m
calling to you.
Obey freely My word.
Follow Me in all of My
ways.
Do all that I say.
Hear Me gently whisper
to you
My will for your life
and future.
Give all of your life
and heart to
Follow Me always.”
Repent of your sins
and worship Jesus.
He’s your Lord and
Master.
He died for your sins
so you could
Live with Him today.
He has a plan for your
life and
He gives purpose and
direction.
He gives meaning to
your life,
So follow Him today.
“I love you so much I
gave My life for
You to walk in My
ways,
Living for Me each day
as you
Bow to Me and pray.
Witness for Me of your
love for Me and
Of My grace and mercy,
How I died to save you
of your
Sins now and always.”
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