Saturday, November 22, 2014
Friday, November 21, 2014
Wednesday, November 19, 2014
The Parable of the Wedding Banquet
From Matthew 22:
Jesus spoke to them again in parables, saying: "The kingdom of heaven is like a king who prepared a wedding banquet for his son. He sent his servants to those who had been invited to the banquet to tell them to come, but they refused to come.
Then he sent some more servants and said, 'Tell those who have been invited that I have prepared my dinner: My oxen and fattened cattle have been butchered, and everything is ready. Come to the wedding banquet.'
Have you ever done all the work and invited those closest to you to celebrate? Have you ever prepared your life is such a way that you have developed insight to the point you ask a loved one, "Just do it this way, life will be so much better for you?" When you get rejected by those you love most. When those who should be on your side, but have left, this is God's way of pointing you back to those you have rejected, who you should have stood by. It is his way of turning you back to him.
God has called you to celebrate, through Jesus, the bride of the church. In this parable, the Pharisees should have accepted Jesus, as they claimed to be righteous. But they refused.
"But they paid no attention and went off - one to his field, another to his business. The rest seized his servants, mistreated them and killed them. The king was enraged. He sent his army and destroyed those murderers and burned their city.
Of those who should be there to accept Jesus, there are some that are just too busy with their current focus. They have their own burdens to carry, they have their own families to worry about.
Then, there are those who mock, slander and even hurt. God will judge them accordingly. "Let God deal with the things they do, cause hate in your heart will consume you too. - Will Smith"
"Then he said to his servants, 'The wedding banquet is ready, but those I invited did not deserve to come. So go to the street corners and invite to the banquet anyone you find.' So the servants went out into the streets and gathered all the people they could find, the bad as well as the good, and the wedding hall was filled with guests.
There are those who should receive, but they are closed. So deliver your gift to those who are open to receive it.
Jesus goes to the broken, because those who know they are broken, are open to receiving his gift, his covering on their lives.
"But when the king came in to see the guests, he noticed a man there who was not wearing wedding clothes. He asked, 'How did you get in here without wedding clothes, friend?' The man was speechless.
God found someone who was broken, who had received the invitation, who knew the truth. Who knew right from wrong. But yet, he was not repenting. He was not accepting the grace and precious gift laid before him. And when confronted, the man was speechless. Unlike the Pharisees, who are blind to the truth and defend when attacked, the man openly listens to the truth that is presented to him.
"Then the king told the attendants, 'Tie him hand and foot, and throw him outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.'
"For many are invited, but few are chosen."
Sometimes we wonder in our life, why we have pain. Why we are rejected. I want to tell you that this last person is you.
Everyone is a sinner and while we wish to cloak ourselves with Jesus' covering, we all fall short, we all make mistakes. So, what does our God do in this case? He disciplines us like a loving father disciplines his child.
Sometimes when we go through pain, we fill like a slave in life. We feel like our control has been completely taken away. We are bound. We feel like we can no longer see. We are blind. And in that moment of desperation, we weep. We hurt.
Notice, the king did not kill the man, he only disciplined him. Hope is not lost.
So why would God do this? Is he mean? Is he cruel? No, accept the discipline and the pain and the struggles. They are a gift. God is not trying to hurt you. Pain is an awesome blessing. He is try to mold you into the person you were meant to be.
The recipe for hope is that trials lead to perserverance which builds character which leads to hope. So why you? Because you were chosen.
This post was reposted from http://sizuservices.blogspot.com/2014/09/the-parable-of-wedding-banquet.html, originally written on September 13th, 2014.
Jesus spoke to them again in parables, saying: "The kingdom of heaven is like a king who prepared a wedding banquet for his son. He sent his servants to those who had been invited to the banquet to tell them to come, but they refused to come.
Then he sent some more servants and said, 'Tell those who have been invited that I have prepared my dinner: My oxen and fattened cattle have been butchered, and everything is ready. Come to the wedding banquet.'
Have you ever done all the work and invited those closest to you to celebrate? Have you ever prepared your life is such a way that you have developed insight to the point you ask a loved one, "Just do it this way, life will be so much better for you?" When you get rejected by those you love most. When those who should be on your side, but have left, this is God's way of pointing you back to those you have rejected, who you should have stood by. It is his way of turning you back to him.
God has called you to celebrate, through Jesus, the bride of the church. In this parable, the Pharisees should have accepted Jesus, as they claimed to be righteous. But they refused.
"But they paid no attention and went off - one to his field, another to his business. The rest seized his servants, mistreated them and killed them. The king was enraged. He sent his army and destroyed those murderers and burned their city.
Of those who should be there to accept Jesus, there are some that are just too busy with their current focus. They have their own burdens to carry, they have their own families to worry about.
Then, there are those who mock, slander and even hurt. God will judge them accordingly. "Let God deal with the things they do, cause hate in your heart will consume you too. - Will Smith"
"Then he said to his servants, 'The wedding banquet is ready, but those I invited did not deserve to come. So go to the street corners and invite to the banquet anyone you find.' So the servants went out into the streets and gathered all the people they could find, the bad as well as the good, and the wedding hall was filled with guests.
There are those who should receive, but they are closed. So deliver your gift to those who are open to receive it.
Jesus goes to the broken, because those who know they are broken, are open to receiving his gift, his covering on their lives.
"But when the king came in to see the guests, he noticed a man there who was not wearing wedding clothes. He asked, 'How did you get in here without wedding clothes, friend?' The man was speechless.
God found someone who was broken, who had received the invitation, who knew the truth. Who knew right from wrong. But yet, he was not repenting. He was not accepting the grace and precious gift laid before him. And when confronted, the man was speechless. Unlike the Pharisees, who are blind to the truth and defend when attacked, the man openly listens to the truth that is presented to him.
"Then the king told the attendants, 'Tie him hand and foot, and throw him outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.'
"For many are invited, but few are chosen."
Sometimes we wonder in our life, why we have pain. Why we are rejected. I want to tell you that this last person is you.
Everyone is a sinner and while we wish to cloak ourselves with Jesus' covering, we all fall short, we all make mistakes. So, what does our God do in this case? He disciplines us like a loving father disciplines his child.
Sometimes when we go through pain, we fill like a slave in life. We feel like our control has been completely taken away. We are bound. We feel like we can no longer see. We are blind. And in that moment of desperation, we weep. We hurt.
Notice, the king did not kill the man, he only disciplined him. Hope is not lost.
So why would God do this? Is he mean? Is he cruel? No, accept the discipline and the pain and the struggles. They are a gift. God is not trying to hurt you. Pain is an awesome blessing. He is try to mold you into the person you were meant to be.
The recipe for hope is that trials lead to perserverance which builds character which leads to hope. So why you? Because you were chosen.
This post was reposted from http://sizuservices.blogspot.com/2014/09/the-parable-of-wedding-banquet.html, originally written on September 13th, 2014.
Saturday, November 15, 2014
The Three Main Topics of Sexual Sin
Masturbation, pornography and sex.
No where in the bible does it say masturbation is a sin.
Leviticus 15:16-18
16 When a man has an emission of semen, he must bathe his whole body with water, and he will be unclean till evening. 17 Any clothing or leather that has semen on it must be washed with water, and it will be unclean till evening. 18 When a man has sexual relations with a woman and there is an emission of semen, both of them must bathe with water, and they will be unclean till evening.
This is simply about hygiene.
Genesis 38:9-10
9 But Onan knew that the child would not be his; so whenever he slept with his brother’s wife, he spilled his semen on the ground to keep from providing offspring for his brother. 10 What he did was wicked in the Lord’s sight; so the Lord put him to death also.
Some consider it a sin to withhold sex from a spouse.
Matthew 5:28
28 But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart.
So if your masturbation includes lust, it may be likened to pre-marital sex or adultery.
Exodus 20:14
14 You shall not commit adultery.
So extra marital affairs are considered sinful. Sex with another woman while married is sinful.
Exodus 20:17
17 You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male or female servant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.
So lusting after a married woman might be sinful.
Exodus 20:3-4
3 You shall have no other gods before me. 4 You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. 5 You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, 6 but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments.
Is it possible to idolize lust? What about relationships, in general?
Deuteronomy 4:16
16 so that you do not become corrupt and make for yourselves an idol, an image of any shape, whether formed like a man or a woman,
Is pornography an idol? Is it likely pornography had other forms long before the internet?
Deuteronomy 4:28
28 There you will worship man-made gods of wood and stone, which cannot see or hear or eat or smell.
The curse of pornography is that eventually you will find yourself attached to something that can't even talk back to you!
An addict is an addict not because he can't, stop. An addict is an addict because he has no desire to. When relating sexual addiction to a drug addiction, check out this article on the chemical cocktail (dopamine, norepinephrine, oxytocin, vasopressin, endorphins, serotonin) associated with sex.
http://www.covenanteyes.com/2014/02/03/brain-chemicals-and-porn-addiction/
1 Corinthians 6:9-10
9 Or do you not know that wrongdoers will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor men who have sex with men 10 nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God.
Surpisingly, the bible doesn't call out pre-marital sex as a sin.
1 Corinthians 7:1-25
1 Now for the matters you wrote about: “It is good for a man not to have sexual relations with a woman.” 2 But since sexual immorality is occurring, each man should have sexual relations with his own wife, and each woman with her own husband. 3 The husband should fulfill his marital duty to his wife, and likewise the wife to her husband. 4 The wife does not have authority over her own body but yields it to her husband. In the same way, the husband does not have authority over his own body but yields it to his wife. 5 Do not deprive each other except perhaps by mutual consent and for a time, so that you may devote yourselves to prayer. Then come together again so that Satan will not tempt you because of your lack of self-control. 6 I say this as a concession, not as a command. 7 I wish that all of you were as I am. But each of you has your own gift from God; one has this gift, another has that. 8 Now to the unmarried and the widows I say: It is good for them to stay unmarried, as I do. 9 But if they cannot control themselves, they should marry, for it is better to marry than to burn with passion.
So healthy sexuality is explored within the confines of marriage.
Matthew 5:32
32 But I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, makes her the victim of adultery, and anyone who marries a divorced woman commits adultery.
Matthew 19:9
9 I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another woman commits adultery.
So divorce can lead to adultery.
Proverbs 6:32-34
32 But a man who commits adultery has no sense; whoever does so destroys himself. 33 Blows and disgrace are his lot, and his shame will never be wiped away. 34 For jealousy arouses a husband’s fury, and he will show no mercy when he takes revenge.
So society would be filled with violence if we do not respect the marital relationships.
With all these pitfuls, you might set up three laws for yourself, to protect against sin:
1. No maturbaton
2. No pornography
3. No sex outside of marriage.
But if you follow the law, you may fall victim to pride.
Proverbs 16:18
18 Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall.
So how shall we win. If we have no law, we sin without restraint. If we follow the law, we become prideful.
Romans 7:5-11
5 For when we were in the realm of the flesh, the sinful passions aroused by the law were at work in us, so that we bore fruit for death. 6 But now, by dying to what once bound us, we have been released from the law so that we serve in the new way of the Spirit, and not in the old way of the written code. 7 What shall we say, then? Is the law sinful? Certainly not! Nevertheless, I would not have known what sin was had it not been for the law. For I would not have known what coveting really was if the law had not said, “You shall not covet.” 8 But sin, seizing the opportunity afforded by the commandment, produced in me every kind of coveting. For apart from the law, sin was dead. 9 Once I was alive apart from the law; but when the commandment came, sin sprang to life and I died. 10 I found that the very commandment that was intended to bring life actually brought death. 11 For sin, seizing the opportunity afforded by the commandment, deceived me, and through the commandment put me to death.
Paul is saying here that because we are sinners, setting laws for ourselves actually entices us to break the law! So the only good that comes from a law is knowing right versus wrong. The paradox is that without laws we would never have to worry about breaking laws.
Romans 8:1-13
1 Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, 2 because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death. 3 For what the law was powerless to do because it was weakened by the flesh, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in the flesh, 4 in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. 5 Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. 6 The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace. 7 The mind governed by the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so. 8 Those who are in the realm of the flesh cannot please God. 9 You, however, are not in the realm of the flesh but are in the realm of the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, they do not belong to Christ. 10 But if Christ is in you, then even though your body is subject to death because of sin, the Spirit gives life because of righteousness. 11 And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies because of his Spirit who lives in you. 12 Therefore, brothers and sisters, we have an obligation—but it is not to the flesh, to live according to it. 13 For if you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live.
If we focus on the law, or boast of our adherence to the law, we will surely break it. What we must do is realize the spirit within the law.
Man was created to be in relationship with God and relationship with others. Sin is any action that destroys relationships. Love is any action that unifies relationships.
We might know the law so that we understand right and wrong. But it is only through Christ's spirit within us that we might follow the law by seeking and focusing on building relationships.
This post was reposted from http://sizuservices.blogspot.com/2014/10/the-three-main-topics-of-sexual-sin.html, originally written on October 30th, 2014.
No where in the bible does it say masturbation is a sin.
Leviticus 15:16-18
16 When a man has an emission of semen, he must bathe his whole body with water, and he will be unclean till evening. 17 Any clothing or leather that has semen on it must be washed with water, and it will be unclean till evening. 18 When a man has sexual relations with a woman and there is an emission of semen, both of them must bathe with water, and they will be unclean till evening.
This is simply about hygiene.
Genesis 38:9-10
9 But Onan knew that the child would not be his; so whenever he slept with his brother’s wife, he spilled his semen on the ground to keep from providing offspring for his brother. 10 What he did was wicked in the Lord’s sight; so the Lord put him to death also.
Some consider it a sin to withhold sex from a spouse.
Matthew 5:28
28 But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart.
So if your masturbation includes lust, it may be likened to pre-marital sex or adultery.
Exodus 20:14
14 You shall not commit adultery.
So extra marital affairs are considered sinful. Sex with another woman while married is sinful.
Exodus 20:17
17 You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male or female servant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.
So lusting after a married woman might be sinful.
Exodus 20:3-4
3 You shall have no other gods before me. 4 You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. 5 You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, 6 but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments.
Is it possible to idolize lust? What about relationships, in general?
Deuteronomy 4:16
16 so that you do not become corrupt and make for yourselves an idol, an image of any shape, whether formed like a man or a woman,
Is pornography an idol? Is it likely pornography had other forms long before the internet?
Deuteronomy 4:28
28 There you will worship man-made gods of wood and stone, which cannot see or hear or eat or smell.
The curse of pornography is that eventually you will find yourself attached to something that can't even talk back to you!
An addict is an addict not because he can't, stop. An addict is an addict because he has no desire to. When relating sexual addiction to a drug addiction, check out this article on the chemical cocktail (dopamine, norepinephrine, oxytocin, vasopressin, endorphins, serotonin) associated with sex.
http://www.covenanteyes.com/2014/02/03/brain-chemicals-and-porn-addiction/
1 Corinthians 6:9-10
9 Or do you not know that wrongdoers will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor men who have sex with men 10 nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God.
Surpisingly, the bible doesn't call out pre-marital sex as a sin.
1 Corinthians 7:1-25
1 Now for the matters you wrote about: “It is good for a man not to have sexual relations with a woman.” 2 But since sexual immorality is occurring, each man should have sexual relations with his own wife, and each woman with her own husband. 3 The husband should fulfill his marital duty to his wife, and likewise the wife to her husband. 4 The wife does not have authority over her own body but yields it to her husband. In the same way, the husband does not have authority over his own body but yields it to his wife. 5 Do not deprive each other except perhaps by mutual consent and for a time, so that you may devote yourselves to prayer. Then come together again so that Satan will not tempt you because of your lack of self-control. 6 I say this as a concession, not as a command. 7 I wish that all of you were as I am. But each of you has your own gift from God; one has this gift, another has that. 8 Now to the unmarried and the widows I say: It is good for them to stay unmarried, as I do. 9 But if they cannot control themselves, they should marry, for it is better to marry than to burn with passion.
So healthy sexuality is explored within the confines of marriage.
Matthew 5:32
32 But I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, makes her the victim of adultery, and anyone who marries a divorced woman commits adultery.
Matthew 19:9
9 I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another woman commits adultery.
So divorce can lead to adultery.
Proverbs 6:32-34
32 But a man who commits adultery has no sense; whoever does so destroys himself. 33 Blows and disgrace are his lot, and his shame will never be wiped away. 34 For jealousy arouses a husband’s fury, and he will show no mercy when he takes revenge.
So society would be filled with violence if we do not respect the marital relationships.
With all these pitfuls, you might set up three laws for yourself, to protect against sin:
1. No maturbaton
2. No pornography
3. No sex outside of marriage.
But if you follow the law, you may fall victim to pride.
Proverbs 16:18
18 Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall.
So how shall we win. If we have no law, we sin without restraint. If we follow the law, we become prideful.
Romans 7:5-11
5 For when we were in the realm of the flesh, the sinful passions aroused by the law were at work in us, so that we bore fruit for death. 6 But now, by dying to what once bound us, we have been released from the law so that we serve in the new way of the Spirit, and not in the old way of the written code. 7 What shall we say, then? Is the law sinful? Certainly not! Nevertheless, I would not have known what sin was had it not been for the law. For I would not have known what coveting really was if the law had not said, “You shall not covet.” 8 But sin, seizing the opportunity afforded by the commandment, produced in me every kind of coveting. For apart from the law, sin was dead. 9 Once I was alive apart from the law; but when the commandment came, sin sprang to life and I died. 10 I found that the very commandment that was intended to bring life actually brought death. 11 For sin, seizing the opportunity afforded by the commandment, deceived me, and through the commandment put me to death.
Paul is saying here that because we are sinners, setting laws for ourselves actually entices us to break the law! So the only good that comes from a law is knowing right versus wrong. The paradox is that without laws we would never have to worry about breaking laws.
Romans 8:1-13
1 Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, 2 because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death. 3 For what the law was powerless to do because it was weakened by the flesh, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in the flesh, 4 in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. 5 Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. 6 The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace. 7 The mind governed by the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so. 8 Those who are in the realm of the flesh cannot please God. 9 You, however, are not in the realm of the flesh but are in the realm of the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, they do not belong to Christ. 10 But if Christ is in you, then even though your body is subject to death because of sin, the Spirit gives life because of righteousness. 11 And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies because of his Spirit who lives in you. 12 Therefore, brothers and sisters, we have an obligation—but it is not to the flesh, to live according to it. 13 For if you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live.
If we focus on the law, or boast of our adherence to the law, we will surely break it. What we must do is realize the spirit within the law.
Man was created to be in relationship with God and relationship with others. Sin is any action that destroys relationships. Love is any action that unifies relationships.
We might know the law so that we understand right and wrong. But it is only through Christ's spirit within us that we might follow the law by seeking and focusing on building relationships.
This post was reposted from http://sizuservices.blogspot.com/2014/10/the-three-main-topics-of-sexual-sin.html, originally written on October 30th, 2014.
Sunday, November 9, 2014
Water You Turned Into Wine
"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.'"
"'Woman, why do you involve me?' Jesus replied. 'My hour has not yet come.'"
"His mother said to the servants, 'Do what ever 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.'"
"What Jesus did here in Cana of Galilee was the first of the signs through which he revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him."
A miracle took place. And with it, it outlines how major miracles can take place in our life.
How did it start? It started with someone needing help. A problem and a need waiting to be filled. Jesus' mother knew she could not fix the problem, but had faith enough to bring forth the problem to someone who could solve it.
What can we take away from how Jesus responded? We can take away that service is often a sacrifice. Here, Jesus does not perform the miracle for his own benefit but rather for the benefit of others. His subtle response, points out that ultimately he is turning his perfect life into a painful death. It was the birth of his ministry and the miracles he performed that ultimately led to his persecution and death.
Was faith alone enough? Faith without works is dead. Jesus' mother responded by taking action, making sure the servants did whatever was necessary. Action based on faith.
What is the significance of the water used for ceremonial washing? Jesus transformed the purification process from using religious ordinances to using grace. He transformed water into wine and in the same instant allowed us to turn something that was red as crimson into something as white as snow.
How can this transformation take place in us? It starts with the realization that we are not filled to the brim as we would like to believe. Most people believe they are the Good Samaritan or the brother of the prodigal son. They believe they need to always do good to others and not judge others. However, true transformation comes only after the realization that we still have plenty of space to be filled and that we fall short.
Who will realize the transformation has taken place? Only the servants, those who take action, will know the miracle exists. For most people, the miracle will occur right in front of them, and they will not even know it happened!
What is the natural reaction to this transformation? While most think that giving death to their old ways, would be a terrible, disheartening event, those who experience this transformation find that it is better than anything they have ever experienced. Ironically, the death is a cause for celebration. It is the source of joy.
Why do people follow Jesus? It is through this transformation that disciples are made. It is through this transformation that allows us to believe in Jesus. And it is the first of which opens our eyes to many miracles.
This post was reposted from http://sizuservices.blogspot.com/2014/04/water-you-turned-into-wine.html, originally written on April 26th, 2014.
"When the wine was gone, Jesus' mother said to him, 'They have no more wine.'"
"'Woman, why do you involve me?' Jesus replied. 'My hour has not yet come.'"
"His mother said to the servants, 'Do what ever 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.'"
"What Jesus did here in Cana of Galilee was the first of the signs through which he revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him."
A miracle took place. And with it, it outlines how major miracles can take place in our life.
How did it start? It started with someone needing help. A problem and a need waiting to be filled. Jesus' mother knew she could not fix the problem, but had faith enough to bring forth the problem to someone who could solve it.
What can we take away from how Jesus responded? We can take away that service is often a sacrifice. Here, Jesus does not perform the miracle for his own benefit but rather for the benefit of others. His subtle response, points out that ultimately he is turning his perfect life into a painful death. It was the birth of his ministry and the miracles he performed that ultimately led to his persecution and death.
Was faith alone enough? Faith without works is dead. Jesus' mother responded by taking action, making sure the servants did whatever was necessary. Action based on faith.
What is the significance of the water used for ceremonial washing? Jesus transformed the purification process from using religious ordinances to using grace. He transformed water into wine and in the same instant allowed us to turn something that was red as crimson into something as white as snow.
How can this transformation take place in us? It starts with the realization that we are not filled to the brim as we would like to believe. Most people believe they are the Good Samaritan or the brother of the prodigal son. They believe they need to always do good to others and not judge others. However, true transformation comes only after the realization that we still have plenty of space to be filled and that we fall short.
Who will realize the transformation has taken place? Only the servants, those who take action, will know the miracle exists. For most people, the miracle will occur right in front of them, and they will not even know it happened!
What is the natural reaction to this transformation? While most think that giving death to their old ways, would be a terrible, disheartening event, those who experience this transformation find that it is better than anything they have ever experienced. Ironically, the death is a cause for celebration. It is the source of joy.
Why do people follow Jesus? It is through this transformation that disciples are made. It is through this transformation that allows us to believe in Jesus. And it is the first of which opens our eyes to many miracles.
This post was reposted from http://sizuservices.blogspot.com/2014/04/water-you-turned-into-wine.html, originally written on April 26th, 2014.
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