I’d like to share with you from the Gospel of John 2.
But first, let us pray.
Heavenly Father, prepare our hearts to give and receive the truth of Your Word by Your Spirit that You would receive all the glory. In Jesus’ name, amen.
[DISPLAY OUTLINE OF JOHN 2]
Two events are portrayed in John 2, which are:
(1) Christ’s miracle of creating wine from water (2:1-12) and
(2) His cleansing of the Temple to announce Jehovah’s dealings with His people Israel (2:13-22).
(3) But, of greatest significance to the Church of Christ today is an overlooked distinction made by John based upon one Greek word pisteuō, translated as believe, commit, and entrust (2:23-25).
(1) The First Event was the Wedding at Cana of Galilee of John 2:1-12.
[DISPLAY JOHN 2:1-12 ON SCREEN]
“1 On the third day a wedding took place at Cana in Galilee. Jesus’ mother was there, 2 and Jesus and His disciples had also been invited to the wedding. 3 When the wine was gone, Jesus’ mother said to Him, “They have no more wine.” 4 “Woman, why do you involve Me?” Jesus replied. “My hour has not yet come.” 5 His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever He tells you.” 6 Nearby stood six stone water jars, the kind used by the Jews for ceremonial washing, each holding from twenty to thirty gallons. 7 Jesus said to the servants, “Fill the jars with water”; so they filled them to the brim. 8 Then He told them, “Now draw some out and take it to the master of the banquet.” They did so, 9 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 10 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.” 11 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. 12 After this He went down to Capernaum with His mother and brothers and His disciples. There they stayed for a few days” (John 2:1-12 NIV).
Jesus was just beginning His public ministry.
He and His disciples (Simon Peter, Andrew, Philip, Nathanael, and John) were also invited to the wedding.
His mother Mary was there and probably was the reason for His invitation, but they added six additional guests, which may account for the shortage of wine.
Mary informed Jesus of the shortage, knowing full well He is the miraculous Son of God.
He informed the servants to fill the six empty jars with water and bring some to the master of the banquet. Why was the “Good Stuff” held back until now? 180 gallons of wine would be a substantial wedding gift even today.
Just as Yahweh had created man out of dirt, Jesus had just created wine out of water.
Because the Early Church believed in taking the words of the Gospel of John literally, they rejected the spurious writing called “The Infancy Gospel of Thomas” as part of our New Testament Canon of Scripture, because it falsely claimed Jesus performed miracles in His childhood, when it was clearly stated the transforming of the water to wine at “Cana of Galilee was the first of the signs [Greek, sēmeion, miracles] through which He revealed His glory” (2:11).
(2) The Second Event was the Cleansing of the Temple of John 2:13-22.
[DISPLAY JOHN 2:13-22 ON SCREEN]
“13 When it was almost time for the Jewish Passover, Jesus went up to Jerusalem. 14 In the temple courts He found people selling cattle, sheep and doves, and others sitting at tables exchanging money. 15 So He made a whip out of cords, and drove all from the temple courts, both sheep and cattle; He scattered the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables. 16 To those who sold doves He said, “Get these out of here! Stop turning My Father’s house into a market!” 17 His disciples remembered that it is written: “Zeal for your house will consume me.” 18 The Jews then responded to Him, “What sign can you show us to prove your authority to do all this?” 19 Jesus answered them, “Destroy this temple, and I will raise it again in three days.” 20 They replied, “It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and you are going to raise it in three days?” 21 But the temple He had spoken of was His body. 22 After He was raised from the dead, His disciples recalled what He had said. Then they believed the scripture and the words that Jesus had spoken” (John 2:13-22 NIV).
To our knowledge, Jesus cleansed the Temple twice. Once at the beginning and also at the end of His approximately 3 1/2 year ministry.
The Gospel of John is instrumental in establishing this as the first Passover Jesus observed during His ministry (2:13), along with two others (6:4; 11:55-57). “Jesus Himself was about thirty years old when He began His ministry” (Luke 3:23 NIV).
Jesus was angry with the commercialization of the holy business of Yahweh’s Temple.
John cited Psalm 69: “Zeal for Your house consumes me, and the insults of those who insult You fall on me” (Psalm 69:9).
Anger is righteous, if you are angry at what God is angry.
It took Herod 46 years to build this present Temple, what gives you the right to do this?
Jesus declared, “Destroy this temple, and I will raise it again in three days” (John 2:19), referring to His resurrection from their upcoming crucifixion of Himself.
Ancient prophesy demanded a literal Messiah [Hebrew, mâshı̂yach] in Isaiah 9:6-7 and Daniel 9:25-26. It was not just an idea. Unfortunately, the Jews apparently wanted more of a deliverer from the Romans, not simply from their sins (Isaiah 53:1-12). Likewise, many today may be more prone to look for an easy Rapture exit than a plan for Spirit filled obedience in building His Kingdom.
(3) The Closing Words of John 2 are a Distinction Based Upon the Word Pisteuō (John 2:23-25)
[DISPLAY JOHN 2:23-25 ON SCREEN]
[ALSO DISPLAY ON TOP OF JOHN 2:23-25:
Our faith is not enough for Jesus to commit Himself to us, unless we have genuinely committed ourselves to Him.]
“23 Now while He was in Jerusalem at the Passover Festival, many people saw the signs He was performing and believed in His name. 24 But Jesus would not entrust Himself to them, for He knew all people. 25 He did not need any testimony about mankind, for He knew what was in each person” (John 2:23-25 NIV).
“Signs” or miracles [Greek, sēmeion] were being performed and people “believed [Greek, pisteuō] in His name” (2:23).
“But Jesus would not entrust [Greek, pisteuō] Himself to them, for He knew all people” (John 2:24).
Pisteuō can properly be translated commit, as in commitment, giving us a more forceful grasp of the meaning of this foundational, consequential, evangelical word. Commit gives us the sense we are making a long term investment in Christ, since we have counted the cost. In the KJV, in all but a handful of the 250 verses it appears in the New Testament, pisteuō is translated as some form of the word believe; in eight verses, it appears as some form of the word commit, and in three verses, it appears as trust. “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth [Greek, pisteuō, commits] in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life” (John 3:16).
Pisteuō is translated some 240 times out of 250, as believe. “Believe [Greek, pisteuō] in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved — you and your household” (Acts 16:31). “If you declare with your mouth, Jesus is Lord, and believe [Greek, pisteuō] in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved” (Romans 10:9).
“But Jesus would not entrust [Greek, pisteuō] Himself to them, for He knew all people” (John 2:24).
The same Greek word pisteuō is here translated as entrust [NIV] and commit [KJV].
Q: Why would Jesus refuse to entrust or commit Himself to these Jews in John 2, if they had “believed [Greek, pisteuō] in His name” (John 2:23)?
A: Since “He knew all people” (2:24), He knew their faith was insincere and insufficient for Him to entrust Himself to them, to commit to them, and to believe in them. This simple but significant statement informs us that our faith is not enough for Jesus to commit Himself to us, unless we have genuinely committed ourselves to Him.
This does not upend the validity of faith in our salvation, but it cautions us from the uselessness of promoting a “faith without deeds” (James 2:20). Instead, we should reevaluate John 3:16. “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes [literally, COMMITS] in Him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16 NIV).
“He did not need any testimony about mankind, for He knew what was in each person” (John 2:25).
This is not a works salvation but an ongoing relationship with the only One who truly knows us, loves us, and genuinely seeks our highest good.
How can we not in return commit ourselves to Him and count upon His Spirit to work in us “to will and to act in order to fulfill His good purpose” (Philippians 2:13)?
This Brings Us to Our Commitment to Christ
[DISPLAY ON SCREEN: Commitment is what God is waiting for from the Church; and, all this time, the Church was under the impression that declaring ourselves as having trusted in Jesus as our Savior was mission accomplished, the end purpose of evangelical faith.]
Pisteuō would be an appropriate choice for your word to study this year.
Pisteuō can properly be translated commit, as in commitment, giving us a more forceful grasp of the meaning of this foundational, consequential, evangelical word. Commit gives us the sense we are making a long term investment in Christ, since we have counted the cost.
We commit an act, but when we pledge ourselves to Christ, we are committing to Christ. Only the uncommitted ask, how much is enough to show our commitment? The Spirit of God presents to our heart the sin of not committing to Christ, the rightness of that commitment, and our worthiness of judgment for the lack of commitment. Our reasonable service to God is our spiritual worship of Christ, which flows from our commitment to Him. In the NIV, of the 14 verses in the NT, only three times does the word commit mean anything positive. As in the OT, commit predominantly is attached to some sin; but, doesn’t that mean it’s something consequential? Jesus committed Himself to the Father, when He was dying on the Cross (Luke 23:46). Paul committed the Ephesian elders to the Word of God’s grace (Acts 20:32). Peter exhorted sufferers to commit themselves to their “Faithful Creator” (1Peter 4:19). Commitment is what God is waiting for from the Church; and, all this time, the Church was under the impression that declaring ourselves as having trusted in Jesus as our Savior was mission accomplished, the end purpose of evangelical faith.
“To the Jews who had believed Him, Jesus said, “If you hold [Greek, menō, abide] to My teaching, you are really My disciples” (John 8:31 NIV). Small wonder Christ spoke to His disciples as those who believed on Him, and He emphasized those remaining, continuing, and enduring with Him are really His disciples. This is True Commitment!
On the opposite side, we see the irredeemable demons believing on Christ without any True Commitment. “You believe [Greek, pisteuō] that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe [Greek, pisteuō] that — and shudder” (James 2:19 NIV). Only with wholehearted commitment to Christ are we any different from the demons that believe! Commitment means unreserved obedience to Christ!
Even Judas Iscariot, the Apostle who betrayed Jesus, was among those who had been given “power and authority to drive out all demons and to cure diseases” (Luke 9:1 NIV). But, he obviously did not have True Commitment, or he would have been among those who “stands firm to the end” (Matthew 10:22). Is the Spirit of God inspiring us to stand for Jesus to the end?
In conclusion, let us take our Communion together.
If Communion is all about remembering Christ’s sacrifice for us, then our Commitment to Christ would be our reasonable service in return to Him. “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God” (Romans 12:1-2 KJV).
Let us pray.
And may we pray from a full heart even with our eyes wide open.
Heavenly Father, too long have we spoken of faith as if it could be accomplished without any noticeable consequences, but Your Word has informed us that True Faith demands complete commitment to You.
Cast out all of our former misconceptions of a faith that holds back on complete commitment.
May we be transformed in the smallest and greatest things in our life as we begin to comprehend the simple act of believing is committing to You our all in all for ever and ever.
Change us and we will be changed in our perception of believing that we may see what Your disciples saw at Pentecost.
Revolutionize our expectations of what believing You and Your Word truly means.
I pray that our understanding of what it means to believe becomes so fully transformed by the idea of commitment that we would never think or talk about believing without total commitment to You.
And, may we never look back, but go on to a greater day, as we keep our hand on the plow, awaiting the soon appearing of Your Son. In Jesus’ All Powerful Name, we pray. Amen and amen.
We Need A Miracle 