Vancouver First Church of the Nazarene

Dear Friends,

I want to invite you to pray for one another during the month of March. Over the next four weeks, I will be preaching a series on Praying for One Another, looking at prayers that Jesus, Paul, John and others prayed for us and for their brothers and sisters in Christ.

As a practical application of this series, we prepared a resource for you to pray for people connected to our church who live near you. There are also blank lines at the bottom of the page for you to write the names of people in your neighborhood you are witnessing to, people who will believe in Jesus through your message (John 17:20). If you did not receive this resource on Sunday, please send an email to the church and we will email your neighborhood households to you. Please include your name, city and postal code in your email.

Each week in my sermon I will provide some practical ways to pray for one another. This week you are invited to pray the prayer that Jesus prays for us in John 17:20-26, for one another.

Here is an example of how you might do this:

Dear Lord, I pray today for _(name)__. I pray that _(name)_and I would be united in our love for you. I pray that our love for each other would be a witness to our neighbourhood. Please make Your love known more and more to _(name)__. In Jesus name, Amen.

Thank you for joining in this prayer adventure with me and with your brothers and sisters in Christ!

May the Peace of Christ be with you,

Pastor Grant Zweigle

“Prayer is the choice to direct ourselves towards God’s friendship, to reach beyond human relationships to the love of God. Human friendship is transformed when we do this. In the words of Antoine de Saint-Exupery: ‘To love does not mean simply to look at one another, but to look together in the same direction.’ As we join together in meeting with the personal God, whose grace moves our hearts to seek him, we are freed from self-centredness. So community is strongest when we are all set on meeting God. Our friendships are at their deepest when we pray together.”
James Houston in The Transforming Friendship: A Guide to Prayer

Each week Pastor Grant posts the sermon text for the coming Sunday, some of his research for reflection, along with some conversation starters for you to comment on. You are invited to share your thoughts on the text by commenting on this post. To share a comment, “click” the title of this post, or the link at the end of the post (COMMENTS), and you will be directed to a page where you can share your thoughts, reflections, questions, illustrations and/or applications.

NIV John 17:20 “My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, 21 that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. 22 I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one: 23 I in them and you in me. May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me. 24 “Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world. 25 “Righteous Father, though the world does not know you, I know you, and they know that you have sent me. 26 I have made you known to them, and will continue to make you known in order that the love you have for me may be in them and that I myself may be in them.”

Research for reflection…

“Jesus is poised between the conclusion of his earthly task and the glory awaiting him at the Father’s side. Like a mountaineer gazing out from an eminence across the expanding vista as range succeeds range into the distant horizon, so Jesus gazes out across the rolling centuries. He beholds and embraces the harvest of the ages, the church of the Redeemer, gathered from every nation, people, language and tribe. He is praying for us.” Bruce Milne in The Message of John (BST)

“One of the chief things Jesus shows us in this prayer is God’s desire for relationships… within the personhood of God is a social dynamic, a desire for community, a yearning for conversation. Jesus talks at length to his Father, and we sense from his words that this is a conversation that has been going on for some time….Jesus lives in a conversation with the Father.” Burge in John (NIVAC)

“Just as his true glory was to follow the path of lowly service culminating in the cross, so for them the true glory lay in the path of lowly service wherever it might lead them. The little band and its Master were both insignificant as the world counts importance. But the apostles are right with God and therefore they are supremely significant. They have the true glory. They are walking in the way of God. We have seen often in this Gospel that for Jesus the cross is the true glory. Elsewhere it is recorded that he called on his followers to take up their cross in following him (Luke 9:23). For them, too, the way of the cross is the way to true glory. The purpose of this giving of glory to the disciples is unity. This time Jesus prays that they may be one just as the Father and the Son are one. The bond that unites believers is to be of the very closest.” Leon Morris in The Gospel According to John (NICNT)

“Prayer is the choice to direct ourselves towards God’s friendship, to reach beyond human relationships to the love of God. Human friendship is transformed when we do this. In the words of Antoine de Saint-Exupery: ‘To love does not mean simply to look at one another, but to look together in the same direction.’ As we join together in meeting with the personal God, whose grace moves our hearts to seek him, we are freed from self-centredness. So community is strongest when we are all set on meeting God. Our friendships are at their deepest when we pray together. Experiencing the personalness of God nourishes our personalities, to appreciate the vital importance of friendship, with God and with each other.” James Houston in The Transforming Friendship: A Guide to Prayer

“Contrary to a pervasive cultural understanding of community which is often taught in the Church, community is not something that can be created ex nihilo. Such hubris overlooks a central tenet of human being and Christian identity. Human beings don’t create community as much as they are created by it. Human being is by nature communal being. Community supersedes the appearance and disappearance of the individual. Accepting this fact of human existence is difficult in an age and culture that defines itself almost exclusively in individual terms.” Craig Anderson in Community Reconsidered (Living Pulpit 3 no 4 O-D 1994, p 8-9.)

“The oneness of the church is not optional. It is a gift from God that must be expressed within the historical church. This does not necessarily require some type of organizational or institutional oneness. But it does mean that there needs to be a real communion of the saints among diverse expressions of the church in any particular setting. This communion may take a wide variety of forms, but the form is not the critical issue. What is critical is that the church must maintain its unity. Every church body must have the conviction and desire to relate to other church bodies that are part of the (Christian) church. To do less, according to Jesus, is to betray both the nature of God and the nature of the church.” Craig Van Gelder in The Essence of the Church

Questions for conversation…

What questions does this text raise for you?

How can our local church express the unity we have in Jesus in the midst of the diversity that exists in our church?

In what ways has the Christian community created/shaped you as an individual?

Why do you think there has been so much dis-unity among Christians, when Jesus specifically prays for our unity?

What applications or illustrations would you use to explain this text to a friend?

In our Sunday worship services we pay attention to the seasons of the Church year in organizing our worship. We do this not to impose a ritual, but in order to keep our attention focused on Jesus in our planning and preparation.

The Church Year follows the life of Jesus Christ from the promise of His coming (Advent); to His birth (Christmas); through His revelation as the Christ, the Son of God, the Savior of the World (Epiphany); and His obedience to His Father (Lent); we follow His Passion (Holy Week) and celebrate His Resurrection (Easter); we receive His promise and power of the Spirit (Pentecost), and are empowered by Him to go on His mission to the world (Ordinary Time).

This Sunday, February 21st, is the first Sunday of Lent. For more information about Lent, Dennis Bratcher has written an article about this season that can be found on his website: The Voice.

I would encourage you to prayerfully reflect on Jesus’ obedient journey to the cross during this season.  The second movement of our discipleship model “Follow” is purple (the color of lent) and reminds us of our call to follow Jesus on the road of life. Perhaps if you listen closely, you will hear His voice inviting you to join Him on the journey.

Luke 9:23 Then Jesus said to them all: “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.”

Each week Pastor Grant posts the sermon text for the coming Sunday, some of his research for reflection, along with some conversation starters for you to comment on. You are invited to share your thoughts on the text by commenting on this post. To share a comment, “click” the title of this post, or the link at the end of the post (COMMENTS), and you will be directed to a page where you can share your thoughts, reflections, questions, illustrations and/or applications.

NIV John 11:17 On his arrival, Jesus found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb for four days. 18 Bethany was less than two miles from Jerusalem, 19 and many Jews had come to Martha and Mary to comfort them in the loss of their brother. 20 When Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went out to meet him, but Mary stayed at home. 21 “Lord,” Martha said to Jesus, “if you had been here, my brother would not have died. 22 But I know that even now God will give you whatever you ask.” 23 Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.” 24 Martha answered, “I know he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day.” 25 Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; 26 and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?” 27 “Yes, Lord,” she told him, “I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who was to come into the world.” 28 And after she had said this, she went back and called her sister Mary aside. “The Teacher is here,” she said, “and is asking for you.” 29 When Mary heard this, she got up quickly and went to him. 30 Now Jesus had not yet entered the village, but was still at the place where Martha had met him. 31 When the Jews who had been with Mary in the house, comforting her, noticed how quickly she got up and went out, they followed her, supposing she was going to the tomb to mourn there. 32 When Mary reached the place where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet and said, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.” 33 When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come along with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in spirit and troubled. 34 “Where have you laid him?” he asked. “Come and see, Lord,” they replied. 35 Jesus wept. 36 Then the Jews said, “See how he loved him!” 37 But some of them said, “Could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man have kept this man from dying?”

Research for reflection…

“Mary’s greeting is an expression of faith: had Jesus been present her brother would not have died…Her remark probably expresses regret rather than rebuke.” Leon Morris in The Gospel According to John (NICNT)

“John brings out the point that nobody expected an act of resurrection. He has let us see that both Martha and Mary had confidence in Jesus’ power to cure sickness, and now he goes on to bring out the same point for the Jews who were with them (v. 37). But none of them expected resurrection.” Leon Morris in The Gospel According to John (NICNT)

“Jesus is not remote from the suffering of his fellow humans. The fact that he is one with us in humanity means that he is one with us in agony. So Jesus wept (35); paradoxically, the shortest text in the Bible is one of its most eloquent. (The tense is aorist, expressing a definite action, hence ‘Jesus burst into tears’.)…Jesus is one with us in our need; he feels our pain; he lives our experience from the inside; his tears at that moment authentically expressed the emotion of his heart.” Bruce Milne in The Message of John (BST)

“We try regularly to insulate ourselves from the repugnant aspects of death, the physical and mental destruction which it commonly entails. No-one who has watched a loved one changed almost out of recognition, before death has finally brought its welcome release, needs any further words of description. But the thrust of this story is that Christ’s authority extends there also. That too we can bring to him. Our hope as Christians is a fleshly, bodily hope. ‘My body also will rest secure,…nor will you let your Holy One see decay’ (Ps. 16:10). Christ’s rule extends over the flesh, and his promise is nothing less than the renewing of all that he has made.” Bruce Milne in The Message of John (BST)

“The final sign, the raising of Lazarus, points most clearly to what has been at the heart of the revelation all the way through and what was emphasized in Jesus’ keynote address (5:19-30) - that Jesus is the one who gives life. The irony, of course, is that he gives life by giving up his own life on the cross. A further irony is that by giving life to Lazarus, Jesus sets in motion his own death. The raising of Lazarus, then, is the final sign before the event that actually accomplishes what all the signs have pointed toward - the provision of life through the death of the Son of God.” Rodney Whitacre in John (IVPNT)

Questions for conversation…

What questions does this text raise for you?

What applications or illustrations would you use to explain this text to a friend?

Each week Pastor Grant posts the sermon text for the coming Sunday, some of his research for reflection, along with some conversation starters for you to comment on. You are invited to share your thoughts on the text by commenting on this post. To share a comment, “click” the title of this post, or the link at the end of the post (COMMENTS), and you will be directed to a page where you can share your thoughts, reflections, questions, illustrations and/or applications.

NIV John 5:1 Some time later, Jesus went up to Jerusalem for a feast of the Jews. 2 Now there is in Jerusalem near the Sheep Gate a pool, which in Aramaic is called Bethesda and which is surrounded by five covered colonnades. 3 Here a great number of disabled people used to lie– the blind, the lame, the paralyzed. 4  5 One who was there had been an invalid for thirty-eight years. 6 When Jesus saw him lying there and learned that he had been in this condition for a long time, he asked him, “Do you want to get well?” 7 “Sir,” the invalid replied, “I have no one to help me into the pool when the water is stirred. While I am trying to get in, someone else goes down ahead of me.” 8 Then Jesus said to him, “Get up! Pick up your mat and walk.” 9 At once the man was cured; he picked up his mat and walked. The day on which this took place was a Sabbath, 10 and so the Jews said to the man who had been healed, “It is the Sabbath; the law forbids you to carry your mat.” 11 But he replied, “The man who made me well said to me, ‘Pick up your mat and walk.’” 12 So they asked him, “Who is this fellow who told you to pick it up and walk?” 13 The man who was healed had no idea who it was, for Jesus had slipped away into the crowd that was there. 14 Later Jesus found him at the temple and said to him, “See, you are well again. Stop sinning or something worse may happen to you.” 15 The man went away and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had made him well. 16 So, because Jesus was doing these things on the Sabbath, the Jews persecuted him. 17 Jesus said to them, “My Father is always at his work to this very day, and I, too, am working.” 18 For this reason the Jews tried all the harder to kill him; not only was he breaking the Sabbath, but he was even calling God his own Father, making himself equal with God. 19 Jesus gave them this answer: “I tell you the truth, the Son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees his Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does. 20 For the Father loves the Son and shows him all he does. Yes, to your amazement he will show him even greater things than these. 21 For just as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, even so the Son gives life to whom he is pleased to give it. 22 Moreover, the Father judges no one, but has entrusted all judgment to the Son, 23 that all may honor the Son just as they honor the Father. He who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father, who sent him.

Research for reflection…

“In Jesus’ day (the ‘Sheep Gate’ [cf. Neh. 3:1, 31; 12:39]) apparently was a small opening in the north wall of the temple. The sheep were washed in the pool before being taken to the sanctuary. This was also the place where invalids lay in hopes of being healed… Official Judaism almost certainly did not approve of the superstition associated with the alleged healing powers of the pool of Bethesda…Apparently, however, the authorities looked the other way, tolerating this expression of popular religion.” Andreas Kostenberger in John (BECNT)

“The man had been an invalid for thirty-eight years - longer than many people in antiquity lived (the average life expectancy for men barely exceeded forty years)…For all that time, nothing had cured him (cf. Mark 5:25-26; Luke 8:43). The length of the man’s plight underscores the hopelessness of his situation and is in keeping with John’s selection of ‘difficult’ miracles performed by Jesus.” Andreas Kostenberger in John (BECNT)

“So who is this castoff? Well, there’s not one word about his faith in this text. Not one hint that he believed in Jesus or anything else except the magic water in the pool. And, if we read just a little further, we find out that he wasn’t even grateful for being healed. In fact, when the religious authorities see him walking around carrying his mat, they ask him, “Who healed you?” and he says he doesn’t even know. Then when the authorities go on to inform him that healing and mat-carrying is illegal on the Sabbath, he squeals and fingers Jesus as the one who healed him and told him to carry his mat. “Jesus broke the Sabbath laws, not me!” This is the one Jesus healed.” The Rev. Dr. Homer Henderson

“Jesus speaks of obedience, obedience to the Father’s will and work. “My Father is still working [on the Sabbath,] and I also am working.” Jesus is doing God’s work. He is not fixing a car or going to the office, cleaning closets or shopping at Wal-Mart; he is restoring life. Like Father, like Son. This is Jesus’ defense of his healing on the Sabbath. On the Sabbath, God does not cease from the work of giving life; neither does Jesus, who is obedient to God. Life and love flow from God’s heart at all times and in all places to all people, and so they flow from Jesus’ obedient heart and hands-towards a Samaritan woman, a royal official, and a nameless, sick, lonely man, even on the Sabbath.” Karen Pidcock-Lester in John 5:1-9 (Interpretation 59 no 1 Ja 2005)

“Jesus is claiming a remarkable authority here. There is an ethical dimension to his claim. He claims he can break the law. Of course, we rightly say that first-century society had distorted the intent of God’s law and Jesus correctly refocuses it. But there is something else that is interesting here. Does this mean that societal laws that distort or twist God’s law deserve to be broken? John 5 may be an indirect argument for civil disobedience that makes many of us uncomfortable. Rabbinic law was the law of the land; it was the glue that held society together. Yet Jesus challenges it.” Gary Burge in John (NIVAC)

“Jesus healed this man not because of who the man was…but because of who Jesus was. Fred Craddock talks about this story as a parable of God’s grace, the undeserved, unmerited love of God. That’s a radical idea, and it’s right at the heart of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. It’s the reason Jesus taught. It’s the reason Jesus could teach “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,” not because of who they are, but because of who you are as my disciples.” The Rev. Dr. Homer Henderson

Questions for conversation…

What questions does this text raise for you?

Why do you think Jesus asks the man: “Do you want to get well?” (v. 6)

Jesus’ healing on the Sabbath and his claim that God is his Father get Jesus in hot water with the authorities. In what ways does the work of the church and the claims of the church stir up trouble for the church today?

How do you understand “the work of the Father” based on this text? What is God up to?

What applications or illustrations would you use to explain this text to a friend?

Each week Pastor Grant posts the sermon text for the coming Sunday, some of his research for reflection, along with some conversation starters for you to comment on. You are invited to share your thoughts on the text by commenting on this post. To share a comment, “click” the title of this post, or the link at the end of the post (COMMENTS), and you will be directed to a page where you can share your thoughts, reflections, questions, illustrations and/or applications.

NIV John 4:43 After the two days he left for Galilee. 44 (Now Jesus himself had pointed out that a prophet has no honor in his own country.) 45 When he arrived in Galilee, the Galileans welcomed him. They had seen all that he had done in Jerusalem at the Passover Feast, for they also had been there. 46 Once more he visited Cana in Galilee, where he had turned the water into wine. And there was a certain royal official whose son lay sick at Capernaum. 47 When this man heard that Jesus had arrived in Galilee from Judea, he went to him and begged him to come and heal his son, who was close to death. 48 “Unless you people see miraculous signs and wonders,” Jesus told him, “you will never believe.” 49 The royal official said, “Sir, come down before my child dies.” 50 Jesus replied, “You may go. Your son will live.” The man took Jesus at his word and departed. 51 While he was still on the way, his servants met him with the news that his boy was living. 52 When he inquired as to the time when his son got better, they said to him, “The fever left him yesterday at the seventh hour.” 53 Then the father realized that this was the exact time at which Jesus had said to him, “Your son will live.” So he and all his household believed. 54 This was the second miraculous sign that Jesus performed, having come from Judea to Galilee.

Research for reflection…

“We recall Jesus’ stated intention (cf. 4:1) to escape the unworthy rivalries which had developed vis-à-vis John the Baptist by returning north to Galilee (43). This he now accomplishes. The welcome he receives is outwardly a warm one (45). Jesus at this point is a ‘native son’ in Galilee, and his impact in the sophisticated southern city of Jerusalem would be guaranteed to strike a positive note in his fellow northerners, particularly as a number of them had apparently made the trip to the feast at the same time and had witnessed his miracles there (45).” Bruce Milne in The Message of John (BST)

“The Galileans’ ‘welcome’, in another instance of Johannine irony, was in fact a rejection (4:44), because Jesus’ compatriots were interested only in miracles. ‘Receiving’ Jesus is not necessarily the same as accepting him, in keeping with the Johannine pattern of initial ‘faith’ that is subsequently exposed as inadequate.” Andreas J. Kostenberger in John (BECNT)

“The Galileans were seeking signs, but this Gospel gives a critique of faith based merely on signs and announces a blessing on those who believe without having seen (signs) at all (20:29). Nevertheless, Jesus came to offer such ‘signs,’ and he provided them generously (12:37; 20:30). The question for us is related to this: What can we expect from God? Can we expect signs and wonders? What pitfalls await those seeking such things?” Gary Burge in John (NIVAC)

“The healing of the royal official’s son at its most basic level is a story of compassion… This is a child, a little boy whose illness has torn his father’s heart…Jesus understands these emotions and values, and he acts with compassion and speed.” Gary Burge in John (NIVAC)

“The man - unlike other Galileans - takes Jesus at his word and departs, evidencing a remarkable progression from one who seeks out Jesus on the basis of his reputation as a miracle-worker, to one who trust in Jesus’ word without (as of yet) seeing a miracle or validating sign that his son would be restored, to believing with his entire household.” Andreas J. Kostenberger in John (BECNT)

“Signs and wonders, miracles and mighty works are certainly part of the story, yes, an essential part of the biblical story and its continuation and outworking in the Christian life; but out of context, apart from God’s revelation of himself in Jesus, severed and then removed from their organic positionings in the intricate and detailed formation of God’s people, they are simply things, miracle-commodities that are bought and sold on the religious stock exchange.” Eugene Peterson in Christ Plays in Ten Thousand Places

Questions for conversation…

What questions does this text raise for you?

In his reflection on this text, Gary Burge asks: What can we expect from God? Can we expect signs and wonders? What pitfalls await those seeking such things? How would you answer these questions?

How does the sign in this text reveal Jesus to us today? What insight into Jesus’ true nature can be discerned from this Scripture?

What applications or illustrations would you use to explain this text to a friend?

Each week Pastor Grant posts the sermon text for the coming Sunday, some of his research for reflection, along with some conversation starters for you to comment on. You are invited to share your thoughts on the text by commenting on this post. To share a comment, “click” the title of this post, or the link at the end of the post (COMMENTS), and you will be directed to a page where you can share your thoughts, reflections, questions, illustrations and/or applications.

NIV John 2:13 When it was almost time for the Jewish Passover, Jesus went up to Jerusalem. 14 In the temple courts he found men 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 area, 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! How dare you turn my Father’s house into a market!” 17 His disciples remembered that it is written: “Zeal for your house will consume me.” 18 Then the Jews demanded of him, “What miraculous 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 The Jews 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. 23 Now while he was in Jerusalem at the Passover Feast, many people saw the miraculous signs he was doing and believed in his name. 24 But Jesus would not entrust himself to them, for he knew all men. 25 He did not need man’s testimony about man, for he knew what was in a man.

Research for reflection…

“The Jerusalem temple was a symbol of Jewish national and religious identity. The original Solomonic temple was destroyed by the Babylonians and later rebuilt by Zerubbabel. It was renovated by Herod just prior to Jesus’ coming. Both OT and Second Temple literature express the expectation of the establishment of a new temple for the messianic age (Ezek 40-44). It is against this backdrop that Jesus’ rather striking action of clearing the temple must be understood. What may at first appear to be an impetuous outburst of uncontrolled anger is cast by John as an outflow of genuine spiritual zeal…In part, Jesus’ actions are directed against the subversion of religious worship into commerce. This constitutes an offence to God, who is personally associated with the temple (Jer. 7:10,11,14).  His holiness and purity cannot tolerate the consistent defilement of ‘his house’ - judgement is inevitable. In prophetic style, the temple clearing therefore represents a symbolic act conveying the inner meaning of Jesus’ crucifixion and bodily resurrection, by which he becomes the temple’s replacement in the life and worship of his people.” Andreas Kostenberger in John (BECNT)

“The sale of sacrificial animals rendered a valuable service to those who traveled to the Passover from afar, enabling them to buy the animals on site rather than having to lead or carry them for long distances…The moneychangers likewise rendered a service: visitors to Jerusalem needed their money exchanged into local currency because the temple tax, paid by every conscientious Jewish male of twenty years or more, had to be paid in that currency.” Andreas Kostenberger in John (BECNT)

“The troubling connection with my world is the extent to which our religious institutions are doing the same things as the Jerusalem temple…Religious institutions sometimes pursue financial interests or social agendas when all they are designed to do is facilitate our relationship with God and set us loose in the world to change it.” Gary Burge in John (NIVAC)

“What does Jesus teach us about the human person? At least two basic truths: the first is that we are morally flawed. His knowledge of us leads to his refusal to commit himself to us (24). We pollute God’s temple; we refuse him true worship; he cannot trust us. It was this estimate of us which took him to the cross to die for our sins. Only through his travelling that terrible road can we be saved. The second basic truth Jesus teaches is that we are nonetheless infinitely valuable. Jesus’ action in this incident was motivated not only by a zeal for his Father’s glory, but also by a deep concern for his people and the renewal of their worship. It is this concern which would lead him to the establishment of a new worship in his risen body in anticipation of that time when worship is expressed in a new world where the temple is replaced by the Lord and the Lamb (Rev. 21:22; 22:6).” Bruce Milne in The Message of John (BST)

“George Barna, who has consistently applied marketing theory to church ministry explains it in the following terms, ‘For several decades, the Church has relied upon greater sums of money, better techniques, bigger numbers and facilities, and more impressive credentials as the means to influence society at large. These elements have failed us; in our efforts to serve God, we have crowded out God Himself.’” Eddie Gibbs in Church Next

“Mission can never be reduced to marketing. Otherwise its motivational drive will be subverted by promotional considerations. The church’s outreach may be informed by marketing insights but must never become market-driven, because mission proceeds from the heart of God.” Eddie Gibbs in Church Next

Questions for conversation…

What questions does this text raise for you?

Imagine the scene in the temple that day. Who would have supported Jesus’ action? Who would have opposed  it? How would you respond if someone challenged your most important religious/cultural institutions?

George Barna believes that applying market theory to the Christian mission has failed.. What do you think he is talking about? In what ways could market-driven concerns ‘crowd out God’ from the church?

What applications or illustrations would you use to explain this text to a friend?

Each week Pastor Grant posts the sermon text for the coming Sunday, some of his research for reflection, along with some conversation starters for you to comment on. You are invited to share your thoughts on the text by commenting on this post. To share a comment, “click” the title of this post, or the link at the end of the post (COMMENTS), and you will be directed to a page where you can share your thoughts, reflections, questions, illustrations and/or applications.

NIV John 2:1 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 “Dear woman, why do you involve me?” Jesus replied. “My time 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 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. 12 After this he went down to Capernaum with his mother and brothers and his disciples. There they stayed for a few days.

Research for reflection…

“Jewish weddings were important and joyful occasions in the lives of the bride and the groom and their extended families, and the entire community joined in the celebration. Cana was not far from Jesus’ hometown of Nazareth (less than ten miles), and the fact that the guest list included Jesus and his disciples as well as his mother may indicate the wedding of a close family friend or relative. This may also explain why Jesus’ mother felt responsible to help when the hosts had run out of wine.” Andreas Kostenberger in John (BECNT)

“In Jewish thought, wine is a symbol of joy and celebration. The running out of wine at the Cana wedding may be symbolic of the barrenness of Judaism. Prophetic expectation cast the messianic age as a time when wine would flow freely (Jer. 31:12-14; Hos. 14:7; Amos 9:13-14…Matt. 22:1-14). At a cultural level, running out of wine was considered to be a major social faux pas, since the host was responsible to provide the wedding guests with wine for seven days. There may even have been legal obligations.” Andreas Kostenberger in John (BECNT)

“Religious instruments that had been treasured in the traditions of many generations must undergo severe rethinking. This is an idea that must be brought into my contemporary world. We have created a world of religious vessels no less traditional than the ones described in Cana. We have created rituals and customs that have everything to do with religious habits but may have little to do with God…The Cana story says: God has arrived and Christ desires an immediacy, an intimacy with us that will not be impeded by ritual forms that no longer bring life.” Gary Burge in John (NIVAC)

“No matter how strenuously we impose ‘oughts’ on ourselves, we achieve neither virtue nor the ease of mercy: under law life goes flat. The gospel offers not only mercy for sin, but pours out the possibility of new life in the Spirit. In reconciled Christian community, sharing one cup, feeding on promises, we know we are being saved: the good wine is ours, given by Christ.” David Buttrick in Proclamation 3, Series C, Epiphany

“God provides deep goodness for his people. In fact, John affirms that God wants us to enjoy life, the good and abundant life…This God rejoiced in table fellowship…Jesus did not feel himself sullied in any way by his own incarnation or the least bit contaminated by immediate contact with ‘the polluted’ of his society. Neither did he encourage his disciples to anguish themselves about what they would eat or drink or put in their bodies.” Charles Brown in Pastoral Implications, Second Sunday After Epiphany (Lectionary Homiletics, Dec 09 - Jan 10)

“Today’s gospel text is about the very nature of God and about the very purpose of being human. The nature of God is pure grace - generous, abundant, excessive, surprising grace - grace overflowing to the brim, in times and places when we least expect it.” Susan Andrews in Is God Invited? in A Sermon, Second Sunday After Epiphany (Lectionary Homiletics, Dec 09 - Jan 10)

Questions for conversation…

What questions does this text raise for you?

Why do you think Jesus was at first reluctant to respond to Mary’s request for help? How would you interpret Mary’s insistence on Jesus’ participation in resolving the problem?

What are some of the ‘oughts’ that have been imposed upon you, or that you have imposed upon yourself that may cause life to go flat?

Imagine the scene described in John 2:1-12. What do you see?

What applications or illustrations would you use to explain this text to a friend?

Each week Pastor Grant posts the sermon text for the coming Sunday, some of his research for reflection, along with some conversation starters for you to comment on. You are invited to share your thoughts on the text by commenting on this post. To share a comment, “click” the title of this post, or the link at the end of the post (COMMENTS), and you will be directed to a page where you can share your thoughts, reflections, questions, illustrations and/or applications.

NIV Matthew 2:1 After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem 2 and asked, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star in the east and have come to worship him.” 3 When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him. 4 When he had called together all the people’s chief priests and teachers of the law, he asked them where the Christ was to be born. 5 “In Bethlehem in Judea,” they replied, “for this is what the prophet has written: 6 “‘But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for out of you will come a ruler who will be the shepherd of my people Israel.’” 7 Then Herod called the Magi secretly and found out from them the exact time the star had appeared. 8 He sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and make a careful search for the child. As soon as you find him, report to me, so that I too may go and worship him.” 9 After they had heard the king, they went on their way, and the star they had seen in the east went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was. 10 When they saw the star, they were overjoyed. 11 On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold and of incense and of myrrh. 12 And having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their country by another route.

Research for reflection…

“On January 6 western Christians celebrate the feast of Epiphany, which takes its name from the Greek word epiphaneia, meaning disclosure, manifestation, unveiling or appearance. At the simplest level, on Epiphany Christians commemorate the “appearance” of the magi from the east. But on closer inspection, what are the ramifications of the baby in the manger? What does His birth manifest or unveil? What about the cosmic signs and the provocative language that this helpless baby is a newborn king? Will he really inaugurate a new reign and rule in which, according to his mother Mary, God will depose tyrants and send away the rich as empty-handed beggars? The magi who traveled long and hard to worship Jesus with extravagant gifts remind us that He is not only the King of the Jews; he’s the King of all nations and peoples. In contrast to our propensity to privilege one ethnicity or people (usually “mine”) over another, to view one’s own people as exceptional to God and others as at best unexceptional, and to exclude other people who are different (usually “yours”), the pagans from Persia show that God welcomes the worship and the gifts of all people everywhere.”  Dan Clendenin in Pagan Magi and Power Politics: The “Disclosure” of Epiphany For Sunday January 6, 2008.

“The people of Israel had long waited for the rightful heir to the throne, but God announces his arrival first through these Gentile Magi. An expectation had circulated in the world of the first century that a ruler would arise from Judah. Suetonius writes, ‘Throughout the whole of the East there had spread an old and persistent belief: destiny had decreed that at that time men coming forth from Judea would seize power [and rule the world].’ Israel’s prophets had long spoken of a period of world peace and prosperity that would be instituted by a future Davidic deliverer (e.g., Ezek. 34:23-31). This belief had penetrated beyond the borders of Israel, so that others were looking for a ruler(s) to arise from the land of Judea.” Michael Wilkins in Matthew (NIVAC)

“The irony of the story of the wise men is that the religious insiders, those who knew the Law and the Prophets and who ought to have rejoiced at the Messiah’s birth, were either indifferent to what they knew or, worse, were entangled in a plot against the Christ; whereas the outsiders, those who were about as distant as could be, theologically and geographically, from concern about the Jewish Messiah, end up joyfully lavishing gifts upon him and kneeling before him in worship.” Thomas Long in Matthew (WBC)

“The final years of Herod’s reign were characterized by constant domestic problems. His ten wives had produced offspring who contended against each other for his throne. As he became older, he grew increasingly paranoid, and he had a number of his own family members imprisoned and executed.” Michael Wilkins in Matthew (NIVAP)

“When the evangelists looked back into the ministry of Jesus with the insight they had gained after the resurrection, they saw that the baptism which began the ministry was already a Christological moment revealing to those who had the eyes and ears of faith that Jesus was God’s Son endowed with the Spirit during the ministry. They also saw the same sequence of proclamation and the twofold reaction of acceptance and rejection. As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went forth proclaiming the good news (Matt 4:23). On the one hand, some accepted him as having the power of God and paid him homage as ‘God’s Son’ (14:33). On the other, the Pharisees rejected him; and ‘all the chief priests and elders of the people’ (27:1) delivered him to the Roman ruler to be put to death. If the sequence of Christological revelation, proclamation, and twofold reaction was verified in relation to the resurrection and the baptism, it is not surprising that it holds true in the infancy narrative as well. Matthew 1 told us of a Christological revelation by an angel of the Lord in reference to the conception of Jesus; Matthew 2 is the story of the proclamation of good news and the twofold reaction it received…Thus understood, ch. 2 is the necessary completion of ch. 1 in the sequence of revelation, proclamation, and two fold reaction. The gospel is good news, but that gospel must have a passion and rejection, as well as success.” Raymond Brown in The Birth of the Messiah (The Anchor Bible Reference Library)

Questions for conversation…

What questions does this text raise for you?

Why do you think the ‘religious insiders’ were uninterested or opposed to the Christ-child, while the ‘religious outsiders’ were drawn to the Christ-child?

God used a star in the sky to draw the Magi to Jesus. How does God draw people to Jesus today?

Who do you identify with in this story?

What applications or illustrations would you use to explain this text to a friend?