John 2:12

John 2:12 says.  After this he went down to Capernaum, he, and his mother, and his brethren, and his disciples: and they continued there not many days.  We see Jesus begin to move forth in His ministry.  We are told the miracle at Cana, turning water to wine, was the beginning of the miracles He did, and it manifested His glory.  When Jesus performs a miracle in our life, we benefit, but His glory should be magnified.  His disciples believed in Him.  They had just started following Him and He had just started His public ministry, but they believed in Him.  No matter how new we are to the Christian faith, we can always believe that God wants the best for us.  Jesus left Cana for Capernaum with His mother, His brethren and His disciples. They were there not many days.  Jesus never leaves us behind when we are following Him.  We may run ahead with our own plans, but if we are truly following, He will always be with us through the Holy Spirit.  Verse thirteen adds, And the Jews' passover was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.  Since the Passover was at hand, Jesus went to Jerusalem.  Verse fourteen continues, And found in the temple those that sold oxen and sheep and doves, and the changers of money sitting: When He went to the Temple, He found it full of corruption.  The religious leaders were making money off those who came to worship.  We today need to make sure that we do not turn the church into anything but a place of worship.  We do not gather to be entertained, but to worship and learn more about being a follower of Christ in today's world.  We should go away uplifted and inspired.  Verse fifteen states, And when he had made a scourge of small cords, he drove them all out of the temple, and the sheep, and the oxen; and poured out the changers' money, and overthrew the tables; Jesus took a small scourge and drove out those that sold oxen and doves and the money changers who were profiting from the worshippers who came to the Temple.  If we see anything going on in the church that not only does not glorify God but dishonors Him, we need to drive it out.  Verse sixteen adds, And said unto them that sold doves, Take these things hence; make not my Father's house an house of merchandise.  Jesus said they had made His Father's house a house of merchandise.  We need to make sure that the church remains a sanctuary for sinners, not a gathering place for making money or simply socializing.  Verse seventeen continues, And his disciples remembered that it was written, The zeal of thine house hath eaten me up.  After Jesus had cleansed the Temple of those who were perverting it, His disciples remembered a scripture that they referred to from Psalms 69:9  "The zeal for Thine house hath eaten Me up.”  When we see something being done in the name of the Lord, we must make sure it is consistent with what the Bible teaches.  Verse eighteen says, Then answered the Jews and said unto him, What sign shewest thou unto us, seeing that thou doest these things? The Jews asked Jesus, since He had done this, what sign could He show them of His authority to do so.  The fact that the temple was cleansed should have been their focus, not the question of authority.  Matthew Henry says that the fact that they all left when Jesus drove them out should have been a sign of divine power at work.  We do not need to feel threatened in our relationship to God if someone else does a good work for.  We simply need to thank God it was done.           

John 2:1

 

John 2:1 says, And the third day there was a marriage in Cana of Galilee; and the mother of Jesus was there: The third day after His disciples began to follow Him, there was a marriage in Cana of Galilee And both Jesus was called, and his disciples, to the marriage. Jesus' mother was there. Verse two adds, And both Jesus was called, and his disciples, to the marriage. Jesus and His disciples were there also.  When we become a follower of Christ, everyday life goes on.  We are not called to withdraw from the world, but to continue to live in the world as a light unto the world.  He was not in Jerusalem, but a small town away from the center of religious leadership.  Matthew Henry says He chose a marriage to emphasize the importance of marriage and what it symbolized.  Verse three continues, And when they wanted wine, the mother of Jesus saith unto him, They have no wine.  Later, the ceremony would become more important to people than the significance of the marriage.  We can see this in the world today.  Jesus' mother called Him aside to tell Him that the wedding party had run out of wine.  We might think this a good thing, but Mary knew it would embarrass the host. Verse four states, Jesus saith unto her, Woman, what have I to do with thee? mine hour is not yet come. Jesus rebuked her by asking what that had to do with Him.  Again, Matthew Henry says He did this to show that Mary had no more claim on His ministry than did anyone else.  We do not need to go through anyone else to get to Jesus.  Then, He said His time was not yet come.  Jesus came for a specific purpose, and He was just now starting to fulfill that purpose.  We, once again, need to wait for God's timing and not try to force a miracle from Him.  Verse five adds, His mother saith unto the servants, Whatsoever he saith unto you, do it.  Mary told the servants to do whatever Jesus said.  She did not demand or beg Him.  She simply put things in His hands.  If we need Christ to perform a miracle in our life, we cannot demand or beg, but simply put it in His hands.  Verse six continues, And there were set there six waterpots of stone, after the manner of the purifying of the Jews, containing two or three firkins apiece.  Verse seven concludes, Jesus saith unto them, Fill the waterpots with water. And they filled them up to the brim.  Jesus told them to fill six water pots that were there with water, and they filled them to the brim.  This required obedience on the part of the servants.  We may miss a miracle because we question God.  Verse eight adds, And he saith unto them, Draw out now, and bear unto the governor of the feast. And they bare it.  Jesus had them draw out some of the wine and take it to the governor of the feast.  Verse nine continues, When the ruler of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and knew not whence it was: (but the servants which drew the water knew;) the governor of the feast called the bridegroom,  Then, He had the master of the feast taste the water turned to wine.  Notice, the source of the wine was not revealed, and only the servants knew its source. Not all miracles are publicized, but they meet a need.  Verse ten says, And saith unto him, Every man at the beginning doth set forth good wine; and when men have well drunk, then that which is worse: but thou hast kept the good wine until now. The master of the feast said most people serve the best first, but here the best was saved for last.  Some say that the wine was nonalcoholic, but I believe He made wine, though better than any other, still wine.  The nation of Israel had been served the Law, and it didn't save them.  Now, they were being served the Son of God, the best, Who would save them. Verse eleven adds, This beginning of miracles did Jesus in Cana of Galilee, and manifested forth his glory; and his disciples believed on him. This was the first miracle of Jesus.  It was not widely publicized, but it was no less important than any other miracle.  We need to realize that miracles bring honor to God and are not rewards for our good behavior. 

John 1:42

John 1:42 says, And he brought him to Jesus. And when Jesus beheld him, he said, Thou art Simon the son of Jona: thou shalt be called Cephas, which is by interpretation, A stone.  John says Andrew brought Peter to Jesus.  This is our calling, to bring people to Jesus.  When we bring them to the knowledge of Who Jesus is, then it is up to them how they respond.  Our purpose is to tell them we have met the Messiah, we are following Him, and invite them to meet Him as their Messiah.  When Peter came to Jesus, Jesus knew who he was.  When we encounter Christ, we can be sure He knows not only who we are, but our very nature.  Simon Peter was not named a rock or stone because of his physical strength, nor even for his spiritual strength as it existed at that time.  He was called a rock because Jesus saw what his spiritual strength could become.  When Christ calls us, He calls us to become what we can be through faith in Him. Verse forty-three adds, The day following Jesus would go forth into Galilee, and findeth Philip, and saith unto him, Follow me.  The next day, Jesus went to Galilee and saw Philip and said, "Follow Me."  He did not tell Philip where He was going but asked him to follow in faith.  God does not tell us every step of our journey with Him, but simply says, "Follow Me."  Verse forty-four continues, Now Philip was of Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter.  Philip was from Bethsaida, as were Andrew and Peter.  Verse forty-five states, Philip findeth Nathanael, and saith unto him, We have found him, of whom Moses in the law, and the prophets, did write, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph. Philip went to Nathaniel and told him they had found the One that Moses in the law and the prophets had written about, in other words the Messiah.  He was Jesus of Nazareth.  Verse forty-six adds, And Nathanael said unto him, Can there any good thing come out of Nazareth? Philip saith unto him, Come and see.  Nathaniel asked, "Can there anything good come out of Nazareth?"  Philip simply said, "Come and see."  When people are skeptical about Jesus, all we can do is invite them to come and see.  Verse forty-seven continues, Jesus saw Nathanael coming to him, and saith of him, Behold an Israelite indeed, in whom is no guile.  Jesus acknowledged Nathaniel before he even got to Him as being an Israelite in whom there was no guile.  Verse forty-eight says, Nathanael saith unto him, Whence knowest thou me? Jesus answered and said unto him, Before that Philip called thee, when thou wast under the fig tree, I saw thee.  Nathaniel asked how Jesus knew him, and Jesus told him while he was sitting under the fig tree, before Philip called him, Jesus saw him.  We never come to Christ without Him knowing us.  We did not know Him before, but He knew us.  Verse forty-nine adds, Nathanael answered and saith unto him, Rabbi, thou art the Son of God; thou art the King of Israel.  Nathaniel then professed Jesus to be the Son of God.  Verse fifty continues, Jesus answered and said unto him, Because I said unto thee, I saw thee under the fig tree, believest thou? thou shalt see greater things than these.  Jesus told him that His seeing Nathaniel under the fig tree was nothing compared to the miracles he would see.  Verse fifty-one concludes, And he saith unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Hereafter ye shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of man;  He told Nathaniel that he would see the heavens opened and the angels ascending and descending on the Son of Man.  We need to realize the power of Christ to do what He has promised.  Andrew and the other disciple of John the Baptist came to Jesus by way of John's witnessing as to Who Jesus was.  Peter came because Andrew brought him to see Jesus, and Nathaniel came because he doubted that Jesus could be the Messiah.  It does not matter how or why we come to Jesus, only that we come and believe.

John 1:41

John 1:41 says, He first findeth his own brother Simon, and saith unto him, We have found the Messias, which is, being interpreted, the Christ.  Of the two of John the Baptist disciples went with Jesus, one of them, Andrew, was Simon Peter's brother. He went first to his brother, Andrew told Simon Peter, his brother, "We have found the Messiah," which being interpreted is the Christ.  As followers of Christ, we need to first go to our own family once we accept Him as our Lord and Savior.  Andrew and the other disciple, who is not identified, had been with John, but when John identified Jesus as the Messiah, they accepted the fact.  They still didn't know everything about why He came, but they accepted that He was the Promised One Who would save His people.  When we come to Christ, we cannot know everything about being His follower.  They spent time with Him and understood enough to know that He was the One they needed to follow and learn from.  As we spend time with Jesus, through the work of the Holy Spirit, we learn more and more about being His follower.  Andrew could not keep the good news to himself, so he went to Peter.  We should not be able to keep the gospel to ourselves.  We should be excited to share the gospel, first with our family and friends and then with anyone we meet.  If anything good of significance happens in our life, we want to share it with everyone.  Nothing better can ever happen than becoming a follower of Christ.  

John 1:38

John 1:38 says, Then Jesus turned, and saw them following, and saith unto them, What seek ye? They said unto him, Rabbi, (which is to say, being interpreted, Master,) where dwellest thou?  Jesus saw them following Him and asked them what they sought.  When we encounter Jesus and start to follow Him, a fair question is what are we seeking? Some would follow Jesus for material gain, feeling it would be good for business.  Some would follow for their need to belong to something bigger than themselves.  The only answer that has any real meaning is because He is our Master, and we want to be where He is.   Verse thirty-nine adds, He saith unto them, Come and see. They came and saw where he dwelt, and abode with him that day: for it was about the tenth hour. These two said Master, where do you live.  He said, "Come and see."  When He extends the invitation to come and see, Who He is and where He lives, we must simply follow Him.  These two saw where He lived in the world that day and stayed with Him that night.  When we come to Him in faith, accepting His salvation, we see Who He is and where He lives eternally.  That does not mean we see heaven, but that He lives in the heart of every believer.  To be His follower, we must give Him total control over our life, not just for a night, but for eternity.  We never like to give up control, so too often we attempt to follow Him while going out own direction.  That will never work.  When we decide to do things our way after being in His will for a time, whether a night or decade, failure awaits.  We begin to destroy our effectiveness as His witnesses in the world and only through asking His forgiveness and turning everything over to Him again can we become effective once again.  We must leave all else and all others and put Him first in our lives.  These two disciples could not follow John and Jesus, and they chose to follow Jesus.  We must do the same.  Verse forty continues, One of the two which heard John speak, and followed him, was Andrew, Simon Peter's brother. 

John 1:35

John 1:35 says. Again the next day after John stood, and two of his disciples;  Verse thirty-six adds, And looking upon Jesus as he walked, he saith, Behold the Lamb of God!  John the Baptist is standing with two of his disciples when he sees Jesus approaching.  He says, "Behold, the Lamb of God,"  We, like John, must first recognize Jesus to point others to Him.  John had been preaching to make people ready for the coming Messiah, and that included making himself ready.  Until we are prepared by faith to make ourselves ready to recognize Christ as our Saviour, we will never follow Him.  John did not keep his recognition of Jesus as the Messiah quiet.  We must be like him and boldly proclaim Jesus as the Lamb of God, the Savior Who takes away the sins of the world.  John knew that when Jesus came his ministry would be diminishing and Jesus would become the focus of the world.  He did not allow his own position to keep him from proclaiming Christ, and neither can we.  If we begin to let our own desires take priority over Christ, we become ineffective followers.  Two of John's disciples left him and followed Jesus.  Again, John did not get upset, because this is what he was preparing them for.  If we lead someone to Christ today, and He leads them away from us, we need to be like John and realize this is what they are supposed to do.  Then, the two disciples had to have faith that John recognized Jesus as the Messiah and faith to follow Him.  If people have no faith in our own recognition of Jesus as the Savior, they are not as likely to accept Him as their Savior.  John boldly proclaimed Christ was there in their midst, acknowledged Him when He recognized Him, and let his disciples go to Jesus.  Christ is always in our midst today.  We need to boldly proclaim Him and pray that all will follow Him, wherever He leads, even if it is away from us.  Verse thirty-seven continues, And the two disciples heard him speak, and they followed Jesus.  After John made his proclamation about Jesus, two of his disciples began to follow Jesus.