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SETTING THE RIGHT TONE FOR MINISTRY!
When you first step into a room populated by others
or when you step on stage before an audience you have anywhere from 3 to 30 seconds
to make a good first impression. Within that time frame others appraise
your visual and behavioral appearance from head to toe. They observe your
demeanor, mannerisms, body language, and even assess your apparel, including
accessories. Furthermore, their evaluation, though it could be totally
wrong, is normally fairly accurate.
For example, in one study, untrained subjects
were shown a 20- to 32-second videotape of job applicants greeting their interviewers.
When the subjects rated the applicants on attributes like self-assurance and
likeability, their assessments were very similar to the interviewers' -- who
had spent more than 20 minutes with each applicant.
Fortunately, there are some things you can do
to set the right tone, to make sure your first impression is a good impression. Let's
say, for example, that you have an idea for a new ministry and you want to discuss
it with one of the pastors. So you call the church office and find out
that it would be best if you met with Pastor Dunn Deal. What could you
do to make sure his first impression of you and your idea leaves a good first
impression?
To make a good first impression, you would:
- show up on time. In general, this means
five minutes early.
- make sure your appearance is appropriate for
the occasion.
- know, assuming you're a man, that your handshake
speaks volumes. A firm
grip conveys confidence, whereas a weak
one says you are tentative.
- remember that body language is at least 55%
of all communication.
- have done your homework.
When Jesus stepped on stage, that is, when he
began his public ministry he made sure that he left the right impression of himself
and his ministry. We find this first impression of Jesus in John 2 where,
in vv. 1 - 11, we read:
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."
"Dear woman, why do you involve me?" Jesus
replied. "My time has not yet come."
His mother said to the servants, "Do whatever
he tells you."
Nearby stood six stone water jars, the kind used
by the Jews for ceremonial washing, each holding from twenty to thirty gallons.
Jesus said to the servants, "Fill the jars
with water"; so they filled them to the brim.
Then he told them, "Now draw some out and
take it to the master of the banquet."
They did so, 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."
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.
On the third day! Historically, John is
referring to the third day after Jesus left Judea. It was a two day walk
to Galilee, this means he and a handful of disciples would have arrived on the
morning of the third day. But on another level the third day was mentioned
because, after reflecting on matters for thirty to forty years, John saw that
it was loaded with significance. It was an allusion to the three days between
the crucifixion and the resurrection.
What this means for us is two things. First,
it tells us that Jesus walked on stage, that is he began his public ministry,
right on time. He didn't step into his public ministry too early, or too
late. He stepped on stage on the third day. Second, this is the first
hint of the significance of this initial miracle. In retrospect, we can
now see that this first miracle wasn't so much about the transformation of water
into wine and it was about the transformation of the mindset of those in attendance.
But, we're getting ahead of ourselves. The
occasion for this miracle is a wedding - a Middle Eastern wedding. In our
culture the bride is the prominent figure. When she enters those in attendance
stand while the organist or pianist plays "Here Comes the Bride." But
in Middle Eastern weddings the groom is the featured attraction and he pays for
the whole affair. If the wedding party goes on for two or three days, or
even a week, as some of them do, it becomes quite expensive.
At this particular wedding, for whatever reasons,
the wine stopped flowing. Either the bridegroom failed to take into account
the number of guest, which isn't likely, or he failed to adequately consider
their rate of consumption. Or maybe the party simply lasted longer
than he expected. Whatever the case, there came a time when the wine was
gone.1
Mary, who figures rather prominently in the story
said to Jesus, "They have no wine." She didn't ask him to do
anything. She simply informed him that the wine had ran out.
However, I suspect she expected him to do something
about it. For her comment is like one of us saying to someone who knows
how to make coffee, "We're about out of coffee." Or it would
be like Linda saying to me, "My car is low on gas." Both are
factual statements, but in context they are also request for action on someone's
part. In the case of Linda and myself, she is really saying "Would
you take my car down to the Chevron station and fill it up for me?" In
like manner, Mary, Jesus' mother, was asking him to do something about the fact
that the wine had ran out.
Jesus' reply shows that he clearly understood
that his mother was expecting him to do something. But to our Western ears,
his reply sounds rather abrupt, perhaps even harsh. In reality, Jesus simply
let his mother know that in the scheme of things, as they now stood, he was to
be guided solely by his Heavenly Father and not by family or circumstances. Furthermore,
his hour had not yet come. Perhaps, meaning that the time to show the world
why he had come at all had not yet arrived.2
His comments were cryptic and I suspect Mary didn't
understand what he was saying anymore than we do today. But, to her credit,
she trusted his judgment and told the servants to do whatever he requested of
them. What it tells us, from the standpoint of first impressions, is that
right up front Jesus let his mother know that the time had come to be about his
Father's business. As such he would not be a prisoner of how others expected
him to act in a particular situation.
Nevertheless, he wasn't insensitive to his mother's
implied request. So Jesus turned to the servants and pointed to six jars,
jars that held between 20 and 30 gallons each, and told them to fill the jars
with water. So they filled the jars to the brim and turned to him for further
instructions. He told them to draw some out and take it to the master
of the banquet.
There was no audible prayer, no laying on of hands,
no hocus-pocus, and Jesus didn't even touch the water. Nor did he sample
it to see if the miracle had indeed occurred. He simply asked the servants
to take a glass of it to the one in charge of the party.
There is an old story involving the German composer
Johannes Brahms who was invited to the home of a great wine connoisseur. After
dinner, the connoisseur had some of his choicest bottles brought up from the
cellar. He dusted off one cherished and well-aged bottle and carefully
dispensed a few ounces into the composer's glass. "I want you to know," the
host said as he poured, "that this is the finest bottle I own."
Brahms lifted the glass to the light, examined
its clarity, inhaled its fragrance, swirled it around, and then took a gulp sip.
The connoisseur waited for Brahms' comment - but
Brahms set the glass down without a word.
"That wine is the Brahms of my cellar," the
host added, intending to compliment both the wine and his distinguished guest. "How
do you like it?"
"You'd better bring out your Beethoven," Brahms
replied.
Here in John 2 Jesus took ordinary well-water
and transformed it into wine - not just any old wine but award-winning wine. Wine
worthy to be called the Brahms, Beethoven, and Bach of anyone's cellar. When
the master of the wedding party tasted it, thinking they had gotten down to
the dollar-a-gallon Muscatel, he tasted it again and again hardly able to believe
his taste buds.
He quickly called the bridegroom over, the one
who was footing the bill for everything, and said, in effect, "Usually,
people serve the good stuff first, while the guests still have enough wits
about them to actually taste it. But you have saved the best for last! Bravo!"
Note the bridegroom's response. He gave
no response, as least none is recorded, for he knew his best wine had already
been served and consumed. Even the not-so-good wine had been consumed. And
now, out of nowhere an even better wine than his "best" appeared. He
must have been bewildered by this turn of events, and yet he was smart enough
to keep his mouth shut and take credit for the best wine - at least for a few
minutes.
Now in terms of first impressions, on the servants
more so than anyone else, Jesus showed himself to be competent - competent
enough to be the real thing - the long awaited Messiah. But more than
showing that he was competent, he set the tone for his public ministry.3
Three factors in the final verse, v. 11, demand
our attention. First, we're told the miracle was a sign. That is,
it was intended to convey a truth that otherwise would not be known or to correct
a misunderstanding. Here, knowing that many had some preconceptions of
what the Messiah would do when he came, Jesus demonstrated what his public
ministry would be like in the days ahead. He would take the ordinary
and transform it into that which was extraordinary. He would turn our
anxieties into a joyous testimony of his power.
Second, this sign revealed his glory. In
the previous chapter we're told that his glory was to be found in grace and
truth. His grace is seen in the fact that he brought with him five guest
with no gifts in hand. So he seized upon the fact that there were six
stone jars waiting to be filled. So he had them filled with water and
transformed that water into award-winning wine. In doing so, he gave
the most generous gift of anyone at the wedding: the best wine - one jar for
each of his five guest, plus one for himself.
Third, in seeing this miracle his disciples
believed in Him. The disciples, believing he was the Messiah were already
following him, but after seeing the transformation of the water into wine they
believed more deeply than previously. In addition to the actual miracle,
they saw someone who could not only handle the twist and turns of life but
who enjoyed doing so.
You see, any religion which fails to express
itself in laughter, at some point, is clearly questionable. This is not
to say that those who believe in Christ are joyful because they are blind to
injustice and suffering, but because they are convinced that these matters,
in the light of divine sovereignty are never ultimate. They are convinced
that in the end all things in heaven and earth will be brought together under
Christ. Though you and I grieve, though we are often perplexed, we never
succumb to anxiety. Our joy, our laughter, is not a denial of our heartaches
or tears, but rather a way of affirming something which is deeper than the
sorrow and/or pain in our lives.4
Leslie Weatherhead said, "The opposite
of joy (laughter) is not sorrow. It is unbelief." After all,
it is not surprising that you and I as believers laugh and sing, for in Christ
we have good reason to laugh and sing. Sure, we understand darkness. We
probably understand it better than most in light of the fact that we believe
that Satan is real and is still active within our world. But we also
believe, and understand, that Satan has already been defeated in that the sting
of death has been removed by Christ Jesus - our Lord and Savior.5
1 In our class, on a Sunday morning, this would be like
us running out of coffee! To a few it wouldn't matter, but to most it
would be disastrous. As your teacher, I have often said that if there
is no coffee, then I'm not teaching. I've said it jokingly, but knowing
how cranky some can get without their coffee I'm semiserious about it.
2 I think his comments were designed to let Mary know that
he was no longer under her authority as much as he was under the authority
of his Heavenly Father. This doesn't mean he was insensitive to his mother
and that he wouldn't act. It meant that Act I was over, now was the time
for Act II.
3 It needs to be noted that the first half of chapter two
sets half the tone for his public ministry. The other half is set in
the latter half of chapter two where Jesus crashed the party and showed his
zeal for his Father's house. In the first half he kept the party going,
in the second half he disrupted the party by scattering those who had come
to make a few shekels during Passover.
4 Elton Trueblood, The Humor of Christ, Harper & Row,
Publishers, Incorporated, 49 East 33rd St., New York, NY, 1964, p.32.
5 Leslie Weatherhead, This is the Victory, Abingdon Press,
Nashville, TN, 1941, p. 171.
THE JOY OF LAUGHTER 10/15/06 1
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