John 2:18-25 The sign of the Temple

John 2:18-22 The Jews asked Him for a sign, by which He did this (cleansing the Temple). His response was the prophetic word that the sign would be His resurrection from the dead in three days. He spoke in prophetic language which the Jews clearly did not understand (nor probably did the disciples until it happened). Later Jesus cited the example of Jonah 1:17 as regards His resurrection after three days. (Matthew 12:40). But this prophecy of His resurrection, using the Temple as a type of His body, was used later as one of the charges brought against Him in the trial before the high priest. (Matt 26:61, Mark 14:58) The interesting thing is that in the Mosaic law, it was the tabernacle in the wilderness that was a type of Christ. By extension, perhaps, the Temple assumed this place, even though it was not a tent and could not represent God tabernacling among mankind as in a tent, but it was a somewhat permanent structure. But not that permanent - it would be destroyed in 70 AD by Titus and the Roman army; what man regards as permanent is not necessarily permanent in God's economy - see Hebrews 12:26-28.

           Finally, this prophecy was used by by the priests and Pharisees as a basis for asking for a guard to be placed on the tomb. (Matt 27:62-64)

John 2:23-25 Jesus apparently did other signs at this time, although John did not record them. (John 21:25)  Enough that many believed in Him. But Jesus did not trust people because He knew that the heart of man is intrinsically untrustworthy, and would remain so until the plan of redemption was completed. And He also knew that in the end, it would be priests and Pharisees who would put Him on trial and ultimately have Him executed.

John 2:11-17 The first temple-cleansing

John 2:11-12 Jesus' disciples were impressed. Although Nathanael had previously been impressed by Jesus' knowledge of his whereabouts, the other disciples, who had only been with him a few days, believed in Him when they saw this miracle. They had previously testified that He was the Messiah (John 1:41,45,49) they now understood the power of God incarnate in the flesh. He was not just another Judas Maccabeus.

          Jesus and His disciples went from Cana to Capernaum for a few days. A hike of slightly less than 30 km, mostly downhill. What did Jesus and the disciples do during those days? John does not say.  One suspects that John the apostle must have either already been part of His traveling company, or else he was called at this point, since he was a fisherman not far from Capernaum, as Mark 1:19-21 suggests. John may have already been part of the company since he gives what appears to be an eyewitness account to the miracle at the wedding in Cana. But he is very sketchy on autobiographical information because he is writing about Jesus, not himself.

John 2:13-17 Jesus and His disciples went up to Jerusalem to observe the Passover. Luke 2:41-42 records that Jesus went up to Jerusalem to observe Passover with His parents as a child, so this must have been customary. Except that in this case, since He had begun His ministry, things took a different turn. The gospels record two apparently separate occasions on which Jesus drove the money-changers out of the temple. This marked the beginning of His public ministry, the other event occurred just prior to the Passion, and is recorded in Matt 21:12-13, Mark 11:15-16, and Luke 19:45-46. On this occasion His words are very specific: You! Take these things hence! Do not be making My Father's home a store!

          What was He so incensed about? The Mosaic law had given specific instructions for the tabernacle in the desert. There was no provision for setting up vendors to provide currency exchange or selling sacrificial animals. Of course, in the desert Israelites would have had no need of such things since they were essentially shepherds and all of one tribe. But in the cosmopolitan world of the Roman Empire, in which Jews had been dispersed to the entire known world, and in which many people had other trades, some means needed to be provided in order for these people to be able to make the designated offerings. What seems to have offended Jesus is that these merchants had set up shop on the Temple grounds. That is, the world system of things that are needed to survive and function in the world are what they are, but His Father's house was to be set apart from the world. They should have set up shop outside the Temple, not within it. At the second cleansing, Jesus said that His house was to be a house of prayer, but they had made it into a cave of plunderers. (Luke 19:46)

          There is a specific message for our lives in this. The message is not that we need to separate the life of faith from the life in the world. To compartment our lives would make us schizophrenic as regards important decisions, or even the day to day activities of life. The lesson is that influence should flow the other way. The world should not be influencing the way we worship and the way we approach God. Rather, our worship of God and our interactions with Him should influence the way we do things in the world. God is building His kingdom on earth. We participate in His kingdom-building to the extent that we do what He says to do,in the world, not just in His house.

          The disciples at some point (then or later) remembered the prophetic verse in Psalm 69:9. John recorded that they understood that verse to apply to this situation. (John 2:17)  Psalm 69 is a prayer to YHWH to save the afflicted from his adversaries. Aspects of it are prophetic of the crucifixion, as for example Psalm 69:21 was fulfilled in Matthew 27:34. More generally, how many martyrs have suffered because of their faithfulness, their zeal for the one true God? And certainly, this must have angered the priests, scribes, and Pharisees either because they had approved the arrangement and felt some degree of conviction because they knew it was not right, or perhaps because they profited from it. And so Jesus' zeal for His Father's house was one of the steps that led to His enemies ultimately having Him arrested and executed.

John 2:1-10 He turned the water into wine

John 2:1-2 John's narrative gives a time sequence of days, that these events happened in a very short order. John the Baptist had a discussion with the emissaries of the Jews. (John 1:19) The next day, Jesus came to John the Baptist. (John 1:29). The same day, John's disciples left him and began to follow Jesus. (John 1:35) The day after that, Jesus and His disciples went to Galilee (John 1:43). On the third day, Jesus and his disciples were invited to a wedding with Mary, the mother of Jesus (John 2:1-2). Actually, Mary may have had a role in the wedding because the text does not say she was invited, it says she was there; and Mary gave instructions to the servants (John 2:5). This may explain the invitation to Jesus and His disciples. Perhaps it was a relative or a friend of the family who also knew Jesus fairly well. Mere speculation.

John 2:3-10 In Jesus' first miracle, He provides for something that is not a basic human need, but a shortcoming in the preparations for a celebration of a wedding. Jesus' initial response to Mary is puzzling, because it seems to imply that it was not yet the appropriate time for Him to begin His ministry of works of power. But, because of the faith implicit in Mary's directions to the servants, Jesus honored His mother's request. Later on, Jesus indicated that He only did what He saw the Father doing (John 5:19). Hence, we can infer that the Father also chose to do this miracle, even though Jesus had previously said His hour had not yet come. The faith that says to do whatever Jesus says to do is the faith that is prepared to accept the outcome, whatever God chooses, so long as we trust the situation into His hand. And then we do our part - whatever He says.

          The water vessels for purification were based on Jewish custom which was based on the Mosaic ceremonial law for purification. Numbers 8:7 prescribes water of purification for the Levites, to be presented before God as His. Numbers 19 gives instruction for water of purification in two circumstances: when a red heifer is offered; and when a person dies in a tent.  However, none of these commands relate to purification in connection with marriage. So why did they have all of these waterpots containing a lot of water for purification

          In this miracle, what is the significance of turning water into wine? There are several places where the unfortunate tendency to drink wine to excess is either illustrated or forwned upon. In Genesis 9, Noah drank to excess and was shamefully exposed. In Genesis 19, Lot's daughters get him drunk and then lie with him in order to have children. In Lev 10:9 wine is forbidden to priests who will enter the Lord's presence. Numbers 6:3 forbids wine to anyone making the Nazirite vow. Proverbs has several specific admonitions about the dangers of excess consumption of wine (20:1, 21:17, 23:20, 23:30-31, 31:4-6). Isaiah 5 lists a number of woes, three of which relate to excess consumption of wine. Isaiah 56:12 links excess consumption of wine to a lifestyle that is not approved. Jeremiah 35 lauds the decision of the Rechabites who followed a vow to drink no wine. Daniel 5 relates a drunken feast at which Belshazzar defiles the articles from the Jewish temple, and is judged and killed the same night. In Ephesians 5:18 Paul commands believers not to be drunk with wine to excess. I Timothy 3:3 and Titus 1:7 say that the overseer must not be given to excess of wine.

          What is interesting is that all of these passages must be weighed against innumerable other passages in the Old Testament in which wine is one of the crops whose abundance is promised as part of God's blessing (Gen. 27:28 for example). It seems to be a common challenge across the ages to live with wine as a fact of life and its consumption as normal, and not fall into the habit or practice of excess. And this is not unique to the consumption of alcohol.  Other examples of items for which maintaining balance of a lawful thing is a challenge include money, sex, and power. In fact, life is full of things that used properly and in the context of God's intended purpose bring tremendous blessing, but that taken out of context or blown out of proportion become a curse. A very human and easy response is to shun whatever we have seen abused - becoming a teetotaler, taking a  vow of poverty and/or chastity, refusing to accept God-appointed relationships of authority and responsibility. But in fact, money used properly can greatly build God's kingdom. Sexuality in the context of marriage and properly exercised brings not only children but also joy in marriage. Authority and responsibility in God's kingdom are spelled out in considerable detail in many of Paul's epistles, and properly exercised bring growth and wholeness to God's people individually and in community.

          In the case of wine, we also see that it is sometimes used as a type of aspects of God. This is especially noted on the day of Pentecost when witnesses attributed the behavior of the disciples when under the influence of the Holy Spirit to them being full of sweet wine. (Acts 2:13) And, of course, during the last supper, Jesus raised the cup and said that the cup was the covenant in His blood which was shed for them.

          The bottom line on this miracle is that Jesus seemed to be almost a facilitator of the consumption of a significant amount of wine. There were very large water vessels. And according to the headwaiter, the wine He created was very good. So perhaps the lesson here is not that we need to become connoisseurs of physical wine and seek out the best brands. Rather, the lesson seems to me that we need to seek the things of God that wine represents, which are good and perfect gifts. (Ephesians 5:18) The consumption of physical wine should be in its proper place and proportion, in moderation, in conjunction with celebrations of God's goodness. There are some people for whom consumption in moderation is simply unattainable, and they become addicts ... to alcohol, drugs, sex, etc. For these specific people, complete abstention would be advised. The advice of Paul in Romans 14:21 suggests that under these circumstances, others around the weaker brother should also abstain, for his sake.

          Although God has given good gifts in food and drink, He has kept the best for last, when Jesus has been revealed and has shed His blood for our sins and sent the Holy Spirit to indwell us.

John 1:43-51 Disciples and apostles

John 1:43-51 The next day Jesus left the vicinity of where John was baptizing and went to the region of Galilee. Since we know from the other gospels that Andrew and Simon were fishermen in Galilee, we might infer they traveled with Him. Or perhaps He even went with them at their request. Jesus finds Philip, who then finds his brother Nathanael. When Philip announces that he has found the Messiah who was promised by the prophets, and mentions that He is from Nazareth, the son of Joseph, Nathanael's immediate comment seems to be, "How can this be?" Nazareth had a reputation. It wasn't that Messiah was supposed to come from Bethlehem and be of David's seed that caused Nathanael's doubts, it was the reputation of Nazareth. How could something good come out of Nazareth?

          The Old Testament is replete with the stories of people who came out of the most humble or oppressive circumstances to be mighty workers for God. We must be careful not to think that God can't possibly work in any given set of circumstances. God deals with every person's heart, and their response, although it may be colored by their surroundings, is ultimately the condition that matters to God.

          Jesus' response to Nathanael's comment is telling. Nathanael openly expressed his misgivings about anything coming out of Nazareth. No dissimulation or false fronts. He called it as he saw it. Jesus complimented him on being forthright. The conversation continues. Nathanael asks Jesus how He could know him. Jesus gives a prophetic word - that Philip had met Nathanael under the fig tree, but that He (Jesus) knew him before that. Nathanael is stirred to realize that indeed, Jesus is God's anointed one, and says so. Jesus responds that if he believed because of this simple revelation, he will see much greater things, including angels ascending and descending on Him, Jesus, the son of man. This appears to be an allusion to Jacob's dream (Genesis 28:12). Unfortunately the fulfillment of this promise is not recorded in scripture. In fact, the only other reference to Nathanael is in John 21:1, in which he went fishing with the other apostles after Jesus' resurrection. So we only know that Nathanael remained a disciple of Jesus throughout and after His ministry. He is not named as one of the twelve apostles in Luke 6:13-16, unless he was named with a new name as Simon Peter was.

          What is the difference between a disciple and an apostle? The Greek word for disciple, mathetos, implies a learner. The Greek word for apostle, apostolos, which has been transliterated into English, means one who is sent. Although we often colloquially refer to the twelve disciples, it appears that there were many others who followed Jesus at one time or another and learned from Him. But He called twelve that He named as apostles, who ultimately (less Judas) became the nucleus of the church. But it is clear from Acts 1:21-23 that both Matthias and Joseph called Barsabbas had been with Jesus throughout His ministry.

          Obviously, in the Acts, and subsequent church history, it is not possible for people to have physically been with Jesus as a preparation for ministry or leadership in God's kingdom. But the conditions for leadership, as for example being an elder, are spelled out in I Timothy 3 and Titus 1:7-9. These conditions imply a lifestyle of discipleship, in the sense that in order to be qualified for a leadership position, a person must exhibit characteristics that show they not only have learned what Jesus taught, but have actually applied themselves to practice His teachings. In other words, they have changed their lifestyle through the practice of self-discipline and any other exercises that cause their psychological makeup to be conformed to His teachings. On the other hand, the apostles or the sent ones are called by Jesus to go. Besides the twelve that Jesus originally called (Luke 6:13-16), it is clear that Paul was also called (as he states in the first verse of most of his epistles) and sent, because Luke refers to him in Acts 14:14 as an apostle along with Barnabas, and Acts 9:15 records the actual words that The Lord told Ananias about Saul being sent. Others are mentioned as apostles; besides Barnabas (Acts 14:14), Andronicus and Junias (Romans 16:7), and Jesus Himself is referred to as the Apostle (Hebrews 3:1).

          The key point of this passage is that the earliest followers of Jesus were so immediately aware of who He was that they followed Him. And they went right away and told those close to them who were also sincerely seeking God that Messiah had come. They became disciples and from this group of disciples, some became apostles. We speak of "the twelve" but it is clear that the twelve Jesus called and named as apostles were by no means His only followers. He made a call to each individual person based on His own judgment of their proper place in the kingdom of God. He calls everyone similarly - to a unique place in His kingdom. This is symbolized elsewhere (I Cor 12:14-30, I Cor 3:16, 2 Cor 6:16, Rev 3:12)

John 1:35-42 The first disciples

John 1:35-42 The first thing that happens after John testifies that Jesus is the Lamb of God is that two of his own disciples leave him to follow Jesus. One of these is Andrew, who immediately goes to find his brother Simon and tell him that Messiah has come! He brings Simon to Jesus who immediately gives him a new name, Cephas or Peter, which means in English, rock or stone. John the apostle is very careful here to provide translations for the reader between Aramaic and Greek. Messiah in Hebrew is translated as Christ in Greek which means 'the anointed one'. In Jewish culture they had been waiting for the promised Messiah for centuries. In the Greek New Testament the word has a more generic meeting, especially as appears in reference to the latter times (Matthew 24:24, Mark 13:22) as a reference to false Christs. Rabbi is the Hebrew word which is translated as teacher (Greek didaskale).

          John the apostle apparently felt it necessary to explain that Andrew was the brother of Simon Peter. Perhaps this is because although Andrew is mentioned several times in the gospels, he is only mentioned once in the book of the Acts, so his role was obviously eclipsed by his brother by the time that John wrote the gospel.

          In Matthew 4:18 and Mark 1:16 we find that Jesus found Simon and Andrew fishing on the Sea of Galilee and called them to follow Him. Since John records that Andrew and Simon met Jesus as a direct result of Jesus' baptism and John the Baptist's identification of Him as the Lamb of God, Jesus' call to them beside the Sea of Galilee must have been later. And Luke 6:12 records that Jesus spent the whole night in prayer before He actually named His twelve apostles. (Luke 6:13-16) So there was a progressive development of the relationship between Jesus and Simon and Andrew. It appears that they followed Him and spent time with Him, but there were also apparently others who hung out with Him, some of whom He did not name as apostles. The progression begins with an invitation to spend some time, followed by a call to follow Him and become disciples (students, learners), followed by a subsequent call to a subset of those who were His pupils to become 'sent ones', or apostles.

          John records here the very first introduction of Simon Peter to Jesus, through the agency of his brother Andrew. 

John 1:29-34 John 's testimony

John 1:29-34 The next day, after John had discussed his ministry with the priests and Levites, Jesus arrives and John recognizes Him. One would think that because they were relatives (as revealed in Luke 1:36) John would have known Jesus. But perhaps he did not recognize until this event that Jesus was in fact the Messiah. It seems odd in view of all that is recorded in Luke 1 that John's mother Elizabeth hailed Mary as the mother of her Savior. Surely she would have shared with John during his childhood. And yet, perhaps John didn't really accept that until he saw the Holy Spirit descending in bodily form, as a dove, on John. The gospel of John does not actually record Jesus' baptism. The key action recorded in this gospel is that John the Baptist identifies Jesus as the Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world; and that the one who commissioned him to baptize people in water had told him that the one on whom the Holy Spirit descended in bodily form and remained is the One who will baptize with the Holy Spirit. John alludes to the Passover Lamb that was first introduced in Exodus 12, that was a foreshadowing of Jesus who has now arrived as the fulfillment of that prophetic type. Except that in the Jewish Passover, a lamb was to be offered for a family. Jesus had come to be offered to take away the sin of the whole world. The statement that Jesus would baptize in the Holy Spirit is also recorded in Luke 3:16. This was to contrast with the water baptism of John. As Luke 3:16 records, the Holy Spirit baptism would be a baptism of fire, not of water.

          John the Baptist closes his testimony with his summary statement that he has borne witness that Jesus is the Son of God. 

John 1:15-28 John, the Messiah's herald

John 1:15-18 John the apostle, whose view of Christ was expressed in verse 14, appears to shift to reporting the viewpoint of John the Baptist. In verse 15, John the Baptist says that even though Jesus started His ministry after he (John) did, He has precedence because He existed before him. John the Baptist was born six months before Jesus was born, but Jesus existed from all eternity and John recognized this. But it appears that JTB went on to explain that it wasn't merely the pre-existence of Jesus that made Him preeminent, but also the fullness of grace and truth that He imparted to His followers. Since John the apostle made a similar statement in verse 14, we might wonder if the two viewpoints are conflated in John the apostle's record. However, John the apostle does not appear to be confused and so I think we should infer that John the apostle is making the point that they are in complete agreement on this point. Out of the mouth of two or three witnesses a matter is confirmed.

          The final verse in this section could have been attributed to either John. I will leave it to Greek language specialists to opine on whom this should be attributed to. The simple statement is that despite all that is recorded in the Old Testament, no one has actually seen God. Jesus, the only begotten Son, has revealed Him. In view of the various visions and appearances in the Old Testament, the implication is that it is not a physical or graphical representation of God's presence that truly reveals Him. It is the revelation of His heart, His nature and character. These were revealed through the presence and actions of Jesus on the earth. The essence of God is not thrones and glory and angelic worship. These attributes of God are consequences of His essence, which was described above by both Johns. Jesus, the incarnate Word of God, revealed God's true essence.

John 1:19-28 John describes an extended discussion between John the Baptist and the priests and Levites who had been sent by the Pharisees, about who he is and what his ministry consisted of. John said that he was not the Messiah, and furthermore he was not one of the promised coming prophets, either Elijah (Malachi 4:5) or the promised messenger (Malachi 3:1). Since the Romans had conquered the Greeks and now ruled over Judea, the Jews were hoping for another deliverer on the order of Judas Maccabaeus. They interpreted the promised Messiah of Old Testament scriptures as another king, perhaps on the order of David, who would lead Israel's armies to victory over the infidels and establish the Messianic kingdom. John the Baptist knew that was not his calling. However, his response to the questions about being either Elijah or the promised prophet was to quote Isaiah 40:3 to the effect this God had called him to cry out in the wilderness to make the path of The Lord straight. In the passage of Isaiah that John quoted, the very next verses state that the glory of YHWH will be revealed and all flesh will see it. This is John explicitly and unambiguously announcing the coming of Messiah, and that he is not that Messiah, but he is announcing His arrival.

          The priests and Levites asked why he baptized. John's response was perhaps a bit hard for them to understand. He did not directly answer the question, but told them that there was among them, unrecognized, one who was far greater than himself. In other words, a continuation of the fulfillment of the promise made by God through Isaiah.