Who Is Jesus? (John 2)

John 2: 1-11
I want to approach some questions that I have always had about this second chapter of John. Let me begin: Why did Jesus seem so detached from his mother? She appears in John’s gospel two times; once at the wedding at Cana and at the cross (19:26). Both times, Jesus refers to his mother as “Woman”. He then says to her in John 2, after her command to do something about the lack of wine, “Woman, what have you to do with me? “ “My hour has not yet come.” I think that this response can sound like Jesus was dismissive towards his mother. However, what we are hearing from Jesus is a reminder that he is not only the “son of this mother” but also the “Son of God”. In John 19, when John refers to his mother once again as “Woman” he is introducing her to her “new” son, the beloved disciple. Jesus challenges the typical understanding of family by reframing the family around God. He is also reminding us that we cannot dictate God’s timing. His “Hour”, his suffering and death was in God’s time.

My second question was, “Why is turning water into wine Jesus’ first ‘sign’ (miracle) in John’s Gospel and what does it mean?” The miracle connects the sign of an abundance of wine with the coming of the Messiah. According to Jacob’s blessing of his sons, a ruler was to come from the tribe of Judah and there would be an outpouring of wine – his robes would be washed by the “blood of the grapes” (Genesis 49:10-12). Several prophetic writings also speak of an outpouring of divine favor upon its ruler who will bring peace, comfort and God’s everlasting love (Isaiah 25: 6-8).

Jewish tradition associated the outpouring of wine with the coming of the Messiah. In addition, Jesus accepted Messianic titles from his disciples and followers. His identity is not confined to Jewish expectations. John is very clear that the Greeks would also grasp that the miraculous gift of wine reveals the presence of a god. Throughout the Mediterranean world, wine was associated with the Greek god Dionysus. He was credited with cultivating the first vine and fermenting its fruit. There is a record of a town named Andros which held a festival each year celebrating the gift of wine. The town had a spring that bubbled water, but every year on the festival of “Theodosia” (the gift of god), the water would turn to wine. Jesus’ turning water into wine at the wedding at Cana communicates the significance of Jesus’ Messiahship to the Jews and his divinity to the Gentiles.

The theme that I have lifted up is “Who is Jesus?” One underlying theme that underscores this issue is the relationship of Jesus’ identity to the culmination of his mission (his death and resurrection). When we think about the relationship between the body and blood of Jesus with the bread and the wine of communion, I find it intriguing that at the cross his death is marked by the separation of water and blood from his body. So the earthly reign of the Messiah begins with water becoming wine and the end of his earthly ministry is described by his blood and water having separated.

John 2: 13-25
Jesus then goes to Jerusalem for the Jewish Feast of the Passover and is angered by the merchants selling oxen, sheep and pigeons and money changers conducting their business inside of the Temple complex. As he chases out the merchants and overturns the tables of the moneychangers, he says, “Take these things away. You shall not make my Father’s house a house of trade.” The Jews who see this ask him “What sign do you have to show us for doing this?”, not recognizing or witnessing the sign that declared his Messianic identity at Cana.

As we continue we see more references that help us to identify who Jesus is. Some Jews expected the Messiah to come and purify Israel’s worship, thus appearing first in the Temple (Malachi 3:1). Others expected the Messiah to completely purge the whole city of Jerusalem, making it holy. When Jesus said “Destroy this Temple and in three days will raise it up” may have been familiar to some of the Jews. According to various sources, a new temple would be erected in Jerusalem in the new age of salvation. Jesus’ interchange with the crowd however, shows that he is not fully understood. People found Jesus words about raising a new temple difficult to believe. It had taken 46 years to construct the existing second temple.

Some questions to ponder:
1. Who is Jesus to you?
2. Why is his identity important for us as believers/followers?
3. What causes potential believers to become conflicted in their beliefs?
4. What does the Spirit have to do with confessing Jesus as Lord?

Through the Witness of Others
John 1: 35-51

John, the Author
In the beginning of the report of the Disciples, John, the author of this Gospel, goes somewhat unidentified. We assume that he is one of the two disciples that had studied with John the Baptist and when John points out Jesus, the Messiah, then these two (Andrew and John) follow him. The other of this twosome is identified as Andrew and in John’s Gospel, Andrew is responsible for telling his brother Simon (Peter) and inviting him to join them, to see the Messiah. The theme that we will pick up on here is that in John’s Gospel, the disciples are primarily the ones that are invited to see Jesus. In the Synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark and Luke) it is primarily Jesus who finds and calls the disciples.

The Disciples
John the Baptist points out the Messiah, Jesus to two of his disciples (Andrew and John) and they end up leaving John behind to follow Jesus. Andrew tells his brother; Simon (Peter) that they have found the Messiah and Simon Peter ends up following him too. The next day Jesus finds Philip and calls him to follow. This is the only disciple in John’s Gospel that Jesus will find and call. Philip then found Nathaniel and tells him that they have found the Messiah – Jesus of Nazareth. Nathaniel’s response is honest and cutting, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” Nazareth did not have a stellar reputation among the Jewish population and it seemed unlikely that there would be good things coming from this town. Just as it was unusual to speak of a crucified Messiah, so too would it be unusual for the Messiah to come from Nazareth. What Nathaniel didn’t know was Jesus was born in Bethlehem, not Nazareth. He grew up in Nazareth so the assumption that Nathaniel made was that Nazareth was also his birth town. Jesus notes that Nathaniel’s comment underscores that he speaks his mind and he does not seem interested in impressing Jesus with flowery accolades. In him, Jesus found no deceit or duplicity. In our vernacular today, we would say that Nathaniel was singularly honest. What you see is what you get. Wondering how Jesus could make such a statement without knowing him, Jesus responds by telling him that he had seen him earlier under the fig tree. Why would Jesus have noticed Nathaniel under the fig tree? Sitting under the fig tree was a traditional place to study the Torah. Jesus, the attentive Rabbi would have noticed such a student.

Here are some notes from the first half of chapter one. Please share your insights, questions and perspectives from this reading. I look forward to hearing from you.

The Gospel of John
Chapter One
In the Beginning (vv. 1-5)
“In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God.”
· By sharing the same introduction as Genesis 1, “In the beginning”, John expresses the continuity between the Hebrew Scriptures (Old Testament) and the Christian writings (New Testament).
· Just as God creates the universe by speaking it into creation (Genesis 1:1 – 2:4a) so God continues the creative process through God’s Son, who is with God and who is God (John 1: 1-5).
· Jesus, the Messiah, is the Word and the Word is with God and always has been God. Nothing in this world can exist without it originating with God and the Messiah (the Word).

John the Baptist (vv. 6-8)
· There had been some confusion about the role of John the Baptist in contrast to the role of Jesus, the Messiah. Historically in Israel, Teachers, Prophets and Rabbis were referred to as “lights” or “lamps”. They instructed people by their teachings. John was sent to bear witness to the Light (the Messiah). However, John is referred to as a light as well (John 5:35). The distinction is seen in verse 9 where Jesus is referred to as “the true light”. This doesn’t mean that John was a false light, but that his light was of a different quality than Jesus’ light. John’s light was not the true brilliant light of the Messiah but it was a light, nonetheless.

The True Light (vv. 9-18)
· The “Light” or “Lamp” enlightened those who learned from them - teachers of the Law. In Israel, the Rabbis and Teachers guided people to conform to the Law or Torah which was their enlightening. Enlightenment here is not a philosophical understanding as much as it was a practice of obedience to God’s teachings. The uniqueness of Jesus the Messiah is that he brings enlightenment not by conformity to the Law but by faith in Jesus as the Messiah which is grace and truth (v.17).

John the Baptist and Jesus (vv. 19-34)
· The distinction between these two continues here. John is not the agent of revelation – the Spirit is. John sees the Spirit come and remain on Jesus and he testifies to it (v.33).
· The descent of the Spirit upon Jesus marks him as God’s anointed.
· John baptizes with water for the repentance of sins, but Jesus baptized with water and the Spirit for the gift of faith. Jesus can baptize with the Spirit because the Spirit is upon him and remains with him (v.33). This means that the Spirit has a continuing relationship with Jesus. In I Samuel 10:10 the Spirit anoints Saul. In I Samuel 16:13-14 the Spirit anoints David. In 2 Samuel 7:14, David’s son (offspring) is called God’s son and the anointed.
· The Anointed is the literal translation of Messiah. So, Jesus is referred to as the Anointed – the Messiah.
· Just as God breathed on Adam in Genesis 2:7, so Jesus gives his Spirit to his disciples, after Easter, by breathing on them.

God's Easter Blessings on your reading!

Pastor Steve

Have you ever read through the Bible? Our (Hebrew-Christian) Scriptures have so much to share about who God is and how we are to live in this world. Beginning the week of Monday, April 13 I will lead a reading through the Gospel of John. We will read through 2-3 chapters a week and I will share some thoughts about the readings. I invite your questions, insights and comments as we get closer to God's Spirit through reading and reflecting on the Scriptures.