John Chapter 2:11-15

It's an intriguing thing when you read the Word of God, how the Word of God deals with heresies hundreds and even thousands of years before they exist. And you see, this verse deals specifically with the present day heresy, if you will. And that's that there are other gospel accounts that aren't in your Bible.

You ever heard that? Well, the truth be told, there are what's referred to as Gnostic gospels. Why do I mention this?

Because these apocryphal gospels and also these Gnostic gospels mention other miracles of Jesus that he did at a younger age. And again, with that verse, this beginning of sons, that one verse totally rocks the boat on all these other so-called gospels. Welcome to Cross the Bridge with David McGee. David is the senior pastor of the bridge in Kernersville, North Carolina, and we're glad to have one of David McGee's associate pastors, D.A. Brown, here with us as Pastor David continues through the book of John. Bob, we can trust that the Bible is the Word of God.

One of the ways we can trust him is when we apply it to our life and we see the fruit. That confirmation encourages us in what Christ is doing in our life. Well, let's just jump in as David McGee helps explain why we believe that the Bible is the Word of God and makes a difference in our lives today as he continues through the Gospel of John, chapter 2. Turn with me to the Gospel of John, chapter 2, and we'll pick up about verse 11. We're at the wedding feast where Jesus has performed the miracle of turning the water into wine, and we'll pick it up at verse 11. This beginning of sons Jesus did in Cana of Galilee and manifested his glories, his glory, and his disciples believed in him. Now, this is interesting. It says this beginning of sons, if you're in the King James, it says this beginning of miracles.

Why is this interesting? It's an intriguing thing when you read the Word of God, how the Word of God deals with heresies. It deals with inaccuracies, hundreds, and even thousands of years before they exist. And you see, this verse deals specifically with the present day heresy, if you will. And that's that there are other Gospel accounts that aren't in your Bible.

You ever heard that? Well, the truth be told, there are what's referred to as Gnostic Gospels, but they've been rejected for a lot of reasons. It's not according to the lie of the Da Vinci Code that says they reject the deity of Jesus Christ. I don't see that in there. I've read these apocryphal Gospels and these Gnostic Gospels. I really don't. I did them in the way of study.

I don't really encourage you to do that. But there's just a lot of garbage in there, to be honest. There's historical inaccuracies. There's geographical inaccuracies.

And of course, there's spiritual inaccuracies. And the fact is they were written somewhere between 190 AD to 320 AD. So they were written hundreds of years after Jesus Christ. Now, where the other Gospels are written anywhere from 45 to 90 AD, which puts them in the same generation of Jesus Christ.

Now, why do I mention this? Because these apocryphal Gospels, and also these Gnostic Gospels, mention other miracles of Jesus that he did at a younger age. He did things according to these Gospels. Let's not even call them Gospels. These Gnostic stories, like he blew on a clay pigeon and it flew off. He didn't like a little boy he was playing with, so he struck him dead.

Now, correct me if I'm wrong. You know, looking at the nature of Jesus, I just don't see that in his nature. As a matter of fact, when James and John might even have had a legitimate reason to be upset, but they went too far. You remember they wanted to call fire down from heaven? And Jesus said, no, no, no, no, no.

So it seems inconsistent with the nature of Jesus to see him striking another little boy down dead, or blowing on clay pigeons for that matter. And again, with that verse, this beginning of signs, that one verse totally rocks the boat on all these other so-called Gospels, because they have miracles happening earlier in the life of Jesus. And here we have marriage. Now, I told you last week, the Lord really laid on my heart about being filled, and being filled to the brim last week, and I kind of put the marriage thing on hold until this week, but obviously God's blessing here is on marriage. It's a blessing on marriage. It's interesting that God's first miracle, the first miracle of Jesus in his earthly ministry was a blessing upon the marriage.

God's blessing is on marriage. Do you realize that? That's not something we came up with, guys. This is an institution that God ordained, that God orchestrated. So who gets to tell us about the details? God does.

We don't get to come up with we don't get to change them. So what did God say about marriage? It's real basic, real simple. It's a man and it's a wife. Okay, that's pretty complicated.

Let's review. It's a man and it's a wife. So guys, scripture is so clear on this, that to deny that scriptural truth shows that you have an agenda. You have an agenda not to obey the word of God and what you're believing, what you're saying is in conflict with the word of God. Now guys, to be honest, I understand if somebody doesn't know the Lord, I understand if somebody doesn't know the Bible, how they could be confused about some of these things. What I don't understand is people that call themselves teachers of the word of God who are confused about these things.

Guys, that's unacceptable. If you believe in same-sex marriages, state your case, but don't say that you believe in the Bible and you believe in same-sex marriages. I'm sorry, there's a contradiction there. That's interesting that Jesus does his first miracle at a marriage.

Why is that? Because you know what? Life lesson number one, marriage is a miracle and marriage takes a miracle. Amen.

Now, if you hadn't been married long, you know the first part, second part's coming. Because when you take two people who are by their nature fallen sinners and you put them in a relationship where they need to consider the other person more than themselves, man, you need a miracle. You need a miracle. And you know what? That takes God. And the awesome thing is God is willing to bestow that miracle on us.

I've seen it over and over. Marriages that people say, well, that's not going to work. Well, that's not going to work. Even Christians, oh, that'll never work. But God puts his hand on a relationship and does a miracle and changes, if you will, that water into wine. But it takes God. It takes God and not just yourself.

Now here's a trap that a lot of believers fall into. They think, well, I got to improve my marriage. I got to do this. I got to do that. I got to really focus on my marriage. God, please heal us. God, please fix us.

God, please put the pieces back together. You're focusing on the wrong thing. You can't focus on the marriage. You have to focus on the Lord because if you put your focus on something else, what just happened? You put something in front of God. That's idolatry, friend. I mean, the Bible is real clear about that. You have to focus on the Lord.

And you know what? I've seen time after time after time after time after time when people are willing to do that, when a man and a woman are willing to do that, the marriage becomes incredible as they focus on the Lord. But as they focus on the marriage, they're trusting their own strength and that becomes difficult. And if you're in here this morning and you know, this is one of those messages that makes your elbow sore because, you know, as I'm up here teaching elbows around the room, hey, hey, hey, listen. It's for you.

I'm glad you're in here. No, listen to me, family. Take this to heart because often what we think in our marriage, we think, oh, our spouse needs to change. But you can't change your spouse, can you? But you can allow the Holy Spirit to change you.

And you know what? You should be the first to change, especially, guy's gonna sting for just a second, especially if you're the leader of the home. See, we think of the leader of the home as we get all these really twisted notions. Y'all walk behind me five feet and single file and don't say anything. And the world goes, wow, that's submission?

No, that's a lot of things, but that's not submission. If you're the leader of the home, then you know what? Friend, lead. And often that will mean lead in repenting first. Lead in saying, I'm sorry, first.

Lead in the way that Jesus did and being willing to die. That's leadership in the marriage. Well, you're not married to my wife. You don't know her. She's all ornery and she's, oh, she's just mean. She's just mean. She says all these mean things and these hateful things and these spiteful things. Well, you know what?

She wasn't that way when God gave her to you. What did you do? Chances are, if you think back on your history and the relationship, you'll remember a couple, uh-oh, shouldn't have said that. Uh-oh, shouldn't have done that. And shortly thereafter, perhaps it got a little cynical. It got a little bitter.

A wonderful thing about that is you can repent and no forgiveness. When's the last time you told your spouse that you loved them? When's the last time you told your spouse how much you cared for them?

When's the last time you told your wife how beautiful she was without any sort of prompting on what the dress looked like or, you know. When's the last time you told your husband how much you love and respect them? When's the last time you prayed for your spouse? When's the last time you thank God for your spouse? When's the last time you will see your spouse and what will your words be? Guys, there's people sitting here who have lost their spouses, sometimes unexpectedly, and they would tell you to be careful with your words.

The Lord wants to equip us and strengthen us in our marriages. Well, I can't live sacrificially like that. You're right, you can't. But you know what? God can and desires to give you the strength to live this out.

It's an amazing thing. Are you willing to ask Him to do that? He's here this morning to restore relationships. Perhaps some of you are carrying burdens and brokenness and wounds from previous relationships, previous marriages. You're not doomed to repeat those things unless you try to carry them yourself. You can come to the Lord, ask Him to forgive you, and you know what?

He will. But if you want to act like there's no problem and you don't need any help, you're in trouble. You're in trouble. If somebody's been married over 17 years, let me assure you, trouble is coming if you think that.

Because we do need help. If you'll say, Lord, help me, fill me, turn my water to wine and mean it, He will do a miracle in your life and in your marriage. I promise you this. And if you're in here this morning, don't think, well, I like this young man or I like this young woman as long as they will change this, that, this, that, this, that, and I've got a little short list about three pages long.

Find somebody that loves the Lord. We'll be right back with more from David McGee on Cross the Bridge. Right now, here's a word from associate pastor D.A. Brown.

Hey, Bob. We want to take a minute to pray for our listeners in these cities. In California, we have Joshua Tree, Lake Isabella, Lakehead, Las Cruces, Laurel, Lompoc, and the San Jose area. God, we thank you for these cities. We pray for the leaders in these cities that you would give them wisdom and discernment. We pray that people would be following you with all their heart, all their soul, and all their strength.

And they'd be sharing with others the hope that they found in you. We pray that many would accept that offer of hope and eternal salvation, and that they would get plugged in Bible teaching churches, and they will begin to grow in their relationship with you and be a blessing to other people. In Jesus' name, amen. Amen. Thank you, brother. And now, let's get back to David McGee as he continues teaching verse by verse.

It's an interesting thing in Scripture. A lot of times, people find their spouses where? At the well. Oh, that's good.

I like that. Find them at the well. Now, guys, that doesn't mean that you come in here on—this is the well. The church, I believe, is the well, is the water springs.

But that doesn't mean you come in here and you're like, hey, hey. Don't be doing—wait on the Lord. Wait on the Lord. You see Adam waiting on the Lord.

You notice that? He was waiting on the Lord. Because there were a lot of animals around. Adam could have got confused.

You know, he could have—that orangutan is—boy, he's—but he waited. And when he was waiting, when he was resting, when he was asleep is when God did the miracle. You've got to rest.

If you get out of rest, you're going to get in trouble. Rest on the Lord. Rest in the Lord. And the Lord will do a work in this area.

A work in this area. Be careful about following your feelings. I want to say a couple more things because this is so important. Be careful about following your feelings. Follow your faith. Because if you follow your feelings, you're probably going to get in trouble. Because your feelings will mislead you. I can remember in times past, I just knew that I felt this, or I knew that I felt that.

Ended up I was wrong. But you can trust your faith. And see, in marriage, being called one is not a feeling. It's a physical, spiritual fact. And if you want to doubt something, don't doubt that. Doubt your feelings. It's always frustrating when I'm talking to people and they go, well, I just don't love them anymore.

Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. What twisted notion of love do you have? Love is not just a feeling. Oh, it can be.

But it's a fact. It's a commitment. In Mark chapter 10, verse eight and nine, it says, and the two shall become one flesh. So then they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore, what God has joined together, let not man separate. That includes the husband and the wife in the marriage.

Don't put distance between, is the inference in the Greek. Don't put distance between yourself and your wife. Jesus was invited to the wedding. Hopefully, hopefully you invited him to the wedding. Is he invited to the marriage?

Are you dependent upon him in that marital relationship? Be sure to encourage one another in your faith. Verse 12, after this, he went down the Capernaum, he and his mother, his brothers and his disciples, and they did not stay there many days. So there's no discord there. And Capernaum is still there.

Kefir Nahom. Verse 13, now the Passover of the Jews was at hand and Jesus went up to Jerusalem and he found in the temple, those who sold oxen and sheep and doves and the money changers doing business. And when he had made a whip of cords, he drove them all out of the temple with a sheep and the oxen and poured out the changers money and overturned the tables.

This is interesting. One thing that's interesting that I didn't see until I was really digging in these verses is the way 15 opens up. Verse 15, it says, when he had made a whip of cords, understand something, Jesus was sitting there watching them as he was making this whip. This wasn't done in a heated moment. He sat there watching them, doing the court, waiting. He didn't do it out of impulse.

He sat there with thought, with planning, probably praying, but also knowing what he had to do. These guys were ripping people off. They were ripping people off. And you know what? In all fairness, I think some ministries are dangerously close to this. Now understand a couple of things. These guys were set up in the court of the Gentiles. It's the outer court of the temple mount. And part of their job was to change money.

Why is that? Because the Roman coin of the day had an image of Caesar. Well, that was, they felt, and correctly so, that was idolatry.

You see, people believe that Caesar was God or was a God. And so in order to give to the temple, you couldn't give this coin with the image of Caesar. You had to exchange this money for a shekel that didn't have a man's image on it. And so they were at first providing a needed necessary service. And somewhere along the line, they thought, well, there's good money in this.

We'll change the money for a small fee. And then they actually began to make loans there in the court of the Gentiles. So understand, people would come to the temple curious about God, curious about the Lord, and this is what they would see. These money changers. And it upset Jesus.

That is so applicable today. You see, there are people that are interested in God. They're curious about God. And perhaps they're flipping around on the radio station.

Perhaps they're flicking channels with their TV remote. And what do we represent to them? Salvation?

Sometimes. But more often than not, we are begging for money and poor mouthing God. God doesn't need us to give away our money.

Got your attention then, didn't it? What God desires from us is for us to give away our selfishness, to give away our materialism, to remember Him with our firstfruits. But somewhere we've misrepresented this. And we misrepresent it often to those who are coming to check God out.

And I think it still makes Jesus angry. That's one of the reasons we don't pass a plate here. If you're here for the first time, you're still thinking, when do they pass a plate? We don't.

What do you do? There's boxes on the back. Do we believe that Christians should give? You betcha. And I've said it before, and I'll say it again. We would probably receive more tithes and offerings if we passed a plate. So guys, I'm putting the money where my mouth is.

But what I don't want to happen is for an unbeliever or somebody that doesn't know the Lord to come in here. And as the plate goes past once, twice, six times in some services, of them go, oh, well, see, it's all about the money, isn't it? No, it's not. It's all about Jesus. It's all about the Word. And if there's the chance that you will become confused by a plate going past you, let's drop the plate.

Let's not do the plate. Do ministries need finances to operate? Oh, you betcha. Oh, no doubt about it.

This ministry and this building and all that we got going on, boy, it takes a lot of finances. It takes a lot of faith. But I'm not going to manipulate somebody that's an unbeliever and leave them with a feeling that I was more interested in their pocketbook than in their soul. I don't want to give them that impression.

I'm interested in their heart. And you know what? If you think that God just wants 10% of your life and that's it, 10% of your finances, and you can skate along, man, you're missing the boat. He wants 10%.

He don't want 10%. He wants it all. He wants your heart. He wants your mind. He wants your soul.

He wants your life. As I read this story as a young Christian, it was interesting to me because you know the pictures they have of Jesus and He always is very, I don't know, He's very meek looking, isn't He? And I don't know, I've not seen a lot of carpenters that really look that way. And to be honest, some of those paintings, guys, they weren't painted by Matthew. Don't think these are actual paintings. These are renderings, if you will. Because some of those paintings, if I saw this guy with a cord in the temple, I wouldn't be freaked out in the least.

So maybe he looked a little different. And you know what? This radically upsets the apple cart of some people's view of Christianity, doesn't it? Oh, Christianity is just about getting along with everybody, about being nice. That's what Christianity is about.

Well, obviously not. Jesus sitting in there trying to get along with everybody. He's mad. He's upset. He's angered.

He's, we use the word, righteously indignant. We're told by Paul in Romans chapter 12 verse 18, he says, if it is possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men. Now, you know what I've decided? With some people, it's not possible. I want to live peaceably with all men, like Paul talks about here.

But you know what? I am not willing to sacrifice my peace with God in order to live peaceably with all men. And I don't think the Lord ever intends us to do that. You look at Matthew chapter 10, verse 34, Jesus says, do not think that I came to bring peace on earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword.

And you know, I often joke, when's the last time you saw that on a Christmas card? This is the words of Jesus. This is what Jesus said. And the reality is, is when you are living for the Lord, I mean, full gonzo, 24 seven living for God, it will put you at odds with some people.

Not intentionally. You don't have to go out of your way. Don't be mean and spiteful to show them what a radical Christian you are.

You don't need to do that. Some people think they need to do that. And they're very, they're rude. And we're told in first Corinthians 13, you're not supposed to be rude. You're supposed to love people.

But that doesn't mean always getting along with everybody. Because what I've found as a pastor, you can say some things in such a way that you can guarantee some people will get offended about it. But you can also put it in a way, back it with scripture in which way they won't be offended by how you say it. They may be offended by what you say. They may be offended by the word of God. Friend, do you know for sure that your sins have been forgiven?

You can know right now. I want to lead you in a short, simple prayer, simply telling God you're sorry and asking Him to help you to live for Him. Now, God wants you to pray this prayer so much that He died to give you the opportunity and the ability to ask Him to forgive you.

Please pray this prayer with me out loud right now. Dear Jesus, I believe you died for me, that I could be forgiven. And I believe you were raised from the dead, that I could have a new life. And I've done wrong things. I have sinned.

And I'm sorry. Please forgive me of all those things. Please give me the power to live for you all of my days. In Jesus' name.

Amen. Friend, if you prayed that prayer, according to the Bible, you've been forgiven. You've been born again. Jesus said He would not turn anybody away who comes to Him.

And He came for those people who knew they needed forgiveness, those who were sick, not the righteous. So congratulations, friend. You just made the greatest decision that you will ever make. God bless you. If you prayed that prayer with David for the first time, we'd love to hear from you. You can visit CrossTheBridge.com to receive our First Steps package with helpful resources to help you begin your walk with Christ.

Or you can write to Cross the Bridge at P.O. Box 12515, Winston-Salem, North Carolina, 27117, and share how God is working in your life. Well, D.A., before we go, what are some ways that we can bless our listeners? Each day you can wake up with encouragement from Pastor David through the Word of God, with his email devotional, life lessons to consider, a daily reading plan, and a thought to meditate on throughout your day from the heart of David McGee.

That sounds good, Pastor D.A., and again, it's been great to have you with us on the program today. But tell us, what else can our listeners find on CrossTheBridge.com? If you're not able to make it to your home church this Sunday, why not join us for our livestream at 10 a.m. Eastern Time, or on Thursday nights at 7 p.m. Eastern Time? Just visit CrossTheBridge.com and click on our livestream link. There, you'll experience a live service from David's home church, The Bridge, in North Carolina. Again, that website is CrossTheBridge.com. Thanks again for listening, and join us next time as David McGee continues teaching verse by verse in the Gospel of John.