The Healing Word

Guest (Male): The healing word ministry on one place is brought to you by the generous donations of people like you. At any time during today's message, feel free to send a prayer request or make a donation using the links provided. Now I pray you will be blessed as pastor Jack Morris delivers a message from the word of God that will encourage and strengthen your faith in him.

Pastor Jack Morris: Where do you need Jesus to bring his glory to bear? He needs to bring his glory to bear upon something in your life. Where is it?

Guest (Male): Welcome to the healing word. Today pastor Jack Morris takes us to John chapter two where we witness the very first recorded miracle of Jesus turning water into wine at a wedding in Cana. More than just a remarkable act, this moment marked the beginning of Jesus's public ministry and revealed his divine nature. It was a sign that he was no ordinary man but God in the flesh sent to bring transformation to every part of our lives.

Pastor Jack Morris: Two words that can change your life. My grandchildren, I have three grandchildren. They call me pop pop. I don't know exactly how that started but I like it and I enjoy it and I like to hear it. Uh sometime ago Bob and Cretha Hill were on vacation and they bought a couple of t-shirts for themselves and it says pop pop and mom mom. That's what their grandchildren call them. So they went right ahead and bought pop pop shirt for me and a pop pop and a mom mom shirt for a Korean. Yesterday was the first day to talk with my granddaughter since I returned from Asia and the five-year-old Samantha was inquisitive.

She was wondering pop pop what were you doing over there? And I said I was telling them about Jesus. She said you were telling them about Jesus. I said yes Samantha like when you're in Sunday school and your teacher tells you about Jesus. I told them about Jesus. Now I was talking to them on to a very small child and I couldn't elaborate. I had to make a an impression and make it relevant to her. She said you were telling them about Jesus? I said yes. She said I bet they said wow. You know I hear the stories of Jesus and particularly the story I'm going to tell you this morning and I read that story and when I read that story I say wow.

Jesus turned water into wine. Wow. That's amazing. This story of our dear savior. Two words. Two words and oh I pray today I have been praying and I pray that you will hear with your heart today these two words because I am convinced with all my heart without any doubt remaining that these two words coming out of your heart with meaning will absolutely change your life completely. They really will. I want you to take your bulletin. I have an outline there for you. Follow along. Hear these words today. Hear this story again. Hear it again for the very first time.

Come away saying wow. Jesus is great. Jesus is wonderful. In Matthew chapter nine verse 17 Jesus spoke of new wine in old wine skins. They would take the fruit of the vine and put it in a wine skin. This is a a goat skin and when the wine would ferment and expand the skins would expand with it. But if they took new wine and put it in an old wine skin that had grown hard and calloused and rigid when the wine fermented and began to expand it would break the skin and it would spill out because the skin wouldn't wouldn't expand with it.

So what Jesus is saying I've given you new life and I put new life in you and you're going to grow and expand in this new life. You're not going to forever remain small. I'm going to enlarge your borders. I'm going to enlarge your life. I'm going to do something blessed and wonderful. But you've got to give me the opportunity to do it is what Jesus is saying. There's something that you have to do and then he'll do his thing. This is what he's telling us here in this beautiful story. Okay look at verse three.

Let's let's go through the John chapter two verse three. When the wine was gone, Jesus's mother said to him, they have no wine. They have no more wine. Now they they had some but it ran out. You know they just it just was gone. Now what we're being told here that some people have just they just run out of gas so to speak. They're they're not moving. Their life isn't going. You're parked along the highway somewhere. Maybe parked in a church pew. But you're not growing and God wants you to go forward and reach your goals.

You see God's for you. God's for his people. He's on the side of those who will believe and they have no more wine. Now why she went to Jesus I'm not sure. Uh well I think I am as as I go on and read the story but at this moment if I'm reading it for the first time I'm not quite sure but this was no doubt a family matter. Why would Mary get involved? Well this she may have been the aunt of the bridegroom or or the um or the bride but she was a family member to involve herself in this matter.

So this was very serious and this was her family and she didn't want her family to be embarrassed and so also a relative of Jesus an earthly relative and she goes to him and she says they have no more wine. You see there's a there's a lack. There's emptiness. There's a shortcoming. What do you do when that happens? You go to Jesus. Do you hear? When you run out, you go to Jesus. When are we going to learn that? She went to Jesus. That's the smartest thing in all the world for somebody to do. I mean when you're down, when you're discouraged, when there's a death, when there's a hurt, when there's something you don't understand, go to Jesus.

Wherever there is a lack and emptiness, you go to Jesus and all she said was they have no more wine. What did Jesus say? Come on tell me verse four. Dear woman, why do you involve me? Jesus replied, my time has no dear woman. Now he wasn't being abrupt at all. We we have a hard time today understanding the way people would talk and uh express themselves in that ancient world but he gave her a high place of honor. This was a polite way to speak to his mother. Matter of fact when he was on the cross and he spoke to his mother from the cross he called her woman.

This was a putting her in a place of of rank. I'm your son. I recognize you as the author of my life, my physical life. So he was honoring her greatly and then he says to her my time has not yet come. What what was he saying? Uh in the authorized version it says my hour has not yet come. He was talking about the cross. He came for the cross. This is the purpose he came and he was directing everything he did. He's telling her now don't stop at this miracle. This is just a miracle that's going to be the first of many miracles but the big miracle is Calvary.

That's my time. I didn't come just to turn water into wine today. I came to take your sins at Calvary and every time he talked, every miracle he performed, everything he did he kept pointing to Calvary, pointing to Calvary. Look at Calvary. Look at Calvary. You see a lot of us today we're we're so anxious to have our prayers answered and he wants to answer our prayers but the thing we need to do is to keep our eyes on the cross, keep our eyes on Calvary and know that he came to forgive our sins not just to turn water into wine.

He came to do that also but the big miracle is your salvation and my salvation. My hour has not yet come. He's talking about a particular hour that is yet to come. I'm going to do something great now but the great one is coming. The great hour is coming. Okay let's let's go on. Look at verse verse five. Jesus said, dear woman verse four, why do you involve me? Jesus replied my hour is not come. His mother verse five said to his servants, read it with me now, do whatever he tells you. In the authorized version which I like it just a little bit better it says whatsoever he says do it.

Say it again do it. Whatsoever he says say it. Whatsoever he say do it. You know what she did? Basically she turned to those people she didn't even enter it. She couldn't fully understand what Jesus was doing, even what Jesus was saying but she turned to those people at the water pot and she says stand ready. Stand ready. How many have you come here today expecting God to do something new for you? Oh my. Well I can guarantee he's going to do it. He may have already done it. But when we come to church we come to church on tiptoe.

We come to church we're we're at attention. We're standing ready. We're going to meet heaven today. Heaven is coming down. Something beautiful and wonderful is going to happen. I I would love for you to come through that line. I'm not going to ask you to do it because I certainly don't have the time but each one of you come through that line and say pastor this is what happened to me today in the service. Some people combine this stop what happened to you today? But God wants to pour new wine into you, new life into you and me and do something beautiful and just extraordinary today.

I don't know what it is but I know it'll be great and I know it'll be wonderful what he's going to do. So she said whatever he tells you, whatsoever he tells you, whatsoever he tells you. Friend are you listening to what Jesus is telling you to do? If you'll just do it you'll become a born-again creature. Old things will pass away and all things will become new. That dull, flat, insipid life Jesus will make it sparkle with new wine. This is what he'll do when we do what he tells us to do and we need to be aware and be conscious and have ears to hear.

Someone said you're not pastor I don't want to hear that part of the Bible. Don't tell me that part. I don't want to hear it. We need to hear it not only to be hearers of the word but to be doers of the word. Okay look at verses six and seven. His verse five his mother said to his servants do whatever he tells you. Verse six nearby stood six stone water jars, the kind used by the Jews for ceremonial wash washing each holding from 20 to 30 gallons. Verse seven Jesus said to his servants fill the jars with water.

So they filled them to the brim. I mean to the brim. Something big is going to happen. When Jesus does something he doesn't do it small. I mean when God's going to create the world he said let there be light and the light came. He separated dry land and and the oceans. He he separated the earth and the firmament and he he made the universe. I mean when God does something he does it in a big stupendous way. I mean God's not going to do something little tiny for you today. He's going to do something great.

So Jesus said fill it to the brim. This miracle is going to go all the way to fulfillment and to completion. So when Jesus does something he does it in abundance and he's going to give you me an abundant blessing. I've been an abundant blessing. Did you hear me? Fill it to the brim. Fill it to the He's going to fill you up to here with life even up to here with life. Not just change your ways but he's going to do something just big and abundant. Now listen to me just a moment. Common sense and faith doesn't go together.

It's like mixing oil and water. It just doesn't really go together. Jesus said those water parts were to wash people's hands and he said now you fill those things to the brim. I've I've been with people. I've even done it myself. I've said well that doesn't make sense. That's not common sense to do what we're going to do. That that just isn't logical. That doesn't stand to reason. Have you ever thought that way about something spiritual? I have. I've I've been on a big project buying a piece of big piece of land or building a big building and and I would say look we're we're not in a position to do this right now.

I forgot that he is and I wasn't standing ready. You know this just pastor pastor this isn't the time. The time is when there is lack and when there is emptiness. The time is when there is something that is needed. Whenever there's a need that's the time. And and common sense doesn't always always reach out in faith. Matter of fact most of the times it's an obstacle for faith to do the impossible. Common sense and the impossible doesn't go together. That that was a silly thing. You you want wine and you're pouring in water? You know that that's not Come on Jesus.

Don't play tricks on me. You're putting water into those big pots that I'm to take a bath in, you know wash my hands and wash my feet and you're pouring What did she say? You do what he says. Just do it. Don't question it. Don't put common sense up against it. Don't try to figure it out. Just take the word and do it. Just do it. Say it do it. Do it. Just do it. Okay look at verse verse six and seven. Now on the line c right down the word released. On line a the inherent power in words, line b the inherent power in two words.

Now line c the inherent power released. I am going to go to verse nine. It says they did so at the end of verse eight verse nine 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 and said verse 10 everyone brings out the choice wine first and then the cheap wine cheaper wine because the guests have had too much to drink but you have saved the best till now.

That's all Jesus can do. That's all he can do. The best. He can't do less than the best. The best for you and for me and for everybody who will do his will and call upon him. You have saved the best. You know the latter state is better than the former state. The converted life is better than the unconverted life. The best is with Jesus. Say that the best is with Jesus. The best is with Jesus. Jesus can do nothing else but give the best. And that's what this master of the ceremony who was the head waiter who looked out for the food and the beverages.

That's that was his job. He said why this is the best. And so it is with the person who turns to the Lord. They always receive the very best because Jesus does not give anything but the very best. And he turned that flat in water, dull, tasteless water into sparkling exhilarating wine. Now there are a lot of lives that are flat and dull and tasteless. Some people I've talked to me they'd say pastor I'm so bored. I'm bored with my marriage. I'm bored with my job. I'm bored with life. I'm bored with church. Hey you're flat.

You're a flatliner today. You're a candidate for turning water into wine. You need to go to Jesus today and do what Jesus is telling you to do and he will do the best for you. Can you say somebody say praise the Lord? Hey but this is what Jesus has for his people. He invites you to come to him. So listen to me. Then why don't you come to him today? Do it. He says come to me all you that labor and are heavy laden. Okay do it. He's he invites you to give your life to him.

Then do it. He invites you to give your problems to him. Then do it. This is what he's inviting you to do. He invites you to take up the cross and follow him. Then do it. Just do what he's asking you to do. And if you will do it everything will become new. Resurrection power will come into your life and he'll change water into wine. He'll make you the person that you want to be. He can do it today. Now look at verse 11. I'm jumping down to verse 11. This the first of his miracle miraculous signs Jesus performed in Cana of Galilee.

Thus he revealed his glory and his disciples put their faith in him. Thus he revealed his glory. Say that thus he revealed his glory. Now that's what Jesus wants to do but if we don't do it he can't do it. If they had not filled the water jars, if they had not obeyed, if they had debated, if they had reasoned from a common sense standpoint, this story would never have been in the Bible. But they just simply obeyed without question and Jesus did the miracle. Thus he revealed his glory. He wants to reveal his glory.

He wants an opportunity today and I believe that in this congregation there are opportunities for Jesus to do something beautiful. I believe there are problems and there's needs today and Jesus wants to reveal his glory in that problem. What is his glory? I don't know but it's something akin to majesty. He wants to reveal his majesty. This is what he's wanting to do. Uh the glory of God is a thing that belongs to God and God wants to come and do his God thing. That's what he wants to do. But he can't do it if you and I are living a disobedient life, if we haven't given our life to him, if we're not walking in his will and if we're not praying and taking our problems to him like Mary, you've got to go to him and say there's a lack here.

There's something wrong here. We're we're coming up short here. You got to come to him and say Jesus my marriage is coming up short. I thought it was going to be better than this but my marriage has gone flat. Have you ever really come out and just told him that? Have have you come out and told him my kids I'm having problems with my children. You know they're not listening to me. Then you then you need to check your heart and see if you're listening to your father. And if you're not you start listening to him and then your kids will be in line to listen to you otherwise you're just sowing what you're reaping.

Oh hallelujah. Who said that? So you so you you get in touch with Jesus and he becomes now and he's going to reveal his glory to you. It's something whatever it is his glory is marked by beauty and splendor. He's going to put a mark on a beauty and splendor on you, on your marriage, on your kids, on your life. That problem that has got you down and depressed and has turned your life into just a a gray desert. Now he'll bring beauty and and splendor. It's that which evokes praise. You'll come away praising the Lord and celebrating because you came to him and you you came to him to do his will.

So he'll come and he'll bring his glory to bear. Now listen to me friends. I have to stop stop right now but listen to me. Where do you need Jesus to bring his glory to bear? He needs to bring his glory to bear upon something in your life. Where is it? What is it? Take that situation to him today and he will bring his glory to bear upon it but if you don't ask you're not going to receive but you have to ask. You have to believe. You have to go to Jesus and do what he's telling you to do.

He is the Messiah, the anointed of God and he will come with Messiah blessing. And he will Messiah you. He will Messiah your family. He will Messiah your marriage. He will Messiah your career. He will Messiah your circumstances. Friend look up. Where are you looking today for help? Take it to the Lord. We have more faith in each other helping us and meeting our needs than we do in Jesus. Sometimes the church is more real to us than Jesus is. But go to Abba Father. You've been redeemed and he'll turn whatever it is. He's the he's the converter.

He converts unhappiness into happiness. He converts sinners into saints. He converts nothing into something. He's Jesus. Did you hear me? He's Jesus. He's Jesus. Now we're going to bow before him. Let's bow our heads. And I want you to think where you are, what you need to do because you need to do something today. You need to come to him and you need to say Lord I've been looking for help other places. Forgive me. Yes you need to ask forgiveness for that. Yes he's going to bring help and he uses other things and people. But you go to him.

You go to him. He's here.

Guest (Male): As we reflect on this very first miracle, we're reminded that nothing is too ordinary or too broken for Jesus to transform. Just as he turned water into wine, he can turn sorrow into joy, emptiness into fullness, and doubt into faith. Thank you for joining us today on the healing word. May the presence of Christ work powerfully in your life revealing his glory and drawing you ever closer to him.

Guest (Male): Are you seeking a way to start your week filled with hope and inspiration? Every Monday morning receive a fresh devotional delivered right to your inbox to uplift your spirit and encourage you throughout the week. Pastor Jack Morris carefully crafts each message with scripture that speaks to the heart, reflections to inspire growth, and practical steps to help you live out your faith every day. These are words of hope and strength meant to meet you right where you are. Ready to begin? Just visit thehealingword.com and click the banner to sign up. Start each week with renewed purpose feeling connected to God ready for what lies ahead.

Join us tomorrow for another healing word message. Until then blessings on you.