BYSTANDER | WEEK 1
Week 1 : MOMMA SAYS
INTRODUCTION
Beginning with first-century followers of Jesus, trusting in Jesus has been a response to evidence—not simply a hope that something is true. The Gospel writer John referred to the miracles of Jesus as signs that gave evidence of who Jesus was. The first sign John documented was when Jesus—with a nudge from his mother—attended a wedding and turned water into wine.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
What is something you once believed without any evidence?
Why did you believe it?
How would you describe the difference between faith and belief?
The apostle John describes coming to faith as a process that starts with seeing actual events that serve as signs of who Jesus was.
Today, we can only hear or read about those events.
Should the fact that we are not eyewitnesses to Jesus’ miracles affect the process of someone coming to faith? Why or why not?
Read John 2:2–11
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.”4 “Woman,[a] why do you involve me?” Jesus replied. “My hour has not yet come.”5 His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.” 6 Nearby stood six stone water jars, the kind used by the Jews for ceremonial washing, each holding from twenty to thirty gallons.[b] 7 Jesus said to the servants, “Fill the jars with water”; so they filled them to the brim. 8 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.” 11 What Jesus did here in Cana of Galilee was the first of the signs through which he revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him.
How familiar is this story to you?
Is there anything that stands out as new information?
What are some details about this story that would lead a reader to believe this actually happened?
In verse 9, how would you have reacted if you were “one of the servants” at the wedding and just witnessed what Jesus did?
In verse 10, consider the master of the banquet’s statement.
How might that be a foreshadowing of the coming shift from the sacrificial system to Jesus being the ultimate sacrifice?
What are some characteristics about Jesus that come to mind as a result of this story?
Does looking at this story as a “sign” instead of just a “miracle” change anything about your view of God?
How might it shape how you approach the miracles of Jesus?
CHANGING YOUR MIND
“The reason so many people are easily talked out of Christianity is because they were never talked into it in the first place.” —Frank Turek