Marvin Gaye was an American singer-songwriter and musician
whose career spanned more than two decades. Born and raised in Washington,
D.C., he was the son of a store-front minister of a local Pentecostal church.
He grew up singing gospel music in his church and in area revivals.
As a teenager, Gaye branched out into secular music, as did so
many Motown artists. After serving in the Air Force he joined the doo-wop group
“The Marquees”. Following the band’s separation in 1960, Gaye went to work as a
session drummer for the Detroit music label, Anna, then signed with Motown
Records in 1961.
On July 17, 1963 Motown released the first of Marvin Gaye’s many
hits, “Can I Get a Witness”. It was written by others, but Gaye was the first
to record it. Since then numerous big name artists have remade it, like Dusty
Springfield, Lee Michaels, The Supremes, The Temptations, and The Rolling
Stones.
Though the song is about a lonely man and an inconsiderate
woman, anyone who has even a passing familiarity with old-time revival meetings
and Pentecostal worship will know that the phrase, “Can I get a witness,” means
more than securing an indictment against a boorish lover. When a preacher is warming
to his task, he often calls out, “Can I get a witness?” He means, “Can I get
somebody to confirm what I’ve just said?”
Now, often this elicits a hearty “Amen” or “Preach it,
brother”. But often the call is for more than that. The call is for someone to
come up to the front and give a testimony of what the Lord has done in a life
that confirms the truth of what’s just been expressed. In the best
circumstances, it’s the testimony of someone in whom the Holy Spirit is actively
engaged. This person comes forward and confirms the truth of what has just been
said based on their own experience.
Long before Marvin Gaye, the Bible affirmed the need for a
witness. In the Old Testament a witness could be a person, a monument, a
memorial that signifies that a testimony or an agreement was genuine. In the
courtrooms of Israel an individual’s testimony was insufficient to prove the
validity of something. A witness was needed. In fact, the number 2 is the number
of witness in the Scriptures. This is the point Jesus labors in John 8 when
He’s talking to the Jews about His own identity. He says, “I am the one who
bears witness about me.” The Pharisees had charged that He’s simply bearing
witness to Himself, by Himself.
Now all of this relates to our text this Sunday—John
4:43-54. Here John tells us of a third person Jesus encounters in the opening
chapters of his gospel. First, it’s Nicodemus. Then, it’s the woman at the
well. And now, it’s a nobleman from Capernaum who travels 15 miles to Cana in a
desperate search for Jesus. In each encounter we learn so much about the
Gospel. But it’s in this third encounter we learn something more. This is the
second miracle or sign performed by Jesus in the Gospel of John (John’s only
got seven of them). It’s the second and final sign Jesus performs in Cana
(Cana’s only mentioned three times in the New Testament, and every one is by
John). And as you dig into this miraculous encounter you find a clear witness
of who Jesus is and what He can do in any life. It’s a rich text that we will
study together in a message entitled, “The Value of a Second Sign”.
In preparation for Sunday you may wish to consider the
following:
1. Why does Jesus spend nearly 3 whole days in and around
Sychar, Samaria? (see verse 43)
2. What is John intimating in verse 44 about the people of
Galilee?
3. Where is Jesus most welcomed in chapters 3 & 4? Judea?
Galilee? Or Samaria? What’s that tell you?
4. Why is verse 46 so important to John?
5. How far is Cana from Capernaum?
6. What does John want us to know about this man who comes to
Jesus?
7. What similarities are there between Jesus’ two encounters in
Cana?
8. Why does Jesus say what He says in verse 48?
9. What do we learn about this man in verse 49?
10. What more do we learn about him in verse 53?
11. What does this second sign say to us about our relationship
with Jesus?
See you Sunday!
