John 2.1-11; Second Sunday after the Epiphany, January 20,
2019
Life in Christ Lutheran Church, Grand Marais, MN
On the third day there was a wedding
at Cana in Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. Jesus also was invited to the
wedding with his disciples. When the wine ran out, the mother of Jesus said to him, “They have no
wine.” And Jesus said
to her, “Woman, what does this have to do with me? My hour has not yet come.” His mother said to the
servants, “Do whatever he tells you.” Now there were six stone water jars there for the Jewish rites of
purification, each holding twenty or thirty gallons. Jesus said to the servants,
“Fill the jars with water.” And they filled them up to the brim. And he said to them, “Now draw
some out and take it to the master of the feast.” So they took it. When the master of the feast
tasted the water now become wine, and did not know where it came from (though
the servants who had drawn the water knew), the master of the feast called the
bridegroom and said to him, “Everyone serves the good wine first, and when people have
drunk freely, then the poor wine. But you have kept the good wine until now.” This, the first of his signs,
Jesus did at Cana in Galilee, and manifested his glory. And his disciples
believed in him.
(John 2:1-11, ESV)
Grace and peace to you from Our Lord and Savior, Jesus
Christ.
“Dad, you’ll never guess what we found
in the yard!”
That’s the first thing Miciah said
to me when I saw her at the end of one of the work days on our Mission Trip a
few years ago to New Orleans. We had
been divided into different work groups.
“We were hauling out a pile of
debris out of the back yard, and at the bottom was a stop sign.” She popped up a picture on her digital
camera. The picture showed the classic
white and red sign with a few dings and scratches. When the hurricane blew it must have come
loose of its post. When the levy broke,
and the flood waters raced down the streets it dumped the sign and all that
debris in a big pile right there in that back yard. Now that stop sign was more than just a piece
of trash. That sign was a sign of
something powerful that had happened. It
was a sign that pointed to the power of Katrina that happened over 14 months
ago; wind so strong it can tear a sign from a post; water flowing at such a
rate that it carries bricks, cinderblocks, branches, glass, mud and a stop
sign, and deposits them in a big pile in a back yard with the stop sign at the
very bottom. Now, you can go over to the
youth room at Divine Shepherd, Blackhawk, SD and see that sign tacked up on the
all. As it hangs there it’s a sign of
something very powerful. Actually, two
things; one the awesome power of a hurricane and a flood; and the even more
awesome power of the Holy Spirit that moved a Youth Group from South Dakota to give
the hope of God’s love in Jesus to people still living in the wake Katrina’s
destruction. Kind of like God giving a
hug of reassurance to people who really need it.
Now here in the Gospel lesson for
today St. John tells us about a sign, kind of like that stop sign. He says, that Jesus turning
water into wine was, the first of his signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee,
and manifested his glory. We just heard his
account and we know it well. Jesus, his
disciples and Mary his mother are quietly enjoying the wedding feast. The unthinkable happens, the wine runs
out. Mary asks Jesus to do something
about it. Jesus says, “not yet.” Mary
tells the servants to do whatever Jesus says.
Jesus tells them to fill these very large water jars used for ceremonial
washing with water “to the brim” and take it out and take it to the steward. Water goes in the jars, wine comes out. And really good wine, “you’ve saved the best
for last!” the person in charge of the feast says.
Jesus changes water into wine. We’ve probably heard many explanations of
exactly what this miracle is all about, from Jesus blessing marriage, to Jesus
showing that drinking alcohol isn’t in and of itself a sin (after all he made nearly
200 gallons!). Now John tells us exactly
why he put this account in his book. By
this sign, St. John tells us Jesus manifested
his glory. Manifested is one of
those fancy church words that means: to shine the light on, to show, to make
clear. In this miracle sign Jesus tells
us who he is. In this miracles sign
Jesus tells us why God was born in human flesh.
If you have any doubts about that just listen to what John tells us at
the end of his Gospel:
Now
Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not
written in this book; but these are written so
that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by
believing you may have life in his name. (John 20:30-31, ESV)
And that’s exactly what happened at
the wedding of Cana. The last thing John
tells us about it all is that his disciples believed in him. Now John tells you and me this story so that
we too can have our faith in Jesus strengthened, so that we can believe that he
is our Savior from sin, and that we poor sinners gathered in his name more than
2000 years later… can have life in his name.
So, what’s the sign?
Well, Martin Luther said that a sign (as John is using it here) is
something that has something visible for
faith to hold on to. God loves to
give us exactly what we need for faith to hold on to. God knows how human beings work. He knows that we need things to be concrete
and tangible. He knows the old saying
“Seeing is believing.” In the Old Testament, Luther says, [God gave] the pillar of fire, the cloud, the mercy seat; in the New Testament
Baptism the Lord’s Supper and ministry of the Word[1],
and the like. By means of these God shows us, as by a
visible sign, that He is with us, takes care of us, and is favorably inclined
toward us. (LW 1:71)
So here at this wedding, Jesus shows that he is not only concerned
with people but also such minor details as weather there is enough wine for a
wedding celebration. He showed that God
was present there, in love and care for people.
He used these large jars set aside for cleaning to make wine, wine like
the wine he uses to give to you and me the forgiveness he won at the
cross. In the wine he gives to you and
me he is also present to take care of us.
Have you ever thought about the Lord’s Supper that way? As a sign that God is with us to take care of
us and is favorably inclined toward us.
There in broken bread and poured out wine we are reminded of Jesus
death, we are reminded of how he bled and died for our sins. We are reminded how he …loved the world, that he gave [himself], that whoever believes in him
should not perish but have eternal life.
(John 3:16, ESV) Jesus gives us his very own body and blood, really and truly present, as a
visible sign of what he did for us on the cross. We come to this altar and drink wine and eat
bread, a meal for our body; and in, with and under those touchable, taste-able
things we receive the very body and blood of Jesus for the forgiveness of our
sins. Jesus supplies us with all we need
for eternal life right here. He gives us
everything that we need, and then he gives us even more. Jesus fills our spiritual needs and our
physical needs. These are signs for
faith to hold on to. It’s just like the
Catechism confesses says:
What is the
benefit of this eating and drinking? These words, "Given and shed for you
for the forgiveness of sins," show us that in the Sacrament forgiveness of
sins, life, and salvation are given us through these words. For where there is
forgiveness of sins, there is also life and salvation.
And…
I believe that God
has made me and all creatures; that He has given me my body and soul, eyes,
ears, and all my members, my reason and all my senses, and still takes care of
them. He also gives me clothing and shoes, food and drink, house and home, wife
and children, land, animals, and all I have. He richly and daily provides me
with all that I need to support this body and life. He defends me against all
danger and guards and protects me from all evil. All this He does only out of
fatherly, divine goodness and mercy, without any merit or worthiness in me. For
all this it is my duty to thank and praise, serve and obey Him. This is most
certainly true.
Now some of you may be offended, but I’ve never
understood how God can offer such a marvelous gift as the Lord’s Supper to his
people and we say that we don’t need it.
And frankly, I’ve never understood the idea that once a month is enough
of this great gift. I think the problem
is we think strong faith is that which doesn’t need God’s gifts very often,
when exactly the opposite is really true.
Strong faith clings to the gift of forgiveness that God gives every
single day and longs to receive them as often as possible. You see, when we think we don’t need God and
his activity in our lives that’s having faith in us. Faith in God means leaning on him in all
things.
Jesus turns water into wine. He did it in at the wedding in Cana and he
does it today. I think it is Mary who
shows us what it all about. When the
problem pops us, she turns to her Lord in faith. Oh sure, some say she was just turning to a
faithful son for help, but I think it’s more than that. Remember how she reacted when the Angel came
to her and said “you will conceive and bear a son...”? “I am the Lord’s servant let it be done to me
as you have said.” When the wine runs
out she goes to Jesus for help and then in faith she responds by telling the
servants, “Do whatever he tells you.”
She doesn’t know what Jesus is going to do. She just places the problem in his hands and
gets ready for his answer and action. Jesus
turns the water into wine. He provides
all that is needed and then some. It’s
the best wine ever.
Well, I don’t know about you, but I don’t always exhibit
that kind of faith. It’s difficult to
“let go and let God.” There are even
times when I think I’ve done just that and as it turns out I’ve been depending
on myself again. Here’s a picture I want
you to keep in mind. I got this one from
Wally. It’s a puzzle he put
together. I’ve got it set outside my
office door at the parsonage. It’s
behind the main door so those of you who’ve visited and just stood in the door
haven’t seen it, but it’s right where I can see when I go out of the
office. This, I think, is a picture of
Jesus at the wedding of Cana. This is
what Jesus is doing there. Look at how
he embraces this person. Look at the
love in his face. I think you can see
the worries and care of this man just melting away with Jesus loving hug. And look what the man is doing… nothing. He’s receiving the gift that he just doesn’t
deserve, the love of God in Jesus Christ.
It’s just as Luther said he shows
us by a visible sign, that He is with us, takes care of us, and is favorably
inclined toward us. Got
troubles? I do, every day. You do to.
That’s life in the 21st century. That’s human life since our parents in the
Garden of Eden tried to run it by themselves, without God. That’s life since you and I try to run it
ourselves without God. Well God does a
miracle right here too. He is present to
take care of us. Now as great as this
picture is… right here God gives you something even better. It’s real food for real people; bread and
wine to satisfy the stomach; Jesus’ body and blood to satisfy the spirit. Here is a very powerful sign, a very powerful
action where God himself is present to save.
Here shows you his love for you in his death at the cross for the
forgiveness of your sins. Here he tells
you that he is with you always and nothing can separate you from him. It’s a sign.
It’s a miracle. It is God right
here for you. Amen.
The peace of God that passes all
understanding, keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.
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