Epiphany II

By The Rev. Martha Frances+

Year C Epiphany II

17 January 2010

Text:  John 2: 1-11; I Corinthians 12: 1-11

Other Readings:  Isaiah 62: 1-5; Psalm 36: 5-10 

      The story of the wedding feast at Cana is a favorite of mine, partially because the mother of Jesus is the character who activates the action.  She is at the wedding, & we're told Jesus & the disciples have also been invited.  Why does Mary, a guest at the wedding feast, become aware that the wine has run out, even though the chief steward doesn't even know it.  She's curious enough, or trusted enough, to have learned there is no more wine.  Mary is concerned that the family giving the wedding feast will be embarrassed not to have enough wine.  So she turns to Jesus.

      When Mary explains the dilemma to Jesus, we're surprised at his harsh response:  "Woman, what concern is that to you & to me?  My hour has not yet come."  Now I have sons about Jesus' present age, & if they addressed me as "Woman," I would not be happy!  Yet, Jesus seems to mean no disrespect or harm to his mother as he tries to keep a low profile.  He's not ready to come out & show his power publicly.  He's "off duty" at this function, anyway, so he may just want to relax & enjoy some down time with his buddies. 

      Jesus is not unlike other leaders called to step out of their comfort zone & risk.  Do you remember Moses' response to God at the burning bush?  He tells God he's not much of a speaker & doesn't think he's equipped to lead the whole nation of Israel out of bondage.  God doesn't put up with such excuses but sends Moses back to Egypt to begin the Exodus.  And then there's Jeremiah, none too pleased that God calls him to the thankless job of prophet to misfits who weren't even important enough to get hauled off to Babylon.  Jeremiah says to God, "You must have gotten me mixed up with someone much more experienced.  I am only a boy!"  God isn't impressed with that excuse either.  So off goes Jeremiah to straighten out a group of 2^nd classed citizens who got left behind when the beautiful people moved to Babylon. 

      Why, even Martin Luther King, whose birthday we celebrate tomorrow, was none too eager to get mixed up in the civil rights movement.  He was a young Baptist minister, just called to his first church after serving as his dad's associate, & he had no intention of getting involved with a movement which would detract him from his new position & eventually lead to jail time, threats on his family, & eventually death by an assassin's bullet.  Dr. King was called out of his comfort zone to greater & greater leadership & developed his belief in & practice of non-violent resistance while among the protestors & through countless sleepless nights. 

      Jesus doesn't think he is ready to come out in public either, but his mother has been watching & waiting for all his life now.  Remember his presentation in the temple at Jerusalem when he was an infant & then last week's gospel, when he was 12 years old, Mary & Joseph returned to find him speaking with the elders at the Jerusalem temple?  Both stories end by saying that Mary kept all these events, pondering them in her heart.  Jesus' mother has had a lot of time to ponder by the time he is 30, & SHE knows, even if Jesus doesn't, that it's high time for his public ministry to commence.  Even though Jesus tries to quieten his mother, she tells the servants to follow Jesus' instructions. Sometimes when I am on the brink of doing something new & risky, I need the unconditional confidence of a friend who believes in me.  Sometimes, someone has to say, "Martha, just do it!"  Jesus' mother did that for him.

      Now we come to the miracle itself.  The evangelist John provides much detail about these huge stone water jars filled to the brim which Jesus very simply changes from water into wine.  John goes to great length to impress us with the extravagance of this miracle.  Not only are there suddenly copious amounts of wine to continue the celebration, but the steward assures us this is the best quality wine served all day.  If we're but willing to trust Jesus in the risky areas of our lives, the gifts given us are greater than we could ask or imagine.  Jesus takes the common old stone water jars & transforms the water into more flavorful new wine than the whole crowd could have dreamt. 

      That's how God works in us if we but take the risk to trust.  Just because there are more roadblocks than we had anticipated doesn't mean that God isn't at work in an enterprise.  Hope Church had a difficult year in 2009 as did most churches.   Nearly 5 years ago, we stepped out in faith to grow together in love, & Jesus has worked mightily in the people & community called Hope.  Just look around at the people you treasure in your spiritual life whom you didn't even know 5 years ago. 

      Now our 5 years of life together hasn't always been easy, & Jesus' transformation of water into new wine didn't happen effortlessly.  Mary, Jesus & the servants all had their parts to play in the miracle's happening, & Hope wouldn't be here today had many people not stepped forward to accomplish the practical tasks of coming together.  A much larger group has prayed faithfully for our community throughout the beginnings of Hope.  When we pray for a miracle, it is best to be willing to do what God needs us to do so that miracle can come about.

      St. John tells us this miracle was the first sign that Jesus performed.  The transformation Jesus caused to occur in the wine certainly revealed Jesus' glory only fully accomplished when he was crucified, buried, & resurrected.  Sadly, many people tend to quit before the miracle happens.  We're often so sure what Christ's miracles will look like in our own lives that we miss the real miracles when they occur. 

      Fortunately, as John says "the disciples believed in him."  Part of the outcome of this first of Jesus' miracles is that the disciples saw what amazing things could happen if they but believed.  I'm put in mind of 2 things related to the disciples' belief.  First, the disciples had to believe in Jesus before they could experience what power God could work in each of them.  Our selection in the epistle to the Corinthians today reminds us that we all have spiritual gifts that we need to discover & offer up to God's glory.  Paul tells us all the gifts are given by the same Spirit, the Holy Spirit, & the gifts are given for the common good.  Other places, he says that each gift we have is meant for the building up of the body of Christ, not just for our own gratification.  In looking at what we do well that the larger community needs, let's not sell ourselves short.  All of us have talents which we've not explored.  Paul offers quite a list in our scripture today:  wisdom, knowledge, faith, healing, miracles, prophecy, & discernment of spirits as well as speaking in tongues & interpreting them.  If we listen to our hearts, to God's call, to where we're encouraged to venture out of our usual ruts, we may find extraordinary gifts we've previously ignored.  No fair saying we don't have gifts.  Paul says clearly we all have gifts & the Spirit activates them.  Let's give God a chance to work in us to develop those gifts.

      Why?  So we can be super Christians?  Nope, Paul says so that we can build up the body of Christ, to reach out to others & help them know the love we've received.  Just think; that small band of apostles spread the gospel of Good News throughout the known world.  We're called to do our part, too.  Part of what we celebrate during this Epiphany season is Christ's light which we hope others can see through us because the Spirit dwells within us.  We can't keep the light shining alone, though.  We're called to do this in community. 

      As another year begins at Hope parish, I challenge you to open yourself up to how God wants you to use your gifts for the up-building of this community.  At the end of the month, the vestry will go on retreat to explore in & beyond our community where God wants us to focus our efforts.  I invite each of you to do the work of discernment that ALL may benefit.  Please pray for your vestry as they discern how to move forward in Hope.

      There you have it.  I'm urging you to step out of your comfort zone & discover what Christ may be calling you to do with the gifts which are yours.  I'm suggesting that, if you believe that Jesus Christ can make all things new, you give Christ a chance to do just that in your life.  For Hope to fulfill God's call this year, you must think & act outside the box.  Each day, open yourself up to learn what new opportunities Christ is offering you to grow in faith & love & to share with the world.