Loving God, you continue to reveal yourself to us in so many different ways, showing us your abundance and your love.  Help us to be able to recognize your Spirit at work, and continue to renew us through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.

    Today I’d like to invite you to enter into the gospel story with me for a few minutes, and to hear it from the perspective of Father Kamal, who knows both the culture and the language of Jesus.  It is a somewhat different perspective from any that I have heard before.

    To begin with, are you aware that the text actually tells us what day of the week it was when this wedding took place?  It was the third day of the week – a Tuesday – the day for weddings.  It is also evident from the way in which the story is told that this wedding involved a close relative of Mary, the mother of Jesus.  While it does say that Jesus and his disciples were invited to the wedding, Mary is simply “there.”  She does not need an invitation.  She would be expected to be there and to help serve.

    Thus, by the time that Mary comes to Jesus to speak to him about the wine, she would have already assisted with checking any local shops, as well as checking with other relatives to see if more wine could be obtained.  While it may seem like a relatively small thing to us to run out of wine at a wedding, it would have been an absolute disaster in Middle Eastern culture.  It would bring shame on the host and dishonour the family name.  Hospitality was valued very highly, and wine was understood as a sign of hospitality and blessing and gladness.  At a seven-day wedding feast, running out of wine only a few days in was not to be taken lightly.  And so Mary approaches Jesus.

    At this wedding, the men and women would have been seated in separate areas, and so Mary is actually crossing some cultural barriers when she goes in where the men are in order to speak to Jesus.  Notice that she doesn’t tell Jesus what to do.  She just makes a simple statement: “They have no wine” (Jn. 2:3).  While Jesus’ response might seem a little bit strange to us, it is simply a Hebrew way of speaking.  “Mother, what are you doing here?  I don’t want you to embarrass yourself.  Don’t worry.  It will be looked after.”

    And boy, does Jesus look after it!  The stone water jars that get filled up with water are absolutely huge (pictures).  We’re not talking about just a little bit of wine to tide them over, but lots of wine – and it’s not just any old wine, but good wine!  It is, indeed, a sign of God’s overflowing abundance.  As mentioned earlier, wine was a sign of hospitality and gladness and blessing.  Wine was also a sign of joy and a sign of the harvest.

    At the same time, it is helpful to know that an abundance of wine was to be one of the signs that the Messiah had come.  Especially in the book of the prophet Amos, an abundance of wine is associated with the Messiah who is descended from David (Amos 9:11-13).  And so, when John says that this is the first of Jesus’ signs, it is a sign of who Jesus is and a sign of God’s abundance and a sign that God in the flesh is among us.

    Really, there is an incredible variety in these first few weeks of Epiphany as to how Jesus’ true identity is revealed.  First there is the star and the magi.  Then there is the Spirit in the form of a dove and the voice from heaven.  And then today there is the miracle of water into wine.  All of these are manifestations of the Son of God - the Messiah.  Epiphany means manifestation.  Manifestation means that which reveals, or a sign.  In fact, the word “manifest” shows up quite often in the Epiphany hymns.

    And so here we have Jesus revealed in an abundance of wine at Cana.  And then at the same time we hear today from 1 Corinthians about “the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good” (12:7).  Aren’t we really talking about the revealing of Jesus among us?  After all, we may not have seen any water turned into wine in recent memory.  We may not have heard any voice from heaven or seen the Spirit descending as a dove.  We may not have met any magi or seen a special star in the sky.  And yet, Jesus continues to be revealed as Messiah, Saviour and Son of God.

    Today, this revelation happens through the Holy Spirit – the Spirit of Jesus.  The Holy Spirit reveals Jesus through the Scriptures.  The Holy Spirit reveals Jesus in the waters of baptism, and the Holy Spirit reveals Jesus in the bread and the wine as we gather together at the Lord’s Supper.

    At the same time, the Holy Spirit shows up in and through God’s people, revealing Jesus through the gifts that are given for the common good.  And so, what are the gifts that have been given to you?  1 Corinthians 12 is not an exhaustive list, and Paul is mostly trying to show that speaking in tongues is not the best or the most important gift.  However, some of you may have the gifts of wisdom or knowledge or faith.  Some of you may be able to tell which spirits are evil and which are holy.  Some of you may have gifts of healing or be able to speak God’s word.

    However, many of you may have other gifts as well.  Do you have the gift of hospitality that you’d like to put to use maybe by providing coffee time after worship or serving meals to people in need?  Do you have the gift of teaching?  Do you have the gift of compassion that enables you to care for others?  Do you have the gift of a generous and giving spirit?  Do you have the gift of leadership?  Do you have the gift of being able to encourage others?  All of these gifts are mentioned elsewhere in the New Testament.

    Yet, there are so many other gifts that are also given for the common good.  Some are good with numbers and detail work.  Some are artistic or musical.  Some are good at understanding mechanical things or fixing things.  Some are good at talking to people and some are good at listening.  Some have a green thumb and some have the gift of empathy.  There is not one person here today who has not been given any gifts – the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good.

    And so, it is when we actually use the gifts that we have been given for the common good that the Spirit of Jesus is revealed through us.  Our God continues to be a God of abundance, and there are so many different gifts that are given to God’s people that it is impossible to name them all.  And so, if I haven’t named the gifts that you have been given today, let me know which ones I missed!

    In the mean time, may we drink deeply as we are gathered together today.  May we drink from the well of life and from the river of God’s delights (Ps. 36:8-9).  May we drink in the Holy Spirit, who is just like rivers of living water (Jn. 7:38).  And may we drink in the abundance and the blessing and the life that Jesus came to bring.  For Jesus can and will continue to be revealed among us.  Thanks be to God!  Amen.

Epiphany 2(C)                            John 2:1-11
January 20, 2013                            1 Corinthians 12:1-11
St. Luke’s Zion Lutheran Church                    Psalm 36:5-10
Pastor Lynne Hutchison

© 2013 Lynne Hutchison  All Rights Reserved