Epiphany 3

Opening Verse of Scripture Psalm 62

On God rests my deliverance and my honour; my mighty rock, my refuge is in God.

Trust in him at all times, O people; pour out your heart before him; God is a refuge for us. 

Collect Prayer for the Day—Before we read we pray

Almighty God, whose Son revealed in signs and miracles the wonder of your saving presence: renew your people with your heavenly grace, and in all our weakness sustain us by your mighty power; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who is alive and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.

God of all mercy, your Son proclaimed good news to the poor, release to the captives, and freedom to the oppressed: anoint us with your Holy Spirit and set all your people free to praise you in Christ our Lord.

First Bible Reading  Genesis 14.17–20

After his return from the defeat of Chedorlaomer and the kings who were with him, the king of Sodom went out to meet him at the Valley of Shaveh (that is, the King’s Valley). And King Melchizedek of Salem brought out bread and wine; he was priest of God Most High. He blessed him and said, ‘Blessed be Abram by God Most High, maker of heaven and earth; and blessed be God Most High, who has delivered your enemies into your hand!’ And Abram gave him one-tenth of everything.

Second Reading Revelation 19.6–10

Then I heard what seemed to be the voice of a great multitude, like the sound of many waters and like the sound of mighty thunder-peals, crying out,‘Hallelujah! For the Lord our God the Almighty reigns. Let us rejoice and exult and give him the glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready; to her it has been granted to be clothed with fine linen, bright and pure’— for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints. And the angel said to me, ‘Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.’ And he said to me, ‘These are true words of God.’ Then I fell down at his feet to worship him, but he said to me, ‘You must not do that! I am a fellow-servant with you and your comrades who hold the testimony of Jesus. Worship God! For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.’

Gospel Reading  John 2.1–11

On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding. When the wine gave out, the mother of Jesus said to him, ‘They have no wine.’ And Jesus said to her, ‘Woman, what concern is that to you and to me? My hour has not yet come.’ His mother said to the servants, ‘Do whatever he tells you.’ Now standing there were six stone water-jars for the Jewish rites of purification, each holding twenty or thirty gallons. Jesus said to them, ‘Fill the jars with water.’ And they filled them up to the brim. He said to them, ‘Now draw some out, and take it to the chief steward.’ So they took it. When the steward tasted the water that had become wine, and did not know where it came from (though the servants who had drawn the water knew), the steward called the bridegroom and said to him, ‘Everyone serves the good wine first, and then the inferior wine after the guests have become drunk. But you have kept the good wine until now.’ Jesus did this, the first of his signs, in Cana of Galilee, and revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him.

Post Communion Prayer

Almighty Father, whose Son our Saviour Jesus Christ is the light of the world: may your people, illumined by your word and sacraments, shine with the radiance of his glory, that he may be known, worshipped, and obeyed to the ends of the earth; for he is alive and reigns, now and for ever.

Commentary 

 In what are called the synoptic (see together) gospels, Matthew, Mark and Luke, Jesus performs what are called miracles. In John’s Gospel he does not call them miracles, he calls them signs. We are told in John 20 what the purpose of the Gospel was - he wrote

³⁰ Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book. ³¹ But these are written so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name.

 Note ! Jesus performs signs, not miracles. And the reason why these signs took place was in order for people to believe in who Jesus was. John is quite restrictive in how many of these signs he records. there are only seven in the whole Gospel. He has slimmed down the miracles and chosen seven special ones which he thinks are significant signs in demonstrating who Jesus was and what he was doing.

They are signs The point of signs is that just seeing the sign will be of absolutely no use to you. It will only be useful if you follow the sign and find what it is pointing to! It is the same with the signs of Jesus. A lot of people know the story of Jesus turning water into wine, they may never put step a foot inside a church, but they know the story. They also know about one of the other miracles or signs which John records, when Jesus walks on water. But its no good knowing the sign if you miss what it is pointing to ! There are seven of these signs in the Gospel 

1. Water into wine 2:1
2. Healing of Officials son 4:46
3. Healing the paralytic at Bethesda Jn 5
4. Feeding the 5000 Jn 6
5. Jesus walks on water Jn 6
6. Jesus heals the man born blind Jn 9: 1-7
7. Jesus raises Lazarus Jn 11

So lets think about this sign - the water into wine In the Gospel of Mark Jesus begins his ministry with an exorcism. In John’s Gospel today we read of Jesus turning water into wine. We know that the Gospel writers didn’t just throw their material together, it is compiled very carefully to make a theological point. So why did John begin the ministry of Jesus in his Gospel by showing Jesus provide wine at a party? John had only seven special miracles or signs, and this is the first one he chooses so there must be something very important going on.

Why was Jesus there? Jesus is invited with his disciples and we know that at this stage there were probably at least five: Andrew, Simon Peter, Philip, Nathanael and the anonymous disciple (1:35). The mother of Jesus is also invited. We don’t know why Jesus was invited. Mary perhaps knew the family because she is concerned about the wine and seems to be able to give instruction to the catering staff. Note - in John’s Gospel Mary is only mentioned twice, once here and the next time is at the cross when Jesus hands her into the care of the disciple. Curiously she is never actually called Mary, she is defined only by her association as the mother of Jesus. We know that one of the disciples of Jesus, Nathanael, came from Cana, he would have probably known the couple who were getting married.

It was on the Third Day A wedding was a big occasion in that time. We are told that it took place on the ‘Third Day,’ in ancient Israel Tuesday was the wedding day! There is some thought that at the time Tuesday was considered a good day because in the Torah story of creation Tuesday is the only day that God describes as ‘good’ twice.  (see Genesis 1:10 and Genesis 1:12).

It went on for seven days Wedding ceremonies normally lasted seven days. Depending on the wealth of the family a whole town could be invited and many rabbis excused the celebrations from the conflicting religious obligations. Even people you didn’t get on with would be invited and it was insulting to refuse to attend. The ceremonies were not just about two people getting together, it was the bringing together of families. There could be no quick trip to a wedding chapel in Jerusalem!

Wine was important The host was supposed to provide wine for all for seven days ! Running out of wine was a major faux pas. It was not just a blunder, in a culture which was very much based around shame and honour, it was something which would bring shame on not just the couple but the whole family. Wine was a fundamental part of the celebrations and to run out was not just inconvenient it was a loss of reputation, a damaging social situation would cause a loss of honour and status.

Mary told Jesus they ran out of wine Much has been written about how Mary asks Jesus to help out, and how Jesus responds. Most of it is just guesswork and we will never understand fully understand. On the face of it Jesus seems reluctant to intervene. He uses the words ‘my hour has not yet come.’ The word ‘hour’ in John’s Gospel is a term which is used by Jesus to refer to his death. I have included the references here which you may wish to use in your own Bible study. :4:21, 23, 5:25, 28, 7:30, 8:20, 12:23, 27, 13:1, 16:2,4, 21, 25, 32, 17:1). The writer of the Gospel says things like

· Then they tried to arrest him, but no one laid hands on him, because his hour had not yet come.

· He spoke these words while he was teaching in the treasury of the temple, but no one arrested him, because his hour had not yet come.

· Now before the festival of the Passover, Jesus knew that his hour had come to depart from this world and go to the Father. Having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end.

Jesus says things like

· Now my soul is troubled. And what should I say—“Father, save me from this hour”? No, it is for this reason that I have come to this hour.

·  After Jesus had spoken these words, he looked up to heaven and said, ‘Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son so that the Son may glorify you,

I mention these passages because it puts the question of Mary and the response of Jesus into a context which is so much more than just helping out at a wedding. This was about understanding who he was and what he had be born to do, his obedience to the mission which God had given to him.

Jesus turns water into wine It is a fantastic miracle. The Jewish traditions demanded that Jews were not to eat until they gave their hands a ceremonial handwashing. Do you remember Mark 7:3-4.

Now when the Pharisees and some of the scribes who had come from Jerusalem gathered around him,  they noticed that some of his disciples were eating with defiled hands, that is, without washing them. (For the Pharisees, and all the Jews, do not eat unless they thoroughly wash their hands, thus observing the tradition of the elders;  and they do not eat anything from the market unless they wash

So water had to be poured by servants over the hands of every guest before the meal. The more guests the more jars ! For the purpose of water purification there were six huge stone jars at this wedding150 gallons. Jesus gives instruction for the jars to be filled and for the content to then be taken to the chap in charge of the ceremony who announces that the best wine has been kept until then end of the festivities. 

So what was the sign - it wasn’t just water Everybody remembers that Jesus turned water into wine. But of course it wasn’t just water. This was special water, it was water of purification. It was Jewish cleaning water. Jesus takes Jewish cleaning water and shows he has the power to change it. It becomes a sign, an illustration of the fact that the old water of cleaning was now being superseded. You had ceremonial water which people had to use over and over again but they were never really pure. Jesus is saying that this system didn’t work and so Jesus puts an end to ceremonial washing.

The law constantly reminded you how dirty you were. Jesus has come so that you can be properly clean. The reason why this miracle is the first miracle, the reason why it is so important is because in it Jesus is redefining our relationship to God. Instead of repeatedly washing but never being clean, now all would be made clean by Jesus. The Jewish system was about restricting God’s grace. There were concentric circles of God’s grace.

• In the Temple there was the Holy of Holiest where only the High priest could go
• Then there was holy place where only the priests could go
• Then there was another place where only the men could go
• Then there was a place where only Jewish women could go
• Then there was a place where only godly gentiles could go

Jesus said and did things which showed his disapproval of the temple. His was a ministry where all were invited. The men the women, the children, the lame the poor, the gentiles, even the hated Samaritans ! What did Jesus do after this miracle? John tells us that he went to Jerusalem and he made a whip and he turned over the tables of the money changers. Jesus wanted to bring God’s wine of forgiveness and acceptance to all people and that was a complete change to what had been going on, indeed as different as water is to wine. Jesus hated the temple and all that it stood for about measuring out God’s love and forgiveness. He hated it so much that only seven verses after this sign in Cana we are told by John that Jesus responded to the Jews in Jerusalem who asked for sign ‘Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.’ The Jews then said, ‘This temple has been under construction for forty-six years, and will you raise it up in three days?’  But he was speaking of the temple of his body. After he was raised from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this; and they believed the scripture and the word that Jesus had spoken.

Conclusion Being a follower of Jesus is like being invited to a wedding where the wine does not run out, God is generous to overflowing, so much so that to us it seems wasteful. That sounds like it is a happy place and Christians should be filled with Joy, Jesus was not into making people miserable. You can get that out of the passage today with no problem. But the sign says something else which is very important  No matter how dirty you are Jesus makes you clean. The question used to be whether you could become clean enough to come near to God and some people still think in that way. ‘I am not good enough,’ ‘I have done bad things.’ Jesus is not interested in how good we are, all are invited, Jesus invites everybody. There is nobody too dirty, nobody who is not good enough, all are called to come. There are no barriers to the love of God, so all are invited to come. Children, women, men, all are invited to come.

Jesus said it was no longer about how clean how religious you are, it is just about whether you will come. He invites everybody to come to him and he still does and that is why the Cana sign laid down the new rules and why it was so important. The Cana sign shows that Jesus is God’s expression of the turning over of the old religion of barriers and his offering of himself for to show his overflowing love and forgiveness. Now all that we need to do is come. Charles Royden

Meditation

Every year on 27 January, the world marks Holocaust Memorial Day. On Holocaust Memorial Day we share the memory of the millions who have been murdered in the Holocaust and subsequent genocides in Cambodia, Rwanda, Bosnia and Darfur in order to challenge hatred and bigotry in our own society. As he Holocaust Memorial Day web site states, it’s impossible for anyone who was not there to fully imagine what took place during the Holocaust or in subsequent genocides. But Holocaust Memorial Day is not simply about remembering. It is a time when we seek to learn the lessons of the past and to recognise that genocide does not just take place on its own, it’s a steady process which can begin if discrimination, racism and hatred are not checked and prevented. In the UK we are not at risk of genocide. However, in communities and neighbourhoods hatred exists. Discrimination has not ended, nor has the use of the language of hatred or exclusion. All are equal in the sight of God, and as Christians we need to reflect and celebrate the equality of all people in God’s creation and be prepared to speak out and take action when we see society fall away from God’s standards and Christ’s transforming power.

Lord, remember not only the men and women of goodwill, but also those of ill will. Do not remember all the sufferings they have inflicted upon us; remember the fruits we bear, thanks to this suffering – our comradeship, our loyalty, our humanity, courage, generosity, the greatness of heart which has grown out of all this. And when they come to judgement, let all the fruits that we have borne be their forgiveness.

A prayer found on a scrap of paper beside the body of a girl who died at Ravensbruck

Prayers said on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the death of Anne Frank: Reproduced with kind permission of the Anne Frank Educational Trust and the Council of Christians and Jews

Judge eternal, bringer of justice, hear the cry of those who suffer under the lash of heartless political oppression; those who languish in prisons and labour camps, untried or falsely condemned; those whose bodies are shattered, or whose minds are unhinged by torture or deprivation.

Meet them in their anguish and despair, and kindle in them the light of hope, that they may find rest in your love, healing I your compassion and faith in your mercy.  In the name of him who suffered, Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen

‘Nothing that I can do will change the structure of the universe. But maybe, by raising my voice I can help the greatest of all causes - goodwill among men and peace on earth.’ Albert Einstein, Scientist

‘We must always take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented.’ Elie Wiesel, Holocaust survivor

Hymns

• To God be the Glory
• He’s got the whole world in his hands
• All Creatures of our God and King
• All my hope on God is founded
• Fight the Good Fight 

Prayers for Sunday and the week ahead

As the beautiful, dew covered rose rises from amongst its thorns, so may my heart be so full of love for you my God, that I may rise above the storms and evils that assail me, and stand fast in trust and freedom of spirit. Amen. Hadewijch of Brabant - 13th Century

Almighty God, your Son our Saviour Jesus Christ is the light of the world. May your people shine with the radiance of his glory, that he may be known, worshipped and obeyed to the ends of the earth; who is alive and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen 

Almighty God, you sent your Son to proclaim your kingdom and to teach with authority. Anoint us with the power of your Spirit, that we, too, may bring good news to the afflicted, bind up the broken hearted, and proclaim liberty to the captive; through your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen

God of dawning light, hear our prayers today and give us the strength to put aside all cares and follow you in your kingdom; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Christ the Sun of Righteousness shine upon you, scatter the darkness from before your path, and make you ready to meet him when he comes in glory; and the blessing; and the blessing of God Almighty, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, be among you and remain with you always. Amen

O God whose beauty is beyond our imagining, and whose power we cannot comprehend: show us your glory as far as we can grasp it, and shield us from knowing more than we can bear until we may look upon you without fear, through Jesus Christ. Amen (Janet Morley) 

Bless us Lord as we try to work out new ways of encouraging others to consider whatever is true, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable, whatever is excellent, whatever is praiseworthy. Lord there are so many people who want to stress the lesser things. Help us to praise the things that are precious. Help us to out into words, pictures, actions and so much more deeds that will pull others towards higher aspiration and achievement. (after Peter Comaish) 

Let the love of the Father course through our veins. Let the goodness of Christ pulse though our bodies. Let the power of the Spirit flow through our souls. Let the wonder of God resonate through our minds. Glory be to God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, now and through all eternity. Amen.

Additional Material

Commentary  A New Beginning

The miracle of turning the water into wine at Cana is only reported in John’s gospel where he places it at the beginning of Jesus’ ministry. He says that it was the first of the seven signs performed by Jesus and through it He ‘revealed His glory and His disciples put their faith in Him’. It’s because of this revelation of His glory that the episode at Cana, together with the visit of the Magi and Christ’s baptism, came to be associated with Epiphany. In the Middle Ages, the miracle at Cana and the revelation of Christ’s glory there came to be celebrated by itself on the second Sunday after Epiphany. Water and wine are familiar elements to us today in our worship and resonate with the meaning of this story. Indeed in the service of Holy Communion many churches mix water and wine together in the chalice. This practice is not to dilute the wine, but is a symbol of the unity of the human and divine natures in the person of Christ. The miracle takes place on the third day. A relatively short time later there would be another third day. That day would see the ultimate power of God breaking through when heaven and earth intersected in a way that would change the history of the world for eternity. In the same way the transformation of the water into wine at the wedding at Cana in Galilee, and the transformation which is continually taking place in our own lives, are only a faint foretaste of the ultimate transformation which is still to come.

All of today’s readings speak of a life changing transformational encounter with God. Abraham recognises Melchizedek as a ‘priest of God most high’ and immediately gives him a tenth of everything he owned (including all the possessions he had just reclaimed after defeating Kedorlaomer, the king who had carried off Lot and his family and goods, the action which had precipitated the battle). Melchizedek, in Hebrew malki-sedeq, which can be translated as ‘Sedeq is my king’, or ‘(The God) Melek is righteousness’ is the King of Salem (or Jerusalem as it became known) is a mysterious and enigmatic figure. In Ps 110 v 4 a Davidic king is proclaimed by the Lord as a ‘priest for ever after the order of Melchizedek’. As Jesus is from the house of David, the Davidic Messiah, it follows that He qualifies to be the priest for ever after the order of Melchizedek. The priesthood of Melchizedek is different and distinct from the Aaronic priesthood of the Old Testament; it is continuous and eternal, it does not need a line of succession in the earthly manner in which the Aaronic priesthood does, ,it’s not based on tribal alignment from the tribe of Judah, not Levi; Jesus would not have qualified as an Aaronic priest, and it is a royal priesthood. As Christians, a priesthood of all believers it is Christ Himself who is our great High Priest and it is Christ Himself who transforms our own lives as we encounter Him day by day. In the reading from John, the disciples witness the changing of water into wine and put their faith in Him. Jesus had revealed His glory and the disciples view of Jesus was changed forever. They would never be the same again. Their lives too had been transformed, just as much as the water when it was transformed into wine. In the reading from Revelation the believers had encountered God in a life changing way, despite persecution, social isolation and hardship. 

What is sometimes overlooked in all of these encounters to the revelation of God’s glory and transformation that God brings is the spontaneous response of worship and an expression of faith in the God who is revealed. Indeed, in the Psalms we read that we are created to praise and worship God. The purpose of turning water into wine is not so that any social embarrassment may be averted, but so that God’s glory may be revealed. God did not send His Son Jesus so that He could be at our beck and call to make our lives easier or to do the things we want or expect Him to do, He is here for a much bigger task, to transform and redeem creation itself through the life changing revelation of His Father’s glory to all creation. Perhaps we get an insight into Jesus’ mother’s understanding of this at the wedding in Cana. She reports to her Son that the wine has run out. She does not ask for Jesus to intervene with a specific solution but merely lays the situation before Him and then instructs the servants to, ‘Do whatever He tells you’. We may never understand the full why, when and how the revelation of God’s glory will take place. Perhaps it sometimes happens and we don’t even recognise it for what it is. How often too are we all to willing to drink the fine wine that God through His grace has provided for us in our lives but fail to make the link to our response of thanks, praise and worship. In a world in which many must feel like the puzzled guests at the wedding at Cana in Galilee where the wine had run out and wonder what is happening our role is to help all people make sense of their lives and the world. Part of this is by laying our own situations and concerns before God in prayer and in so doing expose our world to the glory of God, revealed through the transforming presence and love of His Son, so that it can be transformed into His Kingdom on earth. Part too is to understanding our own role in doing whatever He tells us. Sam Cappleman. 

Commentary

In the Gospel of Mark Jesus begins his ministry with an exorcism. In John’s Gospel today we read of Jesus turning water into wine. We know that the Gospel writers didn’t just throw their material together, it is complied very carefully to make a theological point. So why did John begin the ministry of Jesus in his Gospel by showing Jesus provide excess alcohol at a party? 

On one level it might even seem frivolous and irresponsible of Jesus, however the shortage of alcohol at a wedding would have been a serious embarrassment and more than just an inconvenience. At a wedding you were supposed to provide plentiful food and wine. Weddings were celebrated for seven days. People came and went, it was a community event and to run short of wine would have been a serious embarrassment for the host parents and the newlyweds. It would have spoiled the occasion for them and the community.

Nevertheless water into wine was nothing like as dramatic as raising Lazarus. Why doesn’t John begin with a better miracle? Part of the answer might be that whilst Jesus is performing a miraculous event, and wouldn’t we all like to be able to do this kind of party trick, yet there is more going on than manufacture of wine. John calls this is a ‘sign’, and in it lies the key to understanding the whole of the Gospel of John. 

Weddings were poignant, they spoke of God’s coming kingdom. It would be helpful to consider some important phrases used by John.

We must remember that the wedding took place ‘on the third day’. It is impossible to read these few short words without thinking of the great third day event of Jesus death and resurrection. The Gospel of John is full of symbolism and this is just one example. Jesus told Nathanael that he would see heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man. The fulfilment of that promise begins with the sign of Jesus this week at the wedding feast in Cana of Galilee, but we are already pointed towards a more significant event. To those who were willing to believe the glory of Jesus is shown. The event points to something and those who are willing to see can perceive beyond the mere physical representation.

Another phrase recorded by John is interesting, Jesus says "My hour has not yet come." This prepares us for the fact that there is a more important event to take place, it is the hour of his glorification—the hour of his death, resurrection, and ascension. It is almost as though John is reminding the reader, ‘you ain’t seen nothing yet!’

The words of Mary are important as well. She tells the servants 'Do whatever he tells you.' Mary makes the plea that complete trust can be put in Jesus without disappointment. Mary is confident that Jesus is able to make things right..

Finally we need to remember how the miracle, or sign, took place. Jesus took the stone water jars used for the Jewish purification and demands that they should be full. Jews regarded seven as a perfect or complete number, and six was incomplete. This could be seen as a criticism of Judaism, most clearly a point is being made about the incomplete nature of Judaism without Jesus. The amount of water held by each jar is translated as twenty or thirty gallons. The total amount of water, 120-180 gallons, was huge. Only a small amount of water was needed for purification, so this is a sign of great generosity and of the overwhelming grace through Jesus. Remember that it is John who tells us that Jesus, has come "so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life" (3:16). There is enough of Jesus generosity to go round for everybody. Thank God. Charles Royden 

Commentary

Wedding Feast at Cana Sermon 2024

There are two pages of commentary in Parish News on this week’s reading for the wedding feast at Cana, that is for those of you who would like to do some Bible study this week . Let me just share with you in the sermon a couple of themes which stand out to me as I read it today.

We are in the season of Epiphany, the time of the revelation of who Jesus. John tells us at the end of this passage that Jesus did this, the first of his signs, in Cana of Galilee, and revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him. So Jesus, with a push from his mother, uses the occasion of a wedding to come out and show people who he really is. 

I have just been invited to a family wedding. It is going to be in Scotland in a castle and it sounds absolutely fabulous. Now It’s not top of my list of things to do but I know some folks who are already working out their outfits and getting very enthusisatic.

The general mood is one of excitement and looking forward to it. Weddings are happy occasions. I am sure this one for Mark and Beveley will also be wonderful and Ross and I will be celebrating together. As I say everybody very excited and looking forward. But this is what you do with weddings, they are good things, they are meant to be joyous celebrations.

So Jesus wants us to see him and God’s kingdom in terms of the happy occasion of a wedding. This isn’t a one off, the Bible is full of passages which liken God’s kingdom to weddings and Jesus uses the image of a wedding a lot. Jesus says

This is good news, because just like I am looking forward to that wedding in Scotland, Jesus is saying is that you should be excited about what God has in store for you. Jesus does not invite us to a miserable future but a celebration. You will remember John the Baptist was a very solitary man who denied himself enjoyment. He was teetotal and lived on food foraged in the desert. Jesus was the complete opposite he was very social and he went to dinners and parties and it is in that contewct that he talk about God’s kingdom .

So Jesus goes to this wedding with his group of 5 disciples, all from the region of Galilee in the north. The family of Jesus is from the same region because the town of Nazareth is in Galilee and possibly Jesus and his mother were invited to this wedding because they were relatives or family friends. Its one great big happy family because on these occasions everybody was invited. It’s a big get together.

Note somebody who is presumably not there is Joseph, he is not mentioned at this wedding. In fact scripture does’nt mention Joseph at all during Jesus’ ministry. It is believed that Joseph died sometime between Jesus turning 12 years old and when he began his ministry.

Now it is bad enough planning a wedding which lasts a day, can you imagine what it must have been like planning a Hebrew wedding which would have lasted up to a week! These were big occasions and everything had to go well .

It didn’t go well, we read in verse 3 that the wine ran out, the mother of Jesus said to him, “They have no wine.” For the wine to run out at a wedding feast was a cause of a serious offence in Hebrew culture. It was an embarrassment to the family of the groom.

When the wine runs out Mary came to Jesus. Mary was perhaps in a spot because she appears to have been given some responsibility over the catering. Now it seems that Mary expected Jesus to do one of two possible things

1. Get his disciples and go and try and find some at a local vineyard

2. She already knew that Jesus was somebody who could do the miraculous? We can only guess, but, Mary had always believed Jesus was the Christ and it appears to me that she believed it was time for her 30 year old son him to reveal himself to others.

The fact that it was the second choice is shown by Jesus he saying 

‘My hour has not yet come.’ In John’s Gospel we know that this idea of “my hour” is used to describe the passion week and his crucifixion. 7:30 , 8:20 , 12:23 , 12:27 , 13:1 , 17:1

Jesus appears to be saying

‘I know what you are trying to get me to do but it is not yet time !’

Mary seems to have some sort of authority over the catering and tells the servants to do whatever Jesus tells them to do. It seems that Mary’s ploy gets Jesus to break cover. You know that happens next

1. There were six stone water jars there used for the Jewish rites of washing for purification, each holding twenty or thirty gallons.

2. Jesus tells the servants “Fill the jars with water” and they filled them to the brim. That word ‘brim’ is deliberate to show the overflowing nature, the abundance of what Jesus is doing.

3. Jesus tells the servants to draw some out and take it to the master of the feast and they did so.

4. When the master of the feast tastes the water now become wine, he doesn’t know where it came from he calls the bridegroom and said to him, “Everyone serves the good wine first, and when the people have drunk freely, then the poor wine. But you have kept the good wine until now.

Jesus is using jars which were part of Jewish religious regulations and he is having them filled to the brim with wine, symbolic of abundance and joy. Perhaps people would have been outraged if they knew they were drinking out of jars set aside for special ceremonial washing.

What is obvious to us is that Jesus is sending a message. The old days of religion are no more, what he is revealing about God is as different as offering the choice of water or wine at a party. Cana is a picture of what God is planning. It was nothing less than when Isaiah had declared in the Old Testament Isa 25:6

“On this mountain the Lord of hosts will make for all peoples a feast of rich food, a feast of well-aged wine

or Amos

“The time is surely coming says the Lord when the mountains shall drip with sweet wine and the hills shall flow with it; when my people shall plant vineyards and drink their wine.” (Amos 9:13, l4.)

There was this vision of God’s future being a time when there was an abundance of wine. So what better way was there than for Jesus to show that this time had come than by giving an abundance of wine.  

Our reading today finishes by telling us that this was the first of the signs which Jesus did at Cana in Galilee, and manifested his glory. John uses this word ‘sign’ instead of the word miracle which Matthew, Mark and Luke use. The point he is making is that whilst it was incredible that Jesus helped his mum with a potential catering disaster, there was something much more important going, a deeper meaning.

In this miracle Jesus reveals to his disciples that he will provide in abundance the very best for us in his kingdom. The guests had been drinking what they thought was good wine but the best was yet to come. 

The old religion with is laws of do’s and don’t, the temple worship and sacrificial system had run out, it was at an end and instead Jesus showed what God had in store for the future of his people.

Conclusion

Life can sometimes feel a bit like a wedding where the wine has run out. It is when we feel like this, in our times of need that Jesus offers us hope. This is what Jesus does and what his ministry showed, when things looked bleak he gave hope

1. He met the two disciples on the road to Emmaus when they were filled with grief

2. He walked on the water to the disciples when they felt that they were going to drown

3. He calmed the trouble mind of the man who lived in the tombs self harming

This is what Jesus does and when life feels a bit like a wedding where the wine has run dry, a place where the joy has evaporated, Jesus gives us something we can be joyful about. Of course there is always so much to thank God for but we all have times when we feel fragile. In the midst of our disappointments, when we feel that that the future is one where the wine has run out. Jesus says the best is yet to come.

So remember that Jesus is planning for his people a celebration. While your earthly future might be a funeral, God’s future for you is a wedding.

Now you might not always get that from your experience of the church, or what some folks say about God, but it is clear God wants you to be a part of a great future occasion which is a feast not a wake.

Commentary

Commentary

In the synoptic gospels, Matthew, Mark and Luke Jesus performs what are called miracles. In John’s Gospel John does not call them miracles, he calls them signs. We are told in John 20 what the purpose of the Gospel was - he wrote

³⁰ Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book. ³¹ But these are written so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name.

Note ! Jesus performs signs, not miracles. And the reason why these signs took place was in order for people to believe in who Jesus was. John is quite restrictive in how many of these signs he records. there are only seven in the whole Gospel. He has slimmed down the miracles and chosen seven special ones which he thinks are significant signs in demonstrating who Jesus was and what he was doing.

They are signs

For some time I have been trying to get some new signage in town about the Council Community Toilet scheme. These are to point to shops which have agreed to open the toilet in their premises to anybody who want to walk in and use them. These will be very helpful, especially if you want to use the toilet. Now just seeing the sign will be of absolutely no use to you. It will only be useful if you follow the sign and find the shop!

It is the same with the signs of Jesus. I think a lot of people know the story of Jesus turning water into wine. They may never put step a foot inside a church, but they know the story. I know this because quite often at parties or events folks will crack a joke about it they need more wine. Something like ‘hey Charlie’s a vicar he can make some more’.

They also know about one of the other miracles or signs which John records, -

Jesus walking on water.

 There are seven of these signs in the Gospel

1. Water into wine 2:1

2. Healing of Officials son 4:46

3. Healing the paralytic at Bethesda John 5

4. Feeding the 5000 John 6

5. Jesus walks on water john 6

6. Jesus heals the man born blind John 9 1-7

7. Jesus raises Lazarus John 11

So lets think about this sign - the water into wine

In the Gospel of Mark Jesus begins his ministry with an exorcism. In John’s Gospel today we read of Jesus turning water into wine. We know that the Gospel writers didn’t just throw their material together, it is compiled very carefully to make a theological point. So why did John begin the ministry of Jesus in his Gospel by showing Jesus provide wine at a party? 

John had only seven special miracles or signs, and this is the first one he chooses so there must be something very important going on.

So let’s look at the passage and see what is going on and why this sign is so important

Why was Jesus there?

Jesus is invited with his disciples and we know that at this stage there were probably at least five: Andrew, Simon Peter, Philip, Nathanael and the anonymous disciple (1:35).

The mother of Jesus is also invited.   

We don’t know why Jesus was invited.

Mary perhaps knew the family because she is concerned about the wine and seems to be able to give instruction to the catering staff. Note - in John’s Gospel Mary is only mentioned twice, once here and the next time is at the cross when Jesus hands her into the care of the disciple. Curiously she is never actually called Mary. We know that one of the disciples of Jesus, Nathanael, came from Cana, he would have probably known the couple who were getting married.

It was on the Third Day

A wedding was a big occasion in that time. We are told that it took place on the ‘Third Day’

We have weddings on Saturdays, at that time in ancient Israel Tuesday was the wedding day! In the UK right now I am told that Sunday is the most popular day for Jewish weddings to be held.

There is some thought that at the time Tuesday was considered a good day because in the Torah story of creation Tuesday is the only day that God describes as ‘good’ twice.  (see Genesis 1:10 and Genesis 1:12).

It went on for seven days

Wedding ceremonies normally lasted seven days. Depending on the wealth of the family a whole town could be invited and many rabbis excused the celebrations from the conflicting religious obligations. Even people you didn’t get on with would be invited and it was insulting to refuse to attend. The ceremonies were not just about two people getting together, it was the bringing together of families. There could be no quick trip to a wedding chapel in Jerusalem!

Wine was important

The host was supposed to provide wine for all for seven days ! Running out of wine was a major faux pas. It was not just a blunder, in a culture which was very much based around shame and honour, it was something which would bring shame on not just the couple but the whole family. Wine was a fundamental part of the celebrations and to run out was not just inconvenient it was a loss of reputation, a damaging social situation would cause a loss of honour and status.

Mary told Jesus they ran out of wine

Much has been written about how Mary asks Jesus to help out, and how Jesus responds. Most of it is just guesswork and we will never understand fully understand. On the face of it Jesus seems reluctant to intervene. He uses the words ‘my hour has not yet come’

The word ‘hour’ in John’s Gospel is a term which is used by Jesus to refer to his death. I have included the references here which you may wish to use in your own Bible study. :4:21, 23, 5:25, 28, 7:30, 8:20, 12:23, 27, 13:1, 16:2,4, 21, 25, 32, 17:1).

The writer of the Gospel says things like

· Then they tried to arrest him, but no one laid hands on him, because his hour had not yet come.

· He spoke these words while he was teaching in the treasury of the temple, but no one arrested him, because his hour had not yet come.

· Now before the festival of the Passover, Jesus knew that his hour had come to depart from this world and go to the Father. Having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end.

Jesus says things like

· Now my soul is troubled. And what should I say—“Father, save me from this hour”? No, it is for this reason that I have come to this hour.

·  After Jesus had spoken these words, he looked up to heaven and said, ‘Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son so that the Son may glorify you,

I mention these passages because it puts the question of Mary and the response of Jesus into a context which is so much more than just helping out at a wedding. This was about understanding who he was and what he had be born to do, his obedience to the mission which God had given to him.

Jesus turns water into wine

It is a fantastic miracle. The Jewish traditions demanded that Jews were not to eat until they gave their hands a ceremonial handwashing. Do you remember Mark 7:3-4.

Now when the Pharisees and some of the scribes who had come from Jerusalem gathered around him,  they noticed that some of his disciples were eating with defiled hands, that is, without washing them. (For the Pharisees, and all the Jews, do not eat unless they thoroughly wash their hands, thus observing the tradition of the elders;  and they do not eat anything from the market unless they wash it; and there are also. 

So water had to be poured by servants over the hands of every guest before the meal. The more guests the more jars ! For the purpose of water purification there were six hug stone jars at this wedding150 gallons. Jesus gives instruction for the jars to be filled and for the content to then be taken to the chap in charge of the ceremony who announces that the best wine has been kept until then end of the festivities. 

So what was the sign - it wasn’t just water

Everybody remembers that Jesus turned water into wine. But of course it wasn’t just water. This was special water, it was water of purification. It was Jewish cleaning water.

Jesus takes Jewish cleaning water and shows he has the power to change it. It becomes a sign, an illustration of the fact that the old water of cleaning was now being superseded. You had ceremonial water which people had to use over and over again but they were never really pure. Jesus is saying that this system didn’t work and so Jesus puts an end to ceremonial washing !

The law constantly reminded you how dirty you were. Jesus has come so that you can be properly clean. The reason why this miracle is the first miracle, the reason why it is so important is because in it Jesus is redefining our relationship to God. Instead of repeatedly washing but never being clean, now all would be made clean by Jesus.

The Jewish system was about restricting God’s grace. There were concentric circles of God’s grace.

• In the Tenple there was the Holy of Holiest where only the High priest could go
• Then there was holy place where only the priests could go
• Then there was another place where only the men could go
• Then there was a place where only Jewish women could go
• Then there was a place wher only godly gentiles could go

Guess what, Jesus didn’t like the temple. His was a ministry where all were invited. The men the women, the children, the lame the poor, the gentiles, even the hated Samaritans ! What did Jesus do after this miracle. John tells us that he went to Jerusalem and he made a whip and he turned over the tables of the money changers. 

Jesus wanted to bring God’s wine of forgiveness and acceptance to all people and that was a complete change to what had been going on as different as water is to wine.

Jesus hated the temple and all that it stood for about measuring out God’s love and forgiveness.

He hated it so much that only seven verses after this sign in Cana we are told by John that Jesus responded to the Jews in Jerusalem who asked for sign

‘Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.’ 20 The Jews then said, ‘This temple has been under construction for forty-six years, and will you raise it up in three days?’ 21 But he was speaking of the temple of his body. 22 After he was raised from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this; and they believed the scripture and the word that Jesus had spoken.

Conclusion

Being a follower of Jesus is like being invited to a wedding where the wine does not run out.

That sounds like it is a happy place and Christians should be filled with Joy, Jesus was not into making people miserable. You can get that out of the passage today with no problem. But the sign says something else which is very important. No matter how dirty you are Jesus makes you clean. The question used to be whether you could become clean enough to come near to God and some people still think in that way

I am not good enough, I have done bad things. Jesus is not interested in how good we are, all are invited. The communion which we celebrate today is Jesus meal and he invites everybody. There is nobody too dirty, nobody who is not good enough, all are called to come. There are no barriers to the love of God, so all are invited to come. Children, women, men, all are invited to come.

Jesus said it was no longer about how clean how religious you are, it is just about whether you will come. Jesus says ‘come to the table.’ he invited everybody to come to him and he still does. and that is why the Cana miracles laid down the new rules and why it was so important .

The Cana sign shows that Jesus is God’s expression of the turning over of the old religion of barriers and his offering of himself for to show his overflowing love and forgiveness. Now all that we need to do is come.   Charles Royden

Commentary

Today is a day of weddings, celebrating and asking God’s blessing for Colin and Rosemary after 60 years on the same day as our reading about the wedding feast in Cana. Last month in our family we had the happy occasion of Max getting married. Our wedding feast was not in Cana, it was in Clapham. I am a great admirer and love watching magicians and at his wedding Max had a magician and I was spellbound. This magician has probably been seen by many of some years ago when he was on television on Britain’s Got Talent. He was in my opinion extremely badly done to when he reached the final and was beaten by a dog called Pudsey. Anyway he went about doing his magic at the wedding and I loved it. On one occasion he placed a pack of cards on Corinne’s hand. I saw him place it there and Corinne felt it in her hand. But even as Corinne held the cards he did some jiggery pokery and the cards turned into a block of clear Perspex, right before our eyes.

Now there was nothing supernatural about it was just a brilliantly clever trick. I have seen other such tricks. On another occasion some years ago Corinne was called out by a magician, its always Corinne, I tell her not to look so enthusiastic. The magician asked her to guess a number and then he told her what it was, utterly unexplainable. I have seen other magic where Corinne has not been involved, I remember going to see Penn and Teller and they conducted some extraordinary magic which involved some sort of mind reading of the audience and it was utterly amazing. Again they were very keen to point out this was not done with any supernatural power or whatever

There is strong magic out there. Do you remember Moses when God told him to confront Pharoah. Its recorded in Exodus 7. Moses goes to Pharoah because he wants Pharoah to let the people of Israel go free. God tells Moses to perform a miracle by throwing down his staff and turning it into a snake. We are told that Moses does that, but Pharoah called his own wise men and Egyptian magicians and they performed the same trick using their secret arts.

Now what is the point of all this?

Quite simply we should not believe that Jesus is the Messiah the Son of God just because he did miracles. If we did then we might as well go and follow Penn and Teller. That is why in John’s Gospel the writer says that he records these events not as miracles but as signs. Don’t focus on water into wine, that is to concentrate on the sign. Look instead to who the sign is pointing to

1. Who is the sign pointing to - its pointing to Jesus ?

2. What does the sign of changing of the water into wine tell us about Jesus?

The key is in the fact that this was not just any old water into wine, this was special water that Jesus turned into wine. This was water which the Jews used for spiritual cleansing. Jesus changes the ordinary water of spiritual purification into wine to show that it was not water which brought spiritual cleansing it was him. In Jesus things were changing, the Old Covenant understanding of God was passing away, and Jesus was establishing a New Covenant/a new relationship between God and us. In this relationship God does not require people to be Jews and go through all of the ceremonies, the sacrifices, the circumcision the food laws. People could be forgiven and cleansed before God through Jesus.

 The Temple was no longer to be seen as a special place where God was, God had come in Jesus into the world. The Jewish people needed water for cleansing, they needed a whole myriad of laws to be obeyed so that they felt close to God. Jesus changed that and offered something very different and still does. Cleansing is something required by the human condition. It is often said quite correctly that to err is human, there is no way round it. Martin Luther the great reformer said ‘Sin Boldly’. What did he mean by that? Well I believe it means this- It doesn’t matter who you are, a monk or a mother you live in a sinful world and you will fall short of your own standards let alone God’s. So stop worrying about it and recognise that in Christ God’s grace is poured out freely, Jesus provides spiritual cleaning, God’s forgiveness and there is no room for guilt in the Christian life. Many people live chained to something in their past, unable to accept the fact that they are truly forgiven. No matter how much they are told that God forgives they cannot forgive themselves, holding onto the sins of the past in a manner which is perhaps self indulgent and certainly keeping the sins alive.

The miracle of water into wine, the sign of Cana this morning tells us that God forgives our sins, he takes them and as the children’s song says he ‘buries them in the deepest sea’. And then as Corrie ten Boom used to say, 'He puts up a sign that says, 'No fishing allowed.' Some people ask whether life gives us a second chance. Jesus shows us that God always forgives to free us from the past and provide us the opportunity in God’s grace to serve him with a clean conscience.  This was perhaps no better demonstrated than the Apostle Paul who had done so many bad things persecuting Christians and sending them to their death. He knew the power of the cleansing of the new wine of Jesus and in Phil 3:13-14 he said this 'Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.' So may we know the New Wine of God’s cleansing power to forgive and in his grace to serve him in newness of life. Amen    Charles Royden



Additional material

1. The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who gave a wedding feast for his son

2. He tells the story of the people invited to a wedding who made

3. excuses.

4. He tells the story of the man who turned up at a wedding without his wedding clothes.

5. He tells of the wise and foolish bridesmaids, those who had made preparations and those who had not.

6. When someone criticised him for not fasting, he asked whether the wedding guests could be expected to mourn while the bridegroom was with them?

Disciples - Three were from the same village.

· Andrew and Simon Peter were brothers from Bethsaida.

· Phillip was from the town of Bethsaida.

· John had been a disciple of John the Baptist

· Nathanael who was from the town of Cana where this wedding is taking place.