Loving God, you reveal yourself to us through your Son, Jesus, that all people might be drawn to you. Teach us to see you more clearly, love you more dearly and follow you more nearly by the power of your Spirit; through the same Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

A sign always points to something else. It points beyond itself in order to communicate a message. Over the past few weeks, our readings have been full of signs.

Do you remember what the sign was for the shepherds? "This will be a sign for you: you will find a child wrapped in bands of cloth and lying in a manger" (Lk. 2:12). This child, lying on such a strange bed, would be a sign that God is with us. This child would tell the shepherds that the angels' message is true. This child would reveal God's plan of salvation for all people.

And then there was the sign that was followed by the magi - the wise men. That sign, of course, was the star. The star told them of the birth of a king. The star pointed beyond itself to Bethlehem. The star contained a message for all nations - that God had come to save them, too!

And then last week, at the baptism of Jesus - another sign! The Holy Spirit is seen descending in the form of a dove upon Jesus, and then a voice speaks from heaven: "You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased" (Lk. 3:22). Both the Spirit and the voice tell people who Jesus is. He is the one proclaimed by John the Baptist who would baptize with the Holy Spirit and with fire (Lk. 3:16). He is the servant who is described by Isaiah, the one on whom God's Spirit rests and with whom God is pleased (Isa. 42:1). He is the Messiah - the Anointed One - the King - the one who is described in the Psalms (Ps. 2:7).

And now today - another sign! Jesus turns water into wine at the wedding at Cana. The gospel of John tells us that this is the first of Jesus' signs (Jn. 2:11). But what does this sign tell us about Jesus? This is where it is helpful to know your Old Testament.

There are at least three different places in the prophets that describe a future time when there would be an abundance of wine. It would be the time of the Messiah - the one who would be a descendant of David and would come as king. It would be the time when God would come to save his people, and one of the signs would be an abundance of wine (Amos 9:11-13; Joel 3:18). It would be the time when all nations would be drawn to God and would rejoice in his salvation. The image that is used for this time is a feast of rich food and well-aged wines - provided by God for all people (Isa. 25:6-9).

And so, when Jesus turns the water into wine at the wedding feast - and we're talking about approximately 180 gallons of wine! - When Jesus produces all of this wine, it is a sign that the time of the Messiah has come. It is a sign that God has come, in Jesus, in order to save all people. It is a sign of the abundance of God's kingdom.

All of these "signs" over the past few weeks have been reminding us of who Jesus is. He is the Son of God, our Saviour, the Messiah. He is both servant and king. He is both child and Lord. He is fully human and fully divine.

Have we really grasped this? Have we really understood that God loves us enough to be born as a human child and to live a servant life among us? Have we understood that the same one who is worthy of our worship and praise loves us unconditionally? Have we experienced the love that would cause Jesus to give his life for ours? And if we have understood all this, how are we going to respond?

One possible response is demonstrated by the steward in today's gospel. His response could be described as either tunnel vision or wearing blinders. If he were a classic robot, he would be walking around saying, "Does not compute." As the chief steward, one would think that this man would be aware that they had run out of wine. All of a sudden, some servants bring him some wine to taste. One would think that he would ask the servants where this wine came from, and they would have told him that Jesus had something to do with it. For, when they drew it out of the jar it was only water. However, the chief steward apparently ignores what they have to say and goes to the bridegroom to ask him why he has kept the good wine hidden until now.

A miracle has happened, and the steward refuses to see it. It doesn't fit in with his view of the world, and so he is going to ignore it and continue to use his "old frames" for understanding things. Such things simply don't happen, and it's best to ignore them when they do!

This is a possible response to Jesus that still happens today. People settle on a particular view of the world, and if Jesus doesn't fit into their system, it seems easier to ignore him. And so if I have decided that I won't believe anything without scientific proof, I'll probably find it easier to ignore the gospel of Jesus Christ. And if I've decided that getting as much as possible for myself is the most important thing in life, then much of the message about Jesus just won't fit into that world view, and it's easiest simply to ignore it. And even if I'm just totally focussed on things in this world - like possessions or thrills or success - it will be easier to ignore the new life that Jesus brings, because it just doesn't fit in.

On the other hand, we can respond to Jesus as the disciples do. Today's gospel just gives us one simple sentence: "And his disciples believed in him" (Jn. 2:11). However, the rest of the gospel of John expands on what exactly that means. These days some people seem to have it in their heads that believing in Jesus means saying "I believe" and perhaps even showing up for worship every so often. However, the gospel of John gives quite a different message.

According to John, this is what it means to believe in Jesus Christ: It means loving one another as Jesus has first loved us (Jn. 13:34-35). It means living according to Jesus' example (Jn. 14:12). It means loving Jesus and obeying his commands - and the number one command throughout the gospel is to love - to love God and to love one another (Jn. 14:21; 1 Jn. 4:20-21). This is laid out in no uncertain terms.

And so, when we allow the Holy Spirit to work in our lives and to work faith in our hearts, the truth sinks deep within us that we are loved by God and saved by God. The Spirit allows us to see Jesus for who he really is: the Son of God, our Saviour, the Messiah. When we believe in Jesus, the result is new life, forgiveness, and love for God and for one another. Remember, that's how disciples of Jesus will be recognized - by the love that they have for one another (Jn. 13:35)! There's a reason that John says this over and over again!

Now, there's one more thing that we learn about faith from today's gospel. We learn it from Mary, the mother of Jesus, who always seems to be one step ahead of everybody else in the faith department. What we learn is this: how to trust Jesus.

Mary knows that Jesus has the power to do something about the whole situation with the wine. However, she does not presume to tell him what to do about it. She lets him know about the need, and then she says to the servants, "Do whatever he tells you" (Jn. 2:5). Mary trusts that Jesus can and will act - and she leaves it up to him as to how and when he will do it. We can learn a lot from Mary about what it means to trust - especially those of us who presume to tell God how and when to act!

God has a tendency to act in unexpected and new ways. And when God acts, how will we respond? Will we ignore it like the chief steward, or will we believe like the disciples and Mary? May the Spirit continue to work in our hearts. Amen.

Epiphany 2(C) John 2:1-11

January 14, 2007

St. Luke's Zion Lutheran Church

Pastor Lynne Hutchison Moore

? 2007 Lynne Hutchison Moore All Rights Reserved