A Sermon from Falmouth Congregational Church…

A Sermon offered by the Rev. Ian F. “Jack” Steeves in the public worship service of the Falmouth Congregational Church United Church of Christ in Falmouth, Maine on the Second Sunday after Epiphany, January 17, 2010. The scripture reading was John 2:1-11.

“Jesus did this, the first of his signs, in Cana of Galilee, and revealed his glory,

And his disciples believed in him” (John 2:11).

 “Full to Overflowing”

I want you to picture the gospel scene. It is a midweek evening in ancient Palestine. The work day is over, the last rays of the sun are reflecting off the white-washed walls of Cana. Evening comes quickly, and the lamps and torches are lit. Tonight is a special night. It is a wedding of two teenagers and their two families. The new preacher from nearby Nazareth is here with his students and his mother, perhaps a sister of the bridegroom’s own mother. There is music, dancing, toasts, food and wine. Some of the guests begin to drift away early as the wine runs out, when the Rabbi works the first of his miracles.

In the account of the wedding, we are given “the first of the signs,” but a sign of what? It is a sign of the saving acts of a loving God, done then and now. This “sign” is not just something that happened one pleasant night for two newlyweds and their neighbors. This kind of activity still goes on among those persons who see with the eyes of faith.

God is constantly creating, sustaining and redeeming, ever turning the water of life into the wine of salvation. The “signs” point toward “an hour and a place” where there will be no enmity or fear among people. A time of rejoicing akin to a wedding feast is promised. It will be a place like “the world house” and “the Beloved community” which Martin Luther King, Jr. preached of and on so powerfully in his ministry. Today, we might use the term “a global village.” We are still trying to build the “house” and the “village,” as one community of brothers and sisters all. We have a long way to go, to get there.

In a sermon, entitled “Our God is Able,” the late Dr. King offered a brief sketch of one terrifying night in his own home. Martin recalled:

            …I settled in bed at a late hour…and I was about to doze off when the telephone rang. An angry voice said, “Listen, (nigger,) we’ve taken all we want from you. Before next week you’ll be sorry you ever came to Montgomery.” I hung up, but I could not sleep. It seemed that all my fears had come down on me at once….

            I got out of bed and began to walk the floor….I was ready to give up. I tried to think of a way to move out of the picture without appearing to be a coward. In this state of exhaustion, when my courage had almost gone, I determined to take my problems to God. My head in my hands, I bowed over the kitchen table and prayed aloud….”I am here taking a stand for what I believe is right. But now I am afraid….I am at the end of my powers. I have nothing left. I’ve come to the point where I can’t face it alone.

            At that moment I experienced the presence of the Divine as I had never before experienced him (God). It seemed as though I could hear the quiet assurance of an inner voice, saying, “Stand up for righteousness, stand up for truth. God will be at your side forever.” Almost at once my fears began to pass from me.

Martin had his “sign.” He also wrote: “Three nights later, our home was bombed….I accepted the word of the bombing calmly…I knew now that God is able to give us the interior resources to face the storms and problems of life.

Martin Luther King, Jr. did not give up. How about us? Have we? Do we give up?

How often, and not without some cause, we do give up. Our lives are boring, or empty, or “finished.” It was all very well, we say, while “it” (our youth, our marriage, our success, our health or our money) lasted, but now it is all gone. We have exhausted, or we believe we have, God’s grace and mercy. Our wine jar is empty. We’re finished!

Jesus works his first miracle. And, how unlike all the other miracles that were to follow. Here, at Cana, he did not raise the dead, heal the sick, restore sight to the blind, or make the lame walk. What did he do?

At the request or was it the “command” of his own mother, he helped a young, teenage couple avoid embarrassment and shame at their wedding feast. Suddenly, there was extra wine to pour, to toast the couple, to help the rhythm of the dancing, to soften the old folk’s night and “rev up” the young folk.

In ancient Palestine, the wedding celebrations often continued with an open house at the couple’s new home, lasting a week. What a wedding, what a “sign,” and what a “gift from God.” There is an old rabbinical saying: “Without wine, there is no joy.” In a life lived in poverty and hard work, a week of wedding festivity was a supreme occasion for the couple, the families and the entire village.

Hospitality toward one’s guests was a sacred duty. One cannot helop but wonder if, years later, the couple did not reminisce a little bit: “Oh, we thought we were finished before we had even begun. The wine was running out. Aunt Mary was not amused.” Did they recognize the steward’s (ARCHITROKLINṒS) discovery of the wine as the first gift among many in their life together? Was it “luck,” or was it the hand of a loving God?

“No, it cannot be, but wait it is! Look! An unexpected gleam in the bottom of the jar, a deep, rich ruby red color, a sudden sparkle in the lamp light and a delicate bouquet rising. The empty jar is full to overflowing.”

Our God is more than just able; our God is willing. Often we just cannot believe our eyes, no matter the mountain of evidence, that we are special in God’s eyes. We cannot bring ourselves to admit how deeply loved we are. God is alive in our community of faith, in us, and in all the gifts we have received and shared. Each person is gifted. We work together with those gifts for the common good. Some are incredibly bright, others are great talkers. Some bring faith, others bring healing and still others bring forgiveness. We understand what needs to be done and we do it. And, we do none of it alone.

Some parts of life are tedious, others are annoying, and still others can be very painful and even deadly. But God is inviting us to say every day, “Lord, you have saved the best till now!” God will not fail us. God is even now transforming our lives. Brothers and sisters, we have never been so full. Our “hour” has come!

Look around you and try to see the brothers and sisters as “signs” and as gifts rather than problems, as different talents rather than petty irritants. Take a moment to acknowledge your valuable place here among us, and embrace the gifts others share with you.

I believe, God delights in surprising us in the good times and soothing us in the not so good times. An awareness of God’s presence and power should be the starting point of each day and the place of return every night. Oh, there will be times of threat and adversity, sorrow and concern, hardship and grief, but we choose to keep our eyes on the activity of God’s grace in our lives.

In the humorous imagery of one Trappist monk, Basil Pennington, one reads: “Let us keep our eyes on the doughnut and the hole will fill with sweetness – and we will soon have a jelly doughnut!” Just think about that! One plain doughnut is a real temptation, but a dozen jelly doughnuts are a veritable banquet.

God gives us meaning in the midst of absurdity, hope that vacates depression and despair, healing from pain, and solace after loss. You and I are the contemporary “signs” and gifts of God’s glory, and humanity’s real hope in today’s world.

During one rally for desegregation in 1956, Dr. King wrote: “The end is reconciliation, the end is redemption; the end is the creation of the Beloved Community.”

Fifty four years later, King’s words still speak and call to us and challenge us to consider how we can live out our relationships with God and with one another responsibly, with justice and love.

When the water changes into wine, we know the Spirit is at work, animating us to be Christ’s body in the world. Let us be the best vintage we can be for the “Lord has saved the best till now!” Indeed! Amen.

The first half of the Gospel of John contains accounts of seven miracles of Jesus. The writer knows that he has performed many more (John 20:20). John’s word for wondrous deeds is “signs,” because they are to be regarded as symbols of Jesus’ teaching and as revelations of his glory (2:11). Their purpose is to evoke faith on the part of those who witness (and later, hear) of them (2:23).

It was the practice of the day to mix the wine, two parts wine to three parts water. While the wine was to be enjoyed by all, drunkenness was not acceptable behavior.