The Second Sunday after
Epiphany
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Prelude, Welcome, and Information Hymn
#576 We All Are
One in Mission |
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The grace of our Lord Jesus
Christ, the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you
all. And also with
you. Psalm: Psalm 35:
5-10 Your
steadfast love, O Lord, extends to the heavens, your
faithfulness to the clouds. Your righteousness is like the
mighty mountains, your judgments are like the
great deep; you save humans and animals
alike, O Lord. How
precious is your steadfast love, O God! All people
may take refuge in the shadow of your wings. They feast on the abundance of
your house, and you give them drink from the
river of your delights. For with
you is the fountain of life; in your
light we see light. O continue your steadfast love
to those who know you, and your salvation to the
upright of heart! |
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The Lord be with you. And
also with you. Let us pray. Lord God, source of every
blessing, you showed forth your glory and led many to faith by the works of
your Son, who brought gladness and salvation to his people. Transform us by
the Spirit of his love, that we may find our life together in him, Jesus
Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen. |
Reading:
Isaiah 62:1-5
A reading from the prophet Isaiah
For Zion’s sake I will not keep silent, and for Jerusalem’s sake I will
not rest, until her vindication shines out like the dawn, and her salvation
like a burning torch. The nations shall see your vindication, and all the
kings your glory; and you shall be called by a new name that the mouth of
the Lord will give. You shall be a crown of beauty in the hand
of the Lord, and a royal diadem in the hand of your God. You shall no
more be termed Forsaken, and your land shall no more be termed Desolate; but
you shall be called My Delight Is in Her, and your land Married; for
the Lord delights in you, and your land shall be married. For as
a young man marries a young woman, so shall your builder marry you, and as the
bridegroom rejoices over the bride, so shall your God rejoice over you.
The Word of the Lord
Reading:
1 Corinthians 12:1-11
A reading from the first letter to the Corinthians
Now concerning spiritual gifts, brothers and sisters, I do not want you
to be uninformed. You know that when you were pagans, you were enticed and
led astray to idols that could not speak. Therefore I want you to
understand that no one speaking by the Spirit of God ever says “Let Jesus be
cursed!” and no one can say “Jesus is Lord” except by the Holy Spirit. Now
there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; and there are varieties
of services, but the same Lord; and there are varieties of activities, but
it is the same God who activates all of them in everyone. To each is given
the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. To one is given
through the Spirit the utterance of wisdom, and to another the utterance of
knowledge according to the same Spirit, to another faith by the same
Spirit, to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit, to another the
working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another the discernment of
spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of
tongues. All these are activated by one and the same Spirit, who allots to
each one individually just as the Spirit chooses.
The Word of the Lord.
Gospel
Verse:
Alleluia. Jesus revealed his
glory, and his disciples believed in him. Alleluia! (Matt. 3:17)
Gospel Reading: John 2:1-11
A reading from the Gospel of John
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.
This is the Gospel of the Lord. Praise
to you, O Christ.
Sermon
(added at the end of the document)
Hymn
#488 Soul,
Adorn Yourself with Gladness
Thanks and Offertory
Prayers of the Church:
In the spirit of obedience and holy care, we offer
our prayers for the world, the church, and for all people according to their
needs.
[Short
pause]
Gracious
God, help us to know your grace where it may be found. Open our eyes to your
presence every day. Lord, in your mercy,
Hear our prayer.
Gracious
God, be with our families and our friends in all their circumstances,
especially where there is stress. Lord, in your mercy, Hear
our prayer.
Gracious
God, in your mercy, comfort all who suffer for any reason, whether
physical, mental, or spiritual. Uphold all those who care for them. Lord, in
your mercy, Hear our prayer.
Gracious
God, as school classes resume, watch over teachers, assistants, and childhood
educators during these confusing and frightening times. Lord, in your
mercy, Hear our prayer.
Gracious
God, grant strength to all who work for the good and safety of all the
community – police, fire, and ambulance services. Lord, in your mercy, Hear
our prayer.
Gracious
God, look with favor on all who follow your Son. Bless the congregation of Peace
Christian Church, a Lutheran Fellowship, Chatham- and their interim pastor, Pr.
Paul Sodtke. Lord, in your mercy, Hear our prayer.
Gracious
God, we trust in your help. Hear the prayers we keep in our hearts… * … Lord,
in your mercy, Hear our prayer.
Into your gracious
hands we commend all for whom we pray, trusting in your promise of mercy;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
{*Erma Reska, Rose Gotzmeister, Gail Mauer,
and Bill Ungar}
Hymn #487 What Feast of Love
The Lord’s Prayer
Finally let
us pray for all things as our Lord would have us ask:
Our
Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name,
thy kingdom come,
thy will be done, on earth as it is in
heaven.
Give
us this day our daily bread;
and forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against
us;
and lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
For
thine is the kingdom, and the power,
and the
glory, forever and ever. Amen.
Closing prayer
God of grace and mercy,
of healing and wisdom,
from the shattered pieces of our
changed lives
you have brought us together as
community,
called and
gathered in heart and in the Spirit, wherever we may be.
As you guide us through times of
uncertainty, continue to cloak your people with joy and awe.
Send us out to bring light for the
world, food for the hungry, comfort to the sick.
And may your holy presence,
Father +, Son, and the Holy Spirit
keep us,
guide us, and bless us as we continue our journey with each other and with you.
Amen. Hymn #501 Come with Us, O Blessed Jesus
Benediction and
Sending
God is our
refuge and strength. Amen.
Christ is
light for our lives. Amen.
The Spirit of
Love is leading us. Amen.
Go in peace.
Walk humbly with God. Thanks be to
God.
We invite you to the in-person services scheduled on the following dates:
·
February 9 (at the Sax) & 20 (at the
church)
But you have kept the good wine until
now.
·
Most of Jesus’ miracles,
or ‘signs’ to use the words of John’s Gospel, often are seen as direct assaults
on the evils of the world. Healings, exorcisms, raising the dead confront what
is seen as evil or wrong or twisted in this world as we find it. John uses
“signs” to indicate that these events point to the revelation of who Jesus is. Taking
care of the lack of wine at a wedding seems almost beneath the dignity and care
of the Word made flesh.
·
Still this is the first
one mentioned in John’s Gospel, the Gospel that seems to deal with high and
almost mystical concepts. Here Jesus in his first “sign” changes water into
wine for the sake of the embarrassment of the bridal couple. But, leave it to
John, it goes much deeper than bar-tending.
·
Wine is often seen in the
Scriptures as part and parcel of joy, plenty, and celebration. An abundance of
wine is an indicator of the Messianic age. This sign/miracle shows that in
Jesus, life, joy, and salvation have arrived. Abundant wine proves that
abundant life is present, a life that is not simply survival or just having
plenty of material things. This abundance of wine shows an abundant life with
the One who loves so freely that he doesn’t know how to stop giving!
·
The jars of water that
became wine were on hand for the purification rituals required by the law of
Moses for the guests at the wedding. Each held between 20 and 30 gallons, which
is roughly 75 to 114 litres in each, totaling between 450 to 700 litres. That’d
make for quite a party! With Jesus present, what was an obligation according to
purity laws becomes a gift of blessing and celebration. We could see that
Jesus’ concern for us reaches into even our lives’ least things. That concern
is for our entire lives and touches even those things we might consider less significant.
Could it be that God takes joy in what we take joy in? Why not?
·
Jesus’ actions were set
in motion by the word of his mother: 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 words could be taken for
indifference and yet taken another way, they could show that Jesus already knew
what was going on. No matter what spin we put on it, His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.” Those
words might be the high point of the reading. It could be that the mother of
Jesus is speaking directly to us, the readers, as if to say that in whatever
circumstances we find ourselves, we should do what Jesus tells us to do.
Although the churches of the Reformation don’t give as much attention to the
mother of Jesus as the Catholic and Orthodox churches, we might remember that
Luther held Mary, the mother of Jesus, with great regard and devotion.
·
There is power here and
miraculous intent. Just because it takes place in a rather everyday situation
(we’ve all been to weddings!) does not reduce its role as a sign of the Kingdom
coming. It might even make the Kingdom more tangible since we can see how the
reign of God touches our lives exactly where they are – cuts, bruises, and lack
of wine included.
·
One of the commentators
on this passage included a poem in their work and I’m adding it to this sermon:
Here’s an epiphany to have and hold,
A truth that you can taste upon the tongue,
No distant shrines and canopies of gold
Or ladders to be clambered rung by rung,
But here and now, amidst your daily living,
Where you can taste and touch and feel and
see,
The spring of love, the fount of all
forgiving,
Flows when you need it, rich, abundant, free.
Better than waters of some outer weeping,
That leave you still with all your hidden sin,
Here is a vintage richer for the keeping
That works its transformation from within.
‘What price?’ you ask me, as we raise the
glass,
‘It cost our Saviour everything he has.’
-
Malcolm Guite,
poet, songwriter, Anglican priest
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