Sweat, Wine and Miracles: January 20, 2019

Year C, Epiphany 2                                                                 

John 2:1-11                                                                              

              Every Sunday we open with a different collect, which is our fancy word for a prayer.  The collects typically refer to the readings of the day. The prayer usually makes some sort of request of God.  Today’s collect asked: “Almighty God… Grant that your people, illumined by your Word and Sacraments, may shine with the radiance of Christ's glory, that he may be known, worshipped, and obeyed to the ends of the earth…” I liked that imagery of being illumined and shining with the radiance of Christ’s glory.  When I initially read it, I had this image of us all kind of glowing, you know, in a classy Episcopal way. But I didn’t dwell on the image for too long.

After all, we have these amazing readings for today, 2 of them are rather famous in the Christian Church.  The reading from Paul’s letter to the Corinthians refers to the Holy Spirit and the gifts that the Holy Spirit gives to each of us. It seems like the perfect reading for a day when we are all worshipping together, electing new vestry members and discussing the ways that all our members contribute to the ministry of the church. 

Then there is the reading from the Gospel of John. This is one of those miracles that everybody knows (Christians of every denomination, even the ones that don’t drink wine, Jews, Atheists, Buddhists, etc)---they all know the story.  They might not know the whole story, but they have the basics.  It’s kind of odd that this miracle is so well known given that it’s not as impressive as say….raising the dead or healing the blind and deaf. I mean water into wine is pretty cool, but it seems more like a parlor trick than a divine miracle.

The other unique thing about this miracle is that not many people witnessed it. The people at the wedding, even those hosting it didn’t even know that a miracle occurred. The only people who actually witnessed the miracle were Mary, a few disciples and the servants who assisted.  

Normally when we think of a miracle, we equate it with magic.  If you were to envision Jesus changing water into wine, you might imagine him waving his hand over some water and bam, it’s wine.  However, if you read this story carefully, you will see that he actually asked for some help from the servants.  He asked them to fill 6 stone jars full of water to the brim. Now, stone water jars (even without the water) were pretty heavy.  Each one held 20-30 gallons.  Once filled, they would have weighed about 200 pounds. And it wasn’t like the servants could just drag the garden hose out and fill them up.  They would have had to either take these huge jugs to the well or carry smaller jars back and forth until they were full.   We are talking about between 120 and 180 gallons of water they were carrying around. 

Additionally, this wasn’t your average modern wedding reception that lasted 4-5 hours. Jewish weddings at this time were 4-5 days.  This would have been day 3 or 4.  These servants were probably tired and here some guy (who they probably didn’t even know) asks them to do all this work...for what?  They don’t even know because he doesn’t tell them.  Can’t you just hear them grumbling…growing more and more irritated with every trip back to the well.

Yet then something truly amazing happens.  The water that they just drawn from the well has suddenly become wine…not some 2 buck chuck Trader Joes wine, but really excellent wine.  If I was one of those servants, observing the wine steward taste this fine wine, my first reaction would of course be surprise and awe.  But then, if I was sweaty and tired (as I imagine these servants were) I might wonder why this man who was capable of turning water in wine made me haul water back and forth in 200 pound stone jars.  If he could turn water into wine, couldn’t he have filled those jugs himself, with just a flick of the wrist?

If you read all of the miracle stories in both the Old Testament and the New Testament you will find that they often required effort on the part of a human. In the story of Noah and the Ark, Noah had to build an ark before it even started to rain.  In the feeding of the 5,000 a boy brought forward five loaves and two fish knowing that could not possibly be enough to feed a crowd.  In the healing miracles, people had to take the initiative to request the healing. We often assume that miracles are just something that God does.  We might have to pray for it, but then God does the rest of the work.  Yet often times, we have to put in some effort, maybe even a considerable amount of effort.

That’s why I think we need to be really careful about praying that opening collect we prayed today. What does it actually mean to be illumined with word and sacraments and then shine with the radiance of Christ’s glory? Because usually when there is something illumined or shining, that means there is heat and fire.  Behind God’s beauty and glory, there is sweat and hard work. 

At our Sunday morning service, you see the shiny part of church, illumined by soft candle light and careful lighting. But there is a lot that goes on behind the scenes, and I am not just talking about what it takes to put the service together, but what it takes to be the church and to be the people who God calls us to be. If you look at the front of our bulletin, you will see our mission: To live in the Spirit of Christ.  Within that mission statement are 3 words: inspire, aspire, perspire.  Everyone always giggles a little at that last word, but that might just be the most important part.   

During the season of Advent, we prayed for God to be present with us. We prayed, “Come Lord Jesus.” Then during the season of Christmas, we celebrated God being born to a woman and living here with us. We are now in the season of Epiphany.  Epiphany is a time when God reveals Godself to us.  God is here.  God is with us.  Now is when our work begins.

 You might think you have this church thing figured all out. You have been an usher for 50 years.  Your dad was an usher.  Your son is an usher.  You are good at being an usher.  And Lord knows, we need ushers.  It’s chaos without you.  But I want to challenge each of you (not just the ushers who I am picking on) try something out of your comfort zone.  Even Jesus went beyond his comfort zone.  It appears from our Gospel reading that he wasn’t super excited that his first miracle was going to be wine making, but that was what his mother asked and that was how his glory was revealed…in water, sweat and wine. 

We have no idea how God is working in us. We don’t know what gifts the Holy Spirit has bestowed on us.  All we know is that if we are going to pray for a miracle, we better be ready to be part of the miracle.  We prayed for God to come and live with us. Now God wants to know if we are ready to live with him.

What Made Them Wise: January 6, 2019

Epiphany, Year C                                                                 

Matthew 2:1-12                                                    

            If the wise men were women rather than men, what would have been different? 

1.      They would have asked for directions. 

2.      They would have arrived on time. 

3.      They would have brought more useful gifts. 

 I have heard several versions of this joke.  In almost all of these versions, the women ask for directions.  However, there is a flaw in this joke.  The wise men did ask for directions.  They asked King Herod.  Whenever I see the Christmas story portrayed in a film, the star often looks more like a spotlight than a star.  Sometimes there is a light shining directly on the baby Jesus.  If that were the case, the wise men would not have been 6 miles off track in Jerusalem (as opposed to Bethlehem) and forced to ask King Herod where this King of the Jews was to be born.  To those of us who know the story, this seems like a foolish move.  Everyone knew King Herod was insecure about his kingship and prone to irrational violence.  However, these men were from out of town…way out of town.  They were not even Jewish.  They knew they needed directions.

            The Greek word that is translated to wise men is magi.  It has many translations, but one of the most accurate is an astrologist.  Today, astrologers are not seen as extremely significant, but in this day, they were the wise and insightful people.  They were the philosophers, scientists and poets.  They were also very spiritual and many adhered to another religion called Zoroastrianism, which was an ancient religion from the area which is now Iran.  The unique thing about this religion was its belief in one God.  At this time, it was only the Hebrew people who ascribed to this belief.  If the magi were Zoroastrian, then they knew exactly what they were looking for.  They were looking for the one true God. 

            Yet despite all their knowledge, they still didn’t know some basic things, like who not to ask for directions.  They also did not know the Hebrew Scriptures.  It was logical for them to go to Jerusalem.  Even if they had some vague knowledge of Judaism or the Hebrew Scriptures, they would have understood the significance of Jerusalem. Jerusalem was the  logical place to go.  Yet…let’s face it—logic hadn’t gotten them this far. They were following a star.

            But apparently the star was not the spotlight that Hollywood likes to use.  If it was a spotlight, all kinds of people would have turned up.  However, this king, this savior chose a subtle entrance into the world.  Everyone wasn’t supposed to show up.  God chose who showed up. Most of the people he chose were people we were never expect…. magi from the East being in that category.

            While King Herod was indeed evil, he had a lot of smart and spiritual people at his disposal.  He knew the experts to turn to when the magi showed up and asked about the King of the Jews.  These men were not experts in the stars, they were the experts of the scriptures.  They knew the scripture we heard read here only a few weeks ago from Micah.  “And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for from you shall come a ruler who is to shepherd my people Israel.”  This new king would come from Bethlehem.

            Thankfully Bethlehem was a small place, and it would be a lot easier for the magi to find a newborn there, than in Jerusalem---so off they went.  The magi followed the directions of these experts of the Hebrew Scriptures and continued to follow the star and they found the child with his mother and knelt at his side and worshiped him.  They gave him the gifts that were fit for a king, perhaps not as useful as women would have brought, but significant in their symbolism.  Then instead of going back to King Herod, they followed a dream they had and returned another way. 

            In the Christmas pageants, the magi always show up right after the birth, but it was probably many days or weeks after.  This wasn’t an easy trip.  I imagine there was frustration at times.  They probably argued a little about which way they were supposed to go.  If I were them and I had finally made it to Jerusalem, I would have been a little annoyed to be told, no you’ve got another 6 miles to walk.  Yet they never gave up.

They were also open to all kind of signs and directions.  They did more than follow a star.  They also sought advice and counsel from experts.  They asked directions.  Then when the adrenalin rush was past and they were ready to go home, they listened to a dream…a dream, and followed another way home, probably a longer route.  Because they listened to that dream and took the long way home, they avoided King Herod who would have surely killed Jesus had he discovered his location.  They saved Jesus. 

            Sometimes I think we expect our faith journey to be easy, not one that is full of twists and turns.  Or we might expect one major challenge, but after that we deserve a journey unencumbered by obstacles.  We think that we get baptized, confirmed and then we are good.  In fact, we can stop studying, stop attending church.  We basically put our faith on cruise control.  But let me tell you, I just drove through West Virginia and cruise control doesn’t work when you are driving up and down mountains and through curvy roads.  You have to constantly readjust.

            The magi followed a star and a crazy king’s directions.  That is how they found Jesus.  And then once they found Jesus, things didn’t get easier.  They had to follow a dream and take an entirely different road back. They were probably thinking, well at least we know how to get home from here. Nope, God said, thanks for the presents, now I am going to throw one more challenge at you. 

            Despite those challenges, I have no doubt they made their way back.  More importantly, they made their way back with more wisdom then they started with.  When they began that journey, they were astrologers.  When they ended that journey, they were wise men.  They had seen the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords.  Their lives didn’t get easier. They probably got harder.  But the important thing is that they had direction in their lives.  They knew who and what they were living for.   

            I wish I could tell you that once you have found Jesus, things get easier.  Some things will get easier, but there will also be a lot of challenges.  What I can tell you is that once you found Jesus, there will be direction in your life. It might not always be clear. You might have to seek out that direction in a number of different ways, but it is there.  We at the church are here to help you discover your path if you find yourself floundering a little.  If you think you are the only person who gets a little lost at times, I assure you that you are not. I’ve been lost, sometimes more lost than I care to admit.   The reason why I never stay lost for long is because I know I have a community who will help me find my way back.   So do you.