AND.... on the third day....

 SECOND SUNDAY AFTER THE EPIPHANY   Year C   January 16, 2022

Isaiah 62:1-5  •    Psalm 36:5-10  •   1 Corinthians 12:1-11  •   John 2:1-11

On the third day we came down the mountain and went back to our usual work. 

Are you confused?  You should be, because it is as if I have begun my story at the middle or end instead of at the beginning.  In normal story telling I would say to you, that Rex and I went up to Eungella.  I would talk about the things we experienced, like the cold water we swam in and the platypus we saw, and then I would end my story and on the 3rd day we came down the mountain.

Our Gospel reading begins with “On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee,…”.   If you are like me, you will turn the page back because it seems like we missed the beginning of the story, however if you do so, you will find that the previous chapter has nothing to do with this story.

On the third day could easily mean that it was Tuesday – the third day of the week.  According to the internet (https://18doors.org/timing_and_location_of_a_jewish_wedding/ ), “In traditional Jewish communities, Tuesday is considered an auspicious day to hold a wedding because it is a day that a portion of the Torah is not chanted in the synagogue.”  So it is most likely that our story begins “On Tuesday there was a wedding”…  But this is the Gospel of John, and there are layers of meaning in all that he writes.

 Immediately looking for famous third days, we know that on the third day Jesus rose from the dead.  It isn’t that he was literally in the grave three days, as complained about by those who look for literal truth.  When we look for the literal we can often miss the truth we are searching for because we are unaware of the Jewish culture and way.  Jesus rose “on the third day”. 

Speaking of “On the third day”, it is only logical to look for the full meaning of the third day from the book of Genesis, where we find that on the third day God created life.

Once again from the internet (  https://bibleproject.com/blog/why-did-jesus-rise-on-the-third-day/#:~:text=The%20Third%20Day%20Matters,activates%20his%20covenant%20with%20humanity.   ) we read,  “For Jesus and the apostles, the timing of his resurrection has strong theological implications. The three-day timeline matters to the biblical narrative, because it is the special day on which God creates new life and activates his covenant with humanity. ”

The wedding at Cana is considered the first of Jesus’ miracles and the beginning of his ministry.  It took place on the third day and the implication was not merely that it was Tuesday, but that it was a sign of God creating new life through the activation of His covenant with humanity.

 Knowing, from the very onset of this narrative, that the creation of life is the purpose of this story, we read on.

Mary approaches Jesus to tell him that they have no wine.  Jesus’ reply and reference to her as “woman” is not gruff and not a put down, but lost in the translation is a common pattern of speech inferring that “I don’t need to take this responsibility”.

Who is God that he should care for us?  We find this sentiment throughout the Bible from the Psalms in the Old Testament to various places including the letter of Hebrews in the New Testament.  When Jesus says, “Woman, what concern is that to you and to me? “ … I feel that Jesus could well be saying, “What is it to me that I should care for the salvation of the world?” and then Mary instructs the servants to do all that Jesus commands, as she knows his purpose and the vocation of his life.

Who are we that God should care for us?  We who constantly make selfish choices, and we who war with each other,… who are we that God should care for us?  And yet he does.

There are six large jars at the wedding.  They are there for the purification rites.  Six is the number of mankind.  Human kind, made in the image of God – whose number is seven… we were created on the sixth day, which is described in my research as the 2nd third day, implying the creation of life magnified. 

To recap, our Gospel tells the story of a wedding.  The host had run out of wine.  Jesus’ Mother tells Jesus and then tells the servants to do whatever he says.  Mary has a role here that is also worth looking into.  Mary is a believer.  Mary prepared the way for Jesus to act.  She instructed the servants to do all that Jesus asked of them. 

When Mary went and spoke to Jesus, she didn’t have the solution to the problem, but she knew the power of Jesus.  We, as Christians, are faced with many problems in this life.  Many times, we don’t have the solution – but we do know the power of God to act.  Mary knew that she didn’t need the solution, but she trusted completely and instructed the servants to comply with the wishes of Jesus.

We have problems today.  Our world needs the solution that can only come from God – a miracle.  Our part is to prepare the way by taking those problems to God.  Then, with trust, we leave it in his hands, knowing that he will act – but we also need to encourage others to work WITH Jesus and do all that he instructs.  Then we will see the miracle.  John called it a sign rather than a miracle as all that Jesus did, John saw as having layers of meaning.  There was a very true and simple meaning -God cares for our cares and did not want the bridegroom to be embarrassed by the lack of wine.  There is a deeper meaning – God cares for us and will answer our prayers.  There is an even deeper meaning;

We, the church, are the bride of Christ.  Though we are like ordinary empty vessels, He fills us with pure water and then turns us into something extraordinary.  He makes us his children, and the church his bride.  He fills us with the wine of the Holy Spirit and gives us gifts.

Through the Holy Spirit he gives us spiritual gifts and these are for us individually, but more importantly, these are gifts for the church.  We read about these gifts in our letter to the Corinthians which starts by explaining that no one speaking by the Spirit can be speaking curses.  He says this for a couple of reasons.  At a simple level, those followers of God should be identified by their words.   He is also speaking about the gift of tongues.  There is always a bit of suspicion when someone is speaking words that we can’t understand, that maybe they are not speaking from God.

I want to digress a little to explain, because I was once one who was ignorant of the fact that the gift of tongues is not something that was just given to the disciples at Pentecost.  As others came to believe and the Holy Spirit came upon them, those also spoke with different languages and this has happened right up and to this present day – and still is met with some suspicion.

The gift of tongues is the gift that seems to receive to most attention and criticism and yet we should remember that it is just one of the gifts. 

St Paul talks about the other gifts also in his letter to the Corinthians. 

“To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good.”  This is the most important point.  The gift is given to individuals but it is for the purpose of the common good.  It is not a gift that we should bury in field like a treasure that we are afraid someone will take, but the purpose is to be a blessing to others.

We read that the other gifts are wisdom, knowledge, faith, healing, working of miracles, prophecy, discernment, tongues and interpretation of tongues.

The first time I came in contact with a church that was gifted with these gifts I was just a naïve teenager, but I heard other teenagers and young adults speaking about current world issues with such incredible wisdom that I distinctly remember thinking, “I wish the world leaders could hear these people”, and they truly amazed me.

Our world is in deep need of wisdom, knowledge, faith and healing.  We need prophets with visions of insight to show us which way to go and to give us hope.

Jesus instructed that the water jars be filled to the brim with water.  There are some very natural things that we can do.  As empty vessels we can be filled with the word of God, the love of God and the willingness to do God’s will. 

The servants might have said NO to Jesus requests and there would be no wine and no story about the wedding in Cana, but they said YES.  We need to also say yes to the will of God.  We need to be willing to submit our will to the reign of Christ.   This is all we can do.

Who are we that God should care for us, or be mindful of us, or answer our prayers?  We all feel this way at times, but the truth is magnificent, because we are his precious children and he longs to give us his gifts.  They are not just for the church but for the wider community – the nations are to be blessed because of his gifts.  But I feel that we, the church, have neglected those gifts. 

We need to accept the gifts, say YES to God, trust in his provision, do as he tells us, be filled with his word and on the third day we will find that our water is wine.   Not just any wine – or gift… but a wine that is better than all that has gone before.  The gifts of God are GOOD.  We, the church need them…. And right now…. the world needs them.