LutheranLectionary.org

1 Year Lectionary – Second Sunday After the Epiphany – Sunday, January 16, 2022 | Pr. Chris Rosebrough

Welcome to the Teaching Ministry of Kongsvinger Lutheran Church. Kongsvinger is a beacon for the Gospel of Jesus Christ and is located on the plains of Northwestern Minnesota. We proclaim Christ and Him crucified for our sins and salvation by grace through faith alone, and now, here’s a message from Pastor Chris Rosebrough:

Time Stamp	Transcript
0:28	the holy gospel according to saint john
0:30	the second chapter
0:32	[Music]
0:39	on the third day there was a wedding at
0:42	cana in galilee and the mother of Jesus
0:44	was there
0:45	Jesus also was invited to the wedding
0:47	with his disciples and when the wine ran
0:49	out the mother of Jesus said to him they
0:52	have no wine and Jesus said to her woman
0:54	what does this have to do with me my
0:57	hour has not yet come his mother said to
1:00	the servants do whatever he tells you
1:02	now there were six stone water jars
1:04	there for the jewish rites of
1:06	purification each holding 20 or 30
1:08	gallons Jesus said to the servants fill
1:10	the jars with water and they filled them
1:12	up to the brim and he said to them now
1:14	draw some out and take it to the master
1:16	of the feast so they took it and when
1:18	the master of the feast tasted the water
1:20	now become wine and did not know where
1:22	it came from though the servants who had
1:25	drawn the water knew the master of the
1:27	feast called the bridegroom and said to
1:29	him everyone serves the good wine first
1:31	and when people have drunk freely then
1:33	the poor wine but you have kept the good
1:34	wine until now this the first of his
1:37	signs Jesus did at cana in galilee and
1:40	manifested his glory and his disciples
1:43	believed in him this is the gospel of
1:45	the lord
1:46	in the name of Jesus
1:48	amen all right here are these words from
1:50	our epistle text we’re going to weave
1:52	together our gospel and epistle today
1:54	but it says in our epistle
1:57	that we are members of Christ’s body
2:01	as Christians this is most certainly
2:02	true we refer to the church as what the
2:04	body of Christ but listen to what it
2:06	says paul here quotes in verse 31 from
2:10	the book of genesis
2:12	therefore a man shall leave his father
2:15	and mother and hold fast to his wife and
2:17	the two shall become one flesh now when
2:21	we think about those words we’re always
2:23	thinking in terms of marriage but watch
2:25	what paul says this mystery is profound
2:28	and i’m saying that it refers to Christ
2:30	in the church
2:31	have you ever stopped to think that
2:33	every marriage and especially Christian
2:36	ones are a type and shadow of the love
2:38	that Christ has for his bride at least
2:41	they should be it is a union coming
2:44	together and the two become one flesh
2:46	and you’re going to note here that’s us
2:48	we have become the body of Christ one
2:51	flesh with him and so with that in mind
2:55	we’re going to work our way through our
2:57	gospel text and we’ll make callbacks to
3:00	our epistle text to kind of help us out
3:01	here i don’t know if you guys have
3:03	noticed but the synoptic gospels matthew
3:05	mark and luke
3:07	they seem to be pretty straightforward
3:09	kind of in your face it’s pretty easy to
3:11	kind of work things out there if we were
3:14	to talk about like cooking analogies
3:17	preaching from a synoptic gospel is like
3:19	ordering like a meal from the internet
3:22	all the ingredients are already
3:23	pre-measured for you all you have to do
3:25	is cook it it’s kind of simple but the
3:28	gospel of john’s really different all
3:30	right you almost have to like get online
3:32	and like look at youtube videos like
3:34	from like people who’ve actually been to
3:36	cooking school and sit there and kind of
3:38	go alright how am i going to work this
3:39	out let’s just say the themes in john
3:42	they’re they are many they are deep and
3:45	there are subtle nuances here i mean
3:48	have you ever stopped when you’ve read
3:49	this gospel and sit there and go did
3:51	Jesus just diss his mother
3:54	is that is that what happened here
3:56	yes and no
3:57	and and then
3:59	is mary telling Jesus what to do kind of
4:02	but not really and the did Jesus obey
4:04	his mom not exactly you see you see this
4:07	is one of these gospel texts you sit
4:09	here and go all right i need to slow
4:11	down and just kind of work our way
4:13	through these things now so here’s our
4:15	context first words of our gospel text
4:18	on the third day
4:20	third day from what the baptism of Jesus
4:23	Christ that had occurred
4:26	three days earlier and let’s just put it
4:28	this way there’s a really good
4:29	probability
4:31	that mary had already heard the news
4:34	about what had happened
4:35	that’s just a real real real possibility
4:39	in fact more than likely a probability
4:41	and if you remember
4:43	mary out of anybody knows exactly who
4:46	Jesus is i mean after all she got
4:49	pregnant without ever knowing a man
4:52	she
4:54	conceived in her womb by the power of
4:56	the holy spirit she was there when the
4:59	shepherds showed up because the angel
5:02	sent them
5:03	she was there when the magi showed up
5:05	from their long journey following a star
5:08	and they worshipped Christ and gave him
5:10	gifts of gold and frankincense and myrrh
5:13	she was well with joseph when joseph
5:16	woke her up and said it’s time to go
5:18	i’ve just seen a vision of an angel in a
5:21	dream saying that herod’s going to kill
5:23	Jesus we need to flee to egypt and we’re
5:25	leaving now in the middle of the night
5:27	and she sojourned in egypt along with
5:30	Christ and then slunk back after the
5:32	death of herod she she knows full well
5:35	what happened she was there when Jesus
5:37	went missing that whole first home alone
5:39	episode yeah episode you know
5:42	zero
5:43	it it’s it’s in the gospel of luke you
5:45	get you get the idea
5:47	she knows full well who Jesus is god in
5:50	human flesh emmanuel and so you’ll note
5:53	three days after Christ’s baptism
5:56	well one of the things that was on
5:57	Jesus’s calendar is that he got an
5:59	invite to a wedding feast in cana in
6:03	galilee canaan galilee’s not exactly a
6:06	high rent zip code just think of it that
6:09	way it’s it’s super low end blue collar
6:11	kind of town
6:12	and so there’s the issue and so as i was
6:15	reading through some of the church
6:17	fathers and looking at how luther
6:19	preached on this text what i found
6:20	fascinating is that there are several
6:22	church fathers and luther who believe
6:25	that because of mary’s involvement
6:28	that she may have been kind of one of
6:30	the wedding planners she wasn’t the head
6:32	of the feast but she was intimately
6:34	involved in making sure this thing went
6:35	off but because it goes off in a low
6:37	rent district here’s where we have to
6:40	pay attention to kind of some of the
6:42	cultural nuances
6:44	it’s a bad thing
6:46	if you invite a hunt a bunch of people
6:48	to your wedding feast and you run out of
6:50	wine
6:51	think of it this way if you know we’ve
6:53	all been to weddings and we’ve all been
6:55	to receptions
6:56	could you imagine getting an invite to a
6:58	wedding and being told it’s going to be
7:00	an open bar and you’re going to be
7:02	served a meal as part at the reception
7:04	only to get there and find out that well
7:07	the the bride and groom ran out of money
7:10	because they spent too much on flowers
7:12	and now you’re going to have to pay for
7:14	your drinks and if you want a meal uh
7:16	sandwiches are available but you have to
7:18	pay 15 bucks for them i mean people
7:21	would be talking about that wedding for
7:23	a long time worse than that they’d
7:25	actually be talking under their breath
7:26	about how foolish that bride and groom
7:29	were and so your note what is at stake
7:32	here
7:33	is well the honor the good name the
7:36	reputation of this couple and mary
7:39	involved in what’s going on
7:42	she ran when they ran out of wine she
7:45	said to Jesus
7:47	they have no wine
7:50	okay
7:52	and Jesus’s response first word
7:56	woman
7:57	man i got to tell you okay in the greek
7:59	the word woman here is not it doesn’t
8:02	have the same import that english does
8:04	but the what follows is actually kind of
8:06	a pushback but you think of it this way
8:08	i’ve said it before that you know
8:10	imagine i’m 16. i’d like to do that from
8:13	time to time think back to the days when
8:15	i had a 28 inch waist yeah i had rock
8:18	solid abs and i was a swimmer and yeah
8:20	you know you look at my
8:22	my high school graduation photos i look
8:24	like some weird guy from the 80s you
8:26	know it’s just i’ve got the whole thing
8:28	going on but
8:29	i can tell you right now that if my mom
8:32	said to me when i was a teenager chris
8:34	you need to clean your room
8:37	and i said to her
8:38	woman would you just get off my back and
8:41	stop bothering me about my room okay i
8:44	have i can attest with absolute
8:47	confidence had i ever said that to my
8:49	mother that the next thing that would
8:50	have happened is i would have gotten a
8:52	slap so strong in the face that my head
8:55	would have been spinning so hard it
8:56	would have flown off my neck like a
8:58	helicopter all right that’s how bad it
9:01	would have been so note here that’s not
9:03	what Jesus is doing the greek is
9:06	actually a little more
9:07	way more polite he’s this is a term of
9:10	endearment not a dis but what follows
9:12	next is interesting
9:14	he says what does this have to do with
9:16	me my hour has not yet come
9:23	okay
9:25	hmm
9:26	all right what are we supposed to make
9:28	of this
9:29	well
9:30	i liken it to remember when Jesus took
9:32	that trip outside of israel he heads up
9:34	to the region of tyre and sidon and
9:36	there’s that syrophoenician woman who
9:38	has a child who is demonized and she’s
9:41	crying out Jesus son of david help me
9:44	Jesus son of david my daughter has a
9:46	demon help and Jesus says
9:49	nothing
9:50	he says nothing to her and the disciples
9:53	are do you want us to tell her to go
9:55	away she’s just annoying us right
9:58	and
9:58	Jesus says bring her and and she comes
10:01	and she kneels and she says Jesus help
10:03	me my daughter has a demon and Jesus
10:05	says i was only sent to the lost sheep
10:08	of the children of israel
10:10	and she pushes back and he says no no
10:12	listen yeah it’s not right to take the
10:14	children’s bread and throw it to the
10:15	dogs
10:17	and you sit there and you go what
10:19	what is going on here right and what
10:22	does she do she says yes lord but even
10:25	the dogs get the crumbs that fall from
10:27	the table so give me my crumb
10:29	all right
10:30	and Jesus praises her and says woman
10:32	great is your
10:34	faith same thing i think is going on
10:36	here
10:37	Jesus
10:38	pushes back
10:40	a little bit and always i find that it’s
10:42	so bizarre that right after Jesus puts
10:45	pushes back women what does this have to
10:47	do with me my hour has not yet come his
10:49	mother said to the servants do whatever
10:51	he tells you
10:53	what happened
10:54	what makes her think that she’s going to
10:58	act in a way that’s helpful here right
11:00	he it doesn’t say that he went
11:02	okay
11:04	you know he didn’t wink at her and or
11:06	anything like that instead what does
11:08	this show
11:09	mary is a woman of faith
11:12	and even when it seems like she’s
11:14	getting a pushback from her own god she
11:17	knows full well what the word says and
11:19	here’s where it’s actually super helpful
11:21	note by Jesus pushing back a little bit
11:24	it completely undercuts the roman
11:26	catholic doctrine that if you can’t get
11:29	an answer from Jesus pray to his mother
11:31	she’ll get the job done
11:33	okay Jesus doesn’t obey his mother here
11:36	he pushes back on her right and then
11:40	she in faith says to the servants
11:43	you do whatever he tells you
11:45	do whatever he tells you now Jesus could
11:47	have said well that was an interesting
11:49	exchange get you guys get back to work
11:53	but here’s the thing and this is where i
11:56	love reading what the church has thought
11:58	about this text here in this text Jesus
12:01	by his very presence is honoring not
12:05	only this couple
12:07	he’s also honoring the institution of
12:09	marriage which is the very first
12:10	institution that god created now i i
12:13	have to say this because of the world we
12:15	live in
12:16	Jesus was
12:18	honoring
12:20	and he was blessing by his presence
12:22	a wedding the way god intended it you’re
12:25	going to note that there’s a bride and
12:28	there’s a groom there’s a male and
12:31	there’s a female it wasn’t steve and
12:34	brian okay
12:36	we have to say that god
12:38	created humanity as binary
12:42	he created us male and he created us
12:44	female and if anyone tells you otherwise
12:47	they are under a strong delusion
12:50	strong and so you’re going to note here
12:52	when we consider all of the implications
12:55	of this this is huge but note then that
12:58	Christ
12:59	is the bridegroom of the church
13:02	and here in this theme because paul
13:06	makes it clear to us that every wedding
13:08	points us to the relationship that
13:11	Christians the church the bride of
13:13	Christ has with Jesus himself one
13:16	fleshing with him
13:18	that there’s a little bit more going on
13:20	here in fact i’ll talk more about
13:22	Jesus’s hour in a minute so now
13:25	his mother says to the servants you do
13:28	whatever he tells you she’s absolutely
13:29	confident that Jesus is going to do
13:31	something here and so it says there were
13:34	six stone water jars there and you
13:36	cannot help but hear something like this
13:39	and sit there and go you know i remember
13:40	that number six in genesis and number
13:43	six in genesis well there were six days
13:45	of creation notice that there isn’t
13:47	seven so we’re not in the sabbath rest
13:49	you just have to sit there and go you
13:50	wonder if this is some kind of a call
13:51	back to old testament thinking and here
13:54	we got
13:55	six stone water jars for the jewish
13:57	rites of purification each holding 20 or
14:00	30 gallons washing water
14:03	hmm
14:04	i seem to remember something in our
14:06	epistle text listen to this husbands
14:11	love your wives as Christ has loved the
14:13	church and gave himself up for her so
14:16	that he
14:17	might sanctify her sanctified big word
14:21	means he makes her holy sanctify her
14:24	having cleansed her by the washing of
14:26	water with the word it’s a little bit of
14:29	a call here to an illusion regarding
14:31	baptism and well the cur creation we
14:34	find ourselves in but here’s the thing
14:36	if you think about the old testament
14:37	that’s where we get the law
14:39	you get types and shadows you get
14:42	glimpses and you get well people
14:44	preaching about the gospel that will be
14:46	when the messiah shows up and now that
14:48	Jesus is
14:49	on the on the scene here those six stone
14:53	water jars of washing water and every
14:56	time i think of washing water all i can
14:58	think about is how i probably be looking
15:00	for the cleanest of the jars myself if i
15:02	were required to wash my hands in one of
15:04	them have you know what i’m talking
15:06	about like you know it’s like okay jar
15:08	number one oh that’s how that’s been
15:09	used a few times two years three
15:13	five oh that’s clean you know because
15:15	because i understand how bugs work right
15:17	you get the idea but
15:20	washing water isn’t fun stuff
15:22	right but we’re at a wedding and so what
15:25	does Jesus do
15:28	well
15:29	this is where the next part of the theme
15:31	is so helpful
15:32	because you’re going to note what’s at
15:34	stake
15:35	again is the reputation of the bride and
15:37	groom
15:38	even though they’re honored by Christ’s
15:41	presence
15:42	they are about to have all of their well
15:45	shortcomings
15:47	aired as dirty laundry in front of all
15:50	of their wedding guests
15:51	and we all know how gossip works but
15:53	listen to what it says in our epistle
15:55	text
15:57	not only does Christ love his church and
15:59	gave himself up for her he sanctifies
16:02	her and cleans her by the washing of
16:04	water with the word
16:05	he presents the church to himself in
16:08	splendor without spot or wrinkle or any
16:12	such thing so that she might be holy and
16:15	without blemish i love this picture
16:18	because here’s the idea Christ doesn’t
16:21	look at his bride and go
16:22	what did you get yourself into well you
16:24	better clean yourself up and you know
16:26	i’m going to go tell the neighbors that
16:28	the reason why you’re going to be of
16:29	late is because you just messed
16:30	everything up uh-uh that’s not how Jesus
16:33	works that’s not how Jesus rolls in his
16:36	love for his bride he finds his bride
16:39	covered in muck and the filth of sin and
16:43	he washes it away he clothes her in
16:46	splendor he presents her in splendor to
16:49	himself he covers all of her sins so
16:52	that rather than her heirs and her sin
16:55	and her muck and all of her shortcomings
16:57	to be aired before everybody else
17:00	instead what is what she shows up as is
17:04	dressed in magnificence and glory
17:07	without spot or wrinkle without any
17:10	blemish Jesus loves his bride so much he
17:13	will give no occasion for anybody to
17:16	speak poorly of her
17:19	that’s you
17:22	so even though your sins be as scarlet
17:24	Christ
17:25	will and has bled and died for all of
17:28	your sins and he is looking forward to
17:30	the day when the marriage itself will be
17:33	consummated you’ll note at the end of
17:34	this cursed creation and the first thing
17:37	we do in the first the new creation it’s
17:40	a blowout party
17:43	and yes
17:44	there’s wine
17:46	okay
17:47	why it’s not grape juice
17:50	and this is where we have to kind of
17:51	step on some more toes here i have heard
17:54	the sermons from those who are
17:56	steeped
17:58	in pietism or legalism that this wasn’t
18:01	really wine it was just it was new wine
18:04	which means it had very little alcohol
18:06	content and that and it was really akin
18:09	to grape juice i would note this i have
18:12	yet to see a sommelier
18:16	smell the bouquet of welches
18:18	all right
18:20	i have yet to have somebody who knows
18:23	anything about wine sing the praises of
18:25	grape juice
18:28	and you’re going to note here this text
18:30	makes it very clear Jesus turned washing
18:33	water into wedding wine and not just any
18:36	wedding wine this isn’t two buck chuck
18:39	this is chateau montelena 2004 cabernet
18:42	sauvignon
18:44	all right it’s the best stuff this is
18:46	200 bucks a bottle kind of stuff and he
18:49	made six stone water jars each with 30
18:52	gallons of water in them of the best
18:54	stuff ever
18:56	and here’s the thing based on the timing
18:58	it’s already clear that people have
19:00	already had a few to drink
19:04	in other words Jesus has no problem with
19:07	you
19:08	enjoying the gift of alcohol and even
19:10	having a merry heart with it what is
19:12	forbidden is drunkenness
19:15	and so you’re going to note here this is
19:17	going to fly in the face of some of the
19:18	legalists and they’re claimed whoa you
19:20	can’t you can’t drink alcohol the
19:22	kingdom of god is not a matter of eating
19:24	and drinking
19:26	scripture is very clear on this and if
19:28	this is a sin then Christ to sin and he
19:30	ain’t your savior
19:32	that’s just how that rolls
19:36	so note Christ now
19:39	in his mercy and grace
19:42	goes about
19:44	doing a creative miracle
19:47	for the purpose of covering the
19:49	shortcomings
19:51	of the bride and groom
19:52	so that they would not face shame
19:55	gossip and dishonor and it’s beautiful
19:59	fill the jars Jesus said
20:01	they fill them to the brim
20:03	now draw some out and take it to the
20:04	master of the feast
20:06	and you have to think that the master of
20:09	the feast at this point has probably
20:11	heard the buzz
20:12	you know
20:13	because people are already talking mary
20:16	is already at action and you have to
20:18	just wonder it’s like you know the
20:19	master of the feast knows they ran out
20:21	of wine and so he doesn’t know where
20:23	this wine comes from
20:24	because you can’t just run down to happy
20:27	harry’s you know it’s this that’s that
20:30	doesn’t exist at this point so how were
20:33	they going to get this wine so they took
20:35	it to the master of the feast and when
20:36	the master of the feast tasted the water
20:38	which had now become wine he didn’t know
20:40	where it came from
20:42	though the servants who had drawn the
20:43	water they knew so the master of the
20:45	feast called the bridegroom and he said
20:47	to him
20:48	listen everyone serves the good wine
20:51	first
20:52	and when people have drunk freely then
20:54	the poor wine that’s when two buck chuck
20:56	comes out we don’t even have
20:58	you know uh we don’t even have that
21:00	store here
21:02	you all know what two buck chuck is
21:05	okay
21:06	so
21:08	in california and other parts of the
21:09	country there’s a store called trader
21:11	joe’s and they are they’re it’s a great
21:14	place to shop and they have a let’s just
21:17	say an interesting wine selection but
21:19	years ago they became famous for bottles
21:22	of wine that they sold that only cost
21:24	two dollars
21:27	and it tasted like two dollars
21:31	you know anything about wow yeah i never
21:34	knew that you could put that many msgs
21:36	into a into a bottle of wine but yeah so
21:38	you know
21:40	so that’s what i mean by two i
21:42	gotta work on my cultural references
21:43	here all right all of that being said
21:47	the the
21:48	master of the wedding feast is totally
21:50	expecting by this time in the wedding
21:53	that the two buck chuck is the thing
21:54	that’s flowing but he saved the best
21:57	wine until last
22:01	and man does this
22:02	just absolutely sing
22:05	the mercy
22:06	the grace
22:08	the love the kindness of our savior
22:13	it is so gracious and listen to what the
22:15	words that follow our that are next this
22:18	was the first of Jesus’s signs that
22:20	Jesus himself did at canaan in galilee
22:22	that’s right Jesus performed the miracle
22:24	and he manifested his glory and one has
22:27	to ask and this is i think the big
22:30	exegetical cue here because when you sit
22:32	there and you go Jesus manifested his
22:35	glory
22:36	how
22:37	nobody even knew except for a few
22:39	servants his disciples and his mother
22:42	what Jesus had done
22:44	but that’s the thing what is the glory
22:47	of god
22:48	the glory of god is to pardon sin to
22:51	cover iniquity to wash away to make it
22:54	so that people rather than facing the
22:56	shame and guilt and judgment of god hear
22:59	instead from him well done good and
23:02	faithful servant it is the glory of
23:05	Christ it is the glory of god to take
23:08	your sin and to wash it away and clothe
23:11	you in Jesus own righteousness
23:14	so that rather than face the shame and
23:17	guilt of god’s judgment you instead can
23:20	be welcomed to the wedding feast
23:22	embraced and hugged and loved by your
23:25	god and see his face in a world without
23:28	end
23:30	this is the glory of god
23:36	and so Jesus did manifest his glory
23:39	his great love his compassion his mercy
23:42	and his grace
23:43	even to this poor couple who didn’t have
23:45	enough money to buy the necessary wine
23:49	he filled in the gap
23:51	protected their honor and their good
23:53	name so that the eighth commandment
23:55	would be broken against them
23:57	and this is his glory
24:01	this is how much he loves his bride
24:04	and it says his disciples believed in
24:06	him
24:09	how could we not
24:11	what a merciful kind loving bridegroom
24:15	and savior we have
24:17	in the name of Jesus
24:18	amen

If you would like to support the teaching ministry of Kongsvinger Lutheran Church, you can do so by sending a tax-free donation to: Kongsvinger Lutheran Church 15950 470th Ave NW, Oslo, MN 56744 We thank you for your support. All of our teaching messages may be freely distributed as long as you do not edit or change the content of the message, and, again, thank you for listening.