and delivered them from their destructions.
V. Oh, that men would praise the Lord for His goodness:
V. Praise ye Him, all His angels: praise ye Him, all His hosts. Hallelujah!
KJV John 2:1 And the third day there was a marriage in Cana of Galilee; and the mother of Jesus was there: 2 And both Jesus was called, and his disciples, to the marriage. 3 And when they wanted wine, the mother of Jesus saith unto him, They have no wine. 4 Jesus saith unto her, Woman, what have I to do with thee? mine hour is not yet come. 5 His mother saith unto the servants, Whatsoever he saith unto you, do it. 6 And there were set there six waterpots of stone, after the manner of the purifying of the Jews, containing two or three firkins [GJ -10 gallons per firkin] apiece. 7 Jesus saith unto them, Fill the waterpots with water. And they filled them up to the brim. 8 And he saith unto them, Draw out now, and bear unto the governor of the feast. And they bare it. 9 When the ruler of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and knew not whence it was: (but the servants which drew the water knew;) the governor of the feast called the bridegroom, 10 And saith unto him, Every man at the beginning doth set forth good wine; and when men have well drunk, then that which is worse: but thou hast kept the good wine until now. 11 This beginning of miracles did Jesus in Cana of Galilee, and manifested forth his glory; and his disciples believed on him.
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Viet Dietrich Prayer, Epiphany 2
Lord God, heavenly Father, we thank Thee, that of Thy grace Thou hast instituted holy matrimony, in which Thou keepest us from unchastity, and other offenses: We beseech Thee to send Thy blessing upon every husband and wife, that they may not provoke each other to anger and strife, but live peaceably together in love and godliness, receive Thy gracious help in all temptations, and rear their children in accordance with Thy will; grant unto us all to walk before Thee, in purity and holiness, to put all our trust in Thee, and lead such lives on earth, that in the world to come we may have everlasting life, through the same, Thy beloved Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with Thee and the Holy Ghost, one true God, world without end. Amen.
Power and Efficacy of the Word
KJV John 2:1 And the third day there was a marriage in Cana of Galilee; and the mother of Jesus was there: 2 And both Jesus was called, and his disciples, to the marriage.
Background
Readers have assured me that they never heard of the efficacy of the Word until they began reading my posts and books. I was drawn into studying the topic from many Old Testament courses I took, from books on Judaism, from Luther's sermons, and from the Book of Concord, Melanchthon, Chemnitz, and Gerhard. Most importantly, the almost complete absence of teaching efficacy - even in Greek dictionaries - was appalling in current sources. What is rare is even more attractive, no?
This Gospel lesson is a perfect example of the Word's efficacy, or effectiveness, or from the Greek - energy. The Son of God turned ordinary water into extraordinary wine.
Who attended the wedding?
At the beginning of His ministry, Jesus and His disciples were invited to a wedding. His mother Mary was there, probably as a relative and as a substitute for the parents. Thus Jesus honored marriage and did not distain it. Avoiding marriage became a Roman Catholic fetish, so this miracle is a swipe against non-Christian practices, celibate priests, nuns, bishops, and popes.
The disciples were there for the first miracle and served as witnesses. When their faith faltered later, they could always look back and think about the miracle they all experienced.
3 And when they wanted wine, the mother of Jesus saith unto him, They have no wine.
Luther suggested that Mary's leading role came from the absence of parents. This was a poor couple with not enough money to pay for the basics at their wedding. That was uncomfortable for the guests, like having warm tapwater when some event is being celebrated today.
It is important to emphasize that the Word will act upon an inanimate object - or as Luther wrote - God gives us first what is difficult, tiresome, painful, and disheartening. Or - we look at it this way. Nothing is too beautiful - man will turn it into a heavy burden, a task, a dishonor. I have said, quoting someone else, "Where else can one speak 20 minutes or more without interruption?" Yet sermons are such a burden to pastors that they copy verbatim from someone else.
God has given us marriage between a man and a woman - and people avoid it or constantly complain about it. Over time, God allows difficulties of the worst kind. And when children have special problems, it can seem to be a very bitter set of years. Yet God gives us the bad first so we how it is transformed into the best by His power.
4 Jesus saith unto her, Woman, what have I to do with thee? mine hour is not yet come. 5 His mother saith unto the servants, Whatsoever he saith unto you, do it.
This has been seen as Mary instructing the Son of God. She simply told Jesus what the problem was. This is a clear subordination of Mary to Jesus. Jesus used the term "Woman" twice in the Gospel of John. Mary turned the matter over to her Son, through the servants. People want to give orders to God, the time, place, and method. God is not bossed around, and Luther pointed out that we should be patient and subordinate ourselves, not God.
31. To turn water into wine is to render the interpretation of the Law delightful. This is done as follows: Before the Gospel arrives everyone understands the Law as demanding our works, that we must fulfill it with works of our own. This interpretation begets either hardened, presumptuous dissemblers and hypocrites, harder than any pot of stone, or timid, restless consciences. There remains nothing but water in the pot, fear and dread of God’s Judgment. This is the water-interpretation, not intended for drinking, neither filling any with delight; on the contrary, there is nothing to it but washing and purification, and yet no true inner cleansing. But the Gospel explains the Law, showing that it requires more than we can render, and that it demands a person different from ourselves to fulfill it; that is, it demands Christ and brings us unto him, so that first of all by his grace we are made in true faith a different people like unto Christ, and that then we do truly good works. Thus the right interpretation and significance of the law is to lead us to the knowledge of our helplessness, to drive us from ourselves to another, namely to Christ, to seek grace and help of him.
7 Jesus saith unto them, Fill the waterpots with water. And they filled them up to the brim. 8 And he saith unto them, Draw out now, and bear unto the governor of the feast. And they bare it. 9 When the ruler of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and knew not whence it was: (but the servants which drew the water knew;) the governor of the feast called the bridegroom, 10 And saith unto him, Every man at the beginning doth set forth good wine; and when men have well drunk, then that which is worse: but thou hast kept the good wine until now.
I vicared in a church which was grand beyond measure. The pastor preached about the Gospel and aimed his message that way. It was the largest Lutheran church in Canada. Now it is mostly an apartment complex for low-income people. Their website is about the personality of the pastor and their good works, not about the Gospel.
Many of us have gone through difficult times that seemed to never end. I learned to find the spatula quickly and use it to clean the floor effectively. What now seems minor can be experienced again with laughter and nostalgia. Many say, "If only I could hug _____ one more time. But now is the time for people around us, people with special needs.
Mankind's way is to get the very best for themselves and end up with the bitter, cheap wine. People will say, "They had all the glory but look at them now."
God reverses this with the example from His Son, Who received hatred and scorn, torture and death, the crowds mocking Him.
11 This beginning of miracles did Jesus in Cana of Galilee, and manifested forth his glory; and his disciples believed on him.
Why not in Jerusalem? Jesus raised Lazareth from the dead, just outside of Jerusalem. The leaders and the crowds knew it, and reacted with murder. That always reminds me of this statement from Luther - "The Holy Spirit is so powerful that He can take the greatest evil into the greatest good, as He did with Jesus dying on the cross."
32. Therefore, when Christ wanted to make wine he had them pour in still more water, up to the very brim. For the Gospel comes and renders the interpretation of the Law perfectly clear (as already stated), showing that what belongs to us is nothing but sin; wherefore by the law we cannot escape sinning. When now the two or three firkins hear this, namely the good hearts who have labored according to the law in good works, and are already timid at heart and troubled in conscience, this interpretation adds greatly to their fear and terror; and the water now threatens to rise above the lid and brim. Before this, while they felt disinclined and averse to what is good, they still imagined they might yet succeed by their good works; now they hear that they are altogether unfit and helpless:, and that it is impossible to gain their end by good works. That overfills the pot with water, it cannot hold more. This is to interpret the Law in the highest manner, leaving nothing but despair.
33. Then comes the consoling Gospel and turns the water into wine. For when the heart hears that Christ fulfills the law for us and takes our sin upon himself, it no longer cares that impossible things are demanded by the Law, that we must despair of rendering them, and must give up our good works. Yea, it is an excellent thing, and delectable, that the Law is so deep and high, so holy and righteous and good, and demands things so great; and it is loved and lauded for making so many and such great demands.
This is because the heart now has in Christ all that the Law demands, and it would be sorry indeed if it demanded less. Behold, thus the Law is delightful now and easy which before was disagreeable, difficult and impossible; for it lives in the heart by the Spirit. Water no longer is in the pots, it has turned to wine, it is passed to the guest, it is consumed, and has made the heart glad.
