Homily
by The Rev. Marcia McRae
St.
John’s Episcopal Church, Bainbridge, GA
17
Jan. 2016,
Epiphany 2 Year C:
Isaiah
62:1-5, Psalm 36:5-10, 1 Corinthians 12:1-11, John 2:1-11
The
wine steward says “you have kept the good wine until now."
What does this say to us?
What
do details in our Gospel from John say deeply to us? Understanding
what we hear in scriptures & in this place has an effect on our
work as the Body of Christ.
Paul's
words today to the Corinthians & to us emphasize the importance
of understanding. Paul says for us to understand varieties of gifts &
varieties of services that we receive from the Holy Spirit, gifts God
pours in abundance to equip us for our mission to draw the human
family into God's abundant Love.
God
gives each of us particular gifts to share the Good News: God loves
you. No exceptions. All are welcome. How we say this & how we
live this makes a difference in how people receive the Good News.
Notice:
Paul says the varieties of gifts given by the Holy Spirit are “for
the common good.” The gifts include speaking wisdom, speaking
knowledge, faith, gifts of healing [which
we have in this Body of Christ],
...various kinds of tongues & the interpretation of tongues.
We
witnessed speaking in tongues last Sunday. I did not understand the
words as Linda spoke, many
of which I have heard when other Christians have spoken in tongues,
including at nearby Nelson Chapel.
God has given me 2 insights into our experience: The 1st
came during Eucharist as I read the Proper
Preface for Epiphany [BCP
page 378].
I recognized part of what God was saying to us through Linda:
In
the mystery of the Word made flesh, God has caused new light to shine
in our hearts, to give us knowledge of God's glory that we see in
Jesus & we know through the Holy Spirit.
The
2nd
insight into why God would have Linda speak in a different language
came as I studied our scriptures for the rest of Epiphany: God was
giving us a preview of our scriptures that emphasize gifts of the
Spirit.
Notice:
Paul emphasizes the variety of gifts.
Speaking in tongues is one, as is interpretation of tongues. Various
generations have seen an ebb & flow in the gift of tongues.
When
the Spirit broke on the Rev. Dr. Robert Hughes' shore so that he
spoke in tongues when he was a student, he sought his spiritual
director's guidance. What should he do with this wonderful gift?
Sharing
his personal story with us at seminary, Dr. Hughes recalled his wise
guide telling him:
Thank God for it. Enjoy it. Get on with serving God by ministering to
people.
Where
is the tide of the Spirit touching your shore?
What gift is God
calling you to discover or to renew & apply in the ministry only
you can do?
How does God's welcoming Love express itself
through you?
We
see Love active in our Gospel as Jesus' mother intercedes when the
big glitch threatens to ruin the wedding celebration. Notice: Jesus
tells his mom it's not time for him to act. Yet he does. Jesus' first
miracle comes from his mother's bringing a problem to his attention &
trusting him to act.
What
deeper meaning do we hear in these words in our Gospel: On
the 3rd
day at a wedding? What if our Gospel mentions Jesus' 1st
miracle being at a wedding to foreshadow our work as the Church –
the Bride of Christ? We are the bride. We are also God's servants who
know the source of the miracle on the 3rd
day.2
We
know the wine in today's Gospel comes from water for rites of
purification. Jesus' saving work is not for the simple human problem
of running short of party supplies. His concern, his hour, his
purifying work is his dying for our sins. When Jesus' blood &
water flow from his side as he hangs on the cross, he opens the way
to purify us of our sins, opens the way to glorious eternal life.
The
water & wine point to Holy Eucharist that feeds us week by week
to nourish us for our work as God's servants, who say Alleluia! Jesus
did rise from the grave on the 3rd
day!
Today
– Sunday – is that 3rd
day on which we celebrate & share the good wine. The 3rd
day from now is Wednesday when you, servant of God, have another
opportunity to celebrate & share the good wine to refresh &
strengthen you for your unique ministry using your unique gifts.
What
is God saying to you when the wine steward says: “you have kept the
good wine until now"?
Perhaps
God is saying some of our gifts are
yet to be discovered.
Since most
of us are older, perhaps, like fine, aged wine, God has saved the
good wine – the gifts – for the last
part of our lives.
Bibliography
Grenz,
Staney J. David Guretzki. Cherith Fee Nordling. Pocket
Dictionary of Theological Terms.
Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press. 1999.
Harper’s
Bible Commentary.
General Ed.: James. L. Mays. San Francisco: Harper & Row
Publishers, 1988.
Holy
Bible with the Apocrypha.
New Revised Standard Version. New York: Oxford University Press.
1989.
Hughes,
Robert Davis III. Beloved
Dust: Tides of the Spirit in the Christian Life.
New York:
The Continuum International Publishing Group Inc. 2008.
Jewish
Study Bible: Jewish Publication Society TANAKH Translation.
New York: Oxford University Press. 2004.
Warren,
The Rev. Deacon Timothy G. “Manifesting God’s Love, Epiphany 1(C)
– 2016” http://episcopaldigitalnetwork.com/stw/
Accessed: 5 Jan. 2016.
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