John 2:1-11 (New International Version)

Jesus Changes Water to Wine
1On the third day a wedding took place at Cana in Galilee. Jesus' mother was there, 2and Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding. 3When the wine was gone, Jesus' mother said to him, "They have no more wine."
4"Dear woman, why do you involve me?" Jesus replied, "My time has not yet come."
5His mother said to the servants, "Do whatever he tells you."
6Nearby stood six stone water jars, the kind used by the Jews for ceremonial washing, each holding from twenty to thirty gallons.[a]
7Jesus said to the servants, "Fill the jars with water"; so they filled them to the brim.
8Then he told them, "Now draw some out and take it to the master of the banquet."
They did so, 9and the master of the banquet tasted the water that had been turned into wine. He did not realize where it had come from, though the servants who had drawn the water knew. Then he called the bridegroom aside 10and said, "Everyone brings out the choice wine first and then the cheaper wine after the guests have had too much to drink; but you have saved the best till now."
11This, the first of his miraculous signs, Jesus performed in Cana of Galilee. He thus revealed his glory, and his disciples put their faith in him.

Let’s start with this observation, we are told in the eleventh verse....

"11This, the first of his miraculous signs, Jesus performed in Cana of Galilee. He thus revealed his glory, and his disciples put their faith in him."

There are legends which teach that when Jesus was a little boy living in Egypt he would make little birds out of clay and then would miraculously make the clay figure come to life. This record makes it very clear that He did not perform miracles in His childhood in Egypt; or in His adolescent and adult years in Nazareth — but that His first miracle was at Cana of Galilee.

Verses 1 and 2 tell us that Jesus is invited to a wedding. This is an amazing moment! Here is the Word, the One who is in the beginning with God, and is God. He came out of eternity. He was made flesh and for His first thirty years lived in Nazareth taking care of His widowed mother, scratching out a living as a carpenter in land filled with rocks and stones. Now he is going to walk over a hill to attend a wedding in Cana. In this moment He is going to for the FIRST TIME manifest His Glory.

First occurrences in the Scriptures are of tremendous importance. First things are important. They make big impressions. They inform what follows. IT IS SIGNIFICANT that Jesus chose to begin His ministry on this earth at a wedding. Because He will conclude it, as far as the Church is concerned, with a wedding. At the marriage supper of the Lamb the Church will be presented to Him as a bride. IT IS SIGNIFICANT that Jesus chose to begin His ministry on this earth at a wedding. Because the very context of His first sign / miracle tells us how Jesus viewed the covenant of marriage. Here is the Creator of man and woman (Gen1 / John 1). Here is the One who is the author of the lifelong, monogamous, heterosexual marriage covenant. He has become man and has stepped into human history.

Jesus deliberately chose to begin His public ministry at a feast celebrating the covenant of marriage. Jesus deliberately chose to perform the first sign that would identify Him as God Incarnate at a feast celebrating the covenant of marriage in order to bless, validate and endorse that covenant of marriage.

By the way, when invited, Jesus still comes to weddings. He wants to live in the centre of marriages. IT IS ALSO SIGNIFICANT that Jesus chose to begin His ministry on this earth at a wedding. Because in it we discover that Jesus, God Incarnate, was not a recluse or a killjoy! He accepted invitations to social events. We find later his enemies tried to use this against Him -
Luke 7:34 "The Son of Man has come eating and drinking, and you say, ‘Look at him! A glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’"

God wanted to be with us! (Emmanuel - God With Us). When He became a man he did not hide from us, or retreat from us. He wanted to be with people when they laughed and were glad at a wedding, when they were sorrowful and broken at a funeral, when they were sick and needy. Jesus entered the very Real and Normal Experiences of Life, but Sanctified them by His Presence!

While Jesus wanted to be with lost humanity, many Christians want to isolate themselves from the real world. We are never to imitate this lost world, but we are to permeate it and integrate with it. Bishop J.C. Ryle points out that “A feast is made for laughter, and wine makes merry.” (Eccles. 10:19.) Our Lord, in the passage before us, approves both the feast and the use of wine. Of course this is a difficult and delicate subject. We all have to be on our guard. Each must know his own strength and natural temperament, and act accordingly. One Christian can go without risk where another cannot. Happy is the person who can use his or her Christian liberty without abusing it!

As you know, a wedding feast in the day of Jesus would go on for days. For a Jewish feast wine was essential. We find in the Old Testament that wine is associated with joy and the blessing of God! Because hospitality was so huge in Middle Eastern culture, to run out of food or wine at such an occasion was embarrassing. In fact, a family guilty of such a “Crime” could actually be fined (according to Jewish Law).

William Barclay says “Without wine there is no joy.” It was not that people were drunken, but in the East wine was an essential. Drunkenness was in fact a great disgrace, and they actually drank their wine in a mixture composed of two parts of wine to three parts of water. At any time the failure of provisions would have been a problem, because hospitality in the East is a sacred duty; so for the provisions to fail at a wedding would be a terrible humiliation for the bride and the bridegroom.

This is a “Jesus moment”. A moment in which we get a tremendous insight into the heart of Jesus. The first sign / miracle in the public ministry of Jesus was not done on a huge public platform. The first time that Jesus exercised His divine power it was out of sympathy, kindness, and understanding for a Galilean family. Jesus — the Lord of all life, and the King of glory — would point to His divine nature by saving a simple Galilean groom and bride from humiliation.
4And Jesus said to her, “Woman, what does this have to do with me? My hour has not yet come.”

The key question here is, why did Mary approach Jesus? She would have had to be very close to the bride or groom to have known this shortcoming before the other guests found out. The answer of Jesus tells us something about Mary‘s request. Remember, Jesus had probably been living with his widowed mother for nearly 30 years. And for those 30 years she had carried the stigma of becoming pregnant with Jesus before she was married. Mary’s request appears to be aimed at Jesus miraculously saving the day for this couple. And in so doing to prove that He really is the Son of God, which would prove that she really was a virgin when she conceived Jesus.

Interesting, after 30 years, Jesus never vindicated His mother. Yet even at this moment Jesus seems to say, “This is not the occasion. I’ll clear your name, but not here.” "My hour has not yet come". In John’s Gospel, Jesus’ “hour” is the time of his crucifixion, at which time his saving work is accomplished in his atoning death . It would not be until after the cross and resurrection that Mary could say to each of those disciples, “I told you that He was the Son of God!” Rom 1:4 “. . . declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead”
5His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.” Mary doesn’t have a lot of words recorded in Scripture. Here in John 2:5 are the last words recorded by Mary, and they are great words. The mother of J.Sidlow Baxter wrote on the inside of the Bible she gave to him as a gift on his 16th birthday, “Do whatever He tells you”. What a wonderful life-motto for a teen-ager. What a wonderful life-motto for ALL of us! Mary’s words to the servants show that she was willing to allow her Son to do as He pleased. They show that she trusted Him to do the right thing. In fact, the words of Mary to these men give to us a concise handbook on what our obedience to Jesus should be like.

An interesting way to think about any passage in the Bible is to look for levels of meaning. Wittgenstein used to say that swimming is a useful analogy for the human mind. He said that we are naturally buoyant and therefore we tend to prefer to float at the top. It is very difficult to swim down to the bottom. We have to really fight our way down! So too with thinking deeply about things.

Well, this passage has, I think, much deeper significance than simply the miracle (or sign) the embarrassment of the young couple at the reception, the fact that Jesus was willing to attend a social occasion and questions about the way Jesus spoke to his mother. Of course we have so much to learn from these simple and superficial elements but let's go deeper.

What does the passage say about Jesus? First, Jesus honours marriage. It was the first public thing he did. Of course God made sex and marriage and, even though Jesus probably was not married, he is going to be married to his bride, the Church. At the moment we are engaged to him. That is to say, we have the first fruits of the real thing - the Church, The Holy Spirit, fellowship with one another, the gifts of the Spirit etc. Second, Jesus helps people when they are in trouble. We have all experienced this in our lives from time to time. Third, Jesus rewards obedience. Mary says, "Do whatever he tells you". And it must have been hugely risky for the servants (slaves)! Imagine being a slave who could be killed in a heartbeat and having to take tap water to the guests - not knowing whether it was going to be turned to wine or not. I'm not sure I would have done it. Fourthly, Jesus blesses abundantly. Jesus always spoke of God's blessings like buying corn in the market place where you take your own basin. A good merchant will press down and shake together until it's running over.

Mark

Epiphany 3 - Sermon on the Epistle reading

1 Corinthians 12:1-11 (NRSV)

Spiritual Gifts

¹²Now concerning spiritual gifts, brothers and sisters, I do not want you to be uninformed. ²You know that when you were pagans, you were enticed and led astray to idols that could not speak. ³Therefore I want you to understand that no one speaking by the Spirit of God ever says ‘Let Jesus be cursed!’ and no one can say ‘Jesus is Lord’ except by the Holy Spirit.

⁴ Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; ⁵and there are varieties of services, but the same Lord; ⁶and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who activates all of them in everyone.⁷To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good.⁸To one is given through the Spirit the utterance of wisdom, and to another the utterance of knowledge according to the same Spirit, ⁹to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit, ¹⁰to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another the discernment of spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. ¹¹All these are activated by one and the same Spirit, who allots to each one individually just as the Spirit chooses.

This passage takes me back to the time of my conversion at the height of the Charismatic Renewal in 1978. It seemed then that God was doing wonderful things in the power of the Holy Spirit. Barclay records how this sort of thing was happening at the time of the early Church and that ‘… in an age of ecstasy and of enthusiasm there can be hysterical excitement and self-delusion as well as the real thing …’

There is no doubt in my mind that much of what we experienced was the real thing – but even at the time, there was also much that caused great disquiet.

There are two important statements that help to find true experiences of the Spirit of Jesus. (i) Let Jesus be cursed: At this time, this statement was required by some of the Jewish religious leaders. In synagogue prayers, it was common practice to curse all apostates, and at this time Jesus would have been named among them. Jewish law laid down that “Cursed be everyone who hangs on a tree …” As Jesus had been crucified – some would have cursed him in this way. It is also likely that those who converted to Judaism would have needed to curse Jesus, or face expulsion. St Paul explained to Agrippa that in his day of persecution of Christians he ‘… often punished them in every synagogue and I forced them to blaspheme …’ (Acts 26:11) History also tells us that later on in the days of the Roman persecution of Christians, people were forced to curse Christ or die. Sadly there have been occasions in modern times when this has also been true. Let us give thanks to God that we can worship our Lord in peace and without interference.

But there is also the other statement (ii) Jesus is Lord! If the early Church had any form of creed to begin with, it would have been : “Jesus is Lord!” Barclay reminds us that the word for ‘Lord’ is kurios. This was the word that was used to express the name of Jahweh (God) in Hebrew when translated into the Greek, and was used in the Septuagint; the Greek version of the Jewish Scriptures (Tenakh).  It was also the official title of Caesar. Still today, I believe that this is not something that we can find out for ourselves; it is a truth that needs to be revealed to us. It is therefore only when the Holy Spirit enables us – that we can say these wonderful words and mean them.

The Church is the Body of Christ and every part of it – like the human body – performs its own function for the good of the whole. There are different gifts and different functions, but they all come from the same Spirit and are designed, not for the glory of the individual, but for the benefit of the whole.

Paul explains that the Spiritual gifts (charismata) come from God and therefore must be used for God’s purposes. All too often, people think that the gifts of the Minister are the most important, and so they expect the Minister to do everything! But when one thinks of it, we need the gifts of all, not just in church services, but as a community. Especially in these difficult weather times, perhaps one of the most widely prized gifts are those of the plumber. A Christian plumber, who works for the glory of God and so does a superb job and charges a fair price, is a wonderful gift to a community, especially the vulnerable. And the same is true of others, doctors, teachers, traders – you name it – all working for the common good.

But here, Paul focuses on the Spiritual gifts and this in itself is of vital significance. We do need Christians to whom God has blessed with practical and other gifts, but in order to survive, we also need the Spiritual. It is not true that one can be a good Christian and not need to go to Church on a regular basis. I was amazed at a recent dinner for ministers where the controversial work of J A T Robinson was eulogised. This is interesting because his book, Honest to God, claimed that a supernatural God is no longer important. There is a truth that we do need to be grounded in the reality of the here and now, but we also need the transcendent – the Spiritual. Robinson also claimed that traditional Christianity including worship, was not really necessary. And this was preached from pulpits around the UK. Why then are people amazed because Church attendance has declined? Ministers, Priests and even Bishops taught that coming to Church was no longer necessary. I realise that this is somewhat of an oversimplification of Robinson’s work, and in many respects I think he made a vitally important contribution to the development of Christian theology, but this is what people heard. So, while there is much in his writings that I concur with, but here I disagree. We need to be grounded in this world and not live in a world ‘above’ alone, but we need both.

We also need wisdom as well as knowledge. The Greek word for wisdom is Sophia and refers to the knowledge of things human and divine, and of their causes, or in Aristotle’s writing “… the striving after the best ends and using the best means.” This does not come only from thought, but from union with God. Knowledge (on the other hand) gnosis is a much more practical thing; and I believe we need both. The place where we discern both is in the Church and this is why we need to be a worshipping people.

But is the Church searching for both? Without wisdom, knowledge just becomes a relativist matter of opinion. We need to discern the mind of God. If the Church does not do this, I will not blame people for staying away. Our world desperately needs wisdom, for without it, so many people are without hope, because they are without God in the world.

John Wesley makes the important point that there is unity in the Body of Christ (especially if one reads further from verse 12 onwards) even though there is great diversity in those who are members of the ‘Body’, and the gifts that are exercised within it. It is not that those of us who have the privilege to be ordained to the Word and Sacrament are any better than anyone else – we are just different. Laypersons are also included and contribute to the body’s unity through the gifts and graces used in leadership as well. Wesley nurtured lay leadership in small groups called classes. Leaders visited class members to discern spiritual wellness and need, to give guidance and comfort, to teach, and to receive offerings for the poor. If the body of Christ is to be effective in our world, we need all the gifts of all the people. I’m afraid, as a Methodist, that I am saddened that very little of this powerful recipe for growth is practiced anymore. There is therefore little mystery why my beloved Church is dying. We too have become (in many places) institutions where the minister does the work, and Methodism is also often a place where meetings happen on Sundays only. But this is not true here in Loughborough! Our Churches are busy, there are countless small group meetings going on all the time, and every time I drive past the church I see something happening; little wonder why it is such a lovely place to be, even though I (through my particular ministry as a School Chaplain) am somewhat on the fringe of things. But whenever I have the privilege of taking services, the Churches are good places to be!

Wesley explained that “Spiritual gifts, though varied, all flow from one fountain, the Holy Trinity.” Paul gives examples of nine gifts, beginning with two – wisdom and knowledge; he ends with another two – tongues and their interpretation – that were the focus of trouble. Spiritual gifts are designed with the ‘common good’ in mind (verse 7) and deployed under the guidance of the Holy Spirit (verse 11). ‘Tongues’ was causing a problem because they were not being used in this way. Because people thought that they were evidence of the direct influence of the Holy Spirit on the individual, they were considered to be ‘better’ than the other gifts. But often the people were no better off, because the ‘tongues’ meant nothing to them because they could not be understood. I treasure those heady days of the Charismatic renewal in the 1970s when tongues were so much part of our experience; but I also remember their abuse.

Nevertheless, we have a picture here of the Corinthian Church that was vividly alive; things happened – astonishing things happened. There was nothing dull and ordinary about this Church. The Spirit of Jesus was alive and active and many gifts were being used by all, for the benefit of the Body of Christ.

Epiphany 2: The Baptism of Jesus

Luke 3.15-17, 21-22 (NRSV)

15 As the people were filled with expectation, and all were questioning in their hearts concerning John, whether he might be the Messiah,¹⁶John answered all of them by saying, ‘I baptize you with water; but one who is more powerful than I is coming; I am not worthy to untie the thong of his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. ¹⁷His winnowing-fork is in his hand, to clear his threshing-floor and to gather the wheat into his granary; but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.’

The Baptism of Jesus

21 Now when all the people were baptized, and when Jesus also had been baptized and was praying, the heaven was opened, ²²and the Holy Spirit descended upon him in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came from heaven, ‘You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased.’ 

John taught with authority and it was obvious that he was a God ordained prophet. People were attracted to his message because they knew that he was telling the truth. Verse 15 records their response. Everyone became excited and wondered, "Could John be the Messiah?"

John hastens to tell them that he is not the Messiah and gives two important reasons. Firstly, he points out that he is nothing like the Messiah. Verse 16 explains:

¹⁶John answered all of them by saying, ‘I baptize you with water; but one who is more powerful than I is coming; I am not worthy to untie the thong of his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. 

In sheer power, Jesus was mightier than John. In addition, John claims that he was not even worthy to untie the Messiah's sandals. We know that this task was usually reserved for the lowliest people of society. In this way therefore John makes it clear that the Messiah is far greater than he. Secondly, he points out that his baptism is with water and the baptism of the Messiah is with the Holy Spirit and with fire. The baptism of the Messiah is therefore more than just a cleansing ritual; it is also like fire which purifies precious metals. The Holy Spirit transforms people and deals decisively with the sin in their lives. In addition, the Holy Spirit empowers and strengthens people to fulfil what they are called to do. Miller explains:

Water cleanses the outside alone. Fire penetrates to the deepest recesses and purifies the inner life.

Verse 17 is John's warning. The Messiah also comes as a judge. Those who refuse to obey and turn to God and allow themselves to be used by God will be discarded like the useless outer husks of grain because they are worthless. On the other hand, those who turn to God, believe and accept the Messiah - Jesus Christ - into their lives by faith, have great worth because they begin a new and productive life working for God's glory on earth. In verse 18 Luke records how in this and 'in many different ways John preached the good news to the people'.

John told the truth and invariably, when one tells the truth somebody is going to rebel against what they hear. He rebuked Herod for his sin and told him to repent. Herod refused and had John imprisoned and finally killed.

Have we all turned back to God? Or are we only going through the motions. Are our lives worthless husks that will be destroyed by the fire of judgement or will they be purified by the fire of the Holy Spirit?

I do not think there is any need from the context to think of the fiery judgement in literal terms, as this seems to be typical ancient hyperbole. It is also an utterance of John and not Jesus, but the metaphor of destruction or purification is a lovely challenge similar to that of St Paul when writing to the Corinthians refers to our lives being like building we construct – and those of gold and silver and precious stones last when met with the testing fires.

Earlier in the Gospel we are reminded that John was baptising people as a sign of repentance. Being baptised was therefore the people's way of saying that they had turned away from their sin and had turned to God. But we all know, because the Scriptures leave no room for doubt, that Jesus was completely sinless. In 2 Corinthians 5:21 we read simply yet unequivocally that 'Christ never sinned! ...' In 1 Peter 1:19 we read: 'You were rescued by the precious blood of Christ, that spotless and innocent lamb.' In Hebrews 7:26 the author states: 'Jesus is the High Priest we need. He is holy and innocent and faultless, and not at all like us sinners ...'

Jesus must therefore have been baptised for some other reason because he definitely did not need to be baptised because he was completely and utterly without sin - he was perfect in every respect because he was no mere man - he was God who had taken on the form of a man.

Jesus was baptised for the sins of others. To stress this point, Luke couples Jesus' baptism with that of the people in verse 21:

After everyone else had been baptised, Jesus himself was baptised.

This truth is linked to John's use of Isaiah's prophecy about Jesus and specifically to verse 6. Jesus' life, including his baptism was so that '... everyone will see the saving power of God'. Jesus, through his baptism, therefore identified himself with sinful people. He was baptised for our sake and not his own. It is therefore plain to see, right from his baptism, the beginning of his ministry, that Jesus was headed for the cross - that Jesus was the 'Suffering Servant' who had come to provide a solution for the sins of all people of all time. What Jesus did symbolically in this act of baptism, he did in reality on the Cross.

Verse 21 continues, 'Then as he prayed, the sky opened up ...' It was the experience of Jesus that great and wonderful things happened when he prayed. Prayer was a central feature of our Lord's life - how much more should it be a central feature of our lives. When Jesus healed people he prayed. In Luke 5:16 we read:

But Jesus would often go to some place where he could be alone and pray.

Before Jesus chose his Apostles, he prayed. Luke records:

About that time Jesus went off the mountain to pray, and he spent the whole night there.

Before asking his disciples if they realised who he was, Jesus prayed. Luke writes:

When Jesus was alone praying, his disciples came to him, and he asked them, "What do people say about me?"

The true glory of Jesus was revealed in prayer. Luke records:

About eight days later Jesus took Peter, John and James with him and went up on a mountain to pray. While he was praying, his face changed, and his clothes became shining white.

These are but a few examples. Suffice it to say that Jesus prayed and when he prayed, God did fantastic things. When Christians pray today, God still does fantastic things. When Jesus was baptised and prayed, the heavens opened up.

Verse 22 continues:

... the Holy Spirit came down upon him in the form of a dove.

We know that Jesus had the Holy Spirit before his baptism because he was born of the Spirit. Remember Luke 1:35 where the angel said to Mary:

"The Holy Spirit will come down to you, and God's power will come over you. So your child will be called the holy Son of God."

We know that God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit are inseparable - a mystery that we know is true even though we will never fully comprehend it. On the relationship between the Holy Spirit and Jesus, Luke writing in Acts indicates their closeness by referring to the 'Spirit of Jesus'. Paul also explains:

The Lord and the Spirit are one and the same, and the Lord's Spirit sets us free.

The Spirit coming upon Jesus in this special way at his baptism can possibly be God's way of showing us, mere mortals with finite understanding, that the Son was being empowered to go forth and fulfil his ministry as the 'Suffering Servant' in obedience to the Father's will. He must go forth from this point, being strengthened by God's Spirit, to bear the sins of many upon himself, so that those who believe in him might be saved.

Verse 22 continues:

A voice from heaven said, "You are my own dear Son, and I am pleased with you."

Jesus, unlike the rest of humankind, was acceptable to God. Jesus was unique because he was the only one that the Father could say that he was 'pleased with'. These words are taken from Psalm 2 and Isaiah 42. Psalm 2 proclaims the accession of the anointed King who is to rule the nations and Isaiah 42 is the first in a series of prophecies about the servant of the Lord who was chosen to carry true religion to the gentiles. At this point, if not before, Jesus must have realised the significance of what the Father was calling him to do. Throughout his childhood, Jesus would have progressively come to realise who he was and what his mission was. His baptism marked the end of a long period of preparation and development and of study and meditation upon the Scriptures. And Jesus could achieve the salvation of the world, because he was the only person in all history, of whom the Father could say 'I am pleased with you.'

God's Marvelous plan for the Gentiles

Ephesians 3:1-12 (New International Version, ©2010)

Ephesians 3
God’s Marvelous Plan for the Gentiles


1 For this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for the sake of you Gentiles—
2 Surely you have heard about the administration of God’s grace that was given to me for you, 3 that is, the mystery made known to me by revelation, as I have already written briefly. 4 In reading this, then, you will be able to understand my insight into the mystery of Christ, 5 which was not made known to people in other generations as it has now been revealed by the Spirit to God’s holy apostles and prophets. 6 This mystery is that through the gospel the Gentiles are heirs together with Israel, members together of one body, and sharers together in the promise in Christ Jesus.

7 I became a servant of this gospel by the gift of God’s grace given me through the working of his power. 8 Although I am less than the least of all the Lord’s people, this grace was given me: to preach to the Gentiles the boundless riches of Christ, 9 and to make plain to everyone the administration of this mystery, which for ages past was kept hidden in God, who created all things. 10 His intent was that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God should be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms, 11 according to his eternal purpose that he accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord. 12 In him and through faith in him we may approach God with freedom and confidence.

One of the three characteristics of God which Paul uses in this passage is wisdom (Sophia) and understanding. Barclay says that the Greeks wrote and thought much about the concept of wisdom. Aristotle speaks of wisdom as knowledge of the most precious things. Cicero defined it as knowledge of things both human and divine. Sophia was a thing of the searching mind, of the questing intellect, of the reaches of human thought. Sophia is the answer to the problems of life and death, and God and man, and time and eternity. The word understanding (phronesis) is defined by Aristotle as knowledge of human affairs and of the things in which planning is necessary. Cicero defines it as knowledge of things which are to be sought and things which are to be avoided. Plato speaks of it as the state of mind which enables us to judge the things which are to be done and what things are not to be done.

In other words, phronesis is the most practical thing in the world. It is the sound sense which enables us to meet and solve the practical problems of everyday life and living. It is Paul's claim that Jesus brought us sophia, knowledge of the eternal things, the intellectual knowledge which satisfies the mind; and that he brought us phronesis, the practical knowledge which enables us to handle and to solve the day to day problems of life and living.

When Paul wrote this letter he was in prison in Rome awaiting trial before Nero. He was waiting for the Jewish prosecutors to come with their trumped up charges and their hatred. It is true that in prison Paul had certain privileges because he was allowed to stay in a house which he had rented, and his friends were allowed access to him; but, even then, night and day he was a prisoner; night and day he was chained by a length of chain to the wrist of the Roman soldier who was his guard, and whose duty it was to see that Paul never escaped. It was in these circumstances that Paul calls himself "a prisoner of Christ Jesus". This is another instance of how Christians always had a double life and a double address. Any ordinary person looking at Paul in prison, would have said that Paul was the prisoner of the Roman government; and in one sense of course he was. But Paul never thought of himself as the prisoner of Rome. He always thought of himself as the prisoner of Christ.

One's outlook on life makes all the difference in the world. There is a famous instance which Barclay cites, of the days when Sir Christopher Wren was building St Paul's Cathedral. On one occasion Sir Christopher Wren was making a tour of the work in progress. He came upon a man at work and asked him: "What are you doing?" The man said, "I am cutting stone to a certain size and shape". He came to a second man and asked him what he was doing. The man said, "I am earning money to feed my children." Sir Christopher came to a third man and asked him the same question. The man paused for a moment in his work, straightened himself up and said, "I am helping Sir Christopher Wren build St. Paul's Cathedral."

There was all the difference in the world in the point of view of the three men. St. Paul is our example in the way we should approach the difficulties and challenges of life. We are to see ourselves not as victims but as the champions of Christ.

When Paul thought of this mystery of which he speaks here and which had been revealed to him, he thought of himself in certain ways. Firstly, he regarded himself as having received a new revelation. It is vital to understand that Paul never thought that he had discovered the universal love of God; he saw it as God having revealed it to him. Barclay says a wonderful thing; he says that there is a sense in which truth and beauty are always given by God. Truth and beauty are not so much a human discovery as God's gift.

Barclay tells how once sir Arthur Sullivan was at a performance of his own opera H.M.S. Pinafore. When the lovely duet "Ah leave me not to pine alone," had been sung, Sullivan turned to the friend who was sitting next to him and said, "Did I really write that?" One of the great examples of poetical music of words in literature is Coleridge's Kubla Khan. Coleridge fell asleep reading a book in which there were the words: Here Kubla Khan commanded a place to be built and a stately garden thereunto." He dreamed the poem and when he awoke he had nothing to do but write it down.

When a scientist makes a great discovery, over and over again what happens is that he thinks and thinks and experiments and experiments and then comes to a dead end. Human thought and human ingenuity will go no further. And then quite suddenly the solution to his problem flashes upon him. It is not thought out; it is given to him - by God. Paul would never have claimed to be the first person to discover the universal love of God; he would have said that God had told him the secret that had never before been revealed to anyone.

Paul saw himself as a person who had been given a double privilege. He has the privilege of discovering the secret that it was God's plan to draw all people into the secret of his grace and love. And he also was privileged to be the one who made this secret known to the Church and then to the Gentiles. But the consciousness of privilege did not make Paul proud, it kept him intensely humble. He was amazed that this privilege was given to a man who, as he saw it, was the least of God's people.

And so I am reminded that, in my work, I am privileged to be able to share the message of God's forgiveness and love, not because of me but in fact, very definitely in spite of me! Toscanini, says Barclay, was one of the greatest conductors and interpreters of music in the world. Once, when he was talking to an orchestra when he was preparing to play one of Beethoven's symphonies with them, he said, "Ladies and gentlemen, I am nothing; you are nothing. Beethoven is everything." He knew well that his duty was not to draw attention to himself of his orchestra. His duty was to obliterate himself and his orchestra and let Beethoven shine through.

Leslie Weatherhead writes somewhere of a talk he had with a public schoolboy who was thinking of entering the ministry. He asked him when he had decided to become a priest and the boy said it was after a service in the school chapel. Leslie Weatherhead naturally asked who the preacher had been and the boy replied that he had no idea who the preacher had been, only that Jesus Christ had spoken to him that morning. That was true preaching!

Mark

Gospel for the Feast of the Epiphany (Gospel for the 2nd Sunday after Christmas below)

Matthew 2:1-12 (NRSV)

The Visit of the Wise Men

²In the time of King Herod, after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, ²asking, ‘Where is the child who has been born king of the Jews? For we observed his star at its rising, and have come to pay him homage.’ ³When King Herod heard this, he was frightened, and all Jerusalem with him; ⁴and calling together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Messiah was to be born. ⁵They told him, ‘In Bethlehem of Judea; for so it has been written by the prophet: ⁶ “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.” ’ ⁷ Then Herod secretly called for the wise men and learned from them the exact time when the star had appeared. ⁸Then he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, ‘Go and search diligently for the child; and when you have found him, bring me word so that I may also go and pay him homage.’ ⁹When they had heard the king, they set out; and there, ahead of them, went the star that they had seen at its rising, until it stopped over the place where the child was. ¹⁰When they saw that the star had stopped, they were overwhelmed with joy. ¹¹On entering the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother; and they knelt down and paid him homage. Then, opening their treasure-chests, they offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. ¹²And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they left for their own country by another road.

A reflection, based on Barclay, on the Epiphany ...

In more recent times it has become commonplace to dismiss the event of the magi visiting the infant Jesus as ancient myth and legend and, like much of the rest of the New Testament, to dismiss it in the same way as we dismiss other fairytales and stories. But this does not mean that there were no magi at the time and while the New Testament writers might have been writing in an idiom that is no longer fashionable, and foreign to the modern reader, this does not alter the fact that it could have happened. The magi might not have been kings, there might have been more than three; but these and other details are really irrelevant. What matters is that, at the time, there was an air of expectation that something great was about to happen. This is evident in the writings of many of the secular ancients including Suetonius, Tacitus, Josephus, Seneca and Virgil. This ‘expectation’ was not only for the Jews which was something that Matthew needed to stress as his Gospel was written primarily for a Jewish audience. William Barclay in his commentary suggests:

There is not the slightest need to think that the story of the coming of the Magi to the cradle of Christ is only a lovely legend. It is exactly the kind of thing that could easily have happened in the ancient world.

Having said this, it could have been added by a later editor trying to meet the needs of a different historical context – but again, I suggest – that getting stuck on the so-called ‘problems’ of the text tends to make us miss the point and in the process rob us of the wonderful blessing that we can share at the time of this lovely festival.

As with much of the Scriptures, it is rich in symbolism. The gifts brought by the magi stress that the infant Christ child was a king (gold), that he was the perfect priest (frankincense) and that his life and death would be sacrificial (myrrh). The ‘fact’ that gentile wise men came to acknowledge this is a wonderful reminder that Jesus came for all people without exception. Historically, it is most probable that they came from Persia, and so we need to be reminded that, today, it would have been Muslim wise men coming to acknowledge the Christ. It is also all too easy in these difficult days to forget the Jesus is of great significance in Islam. Matthew’s readers might have been shocked that the Messiah was for others as well and not only for them. Does this say anything about how we ought to relate to others who are not like us?

William Barclay, writing specifically about the visit of the magi, adds:

There is poetry here, and we must not turn lovely poetry into crude and lifeless prose.

I have referred to J C Ryle’s commentary for the rest of this reflection ...

No one knows who these people were or how many of them were part of the party; all we do know is that they came from the East. But none of the fine details in this respect matter, as J C Ryle writes: “The point which concerns us most is the rich instruction which their history conveys.”

Firstly, these verses contain an important truth and that is that there may be true servants of God in places where we should not be expected to find them. The grace of God is not limited and it is not up to us to judge anyway. I work among people where 15 % are Hindu, and 5% Moslem and 5% Sikh – and they are lovely people. In fact, the Hindus see Jesus as a special avatar and an incarnation of the divine. Many of them also reveal the love and grace of God in their lives; some Sikhs being especially gracious. I am unashamed about what I believe, especially at times of great festivals like Christmas and Easter, but I leave the rest up to God.

Secondly, these verses reveal that it is not always those who have most religious privileges, who give Christ most honour. One would probably think that the religious leaders’ of Jesu’s day would have been the first to make their way to Bethlehem when there was a rumour that the saviour was to be born there – but this was not the case. This was left to unknown strangers from a foreign land. Sadly, this can be true even today: for there are many gracious and godly people who are neglected. This also suggests another danger and that is the way one can begin to neglect the precious things of God because we become too familiar with them. I can remember a number of occasions when I have attended worship where this is obvious – even in Cathedrals – where I have been given the impression that I have merely been taken through the motions. A few years ago  Gareth and I visited Coventry Cathedral. We rushed there to be in time for the Act of Reconciliation at midday. There were only three of us in the congregation and the priest who led the short service never made contact with any of us at all, not even to greet us. It was a special time, but it would have been so much better (for Gareth particularly) if there could have been some informal contact as well. They conduct this short service every day and it is times like this that familiarity can be a real problem. (Perhaps this was an ‘off’ day for the priest – we all have those so I don’t want to appear too hard on him!) But the women at the reception desk and in the cafeteria were wonderful and helped to make it a really special day for us.

The Gospel for the 2nd Sunday After Christmas

John 1:10-18 (NRSV)

¹⁰ He was in the world, and the world came into being through him; yet the world did not know him. ¹¹He came to what was his own, and his own people did not accept him. ¹²But to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God, ¹³who were born, not of blood or of the will of the flesh or of the will of man, but of God. ¹⁴ And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father’s only son, full of grace and truth. ¹⁵(John testified to him and cried out, ‘This was he of whom I said, “He who comes after me ranks ahead of me because he was before me.” ’) ¹⁶From his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. ¹⁷The law indeed was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. ¹⁸No one has ever seen God. It is God the only Son, who is close to the Father’s heart, who has made him known. 

Some thoughts from Bishop Tom Wright ...

Jesus is identical with the Word who was there from the very beginning of everything – through whom all things were made – the one who contained and contains life and light. But when God sent the Word into the world, specifically to Israel, the chosen people do not recognise him. This is the central problem that seems to dominate the whole story: Jesus comes to God’s people, and God’s people do what the rest of the world do – they prefer darkness to light. This is the reason why we all need grace.

Bishop Tom suggests (and I agree) that what makes this passage really exciting is that it addresses us as well because in verse 12 we read: “¹²But to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God ...”This means that anyone – in history, now and in the future – all are invited to become children of God, born into a new family which Jesus began and which has, since then, spread throughout the world.

All human life is special in God’s sight, but something can happen in this life that adds to its dignity and worth, when we become part of God’s special family. Bishop Tom continues: “.... this great drama is a play in search of actors, and there are parts for everyone, you and me included.”

Even today, as we journey through our lives, we can see that they are part of God’s play, revealing truth and beauty to the world.

Barclay makes the point that for the author of this Gospel it was important that John the Baptists did not occupy an exaggerated position in our thoughts and so quotes the Baptist in verse 15 as saying: “He who comes after me ranks ahead of me because he was before me.” The Baptist was older than Jesus but this is not what he is saying; he is speaking in the light of eternity and so identifies Jesus as God – the one who existed before the universe came into existence and ‘... beside whom any human figure has no standing at all.’

Verse 16a begins with an interesting phrase: “From his fullness ...” This implies that the sum total of all that is God, is Jesus. Paul uses the same word in Colossians when he says that the fullness of God dwelt in Christ. He is implying that the totality of God’s wisdom, power and love is in Jesus, the Christ. Barclay writes:

A person can go to Jesus with any need and find that need supplied. A person can go to Jesus with any ideal and find that ideal realised. In Jesus, a person in love with beauty will find the supreme beauty. In Jesus, the person to whom life is the search for knowledge will find the supreme revelation ...

From Jesus we have also received grace upon grace (verse 16b). In Christ we find one wonder leading to another. Sometimes as we travel a very lovely road we are overtaken by one beautiful sight being followed closely by countless others; at every view we think nothing could be lovelier, only to find there is always more. When a person begins a study of some great subject, they never get to the end of it. Always there are fresh expressions of beauty waiting for them. Barclay continues: “It is so with Christ. The more we know of him, the more wonderful he becomes. The longer we live with him, the more loveliness we discover. ...”

There is another dimension: the grace of God is never static, but always dynamic. Barclay explains: “One need invades life and one grace comes with it. That need passes and another need assaults us and with it another grace comes.”

We are taken to greater experiences of grace as our relationship with Christ grows and develops and we receive grace to meet every challenge ... “¹⁶From his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace.”

The Gospel for the 1st Sunday after Christmas

Luke 2.41-end (NRSV)

The Boy Jesus in the Temple

41 Now every year his parents went to Jerusalem for the festival of the Passover. ⁴²And when he was twelve years old, they went up as usual for the festival. ⁴³When the festival was ended and they started to return, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem, but his parents did not know it. ⁴⁴Assuming that he was in the group of travellers, they went a day’s journey. Then they started to look for him among their relatives and friends. ⁴⁵When they did not find him, they returned to Jerusalem to search for him. ⁴⁶After three days they found him in the temple, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. ⁴⁷And all who heard him were amazed at his understanding and his answers. ⁴⁸When his parents saw him they were astonished; and his mother said to him, ‘Child, why have you treated us like this? Look, your father and I have been searching for you in great anxiety.’⁴⁹He said to them, ‘Why were you searching for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?’ ⁵⁰But they did not understand what he said to them. ⁵¹Then he went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was obedient to them. His mother treasured all these things in her heart. ⁵² And Jesus increased in wisdom and in years, and in divine and human favour. 

Today's lesson reveals a vitally important truth about Jesus Christ. In fact this passage records the first spoken words of Jesus, our Lord. They are significant because, as Leon Morris puts it:

The first recorded words of the Messiah are ... a recognition of His unique relationship to God ...

In this passage we learn how the boy Jesus came to understand who he really was - the Son of God the Father and that he shared a relationship with God the Father that was unique. In verse 41 we read that every year, the parents of Jesus went to the Temple for the Passover festival. Jewish Law decreed that all males were required to attend the Temple three times each year viz. at the festivals of Passover, Pentecost and Tabernacles. (Exodus 23:14-17; Deut. 16:16.) Women were not required by the Law to attend but some did. It appears as though Mary was accustomed to accompany Joseph in all his religious duties.

Attendance at the Temple was difficult for the many Jewish men who were scattered all over the Roman world and beyond - but many made the effort. The crowds in Jerusalem during the Passover were therefore tremendous. It is believed that there were often over 100 000 visitors crowded into Jerusalem which only normally had about 50 000 inhabitants.

On this occasion Mary and Joseph took their first-born son Jesus, with them. Jewish boys, at the age of thirteen, became a 'son of the law' or a full member of the synagogue. At this time, he would assume all the responsibilities implied in his circumcision. This is not dissimilar to the modern practice of confirmation, when the child assumes all the responsibilities implied in their baptism. Custom suggested that parents should take their children to the Temple a year or two before their thirteenth birthday so they might begin to understand the significance of what was going to happen when they became full members.

Jesus was obviously fascinated by the whole experience and could not get enough from all the learned people who were giving him instruction. Probably lost in the wonder of learning, Jesus was left behind when his parents began the journey home.

This incident has nothing to do with a child's disobedience nor a parent's neglect. Women often started out on the return journey much earlier than the men, because they travelled more slowly. The women would usually meet up with the men for the first time only that evening. Joseph probably thought Jesus was with Mary and Mary thought that he was with Joseph or both could have thought that he was with family or friends. Immediately they discovered that he was not with them, they returned to Jerusalem. Verses 46-47 explain:

On the third day they found him in the Temple, sitting with the Jewish teachers, listening to them and asking questions. All who heard him were amazed at his intelligent answers.

During the Passover season it was the custom for the Sanhedrin to meet in public in the Temple court to discuss - in the presence of all who would listen - religious and theological questions. There would have been no problem in an unknown boy attaching himself to the group. Jesus was 'listening to them and asking questions'. This is a typically Jewish phrase describing a student learning from his teachers. The Jewish educational system encouraged discussion between teachers and pupils therefore giving pupils the opportunity to both ask and answer questions. This is what Jesus was doing. Jesus was thirsty for knowledge. There would have been few good teachers in Nazareth, and Jesus was making most of his opportunity to learn while in the city. The people were 'amazed at his intelligent answers'.

When Joseph and Mary found him they were amazed. They had not expected to find what they saw. They had been anxious and worried that something dreadful might have happened to their son. For many of us, it is only natural that Mary should gently rebuke her son to show him that they had been worried about him. The meaning of this whole incident lies in Jesus' response to his mother's reprimand. We read of the incident in verses 48-50:

His mother said, "Son, why have you done this to us" Your father and I have been very worried, and we have been searching for you!" Jesus answered, "Why did you have to look for me? Didn't you know that I would be in my Father's house?" But they did not understand what he meant.

Mary and Joseph had experienced amazingly significant and direct revelations from God which had been confirmed by many people. The angel Gabriel had revealed to Mary that she would bear the Messiah; the Holy Spirit had come upon her and she had become pregnant; Elizabeth, the mother of John the Baptist had confirmed this truth to her. Joseph had been informed by an angel of what was happening. The shepherds and the wise men had brought further confirmation. When they presented Jesus in the Temple there had been the witness of Simeon and Anna. And yet verse 50 explains that 'they did not understand'. One would think that it would be obvious that when Jesus came of age and responsibility, God the Father would do something special. Mary had said "Your father and I have been very worried ...", Jesus replied "Didn't you know that I would be in my Father's house." Notice how gently but firmly Jesus takes the name father from Joseph and gives it to God. Jesus had discovered his unique relationship with God the Father and the necessity for him to be in his Father's house. Barclay writes:

At some time Jesus must have discovered his own unique relationship to God. He cannot have known it when he was a child in the manger and a baby at his mother's breast ... As the years went on he must have had thoughts; and then at this first Passover, with manhood dawning, there came in a sudden blaze of realization, the consciousness that he was in a unique sense the Son of God.

Jesus realised that he shared a relationship with God, shared by no other. But mark the result of this realisation. It did not make him look down on his humble parents - the gentle Mary and the hard-working and simple Joseph. In verse 51 we read:

Jesus went back to Nazareth with his parents and obeyed them ...

Barclay comments:

The fact that he was God's son made him the perfect son of his human parents.

Joseph and Mary did not fully understand - they learnt what Jesus' Messiahship meant bit by bit. Remember after the Shepherds had been Mary wasn't sure of what they had meant. Luke writes:

... Mary kept on thinking about all this and wandering what it meant.

When Simeon had prophesied Luke records:

Jesus' parents were surprised at what Simeon had said.

This is easy to understand. They knew that their child Jesus was somebody very special, but they did not know what all the ramifications were. Even though they did not fully understand, they remained faithful and obedient, knowing that when the time was right, they would understand.

Notice how they did things together. The Law only required men to do certain things - but Mary and Joseph did things together. They knew that God had given people certain things to do for their own good and so they obediently did all the things God ordained for them to do.

God has given us these ordinances, because as our creator, He knows that we will benefit from them. We too should take every opportunity to draw closer to our Lord. Mary and Joseph did not understand everything at once - nor do most of us. In time they were to understand everything - and so shall we. Rather than put stumbling blocks in each other's way, Mary and Joseph supported each other. How many parents pull against each other, rather than support each other. How many couples communicate with each other and work together in everything especially in bringing up their children. How many families worship together. Let us learn from the beautifully human example of Mary and Joseph.

And while doing things together and using every avenue to draw close to God, we should also continually expect a deeper and deeper understanding of God's will for us and our families. Verse 51 continues:

... His mother kept on thinking about all that had happened.

Mary had a complicated issue to face. As Mother of the Messiah, she had a son, and yet, she did not because he did not belong to her but to all people. This Mary could not understand. But while Mary did not have knowledge, she certainly had wisdom - she 'treasured all these things in her heart' and waited for fullness of understanding.

There are many things that we do not understand. But if we persevere, keep on thinking about things, and are faithful in worship, prayer and the spiritual disciplines - we will be enabled to understand.