16th. January. 2022. Service.
First Sunday after the Epiphany
Prelude “Crown him with many crowns”
Bible Introit 186 “Father God I wonder”
Opening Prayer
Almighty God, whose Son our Saviour Jesus Christ is the light of the world: Grant that your people, illumined by your Word and Sacraments, may shine with the radiance of Christ’s glory, that he may be known, worshipped, and obeyed to the ends of the earth; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who with you and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
Hymn 132 “Immortal, invisible God only wise”
Call to Prayer
How precious is God’s steadfast love!
We will find refuge in the shelter of God’s wings.
Come and rejoice in God’s abundance.
We will drink from the river of God’s delights.
For with God is the fountain of life;
And in God’s light we see light.
Let us worship God with joy and thanksgiving!
Prayer
When the song of the angels is silent, when the star in the sky is gone, when the kings and princes are home, when the shepherds are again tending their sheep, when the manger is darkened and still, then the work of Christmas begins. The work to find the lost, to heal the broken hearted, to feed the hungry, to shelter the homeless, to rebuild the nations, to teach God’s Children, to work for peace among people, to befriend the lonely, to release the prisoner. Holy Spirit of God, fill us and inspire us with your life giving power to enable us to be faithful disciples to proclaim the good news of the Holy Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.
God our Father, your majesty is beyond imagination because you are the eternal King high and lifted up whom the angels worship.
Your power is beyond understanding for you are the Creator God
who shakes the heavens yet holds us in your hands.
Your mercy is beyond our deserving because the Saviour God once born for us now sacrificed in love atones for all our sins.
Forgive the smallness of our faith the magnitude of our need, the depth of our sorrow. Raise us up to new life and new ways of service through Jesus Christ Your Son, our Lord. We pray for courage to hear and share your Word with others and for the opportunity to proclaim it. Forgive our reluctance, our timidity.
We pray for wisdom to know what should be said and the moment in which to say it. Forgive our reticence, our anxiety. We pray for knowledge of the fullness of your Grace and the willingness to live it. Forgive our ignorance,
our self-reliance. Be the centre of all we are, the Light by which we walk The blessing we bring to others through Jesus Christ alone we ask and sum up our prayers in his words,
North Queensferry
Our Father, which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy Name. Thy Kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors and lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, The power, and the glory, For ever. Amen.
The Intimations
Coffee mornings
Owing to the uncertainty about the numbers from households mingling at tables, it has been decided to await further government and Church of Scotland advice, expected on tomorrow before resuming the Tuesday Coffee Mornings.
The Bible Discussion Group will meet with appropriate distancing on Tuesday 18th January in North Queensferry Church at 7:30pm.
Invitation to the Offering
God offers us many gifts through the same Spirit
so that, together, we may serve in Jesus’ name.
Trust that what you have to give, God will bless in faithfulness and fruitfulness.
Prayer of Dedication
God of grace and mercy, receive all our gifts, offered in thanksgiving. We share the fruit of our labours with you,
asking that you will multiply their effects in and through the Church. And we share the fruit of our time and talent,
seeking to know how you would have us serve in Jesus’ name.
All Age Talk
Has anyone ever flipped through a newspaper? The newspaper often has reports of good news, bad news, sports, weather, stories, and so much more. It’s a great way to keep up with what’s happening in the world around us.
The Bible is a lot like a newspaper. It gives us reports from moments in history and tells stories of things that happened a long time ago.
What if we read our Bible lesson from today like it was an article in a daily newspaper? Today’s story is from the Gospel of John. The word gospel actually means “good news,” so let’s imagine that we are reading an article from the “Daily Galilean” or perhaps “The Jerusalem Times.”
Listen to this headline! “Wedding Guest Turns Water Into Wine.”
Hmmm…That sounds interesting. Let’s read the rest of the story!
On Tuesday, a woman named Mary was in Cana to attend a wedding. A large number of guests, including her son, a man named Jesus, also attended the wedding. Guests at the wedding were reportedly having a good time until the host ran out of wine. At that point, it seemed that the happy celebration might turn into a disaster.
Some of the wedding guests thought that perhaps Jesus might have a solution to the problem, so they reported to Him that they were out of wine. When told about the problem, Jesus at first seemed unwilling to do anything, but after some encouragement from His mother, He finally agreed to help.
Eye witnesses at the wedding reported that Jesus noticed several large water jars nearby and instructed some servants to fill them with water. After the jars had been filled with water, He told them to dump some of the water out of the jars and take it to the man in charge of serving the wine. When the wine steward tasted the water, he discovered it had been turned into wine.
Wedding guests were amazed at the turn of events and said that the wine was the best they had ever tasted.
As a result of this miraculous event, many people are following Jesus everywhere He goes, and many believe that He might even be the long-awaited Messiah.
Well, that made a pretty good news story, didn’t it? Do you know what is really great about this story? Just as Jesus performed a miracle by changing the water into wine at the wedding celebration more than 2,000 years ago, He is still working miracles in the hearts and lives of people today. If you let Him, He will work a miracle in you.
Dear Jesus, worker of miracles, work a miracle in us today. Amen.
Here is a Video about this story
Hymn 143 “Who put the colours in the rainbow?”
Reading: Isaiah 62:1-5
62 For Zion’s sake I will not keep silent,
for Jerusalem’s sake I will not remain quiet,
till her vindication shines out like the dawn,
her salvation like a blazing torch.
2 The nations will see your vindication,
and all kings your glory,
you will be called by a new name
that the mouth of the Lord will bestow.
3 You will be a crown of splendour in the Lord’s hand,
a royal diadem in the hand of your God.
4 No longer will they call you Deserted,
or name your land Desolate.
But you will be called Hephzibah,
and your land Beulah,
for the Lord will take delight in you,
and your land will be married.
5 As a young man marries a young woman,
so will your Builder marry you,
as a bridegroom rejoices over his bride,
so will your God rejoice over you.,
whom I formed and made.’ Amen.
Hymn 469 “Restore, O God the honour of your name”
Reading: John 2:1-11
2 On the third day a wedding took place at Cana in Galilee. Jesus’ mother was there, 2 and Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding. 3 When the wine was gone, Jesus’ mother said to him, ‘They have no more wine.’
4 ‘Woman, why do you involve me?’ Jesus replied. ‘My hour has not yet come.’
5 His mother said to the servants, ‘Do whatever he tells you.’
6 Nearby stood six stone water jars, the kind used by the Jews for ceremonial washing, each holding from eighty to a hundred and twenty litres.
7 Jesus said to the servants, ‘Fill the jars with water’; so they filled them to the brim.
8 Then he told them, ‘Now draw some out and take it to the master of the banquet.’
They did so, 9 and the master of the banquet tasted the water that had been turned into wine. He did not realise where it had come from, though the servants who had drawn the water knew. Then he called the bridegroom aside 10 and 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.’
11 What Jesus did here in Cana of Galilee was the first of the signs through which he revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him. Amen, this is the Word of the Lord, to Him be all glory and praise.
Hymn 557 “O love that will not let me go”
Sermon
Last week we focussed upon the baptism of Jesus whilst noting that because of the current state of the Church there have not been many baptisms in recent years. The same is true of weddings. We have not celebrated a wedding since the beginning of the pandemic, and only one is scheduled for 2023! Today we are in Cana of Galilee as Jesus attended a wedding with his family.
This is a strange story which contains several perplexing elements some of which are still reflected in modern celebrations of marriage ceremonies. The main point of the story seems to be the extravagance of God which we will touch upon, but first here is what struck me as I read John’s narrative again.
The first is family reputation or honour which is expressed in the generosity of the hospitality extended to the guests. Families are often at pains to impress people, especially the “in-laws” with the lavishness of the day, often costlier than they can really afford. Many people go into serious debt to impress when a daughter in particular is married. It is a custom in many societies to make a wedding day as impressive as possible. It was the same in Jesus’ day. For something to go wrong by inviting a lot of people and then have any of the provisions run out would be a terribly shameful thing.
We also see here some inter-generational tension which can often be a feature of modern weddings. Parental expectations and bridal expectations sometimes conflict. I have heard many stories over the years of brides or parents disappointed by how a wedding turned out differently from their hopes and expectations. Everybody is expected to do their best to make the day perfect which can mean lots of compromises or someone giving up a cherished dream. In this case there appears to be tension between Jesus and his mother about his willingness to rescue the day with a miracle. I’ve never heard a satisfactory explanation of the meaning of this contretemps. It has been noted that John never mentions Mary by name in his gospel, and there is the odd fact that Jesus calls his mother “woman,” which may not have been as disrespectful then as it is to us. Jesus’ point is that he is being asked to pre-empt his life’s work with a miracle before his ministry began. Do you sense that he may have thought the request frivolous or unbecoming?
Then there is the question as to why it became Mary’s responsibility to deal with this crisis. Surely it was the wedding steward’s responsibility to ensure the wine supply. Was this a wedding in his extended family? We are told that Mary was there, and that Jesus had been invited along with his disciples, so was it her position in the family that gave her the authority to deal with this? Maybe she was simply a guest who thought she should help, Or should we conclude that this was an opportunity for Jesus’ to give a sign which demonstrates the extravagance of the providence of God who rejoices in the joyous occasions of human life and experience? After all the excesses of the Creator are around us everywhere!
If we look out at night from this planet at the skies around us, we witness the same pattern of over-supply! What an extravagant mind it is must be that produced the billions of stars in our one galaxy and trillions upon trillions more throughout the billions of other galaxies. How fitting then for the Creator Incarnate to give an extravagant gift in response to calamity at a wedding. Here is a quote about this: The extravagant gesture is the very stuff of creation. After that one extravagant gesture of creation itself in the first place, flinging intricacies and colossi down aeons of emptiness, heaping profusion on profligacies with ever fresh vigour, the whole show has been on fire from the word go!” Anne Dillard
In Jesus we, recognise who this profligate Creator must be! It is characteristic of the One who in Christ Jesus astonishes people towards the end of a wedding feast by producing about 600 litres of a fine wine. The God who excels at overdoing generosity!
And what is true about physical things is also true about spiritual things.
Jesus spoke often about that kingdom of heaven ( in Matthew) and the kingdom of God (in Mark and Luke) which his presence and ministry inaugurated on earth. In this new realm the bonanza of God’s goodness is everywhere. Grace abounds.
The water into wine incident is just one example among many. That it should happen at a wedding feast is typical because many of the parables are built around the picture of a great feast. Feasting and celebrations are typical of the Kingdom of God. The grace of God is like an on-going, never-flagging, festival!
Take for example the surprised woman whom we find her in a short parable recorder by Luke (6:38) which tells of a women who went to the market to purchase her supply of barley to make bread. The grain merchant keeps filling up the measuring bowl, pressing the grain down firmly, shaking it to maximise the quantity, and then, with it still overflowing, he pours the grain into the apron, she holds out to receive his generous measure.
And what about the parable of the enthusiastic cook? Here is a woman who takes three sater of flour (about 126 cups) and makes bread for her household. That amount of flour would make about sixty of bread today! How’s that for going over the top? It matches the water-into-wine episode with similar extravagance! In the kingdom, God is like that, says Jesus. We could go on adding examples like the story of the prodigal son, or the unexpected wages paid to the workers in a vineyard who came to work at the last minute. It is enough to recognise that in Jesus’ parables of the kingdom we have the same prodigal grace that is shown by the 600 litres of wine.
One theologian from the Netherlands wrote that God is luxury: “for believers, God is the luxury of the life…..sheer, superfluous luxury.” And as John wrote earlier in his Gospel, “Out of his full store we have received grace upon grace.” (John 1:16). We’ll come back to the implications of this at the end.
Not everyone at a wedding is a guest. There are invisible people at every wedding who are indispensable to the success of the day: the servants who minister to the needs of the family and guests. Everybody, including the wedding organisers, waiters and barmen, the drivers, the photographer, the florists, the caterers, even the minister or celebrant, organist and church officer, all of whom are essential for the smooth running of the day. Any one of these can potentially be the source of a glitch or a drama on the day. But in this story, with perhaps the exception of the steward of the wedding, they were the reliable of the people who who stood on the edge of the celebration.
They were there not in response to an invitation, but out of obligation. Their job was to ensure that the host, the steward, the guests had what they needed, and they did what few truly saw or likely thought to appreciate. They would be the ones who were likely the first to be blamed should something go wrong and the last to be given credit when it didn’t. That was why Mary, despite Jesus’ vague response to her appeal trusted him to the point where she felt confident as she in told these people to do as he said.
They did and had the unenviable task of carrying gallons the water to fill those six stone water jars which, given the volume of wine would have been heavy to begin with. Imagine trying to carry them once their weight had been multiplied by 20 to 30 gallons of water each.
And so, we picture them now walking back and forth to the well lugging bucket after bucket after heavy bucket of water. Imagine their exhaustion, for this was not the first day of the wedding celebration.. They had been responding to the needs of the host, the steward, the guests non-stop for days by now.
We can imagine how sceptical they must have been for they would have been aware that the wine was running out, and while water is a component of wine, making it does not start by taking a jar of water!
Afterwards imagine their astonishment as they realize that something had happened right before their eyes which they could neither have imagined nor anticipated. That even while their muscles still ached from the exertion of filling the stone water jars, what a wonder it must have been to see that there was now more wine than they had when the wedding feast started.
Have you ever stopped and put yourself in the place of those servants who, already exhausted from having served so long, and find yourself now walking to and fro, carrying water to fill those stone jars.?
Imagine trying to trust that the One who has told you there is a reason for all this hard work is worthy of trust. How many secretly thought that this was a stupid thing to be doing? The servants did not know when they responded to Mary’s urging to do Jesus bidding. Jesus probably said nothing to them about his intention. We know that God’s very glory was about to be revealed in unimaginable abundance, but they didn’t. Nonetheless they did as Jesus required, perhaps because it was theirs not to reason why…
That is often the case with signs from God. Faith and faithful carrying on is a often prerequisite of blessing. How many times are signs prefaced by people doing what they are told in the history of God’s people. Moses and the children of Israel approaching the sea of reeds, or the River Jordan, a blind man finding his way to wash his face in the Pool of Siloam. Peter in chains in Herod’s prison, and the disciples praying. These are stories of facing what was before them with quiet faith and doing what they were told by God.
You could say that we have been ‘carrying the water’ to fill the stone jars for a long time now because we fear that the wine is running out. What began as a rumour of a disease has changed the way we do many things and keep going seemingly eroding our reserves as we adapt and adjust to the consequences of the pandemic.
Maybe like me you thought that by January things would be closer to ‘normal and that by now we could resume our coffee mornings and regular congregational events without masks.
Not just in the church, but throughout society people have done what is necessary, carried the water, kept things running by and large without complaint. We know that there are those who have not done so, but they will answer for themselves one way or another. What is important is our faithfulness, and that the reward of the blessing of God, the wine of the kingdom will come
So, to everyone who has ‘carried the water’ back and forth, these many months, know that what you are doing matters, that there would no ‘wine’ without it. In the courageous, hard decisions we have made in hearing of too many funerals of people who shouldn’t have had to die just yet, in all those ways you have adapted and changed, stumbling through at first, but finding your footing again
It is worth remembering that the servants were the first to witness the sign. We are told that guests who benefitted from it thought it strange that the best wine was kept till the end but maybe they were unaware of how happened. It was those who put in the hard yards who witnessed the sign. We already know the One who turns water into wine. And the promise is that this will be so again. And maybe, just maybe, it is already happening.
If you have kept faith then you have not trusted Christ in vain. We are called by Jesus to share in this extravagant mission of God and to live the generosity of the kingdom of God here and now.
The message today is to surprise ourselves by lending without expecting return, by giving with no thought of reward, by cheerfully going the second mile, extending hospitality to those who cannot repay us, forgiving seventy time seven those who offend us, and even praying for our persecutors.
The ridiculous gift of 600 litres of wine, is not ridiculous in the kingdom of God and Jesus his Messiah. It is the way of God. It is not an onerous duty on His part; for God is fun and fun is an essential part of God’s nature.
This week why not take extra delight in God’s abundant generosity, and t surprise yourself by doing the same to others. Share God’s fun! Even one single deed of extravagant grace will bring its own blessing and delight to someone and to you. Amen.
Prayers of Thanksgiving and Intercession
God our Father, we thank you for the grace you give us to live as light and salt in your world that we may be effective witnesses for you in our Jerusalem: our family and close friends,
in our Judea: our neighbourhood and our town, in our country and in the world out there.Help us to commit ourselves to pray earnestly that your kingdom may come here in our day and age. We pray that your church may stand firmly upon your word and that your ministers and spiritual leaders may have wisdom and grace to proclaim your truth without fear. We thank you for the upward calling that is ours in Jesus Christ our Lord.
Father, Jesus changed water into wine to show us that you can accomplish extraordinary things in ordinary lives. We pray for everyone who offers their time, energy, and concern to make a difference in our community and fellowship
We pray for our elected leaders and for all who work in government striving to fulfil their responsibilities in difficult times. We pray for an end to the coronavirus pandemic and for the restoration of our society in our own and every nation on earth.
Establish justice and equity on the earth as people become aware of the struggles and challenges which others endure. Take away selfishness and greed, violence and oppression and establish your kingdom on earth
And we pray for one another in this fellowship as well as for every good purpose we undertake this year. Sustain our resolve and show us how our hands may become your hands, blessed and guided by your Holy Spirit.
O God, Jesus looked on the suffering around him with compassion, and reached out to people in pain or weighed with grief and brought healing and hope to them. We know people who are suffering in similar ways whose lives are challenged by sorrow or despair. Some are facing the end of their earthly days or are afflicted by serious illness. May your Spirit of love and grace come close to them and minister healing or peace according to your will.
There are also people who are recovering or rebuilding their lives who need encouragement to wait patiently for their strength and purpose to return. Embrace all of them with love and restore their hope and courage. Show us how we can help them Lord and I your mercy, hear our prayer for them.
O God in whom we live and move and have our being, thank you for giving us the courage and commitment we need to follow Christ however our lives may unfold in the coming months.
Thank you for the strength that we find within the fellowship of your Church as we bless you for all that you give us in each other and in the resources you provide for the ministry and mission of your church in these ever-changing times. We affirm our trust in the promise of your love for us and the energizing power of your Holy Spirit as we live the grace and mercy of Jesus Christ our lord in whom we offer our prayers. Amen.
Hymn 130 “Ye servants of God your Master proclaim”
Benediction
May the grace of Christ, which daily renews us, and the love of God, which enables us to love all, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, which unites us in one body, make us eager to obey the will of God until we meet again, through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.
“May God’s blessing surround you each day”
Postlude: “We’ve come a long way, Lord”