Monday • 1/2/2022 •
This morning’s Scriptures are: Psalm 103; Psalm 114; Isaiah 52:3–6; Revelation 2:1–7; John 2:1–11
This morning’s Canticles are: following the OT reading, Canticle 8 (“The Song of Moses,” Exodus 15, BCP, p. 85); following the Epistle reading, Canticle 19 (“The Song of the Redeemed,” Revelation 15:3–4, BCP, p. 94)
Welcome to Daily Office Devotions, where every Monday through Friday we explore that day’s Scripture readings, as given in the Book of Common Prayer. I’m Reggie Kidd. Thanks for joining me. This is Monday of the week in which Epiphany takes place, 13 days after Christmas, on January 6. Today, I happen to be contemplating two passages that are normally read on January 7, the day after Epiphany: John 2:1–11 and Revelation 2:1–7.
The Wedding in Cana. As we were reading through John’s Gospel last August, we came upon this account of the wedding in Cana. Now we read it through the lens of the season of Epiphany. This is the first of seven “signs” that Jesus performs in John’s Gospel—illustrations of his “epiphany” or “manifestation.”
For your further investigation, here is a list of the seven signs (as traditionally numbered—some scholars offer slightly different reconstructions):
Turning water into wine at the wedding in Cana (John 2:1–11—“the first of his signs”)
Healing of the official’s son in Capernaum (John 4:46–54—“the second sign”)
Healing of the paralytic at Bethesda (John 5:1–15)
Feeding of the five thousand (John 6:1–14)
Walking on water (John 16–24)
Healing of the man born blind (John 9)
Raising of Lazarus (John 11)
Though some of these events are explicitly named “sign,” others are not. Each points up distinct aspects of Christ’s person and work. They are pointers to his glory, manifestations of the “grace and truth” he has brought into the world.
As to the first of these signs: the turning of water into wine at the wedding banquet in Cana, here is what I find noteworthy and exciting:
“My hour has not yet come” — John 2:4. “The hour” for which Jesus has come into this world is the hour of his being lifted up on the cross. That “hour” will, ironically, be his “glory.” In that act he will take away the sin of the world, defeat Satan, and reunite in fellowship with himself a fractured human race (John 12:20–33). At the wedding of Cana, despite the fact that his “hour” has not yet come, Jesus graciously assents to provide this “first sign” of his “glory.” Jesus provides a glimpse into the amazing spectacle of what he has come to do for us.
… the steward tasted the water that had become wine … — John 2:9. What happens is that water set aside in jars for purification turns to wine that will fill goblets of celebration. These were huge jars—six of them, each able to hold twenty to thirty gallons. It must have been quite the wedding party! Because the Lamb of God has come to take away the sin of the world (as announced at Jesus’ baptism in the previous chapter of John), our baptism will not only purify, it will lead to the Eucharist of joy. Cinderella doesn’t just get cleaned up, she gets invited to the ball!
… there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee … — John 2:1. Jesus’s blessing of this wedding in 1st century Galilee echoes the profound biblical theme of God’s wedding his people to himself. For that very reason, John’s larger story line unites his Gospel to his Book of Revelation. Changing water into wine at the wedding at this point in time, Jesus foreshadows an invitation for us to join him at the Wedding Feast of the Lamb at the end of time: “And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. … The Spirit and the bride say, ‘Come’” (Revelation 21:2; 22:17). Our Eucharist is not just a remembrance of what the Lamb of God has done in taking away our sin. Our Eucharist is a foretaste of a heavenly banquet. Alleluia, amen!
“But you have kept the good wine until now” — John 2:10. The Lord of History shows himself to be the ultimate host who has saved the best wine (his Son) for last: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life” (John 3:16 KJV).
To the Ephesians. One quick note, in closing, from Christ’s letter to the Ephesian church in Revelation: “But I have this against you, that you have left your first love” (Revelation 2:4 NASB). Though it is valuable, theological accuracy is not a substitute for love. The Ephesians policed themselves well when it came to fighting off heresy, but not so much when it came to guarding their hearts against lovelessness. And so, Jesus urges the church to return to its “first love.”
That’s one very good reason for us to remind ourselves that “the first sign” Jesus performs is at a wedding banquet, not a lecture hall. This truth suggests a powerful corollary to Thomas Cranmer’s adage, “What the heart wants, the mind justifies, and the will chooses.” The corollary is this: Engage the heart, and the mind (and the will) will follow. May God grant us the grace to love him first, foremost, and always — all else will follow.
Be blessed this day,
Reggie Kidd+