The Second Sunday after the Epiphany

 The Second Sunday after the Epiphany – January 19, 2025

Psalm 66; Amos 9:11-15; Romans 12:6-16a

St. John 2:1-11

In the Name of the Father, and of the + Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

The first of our Lord’s active miracles was enacted at a wedding in Cana. It was no accident that our Lord chose a wedding as the occasion for this first and chief miracle. In the beginning, creation was not deemed ‘very good’ until Eve had been given to Adam in the first Holy Marriage. From that moment on, God has blessed the world through the union of man and woman, the one flesh union through which children are created. Precisely through this one flesh union, the Promised Seed, the Savior, was to be born. The entirety of the Old Testament can be viewed as a genealogy, tracing the lineage of the Promised Seed, and as such, it is a story bound to Holy Marriage.

What’s more, is that God has described His relationship to His people in terms of Holy Marriage. Through the prophet Hosea, He said, “I will betroth you to Me forever; Yes I will betroth you to Me in righteousness and justice, in lovingkindness and mercy; I will betroth you to Me in faithfulness, and you shall know the Lord.”[1] In the New Testament, we not only have the parables of the wedding feast and the virgins attending the wedding feast of Christ, but such explicit statements as “For I have betrothed you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ,” and “We are members of His body, of His flesh and of His bones.”[2] That is to say, the Church has been betrothed to Christ, presented to Him as a chaste and righteous virgin, in purity and holiness, and we are members of His body, flesh of His flesh and bone of His bones, united in a one flesh union with Christ.

It is for these reasons that Christ highly values Holy Marriage. Our earthly marriages are a picture, an image, of this marriage between Christ and the Church. From the marriage of Adam and Eve to the last union joined before the Last Day, Holy Marriage is a depiction of Christ and the Church.

Since it is God Himself who has created marriage and has declared, “What God has joined together, let not man separate,”^[3] divorce must be of the devil. Divorce is a rending of the one flesh union, a tearing apart by man of something which has been joined together by God. Divorce must of the devil if it is a tearing apart of that which God has created.

Christ makes no exceptions where divorce is acceptable in the eyes of God. Rather, when He speaks of cases of adultery, the one who has committed adultery has already broken the one flesh union. The divorce has occurred in God’s eyes. The question is not if a signed document makes the divorce but if the spouse who committed adultery will repent and the spouse sinned against is willing to enter once again into the one flesh union with the repentant sinner.

It is also for these reasons that our marriages should be blessed by Christ and conducted in the House of God, the church. A wedding in a courthouse, presided over by a judge is just as valid as a “church wedding” because marriage has been built into creation by God. It is a part of natural law. But we, being sons and daughters of God and citizens of the Kingdom of Heaven, ought to seek to have our marriages blessed by Christ, attended by the true Bridegroom. The Church is the most fitting setting for a wedding because it is the setting for the marriage between Christ and His Church.

When the wine at the wedding feast in Cana began to run dry, the Blessed Virgin said to our Lord, “They have no wine.”[4] Built into this statement is the request that He do something about it. St. Mary is motivated by a sincere sympathy for the bridegroom and the guests. If the feast ran out of wine, the bridegroom would be embarrassed and put to shame. It would indicate that he was incapable of providing for the feast to which he had invited all these guests. On behalf of the guests, if there was no wine, the feast would end. The joy and merriment would come to an early end. Wine elevates a meal into a feast. The Blessed Virgin is sincerely concerned for all involved and she looks to her Son to alleviate the potential disaster.

However, she is met with a hard response. “Woman, what does your concern have to do with Me? My hour has not yet come.” From this response, we learn a few things about Mary’s request. First, she is asking her Son to do something as the Word of God, through whom all creation was made but she is making her request from her position as His mother. That is, she is leveraging her authority as mother to make a request of her Lord. This is a misuse of her maternal authority. She has no right, as His mother, to request the Christ to make divine acts. Certainly, as a Christian, she has every right to make requests of her Lord, but in this case, she is misusing her office as mother to press Christ into acting.

Ask almost any Roman Catholic about praying to Mary and they will say something like, “We don’t pray that she would do anything but that she would ask Jesus to do it. It helps to have His mother on your side.” That is exactly the error that Mary is making in telling Jesus to do something about the wine at Cana. She is truly blessed among all women and full of grace, but she has no special access or sway with God than any other Christian. Calling her, “woman,” is not derogatory in any way, but it is our Lord’s way of reminding His dear mother that in divine matters, she holds no special office to request His actions.

Speaking of His hour holds special significance in the Gospel of St. John. It refers to the hour of His crucifixion. It indicates that the crucifixion is the culminating moment of the work of Christ. There, His work is finished. It is complete. All the miracles, all the words of Christ point forward to the hour in which all things are completed. Our faith rests on the historic event of the crucifixion and resurrection.

At the same time, because of the crucifixion, Christ may speak of His hour being present in all His actions. Here, it indicates that not only was St. Mary requesting that her Son do something about the wine, but that He do it now. The wine was beginning to run dry, and she wanted to spare the hosts and the guests the shame of knowing there was no more wine. She wanted Him to intercede before the problem was made public.

Here we see the Blessed Virgin’s second folly. She put a specific timeframe on a miracle of God. She as much as told Him, “They have no wine. Give them wine and do it now before the problem becomes an embarrassment.” Such temptation is great for all who call on the name of the Lord. We feel the passing of time. We know that yesterday is gone, and tomorrow is coming very soon. Because of that, we want what we want, and we want it now. If this holds true for a party about to run out of wine, it also holds true for what we deem to be emergencies. Your sister is dying of cancer and may not make it to tomorrow. You want God to act now, or it will be too late. Patient though he was, even Job’s patience ran out and he demanded that God act.[5]

“If our prayer to God is to be acceptable and be heard, then of course we are not to prescribe the time and manner for help, especially in bodily needs. Here we hear from Christ that He has a specific hour, that is, He has actually already in His heavenly counsel decreed when and how He will help us. We should patiently wait for that hour.”[6]

Having been reminded of the proper use of her office as mother and Christian, the Blessed Virgin also gives us a glorious example of faith. She turns to the servants and says, “Whatever He says to you, do it.”[7] Hearing the Word of her Lord, she remembers the virtue of patience and trusts that whatever her Son does, it will be for the good of those gathered at the feast. With Job, she says in her heart, ‘Your hands have molded me and made me into everything I am within and without, and even though You hide it in Your heart, I still know that you remember it.”[8] Christ our Lord may not do exactly what she wanted or when she wanted it done, but whatever He does will be better than she could imagine. And “hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.”[9]

Hearing a sincere Christian prayer for those gathered at the wedding feast, our Lord performs the first, and chief, of His miracles, for the purpose of manifesting His glory.[10] In the first place, we see by this miracle, and all miracles, that Jesus is truly the Almighty God, Lord and Creator of the universe. Unlike the prophets, He does not need to call upon God to act through Him. He is the God through whom all things are made.

We also see that Christ is revealing Himself as bringing overabundance in joy and grace to those who would receive Him, sympathetic to the needs of man. The stone waterpots formerly held water used to make one ritually clean. Our Lord takes these instruments of the Law and turns them into vessels of joy and gladness, filling them with His Gospel of grace for all in attendance. He makes the understanding of the Law lovely, for that is how the Gospel interprets the Law.

The one who hears and believes the Gospel of Christ, that He has come and delivered you from your sins by means of His death and resurrection, has their heart of stone turned to a heart of flesh.[11] Hearing that the obedience owed to God, that which we cannot perfectly fulfill, has been fulfilled by Christ, our hearts are made glad. “Wine makes glad the heart of man.”[12]

In terms of overabundance of joy and grace, we hear from the master of the feast that the guests had already been well drunk and are now provided with almost 200 gallons of good, strong wine. Our Lord answered St. Mary’s prayer in a greater way than she could’ve imagined.

Not only did this miracle manifest the glory of Christ but “His disciples also believe in Him. They recognized Him as the Son of God and the promised Messiah in whom they placed their heartfelt trust. From this we learn that all miracles of Christ relate to and call for faith; God’s Word and His miracles are the two pillars and the foundation of faith. For from the Word and promises we come to know His gracious will; from the miracles we come to know His divine omnipotence upon which the trusting heart from now on must found and establish itself. May God the Lord sustain and uphold us in such a faith through Christ—the Initiator and the completing Perfector of [our] faith (Hebrews 12:2).”[13]

In + Jesus’ name. Amen.

---

[1] Hosea 2:19-20.

[2] 2 Corinthians 11:2; Ephesians 5:30.

[3] St. Matthew 19:6.

[4] St. John 2:3.

[5] Job 31.

[6] Johann Gerhard, Postilla, Volume 1, translated by Elmer M. Hohle (Malone, TX: The Center for the Study of Lutheran Orthodoxy, 2001), 161.

[7] St. John 2:5.

[8] Job 10:8, 13; paraphrased.

[9] Romans 5:5.

[10] St. John 2:11.

[11] Ezekiel 36:26.

[12] Psalm 104:15.

[13] Gerhard, Postilla, 163-164.

The Eve of Thanksgiving

 The Eve of Thanksgiving (Harvest Observance) – November 27, 2024

Psalm 104; Deuteronomy 26:1-11; 2 Corinthians 9:6-15

St. Luke 12:13-21

In the Name of the Father, and of the + Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

After a tumultuous journey, the pilgrims landed in New England on November 11, 1620. It was much too late to plant anything and their supplies were already running thin. Those who survived that first winter survived by hunting, gathering, and even looting the graves of local Indians who left food offerings for their dead. About half of those first pilgrims died that winter.

When winter finally gave way to spring, the colonists were able to begin planting. The Lord greatly blessed them that year. They found the earth to be fruitful and knew this to be the providence of God. The Lord had heard their cries and answered their prayers for sustenance. That fall, they celebrated what has come to be called “The First Thanksgiving.” This was a three-day feast, full of food, games of skill, and military demonstrations. The participation of the Indians was likely at the sound of the firing of muskets during the military demonstrations. By some accounts, 90 Indians, who were already in communication with the colony, cautiously approached and then joined in the feast.

The story of the first Thanksgiving is instructive to us for at least two reasons: first because it is our national history, part of our national mythos. In keeping with the Fourth Commandment, we ought to give due honor to our forefathers, including the forefathers of our nation. Thanksgiving is not a liturgical holiday. It was not instituted by Christ nor does it specifically celebrate an event or person in Holy Scripture. But it is a national holiday, a day important to our nation. As citizens, it is part of our history. It is good to participate in such holidays, so long as they do not contradict Scripture, because it is the heritage of our fathers.

Second, the story of the first Thanksgiving acts as a foil (or opposite) to the rich man in Christ’s parable.[1] One year, the certain rich man receives a bountiful harvest. This harvest is so plentiful, that he seems to think he will never need to work again. He has brought in enough grain to sustain him for the rest of his life. It is time to pull down his barns, build bigger ones, then eat, drink, and be merry.

Thinking like worldly men, we become jealous of the rich man. He has hit the jackpot! He will never need to work again and can spend his days in comfort and relaxation. Food and money will never be a problem for him. Isn’t that the American dream?

What the rich man doesn’t consider is how short this life might be. In fact, the very same night he decides what to do with this great harvest, the Lord requires his soul, that is, the rich man dies. He dies and is condemned for his selfishness, greed, and covetousness. And what becomes of the bountiful harvest? It likely goes to rot. The rich man spoke to himself when considering what to do with the harvest. He doesn’t seem to have friends or family around. He doesn’t even consider the servants he almost certainly has. His neighbors are left out entirely. There is no one to inherit his goods.

Now compare the rich man to the story of the first Thanksgiving. Half of those who arrived in 1620 died over the winter. Those were mothers, fathers, husbands, wives, children, and grandchildren who died. They were hunters who could provide food and housewives who could care for the home and make food. They were the children for whom the colonists were building a brighter future. And then came 1621. They had a bountiful harvest. The Lord blessed them with food. When harvest time came, I’m sure some of the colonists thought back to the previous winter and immediately began thinking about building bigger barns. “What if it is another terrible winter? What if tragedy should strike again? Will another half of our people die? We had better eat only the least amount necessary so that we don’t starve this winter…”

But that isn’t what they did. They held a three-day feast—not a meal, a feast. There was more food consumed than necessary to stay alive. They drank wine, to gladden their hearts.[2] They held military demonstrations, which means the men most capable of hunting spent three days performing for their families instead of gathering even more food. They fired their muskets using rounds that could’ve been saved for yet more hunting, gathering more food.

The historic record doesn’t indicate they were being reckless with sumptuous living, but they did enjoy a feast.[3] They received their harvest for the Lord and gave thanks to Him by enjoying the prosperity He had given them. This was, in fact, an act of faith. They trust that the Lord who had once provided for them would continue to provide for them.

Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good;

Blessed is the man who trusts in Him!

Oh, fear the Lord, you His saints!

There is no want to those who fear Him.

The young lions lack and suffer hunger;

But those who seek the Lord shall not lack any good thing.

The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears,

And delivers them out of all their troubles.

The Lord is near to those who have a broken heart,

And saves such as have a contrite spirit.[4]

The rich man in Christ’s parable was so concerned about his future of easy living that he forgot about the present. He could’ve easily held a feast for his servants, his friends, and neighbors, and still would’ve had plenty to serve his future needs. He believed, trusted, in his profits, and gave no mind to the Lord. He did not trust in God, let alone fear Him. The rich man thought he had no more troubles because the almighty dollar had already saved him. This left no room for giving thanks to God, nor praise, nor repentance.

Whatever the last year has brought you—whether a year of sorrow or joy, a year of plenty or a year of lack—give thanks to the Lord. He hears your prayers and will deliver the righteous from the cares of this world. In fact, He has already delivered you, even if your mortal eyes cannot see it yet. And whatever the Lord has in store for the coming year—whether a year of sorrow or joy, a year of plenty or lack—know this: “The Lord is near to those who have a broken heart, and saves such as have a contrite spirit.”[5] He is near to you, not just spiritually, but physically. He has come to you this evening and soon, you will receive Him into your mouth in Holy Communion. He is near to you at all times but especially in His Word and Sacraments. There can be no denying He is close to you when He touches your tongue. Rejoice and give thanks to the God of all creation, who has chosen you as His beloved son or daughter.

So enjoy the feast of tomorrow, whether that is a table full of people, multiple turkeys, potatoes, and desserts, or a humble meal shared between you and your Lord. Give thanks to Him always because He delights in you and has provided you with everything you need. He has forgiven your sins and given you a share in the inheritance of heaven. He has given you Himself.

In + Jesus’ name. Amen.

---

[1] St. Luke 12:16-21

[2] Psalm 104:14.

[3] St. Luke 16:19; 7:24-25.

[4] Psalm 34:8-10, 17-18.

[5] Psalm 34:18.

The Eve of Thanksgiving

The Eve of Thanksgiving – November 23, 2022

Psalm 104; Deuteronomy 26:1-11; 2 Corinthians 9:6-15

St. Luke 12:13-21

In the Name of the Father, and of the + Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Shortly before telling this parable to the crowds, Jesus prayed, “I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and revealed them to babes.”[1] The parable before us this evening is not intended to be complicated. In fact, Jesus tells us exactly what the parable is intended to illustrate: “Take heed and beware of covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of the things he possesses.”[2] At the end of the parable, He even tells us the consequences for not learning this lesson: “So is he who lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.”[3]

This parable speaks not of possessions, but of the orientation of your heart. You are warned against covetousness, not theft, pride, or gluttony. At first blush, the man in the parable seems to be making wise decisions. He is almost like the ant in Aesop’s fable, who spent all spring and summer gathering grain so that he would have food in the winter. In that fable, it is the grasshopper, who spent the spring and summer in idle leisure, who starves when the weather turns cold.

Our rich man has more grain than he knows what to do with. He considers his options and decides to tear down his barns and build bigger barns. When that is done, he will retire so that he can eat, drink, and be merry. This seems like the ideal life. In fact, it is the life many of us are living, have lived, or aspire to live. Work hard now so that I can eat, drink, and be merry later.

Yet the rich man is not our hero. He is condemned to hell for his actions in this parable. Notice first that he has no one to speak to. He must consult with himself, with his own soul. If every man is born sinful, and indeed he is, then we must know that conferring with one’s own soul will only lead to sin. Not only this, but we are given no indication that the rich man considers using his wealth for the benefit of anyone but himself. As a rich man, he almost certainly has employees, but they do not factor into his calculations. He does not even pause to thank God for the richness of his soil, the fertility of his seeds, and the yield of his crops.

While the rich man seems to be virtuous, he is in fact nothing but a fool. His own soul leads him astray. His heart is turned inward, focused only on the accumulation of wealth so that he might gain more wealth, and then satisfy the passions of his flesh with food, drink, and pleasures.

Covetousness always leads to idolatry. It leads to idolatry because covetousness involves the obsession of your heart. It is the turning of your heart toward something that God has not given to you, something that is not yours by right. If your heart is turned toward anything but God, you have committed idolatry. St. Paul speaks very harshly against the Corinthian Church, equating the aspirations of the rich man, to “eat, drink, and be merry,” to denying the resurrection:

Why do we stand in jeopardy every hour? ³¹ I affirm, by the boasting in you which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die daily. ³²If, in the manner of men, I have fought with beasts at Ephesus, what advantage is it to me? If the dead do not rise, “Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die!” ³³Do not be deceived: “Evil company corrupts good habits.” [In the case of our rich man, this evil company is the council of his own soul, a soul evil from birth, turned away from God and hostile to the Almighty.] ³⁴Awake to righteousness, and do not sin; for some do not have the knowledge of God. I speak this to your shame.[4]

The rich man is not condemned for having great wealth. It is more difficult for a rich man to be saved than for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle, but temporal riches are not sinful. Idolatry is sinful. Coveting is idolatry. Therefore, coveting riches is sinful. Coveting more time is sinful. Coveting health is sinful. Coveting the admiration of man is sinful. Coveting approval of the world is sinful. Covetousness is sinful and all are guilty.

See what a covetous heart will yield. According to our Lord, it might yield great riches, enough to retire on. A covetous heart will also yield loneliness. It will drive others far from you and you won’t even notice. You won’t notice because your eyes, ears, and all your members will be singularly focused on the desire of your heart. Covetousness may yield for you the satisfaction of your passions—hunger, thirst, sexual pleasure, entertainment, and more. Covetousness will certainly yield an eternity in hell, where those same passions will be turned into torment.

Afterall, you cannot take your possessions with you when you die. And why would you want to? This heaven and earth will pass away but on the last day, God will recreate the heavens and earth. They will be remade in perfection. You will be remade in perfection. You will have everything to satisfy your every need because you will have the presence of Christ. You will be gathered together with the saints in glory. What more do you need?

With that in mind, we can understand how our earthly life is defined. Of what does one’s life consist?[5] It first consists in the abundance of God’s love. You are a creation of God, beloved by the Father, redeemed by the shed blood of Christ, and the temple of the Holy Spirit. Whether your fields have produced little or more than you can handle, you have everything necessary for eternity.

Second, your life consists in Holy Baptism. Here, you received the Name of the Triune God, sealed upon your head. On that day, you were drowned. You died. Death no longer defines you because it does not have a claim to you. Thus your biological life consists in your spiritual life. You are a united being who has been washed in the flood of Jesus’ blood.

Finally, your life consists in your participation in the Body of Christ, the Church. In Holy Baptism, you were also made a member of the Body of Christ. You were grafted into His body such that you now share in the unity of the one, holy, catholic, and Apostolic church. All around you are your brothers and sisters in Christ. In this case, blood and water are the same thickness, because you are united to each other in the water of Holy Baptism, made a Sacrament in the Blood of Jesus.

Your life does not consist in the abundance, or lack, of possessions. You are not defined by these things, and you ought to flee from those possessions which draw the focus of your heart away from God. Repent of your covetousness and flee to those things God has given you. Flee toward that of which your life does consist – God’s Word of love and forgiveness, your Baptism, and the Church. With what possessions you do have, be generous. Retirement is not a sin, but miserliness is. So is prodigal living.

Do not store up an abundance of wealth because tomorrow is not certain. Christians should daily pray, “Lord, come quickly,”[6] and mean it. Should He answer our prayers and return before the next rising of the sun, there will be no use for treasures on earth. Store up instead, treasures in heaven, that is, treasures of love, charity, faithfulness, hope, courage, and humility.

Above all, give thanks to God Almighty for everything you have been given. You may be spending the next few days surrounded by friends and family. You may be spending it alone. You may have a feast. You may have whatever is in the fridge. Give thanks. Give thanks because God has called you by the Holy Gospel.

And if you are alone, call a brother in Christ. Do not be shy. In so doing, you will give him the opportunity to love you and fulfill his vocation to you. You will give him someone with whom to share the abundance of his table. Most of all, you will join together in the Body of Christ, thereby enjoying the abundance of your life.  

In + Jesus’ name. Amen.

---

[1] St. Luke 10:21.

[2] St. Luke 12:15.

[3] St. Luke 12:21.

[4] 1 Corinthians 15:30-34.

[5] St. Luke 12:15.

[6] Revelation 22:20.