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“Unexpected Joy – Cana”

January 18, 2004
Sermon by Peter Terpenning

                                                                                 
               Let’s set the stage. Jesus has just been baptized; the first disciples have been called and are traveling with Jesus north to Galilee. Jesus has made no sign yet that he is anyone special – no miracles – no healings. And they go to a wedding in Cana, which is about 8 miles from Nazareth. It must be family friends of Jesus, for his mother Mary is there. Now weddings in that time and culture were week-long affairs, with much feasting and drinking and dancing. New guests would be coming and going all the time. It was a real time of celebration. We must assume that it is the end of the week, for they are running out of wine. This would be a terrible embarrassment to the family, and Mary tells Jesus to do something.
           This is interesting and a little amusing. A true mother –son exchange, one of the few in the Gospel story. Mary says in essence, “Jesus, do something, I know you can, and think of poor Ethel and Joe, they’re so embarrassed”. But Jesus says no, he will not, for his time has not yet come. “I can’t be messing with wine and food anyway, forget it”. But like true mothers and sons everywhere, she ignores him and calls the servants over anyway and tells them to “do whatever he says”. Who know why Jesus relented – in a way he has his time thrust upon him. God intervenes perhaps, and it seems that Jesus’ hour has come after all. For this is the first of many signs and Jesus goes from here to Capernaum, where he starts healing many people.
           At the wedding, Jesus turns 6 huge stone jars of water to wine 20-30 gallons each. And not just wine, but the best wine! The wine steward, who does not know where it came, praises the host saying he has kept the best wine for last. Jesus saves the party. He provides a good time for all. I think it’s wonderful that Jesus’ first public sign is one of celebration, joy and even humor.
           How scholars go crazy over the symbolism of this story. A common interpretation is that the new wine is a symbol for Jesus’ ministry. Judaism has run its course and is getting old and tasteless – Jesus is the new wine, the best gift of God, saved for last. In Mark 2:19-22 Jesus refers to himself and his followers as the wedding party and speaks of the new wine of the Kingdom of God bursting the old wineskins of Judaism. Judaism is the water and Christianity is the newly fermented wine with a wonderful bouquet of healing herbs. This interpretation fits in very well with the general anti-Semitism of John’s gospel – but I like it less for that reason.
           There is another interpretation that this is a joyful coming out party for Jesus. It is the celebration of the emerging realm of God. The setting of the wedding is symbolic of the wedding of God and God’s people and the new wine is the abundance of blessing being poured out upon God’s people. As John writes in chapter 1, “from the fullness of Jesus we have received grace upon grace”. This pouring out of wine emphasizes the extravagance of God. Taken in this way the story loses any anti-Semitism for it builds upon the Hebrew scriptures predicting the joyous fulfillment of God’s deliverance. In Amos 9:13 speaks of days that coming when “new wine will drip from the mountains and flow from all the hills, I will bring back my exiled people Israel; they will rebuild the ruined cities and live in them. They will plant vineyards and drink their wine”. Jesus therefore is celebrated as the fulfillment of Jewish prophecy and the living gift of abundant life for the Jews as well as all people.
           Finally, however, we could focus on the words, “My hour has not yet come”. For it seems that Jesus hour has come, and it has come upon him unexpectedly. An unexpected joy. The word for hour here in Greek is “hora”. It is used not in reference to ordinary time with the measurement of minutes and hours, but is used with the concept of “kairos” time. Cronos time is what we enter into our palm pilots and day timers, and have the impression that we can control it and make good use of it. Kairos time represents an unexpected move off the planned course. It is The Time to do something. It is The Time to plant the corn. It is the The Time for God to return. In this case the hour for Jesus will be the circumstances that push him in a new direction. It is his call – his time – his hour.
           I attended a Men’s breakfast fellowship at Second Baptist Church this week. I was invited and thought I’d check it out as part of my search for successful men’s groups in churches. This was quite a conservative gathering theologically, and there was plenty of witnessing to God’s transforming power and prayers for God’s intervention. But I was struck by the faith of these men. One man gave a testimony of his faith journey and I talked to another after, and listened to all their prayer requests. Over and over they witnessed to how something dramatic turned their lives around. They had been addicts and had trouble with anger and greed, but Jesus turned their lives around. Their hour came, and they turned and were transformed. Though I don’t see eye to eye with most of them theologically, I relate to their stories of transformation.
           We go along in our carefully choreographed lives, seeking security, safety, success and meaning, and often something wakes us up. A chronic illness closes doors to the life we had put together, a loss of job shakes us out of complacency, death of a loved one shatters us, a stoke, an addiction…something happens and kairos time takes over. It forces us to ask “from where will my help come from?”
           I read this week of a young girl who was left at the altar by a groom who never showed up. She was left with her tears and embarrassment and enough food to feed the Russian Army. Kairos time hit. Rather than waste the food she sent out people to gather the homeless of the city and the food was used in a much different way. Cronos time was transformed to kairos time.
           Jesus discovered at the wedding in Cana that it was his hour after all. Cronos time became Kairos. For Jesus this meant that he was on God’s time, no longer his own agenda, but God’s agenda. That’s a useful way to think of kairos events – they are God stepping in suddenly we are on God’s agenda, not our own. One’s hour arrives; the kairos moment presents itself – the collision of our mangled plans and spiritual openness. Jesus dropped his plans and followed God’s. We can only pray that when kairos moments come to our lives that we too will follow God – with courage and faith.