January 17, 2009
“CRYPTIC CLUES”
A couple times in our congregation we have sponsored the fellowship event called a Road Rally. It is a game where teams pile into separate vehicles with a first clue that will lead them to the next spot to find another clue, and so on until all have rendezvoused at the final destination. It is a race, of sorts, within the parameters of speed limits and cheap gasoline. The game is larger than the individual sites where clues are found, and each clue solved brings us closer and closer to the destination. (Try to remember that … each clue brings us closer and closer to the destination.)
Two weeks ago I mentioned that John’s Gospel was different than the other three. I suggested that John the Gospel writer was more like a poet or a symphony conductor. John wrote in metaphors; his stories could have multiple meanings. Each story was its own event, to be sure, but it led to other events, it was part of something bigger and deeper. In some ways stories in John’s Gospel are clues of other things to come. A good example of this is our Gospel text from John’s second chapter. It is a great story about a wedding, a celebration, and how Jesus’ actions kept the party going while at the same time empowered the newly called disciples to believe. It is important, I think, to remember that this story of Jesus transforming water into wine only appears in John’s Gospel.
We know the story. We know there was a wedding and we know customs in those days meant a seven day reception at the groom’s home for a majority of folks living in that town. We know that the groom and his family were responsible for the reception, and we know that there would have been great embarrassment to have run out of wine before the week of celebration had ended. When the wine was gone, typically the party was over. We know that Jesus, his mother, and the called disciples were guests at the wedding, and we know that Jesus’ mother noticed or heard that the wine had run out. We know that Jesus allowed the groom to save face by turning six large water jars filled with water into wine, which created a ridiculous amount of wine, so much wine that the jars were filled to the brim with a total of 120-180 gallons of wine. It was abundant wine, more wine than can be imagined. The disciples, of course, were thrilled. “Thaaank you, Jesus!”, and the text states that the disciples believed in him.
That is essentially the story. Now let’s look for the clues. Will you join me? Even though this story takes place three days after Jesus had called his disciples, and most specifically, Philip and Nathanael, to ministry, John decided to begin this story by writing “on the third day.” Maybe we remember that, at the end of the Gospel another event will occur: Jesus’ resurrection from the dead took place “on the third day.” John the Gospel writer purposely chose to begin this story with “On the third day.” It is a clue. Turning water into wine is Jesus’ first sign, according to John. Rising from the dead “on the third day” is the final sign of Messiahship. Suddenly we have bookends.
Coincidence? We read that Jesus’ mother was a guest at the wedding. In John’s Gospel, Jesus’ mother only appears twice and she is never called by name. In both places Jesus addresses her like he would any female disciple, referring to her as “woman.” When is the only other time Mary appears in John’s Gospel? At the foot of the cross. She is referred to as “his mother”, and Jesus says from the cross, “’Woman, here is your son,’ and then to the disciple supporting Mary, “Here is your mother.” So far, we seem to be receiving clues of other events beyond the water/wine miracle itself. There is more.
When Mary informed Jesus that the wine had been depleted, Jesus responded in a confusing way, and one of the things he said was, “my hour has not yet come.” “The hour” or “my hour” refers to more than the clock. Throughout John’s Gospel, whenever Jesus mentions “my hour,” he is talking about his glorification as God’s Son. Ironically, his glorification is made visible through his death and resurrection. “My hour” is another way of saying “my death.” Wow! Here we are again, going back and forth from a real event, a wedding, and Jesus’ Passion, his death and resurrection at the conclusion of John’s Gospel.
It is wine that runs out. Maybe you know where this is headed. Wine often represents Jesus’ blood. At the wedding Jesus gave the gift of wine. At his death and resurrection, Jesus gave the gift of his life. At the wedding Jesus assumed the role of providing drink for the wedding guests, a role typically reserved for the bridegroom. The resurrected Christ is often referred to as the bridegroom, with the church being his bride.
John the Gospel writer intends to tell us who this Jesus is. Epiphany is about manifestation, and the word “manifest” means that something is revealed, evident, clear, visible. John is telling us that through the wedding miracle Jesus’ true identity was becoming clearer to the disciples. Their response is belief in him. John is also telling us the story as a foretaste of another story and a symbol, a hint of what is to come. John tells us, “something new has happened. Someone new is coming who will fill us to the brim with good things, things to celebrate and bring us joy. The six stone water jars were used for Jewish purification, for washing, cleanliness. This new One will take cleansing one step further as his own life will be seen as a cleansing, as his blood is shed as a renewal when sins are forgiven and as people are made whole. The best wine has been saved for last. Jesus is the best, the perfect wine. That will become clearer as we move through John’s Gospel. It will become really clear when Jesus walks out of the tomb. This story, real and important in and of itself, is filled with clues, signs, of who Jesus is as God’s Son, as Christ.
What might this mean for us? God is on the move, always on the move. God moves in and through our own experiences and stories, real and pertinent on their own. But God moves in and through our own experiences and stories so that we are led to sense and see something deeper, bigger, more holy in the midst of our experiences and stories. God is on the move, leading us to new places and understandings, sensing and seeing the power of God or the victory of Jesus through that which we or others are living. Our experiences and stories are clues to how God is visible and active in this life, how God makes all things new through Christ, how God is present to bring joy into heartbreak.
Yes, our lives are cryptic clues of Jesus’ presence, Jesus’ power, and Jesus’ passion. Our lives and experiences are always a part of something bigger. And when we see and sense the connections, we are invited to believe, because as you know, we too are disciples. Amen
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