68. Second Sunday after Epiphany. I.
Lord Jesus, come to us, and abide with us;
unite our hearts in thee,
and sanctify our homes. Amen.
Gospel Lesson, John 2, 1-11. And the third day there was a marriage in Cana of Galilee; and the mother of Jesus was there: And both Jesus was called, and his disciples, to the marriage. And when they wanted wine, the mother of Jesus saith unto him, They have no wine. Jesus saith unto her, Woman, what have I to do with thee? mine hour is not yet come. His mother saith unto the servants, Whatsoever he saith unto you, do it. And there were set there six waterpots of stone, after the manner of the purifying of the Jews, containing two or three firkins apiece. Jesus saith unto them, Fill the waterpots with water. And they filled them up to the brim. And he saith unto them, Draw out now, and bear unto the governor of the feast. And they bare it. When the ruler of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and knew not whence it was: (but the servants which drew the water knew;) the governor of the feast called the bridegroom, and saith unto him, Every man at the beginning doth set forth good wine; and when men have well drunk, then that which is worse: but thou hast kept the good wine until now. This beginning of miracles did Jesus in Cana of Galilee, and manifested forth his glory; and his disciples believed on him.
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Jesus did his first miracle before the eyes of his disciples on the occasion of a marriage; and it consisted in turning water into wine, and transforming the sadness of the bridal house into gladness. The marriage relation is the root of human society, planted by God at the creation, and holy from the beginning. But it was corrupted by the fall of man, and the devil continues to rage against it; for he knows that when he destroys the marriage institution, he undermines all social order, and makes us like unto Sodom and Gomorrah. This is the purpose of the doctrine of free love, in the preaching of which the evil enemy is now busying himself. — As many as wish to follow the Lord Jesus must heartily hate this invention of the devil, and maintain the sacred integrity of the marriage tie. Why did the Lord choose a wedding for the first manifestation of his glory? Why was his first miracle done to assist this young bridal pair? He is come to drive the devil out of the house, and to create for himself not only individual saints, but a saintly, or holy people. He takes the children into his embrace by means of their baptism; educates the young people by the instruction of the word to fear God; is with them in their wedded life, and makes it a holy estate; and sanctifies their children. In this way the Lord prepares unto himself a bride on earth (Ephesians 5). He watches over the wedded pair with especial solicitude. It is he who brings the bride and bridegroom together. It is in accordance with his decree that they find each other, often in a wonderful way, and directly contrary to all human calculation. Most assuredly there will come many trials of various kinds into the married life of all pious people; they will have temptations and troubles of many sorts; but in the Lord’s own good time this water will be turned into wine. Very thin wine, and a too scanty supply, and only the waterpots filled to the brim; — this is the condition of affairs where Jesus is one of the wedding guests; but in the end this poor cheer becomes the choicest wine. However, Jesus will himself fix the time; and even his mother must submit to his decision. — Let us, then, have Jesus with us in our wedding and in our everyday life. He transforms the water of our sinful wretchedness into the wine of holiness and glory. By the wondrous power of his Spirit he renews and elevates our family and social life, and makes us a happy people that shall sing his praises and be perfected at last as the blessed bride of the Lamb, the bride who shall drink of the new wine with him in his kingdom. — Lord Jesus, teach us to pray thee to be a guest in our weddings; and do thou come to us, and sanctify our home life. Be our guide and ruler, and help us, thou who alone canst help. Amen.*
O blest the house, whate’er befall,
Where Jesus Christ is all in all;
Yea, if he were not dwelling there,
How poor and dark and void it were!
O blest that house where faith ye find,
And all within have set their mind
To trust their God and serve him still,
And do, in all, his holy will.
[TLH 625, LSB 862, ELH 190; listen here]
69. Second Sunday after Epiphany. II.
Blessed is the man
whose strength is in thee,
in whose heart are the highways to Zion.
Epistle Lesson, Romans 12, 6-16. Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, whether prophecy, let us prophesy according to the proportion of faith; or ministry, let us wait on our ministering; or he that teacheth, on teaching; or he that exhorteth, on exhortation: he that giveth, let him do it with simplicity; he that ruleth, with diligence; he that sheweth mercy, with cheerfulness. Let love be without dissimulation. Abhor that which is evil; cleave to that which is good. Be kindly affectioned one to another with brotherly love; in honor preferring one another; not slothful in business; fervent in spirit; serving the Lord; rejoicing in hope; patient in tribulation; continuing instant in prayer; distributing to the necessity of saints; given to hospitality. Bless them which persecute you: bless, and curse not. Rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep. Be of the same mind one toward another. Mind not high things, but condescend to men of low estate. Be not wise in your own conceits.
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What glorious exhortations! May they be followed in our daily life. Let our hearts be full of unfeigned piety; holy abhorrence of that which is evil; genuine delight in that which is good; hearty affection, brotherly love, and true respect for one another; burning zeal in the service of the Lord; joy in hope, patience in tribulation, and perseverance in prayer. Let us distribute to the necessity of the saints, exercise hospitality, bless them which persecute us, rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep, and be joined together in the same mind and judgment. Let these virtues, with humility, modesty, and a holy contempt for the pride and greatness of the world, adorn our walk, fill our houses, and characterize the Christian homes. Jesus is here, and will work this in us, dear friends. Let us have faith in his miraculous power, live in it, and make use of it. Miraculous power is required, no doubt of that; natural piety will fall short. You have yourself and the devil and the whole world against you; you must all the time sail against the stream, and must not give way to self-will, unbelief, sloth, and the wickedness which you see in the world about you. However, the miraculous power of Jesus is here. He says only: “Fill the waterpots with water to the brim, and draw out now, and bear to the governor of the feast;” and there is in his words a power which causes the servants to do as they are ordered, though it seems utterly unreasonable; a power which likewise has the effect that the water which they draw is wine. He works in us that which the apostle says that we must do. Command, Lord, what thou wilt; and do thou also work in us that which thou dost command. This is our sincere prayer. Help us to obey the exhortations of thy apostle. We hunger and thirst after this blessing; let us receive it by the mighty power of thy rich grace. Amen.*
O that the Lord would guide my ways,
To keep his statutes still!
O that my God would grant me grace
To know and do his will!
Make me to walk in thy commands;
’Tis a delightful road;
Nor let my head, or heart, or hands,
Offend against my God.
[TLH 416, LSB 707, ELH 441; listen here]
* Here the head of the family says a short morning or evening prayer in his own words, and closes with the Lord’s Prayer and the Benediction. This is to be done every day. If the stanzas are not sung, they may be read in their proper place before the impromptu petition and the Lord’s Prayer.