Friday, January 26, 2007

John 10:11-18 Leadership

Introduction

There was a young woman who wanted to go to college, but her heart sank when she read the question on the application form that asked, "Are you a leader?" Being both honest and conscientious, she wrote, "No," and returned the application, expecting the worst.

To her surprise, she received this letter from the college: "Dear Applicant: A study of the application forms reveals that this year our college will have 1,452 new leaders. We are accepting you because we feel it is imperative that they have at least one follower."

This morning, we are reflecting on the subject of leadership. What are the qualities of leadership that we should be looking for as Christians? How does this relate to leadership within the life of the church, and what things can we learn for our own lives?

Our reading from John’s gospel sheds some very interesting light on the sort of qualities we should be looking for in our leaders.

The Good Shepherd: Leads from the front

Jesus used many different metaphors to describe himself, I am the true Vine, I am the way, the truth and the life, I am the bread of life, I am the light of the world, and I am the good shepherd.
What do we learn about leadership from the good shepherd? Firstly, the good shepherd leads from the front. Here in Walsall we don’t see many sheep, but I come from Cumbria where sheep greatly out number humans, and when moving sheep the shepherd drivers the sheep from behind, with the use of dogs. However, in the middle east the shepherd leads the sheep from the front. This is why in Psalm 23, known by many as ‘The Lord’s my Shepherd’, it talks of God leading us beside still waters.

And this is one of the first qualities of good leadership, a leader is one who leads from the front, and most importantly, they are people that others want to follow. However, the Bible warns against the blind leading the blind, and so vision is an important quality in leadership. In Proverbs 29:18 it states, that “Without vision, the people perish.” If we consider churches that are growing, and having a real impact on their communities, you will discover that the leadership within those churches have a clear vision of where it is they are heading, and what it is they hope to achieve. This sort of vision, needs to be rooted in prayer and careful study of scriptures, because what we seeking is God’s vision for the church. There is a quote which says, “Vision that looks inward becomes duty. Vision that looks outward becomes aspiration. Vision that looks upward becomes faith.” It is that sort of vision we need to look for.

When a shepherd leads his sheep, they choose to follow him, not because they are coersed to do so, but because they trust the shepherd. And the skill of a really good leader is to lead people to where they don’t necessarily always want to go, but ought to be. In order to achieve this, there are certain qualities which are essential in order to be a good leader.

During the second world war Dwight Eisenhower served as the supreme commander of allied forces in Europe, and in 1953 went on to become the 34th President of the United States of America. This is what he said in reference to the qualities necessary for leadership. “In order to be a leader a man must have followers. And to have followers, a man must have their confidence. Hence the supreme quality of a leader is unquestionably integrity. Without it, no real success is possible, no matter whether it is on a section gang, on a football field, in an army, or in an office. If a man's associates find him guilty of phoniness, if they find that he lacks forthright integrity, he will fail. His teachings and actions must square with each other. The first great need, therefore, is integrity and high purpose.”

Lays down his life

The other thing we learn about leadership from John’s Gospel, is that the good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. Jesus makes a contrast between the good shepherd and the hired hand. The main difference is that the good shepherd cares for his flock, where as the hired hand doesn’t. Shepherding is a hard, demanding and costly way of life. In 1 Samuel 17:34-35 David describes what it was like to care for a flock, and protect it from wild animals. “Your servant has been keeping his father's sheep. When a lion or a bear came and carried off a sheep from the flock, I went after it, struck it and rescued the sheep from its mouth. When it turned on me, I seized it by its hair, struck it and killed it.”

To be a good leader, in whatever sphere that may be, means caring for those you are responsible for, and this can be very costly. It can be costly, emotionally, mentally, physically and spiritually. Consider for example, the way in which those who Jesus loved, and had cared for during the course of his ministry, abandoned him at the moment he needed them the most. Being in a position of leadership can at times be very lonely.

Knows his sheep

The other thing we notice from this passage is that the good shepherd knows his sheep. To be totally honest, I cannot tell the difference between one sheep and another, they all look pretty much the same to me, but the good shepherd knows each sheep individually. In the context of God, the message is clear, God knows us all by name, he knows us better than we know ourselves. He understands our needs, he understands our struggles and our anxieties, and as the story of the shepherd who goes in search of the lost sheep reminds us, he loves us as if we were the only person in the world.

Applying this to leadership, a good leader knows and cares for those that they are immediately responsible for. It is about putting the interests of others first. Leadership can follow one of two routes. Either it is directed to the self life of the leader, or it is directed selflessly for the good of those who are led. The former is the way of the world, which leads to death; the latter is the way of Jesus, which leads to life. The understanding of leadership from a Christian perspective is about becoming the servant of all, and this requires humility. Again our greatest example is that of Jesus. When James and John came to Jesus and asked to sit one at his right and the other at his left, Jesus responded “whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many." (Matthew 10:44-45) Good leaders, must first become good servants.

The sheep know his voice

Just as the shepherd knows the sheep, so the sheep know the voice of the shepherd. I heard a story of one visitor to the Holy Land, who witnessed an extraordinary scene. There had been a storm, and several different flocks of sheep had sheltered in the one building. The flocks were all intermingled, so to the outsider it was impossible to see which sheep belonged to which shepherd. But one by one the shepherds came, and called by name, each of their sheep, and when the sheep heard their name called, and recognised the voice of the shepherd, they responded.

A good leader, is someone who others will listen to, and want to follow. And therefore integrity and conviction of beliefs is very important. But it is also a reminder, that as Christians, we should be listening to voice of our master, and faithfully responding to his call.

Leadership in church

So far I have been discussing leadership in general, I now want to turn briefly to consider leadership within church. There is a risk that when we think of leadership, within the church, we tend to think in very limited terms, thinking primarily of the ordained leadership. However Paul’s description of the church as a body in 1 Corinthians, reminds us that we all have a part to play within the life of God’s church. If you look through the New Testament, you will see that the burden of leadership is always shared.

We can draw some useful lessons about leadership from geese! Geese travel thousands of miles, and they have four very interesting habits.

1. Those in front rotate their leadership. When one lead goose gets tired, it changes places with one in the wing of the V-formation and another flies point. A recognition that leadership is tough, and it’s important that that burden is shared.

2. By flying as they do, the members of the flock create an upward air current for one another. Each flap of the wings literally creates an uplift for the bird immediately following. It has been estimated that by flying in a V-formation, the whole flock gets 71 percent greater flying range than if each goose flew on its own. It is often said that 80% of the work in church is done by 20% of the people, how true is this of St Paul’s, and what can we do to encourage greater collaboration so we can achieve more.

3. When one goose gets sick or wounded, two fall out of formation with it and follow it down to help and protect it. They stay with the struggler until it's able to fly again. This reminds us of the importance of supporting one another, particularly those in public leadership roles. How do you support your clergy here at St Paul’s? Would you notice if one of your church leaders was sick or wounded? And if so, how would you respond. I tend to find that whenever someone announces in church that they feel they should move on, or do something different, the immediate thought is not for them, but for the job they do, and how are we going to find someone to do their job.

4. The geese in the rear of the formation are the ones who do the honking. I suppose it's their way of announcing that they're following and that all is well. The repeated honks encourage those in front to stay at it. Leadership can be lonely, and it is good and important to get encouragement. Are we quicker at giving encouragement or criticism?

One lesson stands out above all others: it is the natural instinct of geese to work together. Whether it's rotating, flapping, helping, or simply honking, the flock is in it together...which enables them to accomplish what they set out to do. And I think that this is a wonderful model of leadership in church, and something for us all to consider
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Monday, January 22, 2007

Mark 7:31-37 Week of Prayer for Christian Unity

This year’s Week of Prayer for Christian Unity brings together two themes, two invitations extended to Christian churches and people: to pray and strive together for Christian unity, and to join together in responding to human suffering. These two responsibilities are deeply intertwined. Both relate to healing the body of Christ, hence the text chosen for this year’s week of prayer is a story of healing.

Our gospel reading this evening relates how Jesus healed a man who was deaf and could not speak properly. Jesus led the man away from the crowd, in order to attend to him in private. He put his fingers into the man’s ears, and touched the man’s tongue, and “said to him, ‘Ephphatha’, that is, ‘be opened’.

In this story of healing we hear of the Lord’s compassionate response to suffering and need; it is an eloquent testimony to the mercy of God. In restoring the man’s hearing and his ability to speak, Jesus manifests God’s power and desire to bring human beings to wholeness, fulfilling Isaiah’s prophecy: “Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf unstopped; then the lame shall leap like a deer, and the tongue of the speechless sing for joy” (35:5-6). The restoration of the man’s hearing allowed him to hear the good news proclaimed by Jesus; the restoration of his speech allowed him to proclaim what he had seen and heard to others. All of these dimensions are reflected in the response of those who witnessed the healing and were “astounded beyond measure”: “he even makes the deaf to hear and the mute to speak” (v.37).

During this week of prayer for Christian Unity, we are reminded that as Christ’s body, we are called to be united in carrying out his mission. A part of that mission is to attend to those who are suffering and in need. As God heard the cry and knew the sufferings of his people in Egypt, as Jesus responded with compassion to those who cried out to him, so too we as the church are called to hear the voice of all who suffer, to respond with compassion, and to give voice to the voiceless.

There is an essential connection between efforts to pray for and seek unity among Christians and initiatives to respond to human need and suffering. Here in Walsall we have seen a number of joint initiatives that have crossed the denominational divides, which have helped draw churches closer together. For example the Walsall Drinkers Ministry, which reaches out to clubbers in the centre of Walsall every Friday night. There is also the Vine Project, and the Glebe Centre, which are supported by different churches, in order to meet the needs of some of the most vulnerable people in our community. The same Spirit which makes us brothers and sisters in Christ also empowers us to reach out to every human being in need. The same Spirit which is at work in all efforts to make visible the unity of Christians also gives strength to every movement towards renewing the face of the earth. Every easing of human suffering makes our oneness more visible; every step towards unity strengthens the whole body of Christ.


In a Peanuts cartoon Lucy demanded that Linus change TV channels, threatening him with her fist if he didn't. "What makes you think you can walk right in here and take over?" asks Linus. "These five fingers," says Lucy. "Individually they're nothing but when I curl them together like this into a single unit, they form a weapon that is terrible to behold." "Which channel do you want?" asks Linus. Turning away, he looks at his fingers and says, "Why can't you guys get organized like that?" The simple truth is that when we work together as Christians we are so much stronger, and able to achieve so much more, than if we try to do things on our own.
The Origins of this year’s Week of Prayer Material: Umlazi

This year’s theme for the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity has its origins in the experience of Christian communities in the South African region of Umlazi, near Durban. Our service tonight reflect the concerns and experience of a people who have undergone great suffering.

Umlazi was originally established under the apartheid regime as a ‘township’ for the majority black population. A legacy of racism, unemployment and poverty continues to raise formidable challenges for its people, where there is still a shortage of schools, medical clinics and adequate housing. This context of poverty and unemployment gives rise to a high crime rate and problems of abuse within families and communities. But the biggest current challenge faced by people in the informal settlements and townships is that of HIV/AIDS. It is estimated that 50% of the residents of Umlazi are infected with the virus.

One of the big challenges they face, which aggravates the problem facing people in the Umlazi area, is the stigma which keeps people who are suffering abuse, victims of rape, or infected with HIV/AIDS, from speaking openly about their problems. These are taboo subjects. As a result, many people hesitate to seek the assistance available.

In light of the challenges facing this community, the local church leaders in Umlazi designed an ecumenical service which had as its central theme ‘breaking the silence’. Special services were organised, during which the young people were invited to speak about that which was ‘unspeakable’ and to seek assistance, mindful that keeping silence can mean death.

What Christians in South Africa have learnt is that the HIV/AIDS pandemic, is too great a challenge for a divided church, and that it is only by working together that they can do something to break the silence around this devastating disease.

Unity is not the same as uniformity, there can be diversity of expressions of faith, but there can also be unity within that diversity. We are many different parts, but there is only one body, one Spirit, one hope, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of us all. It is certainly true that we are beginning to see much greater unity amongst Christians, but we still have a long way to go. Just as the blind man in Mark’s Gospel had his eyes and ears opened, maybe we need our eyes and ears further opened to realise the possibilities of what we could do to serve and transform our community by working more closely together, particularly when we seek to ‘break the silence’ on those things that oppress and isolate people in their suffering here in our community.

Breaking the Silence

Jesus’ instructions to his followers was for them to continue the work he had begun. The question we should consider is what does it means to be a follower of Jesus Christ, who makes the deaf hear and the dumb speak? How best can we proclaim the good news and be instruments of Christ’s healing presence, listening and giving voice to those who have been silenced or have not been able to relate their experience? And how can we increase the unity that already exists between us?

One of the challenges we have to face up to is breaking our own silence. There have been times when Christians and Christian churches have remained silent when we should have spoken out, times when we have not empowered the voiceless to speak. There are times when the divisions of the churches have kept us from hearing the pain of others, or have left our response muffled, conflicted, ineffective and unconsoling, and for this we need to repent. Now is the time for us to break our own silence. What has been interesting to see, is how religion has been brought back to centre stage in public life, and how despite falling church attendance, the religious voice is once again being listened too, and been shown to be powerful. Paul said, “I am not ashamed of the Gospel, because it is the power of God to save.” We must not be ashamed or afraid of speaking out, we have a duty to speak for those who have no voice, or whose voice is not being heard. Failure to do so, is failure to fulfil our calling.

The church has been given a voice and a message to proclaim, a mission to carry out; and it is not a divided message, a conflictive mission. Enlivened by the Holy Spirit, it is to be a single coherent utterance, the good news given to us by and in Christ himself. Through Christ, we have the grace to break the silence. In Christ, we are the community called to say ‘be opened’ to the deaf and the dumb. The path to faithfulness and integrity requires that we strive and pray for that unity for which Christ prayed, and that even amidst our divisions, we learn to speak with a single voice, to reach out as a single body with compassion, giving flesh to the good news which we proclaim.

Source of Life: Prayer as Relationship Exodus 3:1-12

Introduction

Over the next five weeks, we are going to be focusing on the very important subject of prayer. Over this period we are going to be thinking of:
Prayer as the source of life, as relationship
Prayer as the source of joy, about enjoying God
Prayer as the source of light, focusing particularly on listening in prayer
Prayer as the source of wholeness, thinking about honest in prayer
Prayer as the source of love, thinking about prayer care

I hope that over the course of the next few weeks, we will have fresh insights into this very important subject. This is subject is an extremely important one. Brother Roger of Taize once said, ‘When a church gets on its knees and prays, people come running’. The one area in the life of St Martin’s that I feel we need to work at the most is our prayer life. It is no coincidence that when a church prays it grows, because it opens itself up to the power of God.

For example, Pastor Cho leads the worlds largest church, the Yoido Full Gospel Church in Seoul, South Korea. This church started in 1958 with just 6 people, today it has 800 thousand members. And what is the secret of this churches growth? Prayer. Prayer from the very start has been one of their main priorities, and it has born much fruit.

Now if we are at all serious about wanting to see St Martin’s grow, and if we want to grow as Christians, we must take prayer seriously.

I do however, have a confession to make, which is, I don’t find prayer all that easy. It is one area of my Christian life, where I know I struggle. I do not always find prayer that easy, but I know what a big difference it makes to my life. So I am speaking to you today, not as an expert in prayer, but as someone who is constantly learning how to pray.

Prayer: The Source of Life

The title of today’s talk is Prayer: The Source of Life. And I want to focus particularly on prayer as relationship, because at its most basic that is what prayer is. It is about our relationship with God.

As I have said many times before the Christian faith is all about a relationship with God the Father, through Jesus Christ. And like any relationship, whether we are talking about our relationship with God, or with our friends of family, communication is absolutely central. If there is no communication, then there is no relationship.

To give an example, if you are married, but don’t communicate with one another, then there is no real relationship. Just in the same way that we can come to church, and outwardly do all those things we think a Christian should do, but don’t pray, then there is little real relationship.

The reason prayer is the source of life, is that through it we grow in our closeness and intimacy with God.

Exodus

The reading from Exodus 3, and the call of Moses, reveals some important things about the nature and importance of the relational nature of prayer.

Giving God full attention

The first thing to note is that when Moses sees the burning bush, and realises that the bush is not being consumed by the fire, Moses realises that he is in a holy place. And he gives God his full attention.

And in prayer, we are called to give God our full attention. The trouble I find is that it is very easy to get distracted. If someone is trying to talk to me, and the TV or Radio is on in the background, I personally find it very hard to concentrate on what they person is saying, to communicate I need give that person my full attention. Similarly, I find that very easy for distractions to get in the way of prayer, speaking personally may be because I simply allow them to get in the way. This is why it is so good to get into a routine of having a what is described as quiet time. A time when you know you will not be disturbed, so you can read the Bible and pray. When that time is will depend on your individual circumstances, what matters is that you find something that works for you.

And when you give someone you full attention, you are waiting on them, you are giving yourself to them. One of the most common mistakes people make when it comes to prayer, is that we do all the talking, and forget to listen. In a couple of weeks time we will look more closely at the ideal of prayer as listening.

Another thing we need to be aware of, is that if we are not careful, we tend to treat God as some sort of divine shop assistant, our prayers more like a shopping list, than a genuine dialogue. This is not to say that God doesn’t want to hear our requests, because in the Lord’s prayer we are taught to prayer, “Give us today our daily bread”. It’s just that, if that is all our prayer is, then it leaves a lot to be desired. Imagine if every time you met your best friend, all you did was tell them what you would like for the coming day or week, your friend would soon wonder what sort of relationship you have together.

Moses is called by name

Secondly we see that Moses is called by name. Again this emphasises both the personal nature of our calling and our relationship with God. God calls us all by name to follow him. It is a reminder that God knows us, and wants to be a part of our lives.

God calls Moses for a very specific task, he says “I have observed the misery of my people who are in Egypt, I have heard their cry… indeed I know their sufferings, and I have come down to deliver them from the Egyptians” We see clearly how God’s heart is for His people. God is concerned about what goes on in our lives. Our God is a relational God. The very nature of God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, illustrates the importance of relationships. This is emphasised when God speaks to Moses from the burning bush and says “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.”

John Pritchard in his book ‘How to Pray’ writes, “Prayer is about exploring a relationship with God, it is not about an esoteric technique.” Prayer is about getting to know more about God and about ourselves. How you pray, is far less important than actually praying. Stephen Cottrell, Bishop of Reading, writes, “Human beings are made for relationship with God. When we pray we discover the truth about ourselves: that we are children of God. Within this relationship we can flourish and become fully ourselves as God intended us to be.” That is why pray is the source of life for us as Christians. Because through it, we discover who we truly are, by getting to know the one who made us.

Drawing closer to God

Another thing we learn from the Exodus narrative, is that prayer is about drawing closer to God. When God calls out to Moses he said “Remove the sandals from your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground.” And through prayer we enter into the presence of the most Almighty God, we as it were stand on holy ground.

Prayer is an awesome privilege, when we consider who it is we are addressing. We pray to the creater of the universe. On 20 August 1977, Voyager II, the inter-planetary probe launched to observe and transmit to earth data about the outer planetary system, set off from earth travelling faster than the speed of a bullet (90,000 miles per hour). On 28 August 1989 it reached planet Neptune, 2,700 million miles from the earth. Voyager II then left the solar system. It will not come within one light year of any star for 958,000 years. In our galaxy there are 100,000 million stars, like our sun. Our galaxy is one of 100,000 million galaxies. In a throwaway line in Genesis, the writer tells us, ‘He also made the stars’ (Genesis 1:16). Such is his power. Andrew Murray, the Christian writer, once said, ‘The power of prayer depends almost entirely upon our apprehension of who it is with whom we speak.’

Prayer is not only about drawing closer to God, but it is also about putting God at the centre. Stephen Cottrell again writes, “Prayer is the most natural thing in the world. I can also be the hardest. Because it is relationship it is about letting go and allowing someone else to be the centre of your life. In so many ways the human spirit will recoil from this kind of loving. We like to be at the centre ourselves.”

I am by nature, quite a selfish person, and so putting someone else at the centre of my life, it not something that always comes naturally it is something that I need to work at. The same is true of prayer. Prayer is something I need to work at, and I suspect that is true of most of us here. We all face times, when we find it difficult to pray, it may be at times when we are under great stress, or when we are ill, or when we feel God is very distant. In those times, it is so important we persist in praying. The protestant reformer Martin Luther said “If I should neglect prayer but a single day, I should lose a great deal of the fire of faith.” To give a comparison it is essential to eat and drink to maintain our health, even if we don’t feel like it. If we do neglect these most basic of things, it will not be long before it begins to effect us, the same is true if we neglect prayer.

There are many ways we can build prayer into our lives, so prayer becomes a very natural outflowing of our life. For example, when you notice during the day that you feel good about something, just say it to God, in whatever words come naturally. Similarly, when there’s something you feel worried about, or when you get news about someone you care about. Talk about it to God. In many ways we are very good at talking to ourselves about things, prayer is simply turning the talk outwards to God, and drawing him into our lives. This is the essence of the prayer relationship we have with God, that we can take all things to him in prayer.

Conclusion

Over the next month we are going to look in more detail at prayer, and I do hope that we will all use this as an opportunity to focus again on the place of prayer in our own lives, and in the life of this church.

Thursday, January 18, 2007

Bishop Jonathan's Evangelism Message

Alpha Course: Exploring the meaning of life

At St Martin's we run the popular Alpha Course (http://www.alpha.org/), a ten week course that looks at the claims of the Christian faith in a fun, friendly and informal way. This is the second course that we've run since I've been in Walsall, and last night was the second session of the course. Last night's topic was 'Why did Jesus die'. It's such a privilege to be able to explore with other people issues relating to God and the Christian faith. In total we have fourteen people on our current course (this includes group leaders), and we vary in age from a teenager up to people in their sixties. The evening begins with a meal, followed by a presentation and then an opportunity to divide into groups to discuss the topic of the night. The great thing about Alpha is that it gives permission for people to discuss the big questions in life, in a safe and non judgemental environment. We're all on a journey with God, a lot of people on the course are searching for answers, looking for God, others have been Christians for some time and are using the course as a refresher, looking again at the essentials of the Christian faith.

At St Martin's we tend to vary the presentation week by week, so some weeks I do the talk, using clips from films when appropriate, and other weeks we use the Alpha DVD which contains the talks given by Nicky Gumble.

I've been on quite a number of Alpha Courses over the years, but what I find is that each one is different, and I always come away feeling as though I've learnt something new. It's a wonderful privilege.

There is a link to the main Alpha website on this blog as as through our church website (http://www.walsallstmartins.2day.ws/), if you're looking for answers, and exploring the meaning of life, I'd recommend you give Alpha a go.

Tuesday, January 16, 2007

John 2:1-11 Wedding at Cana

Introduction

Least Successful Wedding Cake: At the wedding reception of Signor Faldini in Naples in 1981 the wedding cake exploded when a waiter was lighting the candles, with the result that two guests, two waiters and a tourist taking a photograph where treated for shock. Credit goes to the chef who later said; “I think I must have used too much alcohol in the mix.”

I never knew what real happiness was until I got married, and by then it was too late.

Married life is very frustrating. In the first year of marriage, the man speaks & the wife listens. In the second year, the woman speaks and the husband listens. In the third year, they both speak and the neighbours listen.

“By all means marry! If you get a good wife, you’ll be happy. If you get a bad one, you’ll become a philosopher.” Socrates

The speaker at a women’s club was lecturing on marriage & asked the audience how many of them wanted to “mother” their husbands. One member in the back row raised her hand. “You do want to mother your husband?” the speaker asked. “Mother?” the woman echoed, “I thought you said smother.”

Our Gospel reading this morning takes place within the context of a wedding in Cana. Cana was a inconspicuous little town that lay outside of Nazareth.

Weddings in Jesus’ day where big affairs, in small villages like Cana, it would have involved the whole community.

Illustration
When Beata and I were planning our own wedding, one of our major concerns was to ensure that we had enough food and drink for all the guests, but our wedding celebrations only lasted one day. Jewish wedding celebrations could last a whole week!

We are told that at this particular wedding that Jesus attended, the wine ran out. To run out of food or drink at a wedding would not only cause major embarrassment, it would have been a social disgrace for the bride and groom. In the closely knit communities of Jesus' day, such an error would never be forgotten. In fact, according to one commentary I read, lawsuits were not unknown in these circumstances because it was considered a breach of hospitality! So the situation was a potentially serious one. We can sense some of the urgency of the situation in Mary’s words to Jesus, “They have no more wine.”

So Jesus instructs the servants to fill up six stone water jars, normally used for ceremonial washing, with water, and draw some of the water out of the jars and take it to the master of the banquet. And miraculously the water is turned into wine.

Illustration
A small boy was asked by a visiting relative what he had learnt at church today.

"Today" came the reply, "our lesson was about when Jesus went to a wedding and made water into wine."

"And what did you learn from that story?" the relative inquired.

After thinking for a moment, the lad answered, "If you're having wedding, make sure Jesus is there!"

John describes this miracle as a sign, so what does this sign have to tell us?

The wine can run out

First of all it informs us that the wine can run out.
To the Jewish people wine symbolized joy. The Jewish rabbis had a saying, “Without wine there is no joy.”

This wine can be seen as symbolic of our lives. If wine symbolizes joy, then there are times in our lives when the wine runs out. Times when we are empty of joy.

There are many different reasons why the joy may run out in our lives. It may be because we are going through difficult times, at work, or at home. It may be because we are under a great deal of stress or anxiety, and we are exhausted. It could be that we have neglected the one person who can give us true joy, and that is God. It could be that we are trying to find satisfaction and fulfillment in life in things which cannot truly satisfy, money, relationships, hobbies, alcohol, drugs, etc.

It can be a scary thing when the ‘wine runs out’, when we lack joy. You and I have no resources within ourselves to replace the joy. Only Jesus can provide this new wine. If you go to St Matthew’s you will see on their notice board the words, the secret of Joy is putting Jesus first, others second and yourself last. Jonathan Edwards, a theologian and preacher from the 18th century said the following. Christ is not only a remedy for your weariness and trouble, he will give you an abundance of the contrary, joy and delight.

The Bible talks a lot about joy, for instance in 1 Thessalonians 5:16 Paul writes, Be Joyful Always, and Jesus prayed that we may have the full measure of joy within us. Joy is different to happiness. Henri Nouwen, said that “Joy is knowing that you are unconditionally loved.” Jesus prayed that we may have the full measure of joy within us. It is only through Jesus that we can discover true joy. Jesus is chapter 16 of John’s gospel, says, Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete.

The transforming power of God

The second thing this sign shows us is the power of God to transform something ordinary into something wonderful. The wine that Jesus produced was not ordinary wine, but the finest wine imaginable.

This is how God deals with us. He takes us as we are, and through the power of the Holy Spirit we are transformed. Jesus is able to take that which is tired, worn out, devoid of joy, empty, and lacking purpose, and transform it into something wonderful. It can be turned into something rich, fragrant, and ripe with the fullness of joy through his presence, through his care.

Jesus wants to transform our lives, just as he transformed that water. When he does this our lives take on a new nature.
Jesus turned…· water into wine; · he turns frowns into smiles; · he turns whimpers of fear into songs of hope; · he turns deserts into gardens, · he turns sorrow into joy;· he turns sin into grace; · death into life.

Jesus can transform anyone, consider for example Paul, who described himself as the Worst of Sinners (1 Tim 1:16), who before he encountered Jesus, was determined to destroy the church. Through Jesus, Paul was transformed into someone completely different. No one, is beyond the transforming power of God.

The question we need to ask ourselves, is what areas of our lives would we like to see transformed, and are we prepared to allow God to make those changes?

The abundance of God

Thirdly, this sign emphasizes the abundance of God’s provision. The wedding guests went from having no wine at all to having an overabundance of wine. There were six jars containing between 20 and 30 gallons apiece. So, at the very least, the jars contained 120 gallons of wine, and as much as 180 gallons. There is no way the guests could have consumed that much wine. Why did Jesus give so much wine? Because he is an extravagant giver. He never gives just enough; he always gives superabundantly.

We see this else where in the Bible. For instance, when the Israelites spent forty years in the wilderness, each day God sent more than food that their needs required. In the feeding of the 5000 Jesus multiplied five loaves and two fish so that everyone could have their fill, and at the end there were twelve baskets of bread and fish left over. He gave them more than they could possibly eat. This is the way God gives.
Jesus said, “I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full” (John 10:10). We have an extravagant God who lavishes us with his blessings. We can ask him for anything. The Bible says he gives “immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us” (Ephesians 3:20).

He loves to bless. To a dying thief on a cross he gave the gift of paradise. To a woman caught in an immoral act he gave the gift of God’s amazing grace and forgiveness. To a grieving father he gave back a child from the grip of death. He is lavish with his gifts. And to us who come with our requests, he gives the promise of abundant life here and now, and beyond this world, eternal life. When the new wine was brought out, the master of the banquet was amazed and said, “Everyone brings out the choice wine first and then the cheaper wine after the guests have had too much to drink; but you have saved the best till now” (John 2:10). Jesus always saves the best till last. In John 1:16 we read: “From the fullness of his grace we have all received one blessing after another” (John 1:16). We have been filled to the brim with the blessings of God. And as Christians we have the assurance that the best is yet to come, because we can look forward to being with God in heaven. Heaven is where the deepest longings of our lives will be met. The Bible assures us, “No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him” (1 Corinthians 2:9). The best that the world has to offer now is only a hint of what is yet to be. The difference will be as different as water is to wine. Conclusion

The miracle of the changing of the water into wine, demonstrates the power of God to transform, and the amazing generosity of our God, that we have a God who lavishes good gifts on those who love him.

What would have happened at the wedding banquet if Mary had not had the courage to speak to Jesus, and tell the servants to do whatever he commanded? The wine would have ran out.
Has your joy ran out today? Jesus wants to transform you! Bring your need to him!