2nd Sunday after Epiphany (C) January 16, 2022
Isaiah 62:1-5, 1 Corinthians 12:1-11, John 2:1-11 Panzer
Liturgical
Many
Gifts – One Spirit
Do you want to hear something crazy? Almost 32 years
and I’ve never preached on any of these passages… three of the most recognized
passages of scripture, and some of the most preached on… and I had to choose
which would be my main focus today.
I’ll admit, John’s gospel account of Jesus’ first
miracle is quite compelling. I like to think of it as an accidental or
reluctant miracle. Soon after his baptism by John in the Jordan River, Jesus
gathered with recently called disciples and family members at a wedding, which
was probably a multiple-day affair. It was the responsibility of the host to
make sure that there was enough food and drink to go around. Unfortunately for
him, the wine ran out sooner than expected and that was very, very bad. I love
that it wasn’t Jesus who instigated saving the host’s party… it was Jesus’
mother. Jesus’ reluctance is noted, but Mary waved that away, sure that Jesus
will make it all well.
And he does, turning six giant barrels of water into
the finest wine. Yes, it made the host look especially good, because who serves
the best stuff first? But even more than the impact it had on this one wedding
party, it told us something important about the extravagant nature of God’s
love and blessing. The ultimate purpose of this accidental miracle was to
convince the disciples to believe in who Jesus is. Yes, they started out as a
rag-tag band of followers, but in the end, even with all of their mistakes,
they changed the world.
That is Paul’s message to many of the early
congregations… God will do a great thing through you. And in his first letter
to the church at Corinth, Paul wants to both encourage the church’s members and
correct some troublesome behaviors. This book of 1st Corinthians is
always highlighted during the season of Epiphany, so in year C we will be
reading from chapters 12-14 over the
next 6 weeks. In these chapters, Paul addresses not just the practical details
about how the church should worship, but also the underlying components of true
worship of God. Ultimately, Paul reflects on spiritual manifestations of
worship, not just the practices themselves. In chapter 12, we see the focus of
worship is not just about what we do in worship. It is also about the attitudes
we bring to worship, attitudes about God, ourselves, and one another.
First, Paul talks about spiritual gifts – they are not
our possessions alone – they come to us as gifts of grace we are called to use
to worship God and serve others. So what problem is Paul addressing here?
Those of us affiliated or in contact with military
personal understand uniformity. This is the idea that a mission or identity is
best served when things are the same. That’s not what Paul is talking about
here. He understands that people have been graced with different gifts, and
called to use them in different ways. But no matter what the gift, they are not
possessions which we brag about – we didn’t earn them because of anything
special we have done, or because we deserve them, but receive them intentionally
as gifts for which we must be grateful. And this means that no gift is better
than another.
Second, there are a variety of gifts – all coming from
the same source – and given, not as we want to receive them, but as the Spirit
determines them necessary. I’ve talked about how one of my spiritual gifts is
teaching, despite my desire for different gifts. Before I attended seminary,
and even early in my ministry, I thought this gift wasn’t as important as
preaching or exhortation. It took a couple of years to realize that teaching
wasn’t just about sitting in a classroom to give a lecture. Teaching happens in
sermons. It happens during mission moments. It happens in hospital waiting
rooms, and while we’re having a conversation over coffee. It even happens when
we see a movie or read a book or article and see a new way to understand that
grace and love of God and share that with others.
No matter what the gift, how we use it, or how using
that gift translates the love of God into action, we are called to use the
spiritual gifts we receive in service to the same Lord. When we are using these
gifts at our best, we are inspired to love and serve others – it’s like we
can’t help ourselves. And while some of us find that our spiritual gifts play
in concert with our talents and things we are enthusiastic about, sometimes our
spiritual gifts require us to act outside our comfort zones.
Third, our spiritual gifts, while different, are how
we achieve unity. Next week, we’ll hear more about this, Paul is clear that we
don’t get to judge other people’s fitness for the Kingdom of God based on how
important we think their gifts are. Look at any community, business, or family.
There are all kinds of jobs that need to be done. Those leading are tasked with
finding the best people to do the jobs that will bring success. Who wants to go
to a restaurant with only goods, but no servers? My brother-in-law and nephew
work for the same company in Michigan, but their jobs are very different, not
just because of their various degrees and interests. They each bring something
to the company which makes their work successful. Different gifts, but a unifying desire to
make the company one of the best in their industry.
I’ve had the opportunity to volunteer in many
congregations and chapels in the last 25 years. And most of the time when
people find out I have experience leading and teaching, that’s where I get asked
to serve. But there have been a couple of places where I got the opportunity to
put new spiritual gifts into practice. Let me tell you, I was very happy to
volunteer in the community garden our church hosted in Rhode Island… It wasn’t
just about helping things grow – my joy was fueled by seeing how excited
families were to take home the fresh produce and flowers we spent the spring
and summer growing.
In Spokane, we hosted a transitional housing shelter
for families with children every other month. We turned the classrooms into
bedrooms, prepared meals, and made sure that they had a safe place to sleep as
they worked toward more permanent housing solutions. Some of my best nights
were spent dishing up spaghetti, playing Candyland while parents took showers,
and talking with folks long into the night. Nobody knew my background. No
teaching or preaching was required. I
wasn’t Pastor Deb to them – I was the lady who made sure there were Lucky
Charms available for breakfast, just in case they were anyone’s favorite
cereal.
I don’t know if you have ever taken a spiritual gifts
inventory or not – there are several options online which can help you find out
what your gifts might be. There are at least 22 spiritual gifts defined in the
New Testament letters, and they often are thought of as jobs or
responsibilities within our communities of faith. But we should not think that the
Spirit’s work through us stops at the walls of our chapel, or only inside our
community of faith. Sometimes our gifts take us out into the world, gifted and
empowered to bring blessings wherever we go – to people and to the creation
itself.
In 1738, John Wesley and his brother Charles returned
to England from a disastrous missionary journey to the colonies. It had
originally been their desire to preach to the Native communities in upstate
Georgia, but they ended up staying in Savannah, John pastoring an Anglican
congregation, and Charles as the secretary to Governor Oglethorpe. The Wesley
brothers were Oxford-trained and ordained as ministers in the Church of
England, but in retrospect, we know they had no joy.
Conflicts ensued and they left Savannah under the
cover of darkness to return home unsatisfied. On the 5-week journey home, a
violent storm struck their crossing, and John wrote in his journal that he had
worried that they might be lost at sea. He watched with envy a group of
Moravian missionaries on the same ship who, during the difficult voyage, seemed
to be in peace and unafraid. After returning to England, he journeyed to
Moravia in modern-day Chechia/ Poland to meet with their church leaders and
perhaps learn the secret to their peaceful nature.
On May 24, 1738, John wrote that while he was in a
church service listening to someone read from Luther Preface to Romans, he felt
his heart strangely warmed, understanding for the first time that Jesus died
for his sins. And after that everything changed. Wesley’s group of “Methodists”
were no longer known for their strict adherence to bible study, accountability,
and Christian discipleship. Their societies became agents of change in English
communities, opening hospitals, orphanages, and schools, and ministering to
workers in factories, farms, and mining communities. And when the American
Revolution separated the new United States from the British Crown, Wesley sent
two men to American to ordain pastors for communities in need of spiritual
leadership when it was clear Anglican pastors would not be returning to their
churches.
Wesley’s claimed authority to do this in the spirit of
Paul’s message to the Corinthian Christians… serve because God gave you gifts
to serve, and do it wherever you can, in all the ways you can, because the
world is our parish. There are many gifts, united by the one Spirit. Give
thanks, for we are all called and gifted to serve.
Thanks be to God!
Resources:
Robb Mccoy and Erik Fistler, Pulpit Fiction Podcast –
Epiphany 2C – Epistle lesson https://www.pulpitfiction.com/notes/epiphany2c/#1Corinthians12%3A1-11=
A. Theodore Mollegen, Jr., Sermons That Work, Gifts
For Service – Epiphany 2C, January 18, 1998,
https://www.episcopalchurch.org/sermon/gifts-for-service-epiphany-2-c-1998/
Bob Cornwall, Ponderings on a Spiritual Journey,
January 10, 2022, https://www.bobcornwall.com/2022/01/concerning-spiritual-things-lectionary.html
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