January 14, 2007

Second Sunday after Epiphany

Commemoration of Martin Luther King, Jr.

Pastor Anita Hill

St. Paul-Reformation Lutheran Church

Isaiah 62:1-5; 1 Corinthians 12:1-11; John 2:1-11

Grace and peace to you from God, our Creator, Christ, and Holy Spirit. Amen

Listen to the words of Isaiah: “For Zion’s sake, I will not keep silent, and for Jerusalem’s sake, I will not rest.” A prophet receives a message from God and it must be delivered.

For the sake of the Kingdom of God, the body of Christ, the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. could not keep silent, and for the sake of his people---for the sake of all people---Martin did not rest. Martin was a prophet; a messenger of God.

Like Isaiah, Martin was in the midst of desolation. Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness cannot be realized against a backdrop of so called “separate but equal.” The stranglehold of racism, of economic difficulties, lack of education and opportunity paint a bleak picture.

My experience of that bleak picture came in high school in Mississippi. My family moved there in 1966, a summer of race riots. Three black students were chosen to attend our all-white school during the 1967-68 school year. They were the top of their class, the very best their “separate-and-unequal” school on the edge of town could send. I can’t imagine how hard it must have been for them.

One of those three earned the title of Valedictorian of the 1968 graduating class at my school. You’d have thought the end of the world was near by the reactions that brought. When school started the following fall for my senior year, each class of all white students received a lecture shaming us about “letting down our teachers and our race.” It was bleak.

Isaiah delivers the word of God that “no more shall your land be termed desolate; you shall be called My Delight.”

Martin Luther King, Jr. had a vision and a hope that African American people would understand that God delights in them. He joined Isaiah in delivering the word of God that “no more shall your land be termed desolate.” When he preached, people knew that they were indeed, God’s delight, and that justice will prevail over evil because God’s abundance is for all of humanity.

Martin was a mouthpiece of God. His words, even all these long years after his death, still offer assurance that our God is a speaking God, the same God who activates the varieties of gifts of the Spirit.

Martin helped us grasp the fact that the powerful hold of racism, hatred and discrimination has an effect on everyone. Those held captive in oppression knew the bitter taste of it.

King’s sermon about “Loving Your Enemies” makes it clear that hate injures not only those bear the weight of hatred. Hatred destroys the sense of values and objectivity of the person who holds the hate. Love, on the other hand, acknowledges the presence of Christ leading us toward the common good. Love transforms with redemptive power.

Speaking of love brings the Wedding at Cana clearly into view. At our pastors’ text study group this week, we wondered together how to weave a commemoration of the life of Dr. King and the Wedding at Cana, where Jesus’ first miracle took place.

Author Michaela Bruzzese of Sojourner’s magazine, provides the connection. She notes that the wedding at Cana illustrates three essential qualities of Christianity: bringing new life, requiring radical commitment, and transforming people.

Our gospel lesson in John begins with the reference: "On the third day..." denoting a resurrection theme: new life. Because Jesus defeated death with a capital “D” as well as the daily deaths of evil and suffering, we can enter the struggle for life and the ideals of God’s realm—justice, peace, and love. Because of Christ, we engage the struggle for new life here and now—without reservation and despite the fact that we, like Martin Luther King, Jr., may never see them fulfilled. Living in Christ means we enter the struggle anyway, knowing new life is already won.

Weddings are about commitment. Jesus’ first miracle takes place at a wedding, a communal celebration of the choice two people make to commit to one another.

Dr. King lived his faith commitments in a world that most often doesn’t have the time and patience for gospel ideals. He saw his death coming and was scared. His faith propelled him to continue with courage despite his fears. Living as Christians requires strength and seriousness, faith and fidelity.

“Finally, following Christ means transformation. In the story of the wedding at Cana, water was turned to wine. In the words of Martin Luther King, hatred is transformed to love. We are the vessels that through water and Word were transformed in our baptisms. We are those clay jars, often empty, sometimes half-full, doubting ourselves, our gifts and our purpose in the world.

Just as Jesus provided the good wine, God has provided grace for us so that we can be vessels that pour out grace in the world.

Are we willing to risk such a transformation? What would it mean to pour out grace in a world torn apart by war and strife? How do we love those whose lives are torn asunder by racism?

Friends, we have the answers already. We can live the new life in Christ. We can commit ourselves to be vessels of the Spirit. When we allow ourselves to be transformed by the good news of Jesus Christ, we choose to be a source of life and healing in this broken world. God has already gifted us with water. John invites us to become, at the hands of Christ, the finest of wine. Martin Luther King showed us how it is done. Filled with the abundance of God’s grace, we can live in love and forgiveness, too. Amen.

Resource: Michaela Bruzzese, “Qualities of Discipleship,” Sojourner’s; www.sojo.net Sermon Preparation Resources

Anita C. Hill, Pastor

St. Paul-Reformation Lutheran Church