This letter from Bishop Jerry is so important and critical
that you read it, that we have put it first. If you read nothing else, read this. We have seen what happens when we
ignore God in our country. If we
want happiness, we need to follow His Will, His Directions, His Commands. It matters not if you believe in
Him. He believes in you, thus you
exist. If we want our country to
survive and prosper, we need to do what He wants us to do. We cannot depend on others to do His
Will, we must start, each of us, and NOW.
Please read this.
Thanksgiving
2013
Letter to the Anglican Orthodox Church from Bishop
Jerry L. Ogles, Presiding Bishop, Anglican Orthodox Communion - Worldwide
It is very meet and right we should turn to our
better angels of years gone by in expressing our thanks for the great blessings
and benefits accorded the United States of America from her ancient inception
under the Providence of Almighty God. We long served and recognized our Lord as
the Great Sovereign to whom Presidents, Congress, and Judges must answer. It
has only been in the last several decades that we have turned from the glorious
history of our founding, and sought out men of low character and reputation to
rule us (men like unto ourselves, even); and this in total abandonment of those
precious ruling documents - the US Constitution and Declaration - for which our
Fathers pledged "to each other our lives, our fortunes and our sacred
honor." We present the Thanksgiving proclamation of a great President in
token to that glorious and godly nation whose memory is quickly fading as a
glimmering star on the distant horizon:
Thanksgiving
Proclamation
[New York, 3
October 1789]
By the President of the United States of
America, a Proclamation.
Whereas it is the duty of all Nations to acknowledge
the providence of Almighty God, to obey his will, to be grateful for his
benefits, and humbly to implore his protection and favor-- and whereas both
Houses of Congress have by their joint Committee requested me to recommend to
the People of the United States a day of public thanksgiving and prayer to be
observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many signal favors of Almighty
God especially by affording them an opportunity peaceably to establish a form
of government for their safety and happiness.
Now therefore I do recommend and assign Thursday the
26th day of November next to be devoted by the People of these
States to the service of that great and glorious Being, who is the beneficent
Author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be-- That we may then
all unite in rendering unto him our sincere and humble thanks--for his kind
care and protection of the People of this Country previous to their becoming a
Nation--for the signal and manifold mercies, and the favorable interpositions
of his Providence which we experienced in the course and conclusion of the late
war--for the great degree of tranquility, union, and plenty, which we have
since enjoyed--for the peaceable and rational manner, in which we have been
enabled to establish constitutions of government for our safety and happiness,
and particularly the national One now lately instituted--for the civil and
religious liberty with which we are blessed; and the means we have of acquiring
and diffusing useful knowledge; and in general for all the great and various
favors which he hath been pleased to confer upon us.
And also that we may then unite in most humbly offering
our prayers and supplications to the great Lord and Ruler of Nations and
beseech him to pardon our national and other transgressions-- to enable us all,
whether in public or private stations, to perform our several and relative
duties properly and punctually--to render our national government a blessing to
all the people, by constantly being a Government of wise, just, and
constitutional laws, discreetly and faithfully executed and obeyed--to protect
and guide all Sovereigns and Nations (especially such as have shewn kindness
unto us) and to bless them with good government, peace, and concord--To promote
the knowledge and practice of true religion and virtue, and the increase of
science among them and us--and generally to grant unto all Mankind such a degree
of temporal prosperity as he alone knows to be best.
Given under my hand at the City of New York the third
day of October in the year of our Lord 1789.
George Washington
My prayer is that God will once again send His Spirit
to move upon the Face of the Deep of American and pronounce those words of
power and restoration - "Let there be Light," and there shall be once
more in our troubled land.
Jerry L. Ogles
Thanksgiving Day
Thursday brought us Thanksgiving
Day; a day known primarily for the excess consumption of food in the company of
all available family members.
Sometimes we forget the origin of the thanksgiving in Thanksgiving
Day. While we are, or certainly
should be, grateful to God every day for the wonderful world, country and
family He has given us, this is the day our country has set aside to give
thanks to God. Not thanks in
general, but thanks to God. If you
look at other countries and other times, you cannot be but thankful to God we
live here and now. The list of
things to be thankful to God is endless.
If nothing else, give thanks you are here now and able to praise
Him. Here is the start of
our family list of things for which we are fortunate and give thanks for:
·
God's love for us;
·
Our great country;
·
Our families;
·
Our military who protect our freedom at great
cost to themselves and their families;
·
Our friends (that would be each of you)
·
Our health;
·
Our earthly great fortune;
Surely your list is similar.
The propers for Thanksgiving Day
are found on pages 265-266:
Thanksgiving Day
The Collect.
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MOST merciful Father, who hast blessed the labours of the
husbandman in the returns of the fruits of the earth; We give thee humble and
hearty thanks for this thy bounty; beseeching thee to continue thy loving-kindness
to us, that our land may still yield her increase, to thy glory and our
comfort; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Dru
Arnold read the Epistle for Thanksgiving Day, which uses one of our
favorite phrases “superfluity of
naughtiness” and comes from the Epistle of St. James, the First Chapter,
beginning at the Sixteenth Verse.
James counsels us, “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from
above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness,
neither shadow of turning. Of his own will begat he us with the word of truth,
that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures.” God is the perfect source of good. What is good is of God. Through His Son, our Savior Jesus
Christ, we have been given instructions on how to act. Many of us have listened and claim to
be followers of Christ. But James
warns us, “But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your
own selves. For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto
a man be-holding his natural face in a glass: for he beholdeth himself, and
goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was. But whoso
looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a
forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his
deed.” With so much about us, we
need ask, what is it to do the work of the Lord? The answer is simple, “Pure religion and undefiled before
God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their
affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.”
Being able to fluently and glibly
talk the talk is meaningless, if you will not walk the walk. You have to fulfill with your body the
promises you made with your mouth.
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o not err, my beloved brethren.
Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the
Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning. Of
his own will begat he us with the word of truth, that we should be a kind of
firstfruits of his creatures. Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be
swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath: for the wrath of man worketh not
the righteousness of God. Wherefore lay apart all filthiness and superfluity of
naughtiness, and receive with meekness the engrafted word, which is able to
save your souls. But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving
your own selves. For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like
unto a man be-holding his natural face in a glass: for he beholdeth himself, and
goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was. But whoso
looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a
forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his
deed. If any man among you seem to be religious, and bridleth not his tongue,
but deceiveth his own heart, this man’s religion is vain. Pure religion and
undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows
in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.
Hap Arnold read the Thanksgiving
Day Holy Gospel which came from the Sixth Chapter of the Gospel according to
Saint Matthew beginning at the Twenty-Fifth Verse. Jesus tell us to “Trust in God and Dread Naught”. He reminds us that by worrying, none of
us can add even one cubit, or one second for that matter, to the span of our
life here on earth. In a very
graphic example He points out that not even the raiment of Solomon, the most glorious
of all kings, could approach the beauty of a lily, who toiled not at all. Do as
God asks, put your faith in Him and all you need will come to you. Understand, this means doing as He
asks, not just sitting by and watching the world go by. Note the words of James in the Epistle.
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esus said, Be not anxious for
your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body,
what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than food, and the body than
raiment? Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap,
nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much
better than they? Which of you by being anxious can add one cubit unto the
measure of his life? And why are ye anxious for raiment? Consider the lilies of
the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: and yet I say
unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.
Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to-day is, and
to-morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of
little faith? Therefore be not anxious, saying, What shall we eat? or, What
shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? (For after all these
things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have
need of all these things. But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his
righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. Be not therefore
anxious for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of
itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.
Sermon
– Rev Hap Arnold – Time and Action
The Collect acknowledges in
effect God hast blessed the efforts of
the workers as shown by the things they produce from the natural resources God
provided and that we give thanks for this great harvest of useful things, food
and others, and that we pray God will continue to guide us and help us so we
can stay prosperous and happy to show how great He is and for our own comfort,
by the way.
In his Epistle, James tells us all good is of God and
if we are of God, we will act of God.
Saint Matthew reminds us we should not worry about how things will be or
what we will do. Just do what we
are supposed to now. For yesterday will never come again and
tomorrow will never get here. If
we do not act today, it will not be done.
Few thinking people would dispute that our country is
in trouble. More than it has ever
been before. With the exception of
the Civil War, in the past our threats have been external. We were able to come together around a
common core and eliminate the threat.
Today, our enemy is among us and attempting to divert people from our
common core values.
Make no mistake, this has been a Judeo-Christian
country since it was first inhabited, read General Washington’s proclamation
regarding Thanksgiving. From the
beginning, people came here to worship in freedom, the greater part of them
serious Christians, almost all nominal Christians owing their heart’s
allegiance to our Lord. But,
almost all in the end feeling their world would be best served with freedom of
religion. None looked for freedom
from religion. Even the very few
agnostics valued the Christian religion as the only one suited for a Republic.
Christians are exhorted to pray hard, love hard, work
hard and yes, play hard. We are
not to be slothful in any thing, but moderate in all things. To be respectful, conservative and
happy. We are not to be a burden
on others, if possible. “…if any would not work, neither should he eat.” (2 Thessalonians 3)
But, what do we find today? People being exhorted to do what feels good, to take it
easy, to accept the handouts instead of working. To be slothful, disrespectful, immoral and illiterate. All this by our government and its
minions.
What is the result?
Record levels with regard to:
·
Our country’s respect level at its lowest since
1776;
·
Increased crime;
·
Inflation;
·
Poverty;
·
Unemployment;
·
Suicides;
·
Illegitimate Births;
·
Cohabitation And Serial Habitation;
·
Unhappiness!
So, what is the cure? Follow God’s instructions.
What can you do?
Act on those right next to you. Spread the Gospel to the person next to
you. It is your job! It is God’s commandment. Start with yourself and work outward.
Accept nothing less that your best from you. Maintain a positive attitude, encourage
your family to maintain a positive attitude. Attend church, so you can be around people with the right
ideas at least once a week. Work
with members of your church to stabilize their lives. Hope for the best, prepare for the worst. Remember, we all die. There are none so poor as cannot
purchase a noble death. Act like
today is your last day. Do what
must be done. Accept nothing less
from yourself. Encourage your
friends and family.
God gave us a job to do. We must not fail.
The country may survive, it may not. That is not our concern. I took an oath of office well over forty years ago
agreeing “I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States
against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and
allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental
reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully
discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter. So help me
God.” Now is not the time to stop.
The oath of office I took lays out our job pretty
clearly. We must do what we can to
insure our country is here for the future. That means bring people around to the side of God. We need to be on His Side. God is never on our side, He expect us
to come to His Side. The country’s
problems all stem from a failure to follow His Directions. So, one person at a time, we need to
bring people over to His Side.
Start with you and work outward.
If one out of a hundred of us had brought one person to His Side, things
would be different soon.
Start today!
Read Scripture every day.
Figure out what at least one verse means. It will take a while, but you have the rest of your life to
complete your study. Figure out
what God wants you to do and do it.
Try to pay your own way everywhere. If someone must owe, let others owe you. Do your part. Be part of the economic solution, not the problem. Remember, debt is not your friend. Be vigilant in protecting your civil
rights. Do not surrender civil
rights for temporary and illusory security. Take the time to talk to others and try to help them
understand how much more freedom and hard work can bring compared to “free
things” from a plantation government.
Support free enterprise and this country. Remember you are free because of the blood shed on your
behalf by those who have gone to war to protect you. Do not give up the freedom they died for.
Do not despair!
All is not lost. And, if it
were lost, there would still be no room for despair, rather one last charge.
There is a lot to be done. Go
forth and do His Work.
This is a great country; not
because God was on our side,
but rather because it has always
been on God’s Side.
Let it stay that way!
On
Point
Someone asked, where do the quotes come
from? The answer is from the
people who uttered them. But, how
did you find them? Oh, that. Some from Bishop Jerry, many from Rev
Bryan Dabney, a few from other places, some from Rev Geordie Menzies-Grierson, but
overall mostly from Bryan. He
always has a few great ones to share. On to the On Point quotes –
I do recommend and assign Thursday ... next to be devoted by the People
of these States to the service of that great and glorious Being, who is the
beneficent Author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be.
George
Washington
3 October 1789
I prefer peace. But if trouble must come, let it come in my time, so
that my children can live in peace.
Thomas
Paine
Rabble-Rouser and Patriot
Not a Community Organizer
TO FATHER PETER MILWARD, SJ: On the evil of Christian disunity; and on
prayer and cooperation in works of charity as the means of reunion.
6 May 1963
Dear Padre,
You ask me in effect why I am not a Roman Catholic. If it comes to
that, why am I not—and why are you not—a Presbyterian, a Quaker, a Mohammedan,
a Hindu, or a Confucianist? After how prolonged and sympathetic study and on
what grounds have we rejected these religions? I think those who press a man to
desert the religion in which he has been bred and in which he believes he has
found the means of Grace ought to produce positive reasons for the change—not
demand from him reasons against all other religions. It would have to be all,
wouldn’t it?
Our Lord prayed that we all might be one ‘as He and His Father are one’
[John 17:21]. But He and His Father are not one in virtue
of both accepting a (third) monarchical sovereign.
That unity of rule, or even of credenda [things to be believed], does
not necessarily produce unity of charity is apparent from the history of every
Church, every religious order, and every parish.
Schism is a very great evil. But if reunion is ever to come, it will in
my opinion come from increasing charity. And this, under pressure from the
increasing strength and hostility of unbelief, is perhaps beginning: we no
longer, thank God, speak of one another as we did over 100 years ago. A single
act of even such limited co-operation as is now possible does more towards
ultimate reunion than any amount of discussion.
The historical causes of the ‘Reformation’ that actually occurred were
(1.) The cruelties and commercialism of the Papacy (2.) The lust and greed of
Henry VIII. (3.) The exploitation of both by politicians. (4.) The fatal
insouciance of the mere rabble on both sides. The spiritual drive behind the
Reformation that ought to have occurred was a deep re-experience of the Pauline
experience.
Memo: a great many of my closest friends are your co-religionists, some
of them priests. If I am to embark on a disputation—which could not be a short
one, I would much sooner do it with them than by correspondence.
We can do much more to heal the schism by our prayers than by a
controversy. It is a daily subject of mine.
CS
Lewis
The Collected Letters of C.S. Lewis, Volume
III
Gratitude can transform common days into Thanksgiving, turn routine
jobs into joy, and change ordinary opportunities into blessings.
William
Arthur Ward
Not what we say about our blessings, but how we use them, is the true
measure of our thanksgiving.
W.T.
Purkiser
There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is
a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle.
Albert
Einstein
Aslan turned to them and said: “You do not yet look so happy as I mean
you to be.” Lucy said, “We’re so afraid of being sent away, Aslan. And you have
sent us back into our own world so often.”
“No fear of that,” said Aslan. “Have you not guessed?” Their hearts
leaped, and a wild hope rose within them. “There was a real railway accident,”
said Aslan softly. “Your father and mother and all of you are—as you used to
call it in the Shadowlands— dead. The term is over: the holidays have begun.
The dream is ended: this is the morning.”
And as He spoke He no longer looked to them like a lion; but the things
that began to happen after that were so great and beautiful that I cannot write
them. And for us this is the end of all the stories, and we can most truly say
that they all lived happily ever after. But for them it was only the beginning
of the real story. All their life in this world and all their adventures in
Narnia had only been the cover and the title page: now at last they were
beginning Chapter One of the Great Story which no one on earth has read: which
goes on forever: in which every chapter is better than the one before.
CS
Lewis
The Last Battle
Propers
Today, the propers for today can
be found on Page 90-92:
The
First Sunday in Advent
The Collect.
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LMIGHTY
God, give us grace that we may cast away the works of darkness, and put upon us
the armour of light, now in the time of this mortal life, in which thy Son
Jesus Christ came to visit us in great humility; that in the last day, when he
shall come again in his glorious majesty to judge both the quick and the dead,
we may rise to the life immortal, through him who liveth and reigneth with thee
and the Holy Ghost, now and ever. Amen.
¶
This Collect is to be repeated every day, after the other Collects in Advent,
until Christmas Day.
Dru Arnold read the Epistle for today, which comes from Paul’s
letter to the Romans, starting at the Eight Verse of the Thirteenth
Chapter. Paul tells us to be self
sufficient, but love and care for one another, do not commit adultery, do not
murder, steal or lie. But more
than that, “Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.” For, if you love your neighbor, you
will do no ill to him. “Therefore
love is the fulfilling of the law.”
We need to do this today, because the time of “our salvation nearer than
when we believed. The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore
cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light. Let us
walk honestly, as in the day; not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering
and wantonness, not in strife and envying.” We hear often “The end of the world is near.” And it may well be. But for each of us, this world’s end
comes when we leave for the next.
Have we treated our fellow beings as Jesus commanded us in God’s
name? Because in the answer to
that is hidden the key to our next life.
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we no man any thing, but to love
one another: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law. For this, Thou
shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not steal, Thou
shalt not bear false witness, Thou shalt not covet; and if there be any other
commandment, it is briefly comprehended in this saying, namely, Thou shalt love
thy neighbour as thyself. Love worketh no ill to his neighbour: therefore love
is the fulfilling of the law. And that, knowing the time, that now it is high
time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we
believed. The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off
the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light. Let us walk
honestly, as in the day; not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and
wantonness, not in strife and envying. But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and
make not provision for the flesh, to fulfil the lusts thereof.
Hap Arnold read today’s Holy Gospel which came from
the Gospel according to Saint Matthew, the Twenty-First Chapter, beginning at
the First Verse. It is the story of Palm Sunday when Jesus came
triumphant into Jerusalem. Jesus
sent “two disciples, saying unto them, Go into the village over against you,
and straightway ye shall find an ass tied, and a colt with her: loose them, and
bring them unto me. And if any man say ought unto you, ye shall say, The Lord
hath need of them; and straightway he will send them. All this was done, that
it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying, Tell ye the
daughter of Sion, Behold, thy King cometh unto thee, meek, and sitting upon an
ass, and a colt the foal of an ass.”
This was done that the prophecy of years gone past might be fulfilled of
a triumphant entry of the Messiah into Jerusalem. The people expecting a Prince of this World, “spread their
garments in the way; others cut down branches from the trees, and strawed them
in the way. And the multitudes that went before, and that followed, cried,
saying, Hosanna to the son of David: Blessed is he that cometh in the name of
the Lord; Hosanna in the highest. And when he was come into Jerusalem, all the
city was moved, saying, Who is this? And the multitude said, This is Jesus the
prophet of Nazareth of Galilee.”
Rather than assuming the crown of this world, “Jesus went into the
temple of God, and cast out all them that sold and bought in the temple, and
overthrew the tables of the money-changers, and the seats of them that sold
doves, and said unto them, It is written, My house shall be called the house of
prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves.”[1]
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hen they drew nigh
unto Jerusalem, and were come to Bethphage, unto the mount of Olives, then sent
Jesus two disciples, saying unto them, Go into the village over against you,
and straightway ye shall find an ass tied, and a colt with her: loose them, and
bring them unto me. And if any man say ought unto you, ye shall say, The Lord
hath need of them; and straightway he will send them. All this was done, that
it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying, Tell ye the
daughter of Sion, Behold, thy King cometh unto thee, meek, and sitting upon an
ass, and a colt the foal of an ass. And the disciples went, and did as Jesus
commanded them, and brought the ass, and the colt, and put on them their
clothes, and they set him thereon. And a very great multitude spread their
garments in the way; others cut down branches from the trees, and strawed them
in the way. And the multitudes that went before, and that followed, cried,
saying, Hosanna to the son of David: Blessed is he that cometh in the name of
the Lord; Hosanna in the highest. And when he was come into Jerusalem, all the
city was moved, saying, Who is this? And the multitude said, This is Jesus the
prophet of Nazareth of Galilee. And Jesus went into the temple of God, and cast
out all them that sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of
the money-changers, and the seats of them that sold doves, and said unto them,
It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer; but ye have made
it a den of thieves.
THE EXHORTATIONS.
¶ At the time
of the Celebration of the Communion, after the prayer for the whole state of
Christ’s Church, the Priest may say this Exhortation. And Note, That the
Exhortation shall be said on the First Sunday in Advent, the First Sunday in
Lent, and Trinity Sunday.
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EARLY beloved in the Lord, ye who mind to come to
the holy Communion of the Body and Blood of our Saviour Christ, must consider
how Saint Paul exhorteth all persons diligently to try and examine themselves,
before they presume to eat of that Bread, and drink of that Cup. For as the
benefit is great, if with a true penitent heart and lively faith we receive
that holy Sacrament; so is the danger great, if we receive the same unworthily.
Judge therefore your- selves, brethren, that ye be not judged of the Lord;
repent you truly for your sins past; have a lively and stedfast faith in Christ our
Saviour; amend your lives, and be in perfect charity with all men; so shall ye
be meet partakers of those holy mysteries. And above all things ye must give
most humble and hearty thanks to God, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost,
for the redemption of the world by the death and passion of our Saviour Christ,
both God and man; who did humble himself, even to the death upon the Cross, for
us, miserable sinners, who lay in darkness and the shadow of death; that he
might make us the children of God, and exalt us to everlasting life. And to the
end that we should always remember the exceeding great love of our Master, and
only Saviour, Jesus Christ, thus dying for us, and the innumerable benefits
which by his precious blood-shedding he hath obtained for us; he hath
instituted and ordained holy mysteries, as pledges of his love, and for a
continual remembrance of his death, to our great and endless com- fort. To him
therefore, with the Father and the Holy Ghost, let us give, as we are most bounden,
continual thanks; submitting ourselves wholly to his holy will and pleasure,
and studying to serve him in true holiness and righteousness all the days of
our life. Amen.
Sermon
– Reverend Jack Arnold - Time and Action
The First Sunday in Advent
The Collect.
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LMIGHTY God, give us grace that we may cast away the works of
darkness, and put upon us the armour of light, now in the time of this mortal
life, in which thy Son Jesus Christ came to visit us in great humility; that in
the last day, when he shall come again in his glorious majesty to judge both
the quick and the dead, we may rise to the life immortal, through him who
liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Ghost, now and ever. Amen.
¶ This Collect
is to be repeated every day, after the other Collects in Advent, until
Christmas Day.
To cast off the works of darkness
and don the armour of light, we must turn to Christ, who came to visit us, born
in a simple and humble inn in Bethlehem.
As His manner of birth, we must be humble as well, not boastful and
proud like the rich[2],
but meek and lowly, to embrace light and cast off the works of darkness. Though He came in a rather humble
manner, He shall return in a glorious and majestic manner, a rather stark
contrast to His original incarnation, leaving no doubt who has come to lead us.
We must not be for God in speech
only, but in deed. For many in the very same crowd who cried “Hosanna” on Palm
Sunday were there early on Good Friday.
What did they cry for then?
“Crucify Him, Crucify Him!”
Pilate asked for them to cry for
mercy, they cried for vengeance on their Lord and Savior!
A swift 180° turn from “Hosanna
to the Son of David”. How quick are men to turn upon that of a good thing. As
Charles Spurgeon said "It is an astounding thing and a proof of human
depravity that men do not themselves seek salvation. They even deny the necessity
of it and would sooner run away than be partakers of it."
We must not be like them. We must put on the great Armour of
Light and to reject our former lives of sin and vanity. We must switch from our old selfish lives to a new unselfish, Christ
filled lif. It is something that we always will be struggling with, but god never gives up on us. As
long as we repent from our sin and turn back to God in our private prayers and
devotion, he will wipe our slate clean. I know I have a hard time keeping on
the straight and narrow path, so I am glad He left the Scriptures to guide us.
Through following His Word and
Instructions, we shall be given a greater reward than anything existent on the
Earth; past, present or future, that gift of immortal life, life for all
eternity, that will outlast this physical world. To don the armour of light is
not merely putting it on, you have to utilize it, and utilize the helmet, the
buckler and sword (Scriptures and Christ’s teachings). You need the who complement of weaponry
to go into combat with the Prince of Darkness in this fallen world.
Make no mistake, we are engaged
in a World War with the Prince of Air, the Prince of this world for the souls
of men, starting with our own, a World War which which has been going on since
the beginning of time. But we know the ending is in
our favor for certain, for the Book of Revelations tells us so.
As individuals we may not
experience victory here on earth. We may struggle
with problems in this world and our own, our whole lifespan on this planet.
We may not know that savor, but we know that in the end, He will be
victorious. We will win, for we
are on His Side.
Cast off the dull worn robes of
darkness, which lack luster, give no warmth, protect not from the heat, and put
on the shining glorious armour of light.
So kitted up, we walk in light, not in darkness where we may stumble and
fall. Unlike moths, for us
light is life, not the destruction of darkness.
Come, put on the Armor of Light
and go forth to destroy that last enemy, death!
Be of God - Live of God - Act of God
Bishop Ogles’
Sermon
We are oft fortunate to get
copies of Bishop Jerry’s sermon notes.
Today is one of those Sundays.
Today’s sermon starts off with the collect, and like always, it will
give you a lot to consider in your heart.
Sermon Notes
First Sunday
in Advent
1 December
2013, Anno Domini
The
First Sunday in Advent
The Collect.
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LMIGHTY
God, give us grace that we may cast away the works of darkness, and put upon us
the armour of light, now in the time of this mortal life, in which thy Son
Jesus Christ came to visit us in great humility; that in the last day, when he
shall come again in his glorious majesty to judge both the quick and the dead,
we may rise to the life immortal, through him who liveth and reigneth with thee
and the Holy Ghost, now and ever. Amen.
¶
This Collect is to be repeated every day, after the other Collects in Advent,
until Christmas Day.
The Collect today speaks of another Advent than that for which our ancient
fathers in God waited – the Second Advent of the Lord Jesus Christ. But the
first advent began long before – in fact, in the Garden at Eden. The Creation
of the physical universe began in abject darkness and was completed in the
light of day. The physical Creation began in the darkness of evening and
ended in the light: “And the evening and the morning were the first day.”
(Gen 1:5) The second Creation, or New Creation in Christ, began, as well, in
darkness. Contrary to the belief of many, the Gospel did not originate with the
Gospel of St. Matthew; but that, too, began in the Garden at Eden: “I
will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed;
it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.” (Gen 3:15)
This was the first reference in the Bible to the coming of a saving via the
seed of the woman (and not the man). The second also is found in the same
chapter: “Unto Adam also and to his wife did the LORD God make coats of
skins, and clothed them.” (Gen 3:21) You may ask, “How does this relate
to the promise of the Coming of a Savior?” Let me explain: Until sin came upon
the old Creation thru the Fall of Adam, there had been no death at all. Sin
brought death, disease, pain, and suffering upon all of Creation. These came
not through the intentions of God, but through disobedience of man. For
the first time, after the pillars of the world had been laid, some innocent
creature had to die to cover the nakedness (sin) of Adam and Eve. God killed an
innocent animal, perhaps even a lamb, to cover their nakedness with its skin.
Thus begins the Gospel from the first beginnings of Creation.
Man cannot help himself. His ways are forever dark and chaotic apart from the
grace of God. And man can possess no righteousness, nor do righteous works,
apart from the imputed light and righteousness of our Lord Jesus Christ. Light
reveals the safe and good way to walk. In times past, the fathers sat in
darkness awaiting the light to come – the Advent of Christ. There is a prophecy
of that coming Light in Isaiah: “The people that walked in darkness have
seen a great light: they that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon
them hath the light shined.” (Isaiah 9:2) The hope and promise of the
Advent of Jesus Christ is held forth in Isaiah, and completed in the Gospels of
Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. The very same words are uttered in Matthew 4:16
as Isaiah 9:2 in reference to the coming of the Lord. So our Collect makes
reference to the great first Advent, as well as the Second.
Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me:
and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the
messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come, saith the
Lord of hosts. But who may abide the day of his coming? and who shall stand when
he appeareth? for he is like a refiner's fire, and like fullers' soap: And he
shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and he shall purify the sons of
Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the Lord an
offering in righteousness. Then shall the offering of Judah and Jerusalem be
pleasant unto the Lord, as in the days of old, and as in former years. And I
will come near to you to judgment; and I will be a swift witness against the
sorcerers, and against the adulterers, and against false swearers, and against
those that oppress the hireling in his wages, the widow, and the fatherless,
and that turn aside the stranger from his right, and fear not me, saith the
Lord of hosts. For I am the Lord, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are
not consumed. Remember ye the law of Moses my servant, which I commanded unto
him in Horeb for all Israel, with the statutes and judgments. Behold, I will
send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of
the Lord: And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the
heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a
curse. (Malachi 3:1-6, 4:4-6)
God does not speak lightly of His provision of a Savior. He says with great
emphasis: “Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the
way before me: and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple,
even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come,
saith the Lord of hosts.” Yes, there were righteous men and women
who early sought the Lord before His first coming as a Babe in a Manger. The
Christian man, Abraham, believed and looked for the coming of Christ – and
Jesus tells us that Abraham saw it! From the beginning of the Promise, it was
not a particular bloodline that sealed our hope and salvation, but faith in the
Promised Seed which is Christ! “Your father
Abraham rejoiced to see my day: and he saw it, and was glad.” (John 8:56) Moses believed the Promise as well: “This
is he, that was in the church in the wilderness with the angel which spake to
him in the mount Sina, and with our fathers: who received the lively oracles to
give unto us.” (Acts 7:38) Even Balaam
saw through a dark glass the vision given him by God of the Coming Lord: “15 And
he took up his parable, and said, Balaam the son of Beor hath said, and the man
whose eyes are open hath said: 16 He hath said, which heard the words of
God, and knew the knowledge of the most High, which saw the vision of the Almighty,
falling into a trance, but having his eyes open: 17 I shall see him, but
not now: I shall behold him, but not nigh: there shall come a Star out of
Jacob, and a Sceptre shall rise out of Israel, and shall smite the corners of
Moab, and destroy all the children of Sheth.” (Num 24:15-17)
The Old Testament Lectionary Reading omitted a very important verse ($:2)
regarding the Sun of righteousness whom we await. Moreover, Malachi closes the
Old Testament writings with the word curse – the last word of the Book of the
Laws and Prophets. All of the Law is a curse to us if we must rely on our own
righteousness; therefore, the New Testament brings into sharp focus the One
upon whose righteousness we must depend – the Lord Jesus Christ.
In our Gospel text (St. Luke 1:5-25) we are introduced to that
Forerunner of Christ who was to prepare His Way before Him – John the Baptist.
He was one whose voice cried in the Wilderness. May I say that every true
believer in the Lord Jesus Christ is as one whose voice cries in the Wilderness
of the Sin of this World. If no man hears our voice, at least the scrub bushes
and rodents will bear testimony that we did, indeed, cry aloud and no man
heeded our voices.
Advent marks the beginning of our Church Year in the Calendar. It represents
that new beginning that was prophesied of old, and fulfilled in the Gospels of
Jesus Christ. Just as the Old Testament prophets preached the hope &
promise of a coming Savior, we now stand on the threshold, at Advent, of the
realization of that promise. Advent symbolizes the hope and promise made of
old, and Christmas symbolizes the fulfillment thereof.
When I was a child, I remember the selfish and greed-filled excitement of
hearing the little jingle; ‘Santa Claus is Coming to Town.” Other seasonal
favorites were ‘Jingle Bells’ and ‘Deck the Halls’. These songs appealed to my
materialistic side because they represented gifts and largesse of candy.
As I became a young boy, I lost interest in these songs. I discovered that it
wasn’t a mythical Santa Claus who was coming to town, but a glorious Savior who
was coming to the world! The happy and silly little jingles lost all of their
sparkle as I began to understand the deeper and more meaningful appeal of true
Christmas hymns and Carols. These hymns were not about a make-believe figure of
whom I had been taught, but of a true, loving, and redeeming Savior. ‘Hark the
Herald Angels Sing’ was a carol whose meaning was authenticated to me by Holy
Writ. It was the Christmas songs that I began to love and cherish – and still
do – above every other form of singing. No longer would I restlessly await the
streaming rays of sunlight across the horizon on Christmas morn so that I could
go and plunder gifts from under the tree; but I looked now for the promising
rays of Light from the Sun of Righteousness whose comings and goings have been
from Ancient Days. Advent, and the twelve days of Christmas were indivisible in
my mind for they represented the same glorious Savior of whom I had been taught
at my mother’s knee – the REAL thing! No longer would I condone x-ing out the
name of Christ for the Christmas Holiday as in ‘Xmas’. No longer would I abide
childish fables of some fancy dressed bishop with white collar, red gown, and
floppy miter. I looked beyond the polish to the substance of Christmas. Advent,
for me, is the beginning of the Christmas Season, and my last breath on earth
will signal the end of it rather than the conclusion of Trinity.
Advent signals the growing light on the distant horizon, and the coming of
Christmas symbolizes the bursting forth with the brilliant beams of the Sun.
Christ has been coming from Eternity Past, and God has allowed our fathers to
sit in darkness as evidence that they cannot be their own Light-bearers. We are
lost without the promised Light of Advent. The blazing Light of Christ at
Christmas was such a contrast to the darkness under which mankind had suffered
that His blessings and benefits could not be missed by those whose faith proved
their relationship to that Light. It was not coincidence that the Wise Men saw
the Light of the Star before they found the Babe. Christ came to earth as an
innocent Babe in a wooden manger – a vessel for the feeding of brute beast (which
man is without Christ). He lived a sinless and sacrificial life, and died on a
like instrument of wood for us two thousand years ago. His Advent is a
continual process until His Second coming with the clouds of Glory and the
Armies of Heaven. Will you be ready, my friends?
Bishop
Dennis Campbell’s Sermon
Bishop Dennis is a brilliant
speaker. He is able to take
biblical precepts and make them perfectly understandable, even to me. Oft he provides the text of his sermons
and I take the utmost pleasure in passing them on:
The
Night Is Far Spent
Psalm 97, Romans 13:8-14, Matthew 21:1-13
First Sunday in Advent
December 1, 2013
Imagine the world before electricity, even before natural gas,
kerosene, or coal. Nights would be much darker than they are now.
The fireplace, and maybe a candle, would be the only light most houses would
have. There would be no street lights, no vehicle lights, not even a flashlight
for pedestrians. And the sky would be dark. In our time the night
sky is filled with the reflected glow of city lights. Even rural areas
receive large amounts of light reflected from distant towns and cities.
In Powhatan we see the glow from Richmond. In western Powhatan we
can see the glow from the village, shopping center, and housing developments.
But without lights, even the large cities would be dark; deeply,
impenetrably, and fearfully dark.
Now imagine that kind of darkness as a spiritual/moral condition of
the soul. That is part of what God meant when He had the Apostle Paul
write in Romans 13:12; “the night is far spent.” We see this idea in many
other passages of Scripture. Ephesians 5:11 says, “have no fellowship
with the works of darkness,” and Ephesians 5:17, 18 encourages us to “walk not
as other Gentiles walk, in the vanity of their mind, having their understanding
darkened, being alienated from the life of God.” Then, there is that
phrase in Romans 1:21 that is so descriptive of the spiritual condition of
people apart from Christ; “when they knew God, they glorified him not as God,
neither were thankful: but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish
heart was darkened.”
This brings me to the first point of today’s sermon, and it is a
major point in this passage, and in the entire Bible; there is a night of the
soul. There is a darkness in the moral/spiritual make up of every person
that makes us unwilling to see God or the good and moral things of life. It is
not that these things are obscured in darkness. They are clearly
visible. The darkness is in us, in our souls and minds and wills, so that
we are unwilling to see them. In some places the Bible calls this
condition, “blindness.” In other places the Bible calls it being “dead”
toward God. Romans 13:12 calls this condition, “night.” Though this
night enables us to ignore God, it by no means enables us to ignore the results
of our darkness. We see its results everywhere. We see them in the
lives of people making tragic mistakes they will pay for the rest of their
lives. We see them in peoples’ character flaws and moral
weaknesses. We see them in the greed and corruption in government,
business, education, and even churches. We see them in broken churches,
broken countries broken communities, broken homes and broken people.
This brings me to the second point of this sermon; “the night is far
spent.” We have been in this darkness for a long time. It is not
like we are in late evening, or even midnight. We are in the deep, deep
part of night. Look back through history and you will see that the works
of darkness have plagued humanity since Adam and Eve turned away from God.
Their sin plunged the world into darkness, and we have been in darkness ever
since. At this time of year most people are playing Christmas
carols, many of which address our darkness. You will recognize these
words from “It Came Upon the Mid-night Clear:”
Yet with the woes of sin and strife, The world has suffered long;
Beneath the heav’nly strain have rolled Two thousand years of
wrong;
O ye beneath life’s crushing load Whose forms are bending low,
Who toil along the climbing way with painful steps and low.
And you
know these words from, “O Holy Night:” “Long lay the world, in sin and error
pining.”
But if the night is far spent, then morning is near. That is
the third point of the sermon. That’s why Paul wrote, “it is high time to
awake out of sleep.” The night is passing. The morning is quickly
approaching. One of the major points of Romans 13:12 is that Christ has
come to this earth, and with Him came light. If we remember that the
Biblical image of darkness represents spiritual ignorance and sin, we can
easily understand the Biblical language of light. John wrote, “the Light
shineth in the darkness” Jn. 1:5. “The people who sat in darkness saw a
great light.” And no one who knows Christ can ever forget His words in
John 9:5, “I am the light of the world.”
We saw streaks of morning light two thousand years ago when Christ
became flesh and was born in Bethlehem. We saw the light in Him who is
the light of the world as He taught us about God. No one has seen God,
Christ said, but the Son, that is Jesus Christ, came into the world to show God
to us. He, Himself is the revelation of God, and if we have seen Him we have
seen the Father. In His light we see the absolute goodness of God, for
Jesus was completely without sin. In His light we see the mercy of God,
and the love of God, for greater love has no man than to lay down his life for
his friends. In His light we see that those who claim to love God must keep
His commandments, not our own version of what we would like His
commandments to be. In His light we see that real faith takes God on
God’s terms, rather than demanding God to take us on our terms. He, who
was obedient even unto death on the cross, is the great example of loving and
serving God on God’s terms.
The light dawned brighter when Christ our Saviour went to the cross
to bear our sins. It grew even brighter with His resurrection and ascension;
with the coming of the Holy Spirit and the establishment of the Church, and
with the completion of Holy Scripture. But the full dawn is not here
yet. It will come only when Christ Himself returns to us. Romans
13:12 is the perfect verse for the first Sunday in Advent because it looks back
to the First Advent of Christ, and recalls His life and ministry. It
looks back to the Faith, the doctrines He gave to the Apostles, and which He
commanded the Apostles to teach to the Church. It also looks forward to
the Second Advent of Christ. His first Advent was almost in
disguise. Being born in a cattle shed, raised in a carpenter’s shop, and
murdered on the cross is not the way most people expected God to come to
earth. But that was His First Advent in weakness. His Second Advent
will be a full revelation of His Divine power and glory. Every eye will
see Him, and every soul will recognize Him. For some, that will be a day
of sorrow, for He will end this age of darkness in which the things of Christ
are distained. He will finally and fully deal with those who love darkness
rather than light, and they will be sent to a place, often called the outer
darkness, the darkest darkness, to live in the deepest sorrow forever.
For some it will be a day of great joy, an awful joy, but a very real joy such
as we can only imagine now. He will gather His people unto Him and we
will meet Him in the air to witness the passing away of this world of darkness
and the inauguration of the new earth. This new earth will be given to
His people, and we will live there in perfect joy forever. The darkness
will be gone. We will have forever put away the deeds of darkness, and we
will live in the Light, for He who said, “whosoever believeth on me should not
abide in darkness,” will dwell with us, and He will be our Light forever.
Sickness, war, strife, death, and sin will be banished forever. And we
will see and enjoy Him face to face.
At Christ’s first Advent He was despised and rejected of men.
He came unto His own and His own received Him not. He came as light into
darkness, but men loved darkness rather than light. Let it not be so with
us. We are called to be children of the light, to walk in the light even
as He is in the light. Therefore, let us cast away the works of darkness
and put on the armour of light. As Paul wrote in Romans 13:14, “put ye on
the Lord Jesus Christ.
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lmighty God, give us grace that we may cast
away the works of darkness, and put upon us the armour of light, now in the
time of this mortal life, in which thy Son Jesus Christ came to visit us in
great humility, that in the last day, when He shall come again in his glorious
majesty to judge both the quick and the dead, we may rise to the life immortal,
through him who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Ghost, now and ever.
Amen
--
+Dennis Campbell
Bishop, Anglican Orthodox Church Diocese of Virginia
Rector, Holy Trinity Anglican Orthodox Church
Powhatan, Virginia
Rev Rick Reid of
Saint Peter’s Sunday Sermon
We are happy to have a
sermon from Reverend Rick Reid, minister of Saint Peter’s, whose congregation
is right at the Worldwide Headquarters of the Anglican Orthodox Church. Rev Rick has all the resources and
challenges right at hand. This
sermon is not in the usual expository style common to the Sunday Report and the
AOC, but I think you will enjoy it.
In the Gospel for this
morning we read Jesus entered the temple and drove out the merchants and
money-changers. These Merchants and money-changers had a pretty lucrative
business going. They would set up their booths in the Court of the Gentiles in
the Temple, and sell sacrificial animals at extremely high prices, taking
advantage of those people that had traveled great distances and therefore could
not bring these sacrificial animals with them. The money-changers would also
over-charge those same people to exchange their money to the Temple coin, which
was the only currency the merchants would accept. The commercialism, fraud, and
deceit taking place in the Temple or the house of the Lord greatly angered
Jesus.
St.
Mark’s Gospel, (Mark 3: vs. 4-5), tells
us of another time when Jesus was angry and grieved. This time He was angry…with a group of men, because they
would rather see their fellow man remain crippled than to see him healed on the
Sabbath.
I remember reading those verses from the Bible as a young man, and
thinking: Way to go Jesus. Then I wondered about the anger that Jesus
displayed. I knew that He was without sin, and displaying anger was a sin, so
how could this be? But then as I grew older, I
learned that anger is not always a sin. There is a type of anger of which the
Bible approves; many refer to it as “Righteous Indignation.”As we read in Psalm
7:11 11 God judgeth the righteous, and God is angry with the wicked every day.
You know, handling anger is one of the most important life skills that
we as Christians, should have. Christian counselors report that 50 percent of
the people, who come in for counseling, have problems dealing with anger. Anger
can shatter communication and tear apart relationships, and it ruins both the
joy and the health of many. Sadly, many people tend to justify their anger,
instead of accepting responsibility for it. Everyone struggles, to varying
degrees, with anger. Thankfully, God’s Word contains principles
regarding how to handle anger in a godly manner, and how to overcome sinful
anger.
Here
is some good advice from St. Paul. (Ephesians 4:26). 26 Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath.
That is to say: If
you do get angry with any one, do not go to sleep with any unkind feeling that
could lead to continued anger, malice or thoughts of revenge.
In the Greek translation of the Bible, (they have a word
for anger), that means energy. So it is, that anger can be God-given energy…
intended to help us solve problems.
A very good example of “Righteous Indignation” is Paul
confronting Peter because of the incorrect example he set, regarding the new
gentile Christians. This event is told in Paul’s letter to the Galatians, the
second chapter Verses:11-14.
11 But when Peter was come to Antioch, I withstood him to
the face, because he was to be blamed.
12 For before that certain came from James, he did eat with
the Gentiles: but when they were come, he withdrew and separated himself,
fearing them which were of the circumcision.
.13 And the other Jews dissembled
likewise with him; insomuch that Barnabas also was carried away with their
dissimulation.
14 But when I saw that they walked not uprightly according
to the truth of the gospel, I said unto Peter before them all, If thou, being a
Jew, livest after the manner of Gentiles, and not as do the Jews, why
compellest thou the Gentiles to live as do the Jews?
From Paul’s letter we read
that Paul and Peter were not in agreement, that by the death of Christ, the
wall… between Jew and Gentile was taken down, and the observance of the Law of
Moses was no longer in force.
We read that Peter also withdrew from the Gentiles, which led others to
think that these ceremonies were necessary. Paul had to set Peter
straight…and therefore demonstrated some “Righteous Indignation”…. of his own.
So did David, who was upset over hearing Nathan the
prophet sharing an injustice (2 Samuel
12.) Please note that none of these examples of anger involved one’s own
self-defense, but a defense of others or of a principle.
Anger
turns to sin when it is selfishly motivated, as we read in the book of
James. 20 For the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God… (James 1:20)…or when
anger is allowed to linger. (Ephesians 4:27).
We should never use the energy generated by anger to
attack the person, but instead, it needs to be directed toward the problem at
hand.
St. Paul also told the Ephesians (4:15-19) that we are to
speak the truth in love and use our words to build others up, and not to allow
destructive words to pour from our lips.
Anger also
becomes sin when the angry one refuses to calm down…,listen to reason, holds a
grudge, or keeps it all inside (Ephesians 4:26-27).
We all
make mistakes and sometimes do not handle our anger as the bible instructs us
to. We should then correct ourselves and admit that we handled our anger
incorrectly, in God’s eyes.
Proverbs
28:13 tells us; 13 He that covereth his sins shall not prosper: but
whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy.
St John tells us :( 1 John 1:9) 9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins,
and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness
This confession should be both to God and to those who
have been hurt by our anger. We should not minimize the sin by excusing it, justifying
it, or by trying to shift the blame.
We can handle anger biblically by doing our best to see God during and throughout the ordeal. This is especially important when people have done something to offend us.
We can handle anger biblically by doing our best to see God during and throughout the ordeal. This is especially important when people have done something to offend us.
The Bible tells us God is sovereign and in complete control over every circumstance, and person that enters our path. Nothing happens to us that He does not allow.
Psalm 145: Verses 8, 9, 8 The Lord is gracious, and full of compassion; slow to anger, and of great mercy.9 The Lord is good to all: and his tender mercies are over all his works.
God is a great God, who allows all things in our lives for our good, and the good of others. Reflecting on this truth until it moves from our heads, to our hearts, will alter how we react to those who hurt us.
We can handle anger biblically by returning good for evil (Genesis 50:21; Romans 12:21). This is key to converting our anger into love.
As our actions flow from our hearts, so also our hearts can be altered, by our actions. (Matthew 5:43-48).
That is, we can change our feelings toward another by changing how we choose to act, toward that person.
Finally, Paul told the Christians in Ephesus: 31 Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice: 32 And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you.
Overcoming a temper is not an easy thing, and most likely, will not be accomplished overnight.
But because our goal is to be like Christ in every way, our standard of conduct, should be in line with God's standard of righteousness.
We all can be more Christ-like through prayer and the study of God’s word, and with the help of the Holy Spirit. Amen
Rev Bryan Dabney
of Saint John’s Sunday Sermon
We are fortunate to
have Bryan’s Sunday Sermon. If you
want people to come to The Truth, you have to speak the truth, expouse the
truth and live the truth. This is really a good piece and I
commend it to your careful reading.
First Sunday in Advent
In our epistle lesson (I Thessalonians 5:3-9) we read, For when they
shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as
travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape. But ye... are not
in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief... For God hath not
appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ. The
apostle Paul was meticulous and straightforward in his presentations. He was
given God's word to inscribe and he did so with the passion of a man who was
filled with the Holy Ghost. And as we have the word of God before us, we
Christians are obliged to heed its several warnings concerning the coming wrath
of God. We know from Scripture that it is not a question of if but when. For
while we have not been given the day or the hour, an integral part of our
Christian witness has been to proclaim our Lord's return, and in light of that
we ought to persuade as many as we can to come to God through the shed blood of
his only begotten Son.
Now our adversary the Devil is a very wise and crafty being who has on
numerous occasions used the reticence of God— concerning the specifics of our
Lord's return— to deceive men that they might continue living their lives in
sin. He has insinuated into the hearts of the unregenerate the notion that our
Lord will not be returning anytime soon. He has also led men to believe that
peace and safety can be had by their own works apart from a lively faith in the
LORD their God. Satan has so successfully blinded the minds and hearts of the
unregenerate masses that they have failed to grasp— and history is filled with
examples for those who dare to research them— that human desires for peace,
prosperity, gain, empire, etc. while attainable, are never lasting. He has over
the ages convinced men that the things of this world are worth the effort
because it holds for them glory, honor and wealth—vehicles which swell their
pridefulness and pave the way for their ultimate downfall.
Consider the verse in our epistle lesson, For when they shall say,
Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a
woman with child; and they shall not escape (v. 3). How many treaties have
actually led to a lasting peace between men and nations? In just the twentieth
century alone, our country has signed treaties ending the First World War; the
Second World War; an armistice with North Korea and China ending the Korean
Conflict; an accord with North Vietnam to end our participation in the Vietnam;
an accord with Iraq to end the First Gulf War; along with numerous arms control
agreements with Soviet Russia. Still, in spite of all these paper promises,
wars and conflicts have continued. In spite of all the efforts of presidents
and secretaries of state, those agreements have not brought us lasting peace
and allayed our fears of further confrontations. In fact, the ideals of Peace
and safety seem to be wafting away as I am writing this sermon. War between
Israel and Iran might come at any time. It should be understood that any attack
on Iran could result in a war with both Russia and China. There is also the
likelihood that such a conflict might include the use of nuclear weapons. And
if they are used, there is no telling if they will be used in a limited
fashion, that is, regionally, or if their use would take on a more global
application. There can be no peace and safety with such a "sword of
Damocles" hanging over our heads.
History teaches that reliance on a piece of paper— a treaty— to protect
one's country is incredibly naive. But that is what our leaders have done over
the last half century or so. They have opted to sign pieces of paper which have
no real power to prevent the very catastrophe which those documents were meant
to forestall. Some will say that weapons treaties, and the like, have helped to
allay fears and ease suspicions; but in reality they have only masked the real
issues and given our populace a false sense of security.
Consider the several treaties and agreements which were signed in
Europe over the last thousand years and you will readily see that none of them
ever led to a complete cessation of hostilities. To the contrary, they either
created parenthetical periods of peace, or they laid the groundwork for future
conflicts as nations [rose] against nation and kingdoms against kingdom (St.
Matthew 24:6-7). In today's world, it seems that with each new attempt at
conflict resolution, the potential for new and even more devastating
conflagrations have increased. As a result, our government has become like the
mythical Sisyphus as it has been cursed to perform a seemingly never-ending
task. Couple that with our country's unique ability to determine the time of
victory in a conflict apart from an end to hostilities, and you have the makings
for a tragedy of epic proportions. Our country's leaders have become like
certain charismatics who claim that if one simply speaks a thing, then it will
be so. They believe that they can appoint the time of battle, and then say
precisely when that victory has been achieved. Can't you hear them now: Well,
there it is— we've won; the conflict is resolved; the issue has been handled;
our people are safe; and the homeland has been secured; and it was all due to
the efforts of President So-in-So or Ambassador Such-and-Such."
Translation, "It was all about mortals and had nothing to do with
God." But God has everything to do with any good we might experience
because we know that every good gift and every perfect gift is from above and
cometh down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variableness,
neither shadow of turning (St. James 1:17).
Our country has been blessed by Almighty God. As one brother in Christ
has noted, "If we want to see how rich we are, we need only count our
blessings." He was referring to individuals, but the same is true for the
country as a whole. God once richly blessed our land, as one collect reads,
with substantial industry, sound learning and good manners. We possessed those
things because we used to be a people who were, for the most part, true
believers in the Godhead and accepting of his word. Unfortunately, our country
has be in decline for many years. Look about at the ever-diminishing number of
Bible-believing Christians. Our declining national life is directly proportional
to the actual number of truly regenerated souls who are present within our
society.
We need only look at II Chronicles 36:15-16 as a fit explanation for
our apostasy as it is similar to that of the kingdom of Judah wherein we read,
And the LORD God of their fathers sent to them by his messengers, rising up
betimes, and sending; because he had compassion on his people, and on his
dwelling place: but they mocked the messengers of God, and despised his words
and misused his prophets, until the wrath of the LORD arose against his people,
till there was no remedy. It is clear from Scripture that God has had enough of
our sins and our trespasses. Either we, as a country, will repent and turn from
national and personal wickedness, or he will deal with this land in his hot
displeasure. Just by the way things are going should be evidence enough that
God has begun to withdraw his hand from around our country.
But God will not remove his hand from around us who are born-again
believers; neither can we be taken from his hand by the evil one. No, my
friends, we have not been called to experience the wrath of God, only his mercy
and grace. The word of God to the apostle Paul in our epistle lesson is sure
and certain: But ye... are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you
as a thief... For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation
by our Lord Jesus Christ.
We cannot control what others may do, such as those in our government—
our president, our congressmen, our senators— but we can exercise our right to
vote as well as to stand against evil and wickedness within our country.
Nevertheless, we should know that our principal duty in this life is to serve
the Godhead through our obedience to his word and commandment. We cannot change
God's plans for this world, but we ought to commit our cares and concerns to
him. We ought to trust and not worry about the state of things which must come
to pass. We are suppose to occupy till his comes again, which means that we
should be working, studying , and living our lives in faith. We ought to be
engaged in intercessory prayer for those who oppose themselves across the whole
of our society, that God would give them the spiritual insight to see the
dangers ahead (II St. Timothy 2:24-26). As Abraham asked of God for a stay in
his plan to deal with the wicked of Sodom and Gomorrah, so we must also pray
that our country and its leaders will see the error of their ways and turn back
before it is too late (Genesis 18:23-32).
Scripture tells us that great and terrible things will come upon the
children of disobedience, so we should endeavour daily to pull as many as we
can from the fire (St. Jude 23). We have not been given to know the specifics
for when our Lord will return only that he will come again. We have not been
called to face his wrath, but his mercy and gracious favor. We must therefore
use the time of this mortal life to reach out, for the signs are there that our
Lord is coming back. We understand from our study of the God's word written,
that evil will triumph prior to his coming in glory; but as it is manifesting
itself, God will pour out his vials of vengeance and judgment upon the wicked.
The Peace and safety crowd will eventually declare victory whether it
is after a horrible world conflict, or after some global leader has convinced
the nations to accept his offer of universal peace via the unification of all
the countries and nations into a giant global superstate. The prison planet is
coming. It might already be here. As terrifying as that may sound, we ought to
keep in mind that those things are going to come to pass and to prepare our
hearts to meet our Lord who will do far more for us than that ersatz saviour,
the Antichrist. Our Lord repeatedly warned us to avoid deception and so let us
go forward each day serving him by proclaiming the good news of Jesus Christ
who offers true peace and safety in his coming kingdom and for all eternity
ever after.
Let us pray,
O
|
most holy and gracious God, we pray that thou wouldest help us as we fight
the good fight of faith and stand our ground in this time of our mortal life;
that in our warfare and in our work we might do those things that are pleasing
and acceptable to thee as we occupy until our Lord Jesus Christ returns; for
these things we ask in his most blessed name. Amen.
Have a blessed week, Bryan+
What is the “Liturgical Year”?
Liturgy based Christian churches who consider
themselves catholic, or universal, use a Christian Calendar which has a pre-set
annual cycle of liturgical seasons which determines when Feasts, Memorials,
Commemorations, and Solemnities are to be observed and which portions of
Scripture are to be read.
Distinct liturgical colors are used in connection
with different seasons of the liturgical year. The dates of the festivals vary
somewhat between the Western (Roman Catholic, Anglican, Lutheran, and
Protestant) churches and the Eastern Orthodox Churches, though the sequence and
logic is the same.
The dates of many feasts vary from year to year
(Moveable Feasts) due to the variation in the date of Easter, and all other
dates follow from that. The extent to which the fasts and festivals are
celebrated also varies between churches; in general Protestant churches observe
far fewer of them than Catholic and Orthodox churches, and in particular are
less likely to celebrate feasts of the Virgin Mary and the Saints.
The liturgical cycle divides the year into a series
of seasons, each with their own mood, theological emphases, and modes of
prayer, which can be signified by different ways of decorating churches,
vestments for clergy, scriptural readings, themes for preaching and even
different traditions and practices often observed personally or in the home.
In churches that follow the liturgical year, the
scripture passages for each Sunday (and even each day of the year in the
Anglican tradition) are specified by a list called a lectionary. Anglicans and Lutherans have
traditionally followed the lectionary since the days of the Protestant
Reformation. Since the 1960s, the
adoption and use of lectionaries in other Protestant churches (Methodist,
Reformed, United, etc.) increased. This has led to a greater awareness of the
Christian year among Protestants in the later decades of the 20th
century, especially among mainline denominations.
Biblical calendars are based on the cycle of the new
moon. The year is from the first new moon on or after the spring equinox to the
next new moon on or after the spring equinox, rather than an arbitrary starting
point like the modern calendar.
Western Christian liturgical calendars are based on
the cycle of the Roman or Latin Rite of the Catholic Church, including
Lutheran, Anglican, and Protestant calendars since this cycle pre-dates the
Reformation.
Generally, the liturgical seasons in western
Christianity are:
- Advent
- Christmas
- Green Season (Time after Epiphany)
- Lent
- Easter
- Green Season (Time after Trinity)
·
Advent From the Latin adventus, "arrival"
or "coming", the first season of the liturgical year begins four
Sundays before Christmas and ends on Christmas Eve. Historically observed as a
"fast", its purpose focuses on preparation for the coming
Christ.
Although often conceived as awaiting the coming of
the Christ-child at Christmas it also points towards the final coming of
Christ.
This period is marked by the
Advent Wreath, a garland of evergreens with four candles. Traditionally, the
wreath is made of four candles in a circle of evergreens. Three candles are
violet and the fourth is rose. The rose candle is lit on the third Sunday of
Advent. Although the main
symbolism of the advent wreath is simply marking the progression of time, the
church attaches themes to each candle, most often 'hope', 'faith', 'joy', and
'love'. Color: Violet or Blue. On the third Sunday of Advent, also called
Gaudete Sunday, Rose/Pink is used.
Historically, the primary
sanctuary color of Advent is Purple. This is the color of penitence and fasting
as well as the color of royalty to welcome the Advent of the King. Purple is
still used in Catholic churches. The purple of Advent is also the color of
suffering used during Lent and Holy Week. This points to an important
connection between Jesus’ birth and death. The nativity, the Incarnation,
cannot be separated from the crucifixion. The purpose of Jesus’ coming into the
world, of the "Word made flesh" and dwelling among us, is to reveal
God and His grace to the world through Jesus’ life and teaching, but also
through his suffering, death, and resurrection.
To reflect this emphasis,
originally Advent was a time of penitence and fasting, much as the Season of
Lent and so shared the color of Lent. In the four weeks of Advent the third
Sunday came to be a time of rejoicing that the fasting was almost over (in some
traditions it is called Gaudete Sunday, from the Latin word for
"rejoice"). The
shift from the purple of the Season to pink or rose for the third Sunday Advent
candles reflected this lessening emphasis on penitence as attention turned more
to celebration of the season.
Churches other than Anglican have changed colors and emphasis on the
whole wreath, we remain true to tradition. Maybe we are just slow learners or not so open to change for
change’ sake.
The word Advent means
"coming" or "arrival. " The focus of the entire season is
the celebration of the birth of Jesus the Christ in his First Advent, and the
anticipation of the return of Christ the King in his Second Advent. Thus, Advent
is far more than simply marking a 2,000 year old event in history. It is
celebrating a truth about God, the revelation of God in Christ whereby all of
creation might be reconciled to God. That is a process in which we now
participate, and the consummation of which we anticipate. Scripture reading for
Advent will reflect this emphasis on the Second Advent, including themes of
accountability for faithfulness at His coming, judgment on sin, and the hope of
eternal life. In this double focus on past and future, Advent also symbolizes
the spiritual journey of individuals and a congregation, as they affirm that
Christ has come, that He is present in the world today, and that He will come
again in power. That acknowledgment provides a basis for Kingdom ethics, for
holy living arising from a profound sense that we live "between the
times" and are called to be faithful stewards of what is entrusted to us
as God’s people. So, as the church celebrates God’s entry into history in the
Incarnation, and anticipates a future consummation to that history for which
"all creation is groaning awaiting its redemption", it also confesses
its own responsibility as a people commissioned to "love the Lord your God
with all your heart" and to "love your neighbor as yourself."
[1]
Sometimes quoted as a
reason for the church not to have rummage sales, the sellers were thrown out as
they were cheating the people, selling the one legged sparrow in the morning as
a “perfect specimen of an unblemished dove” without fault for a sacrifice, then
reselling the same sparrow in the afternoon. They were indeed making the temple a den of thieves rather
than a place of worship.
[2]
It is not worldly
wealth is, in and of itself, bad, but rather the attitude it can bring, one of
self-worth beyond that which is correct.
Wealth often brings to us a “better than thou” attitude, which soon
turns to “Holier than thou.” The
kind of thing that was referred to when Jesus said, “It is easier for a camel
to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the
kingdom of God.” Mark 10.25
[3]
I’d only add that there are two words used today interchangeably
that mean very different things:
MAD
ANGRY
or
MADNESS
ANGER
I struggle with madness. When
things displease ME, I hold it for a bit, then madness builds. Not
righteous anger, an expression of displeasure God’s Will is not being done,
offered with a solution. No, simple rage that MY will is not being done,
almost exclusively without offering a solution
Frankly, I think this is a very
important concept. From what I can tell, it is not limited to me. - Hap
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