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Sermon – Reverend Jack Arnold - Time and
Action
Church of the Faithful Centurion - Descanso, California
Today’s sermon tied the
Collect, Epistle and Gospel together and is partly contained in the forewords
above.
Today we talk consider The Law and how it failed to
solve the problems of the people it was designed to help and think about how
getting around technicalities is different that doing what is right.
Consider the words of the Collect, “…give unto us the increase of faith, hope, and charity; and, that
we may obtain that which thou dost promise, make us to love that which thou
dost command …”
The Collects often are repetitive, in that we ask the
same thing, week after week in differing ways. Why is that?
Sadly, we have the same needs and the same failings week after
week. We are WEAK, we need God’s
STRENGTH. Today, we ask Him to
help us, through the Holy Ghost, to increase our faith, to help us love what He
wants us to do, to make His Wishes our wishes. To make us want to follow Him that we might gain the prize
which He has promised us. That
prize has multiple aspects, first and foremost eternal life which begins when
we accept it, not when we die.
Second, as a benefit of that eternal life, we live our lives here in far
greater happiness than we would otherwise. We have peace of mind, as well as a better physical
life. If we can but just put our
hearts in His Heart. We will
improve in all aspects of our life if we truly do our best to follow Him. And
if we can also remember the benefits of the prize of following Him, it would be
easier for us to follow the path, maybe not much easier, but easier enough to
keep our eyes on the prize.
We often forget about the Holy Ghost, that Third God Guy. Without Him in our hearts, we are
lost. He is a critical part of our
journey towards heaven. He will help guide us along the narrow uphill trail to
heaven. With Him, we, like John Newton, are found. We will have that vision He gives to us in our lives and we
will be able to see the way God wants us to travel.
That brings us right in to Paul’s Letter to the
Galatians, and us! We need to walk
in God’s Word and in His Spirit.
We need to put aside the things of this world which are not in accord
with the Way of God. The things
that are of this world are contrary to how God would have us act, and
unbecoming of our position as sons and daughters of Him. If we are of God, then
we will act of God, then only will we be of God.
What is important is not what you were born to, for
we were all born to death. A king
is born, a king dies. We are born
into this world, our body will die in this world. Yet through the grace of the King, we live on. There is much conflict in us, look at
all those “fun” things Paul lists in the Epistle. Those “fun” things do not bring happiness, they really just
bring us closer to death. We all
struggle with fun and happiness, two words that often do not mean the same
thing. It is simlar to the need and want issue, two other words that get easily
mixed up.
Yet, God has the answer for us. He sent His Son to bring it to us. Who will listen?
The only people who listen are those who are in need,
hurt, pain and despair. Often it
is because they or one of their loved ones are ill or injured, perhaps near
death. Perhaps they are unemployed
or undergoing some family upheaval.
Their situation is less than perfect. They need help and they know it. In their own mind, they are the Samaritans of this
world. It was no accident that
Jesus oft cast Samaritans as the stars of his parables and stories. It is also no accident that Jesus
parables and stories center on actions, not words, thoughts and
meditations. Actions are who you
are. Without action, there is
nothing. The key driving principle behind his parables are actions for Him, are
those of goodness, not of evil.
“Those who believe on me keep my commandments.” Actions!
Yet, those who turn to God in “need” are no different
than each of us. To quote Paul,
“None are perfect, all fall short.”
We, each and every one of us, need God’s help. Perhaps some need it more, none need it less.
When Luke tells us of Jesus and the ten lepers whom
He heals and only one expresses thanks, do you think he is only telling of
lepers?
In a sense are we not all lepers, outcasts with
unhealable conditions? We
are outcasts of this world so to speak, we only have God and our friends in
Christ to help us. The world cannot help us, but those in Christ, and God can.
We have an incurable condition of sin, but with God’s help, it can be healed,
though we cannot heal it on our own. We cannot be healed by this world, yet
there is One who can heal us and will if only we appeal to Him, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us.” We pray to God in His Name every day,
He listens every day.
Through our Lord, God is there for each of us if we
will accept His help. When He
gives that help, how do we react?
Frankly most of us just think it our due. We oft fail to give thanks for all that He gives us.
Even if we get an answer we don’t expect, do we thank
Him? What if we get an answer do
we thank Him?
Like the lepers only one in ten will show thanks for
the mercy and help given them.
Rarely do people give thanks for large efforts done to help them. We
must endeavor to be grateful for Him and for all of those who strive hard to
help us out I our time s of need.
In the case of the lepers, it was the Samaritan[1],
showing that fancy dress and rules are not as important as doing what is right
and being grateful for what we are given.
Are you part of that 10 percent?
Remember, it is Please and Thank You that are the
magic words, not Please and I don’t have time for you.
Heaven is at the end of an
uphill trail. The easy downhill
trail does not lead to the summit.
The time is now, not tomorrow. The time has come, indeed. How will you ACT?
It is by our actions we are known.
Be of God - Live of God - Act of God
[1] Samaritan - Of or
pertaining to Samaria, in Palestine. -- n. A native or inhabitant of Samaria;
also, the language of Samaria. [1913 Webster]
Samaritans were descendants
of those who had stayed behind during the Captivity and had been separated for
many years from the body of Judaism.
They had not developed, nor did they subscribe to them, all the rules
the Jews managed to invent during their separation. The main body of Jews viewed them as lesser peoples, not
really Jews.
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