The Propers for today are found
on Page 209-210, with the Collect first:
The
Fourteenth Sunday after Trinity.
The Collect.
|
A
|
LMIGHTY and everlasting God, 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; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Ryan Hopkins
read the Epistle, which came from Paul’s Letter to the Galatians, the Fifth Chapter
beginning at the Sixteenth Verse.
Paul tells us that Heaven and Earth are in conflict in our lives, “For
the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and
these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that
ye would.” If we are led of the
Spirit, we are not under the law.
If we are subject to the law, which we are bound to break due to our own
inability to be ultimately good, we are also bound to the pit. But if we are with Christ, we are
forgiven of our sins, providing we are truly repentant. We will enjoy “the fruit of the Spirit
… love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness,
temperance: against such there is no law.”
|
I
|
say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the
lust of the flesh. For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit
against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye
cannot do the things that ye would. But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not
under the law. Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these;
Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, witchcraft,
hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envyings,
murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you
before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things
shall not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy,
peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance:
against such there is no law. And they that are Christ’s have crucified the
flesh with the affections and lusts.
Deacon Striker Jack Arnold read today’s Holy Gospel which
started in the Seventeenth Chapter of the Gospel according to St. Luke,
beginning at the Eleventh Verse.
Jesus comes upon ten lepers who appeal to Him, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us.” He does and tells them, “Go shew
yourselves unto the priests.” As
they left him, their leprosy disappeared.
One of the ten, “when he saw that he was healed, turned back, and with a
loud voice glorified God, and fell down on his face at his feet, giving him
thanks: and he was a Samaritan[1].” Jesus marveled at the nine who turned
not saying, “Were there not ten cleansed? but where are the nine? There are not found that returned to
give glory to God, save this stranger. And he said unto him, Arise, go thy way:
thy faith hath made thee whole.”
Once again a Samaritan, the “least” among the Jews was the only one to
recognize and offer thanks to the Power of God. Do we recognize the power of God in our lives and do we
thank Him for the good He does us?
|
A
|
nd it came to pass, as Jesus went
to Jerusalem, that he passed through the midst of Samaria and Galilee. And as
he entered into a certain village, there met him ten men that were lepers,
which stood afar off: and they lifted up their voices, and said, Jesus, Master,
have mercy on us. And when he saw them, he said unto them, Go shew yourselves
unto the priests. And it came to pass, that, as they went, they were cleansed.
And one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, and with a loud
voice glorified God, and fell down on his face at his feet, giving him thanks:
and he was a Samaritan. And Jesus answering said, Were there not ten cleansed?
but where are the nine? There are not found that returned to give glory to God,
save this stranger. And he said unto him, Arise, go thy way: thy faith hath
made thee whole.
Sermon
– Time and Action
Today’s sermon tied the Epistle and Gospel together
and is partly contained in the forewords above.
When we look at people, we should endeavor to look at
them as God sees them. 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. Yet through the grace of
the King, we live. 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.
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. “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, needs God’s help. Perhaps some need it more, none need it
less.
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.
Remember, it is Please and Thank You that are the
magic words, not Please and I don’t have time for you.
Bishop
Ogles’ message for today
Bishop Jerry provided his sermon notes for
today. I am certain you will find
it very interesting. As always, I
cannot commend it to you enough.
Sermon Notes for Sunday 25 Sept 2011
Anno Domini 14th Sunday after Trinity
"AND
it came to pass, as Jesus went to Jerusalem, that he passed through the midst
of Samaria and Galilee. And as he entered into a certain village, there met him
ten men that were lepers, which stood afar off: and they lifted up their
voices, and said, Jesus, Master, have mercy on us. And when he saw them, he
said unto them, Go shew yourselves unto the priests. And it came to pass, that,
as they
went,
they were cleansed. And one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned
back, and with a loud voice glorified God, and fell down on his face at his
feet, giving him thanks: and he was a Samaritan. And Jesus answering said, Were
there not ten cleansed? but where are the nine? There are not found that
returned to give glory to God, save this stranger. And he said unto him, Arise,
go thy way: thy faith hath made thee whole." (Luke
17:11-19)
Among
very many other blessed truths in today's text is one stark truth that stands
out like the Sun at noontide on a clear day: that truth is the importance of
GRATITUDE! What is gratitude then? Gratitude is the direct and natural
result of Grace! The composition of the Universe that God has made is a
splendid and perfect example of a closed system (Space-Time Continuum) in which
every object of its composition conforms to the perfect laws of nature and of
nature's God. The Sun, Moon, and Stars, obey the natural laws of
inter-gravitational pull and balance which forces them to remain in their
respective orbits or trajectories. We see the same laws respected in the plant
kingdom. An apple seed will always produce an apple tree and never a peach. The
animal kingdom as well adheres strictly to the laws laid down by God in their
propagation. Sheep will always, as God commanded, reproduce after their own
kind. This signals a great reciprocity in the natural creation; however, man is
an exception to the general laws of behavior among men and his interaction with
all other aspects of Creation. Man, unlike other creatures of the animal or
vegetable world, has will and reason. God has deemed this essential if man can
possess the gift of love for love must be a result of will. So, we will observe
in today's sermon text that gratitude is a function of will and, ultimately, of
love itself.
"AND
it came to pass, as Jesus went to Jerusalem, that he passed through the midst
of Samaria and Galilee." I love the casual manner in
which God introduces a great event as if it is simply a thing that happens by
chance along the way; but it is not! The usual route of Jewish
travelers was to avoid passing through Galilee and, especially, Samaria (due to
the ill-winded assumption that these people were `less clean' than the Jews).
Jesus did nothing by `accidental' incident. He was well aware that ten men
awaited His coming at a `certain village'. It is unlikely that the men
themselves knew of a surety of the `arranged' meeting, but Christ knew that He
would perform a great act of healing at this place.
"And
as he entered into a certain village, there met him ten men that were lepers,
which stood afar off: and they lifted up their voices, and said, Jesus, Master,
have mercy on us." Now, we will all understand, I am sure,
that leprosy was no disease lightly to be taken. It was a slow and cruel
killer. The flesh of its victims literally rotted on the body causing limbs,
ears, and even noses to be eaten away. The odor was putrid and unbearable.
Slowly, by increasing miseries, it brought its victims to the long home
(grave). There was no cure for the disease in the arsenal of man's medical
knowledge and resources. The disease could not be hidden from others due to the
emitted odor and the marred features of its victims. They were shunned from the
public and cast out into colonies apart. If a non-leper approached, they must
shout "Unclean, Unclean!" "And the leper in whom the
plague is, his clothes shall be rent, and his head bare, and he shall put a
covering upon his upper lip, and shall cry, Unclean, unclean. All the days
wherein the plague shall be in him he shall be defiled; he is unclean: he shall
dwell alone; without the camp shall his habitation be." (Lev
13:45-46)
What a
horrible existence was this! It is, in a great many points, exactly like sin.
It is putrid, disfigures our persons, alienates us from the family of God, and,
in the end, it murders its owner.
There
are volumes of books written about `effective' prayer, but if you would like to
know a good and simple prayer that brings results, observe the prayer of the
lepers: "Jesus, Master, have mercy on us." How
did these men know that Jesus was among the approaching throng? We are not
told, but they must not have ever seen His face before, and even now they stand
afar off. I believe that they may have heard a rumor of His coming and that
rumor, combined with an insight from on high, gave them a conviction of Him. To
them, He was Jesus, Master! You will observe that they asked for no specific
healing or grant of favor – only MERCY! This, too, is the perfect
prayer of the sinner. Nothing else will profit the sinner ere MERCY
is granted him. Of what is MERCY made? The answer, of course, is all of GRACE.
Mercy comes not as an entitlement, but as a free grant of goodness (Grace).
"And
when he saw them, he said unto them, Go shew yourselves unto the priests."
Immediately upon sighting the need, Jesus provides the cure. Of course, the
Kingdom of Heaven requires reciprocity of faith in its provisions of Grace. I
am amazed at the simple faith of these ten lepers in responding to the counsel
of Christ to "Go and shew yourselves unto the priests."
To what end? They knew, as surely as all in the party of Christ, that the leper
must be pronounced clean by the priest in order of re-admittance to society.
These men, not yet being noticeably healed, immediately began their journey to
the priest in OBEDIENCE to Christ. Our faith requires us to be obedient to God,
not to our own desires and reason. Once these lepers embarked, the healing
began. Just as Naaman was wholly healed on the seventh dip into Jordan waters,
so were these lepers when they responded to the Lord in FAITH. "And
it came to pass, that, as they went, they were cleansed."
"….and it came to pass…." How common in tone, but exceptional
in result! It was not their walking that resulted in healing, but their faith
and response in Christ.
"And
one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, and with a loud voice
glorified God, and fell down on his face at his feet, giving him thanks: and he
was a Samaritan." The actions of this poor leper could
cause a mighty warrior to weep with humility. This leper believed God. This
leper obeyed God. This leper was healed by God, and he KNEW it! No longer was
his first priority to go to the Priest and be pronounced clean! His very first
priority was to run to that One who had made him clean. He turned back from his
own purposes and objectives to those of God. With a louder voice than that used
in begging for mercy, he glorified God. He fell on his face at the feet of the
Beloved Son of God and gave thanks. Have you ever felt so miserably dirty from
sin and pleaded the mercy of God, and then been granted cleansing and
forgiveness? There are certainly sins in every man's life at some point which
should compel him to the pleading.
The
other nine lepers got what they desired – healing of body, but only one came
back to return praise and thanks to the Healer. The Author, noticeably and with
purpose, informs us that this one leper who returned to give thanks was one of
those hated Samaritans. Why are we so frankly told this? What does it add to
our understanding? It informs us that none are beneath the merciful favor of
God to heal and forgive. It is often the one who stands in the lowest esteem of
man that may rise to the greatest regard of heaven. "And Jesus
answering said, Were there
not ten cleansed? but where are the nine? Where
are the other 90% who have received the grace and mercy of God besides this 10%
who have returned to give thanks? Does this not speak to the great body of
ingrates who occupy the pews of America's churches every Sunday? One is
kneeling at the feet of Christ, the other nine have separated themselves from
Christ once their desire is granted. What a shame and a testimony to
ingratitude! "There are not found that returned to give glory to God, save
this stranger." Quite often it is the stranger that becomes a more
worthy child of God than those who have been received into the family of God
from their youth.
There is
grave counsel in the final words of our Lord to the Samaritan stranger, but
also to us: "And he said unto him, Arise, go thy way: thy faith hath made
thee whole." Do you grasp the significance of this last clause?
"Thy faith hath made thee whole."
The faith and gratitude of this one leper
has made him not only well of leprosy, but whole in every other way! To
be wholly well is to be cured of the greatest disease, and that disease is not
even the deadly sin of leprosy – it is the deadliest of diseases from which no
man can recover except by the grace of God! That disease is – SIN!
Please
observe the difference between the one leper who was made whole in every whit,
and the nine who were only cured of the immediate and most apparent malady. The
difference was the GRATITUDE expressed by the one who returned to praise God
and return thanks. How often do we pray for a cherished blessing and, when it
is granted by God, we go our way into the world without returning on bended
knee to give thanks for the grant? All that God gives is a result of GRACE. All that He expects in return is GRATITUDE!
In the
natural Creation, we observe that all material bodies conform to the physical
laws put into place by God at the instant of Creation. Gravity is in effect
twenty four hours per day. Darkness will always immediately flee from the
presence of light. Sound will always travel through the medium of space via
wave lengths. Electrical current will always require a return in order for
electrons to move from a positive to a negative pole. If the ground return is
interdicted, the current ceases to flow. This is just like Grace. God freely
grants grace to those of us who can never merit it, but God will not blindly
grant grace to those who are unwilling to express gratitude for it. Gratitude
is a function of Grace. If the return line (Gratitude) is interdicted, the
current (Grace) will cease to flow.
I will
relate here an explanation of Grace I found in my father's papers whom he
credits to an E. Willams:
"Gratitude is a temper of mind
which denotes a desire of acknowledging the receipt of a benefit. The mind
which does not so feel is not as it ought to be. When the apostle Paul says of
the heathen, "Neither were they thankful," he seems to stamp
the sin of ingratitude as peculiarly odious. But, like every other grace which
is required of us, virtuous gratitude depends, in part, on right views. A right
view of benefits received, of the source from whence they flow, and of our own
demerit, has a direct tendency to excite gratitude; and while the mind is
influenced by sovereign grace, this will be the pleasing effect. The devout
Christian surveys the sovereign benevolence of the Creator in every person, in
every object, in every quality, and in every event. Sovereign benevolence
forces itself on every sense, and pervades his grateful heart. And then, when
he extends his views to a future state, and contemplates the operations of
grace—sovereign, distinguishing, efficacious grace—he is melted into
reverential awe and grateful praise, and exclaims, "Why me, Lord!"
Glory, everlasting glory to Him that sitteth on the throne, and to the Lamb of
God that was slain, who hath redeemed us to God by His blood, and hath given us
the earnest of His own inheritance."
We have
this from the good John Flavel concerning the opposite side of the coin -
Grace: "There is many a learned head in hell. Gifts are the
gold that beautifies the Temple; but grace is as the Temple which sanctifies
the gold. One tear, one groan, one breathing of an upright heart is more than
the tongues of angels."
If we
would pray for grace, we must express gratitude after its giving. Do we?
[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.
