Eighth Sunday after Trinity

The Propers for today are found on Page 199-200, with the Collect first:

The Eighth Sunday after Trinity.

The Collect.

O

 GOD, whose never-failing providence ordereth all things both in heaven and earth; We humbly beseech thee to put away from us all hurtful things, and to give us those things which are profitable for us; through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.

Dru Arnold read the Epistle, which came from Paul’s letter to the Romans, the Eighth Chapter, beginning at the Twelfth Verse. Paul tells us to live out our lives as Jesus instructed us to.  If we live as we want, we die and are gone.  If we live as Jesus commanded, we will live through to eternity.  Life is not about here, it is about doing well enough here so we can get there.  If we want the fruits of the heirship we have been given, we must live the part:

B

RETHREN, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live after the flesh. For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live. For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father. The Spirit himself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God: and if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together.

Deacon Striker Jack Arnold read today’s Holy Gospel, which started in the Seventh Chapter of the Gospel according to St. Matthew, beginning at the Fifteenth Verse.  Matthew records the warning that so few heed. Many leaders talk a good line, but how do they actually act, particularly in private?  For it is private when none are looking that we are revealed.  If you want to get to heaven, you have to act the part, not just talk about it.

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EWARE of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves. Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles? Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit. A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit. Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire. Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them. Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.

Sermon – Time and Action

Today’s sermon tied the Epistle and Gospel together talked, as is oft the case, of the need for action, not simply diction, the general content is in forewords above.

Consider the words from the Collect, wherein we ask God who … ordereth all things both in heaven and earth; … to put away from us all hurtful things, and to give us those things which are profitable for us …

We must understand in our hearts that God does indeed “ordereth all things” here as well as in heaven.  Once we understand that, then we can ask Him to keep us away from those things hurtful to us and incline our hearts towards those things that are good for us.

Paul tells us, much like last week, that if we are of this world, we die of this world.  Yet if we will accept our adoption by God, we will be entitled to call Him Abba, or Daddy.  For, if we are His children, then we gain His Birthright and all that results from that status.  While we may have some cause for suffering here on earth, the resultant glory will all be well worth it.

Matthew reminds us to listen to those who preach of the Gospel and discard the words of those whose teachings are not congruent with The Word.  For, it is by their actions can you judge their teaching.  To quote President Reagan, “Trust, but verify.”  Does what the person say match with The Word.  We all have Bibles, most the Authorized Version.  Does what the person preach match what God has said?  Does their life live that talk?

Action counts.  For by their actions ye shall know them.  Speaking of actions and judging, check out Bishop Jerry’s sermon.

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.  It will give you a lot to consider in your heart.

Sermon Notes

Eighth Sunday after Trinity

29 July 2012, Anno Domini

The Eighth Sunday after Trinity.

The Collect.

O

 GOD, whose never-failing providence ordereth all things both in heaven and earth; We humbly beseech thee to put away from us all hurtful things, and to give us those things which are profitable for us; through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.

  

     14 Now about the midst of the feast Jesus went up into the temple, and taught. 15 And the Jews marvelled, saying, How knoweth this man letters, having never learned? 16 Jesus answered them, and said, My doctrine is not mine, but his that sent me. 17 If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself. 18 He that speaketh of himself seeketh his own glory: but he that seeketh his glory that sent him, the same is true, and no unrighteousness is in him. 19 Did not Moses give you the law, and yet none of you keepeth the law? Why go ye about to kill me? 20 The people answered and said, Thou hast a devil: who goeth about to kill thee? 21 Jesus answered and said unto them, I have done one work, and ye all marvel. 22 Moses therefore gave unto you circumcision; (not because it is of Moses, but of the fathers;) and ye on the sabbath day circumcise a man. 23 If a man on the sabbath day receive circumcision, that the law of Moses should not be broken; are ye angry at me, because I have made a man every whit whole on the sabbath day? 24 Judge not according to the appearance, but judge righteous judgment. (John 7:14-24)

     Should the any man judge another? If so, should a Christian judge another? If so, by what measure should a Christian judge? It would be impossible to live in the world without exercising the means of judgment with which the Lord has imbued us. Our sense to judge right and wrong, expedience and foolishness, have been implanted in the minds of every human being created. We daily judge the kind of food that is needful for our bodies, the kind of places we frequent, and the kind of friends with whom we associate. We would be fools to choose people as friends whose values are diverse from ours as associates, would we not?

     There are really only two kinds of judgment – good and bad. If we judge wisely regarding our foods, our investments, our careers, our soul mates, we have prospects for a happy life. If we judge foolishly in these areas, we may find ourselves in great sorrow. Among other things, we learn how to judge from the words of the Lord in today's passage: Judge not according to the appearance, but judge righteous judgment. The modern church has been rendered sterile by an over-enthusiastic observance and misapplication of the words of Christ in another place – "Judge not that ye be not judged." (Matthew 7:1) This quote is most often taken completely out of context and stands the principle Christ is conveying on its head. Remember the fuller quote and meaning: For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again.  And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother's eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye?  Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and, behold, a beam is in thine own eye?  Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother's eye. (Matt 7:2-5) In other words, do not judge others by a more stringent standard than you judge yourself, for it is by the standard you judge others that you, too, shall be judged.

     What does Christ mean when He commands us to judge with righteous judgment? How do we know the definition and standards of such righteous judgment? Do we not hold it in our hands – the HOLY BIBLE! Whatsoever God calls sin, we are obligated to call sin even if that sinner is a brother or sister. 24 Judge not according to the appearance, but judge righteous judgment. Men judge not only by appearance, but according to their own personal animosities as in the case of the text today.

     The occasion is the Feast of Tabernacles. If we read the first few verses of this chapter, we will discover that even the brothers of Jesus ridiculed Him and did not believe in Him. His brethren therefore said unto him, Depart hence, and go into Judaea, that thy disciples also may see the works that thou doest.  For there is no man that doeth any thing in secret, and he himself seeketh to be known openly. If thou do these things, shew thyself to the world.  For neither did his brethren believe in him. (John 7:3-5) It is suggested by Scripture that even His own dear mother, Mary, did not comprehend fully who He was until after the Resurrection. They judged Jesus by the common appearance and not the Power of God that was in His Person.

     There is a new Presbyterian minister who has come to the Korean Presbyterian Church. As usual, the gossipers try to find something wrong with him instead of something right. He is the most qualified Korean minister to come to these parts from the standpoint of education and experience. He is a graduate of the Korean Military Academy, a retired Lt. Colonel, a graduate of the Presbyterian Seminary in Australia with a baccalaureate, from Fuller Theological with a Masters of Divinity; yet, the gossipers are busy. "Why would such a man so qualified come to a small church in Alabama? He must have something wrong with his character." It is almost amusing to consider what those same gossipers would have said of Jesus Christ….but wait a minute! That DID so scandalize the Lord Himself, didn't they?

     If you cannot challenge the message, then attack the Messenger! (an old established principle of detractors). 14 Now about the midst of the feast Jesus went up into the temple, and taught. 15 And the Jews marvelled, saying, How knoweth this man letters, having never learned? Notice, they do not question the validity of His learning and teaching, but they question How did He come to KNOW it! If a man is too little trained, the detractor will question how does He know so much! If the man bringing the uncomfortable message is highly trained, they will question the truth of his sanity. Remember the words of Festus to Paul?  And as he thus spake for himself, Festus said with a loud voice, Paul, thou art beside thyself; much learning doth make thee mad. (Acts 26:24)

     How proudly do many clerics boast of their diplomas and degrees, their superior learning and calling when the most humble of believers in the audience may have been taught more directly by God the truths of the Gospel! When shall we ever learn that the authority with which we speak the Gospel is not ours, but God's? Charles Spurgeon was converted by the preaching of an illiterate country deacon. The deacon clumsily spoke the truth of the Gospel to Mr. Spurgeon. It was not the eloquence, or lack thereof, of the deacon that touched the heart of that great preacher, but the authority of God inherent in the Word of God that the beloved old deacon spoke. Who cares how one comes by truth just as long as it is TRUTH? 16 Jesus answered them, and said, My doctrine is not mine, but his that sent me. 17 If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself. 18 He that speaketh of himself seeketh his own glory: but he that seeketh his glory that sent him, the same is true, and no unrighteousness is in him. If the truth of God is spoken by a devil, it is yet the truth of God. Remember the words of the ungodly High Priest, Caiaphas, who spoke the truth and prophecy of God even if unwittingly? And one of them, named Caiaphas, being the high priest that same year, said unto them, Ye know nothing at all, Nor consider that it is expedient for us, that one man should die for the people, and that the whole nation perish not. And this spake he not of himself: but being high priest that year, he prophesied that Jesus should die for that nation; And not for that nation only, but that also he should gather together in one the children of God that were scattered abroad. (John 11:49-52)

     When we, as ministers of the Gospel, preach sermons that may move many souls, can we lay claim to the power of that sermon? I think not, if the sermon comes from God. It is HIS sermon! The people of God are simply the vessels of gold, silver, stone, and wood in which the Bread of Heaven is served. The quality of that Bread is not dependent upon the vessel in which it is served.

     If a sermon is ever preached that does not point to the beauty and hope of Christ is only a man's sermon. 19 Did not Moses give you the law, and yet none of you keepeth the law? Why go ye about to kill me? When my son, Michael, was four years old, there was a little game he loved to play on me. He would say in the morning, "Dad, today is ;opposites' day, OK?" I would agree to his silly game and forget the consequences. Later, he would ask to go to the market for `chocolate eggs' a Norwegian chocolate treat. If I said `No', he would say that meant `Yes' because today was opposites day. So I would relent and go for the treat. That was an innocent child's game, but it is also a deadly adult game as we see in the text today. They all considered themselves virtuous, yet none truly kept the Law of God. 20 The people answered and said, Thou hast a devil: who goeth about to kill thee? To the only one among them who was truly righteous, these fools accused of having a devil. Ironically, it was their own tongues that were possessed of devils.

     We constantly, by our natures, attempt to exonerate ourselves of sin by rationalization and redirection, but such tactics do not alter truth. It is always the other driver who is crazy while we are wise and prudent behind the wheel. It is the neighbor's child always who starts the fight and not our little fair-haired darlings.

     21 Jesus answered and said unto them, I have done one work, and ye all marvel. 22 Moses therefore gave unto you circumcision; (not because it is of Moses, but of the fathers;) and ye on the Sabbath day circumcise a man. 23 If a man on the Sabbath day receive circumcision, that the law of Moses should not be broken; are ye angry at me, because I have made a man every whit whole on the Sabbath day? If we will know the will of God, we must also know God to whom that will belongs. Look at the reason of God in all things. Do not disobey His perfect will by a hypocritical and superficial adherence to the letter of the law. The more weighty things of God supersede our faulty maneuvering around the demands of the law. If we are able to always place LOVE at the top, we shall do well, for it is upon love (the love of God and our neighbors) that all of the law and the prophets hang.

     24 Judge (apply God's judgment)  not according to the appearance (the outward form), but judge righteous judgment (based on God's authoritative Word). If we judge according to the world and appearance, we are judging amiss. If we judge with an application of God's Word, mingled with love, we judge not according to our own weakly senses, but His. AMEN

Bishop Dennis Campbell’s Sunday Sermon

As is oft the case, we are honored to present Bishop Dennis’ Sunday sermon presented to his parish.  Dennis has a great sermon for the Eighth Sunday after Trinity:

God, Builder of Lives

Psalm 127, Romans 8:12-17, Matthew 7:15-21

Eighth Sunday after Trinity

July 29, 2012

I think Evan Daniel's history of the Prayer Book, expressed the meaning of today's reading from Romans well when he wrote that it "teaches us that to put away all things hurtful to us we must through the Spirit 'mortify the deeds of the body.'"  "We cannot live after the flesh and at the same time live after the spirit.  Life according to the one involves death according to the other."

He also captured the essence of our reading from Matthew, saying; "The Gospel... teaches us that the fruits of our lives will be hurtful or profitable, according as we regard or disregard the will of our Father who is in   heaven.  Thus, while we recognize a never-failing Providence, we also recognize the indispensability of bringing our wills into accord with God's will."

Psalm 127. Nisi Dominus.

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XCEPT the Lord build the house, * their labour is but lost that build it.

2 Except the Lord keep the city, * the watchman waketh but in vain.

3 It is but lost labour that ye haste to rise up early, and so late take rest, and eat the bread of carefulness; * for so he giveth his beloved sleep.

4 Lo, children, and the fruit of the womb, * are an heritage and gift that cometh of the Lord.

5 Like as the arrows in the hand of the giant, * even so are the young children.

6 Happy is the man that hath his quiver full of them; * they shall not be ashamed when they speak with their enemies in the gate.

Psalm 127 reiterates these lessons.  It tells us the most hurtful, harmful, self-destructive thing we can do to ourselves, our families, our churches, or our nations, is to attempt to build them according to our own plans, ideas, and values, rather than upon God's.  If God does not build the house, "their labour is but lost that build it."

Moses learned this the hard way.  In Exodus 2:11 he killed the Egyptian who was beating a Hebrew, "one of his brethren."  Acts 7:25 tells us Moses thought his action would show the Hebrews that God was going to use him to deliver them from their slavery, "but they understood not."  Moses didn't understand either.  Moses was brought up in the palace and educated in the ways of the Egyptians.  His education included training in warfare, for leading the army was expected of the house of Pharaoh, and the Pharaoh himself led the army in pursuit of the Hebrews (Ex. 14:8).  Moses probably thought God was going to have him organise the Hebrews into an army to rise up against Egypt and gain their freedom in battle.  Moses was trying to build the house of Israel according to his own plan, but that was not the way God intended to do it.  Moses' labour was lost.

Let's go further back than Moses.  Let's go back toAbraham and Sarah, when their names were still Abram and Sarai, when they decided God wasn't moving fast enough in His promise to make a great nation out of their descendants.  They decided Abram should beget a child with Sarai's slave, Hagar.  Through that unholy union Ismael was born, and immediately began to make trouble for Abram and Sarai.  And the descendants of Abraham through Isaac and Ishmael have been at odds ever since.  Abram was trying to build the house of Israel according to his own plan, but that was not the way God intended to do it.  Abram's labour was lost.

Let's go back a little further.  Let's go back to Abraham's nephew Lot.  Lot is a significant person in the Bible because Lot wasn't trying to serve God or build a nation for God.  Lot was only concerned about Lot.  You remember that the shepherds of the flocks of Abraham and Lot argued over the water and grazing resources of the land, so Abraham, trying to make peace, suggested they separate, and he told Lot, "if thou wilt take the left hand, then I will depart to the right; or if thou depart to the right hand, then I will go to the left" (Gen. 13:9).  And Lot chose the land of the plains of Jordan, for Lot wanted the bright lights and night life of the cities.  So he settled in Soddom and Gomorah, and with his wealth, he probably became a big hit on the party circuit.  He forgot all about God.  He settled into the pagan culture and built his life upon it.  And it nearly killed him and his family because they barely escaped with their lives.  When God destroyed the cities, they were miraculously saved because Abraham interceded for them with God.  But Lot's wife died because of her disobedience to God, and Lot's daughters were never able to rid themselves of the pagan ways they learned in Sodom and Gomorah.  Lot was trying to build his house Lot's way, but Lot's way wasn't God's way.  Lot's labour was lost. 

Let's go back even further into history.  Let's go back to the beginning, to Adam and Eve.  Here were people who literally owned paradise.  They had everything, and they threw it all away because it didn't fit their idea of what paradise should be.  To them, paradise meant they were in control.  They would decide what was good and what was evil.  They would decide what was right and what was wrong.  They would decide what was beautiful and what was ugly, and what was true and false, and what was valuable and what was worthless. And the result of their sins and their choices and their values was the loss of paradise.  Strife became a part of human relationships.  Adam and Eve became estranged from each other.  Within one generation, probably less than twenty years after the Fall, the children of Adam and Eve were at odds with each other, and their son, Cain, murdered his brother, Abel.  Adam and Ever were trying to build their house their way, but their labour was lost.

The lesson to us today is quite obvious, if God does not build the Church, the family, the nation, and our very lives, our labour to build them is lost. We labour in vain.   In other words, if we build by the ideas and values of the world, if we build by our own passing whims and desires, or upon whatever ideas and life-styles are the current fad or politically correct, whatever we build will fall apart like the foolish man's house that was built upon the sand.

So how does God build?  He builds upon the foundation of Jesus Christ who died to redeem His people and to establish His Kingdom. In Him we have the forgiveness of sin, which we receive by faith.  That is the first principle of the way God builds.   The second principle is that God uses His own tools when He builds.   He builds with the Church, public and private worship, the reading and preaching of the Bible, the sacraments, and holy, Biblical living.  That's how God builds His people and His Kingdom.

And so, if you want your life to be able to stand the tests of time and eternity, it must be built by God using His tools.  Thus we pray according to the Collect for the Eighth Sunday after Trinity:

The Eighth Sunday after Trinity.

The Collect.

O

 GOD, whose never-failing providence ordereth all things both in heaven and earth; We humbly beseech thee to put away from us all hurtful things, and to give us those things which are profitable for us; through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.