The Propers for today are found
on Page 207-209, with the Collect first:
The Thirteenth Sunday after Trinity.
The Collect.
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LMIGHTY and merciful God, of whose only gift it cometh that thy
faithful people do unto thee true and laudable service; Grant, we beseech thee,
that we may so faithfully serve thee in this life, that we fail not finally to
attain thy heavenly promises; through the merits of Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
Dru
Arnold read the Epistle, which came from Paul’s Letter to the Galatians,
the Third Chapter beginning at the
Sixteenth Verse. Paul reminds us, “To Abraham and his seed were the promises
made. He saith not, And to seeds,
as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ.” The Law, which came 430 years after
this covenant, did not supersede the covenant. The Law was “added because of transgressions, til the seed
(Jesus) should come to whom the promise was made … Is the law then against the
promises of God?” No. “… for is there had been a law given
which could have given life, … righteousness should have been by the law.” For the wages of sin are death, all sin
and only those whose sins are set aside by the sacrifice of Jesus are freed
from their debt.
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o Abraham and his seed were the
promises made. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to
thy seed, which is Christ. And this I say, that the covenant, that was
confirmed before of God in Christ, the law, which was four hundred and thirty
years after, cannot disannul, that it should make the promise of none effect.
For if the inheritance be of the law, it is no more of promise: but God gave it
to Abraham by promise. Wherefore then serveth the law? It was added because of
transgressions, till the seed should come to whom the promise was made; and it
was ordained by angels in the hand of a mediator. Now a mediator is not a
mediator of one, but God is one. Is the law then against the promises of God?
God forbid: for if there had been a law given which could have given life,
verily righteousness should have been by the law. But the scripture hath
concluded all under sin, that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be
given to them that believe.
Deacon Striker Jack Arnold read today’s
Holy Gospel which started in the Tenth Chapter of the Gospel according to St.
Luke, beginning at the Twenty-Third Verse. Jesus tells one of the New Testament’s most widely spread
stories, that of the Good Samaritan[1],[2].
Jesus was talking to the people,
“And, behold, a certain lawyer stood up, and tempted him, saying, Master, what
shall I do to inherit eternal life?”
The lawyer was about to learn the first lesson of lawyering, ‘Never ask
a question you don’t to which know the answer.’ As was often the case, Jesus let the man answer his own
question in response to a question from Him, “What is written in the law? How readest thou?”
The man answered well, “Thou
shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with
all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbour as thyself.”
Jesus confirmed his answer, “Thou
hast answered right: this do, and thou shalt live.”
But, the man wanted more and
asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbour?”
Among the Jews, it was clear they
were to “Love thy neighbor as thy self;” but their view of their neighborhood
was not too wide. From Jesus’
story and question come a clear answer as to how big our neighborhood might be.
And Jesus answering said, A
certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, which
stripped him of his raiment, and wounded him, and departed, leaving him half
dead. And by chance there came down a certain priest that way: and when he saw
him, he passed by on the other side. And likewise a Levite, when he was at the
place, came and looked on him, and passed by on the other side. But a certain
Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was: and when he saw him, he had
compassion on him, and went to him, and bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and
wine, and set him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and took care of
him. And on the morrow when he departed, he took out two pence, and gave them
to the host, and said unto him, Take care of him; and whatsoever thou spendest
more, when I come again, I will repay thee. Which now of these three, thinkest
thou, was neighbor unto him that fell among the thieves?
To this question, the man
answered, “He that shewed mercy on him.”
Then said Jesus unto him, Go, and
do thou likewise.
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lessed are the eyes which see the
things that ye see: for I tell you, that many prophets and kings have desired
to see those things which ye see, and have not seen them; and to hear those
things which ye hear, and have not heard them. And, behold, a certain lawyer
stood up, and tempted him, saying, Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal
life? He said unto him, What is written in the law? how readest thou? And he
answering said, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with
all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy
neighbour as thyself. And he said unto him, Thou hast answered right: this do,
and thou shalt live. But he, willing to justify himself, said unto Jesus, And
who is my neighbour? And Jesus answering said, A certain man went down from
Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, which stripped him of his
raiment, and wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead. And by chance
there came down a certain priest that way: and when he saw him, he passed by on
the other side. And likewise a Levite, when he was at the place, came and
looked on him, and passed by on the other side. But a certain Samaritan, as he
journeyed, came where he was: and when he saw him, he had compassion on him,
and went to him, and bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine, and set him
on his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him. And on the
morrow when he departed, he took out two pence, and gave them to the host, and
said unto him, Take care of him; and whatsoever thou spendest more, when I come
again, I will repay thee. Which now of these three, thinkest thou, was
neighbour unto him that fell among the thieves? And he said, He that shewed
mercy on him. Then said Jesus unto him, Go, and do thou likewise.
Sermon
– Time and Action
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, “…whose only gift
it cometh that thy faithful people do unto thee true and laudable service;
Grant, we beseech thee, that we may so faithfully serve thee in this life, that
we fail not finally to attain thy heavenly promises …”
In our prayer to God, we acknowledge that His only or
greatest gift is that we are, through Him, abl to give Him true service. For, it must be understood the only way
we can really be happy is when we align our being with His Being. Truly align, not get around
restrictions. There is a big
difference. We are not trying to
avoid being caught in a rule, but trying to live by the Big Picture and not
worry about little things. If we
do what we should do, we will follow the little rules as a matter of course.
In the Epistle, we are reminded that God chose
Abraham not because of he complied with The Law, for the Law was far into the
future. God chose Abraham because
he had faith and put his trust in God.
The Law was an aid to man to help him be better when he had difficulty
following God’s Will.
Pharisees were religious lawyers who specialized in the
613 Mosaic Laws, which brought them death not life. Their job was to help people comply with The Law without
unduly interfering with their lives.
When the Pharisee of the Gospel asked Jesus what he
should do to gain eternal life, the Pharisee correctly summarized The Law: Love
God; Love your neighbor. He would
have been fine had he stopped there.
But, he had to show the Son how smart he was. In doing so, the lawyer was about to learn the first lesson
of lawyering, ‘Never ask a question to which you don’t know the answer.’ So he asked, ‘Who is my neighbor?’ The answer, of course, is everyone but
you; the rest of humanity. But, as
was often the case, Jesus presented the story of the injured man helped by the
Samaritan, then asked who was neighbor to the injured man?
The priest and the Levite would not see the injured
man; there are none so blind as those who will not see.
You will also note that the Samaritan, one of those
separated from the chosen mass of Judaism, did his duty. When he left the injured man at the inn,
having given the innkeeper roughly two days wages, he said, Do what need be
done, if I owe more I will pay when I pass by next. You will note, he put no limit on his duty, he just
committed to doing what needed to be done, regardless of cost.
The lawyer to his credit answered honestly, “He that
shewed mercy on him.” Jesus told
him, “Go, and do thou likewise.”
Right is not a matter of quantum; it is not a matter
of majority rules or public opinion; actions speak louder than words.
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
Thirteenth
Sunday after Trinity
2 September
2012, Anno Domini
The Thirteenth Sunday after Trinity.
The Collect.
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LMIGHTY and merciful God, of whose only gift it cometh that thy
faithful people do unto thee true and laudable service; Grant, we beseech thee,
that we may so faithfully serve thee in this life, that we fail not finally to
attain thy heavenly promises; through the merits of Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
23 And he turned him unto his disciples, and said privately, Blessed are the eyes which see the things that ye see: 24 For I
tell you, that many prophets and kings have desired to see those things which
ye see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things which ye hear, and
have not heard them. 25 And, behold, a certain lawyer stood
up, and tempted him, saying, Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life? 26
He said unto him, What
is written in the law? how readest thou? 27 And he answering
said, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy
soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbour as
thyself. 28 And he said unto him, Thou hast answered right: this do, and thou shalt live. 29 But he, willing to justify
himself, said unto Jesus, And who is my neighbour? 30 And Jesus
answering said, A
certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, which
stripped him of his raiment, and wounded him, and departed, leaving him half
dead. 31 And by chance there came down a certain priest that way:
and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. 32 And
likewise a Levite, when he was at the place, came and looked on him, and passed
by on the other side. 33 But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he
was: and when he saw him, he had compassion on him, 34 And
went to him, and bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine, and set him on
his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him. 35 And on
the morrow when he departed, he took out two pence, and gave them to the host,
and said unto him, Take care of him; and whatsoever thou spendest more, when I
come again, I will repay thee. 36 Which now of these three, thinkest thou, was neighbour
unto him that fell among the thieves? 37 And he said, He
that shewed mercy on him. Then said Jesus unto him,
Go, and do thou likewise. (Luke 10:23-37)
In order to fully understand the situation
confronting Christ, we must observe that which the Lectionary failed to include
– the preceding two verses that reveal the setting. "In that hour Jesus
rejoiced in spirit, and said, I thank thee, O
Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that thou hast hid these things from the wise
and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes: even so, Father; for so it
seemed good in thy sight. All things are delivered to me of my Father: and no
man knoweth who the Son is, but the Father; and who the Father is, but the Son,
and he to whom the Son will reveal him." (Luke10:21-22) Those whose high-minded thoughts are
infatuated with the Self of the Ivory Tower will not understand the Words given
by Christ here. Those men are much too good to get a handle on such simplicity
as the Gospel represents. They must add to it their own complicated and
sophisticated interpretations and render those in words which they can barely
understand themselves and, certainly, not understood of those who are so simple
as to know only Christ. "And Jesus called a little child unto him,
and set him in the midst of them, and said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become
as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven. Whosoever
therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in
the kingdom of heaven." (Matt 18:2-4) I am not so proud of my title as to be very
happy to become a simple, little child for Christ. All of the lawyers, Scribes,
and Pharisees gathered about not only would not believe, but refused to
believe, the simple Gospel that had been given to the simple disciples of
Christ. Note the grace of God evidenced in the last verse of the quote: "…and
no man knoweth who the Son is, but the Father; and who the Father is, but the
Son, and he to whom the Son will reveal him." Has Jesus revealed
His Father to you, Friend?
"And he turned him unto his disciples, and said privately, Blessed are the eyes
which see the things that ye see: For I tell you, that many prophets and kings
have desired to see those things which ye see, and have not seen them; and to
hear those things which ye hear, and have not heard them."
What standing and privilege we have to have come into the knowledge of the
Gospel. We have been given greater privilege than many prophets and kings. Have
we treasured the privilege above all others? It is comforting to know
that we are better than spiders, but even spiders also live the great royal
palaces: The spider taketh hold with her hands, and is in kings' palaces.
(Proverb 30:28)
Jesus is speaking in a public place and
gathered around were those who would have enjoyed presenting a question that
would have undermined His wisdom and knowledge. I am amazed that they continued
so to do for they were constantly made fools by the attempt. There is a
"certain lawyer" present who felt able to place Christ on the spot
with a question which it was the Lord's very specialty to answer: "And,
behold, a certain lawyer stood up, and tempted him, saying, Master, what shall
I do to inherit eternal life?" Is this a very good question? No,
it is not. The premise of the question is wrong for there is nothing that we
can DO to inherit eternal life – it is a gift of God. The lawyer is thinking
`like a lawyer.' He believes only those in the proper bloodline can
"inherit" eternal life. But eternal life is not inherited or earned.
Jesus, being the most able of all teachers, gives the inquirer another question
in response to fathom the depths of the inquirer's knowledge as well as cause
for deeper thought on the matter: "What
is written in the law? How readest thou?" Should not all of
us determine our answers to questions of eternity on God's Law? Should we not
all have read it and meditated thereon? How does the lawyer, very apt at
deciphering law, read the question? This is an excellent technique to determine
– not the depth of the lawyer's knowledge, but the want of knowledge.
The lawyer answered very ably for he knew the
`words' of the law, but perhaps not the spirit of it: "And he
answering said, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with
all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy
neighbour as thyself." The lawyer may recognize the technical
qualities of a diamond, but he cannot know the source of its beauty.
Note how respectfully Christ treats the question and answer of the
lawyer who seeks to `tempt' him. "And he said unto him, Thou hast answered
right: this do and thou shalt live." If credit is due, you
may always expect it from Christ.
The lawyer realizes that he has failed to reveal any indiscretion in
the answer of Christ and seeks to justify his inquiry and standing by pressing
further. By asking this next question, he hopes to weaken the credibility of
Christ in whatever He claims as a neighbor. "But he, willing to
justify himself, said unto Jesus, and who is my neighbour? We can
clearly see by the motive and attitude that the lawyer is less in earnest to
understand truth, than to place his witness off balance. His interest is not
truth, but justification of himself which he is incapable of doing.
[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.
[2]
Good Samaritan n : a
person who voluntarily offers help or sympathy in times of trouble [syn:
{Samaritan}]
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