Fathers
Day
Today we prayed for our fathers, those who are with us and
those who have gone before us and brought us to this point in our lives.
Fathers Day is a day we celebrate the role of fathers in our
lives. It is normally a day of joy
and congratulations. But, it is
more than that, it is a reminder of what a father’s role should be. A father is to be the spiritual head of
the family, a provider of both spiritual and earthly needs, the protector,
commander, president, judge and most of all - the leader. To lead, you must be ahead of those you
lead. Lead means, follow me; not,
head that way. A father must live
his life for his family. The role
comes with privileges, but the privileges are granted only to those who fulfill
the responsibilities. Those
responsibilities are awesome, but the rewards incredible. Yet, as a father, I assure you, in the
words of Paul, we all fall short.
But that does not mean we should give up, but rather we must redouble
our efforts.
I share with you a poem in a Fathers Day card I received. I can tell you I have fallen short, but
it is clear from the card what I must do in the coming year:
Only
A Dad
Edgar A. Guest[1]
Only a dad with a tired face,
Coming home from the daily race,
Bringing little of gold or fame
To show how well he has played the game;
But glad in his heart that his own rejoice
To see him come and to hear his voice.
Only a dad with a brood of four,
One of ten million men or more
Plodding along in the daily strife,
Bearing the whips and the scorns of life,
With never a whimper of pain or hate,
For the sake of those who at home await.
Only a dad, neither rich nor proud,
Merely one of the surging crowd,
Toiling, striving from day to day,
Facing whatever may come his way,
Silent whenever the harsh condemn,
And bearing it all for the love of them.
Only a dad but he gives his all,
To smooth the way for his children small,
Doing with courage stern and grim
The deeds that his father did for him.
This is the line that for him I pen:
Only a dad, but the best of men.
From
the book "A Heap o' Livin'" ©1916
When we remember our fathers, we remember not only those who
brought us into this world, but also those who have gone before. We stand here in the present only on
the shoulders of those whose actions and leadership got us here. As fathers we know we are not perfect,
nor were our fathers, nor theirs.
For the sins of the fathers upon
the children, and upon the children's children, unto the third and to the
fourth generation. Exodus 34.7 We need be mindful of that when we live our lives. We serve as a model for our children
and grandchildren, as well as others who see our lives. Living as a father gives one greater
tolerance for the errors of their fathers and an appreciation for the pressure
they were under. One can only
marvel at the job they did.
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ay God grant each father the strength to live
their life in a manner consistent with our duty as a father, husband, brother;
and to fulfill the promise we made to God and Family when we accepted the role
as a father. We, each of, us fall
short, but ask God God’s help to meet the challenge, in the Name of our Lord
and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen
God • Honor • Country • Family
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. Most are from Rev Bryan Dabney, a few
from other places, but overall mostly from Bryan. He always has a few great ones to share. So, on to the On Point quotes –
Even a child is known by his doings, whether
his work be pure, and whether it be right.
Proverbs
20:11
Then were there brought unto him little
children, that he should put his hands on them, and pray: and the disciples
rebuked them. But Jesus said, Suffer little children, and forbid them not, to
come unto me: for such is the kingdom of heaven.
St.
Matthew 19:13-14
As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus
the Lord, so walk ye in him.
Colossians
2:6
Education that does not begin and end in
heaven is not true education.
Douglas
Wilson
20th and 21st century American theologian and
Christian Classical educator
A more certain way to attack religion is by
favor, by the comforts of life, by the hope of wealth; not by what reminds one
of it, but by what makes one forget it; not by what makes one indignant, but by
what makes men lukewarm, when other passions act on our souls, and those which
religion inspires are silent. In the matter of changing religion, State favors
are stronger than penalties.
Baron
de Montesquieu
18th century French philosopher.
There is a common, worldly kind of
Christianity in this day, which many have, and think they have enough—a cheap
Christianity which offends nobody, and requires no sacrifice—which costs
nothing, and is worth nothing.
JC
Ryle
19th century Anglican bishop and
author
(Holiness, p. 204).
Someone should tell [the president] that 1984
is not an instruction manual.
Steve
Stockman
21st century American congressman
We wanted a president that listened to all
Americans— now we have one.
Jay
Leno
20th and 21st century American comedian
Our government has kept us in a perpetual
state of fear— kept us in a continuous stampede of patriotic fervor— with the
cry of grave national emergency. Always there has been some terrible evil at
home or some monstrous foreign power that was going to gobble us up if we did
not blindly rally behind it by furnishing the exorbitant funds demanded. Yet,
in retrospect, these disasters seem never to have happened, seem never to have
been quite real.
Douglas
MacArthur
20th century American general
officer and hero
You get the same order of criminality from
any State to which you give power to exercise it; and whatever power you give
the State to do things FOR you carries with it the equivalent power to do
things TO you.
Albert Jay Nock
20th century political commentator
Propers
The Propers for today are found
on Page 192-193, with the Collect first:
Third
Sunday after Trinity.
The
Collect.
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LORD, we beseech thee mercifully to hear us; and grant that we, to
whom thou hast given an hearty desire to pray, may, by thy mighty aid, be
defended and comforted in all dangers and adversities; through Jesus Christ our
Lord. Amen.
Dru Arnold read the Epistle,
which came from the Fifth Chapter of St. Peter‘s First Epistle, beginning at
the Fifth Verse. Peter tells us to not be proud of what we have been
given, rather to use those gifts to the benefit of those around us. We should ask God to carry our concerns
and worries so that we might to the tasks set before us.
We must pay attention to the
world around us and take care not to fall prey to the devil, for he is
constantly looking for ways to help us drift off our path towards heaven. You must understand that other
Christians come from the same pool you do, humanity, they have the same
frailties and problems you do.
Hang in there and do your very best, God will take care of you in the
end. There are none so poor as
cannot purchase a noble death.
Never forget that.
Trust in God and dread naught.
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LL of you be subject one to
another, and be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, and giveth
grace to the humble. Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God,
that he may exalt you in due time: casting all your care upon him; for he
careth for you. Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a
roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: whom resist stedfast in
the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren
that are in the world. But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his
eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you
perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you. To him be glory and dominion for
ever and ever. Amen.
Today’s Gospel started in the
Fifteenth Chapter of the Gospel according to St. Luke, beginning at the First
Verse. This is a story of Jesus, rather than one of his
stories. The Pharisees were
appalled that those who were particularly sinners in their very qualified eyes
were attracted to Jesus and even worse, he talked to them, even breaking bread
with them. To the Pharisees, Jesus
told the story of the shepherd who loses a sheep and searches for it. When he finds it he carries it back to
the flock on his shoulders. He
goes on to tell the story of the woman who loses a piece of silver and turns
her house inside out to find it.
That story ends in a very interesting word play in English, “Rejoice
with me; for I have found the piece (peace) which I had lost.” Jesus ends the story with, “there is
joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth.” Having said that, there is also joy
when we do not sin, but choose God’s way.
And we enjoy it more also.
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HEN drew near unto him all the
publicans and sinners for to hear him. And the Pharisees and scribes murmured,
saying, This man receiveth sinners, and eateth with them. And he spake this
parable unto them saying, What man of you, having an hundred sheep, if he lose
one of them, doth not leave the ninety and nine in the wilderness, and go after
that which is lost, until he find it? And when he hath found it, he layeth it
on his shoulders, rejoicing. And when he cometh home, he calleth together his
friends and neighbours, saying unto them, Rejoice with me; for I have found my
sheep which was lost. I say unto you, that likewise joy shall be in heaven over
one sinner that repenteth, more than over ninety and nine just persons, which
need no repentance. Either what woman having ten pieces of silver, if she lose
one piece, doth not light a candle, and sweep the house, and seek diligently
till she find it? And when she hath found it, she calleth her friends and her
neighbours together, saying, Rejoice with me; for I have found the piece which
I had lost. Likewise, I say unto you, there is joy in the presence of the
angels of God over one sinner that repenteth.
Sermon –
Reverend Deacon Jack Arnold - Time and Action
Today’s sermon brought the Collect, Epistle and
Gospel together and is partly contained
in the forewords above.
Consider these words from the
Collect:
… hear us; and
grant that we, to whom thou hast given an hearty desire to pray, may, by thy
mighty aid, be defended and comforted in all dangers and adversities …
The Collect starts as they often do by asking God to
hear us. This is rather odd a
thing to ask as He hears us all the time, the problem is that when we need His
Help we so rarely ask, then when He answers, we will not hear Him. That being said, when we do accept the
Holy Ghost’s Help to pray, we can expect to receive spiritual, mental and
physical comfort from God. But, as
the old radio talk show personality Bruce Williams was fond of saying, “If you
don’t ask, you don’t get.” So,
ask.
When we ask for help and get it, we get great
results. But, when we get those
results, who should really get the credit? As Peter tells us in his epistle, we should not spend or
time being proud of what we have been given, rather we should use those gifts
to the benefit of those around us.
We could use the time we spend bragging about our talents more
productively, such as using them to further His glory and Word in this world.
And, when we have troubles, we should bring them to Him and ask God to carry
our concerns and worries so that we might tend to the tasks set before us. We cannot do this mission alone, we
desperately need His help at all times, which is something everybody struggles
with. But we must ask His help and be willing to listen to what he says.
We must pay attention to the
world around us and take care not to fall prey to the devil, for he is
constantly looking for ways to help us drift off our path towards heaven. We must keep situational awareness at
all times, so we do not fall into any of his traps that he has laid out for us.
You must understand that other Christians come from the same pool you do,
humanity, they have the same frailties and problems you do. The word pictures painted of “your
adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may
devour” is both vivid and true!
Hang in there and do your very
best, God will take care of you in the end. There are none so poor as cannot purchase a noble
death. Never forget that.
Trust in God and dread naught.
When Saint Luke tells that Jesus not only talked to
“sinners” but broke bread and ate with them, he related a story that was a
particular concern to the Pharisees.
They were quite appalled that those who were particularly sinners in
their very qualified eyes were attracted to Jesus. They knew a sinner when they saw one (except in the mirror)
and were quite certain sinners would never get in to heaven. But, not only did Jesus appeal to the
sinners, He even talked to them.
My goodness, He went so far as to break bread with them and engage them
in conversation at meat!
With a clear view of the inner most thoughts of their
hearts, Jesus the Pharisees the story of the shepherd who loses a sheep and
searches for it. When he finds it
he carries it back to the flock on his shoulders. He goes on to tell the story of the woman who loses a piece
of silver and turns her house inside out to find it. That story ends in a very interesting word play in English,
“Rejoice with me; for I have found the piece (peace) which I had lost.” Jesus ends the story with, “there is
joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth.” Having said that, there is also joy
when we do not sin, but choose God’s way.
And we enjoy it more also. So it is preferable if we do not sin in the
first place, but if we can’t do that, then God finds joy when we truly repent
and turn back to Him and ask for His help and be willing to listen.
Notice Jesus’ actions when He finds a lost sheep, He
carries it back to the flock on His shoulders with a smile on His face.
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
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:
Christians Pray
Psalm 145, Jeremiah 31:1-14.
Matthew 9:9-13
Third Sunday after Trinity
June 16, 2013
What do
Christians do? That has been the
subject of the sermons for the past two weeks, and we could summarize them by
saying, “Christians Love,” and “Christians Believe.” Today we continue to look at what Christians do, and today’s
sermon is, “Christians Pray.”
But saying, “Christians Pray,” leads us to another
important question, why do Christians pray? We pray because the Bible tells us
to. “Pray for the peace of
Jerusalem,” says Psalm 122:6. “Pray for them which despitefully use you,” said
our Lord in the Sermon on the Mount (Mt. 5:44). “Watch and pray” said Christ to
the disciples in Gethsemane (Mk. 14:38).
“Pray for us” wrote the Apostle Paul in1 Thessalonians. 3:1. Again in
that same Epistle he wrote, “pray without ceasing” (5:17). And then we remember the well-beloved
words of 1 Timothy 2:1-3, and 2:8;
“I
exhort therefore that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and
giving of thanks be made for all men; for kings and for all that are in
authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and
honesty. For this is good and
acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour.”
“I will
therefore that all men pray everywhere, lifting up holy hands, without wrath
and doubting.”
But we don’t just pray because God tells us to. In fact, we would pray if God did not
tell us to. For prayer is as natural
to us as breathing. When we consider our blessings, we naturally say, “Thanks
be to God.” When we consider our
sins, we naturally cry out, “Lord, have mercy upon us.” When we face the troubles and trials of
life, we naturally plead, “Lord, help us.” This is so much a part of us that we almost do it
automatically, and what a blessing it is to be so oriented toward God that we
turn to Him automatically in these situations. So we pray because we want to pray. We are like David, who wrote, “early in
the morning will I direct my prayer unto thee,” and, “Evening, and morning, and
at noon will I pray, and cry aloud.”
(Ps. 5:3, Ps. 55:18). For,
“Like as the hart desireth the water-brooks, so longeth my soul after thee, O
God. My soul is athirst for God,
yea, even for the living God” (Ps. 42:1-2). “How amiable are thy dwellings,
thou Lord of hosts! My soul hath a
desire and longing to enter into the courts of the Lord; my heart and my flesh
rejoice in the living God” (Ps. 84:1-2).
We pray, because we long for God.
But prayer would be meaningless if God did not care
about us. So, prayer is based upon
the character and nature of God, who is revealed in the Bible as the One who
loves us and gave Himself for us “to be the propitiation for our sins.” In a
sense, these words from 1 John 4:10 summarise all that we have been looking at
since Advent. They summarise all
that we believe about God. They
express the heart of the Christian faith.
God loves us and gave His Son on the cross to be the bearer of and
payment for our sins. Everything
we do as Christians is based on this one supreme act of God’s self-giving,
self-sacrificing love. Everything
we do is, or should be, our response of loving faith, trust, and obedience to
this One who loved us so much “He gave His only begotten son, that whosoever
believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”
If we look back into this morning’s reading from
Jeremiah 31, we see this was as true in the Old Testament as it is in the New;
that the entire life of faith has always been based on the loving acts of God,
who forgives sin and seeks fellowship with His people. “I have loved thee with an everlasting
love,” God says in Jeremiah 31:3.
“I will build thee, and thou shalt be built” He says in verse 4. These words were given to the Jews in
the context of their wars with the Babylonians, which resulted in the
destruction of Israel, the sack of Jerusalem, and the Jews being forcefully
moved to Babylon where they lived in captivity for fifty years. The Bible makes it very clear that God
allowed this to happen because Israel had forsaken Him. But that was not the end of Israel, nor
of the love of God for the Jews. He promised to restore them to their home, to
rebuild their land and city. He
says He will “bring them from the north country, and gather them from the
coasts of the earth…, and “a great company shall return.” “There is hope in thine end, saith the
Lord, that thy children shall come again to their own border.”
Why will God bring them back to Jerusalem? Why will He bless them with joy and
peace? Not because they deserve
it. Not because they have been
holy and righteous. If they had
been righteous they would never have suffered defeat by the Babylonians. But the Bible says time after time that
they were sinners against God, and failed to keep the covenant He had made with
them. And they were no more
righteous after their captivity than before. There was no great revival of Biblical faith among the Jews
in Babylon. There was no great
turning to holiness and Godliness of life. The Jews continued on as they always had. God saved them out of Babylon for the
same reason He saved them out of Egypt, because He chose to love them in spite
of their unlovableness. In other
words, they were saved by the grace of God, not by their own works of
righteousness.
It was because God saved them by His grace that they
were to turn to Him. It was
because He loved them that they were to love Him. Their life of faith, their keeping of His commandments,
their turning to and keeping His covenant with them was all to be based on His
grace. It was to be their response
of love to His act of love.
So here is the point I am trying to make today. Christians pray because we are
responding to God’s love.
Christians pray because we believe God cares enough about us to act on
our behalf. And we believe He
cares about us because we see that He sent Christ to the cross to bear and pay
for our sins. Once a person really
believes his sins have separated him from God and made him worthy of the
eternal wrath of God in hell, he cannot help praying to God for mercy. Once a person truly believes Christ
suffered the wrath of God for his sins, and gives him Heaven as a free gift of grace,
he cannot help praying to God in loving faith. That is why Christians pray.
--
+Dennis
Campbell
Bishop,
Anglican Orthodox Church Diocese of Virginia
Rector,
Holy Trinity Anglican Orthodox Church
Powhatan,
Virginia
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.
Third Sunday after Trinity
Halley's Bible Handbook (p. 332) reads as
follows regarding chapter 34 of Ezekiel: "Responsibility for the captivity
of Israel is here laid directly at the door of the greedy and cruel kings and
priests who had exploited and led astray the people. Against this background
Ezekiel sees a vision of the Future Shepherd of God's people in the Coming
Messiah, under whom they shall never more suffer, and `there shall be showers
of blessing'." Thus the applicable message of Ezekiel to us in our day is
clear: While God expected those in leadership positions within ancient Israel
to be faithful, he expects the same from those who hold offices within the body
of Christ today. And as those of the Israelites who had deviated from his will
were punished, so too will he deal with those who occupy positions within the
churches if they are faithless to his word and commandment.
Ezekiel was given of the LORD to speak
against the wicked shepherds of his people, more particularly the king and the
priests (34:1-2). The king was considered a shepherd because of his duty to
properly administer justice and to care for the whole of the land as God's
steward. The priests were charged with leading the people in their worship as
well as instructing them concerning the very laws of God. But they had been
looking out for their own interests rather than the interests of those in their
charge, and as a result the LORD gave the prophet to proclaim, Woe be the
shepherds of Israel that do feed themselves! should not the shepherds feed the
flock? Ye eat the fat, and ye clothe you with wool, ye kill them that are fed:
be ye feed not the flock. The diseased have ye not strengthened, neither have
ye bound up that which was broken, neither have ye brought again that which was
driven away, neither have ye sought that which was lost; but with force and
with cruelty have ye ruled them. And they were scattered, because there was no
shepherd: and they became meat to all the beasts of the field, when they were
scattered (vv.2-5).
The prophet Malachi was given a similar
message that was specifically aimed at the priests: And now, O ye priests, this
commandment is for you. If ye will not hear, and if ye will not lay it to
heart, to give glory unto my name, saith the LORD of hosts, I will even send a
curse upon you, and I will curse your blessings: yea I have cursed them
already, because ye do not lay it to heart... For the priest's lips should keep
knowledge, and they should see the law at his mouth: for he is the messenger of
the LORD of hosts. But ye are departed out of the way; ye have caused many to
stumble at the law; ye have corrupted the covenant of Levi, saith the LORD of
hosts (2:1-8). It seems that even after the dispersal of 70 years, the Levite
clan had fallen again into the same sort of behaviors as they had engaged in
prior to their exile in 586 BC.
Let us also consider the words of our Lord as
per our gospel lesson (St. Luke 15:1-10) wherein he reminded his hearers that
there is more joy in heaven over those sinners who came to repentance than over
those who thought themselves just persons which need no repentance (v.7). He
also delivered a stinging critique of the religious authorities when he said,
Woe unto to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye shut up the kingdom
of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them
that are entering to go in (St. Matthew 23:13).
Our Lord expressed the same level of concern
for the lost sheep in his day as the Lord GOD had done in his message to the
prophet Ezekiel. The person of Christ as God made flesh did not change his mind
over the centuries. As God the Son, he came to seek and save the lost. He came
to bring the gift of salvation to those whose hearts were willing to be changed
via repentance. And our Lord expects those in church leadership to be good
shepherds and not hirelings who only care for the sheep because they are paid
to look after them (St. John 10:12-13).
Returning to Ezekiel 34, God announced his
judgment upon those whose solemn task had been to care for his people. He made
it rather plain that he would be against those so-called shepherds and would,
require my flock at their hand, and cause them to cease from feeding the flock;
neither shall the shepherds feed themselves any more; for I will deliver my
flock from their mouth, that they may not be meat for them (vv. 9-10). Without a
doubt the crushing defeat of King Zedekiah and his administration marked the
end of the kings of Judah leaving only the promise of God to reclaim his lost
sheep and restore them to the land of their forefathers (vv. 11-22). The city
of Jerusalem was sacked and the Temple was burned. The majority of those who
survived were carted away into captivity while only a small portion of the
population was left behind to tend the fields for the Chaldeans.
The promise of judgment had come. All that
remained of the prophecy was for God to send to the promised redemption through
the Messiah. As the prophet noted, And I will set up one shepherd over them and
he shall feed them, even my servant David; he shall feed them, and he shall be
their shepherd... and they shall be safe in their land, and shall know that I
am the LORD, when I have broken the bands of their yoke, and delivered them out
of the hand of those that served themselves of them. And they shall no more be
a prey to the heathen... (vv. 23-28). God informed Ezekiel that the Messiah
will be a shepherd to his people much as David had been. This reference to
David was made twice in two contiguous verses, and emphasized the Messiah blood
connection to him in keeping with the earlier prophetic promises made in Isaiah
9:6-7 wherein it is written his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The
Mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his
government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon
his kingdom, to order it and to establish it with judgment and with justice
from henceforth even for ever.
Sadly, the faithless shepherds of today have
ignored God's word just as those kings and priests in Old Testament times had
done. Our Lord warned us concerning such persons when he said, Beware of false
prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening
wolves (St. Matthew 7:15). What better way to gain access to the sheep fold
than by posing as a sheep yourself. It is easy to assume that all that glitters
is gold, but such would be a mistake. We have been warned often not to
"judge a book by its cover", so too must we not judge superficially
when it comes to those who are our ministers and servants within the church.
St. Paul noted in his second epistle to the
Corinthians that, if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost: in
whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not,
lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should
shine unto them (4:3-4). Indeed, the gospel is kept from these folk as they
work for the adversary. Satan has done and will do all he can to keep as many
mortals away from the truth of God's word. He has dropped a shroud, as it were,
over their hearts so that they cannot discern the things of God around them.
In his second letter to St. Timothy, the
apostle admonished his charge to, Preach the word; be instant in season, out of
season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine. For the
time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own
lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; and they
shall turn their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables (4:2-4).
Preaching is essential for the furtherance of the gospel in this world. The
apostle advised young Timothy to preach with earnest the words of truth so that
more would hear and receive it to their eternal good.
But too often false teachers and preachers
have twisted God's word to mean what he did not intend. They have taken
liberties with the word in their ministrations, and this has led to a fair
number of folk being deceived into accepting all sorts of beliefs and behaviors
within their churches. Look about at what passes for the modern church and you
will find acceptance of every sort of false doctrine you can imagine. And the
only way that those churches came to accept such was because their leadership
has been duped by the devil and his minions.
St. Peter recorded in his second epistle a
telling description of these false teachers when he wrote, ... there shall be
false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even
denying the Lord that bought them... [they] walk after the flesh in the lust of
uncleanness, and despise government [ or, those who are appointed over them in
the church]... [they are] presumptuous... selfwilled... not afraid to speak
evil of dignities... they have eyes full of adultery and cannot cease from sin;
beguiling unstable souls; [they are filled with covetousness]; cursed
children... [they] have forsaken the right way... following the way of
Balaam... who loved the wages of unrighteousness... These are wells without
water, clouds that are carried with a tempest; to whom the mist of darkness is
reserved for ever (2:1-17). The apostle was given to pen this chapter to remind
the faithful that evil may come in the guise of a brother or a sister in Christ
whose sole purpose will be to lead them astray. Without sound preaching based
upon the expressed word of God, and without the faithful being careful to check
what they have been told by their ministers using the very words of Scripture,
deception is a real possibility for said Christians.
So what should the faithful do when faced
with those who are peddling the pablum of demonic deception within their
churches? First of all, they ought to thank the LORD that their eyes were
opened to the problem. Next, they should determine the scope of the problem
within their respective church bodies. After that, they can make an informed
decision as to whether or not it would be possible to bring said bodies back
into conformity with orthodox Christian teaching. If they can be salvaged, by
all means do so. But if they cannot then it would be best for the faithful to
find a new church body where God's word is respected as truth and not just a
choice among choices.
Jesus Christ is the good shepherd (St. John
10:14). No other person either in the past of ancient Israel or in the church
age has ever possessed the singular purpose of taking care of the sheep of his
pasture (Psalm 100:3) like our Lord Jesus Christ. We can rely on him. We can
trust in him. He will not leave us to be stolen, killed, or destroyed by our
adversary the devil (St. John 10:10). You can count on him to keep his word and
just has he dealt with those wicked and slothful shepherds in Ezekiel's day, he
will deal with those who are false witnesses and faithless shepherds of this
time as well. There is a judgment coming. Make sure that you and the church you
belong to are on "the right side of the river."
Let us pray,
|
O
|
LORD, keep us, we pray thee, in this time of our mortal life; that we being
so protected by thy most holy Spirit may ever praise thy name as a witness to
those who claim they need no repentance: that they might hear and turn unto
thee the only wise God, through the merits and satisfaction of thy dear Son,
our Saviour, Jesus Christ. Amen.
Have a blessed week, Bryan+
[1]
Edgar A. Guest – 20
August 1881 – 5 August 1959
Born in Birmingham, England. He and his
family moved to the United States in 1891. He worked at the Detroit Free Press
in Detroit, Michigan. He started there as a copy boy then as a reporter. He had
a radio show and a television series. Guest has written 11,000 poems. His
sentimental and optimistic poetry are inspiring and enjoyable to read.
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