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. Some from Bishop Jerry, many from Rev
Bryan Dabney, a few from other places, some from Rev Geordie Menzies-Grierson, but
overall mostly from Bryan. He
always has a few great ones to share. On to the On Point quotes –
The white light of the sun contains all
colors of the rainbow. If passed through a prism, the white light will be
separated into the seven colors of the rainbow. While white contains every
color, black is the complete absence of color. When we look at a red object, we
see only the red rays being reflected - all others are absorbed by the color
red and not reflected. The same with all other colors except black.
Black, true to the nature of the world of
darkness, absorbs ALL light rays and reflects none.
Jerry
L. Ogles
Presiding Bishop AOC Communion Worldwide
Chancellor, Faith Theological Seminary
Woe be unto the pastors that destroy and
scatter the sheep of my pasture! saith the LORD.
Jeremiah
23:1
And Jesus answering said unto them, They that
are whole need not a physician; but they that are sick. I came not to call the
righteous, but sinners to repentance.
St.
Luke 5:31-32
I and my Father are one.
St.
John 10:30
It's easier to cool down a fanatic than warm
up a corpse.
Brother
Andrew
On
Church
No Christian and, indeed, no historian could
accept the epigram which defines religion as “what a man does with his
solitude.” It was one of the Wesleys, I think, who said that the New Testament
knows nothing of solitary religion. We are forbidden to neglect the assembling
of ourselves together. Christianity is already institutional in the earliest of
its documents. The Church is the Bride of Christ. We are members of one
another.
Jack
Lewis
The Weight of Glory
Truth sounds like hate to those who hate the truth.
Shared by Rev
Rick Reid
somehow from Duck Dynasty Fan Club
To contract
new debts is not the way to pay old ones...
George Washington
Founding
Father, First President, General of the Army
A nation
which can prefer disgrace to danger is prepared for a master, and deserves one.
Alexander Hamilton
Founding
Father
If the
representatives of the people betray their constituents, there is then no
recourse left but in the exertion of that original right of self-defense which
is paramount to all positive forms of government.
Alexander Hamilton
Federalist
No. 28, 1787
If you make
10,000 regulations you destroy all respect for the law.
Winston Churchill
[S]hould
Congress, under the pretext of executing its powers, pass laws for the
accomplishment of objects not entrusted to the government, such [acts are] not
the law of the land.
Chief Justice John Marshall
McCulloch
v. Maryland, 1819
If ever I
reach Heaven I expect to find three wonders there: first, to meet some I had
not thought to see there; second, to meet some I had expected to see there; and
third, the greatest wonder of all, to find myself there.
John Newton
18th
and 19th century Anglican minister and author
When you
sit down to negotiate on what you already have, you lose.
Marie J. Parente
21st
century member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives
Propers
The Propers for today are found
on Page 118-120, with the Collect first:
The
Sunday called Septuagesima, or the
third
Sunday before Lent.
The
Collect.
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O
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LORD, we beseech thee favourably to
hear the prayers of thy people; that we, who are justly punished for our
offences, may be mercifully delivered by thy goodness, for the glory of thy
Name; through Jesus Christ our Saviour, who liveth and reigneth with thee and
the Holy Ghost ever, one God, world without end. Amen.
Dru Arnold read the Epistle for today, which came
from the Ninth Chapter of the first letter of Saint Paul to the Corinthians
beginning at the Twenty-Fourth
Verse. Paul tells us that we must
strive for mastery over ourselves so that we can gain the crown of eternal life
offered us at great cost by our Lord Jesus Christ. We must each do our own personal best to control our own
actions and behavior so we can follow God’s Plan for each of us. We must be bold and certain in our
actions.
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K
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NOW ye not that they which run in a race run all, but
one receiveth the prize? So run, that
ye may obtain. And every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all
things. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible.
I therefore so run, not as uncertainly; so fight I, not as one that beateth the
air: but I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection; lest that by any
means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway.
Hap Arnold read the Holy Gospel for today which came
from the Twentieth Chapter of the Gospel of Saint Matthew beginning at the First Verse. Often quoted, this is the very important parable of the
vineyard. While it appears to be
principally directed towards Christians wanting to be “first” in importance and
the like, it has a more direct meaning.
It is a fine lesson in “buyer’s remorse” or coveting of jobs or similar
concepts. If you got a good deal,
it does not change because someone else got a “better” deal. Take what you got, go forth and be
happy. Other meanings abound. For a very direct application, what
this means is “cradle” Christians are no more likely to go to heaven than this
morning’s convert. They just get
to enjoy the Christian experience longer.
One note, if you wait until the last minute to join the gang, your time
here might end before you get around to it.
Sometimes people act like being a Christian is an
unpleasant experience that they will do when they get a round tuit. It is not. Christians aren’t perfect, they just have more fun being
imperfect and imperfectly trying to improve! Anyway, here is the Gospel according to Saint Matthew:
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HE kingdom of heaven is like unto a man that is an
householder, which went out early in the morning to hire labourers into his
vineyard. And when he had agreed with the labourers for a penny a day, he sent
them into his vineyard. And he went out about the third hour, and saw others
standing idle in the marketplace, and said unto them; Go ye also into the
vineyard, and whatsoever is right I will give you. And they went their way.
Again he went out about the sixth and ninth hour, and did likewise. And about
the eleventh hour he went out, and found others standing idle, and saith unto
them, Why stand ye here all the day idle? They say unto him, Because no man
hath hired us. He saith unto them, Go ye also into the vineyard; and whatsoever
is right, that shall ye receive. So when even was come, the lord of the
vineyard saith unto his steward, Call the labourers, and give them their hire,
beginning from the last unto the first. And when they came that were hired about
the eleventh hour, they received every man a penny. But when the first came,
they supposed that they should have received more; and they likewise received
every man a penny. And when they had received it, they murmured against the
goodman of the house, saying, These last have wrought but one hour, and thou
hast made them equal unto us, which have borne the burden and heat of the day.
But he answered one of them, and said, Friend, I do thee no wrong: didst not
thou agree with me for a penny? Take that thine is, and go thy way: I will give
unto this last, even as unto thee. Is it not lawful for me to do what will with
mine own? Is thine eye evil, because I am good? So the last shall be first, and
the first last: for many be called, but few chosen.
Sermon – Reverend 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:
… we, who are justly punished for
our offences, may be mercifully delivered by thy goodness …
In the Collect, we ask God who knows we should be “…justly
punished for our offences, may be mercifully delivered by thy goodness, for the
glory of thy Name; through Jesus Christ our Saviour …” Eternal salvation is the delivery we
are promised by Jesus. This is the
reward of the race we run here on earth.
Our race is for that eternal prize, not just, as they say, filthy
lucre. It is for the promise of an
eternal, unending life, to be spent with our Lord and Savior Jesus. It is for
the promise of a world unaffected by the tarnish of sin, unblackened by the
sinful deeds of imperfect beings. It shall be true happiness at last, to meet
with our beloved family, our Christian heavenly family, friends and beloved
pets.
Eternal salvation is a far more valuable prize than
anything we could possibly acquire here on Earth. We have to keep this foremost in our thoughts as we continue to run the race set before
us! Keep the eyes on the prize, as
it were! Even though things get hard, we must still keep our end goal in mind,
in order to stay on the path. Paul assures us that our efforts will give us a
reward greater than even our pitiful minds can imagine, if we but stay the
course.
Our eyes should be focused on the finish line, not
our competition. All that counts
is that we each that finish line.
So how do we run the race?
With our eyes focused tightly on the finish line, not
on those around us, wondering are they doing better than we are? That is not a useful question. The useful question is, “Am I doing the
best I can?” And, remember this is a Team Effort. We have to want to win, and
in order to win the race set before us; we have to perform actions. We need to
act upon the Word of Scripture, the message, which is to promote the Gospel of
Jesus Christ and preach it to all nations, as in the Great Commission. But we must first start with our
neighbors and work our way outward. It must be a team effort; we cannot all do
it alone. We need support along the way, especially when things get tough, we
need our Christian buddies to give us moral support and encouragement from the
Word. We want the Christian
Team to win. If an outsider joins,
they join the team fully from then on.
We need to give each team member all the help we can. A deathbed conversion gains the same
prize in the end as a life long Christian. The life long Christian will have had the more rewarding
life, but eternity is a long time after that. So, with that in mind, we must DO
our best and not just say it, and we do that by acting upon the Word and not
just reading it, but acting.
We are all so far from perfect that Holier than Thou is
pretty damning praise. Don’t even
go there. The best you can really
do is not to be as evil as another, even that is pretty doubtful.
The Gospel for today, the very important parable of
the vineyard, also gives us very good advice on the conduct of our daily lives
and contains a crucial key to happiness
It is a fine lesson in “buyer’s remorse” or coveting
of jobs or similar concepts. If
you got a good deal, it does not change because someone else got a “better”
deal. Take what you got, go forth
and be happy. Don’t complain
because somebody else got the same deal as you did sooner. Other meanings
abound. For a very direct
application, what this means is “cradle” Christians are no more likely to go to
heaven than this morning’s convert.
They just get to enjoy the Christian experience longer. So let us not begrudge those who are
newly converted, but let us rejoice that they have been saved! As Christ said,
we should rejoice that one sinner has repented of his ways! One note, if you wait until the last
minute to join the gang, your time here might end before you get around to
it.
Sometimes people act like being a Christian is an
unpleasant experience that they will do when they get a round TUIT. It is not. Christians aren’t perfect, they just have more fun being
imperfect and imperfectly trying to improve!
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
Septuagesima
16 February
2014, Anno Domini (In the Year of our Lord)
The
Sunday called Septuagesima, or the
third
Sunday before Lent.
The
Collect.
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O
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LORD, we beseech thee favourably to
hear the prayers of thy people; that we, who are justly punished for our
offences, may be mercifully delivered by thy goodness, for the glory of thy
Name; through Jesus Christ our Saviour, who liveth and reigneth with thee and
the Holy Ghost ever, one God, world without end. Amen.
Gospel - Matthew xx.1
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HE kingdom of heaven is like unto a man that is an
householder, which went out early in the morning to hire labourers into his
vineyard. And when he had agreed with the labourers for a penny a day, he sent
them into his vineyard. And he went out about the third hour, and saw others
standing idle in the marketplace, and said unto them; Go ye also into the
vineyard, and whatsoever is right I will give you. And they went their way.
Again he went out about the sixth and ninth hour, and did likewise. And about
the eleventh hour he went out, and found others standing idle, and saith unto
them, Why stand ye here all the day idle? They say unto him, Because no man
hath hired us. He saith unto them, Go ye also into the vineyard; and whatsoever
is right, that shall ye receive. So when even was come, the lord of the
vineyard saith unto his steward, Call the labourers, and give them their hire,
beginning from the last unto the first. And when they came that were hired about
the eleventh hour, they received every man a penny. But when the first came,
they supposed that they should have received more; and they likewise received
every man a penny. And when they had received it, they murmured against the
goodman of the house, saying, These last have wrought but one hour, and thou
hast made them equal unto us, which have borne the burden and heat of the day.
But he answered one of them, and said, Friend, I do thee no wrong: didst not
thou agree with me for a penny? Take that thine is, and go thy way: I will give
unto this last, even as unto thee. Is it not lawful for me to do what will with
mine own? Is thine eye evil, because I am good? So the last shall be first, and
the first last: for many be called, but few chosen.
Christ, being
both the beginning and the end, has sole right to decide the reward of those
who follow Him.
This parable
has direct relevance to the preceding event in Matthew 19 - 16 And, behold, one came and said unto him, Good Master, what good
thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life? 17 And he said unto him, Why callest
thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God: but if thou wilt enter
into life, keep the commandments. 18 He saith unto him, Which? Jesus said, Thou
shalt do no murder, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not steal, Thou
shalt not bear false witness, 19 Honour thy father and thy
mother: and, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. 20 The
young man saith unto him, All these things have I kept from my youth up: what
lack I yet? 21 Jesus said unto him, If thou
wilt be perfect, go and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou
shalt have treasure in heaven: and come and follow me. 22 But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful:
for he had great possessions.
The Apostles
did not understand this treatment of the rich young man. Jesus carefully
explained that they would inherit eternal life, but He also closed the previous
chapter with the words: 19:30 But many
that are first shall be last; and the last shall be first.
There are a
number of parallels to be drawn from other contextual references of the Bible
to this principle of first/last, last/first.
Luke 15 –
Parable of the prodigal son.
And he
said, A certain man had two sons: 12 And the younger of them
said to his father, Father, give me the portion of goods that falleth to me.
And he divided unto them his living.
The younger
son (representing the gentiles) took his belongings and left the father and
older brother and went into a far country where, after a time of carousing and
living in finery, he lost all and was feeding the pigs.
After a time,
he came to his senses and resolved to return to his father as a hired servant,
but the father only lavished the boy with gifts and love and called him his
son.
The older
(representing the Jews) was of a sad and fallen countenance.
25 Now his elder son was in the field: and as he came and
drew nigh to the house, he heard musick and dancing. 26 And he called one of the
servants, and asked what these things meant. 27 And he said unto him, Thy
brother is come; and thy father hath killed the fatted calf, because he hath
received him safe and sound. 28 And he was angry, and would not go in: therefore
came his father out, and intreated him. 29 And he answering said to
his father, Lo, these many years do I serve thee, neither transgressed I at any
time thy commandment: and yet thou never gavest me a kid, that I might make
merry with my friends: 30 But as soon as this thy son was come, which hath
devoured thy living with harlots, thou hast killed for him the fatted calf. 31 And he said unto him,
Son, thou art ever with me, and all that I have is thine. 32 It was meet that we
should make merry, and be glad: for this thy brother was dead, and is alive
again; and was lost, and is found.
These, and
many others we will not relate at this moment, serve to remind us that the
Kingdom of Heaven is not organized along the lines of labor unions, or
Corporate Human Relations policies.
It tells us,
first of all, that the gift of eternal life is not dependent on years of
service or some principle of seniority.
Once accepted
by Christ, we are accepted wholly and in full.
My wife used
to remind me that some churches and Christians are like the chickens in the
chicken coop – the moment a baby chicken finds an insect and tries to eat it,
one of the older chickens rushes over and pecks the young chicken on the head
so that he is unable to eat.
Some one new
comes into the church with some excellent talent the Lord has given them, and
oftentimes, the older members do all in their power to prevent that new person
from sharing that talent the Lord has given.
That is a
part of the meaning of the parable we study today of the Husbandman and the
laborers.
The
Husbandman is Christ – the laborers are those called to follow Christ.
Listen to the
explanation given by Bishop R.C. Trench, in his Notes on the Parables and Dean
of Westminster Cathedral:
But for
all this the question, "What shall we have?" was not a right one; it
put their relation to their Lord on a wrong footing. There was a tendency in it
to bring their obedience to a calculation of—so much work, so much reward.
There lurked, too, a certain self-complacency in it. In this parable the
Apostles are taught that, however long-continued their work, abundant their
labours, yet without charity to their brethren, and humility before God, they
are nothing; that pride and a self-complacent estimate of their work, like the
fly in the precious ointment, would spoil the work, however great it might be,
since that work stands only in humility, and from first they would fall to
last. The lesson taught to Peter, and through him to us all, is that the first
may be altogether last; that those who stand foremost as chief in labour, yet
if they forget that the reward is of grace and not of works, and begin to boast
and exalt themselves above their fellow-labourers, may altogether lose the
things which they have wrought; while those who seem last may yet, by keeping
their humility, be acknowledged first and foremost in the day of God.
Another point
of this parable is related to the first we have made above.
The Hebrew
people of Israel had been blessed with the favor of God in being an example and
forerunner of the people of God. They had come to believe that God dealt
only with them in goodness and blessing and no one else.
They
considered that, if God were to welcome the gentiles into His plan of
Salvation, that they must be less blessed than the Jews.
1 For the kingdom of heaven is
like unto a man that is an householder, which went out early in the morning to
hire labourers into his vineyard. 2 And when he had agreed
with the labourers for a penny a day, he sent them into his vineyard.
Therefore,
the Jews are represented by the workers who were hired at the early hour of the
morning.
The
husbandman had offered them one penny (or denarius) a day for their labor. This
was the customary daily wage for a laborer at the time of Christ.
Other
laborers were hired at the noon day hour, and finally others during the last
hour of the harvest. 3 And
he went out about the third hour ( 9:00 AM), and saw others standing idle in
the marketplace, 4 And said unto them; Go ye also into the vineyard, and whatsoever
is right I will give you. And they went their way. 5 Again he went out about the
sixth(12 noon) and ninth hour(3:00 PM), and did likewise. 6 And about the eleventh hour(5
PM) he went out, and found others standing idle, and saith unto them, Why stand
ye here all the day idle? 7 They say unto him, Because no man hath hired us. He saith
unto them, Go ye also into the vineyard; and whatsoever is right, that shall
ye receive.
The Jews
believed they should receive preference above others who were called latter
into the Kingdom, but that is not the way the Lord Jesus works.
When He
healed the diseased, restored sight to the blind, healed leprosy, restored life
to the dead …..He always healed COMPLETELY. Those who were healed were healed
completely! He also treated the most serious disease first – SIN!
Example:
Matthew 9: 2 And, behold, they brought to him a
man sick of the palsy, lying on a bed: and Jesus seeing their faith said unto
the sick of the palsy; Son, be of good cheer; thy
sins be forgiven thee. 3 And, behold, certain of the scribes said within themselves, This
man blasphemeth. 4 And Jesus knowing their thoughts said, Wherefore think ye evil in your hearts? 5 For whether is easier, to say, Thy sins be forgiven
thee; or to say, Arise, and walk? 6 But that ye may know that the Son
of man hath power on earth to forgive sins, (then saith he to the sick of the
palsy,) Arise, take up thy bed, and go unto thine house. 7 And he arose, and departed to his house.
Christ is
generous to the gentile and Jew alike. No one can claim preference in the eyes
of God due to the time of their salvation.
Our reward
shall be the Words uttered on that day when we come face-to-face with Christ
our Lord: Matt 25:34 33 And he
shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left. 34 Then shall the King say
unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom
prepared for you from the foundation of the world:
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.
Septuagesima Sunday
In our first lesson for today, we heard the words of God to the prophet
Isaiah, Now go to; I will tell you what I will do to my vineyard: I will take
away the hedge thereof, and it shall be eaten up; and break down the wall
thereof, and it shall be trodden down (v.5). Down here in the American South,
we have a common shrub called a Privet that is often used to separate
properties or even lots within holdings. When grown close together, the shrubs
form a barrier that is not easily crossed. Nevertheless, they must be trimmed
from time to time because, if left to themselves, they will grow into an
unsightly morass that will become a shelter for snakes and other assorted
creatures that you would not want in and about your yard. God has his own type
of hedge that protects and separates his people from the evils of this life.
It’s composition and arrangement are such that no evil can penetrate it without
his knowledge and permission. In light of that, God expects those who are under
his protection, including their corporate formations— such as government and
their religious orders— to conform to his will and commandment. It is the duty
of those so blessed to maintain their relationship and fellowship with God; for
in so doing their hedge will be maintained against the wiles of Satan and his
minions.
Consider the account of Job as found in the book which bears his name.
It was said of Job that he was, perfect and upright, and one that feared God,
and eschewed evil (1:1). Now the Devil will use every opportunity he can to
bring down a godly person. Witness his accusation before God against Job, Doth
Job fear God for nought? Hast not thou made an hedge about him, and about his
house, and about all that he hath on every side? thou hast blessed the work of
his hands, and his substance is increased in the land (1:9-10). That is a
rather straight-forward view of how God protects those who have been blessed by
him according to his gracious favor.
But God will not accept sin and wickedness, neither will he hedge those
who do such things. Consider now the words of the prophet Ezekiel, Then he said
unto me, Has thou seen this, O son of man? Is it a light thing to the house of
Judah that they commit the abominations which they commit here? for they have
filled the land with violence, and have returned to provoke me to anger: and,
lo, they put the branch to their nose. Therefore will I also deal in fury: mine
eye shall not spare, neither will I have pity: and though they cry in mine ears
with a loud voice, yet will I not hear them (8:17-18). Throughout the whole of
chapter 8 of Ezekiel, God presented his case against those of the kingdom of
Judah who were willfully violating his commandments. They had rejected the LORD
their God, and had in his place adopted the idolatrous practices and behaviors
of the nations around them. Notice the specifics of their idolatry which we
have been supplied. Take the phrase they put the branch to their nose found at
the end of verse 17. This refers to a Persian practice where the worshippers of
the pagan Ahura Mazda held a branch or bundle of twigs in their left hand and
appear to wave such before their faces. By the time of the prophet Ezekiel, God
would no longer tolerate the Israelites’ adventures in proto-ecumenism via
pantheism. As he warned the people of Judah through the prophet Jeremiah, Will
ye steal, murder, and commit adultery, and swear falsely, and burn incense unto
Baal, and walk after other gods whom ye know not; and come and stand before me
in this house, which is called by my name, and say, We are delivered to do all
these abominations (7:10)? His answer came swiftly, And now because ye have
done all these works, saith the LORD, and I spake to you, rising up early and
speaking, but ye heard not; and I called you, but ye answered not (7:13)... I
will cast you out of my sight, as I have cast out all your brethren, even the
whole seed of Ephraim (7:15).
The typical response to the aforementioned verses from those of the
Modernist camp has been, “Oh, but those passages were for the children of
Israel. Those are the violent words of the angry God of the Old Testament not
the loving and caring God of the New Testament. Surely those passages do not apply
today. They are much too harsh and too restrictive. We are expected to be
tolerant, open, and accepting without judgment, you know, for that is what
Jesus would want us to be.” Really? Since when did the nature of God change?
How did they get past the words of the prophet Malachi, For I am the LORD, I
change not... (3:6)? And St. Paul noted in the book of Hebrews, Jesus Christ
the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever (13:8). God has been and ever will
be the same God with the same unchanging message.
The Hebrews attempted to offer similar rationalizations, in response to
the warnings of their prophets, as their theology had been tainted by the
paganism of their neighbors. In my studies, I have found it interesting how all
of the pagan deities from across the globe have an eerie similarity. As St.
Paul noted, that the things which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to
devils, and not to God, and I would not that ye should have fellowship with
devils (I Corinthians 10:20). We cannot keep the commandments of God, in
particular, I am the LORD thy God... Thou shalt have no other gods before me
(Exodus 20:2-3), if we are involved in worshiping other things regardless of
what they might be. We must remember that Satan has been encouraging mankind to
violate God’s word and commandment since the beginning. His principal weapon
has always been deception and through such he has whitewashed sin and given it
an appeal which excites our flesh. Thus he makes, the lust of the flesh, the
lust of the eye and the pride of life appear to be good and acceptable by
twisting the morals and ethics of human beings so that good becomes evil, and
evil becomes good (Isaiah 5:20).
As a result of the evil one’s handiwork, when a people or a country
turns away from God, he will, as the prophet Isaiah noted, take away [their]
hedge... and break down the wall thereof, and [they] shall be trodden down. One
can see this happening right now as he has removed his hand from around our
country and this people. When we look at what Satan did to Job, we should not
be surprised that our economic life is being drained away,“faster than you can
say, Jack Robinson” as my grandmother was fond of saying. This country—with all
of its freedoms— has been degenerating for many years; but the pace of decay
has quickened of late and has been no doubt encouraged by the precipitous
decline in Christian morality. While there are many who claim to be Christians,
only a few have been truly born-again of the Holy Ghost. Their lives lived in
disobedience to the commandments of God are ample testimony of their lack of a
true and abiding faith. They are unregenerated, and their lives reflect that
sad truth. They are thus considered by God to be of the wicked and not his.
Consider the following passages:
Yea, the light of the wicked shall be put out... (Job 18:5). God has
made it plain that he will put the dark light of every wicked soul in a place
where it will never see his true light again (St. Matthew 25:30). As the people
of this country continue to fall away from the prohibitions found in Scripture,
we draw closer to that day when our national existence will be extinguished.
...God is angry with the wicked every day (Psalm 7:11). God has no love
for sin and no toleration of it. We who have been redeemed know that God is
love; but we also know that God is just and holy. He cannot go against his
nature, and his nature is opposed to sin. If the people of this country do not
forsake their evil ways, then a righteous and holy God will reveal his wrath
against this land much as he did to Sodom and Gomorrah (Genesis 19:24-25).
...the seed of the wicked shall be cut off (Psalm 37:28). God will not
spare even the descendants of those who have sinned, if they will not turn from
the wicked ways of their fathers. With the removal of God’s hedge of
protection, any cataclysm, any pandemic, any war could spell the end of this
country as well as mark the end for many souls.
...the desire of the wicked shall perish (Psalm 112:10). God has called
for a day of wrath and judgment upon those who love their sins and who would
cling to them rather than turn unto his Messiah and repent. This country has
been led of late by persons who are mired in sin and degradation. And because
of their popularity, they have set into law and practice a multitude of
shameful and ungodly acts such as abortion, legalized theft, murder couched in
patriotic terms, as well as the licensing of an assortment of inordinate
desires of the flesh which God has specifically identified as being abominable.
You cannot expect God to save any person or country which does not respect and
honor his word and commandment by engaging in such behaviors.
...the name of the wicked shall rot (Proverbs 10:7). There is no state
of nature into which human beings will ultimately come that is more foul than
that of the grave. For it is there that their human form will waste away and
will not be restored. But the name of the wicked shall also decay and be as
refuse fit only to be cast out. Any person or country which does not honor and
serve the God of heaven and earth, the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
will have their names blotted out of his book of life. In the case of a nation
or country, just the very mention of that land’s name will cause all who hear
to become disgusted. What a despicable end that would be for such a people,
nation or country.
The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the LORD... (Proverbs
15:8). Those who claim to be Christians and attempt worship God without being
obedient to his expressed will as found within the Holy Bible will one day find
that their offerings and prayers were but a waste and their future abode meet
for their lack of faith. The false doctrine of ecumenism with its
all-inclusive, one-size- fits-all religion, does not have any standing with
God. When our leaders attend prayer breakfasts, or other such gatherings where
the unregenerate come together to be seen of men, and attempt to mingle the
faith of the true Christian with that of other faiths; such will not be accepted
in heaven. Our prayers are accepted only if they come from hearts truly broken
by the knowledge of sin and from those who have embraced the Son of God as
their Saviour. No country so founded as America can hope to be freed from the
bondage of Satan without a true turning unto our Lord Jesus Christ who is the
author of all liberty.
A wicked and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there
shall no sign be given unto it... (St. Matthew 16:4). There is no sign or
demonstration from God that will change the mind of unregenerate except the
unalterable judgment of God at the Great White Throne. In that moment, every
atheist, every agnostic, every adulterer, every murderer, every worker of
iniquity shall see before them the Lord of Glory whom they had rejected and the
burning cauldron that will be their eternal abode for rejecting his
prescription for living.
Judgment is coming. It is as sure and certain as this breath you are
taking, and this moment you are living. God will have his word and commandment
judge us if we will not come around to his way of living by embracing him who
came to free us from sin and death. The Bible is God’s record of what he
expects, and we should be about trying to please him and not simply satisfying
ourselves contrary his expressed will. There is only one way, one truth and one
life and that is in the name which is above every name, even Jesus Christ our
Lord. In that light, I implore all who hear, or read this sermon to make that
commitment to God through Jesus Christ. Accept the free gift of salvation in
his blood and turn away from the wicked ways of this world so that you might be
made fit for the life of the world to come. We may not be able to save this
land of ours, but we can turn to him who can save us as individuals. Make that
choice while you still can. Remember, tomorrow is promised to no one so choose
now to serve him who died that you might live forever within the hedge of his
eternal kingdom.
Let us pray,
|
H
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oly and gracious God, who has given to us the
light of truth within the pages of Scripture; grant that as we, who are born
again of thy Spirit, may read and inwardly digest the same; so that as we
become more mature in our faith, we might effectively witness to others that
they too might come to thee: the only wise God, through him who is thine only
begotten Son, even Jesus Christ. Amen.
Have a blessed week, Bryan+
What is Septuagesima?
Septuagesima Sunday is the name given to the third
Sunday before Lent. The term is sometimes applied to the period of the
liturgical year which begins on this day and lasts through Shrove Tuesday (with
the following day being Ash Wednesday, when Lent begins). This period is also
known as the Pre-Lenten season or Shrovetide. The next two Sundays are labelled
Sexagesima and Quinquagesima, the latter sometimes also called Shrove Sunday.
The earliest Septuagesima Sunday can occur is January 18 (Easter falling on March 22
in nonleap year) and the latest is February 22 (Easter falling on April 25 in leap year).
Septuagesima comes from the Latin word for
"seventieth," with Sexagesima and Quinquagesima equalling "sixtieth"
and "fiftieth" respectively. They are patterned after the Latin word
for the season of Lent, Quadragesima, which means "fortieth" because
Lent is forty days long (not counting the Sundays, which are all considered
little Easters). Because a week is
only seven days long, not ten, and since even then only six of those days might
be counted if the pattern of Quadragesima is followed, Septuagesima,
Sexagesima, and Quinquagesima, don't literally correspond to the periods of
time they imply. It is interesting, however, that just about 70 days (68
actually) is the minimum number of days between the octave day of the Epiphany
on January 14 and Easter, implying that a season just about 70 days long can
always fit between the two.
The 17-day period beginning on Septuagesima Sunday
was intended to be observed as a preparation for the season of Lent, which is
itself a period of spiritual preparation (for Easter). In many countries,
however, Septuagesima Sunday still marks the start of the carnival season,
culminating on Shrove Tuesday, more commonly known as Mardi Gras. The Gospel
reading for Septuagesima week is the parable of the Workers in the Vineyard
(Matthew 20:1-16).
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