The Gardener of Paradise - a Devotion for 28 June 2023, Anno Domini

 

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ND the LORD God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the man whom he had formed.  9 And out of the ground made the LORD God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil. 10 And a river went out of Eden to water the garden; and from thence it was parted, and became into four heads. 11 The name of the first is Pison: that is it which compasseth the whole land of Havilah, where there is gold; 12 And the gold of that land is good: there is bdellium and the onyx stone. 13 And the name of the second river is Gihon: the same is it that compasseth the whole land of Ethiopia. 14 And the name of the third river is Hiddekel: that is it which goeth toward the east of Assyria. And the fourth river is Euphrates. 15 And the LORD God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it.   (Gen 2:8-15)

 

            Men need meaningful labor in order to enjoy the fruits of God’s green earth. Labor is not a curse, but a blessing. Imagine being ensconced in a beautiful Garden teeming with life and fruits and, yet, not having anything but leisure to occupy your time. Adam was given the responsibility to dress and maintain the Garden. It was not a small Garden. It was one of glorious appearance, and there were four heads of a great river that flowed through the grounds of the Garden to water it. It contained every species of animal life. Maintaining such a Garden in its pristine form would have required much attention from Adam, its steward. 

 

            We are not told if Eve had similar duties, but it could be presumed that she did have since she shared in the life and destiny of Adam. Or, perhaps Eve became overly distracted by the lack of responsibility – so much so that she wandered in the Garden to the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil that dreadful day.

 

            The first Gardener also was the beneficiary of the first marriage in Eden. God had created Adam and Eve for the purpose of procreating and replenishing the earth. Such an objective could only have been morally accomplished through the union of one man and one woman, therefore was instituted God’s first institution of marriage. This union of marriage was the only model ordained by God for mankind and one that has been largely followed by all races and creeds since the first dawn in Eden. The Edenic marriage represented the greater institution of God – He only ordained two such institutions – of the Marriage that would exist between Christ and His Church. Any defilement of that model would constitute a sacrilege of the institution of marriage. Nature as well generally follows that model insofar as sensual attraction and procreation are concerned. Any other model violates, not only the law of God, but the law of His creation in nature as well.

 

            Gardens are walled about to protect from incursions from without. Eden, too, was walled off as a place devoid of sin, and a place in which God walked in fellowship with man; but, the sin of Adam and Eve separated them from that fellowship with God that they had enjoyed prior to the Fall. God will not tolerate sin in any form and thus no longer walked with our original parents. As a result of that sin, Adam and Eve were exiled from the Garden. They had chosen the counsel of the Serpent over that of God. They rejected the Tree of Life which represented our Lord Jesus Christ.

 

                The very moment of Adam’s disobedience, his spirit died within him. Though he retained a living physical body, the body cannot exist eternally with a dead spirit. So Adam died spiritually, and began to died physically. God would provide a means of reconciliation to Himself through His only Begotten Son, Jesus Christ, in the fullness of time. The Personage was foreshadowed in the skin of the first creature to die in Eden which God had to kill to cover Adam’s sin and shame. There is no forgiveness of sin without the shedding of blood. “ . . . all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission.”  (Hebrews 9:22)

 

            Throughout the Old Testament, God reiterates that promise of a Redeemer to come in the fulness of time. 

 

            Many today are seeking to know to where the Garden at Eden was removed. I believe that Paradise was removed to Heaven since there is not place on earth devoid of sin today. It makes sense that the Garden would be co-located with the Tree of Life – and where is that Tree today? “He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God.” (Revelations 2:7), and, “And he shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb. In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life, which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. (Revelations 22:1-2)

 

            If you want to see that Paradise, you had best work on acquiring passage through the grace and mercy of God.

The Patience of Job – 28 June 2023, Anno Domini

 

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 H that my words were now written! oh that they were printed in a book! 24 That they were graven with an iron pen and lead in the rock for ever! 25 For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth: 26 And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God: 27 Whom I shall see for myself, and mine eyes shall behold, and not another; though my reins be consumed within me. (Job 19:23-27)

 

            Job was a man of the ancient days who had everything a man could desire; a wife, and seven sons, and three daughters; 7,000 sheep; 3,000 camels; 500 oxen; 500 she asses; and a great household that numbered him as the greatest man of the east. He loved God and hatred evil. Job had no great need for much patience for he had all the world had to offer. While it is true that Job hated the devil, it was also true the devil despised Job and his Communion with the Lord.

 

            One day, God gave Satan the power to take away from Job all his wealth and all his family. Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan came also among them.  And the LORD said unto Satan, Whence comest thou? Then Satan answered the LORD, and said, From going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it. 8 And the LORD said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil? (Job 1:6-8) Satan was incensed that Job loved the Lord fully. Just as the Serpent had beguiled Eve, Satan wanted to destroy Job and make an example of him of hypocrisy. And the LORD said unto Satan, Behold, all that he hath is in thy power; only upon himself put not forth thine hand. So Satan went forth from the presence of the LORD. (Job 1:12)

 

            So, Satan took the beloved sons and daughters of Job in death, and the many head of livestock was taken, and Job was left with nothing. How did Job respond to this hurtful experience? hen Job arose, and rent his mantle, and shaved his head, and fell down upon the ground, and worshipped, And said, Naked came I out of my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return thither: the LORD gave, and the LORD hath taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD. 22 In all this Job sinned not, nor charged God foolishly. (Job 1:20-22)

 

            Job had never needed the gift of patience in the past, but now he was forced to draw upon the well-springs of faith for the patience needed to endure such pain and sorrow. Patience is a product of faith.

 

            Having failed in this first attempt to destroy Job and to cause him to curse his Lord God, Satan made subsequent appeal to the Lord to allow him to hurt Job’s body. This request the Lord granted. But Job’s wife, like Eve, tempted Job to doubt the divine purposes of God. So, Satan afflicted Job with boils of sores from head to foot so that Job went out and sat on an ash-pile and scrubbed himself with a potsherd. 

 

            In spite of the counsel of his three friends, as well as their condemnation, Job’s faith held steady, and he exercised the well-known example of patience that his faith engendered. In hardship, as well, as in plenty, our patience is a measure of our faith – not the other way around. It takes a tremendous faith to endure financial ruin and loss of loved ones, but our faith instills an unworldly ability to sustain our patience to continue in our walk with the Lord. In his misery, and, yes, saints are afflicted just as was Job with misery, Job made his enduring profession of faith in Christ (his Redeemer): For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth: And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God: Whom I shall see for myself, and mine eyes shall behold, and not another; though my reins be consumed within me. Though Job may have questioned why this great sorrow befell him, he never denied God. He knew that whatever misery this life may offer, there is a greater joy and bliss to be had in the coming of his Redeemer some 1,500 years hence. It was this profound faith that bore Job up and produced the patience for which he is known.

 

            In the end, Job was victorious over the devil and prospered under the blessings of God. In the end, Job received exactly twice the losses he had suffered with the first assaults of Satan – except sons and daughters. Why was this? I believe it was because Job still had the first sons and daughters in waiting beyond the Gates of Splendor which would give him twice the number of sons and daughters as well as livestock. So the LORD blessed the latter end of Job more than his beginning: for he had fourteen thousand sheep, and six thousand camels, and a thousand yoke of oxen, and a thousand she asses. He had also seven sons and three daughters.

 

            One lesson we gleaned from Job’s faith and patience is to remember to account, not only our treasures on earth, but those that are on deposit in Heaven awaiting our coming.

Hymns of the Church – Be Thou My Vision – 27 June 2023, Anno Domini

 

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HERE there is no vision, the people perish: but he that keepeth the law, happy is he. (Proverbs 29:18)

 

Today’s hymn, Be Thou My Vision (Bí Thusa 'mo Shúile), is a classical Irish hymn of the 8^th century. It is sung to the Irish folk tune of Slane. It is a Celtic Christian hymn whose author is rumored to have suffered blindness later in life – that is, physical blindness perhaps to hone his spiritual vision. It is a reminder of the perfect love and Presence we have in our Lord Jesus Christ when our hearts are stayed on Him. Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee. (Isaiah 26:3)

 

Be Thou My Vision

 

Be thou my vision, O Lord of my heart;

naught be all else to me, save that thou art -

thou my best thought, by day or by night;

waking or sleeping, thy presence my light.

 

Be thou my wisdom, and thou my true word;

I ever with thee and thou with me, Lord.

Thou my great Father; thine own may I be,

thou in me dwelling and I one with thee.

 

Riches I heed not, nor vain, empty praise;

thou mine inheritance, now and always;

thou and thou only first in my heart,

high King of heaven, my treasure thou art.

 

High King of heaven, my victory won,

may I reach heaven’s joys, O bright heaven’s sun!

Heart of my own heart, whatever befall,

still be my vision, O Ruler of all.

 

            Be thou my vision, O Lord of my heart; naught be all else to me, save that thou art - thou my best thought, by day or by night; waking or sleeping, thy presence my light. Vision has always been a function of light. Without light, there can be no vision. There are false lights of this world that beckon to our fleshly desires, but there is also the Light of this World which shines in splendor to point the way of righteousness. When our vision is fixed on Christ and His Holy Word, we can see clearly the way to go in a dark and wilderness world of sin. When the Light of Christ encompasses our full range of vision, our thoughts and actions are determined by the path that Light illuminates.

 

            Be thou my wisdom, and thou my true word; I ever with thee and thou with me, Lord. Thou my great Father; thine own may I be, thou in me dwelling and I one with thee. Solomon has said it well in Proverbs 9:10  – The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding. The fear of the Lord does not result in understanding through the process of osmosis – we must STUDY His Word diligently to become familiar with the wisdom it conveys. Christ, during His last night before betrayal in Gethsemane, prayed that we might be One with Him as He is One with the Father. Being One with Christ is also being One with the Father and with the Holy Spirit since there is no division in nature and character in the Triune Godhead. As we study the Word, raw knowledge is transformed into the wisdom to know the Will of the Lord and to live it out in our lives.

 

            Riches I heed not, nor vain, empty praise; thou mine inheritance, now and always; thou and thou only first in my heart, high King of heaven, my treasure thou art. When we stand before a wonderful work of art, we see only the art and not the frame. When our vision is fixed on Christ, the mundane trinkets of the world do not entice us. We behold the greatest beauty of Christ which makes all worldly concerns unattractive. We do have an inheritance with Christ our Redeemer and Savior. We are bound to that same Promised Land to which Moses entered when he died on Mt. Pisgah and was buried in the Valley of Moab – the same in Presence with our Lord and our God. All that we count of value on earth is of temporary value and use. One day, we will leave all these behind and awaken to a new glory that surpasses the best words to describe. We are princes and princesses as the sons and daughters of the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. We should quit ourselves as such in this present life.

 

High King of heaven, my victory won, may I reach heaven’s joys, O bright heaven’s sun! Heart of my own heart, whatever befall, still be my vision, O Ruler of all. When the world casts it slings and arrows of outrageous fortune against us, our security in Christ is magnified by the backdrop of those pitiful elements of the world. Amazingly, we are in a battle against an enemy of great cunning and intelligence, but, at the same time, we are made to know that the victory has already been achieved. We see worldly war actions such as the bombing of the Naval facilities at Pearl Harbor in 1941. It was a devastating attack and one which gave its perpetrators much confidence of victory; yet, four years latter, the matter was settled by surrender aboard the USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay. Our enemies in this world may celebrate what they imagine is triumph over the Church and people of God, but we must bear in mind that the last chapter has already been written large in victory for the Church. Whatever trials arise, lose not faith, gird your garments of armor about you and press on to that victory of which we are assured in Christ.

 

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 DEATH, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord. (1 Corinthians 15:55-58)

AOC Sunday Report – Third Sunday after Trinity

Happy Third Sunday after Trinity!

The AOC Sunday Report can be downloaded RIGHT HERE!

As usual, today we have excellent sermons from Bishops Jerry and Roy, as well as Revs Jack and Bryan. Each of them is very different and I think you'll enjoy each of them considerably.  Rev Jack brings the Propers together today.    His sermon is below the propers and can be viewed on video HERE -> https://youtu.be/8Hd8NkBXZZc

The Collect starts as they often do by asking God to hear us.  This is rather an odd thing to ask as He hears us all the time. His hearing is perfect. It is our hearing that is imperfect. In order to have the Holy Ghost’s help into our heart, we must let go of self centered and prideful  ways. Prideful beings cannot be followers of Christ.  In the Epistle, Peter makes this point when he says that God resists the proud and gives His Grace to the humble.  The Gospel recounts Jesus tells the Pharisees the story of the shepherd who loses a sheep and searches for it.  When he finds the sheep 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. It all comes together.  Having trouble visualizing that?  Read or listen to Rev Jack’s sermon. PS – The cameraman survived the coughing fit in the last few seconds of the sermon.

There are always a lot of people who need your prayers, today is not the exception.  Please start with Tricia, Bryan, Shamu, Laurie and work out from there.

There is truly an EPIC week ahead, but without God's help you will never see it.  Finding it difficult to focus, look to the Holy Ghost for help.

Godspeed,

Hap

Church of the Faithful Centurion 

Descanso, California 

United States of America

Sermon Notes - Third Sunday after Trinity - The Lost - Anglican Orthodox Church Worldwide - 25 June 2023, Anno Domini (In the Year of our Lord)

  

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.

 

 

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HEN drew near unto him all the publicans and sinners for to hear him. 2 And the Pharisees and scribes murmured, saying, This man receiveth sinners, and eateth with them. 3 And he spake this parable unto them, saying, 4 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? 5 And when he hath found it, he layeth it on his shoulders, rejoicing. 6 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. 7 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. 8 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? 9 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. 10 Likewise, I say unto you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth.   (Luke 15:1-10)

 

The Sermon 

                There is a unique and anxious sorrow that follows the loss of anything to which we attach value whether it be a loved one, a friend, a cherished photo, or perhaps a pet, etc. I you have fifteen or twenty head of cattle and one goes missing, suddenly that missing cow exceeds your concern for the others as you go in search for it. It is not that you care less for the remaining cows, but the one that is missing merits all your attention. You cannot rest until you have found that which is lost. At my age, I can relate well to the feeling of lost things. I have several books on the shelf, but there is one book that I had need of recently and could not find. Suddenly, all the others had no appeal for me at the moment.

 

            Our text today relates to two lost things – much alike in many ways, but also quite different in nature. The first lost thing is a living creature, a little lamb. The second thing is a lost coin. How are these alike? In a sense, they both represent some aspect of the human condition. Both are valued and cherished by their owner. Both have particular worth – one for commerce, the other for love. The shepherd loves his own sheep. The woman values her coin for it represented future security for her in case of unseen hardship. Once lost, both occupy the concerns of the owners.

 

            These two are also different in a fundament nature. The lamb possesses awareness though to a limited degree. It can see, it can follow at close order, it can bleat when it is fearful. It is capable of losing itself due to short-sightedness and lack of mature discipline.

 

            The coin, on the other hand, has no awareness whatsoever. It is as good as dead. It cannot see. It cannot bleat, it cannot lose itself. It does not even know if it is lost.

 

            How do these two compare with the Gospel of Christ and His concern for the lost? It relates, in my opinion, to two different classes of people, or stages of spiritual condition.

 

            The lost lamb relates to the new-born Christian. He has awareness of his need for salvation and has professed his faith in his Shepherd, but that awareness lacks maturity regardless the age of the professor. He has developed a root system in the Word of God, but those roots have not developed sufficiently to withstand the trials and errors of the faithful servant. He is momentarily distracted from His Master’s voice and drifts into the old paths of his earlier wilderness. After a time of wandering alone, cold, and hungry, he realizes he is lost and in great need of being found. Just as the young lamb bleats and runs to and from on the mountain slopes, the lost Christian realizes his desperate condition in separation from His Master. He knows that he still belongs to His Master but needs to be rescued. Like the bleating of the little lamb, the Christian falls to his knees and prays for his rescue hoping that the Master will hear his cry and come searching – which He does always.

 

            Once found, the Master restores His lost one to the fold to the praise and glee of the Heavenly Host.

 

                The lost coin is different. It is like the spiritually dead sinner. It has not feelings of life or awareness of its lost condition. Being dead, it cannot save itself. It cannot lift a finger to aid in its being found. It cannot pray – it has no voice or vision. It must be sought out in the dirt and grit of the threshing floor. The sinner, too, has no spiritual life in itself to call out as the lost sheep. 1 And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins; 2 Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience: 3 Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others. 4 But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, 5 Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) 6 And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: 7 That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus. 8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: 9 Not of works, lest any man should boast. 10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.  (Eph 2:1-10)

 

            Being dead in trespasses and sin, we are found lifeless on the highways and byways of life. We are recovered from the waste and debri of city streets, of desert sands and dunes, of the barrooms and brothels of life, and are made alive by the searching eyes of the Holy Spirit. Suddenly, He quickens our dead heart and mind, and we are made alive in Christ – reborn to perform the good works of our calling in God.

 

            In the normal Christian life, we have been each of these conditions if we are honest in our hearts. We were once as dead to sense as the coin at some point before we were called to Christ as Lazarus from the tomb. We have all gone astray at some point in our lives – perhaps not so far away, but away nonetheless. We came to a point in time when we have realized our foolish diversion from the Way, the Truth, and the Life. We have awakened to our circumstances of lostness and prayed for repentance and finding – and we were found at length.

 

            May we learn from the parable of the lost sheep and coin our lives are much the same, but we all are subject to being found by the Master and His Holy Spirit.

Third Sunday after Trinity - Propers with explanation – Rev Jack’s Sermon – With Video

Rev Jack brings the Propers together today.    His sermon is below the propers and can be viewed on video HERE -> https://youtu.be/8Hd8NkBXZZc

 

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. His hearing is perfect. It is our hearing that is imperfect. In order to have the Holy Ghost’s help into our heart, we must let go of self centered and prideful  ways. Prideful beings cannot be followers of Christ.  In the Epistle, Peter makes this point when he says that God resists the proud and gives His Grace to the humble.  The Gospel recounts Jesus tells the Pharisees the story of the shepherd who loses a sheep and searches for it.  When he finds the sheep 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. It all comes together.  Having trouble visualizing that?  Read or listen to Rev Jack’s sermon. PS – The cameraman survived the coughing fit in the last few seconds of the sermon.

The Propers for today are found on Page 192-193, with the Collect first:

 

Third Sunday after Trinity.

The Collect.

 

O

 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.

 

The Epistle 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 Jack Arnold - Time and Action

Church of the Faithful Centurion

Descanso, California

Rev Jack’s sermon is available on video RIGHT HERE.  

https://youtu.be/8Hd8NkBXZZc

 

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.  It seems to me this is rather odd a thing to ask as He hears us all the time. His hearing is perfect. It is our hearing that is imperfect. 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.  The key is that we have to accept God’s help in order to receive these comforts..  In order to receive the comfort from God, we have to first let him into our hearts to begin his renewal of our spirit. If we do not accept the Holy Ghost’s help, then God will not be able to help us.

 

It would be foolish not to accept the Great Physician’s help to transform our spirits. It would be like having cancer, and there being a cure for cancer and rejecting that cure because we don’t like it. It doesn’t matter if we like it or not, what matters is that God has a solution ready for us, we just have to accept it and let Him enter our hearts, souls and minds to begin that transformation process. Without the help of the Holy Ghost into our hearts, we truly cannot follow Christ. We, of ourselves, cannot follow God without His Divine Assistance. We are sheep gone astray from our shepherd and without Jesus, are wolf food. But with Jesus’s protection, we are safe from the wolf/lion known as Satan.  

 

In order to have the Holy Ghost’s help into our heart, we must let go of self centered and prideful  ways. Prideful beings cannot be followers of Christ. Peter makes this point when he says that God resists the proud and gives His Grace to the humble. The humble are those who are more likely to accept His Grace and the Holy Ghost’s help to renew their spirit. The proud believe they are self-made people and scoff at the very idea of God sending his only begotten Son that we should not perish but have life everlasting (John 3:16). These proud people are very resistant to God and the Holy Spirit. These are the people that scoff at us and do not understand the benefits of the power of God and the Holy Spirit. They will continually be living in their own delusion unless they are otherwise shaken from it. And this is an extremely powerful delusion and it is difficult for these folks to be shaken from it. It is possible, but it does require that they allow the Holy Spirit in them, in order to be snapped out of the delusion. They do not understand that our self centered and prideful ways hurt us way more than it can ever help.

 

The humble know they cannot make it into heaven on their own; thus they know they need that divine help and are willing to accept it. They know that without God’s help they are nothing and thus they are more willing than the proud to rely on God. 

 

Therefore, we must strive to be humble in our lives and less prideful. When we let go of our pride, we can see where we are in error.  This is a life long process for most of us. It is a very difficult thing to let go of our pride, but it is something that must be done to further our character development all the same. Next time you are thinking prideful thoughts, stop and try and switch to a more humble attitude. In life, being humble will get you a lot farther than being prideful ever will.

 

When we accept help from the Holy Ghost, we can begin to fix the cracks and faults in our spiritual character. He can shine a light into the darkest areas of our hearts. Jesus could do this as well and He knew very well the spiritual character of each person He encountered in His Earthly Ministry.  He knows which areas we need to most work on and He will tell us.  We must trust His Knowledge and act upon His Wisdom that he provides us. Listening and then acting is the key phrase here. Without listening we’ll never know what we need to change and without acting we will never be able to change. So we must listen to what He has to say, regardless of how we feel about it and then act

 

With a clear view of the inner most thoughts of their hearts, Jesus tells the Pharisees the story of the shepherd who loses a sheep and searches for it.  When he finds the sheep 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.” No doubt the Pharisees missed the point of the parable as their hearts were too blackened by pride to hear His Word. They missed the point of all of His Parables as they were too proud to truly have the Holy Ghost in their hearts. They were much like the proud and self made men that we talked about earlier that resist God and His Offer for help. We must strive in our lives to be more like the humble men and less like the Pharisees. 

 

The moral of the parable is Jesus is all about saving the sinners, not those who are already “righteous.” But currently on this Earth there are none who are truly righteous. I liken the church as a hospital for sinners. And all of the saints were sinners in their past too.  Therefore Jesus is all about saving all of us, as none of us are truly righteous without His Influence in our lives. 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. There are no holier than thous in Christ’s flock, we are all equally non perfect folk or sinners that have let the Holy Ghost into our hearts to inspire us to change and become better humans and children of God.

 

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. He rejoices in each lost soul saved. This is what the Church is about, bringing lost souls to Our Shepherd of Souls, Our Savior, Our Advocate, Jesus Christ, to His Kingdom of Heavenly Joys.

 

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

Third Sunday after Trinity - Collect – 25 June 2023, Anno Domini (In the Year of our Lord)

 

Third Sunday after Trinity.

The Collect.

 

O

 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.

 

            Before our prayers are answered, they must be heard and recorded in Heaven.   One cannot expect prayers that fall short of the will of God or which are offered out of a heart that harbors sinful inclinations to be acceptable to our almighty Father. So, the opening line pleads for the hearing of our prayers by God Almighty. God hears our prayers, precisely as the Collect says, out of mercy and not some presumed constraint. There are churches today who have opted for the heresies of ancient days in teaching God has no choice but to hear and grant our prayer requests. Who is Sovereign, God or Man? I may upset the comfort of many in declaring my belief that there is more error taught in the modern church than truth. It is no wonder that our nation and people have sunk to their lowest moral point in history while churches teach that adultery, homosexuality, lukewarm obedience and a laxity of worship is acceptable so long as the treasury of the church offering pot is filled. 

 

            There are churches here in Alabama which note seven or eight different categories of offering on the Offering Envelope. If one or two boxes are not checked, the pastor makes public notice of it. There are special secular holidays, such as New Years Eve, at which the preacher prays for all the children of the church. These young innocents line up to be blessed by the pastor holding an envelope containing an offering clearly stated on the outside as to amount. If the amount is handsome, the prayer and blessing seems to be more intense and of greater duration.  May I ask the difference between this principle and that of Roman indulgences which spurred the great Reformer, Martin Luther, to flee to Protestantism? Our first prayer should always be that our lives and actions reflect the character from which God may hear our prayers: O LORD, we beseech thee mercifully to hear us.. . . grant that we, to whom thou hast given an hearty desire to pray.

 

Our petitions will be more in line with God's will to grant if our prayers emerge from a hearty desire to pray. Are your prayers and desires to pray hearty? Do you pray at first and last light of day? Is your life a perpetual attitude of prayer?  Prayer is a privilege at least as much as a duty. If we pray out of obligation only, our prayers are not offered in the proper spirit. People often petition to meet their Senator or Congressman to redress some trivial human grievance. They may wait days or weeks before the meeting is granted, and then the request may be given lip service only. But no one must wait in line to make their petitions known to the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. What a privilege to have the veil of separation in the Temple ripped from top to bottom so that all men may come on equal footing for their personal prayers to a Holy God. How can we neglect so great a privilege! Having so much greater vision than we have - in fact, perfect vision - God will even edit our requests so that a greater good to us will result from that for which we, at first, asked. We are children lacking a wider knowledge of the science of life, but God knows and answers our prayers accordingly.

 

            ". . . may, by thy mighty aid, be defended." God is truly our ONLY defense. That defense is reserved in greater measure for those who are minded to pray. Though God may not send mighty acts of nature to destroy a wicked people, He is inclined to defend His people from the effects of such cataclysmic events. Our youth in the public school system are not afforded the privilege of prayer to which I was exposed as a child. Therefore, evil and wickedness have a welcome door and access to our youth of America. God bless those parents who are able to home-school their children.

 

            Not only are we defended, in our prayers, from many dangers, toils and snares, but we are comforted therein as well. ". . . and comforted in all dangers and adversities. This principle is confirmed over and over in Holy Scripture. It has even been confirmed in my own life. It is not the case that God has spared me from very trying and difficult situations, but He has comforted and defended me therein. I have experienced a sense of ease even when those whose duty it is to render medical treatment are near panic. I do not wish to leave this world not knowing if my family is well, but I do not either fear death. It took me a while to develop that level of comfort in God, but, having it, I am relieved of many tensions and stresses. This last phrase of the Collect was appropriately added by the Prayer Book revisers of 1662, for it is not only a defense that we are granted, but a comfort and peace of mind under all circumstances.

 

           All prayer must be offered in the name of Jesus Christ. “And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.  If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it.” (John 14:13-14) This is not a license to ask anything we WANT, but we may ask anything CHRIST  wants for our lives if we ask it under His Name and Authority! When you offer your prayers, do you do so out of an earnest determination to ask only those things that are satisfying to God and out of a knowledge of His Holy Word? If not, why do we pray: "Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.? (Matt 6:10)

 

The Way of Cain – 23 June 2023, Anno Domini (In the Year of our Lord)

 

B

UT these speak evil of those things which they know not: but what they know naturally, as brute beasts, in those things they corrupt themselves. 11 Woe unto them! for they have gone in the way of Cain, and ran greedily after the error of Balaam for reward, and perished in the gainsaying of Core. (Jude 1:10-11)

 

            It may be coincidental Cain was the first man conceived on earth, and was a liar and a murderer, or, knowing that all things occur at the will of God, his coming may have been a result of Eve’s sin at the Tree. Cain was a nefarious creature who murdered his own brother out of envy. Since forgiveness of sin only comes by the shedding of blood, his brother Abel brought an acceptable sacrifice of his flock while Cain brought an offering of the fruit of the ground – a cursed source. Unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life. (Genesis 3:17) Out of immoderate jealousy, Cain murdered his brother and lied to God about his sin. Cain refused to confess his sins. He tried to justify himself before God Am I my brother’s keeper? He chose his own way over that of Godly contrition and faced egregious despair over obedience. Mine iniquity is greater than I can bear. Finally, Cain chose separation from God over Communion with Him.

 

            Jude tells us the unfaithful have gone the way of Cain. The way of Cain was not the Way of God. It was his own way and by his own reason. He took lightly the commandment of God to bring an acceptable sacrifice. He reasoned the fruit of his own works should suffice for a sacrifice. He did not follow the counsel of God, but his own sense and reason. Are we not guilty of the same thing when we reason that, under some circumstances, a white lie will benefit more than the truth. Or, perhaps, we may believe we do so many good works we will be accepted by God in lieu of faith and obedience to His Commandments.

 

            Cain enjoyed many privileges, for example, he had believing parents, a wise and faithful brother, and was subject to a gracious God. But there was a wicked stain in his blood that prevailed against those privileges that we normally assume to be sufficient to cause our sons and daughters to be righteous.

 

            The Way of God is the Way of His Son – the Way, the Truth, and the Life. But the way of Cain is the way of hatred, of self-righteousness, and of defiance to God. His theme song may well have been adopted from that of Frank Sinatra – I did it MY way. I wonder how Old Blue Eyes feels about that notion now? Separation from God is a very lonely way to go.

 

            The way of Cain was the way of doom, of despair, and of departure from the presence of God. He was cut off from family and home and made to be a vagabond upon the earth. Many Christians who live out their lives believing their works justify their salvation may likewise end in separation from God and His Way.

 

            The way of Cain is a very popular way in our day. In fact, the whole world has chosen the way of Cain and, unfortunately, most members of the professing Church. Instead of going into all the world teaching the nations, we have opened the floodgates of the world to come in amongst us in the Church.  We have adopted the way of the world, through compromise, instead of the Way, the Truth and the Life.

 

G

O ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: 20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. (Matthew 28:19-20)

 

The mainline churches are trading off the counsel of God and His Holy Sacrifice in Christ for the logic and reasoning of the world. Biblical marriage no longer appeals – practically anything one can imagine has been accepted in the Church of today. Many protestant church have already embraced sexual perversions as an acceptable model of marriage. They remain silent, or blatantly support, the murder of innocents in their mother’s womb. Now, even the Roman pope has suggested the church should embrace the LBGQT community into the church.

 

There is no limit to the evil conceived in the godless imagination of mankind. If you wonder what could be next, simply imagine the most ungodly and ridiculous sin possible, and you will find that it develops in time – or one even worse.

 

Christ cleaned the Temple twice during His ministry, and He will do so a final and third time at His return. Let us pray that we will not be at the tables of commerce overturned by our Lord and king when He returns and finds little faith upon the earth.

Serpent of Death and Lies – 22 June 2023, Anno Domini

 

Y

E are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.  (John 8:44)

 

            It will not likely come as a surprise to our readers the devil is head of a larger family than the Church itself – at least for the present moment. Every death upon earth is attributable to the Lie Satan told in the Garden at Eden. If we bear his likeness in lying and contributing to his evil works, then we are his children whom he covets. How many tv evangelists and mundane prophets who have had a dream or a vision that did not come from God will suffer the fate of their father the devil?

 

            Several years ago, I had a Nigerian military student pilot who shared some comments about the deadly python snake of Africa. That snake is powerful and is almost all muscle. It can grow to a length of 25 feet and of greater diameter than any other snake. It is cunning and unmerciful to any prey that falls within its power. 

 

            The African python often drapes itself over a jungle trail so that any animal or person passing below is easily trapped as it falls from the overhead branches and encircles its prey. It winds its long body around its prey and tightens its grip at each exhalation of breath. It the stretches its prey in order to break its bones to facilitate being able to swallow it. It then takes its prey by the head and begins to swallow. There is no possibility of escape for the python has sharp teeth that are slanted back making it impossible for any creature to withdraw.

 

My Nigerian student said that it was illegal to kill such a snake in a village.  When I asked why, he said “In its death throes, that snake thrashes about and would destroy most of the village.”

 

How like its progenitor of Eden is that snake. He lies in wait out of sight of his prey and suddenly entangles them in such horrible grip that they cannot escape. He slowly deprives them of the breath of life and breaks all their bones. His lies lead to the marshy bog where his victim has no way out. He takes from them the breath of life. At last, Satan swallows his victim whole – they die in his hateful grip. 

 

But for those who are enlightened by the Word of God and His Holy spirit, that old serpent, Satan, has no power to destroy. Yes, he is a liar – yes, he is a murderer. But the penalty for our inherited sinful nature has been paid by our Lord Jesus Christ – the Dragon Slayer. Being the Way, the Truth and the Life, our Lord provides us with Light and Truth with which to navigate the swamps of life and the snares of the Serpent:

 

            “7 And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels, 8 And prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven. 9 And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him. 10 And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night. 11 And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death. (Revelations 12: 7-11) He and his angels (demons) are among us today. They are subtle and full of deceit. They seek to possess our children whose responsibility it is of parents to defend against such deceit.

 

I am not surprised that the symbol of the most treacherous dictatorship in our modern world is a Red Dragon (Red China). But the Serpent's powers are not limited to tyrannical dictatorships. He is constantly working to subvert nations and free people to his own nature and manners. He lied in Eden to Eve who believed she would be a god if she obeyed him. That Paradise was taken away and she and Adam lived on the harsh demands of the soil. Today, his greatest intent is to destroy families and the morals of children. Instead of the Biblical family instituted by God, Satan has a counterfeit of perversion from which no child can be born. This suits the old Serpent fully since his original goal was to destroy the man that God had made. He even stoops to the murder of innocents in their mother’s womb which also plays into his destructive will to eliminate the works of God. Instead of a true seven-arched Rainbow of Promise created by God (reflecting His creative model), Satan has promoted a six-arched counterfeit called the pride flag - six being the number of man, not of God. For every truth of God, Satan has imagined a counterfeit and is teaching our children to believe a lie. Will we sit idly by while he works his plans of deceit and death?