Third Sunday after Easter - Propers with explanation – Bishop Jack’s Sermon – With Video

Bishop Jack’s sermon is below the propers and can be viewed on video HERE ->https://youtu.be/VT11O0NmgQA

 

Bishop Jack’s sermon looks at the unifying message of the Collect, Epistle and Gospel and examine how they share a common message of action as we continue to celebrate Jesus’ delivery of the promise of life eternal with Him in our life to come.  God is a Triune God; Father, Son, Holy Ghost. One of the Holy Ghost’s jobs is to open our souls, hearts and minds to God’s Will. One of His main functions to help us see where we are in error and how to fix those errors.   We are like eggs at present. And you cannot go on indefinitely being just an ordinary, decent egg. We must be hatched or go bad. Act in a manner consistent with the fact you will live forever and be responsible for your actions forever. Action, not diction is what counts. It all comes together.

The Propers for today are found on Page 173-174, with the Collect first:

 

The Third Sunday after Easter.

The Collect.

 

A

LMIGHTY God, who showest to them that are in error the light of thy truth, to the intent that they may return into the way of righteousness; Grant unto all those who are admitted into the fellowship of Christ’s Religion, that they may avoid those things that are contrary to their profession, and follow all such things as are agreeable to the same; through our Lord Jesus Christ.  Amen.

 

The Epistle for today came from the Second Chapter of the First Epistle of Saint Peter beginning at the Eleventh Verse.  Peter tells us to live a good life, to follow the directions Jesus left us, to make ourselves positive examples of citizen to others, to be leaders of our community, drawing people towards God.  To live out the life Jesus commanded, to do nothing to draw ill repute on the Word of God.  To be truly free and follow freedom to where God wants us to be, not to Donkey Island, where false freedom takes so many. 

 

D

EARLY beloved, I beseech you as strangers and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul; having your conversation honest among the Gentiles: that, whereas they speak against you as evildoers, they may by your good works, which they shall behold, glorify God in the day of visitation. Submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord’s sake: whether it be to the king, as supreme; or unto governors, as unto them that are sent by him for the punishment of evildoers, and for the praise of them that do well. For so is the will of God, that with well doing ye may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men: as free, and not using your liberty for a cloke of maliciousness, but as the servants of God. Honour all men. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honour the king.

 

Today’s Gospel came from the Sixteenth Chapter of the Gospel according to Saint John beginning at the Sixteenth Verse.

 

Jesus warns his disciples of the events about to unfold.  He is to be taken from them shortly by the painful death on the Cross for our redemption.  He will not be with them here on earth.  Yet, after three days time He will Rise from death, having overcome death for us.  When He is gone from us we are sorrowful, just like the disciples.  He came back from death for us.  And yet He was to leave again, yet not be gone from us as the Father would send the Holy Ghost to make His abode in our hearts and bring Jesus to us.

 

J

ESUS said to his disciples, A little while, and ye shall not see me: and again, a little while, and ye shall see me, because I go to the Father. Then said some of his disciples among themselves, What is this that he saith unto us, A little while, and ye shall not see me: and again, a little while, and ye shall see me: and, Because I go to the Father? They said therefore, What is this that he saith, A little while? we cannot tell what he saith. Now Jesus knew that they were desirous to ask him, and said unto them, Do ye enquire among yourselves of that I said, A little while, and ye shall not see me: and again, a little while, and ye shall see me? Verily, verily, I say unto you, That ye shall weep and lament, but the world shall rejoice: and ye shall be sorrowful, but your sorrow shall be turned into joy. A woman when she is in travail hath sorrow, because her hour is come: but as soon as she is delivered of the child, she remembereth no more the anguish, for joy that a man is born into the world. And ye now therefore have sorrow: but I will see you again, and your heart shall rejoice, and your joy no man taketh from you.

 

Jack Arnold

Bishop of the Diocese of the West – AOC USA

Education and Training

Church of the Faithful Centurion

Anglican Orthodox Church Worldwide

Bp Jack brings the Collect, Epistle and Gospel together because as is always the case there is a unifying message in the Scripture for this Sunday.   Bp Jack’s sermon can be viewed on video

HERE ->https://youtu.be/VT11O0NmgQA

 

Good morning! I hope you are all doing well. In today’s sermon we will be looking at the unifying message of the Collect, Epistle and Gospel and examine how they share a common message of action as we continue to celebrate Jesus’ delivery of the promise of life eternal with Him in our life to come.  This Day of the Resurrection is when the promise of eternal life is delivered. 

 

Let’s start by reading the Collect for today:

 

The Third Sunday after Easter.

The Collect.

 

A

LMIGHTY God, who showest to them that are in error the light of thy truth, to the intent that they may return into the way of righteousness; Grant unto all those who are admitted into the fellowship of Christ’s Religion, that they may avoid those things that are contrary to their profession, and follow all such things as are agreeable to the same; through our Lord Jesus Christ.  Amen.

 

 

Consider these words from the Collect:

 

… who showest to them that are in error the light of thy truth, to the intent that they may return into the way of righteousness; Grant unto all those who are admitted into the fellowship of Christ’s Religion, that they may avoid those things that are contrary to their profession, and follow all such things as are agreeable to the same…

 

God is a Triune God; Father, Son, Holy Ghost.  One of the Holy Ghost’s jobs is to open our souls, hearts and minds to God’s Will.  One of His main functions to help us see where we are in error and how to fix those errors.  Thus, open our “ears” to His Voice so we can listen and make our improvements based on His Words.  He is there to guide us when we have gone astray from the path. What the Collect asks is we let the Holy Ghost in so He can change us.  Without the Holy Ghost, change is impossible.   Consider this quote from Jack Lewis out of Mere Christianity:

 

“When He said, ‘Be perfect,’ He meant it. He meant that we must go in for the full treatment. It is hard; but the sort of compromise we are all hankering after is harder—in fact, it is impossible. It may be hard for an egg to turn into a bird: it would be a jolly sight harder for it to learn to fly while remaining an egg. We are like eggs at present. And you cannot go on indefinitely being just an ordinary, decent egg. We must be hatched or go bad.”

 

It is clear from the above quote from CS Lewis that we cannot do things in half measures to follow God. It seems clear to me that we must give it our all with the help of the Holy Spirit. It does not matter if it is hard for us to listen to the Holy Ghost and attempt to follow His instructions, we must do it.  He is our perfect instructor and if we will listen to Him, God will always provide the light to show us where “We have erred, and strayed from His ways like lost sheep. Where we have followed too much the devices and desires of our own hearts. Where we have offended against His holy laws. Where we have left undone those things which we ought to have done; And we have done those things which we ought not to have done[1]…”   He will shine His Light onto the dark areas in our heart and souls so we can focus on removing those evil attributes and replacing them with more Godly attributes. We just have to focus on letting Him into our hearts, souls, minds and bodies that he might be able to help us change our course guidance. In order to do that, we can’t resist Him, we have to let Him in. He will not force his way in, He has to be invited in.

 

The Holy Ghost does this this so that we can remain on the course which brings us to His World.  For without that guiding light, we will be forever lost on the path to darkness. He is our infallible navigator/GPS. If we will always rely on Him, He shall never fail us. We more have to worry about failing Him than Him failing us. 

 

One thing is clear and that is that we have to let His Light into our hearts before we can shine it to others that they may see the works of His Light. We cannot lead others to a Light we do not have within us. So, we must first make sure we have the Light of the Holy Ghost within us before we can think of leadings others to that Light.

 

We must start in our own little corner of the world and work our way outward.  That is the best place to start. We cannot change the whole world at once, but it must be changed by us, individually, one little corner of the world at a time. We are always striving to work towards total transformation of our area to the light. However, we will always find opposition from evil. If evil is thwarting our efforts then we all must put in 110% to stop evil and combat it across the world wherever it is. We must never, never, never, ever give up on this fight.  

 

We must fight evil wherever and whenever we run across it. Evil anywhere is Evil everywhere[2].  We must not let the little and big evils in this life get us down or defeat us. We must rely on the guiding power of the Holy Ghost and God’s unlimited grace to save the day. His Grace can help you out of any horrific situation; only if you ask for and accept His help, which is a universal theme in our sermons here, because it is a truth and one that Jesus preached, that is that we have to accept Him into our hearts, if we are to become truly Christians. 

 

Peter tells us our actions need to be consistent with the principles of Scripture and of Jesus’ message. In short, we need to be good citizens, be good neighbors, take particular care of our Christian family.  In short, do what Christ would do, as far as it is in us. We need to cling to the good and reject the evil thoughts and actions of our old sinful selves.  Let us do our best to think, in hard and trying times, what would Jesus do in our situation, and then act in a manner most like Him. There may be some people that are more trying to deal with than others, but it is clear that we must try and treat all as Jesus would in our place to the best of our abilities. In order to make the world a better place, we first have to start with our selves then work outward, applying the principles of Christ to our lives. God does not ask us to be perfect; He does ask us individually to do our best to try to be perfect, to follow Jesus’ lead to the extent we have it in us.  Each of us is different, some are in truth less bad than others.  God holds us each to the same standard, that is to do our best. 

 

We are not competing against each other. Christianity is not about competing against each other. It is about helping one another to reach the finish line to the best of our ability. All of us in the Church are on the same team. We are just called to do the best individually for our Team and to stay on that narrow uphill path towards heaven. We are also called to encourage and support each other on that trek on the uphill path towards heaven.

 

In the Gospel according to Saint John, Jesus tells of His impending bodily death and resurrection.    He reminds us if we have eternal life, sorrow, even the sorrow of death is transient, for He has conquered death. It is a very minor thing in the long term view the sorrow of a temporary parting of a loved one. For that is all that is, if we put our trust and hope in God and do our very best to follow Him.  We have to keep this in mind throughout our travel along the straight and narrow upward path. His One Sacrifice, made One Time, for All Mankind, for All Time is that joy that no man can take from us.  But, if we want to share in that eternal life, we need to see the error of our ways in the Light of His Light and take actions to follow Him.

 

Often it seems much easier to take the path of least resistance, to quit our work at the first sign of effort, to goof off when “no one” is looking.  But in the end, the right thing to do is always the easiest, the most profitable.  The one that will result in happiness.  It might seem hard, but it will not be as hard as doing the “easy” thing.

 

The time is now, not tomorrow.  The time has come, indeed.  How will you ACT?

 

It is by our actions we are known.

 

As we go off on our business, please recall this quote from GK Chesterton:

 

Christianity has not been tried and found wanting; it has been found difficult and not tried.

 

Be of God - Live of God - Act of God

---

[1] General Confession – BCP Page 6

[2] Lord of the Rings

Sermon Notes - Third Sunday after Easter - Christ and His Church - Anglican Orthodox Communion Worldwide - 21 April 2024, Anno Domini

The Third Sunday after Easter.

The Collect.

 

A

LMIGHTY God, who showest to them that are in error the light of thy truth, to the intent that they may return into the way of righteousness; Grant unto all those who are admitted into the fellowship of Christ’s Religion, that they may avoid those things that are contrary to their profession, and follow all such things as are agreeable to the same; through our Lord Jesus Christ.  Amen.

I

 AM come into my garden, my sister, my spouse: I have gathered my myrrh with my spice; I have eaten my honeycomb with my honey; I have drunk my wine with my milk: eat, O friends; drink, yea, drink abundantly, O beloved. 2 I sleep, but my heart waketh: it is the voice of my beloved that knocketh, saying, Open to me, my sister, my love, my dove, my undefiled: for my head is filled with dew, and my locks with the drops of the night. 3 I have put off my coat; how shall I put it on? I have washed my feet; how shall I defile them? 4 My beloved put in his hand by the hole of the door, and my bowels were moved for him. 5 I rose up to open to my beloved; and my hands dropped with myrrh, and my fingers with sweet smelling myrrh, upon the handles of the lock. 6 I opened to my beloved; but my beloved had withdrawn himself, and was gone: my soul failed when he spake: I sought him, but I could not find him; I called him, but he gave me no answer.14 His hands are as gold rings set with the beryl: his belly is a bright ivory overlaid with sapphires.15 His legs are as pillars of marble, set upon sockets of fine gold: his countenance is as Lebanon, excellent as the cedars.16 His mouth is most sweet: yea, he is altogether lovely. This is my beloved, and this is my friend, O daughters of Jerusalem. (Song 5:1-6, 14-16)

 

The Sermon

The Song of Solomon is a beautiful story of Christ and His Church. It is written in metaphor and parable. It reveals the intimacy of expression and deep love which Christ has for His Church and which His Church should have for Him.

 

“I am come into my garden, my sister, my spouse:” Sadly, we often doubt the presence of Christ with us. He loves His Bride so much, and us individually, that He cannot let us out of His sight. How can we allow His presence to go without acknowledgement. Is it possible, when we need Him most, He is right beside us as He was to Mary Magdalene at the Tomb, the two travelers on the Road to Emmaus, and the fearful disciples aboard the ship on the stormy Galilean Sea? So, He must announce He has come to us! In fact, He often stands at the door and knocks while we remain oblivious to His coming. In speaking to the churches of Revelations, He says, “I stand at the door and knock.” (Rev 3:20). Unfortunately, that places Him OUTSIDE – not INSIDE – the greater number of churches.

“I have gathered my myrrh with my spice; I have eaten my honeycomb with my honey; I have drunk my wine with my milk: eat, O friends; drink, yea, drink abundantly, O beloved.” He has done all required for the dowry of His Bride. He has received the myrrh of the burial and the sweet spices of His resurrection. Because He has drunk His wine (Cup of Suffering) with His milk (Morning Joy), He insist the entitlement for us to do so as well, for all that is His is all of His Bride’s, too. We are ‘beloved’ to Him. What a special title we have from such an exalted Lord and King.

 

“I sleep, but my heart waketh: it is the voice of my beloved that knocketh, saying, Open to me, my sister, my love, my dove, my undefiled: for my head is filled with dew, andmy locks with the drops of the night.” The Bride is not so watchful as the Groom. She sleeps while He has suffered the dews of the night. But she does, indeed, hear His Voice and knows the Voice. And the Bride is not only a Bride, but a Sister as well. “My mother and my brethren are these which hear the word of God, and do it.” (Luke 8:21)

 

“I have put off my coat; how shall I put it on? I have washed my feet; how shall I defile them?” What deplorable excuses the Church makes to cover its unwillingness to bear the cross. It is not convenient! It is not the proper time! I have been sleeping and need rest to regain my bearings? Today’s church is quick to act on matters involving power and pelf, yet slow to do those things necessary to nurture wisdom and knowledge of God in her members. It is a small thing to build a two million dollar Taj Mahal, but quite a burden to put one’s self out to bring the sheaf to the barn.

 

“My beloved put in his hand by the hole of the door, and my bowels were moved for him.” He will use His charms and His Spirit to beckon and to lure us and, yet, we still are slow to respond. If we are too slow, He will not linger at the door always. The term ‘bowels’ here is used in the same manner the term ‘heart’ is used today. Our hearts are moved for Him because His heart was first moved for us. “We love him, because he first loved us.” (1 John 4:19).

 

“I rose up to open to my beloved; and my hands dropped with myrrh, and my fingers with sweet smelling myrrh, upon the handles of the lock.” Too slowly does the church arise to open its door to Christ, and too often is Christ OUTSIDE the Church and not INSIDE. (Rev 3:20). Her hands are full of the myrrh of repentance, but the lock of the door is the sin that has kept Him out.

 

“I opened to my beloved; but my beloved had withdrawn himself, and was gone: my soul failed when he spake: I sought him, but I could not find him; I called him, but he gave me no answer.” The Spaniards have a beautiful name and title for Christ: “Jesus es el Senor!” or ‘Jesus is a Gentleman’. And so He is. He does not intrude where He is not welcome. We may avoid Christ to the point that He will not answer without prevailing prayer. She awoke from sleep when He called, else He would have departed for ever. Now she must be chastened for her reluctance to watch and wait.

 

“His hands are as gold rings set with the beryl: his belly is as bright ivory overlaid with sapphires. His legs are as pillars of marble, set upon sockets of fine gold: his countenance is as Lebanon, excellent as the cedars.” The precious stones mentioned are those stones of the foundation for New Jerusalem. (Rev 21:19,20). The gold rings are symbols of authority. His is tall and majestic as the Cedars of Lebanon. “His mouth is most sweet: yea, he is altogether lovely. This is my beloved, and this is my friend, O daughters of Jerusalem.” From His mouth we have heard only kindness and loveliness. He is my Friend that sticketh closer than a brother. (Proverbs 18:24). He is the only One for the Church for there can be no other. She LOVES Him, and so must we all.

 

Perhaps we should stop to consider well what a marvelously wonderful Savior we have. He is madly in love with His Bride, the True Church. Should that love go unrequited by those who are showered with love without merit?

Easter 03 Collect – 21 April 2024, Anno Domini (In the Year of our Lord)

The Third Sunday after Easter.

The Collect.

 

A

LMIGHTY God, who showest to them that are in error the light of thy truth, to the intent that they may return into the way of righteousness; Grant unto all those who are admitted into the fellowship of Christ’s Religion, that they may avoid those things that are contrary to their profession, and follow all such things as are agreeable to the same; through our Lord Jesus Christ.  Amen.

 

Even at the moment of the Resurrection of Christ, the spirit of anti-Christ was afoot. Roman guards were bribed to conceal the truth of what happened at the Garden Tomb before sunrise on Easter morning. Institutions, even the Churches, that draw their power and influence from political man, are a part and portion of that spirit of anti-Christ. The focus of our Collect for this week centers on a plea against error and darkness.

 

          There is a church in Pensacola called the Brownsville Assembly of God Church at which the Korean preacher, Cho Yonggi, spoke in the 1990s and predicted a great revival. Cho, not noted for his faithfulness to biblical truth, did correctly forecast an event that lasted a few years there and which was ‘called’ a revival by its adherents. There was a lot of spirit observed in their revival (at which it is estimated more than four million people attended) to the detriment of biblical truth. Men were being led about on all fours by a leash. Why? Because the Holy Spirit, they say, told them to act like a dog! On one occasion, a woman came to the microphone and said, “I know some of you will think I am crazy, but the Holy Spirit told me to do this.” She then began to howl like a wolf into the microphone – I am NOT kidding, I have it on VHS tape. Certain men were assigned as blanketeers. They would stand by with blankets to cover the modesty of women rolling about on the floor. It is clear that a spirit had moved these people to this state of delusional ecstasy, but it certainly was not the Holy Spirit of which I read in Holy Scripture. The so-called ‘Brownsville Revival’ has run its course and the men who initiated the false revival have moved on to the next nest of suckers who will believe their lies.

 

          So is this phenomenon relegated to the past only? Not hardly. How many silly women and naïve men are being deceived today by books claiming that someone has gone to heaven or hell and returned to tell us about it? Paul gives profound warning of this delusional aspect of error: This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. ²For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, ³Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, ⁴Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; ⁵Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away. ⁶For of this sort are they which creep into houses, and lead captive silly women laden with sins, led away with divers lusts, ⁷Ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth. (2 Tim 3:1-7) The deception of those who read such light-headed drama is not innocent, but deliberate. They choose to believe a lie over and above the Word of God. This places their very souls in jeopardy. Did not Mother Eve do the same?

 

          God does reveal to those who seek in earnest, His absolute Truth! He revealed it to Adam and Eve, and they disregarded that truth and brought death and sin upon – not only human race – but the world at large. ALMIGHTY God, who showest to them that are in error the light of thy truth. It is amazing to me, and even shocking, that those who are in error and claim to be sound Bible believers will accept the word of a fictional writer over that of clear biblical proofs. The reason is simple: they prefer to believe the fantasy before they will believe the truth. Beware, again, the words of Paul:  For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way. ⁸And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming: ⁹Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders, ¹⁰And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. ¹¹And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: ¹²That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness. (2 Thess 2:7-12)

 

          For what purpose does God reveal the Light of Truth to those who are in error? “…..to the intent that they may return into the way of righteousness.” If deceitful men and books have led a man or woman away from the path of truth, surely they will believe once the error is pointed out to them, won’t they? Often they do not because they prefer the lie to the truth. To those who love truth to the exclusion of popular fantasies, that truth will always bring again to understanding truth.

 

          There are two points of purpose that should govern the thoughts and actions of a Christian:

 

1.     Possessing such knowledge and understanding of truth so as to recognize and AVOID error.  Grant unto all those who are admitted into the fellowship of Christ's Religion, that they may avoid those things that are contrary to their profession.

 

2.     Possessing such truth and wisdom of God’s Word in our hearts so that we order our lives in the very way of that righteousness in truth described by God in His Word. “….and follow all such things as are agreeable to the same.” Of course, we are enabled to do these things “…through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

 

          How is it possible that we sit under Godly preaching and worship, Sunday after Sunday, repeating the prayers of the Collects and, yet, have no intention of being faithful to those prayers we have uttered collectively? 

 

·      Is this not taking the Name of the Lord in vain if we pray with false intention and motive? Do we really mean it when we pray the Lord’s Prayer? 

 

·      Do we REALLY desire HIS will to be done, or do we tenaciously hold to a lie and follow our own wills in deception of truth? 

 

·      Do we Really seek only our daily bread, or do we seek the bread of others to add to our own? 

 

·      Are we truly repentant in seeking His forgiveness of our sins? 

 

·      Have we turned from them? If so, have we followed the corollary of the prayer to forgive others in like manner in which God has forgiven us? 

 

·      Do we truly glorify God with our minds, heart, body, and spirits? 

 

·      If we recognize the Lord as the awesome and almighty Savior that He is, why do we follow silly fantasies that add to, or take away, from the Word of God? 

 

I am becoming disillusioned, not so much by unbelievers of the world as, with professed believers who disregard the Word of God and live and act with flagrant disregard for that Word. But I recognize my obligation, and the obligation of every clergyman and laity to persist in teaching, in rebuking, and in edifying the Church.

Love begotten of the Father – 18 April 2024, Anno Domini

 

A

 NEW Commandment I give unto you (John 13:34)

 

            The Commandments of God, written on Tables of Stone, proved impossible for the Children of Israel to obey in the strict legal sense with which they were viewed by the people. God had intended it so to be in order to cause the people to realize their inability to merit the Kingdom of God as sinless followers.

 

            The coming of Christ did not annul the Commandments of God and were never intended to do so. Instead, He added only one additional Commandment to the other Ten – 34 A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. 35 By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another. (John 13:34-35) In a certain sense, this was not s new Commandment. But an ancient Commandment repeated as a seal of the believers and followers of Christ.

 

We are told to love one another in at least at least sixteen times by the Apostle John which seems most appropriate since John is considered the Apostle of Love (the disciple, as he says,’whom  the Lord loved’). John was of a tender age and heart – able to perceive the depth of love demonstrated by our Lord, and he makes more reference to love than any other of the New Testament witnesses. And this is his commandment, That we should believe on the name of his Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, as he gave us commandment. 1 John 3:23; as John said to the elect lady: And now I beseech thee, lady, not as though I wrote a new commandment unto thee, but that which we had from the beginning, that we love one another. (2 John 5)

 

Now it may seem less important to love one another than to love God, but actually, we must do BOTH or none at all. It seems easier to love God, the Giver of all Good Gifts, than a fellow believer; but whatsoever thing god loves, we must love as well since we are His adopted children by grace. As John has said in John 13:35, love for one another is the evidence of discipleship.

 

We owe the Father of Lights a great gift – Owe no man any thing, but to love one another: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law. (Romans 13:8)  Since our Lord Jesus Christ hung both tables of the Law on LOVE, obedience thereby is the only means of being accounted righteous before God the Father.  . . . love covereth all sins. (Proverbs 10:12), and above all things have fervent charity (love) among yourselves: for charity (love) shall cover the multitude of sins. (1 Peter 4:8)  Love is a debt to be paid to both God and man.

 

Love is a demonstration of the abounding grace with which we are endowed as believers: And the Lord make you to increase and abound in love one toward another, and toward all men, even as we do toward you: (1 Thessalonians 3:12)

 

Love for one another is proof-positive of our being taught by God to do so. The love we spread abroad is the mark of our identity as children of God:  But as touching brotherly love ye need not that I write unto you: for ye yourselves are taught of God to love one another. (1 Thessalonians 4:9) It is our mark of salvation: Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently: (1 Peter 22)

 

If we are to be sons and daughters of the Living God, we must quit ourselves with the character and disposition of the family Head. For this is the message that ye heard from the beginning, that we should love one another. (1 John 3:11)

 

Just as coinage of the realm is marked with the seal and stamp of the issuing authority, so must the Christian bear the stamp of Divine approbation Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God. (1 John 7)

 

Love is not only a sentiment and a proclivity of behavior, but an obligation: Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another. (1 John 4:11) God did, indeed, so love us as to send His only Begotten Son as Redeemer for us.

 

Since our Lord loved us first – the only means of our response of love – the manner in which we love abundantly is evidence of His indwelling Presence in our hearts. No man hath seen God at any time. If we love one another, God dwelleth in us, and his love is perfected in us. (1 John 4:12)

 

Perhaps you grow weary of the repetitious mention of the importance of love made by the Apostle John? When God repeats His counsel over and over again as a good Father, it is intended to aid retention of the beauty of His truth to us. Love is the Cornerstone of our Faith in our Lord Jesus Christ!

To God be the Glory – 16 April 2024, Anno Domini

 

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HETHER therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.³² Give none offence, neither to the Jews, nor to the Gentiles, nor to the church of God:³³ Even as I please all men in all things, not seeking mine own profit, but the profit of many, that they may be saved. (1 Corinthians 10:31-33)

 

This hymn stands in sharp contrast to all of the thousands of other hymns Fanny Crosby wrote. Most of her hymns extol the wonder and beauty of the saint’s experience in the surety of God’s salvation. This hymn, however, extols the glory of God alone to the exclusion of any human experiences. I add the following quote: 

 

In contrast to many gospel hymns (including the majority of Crosby's texts), To God Be the Glory directs our attention away from personal experience to the glory of God. God so loved the world that he gave us his Son to make atonement for sin (st. 1); all who believe in Christ will receive pardon (st. 2) and will rejoice now and through all eternity because of the great things he has done (st. 3). The refrain borrows its praise in part from the Old Testament psalms. The phrase when Jesus we see (st. 3) must have meant something special to Crosby, who was blinded when she was seven weeks old. Hymnary.org.

 

Fanny Crosby (1820-1915), blind from infancy, wrote this hymn in 1870 to the tune by the same name composed by William Howard Doane.

 

To God be the Glory

 

To God be the glory, great things he has done!

So loved he the world that he gave us his Son,

who yielded his life an atonement for sin,

and opened the life-gate that all may go in.

Refrain:

Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord, 

Let the earth hear his voice!

Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord! 

Let the people rejoice!

O come to the Father through Jesus the Son

and give him the glory, great things he has done!

 

Great things he has taught us, great things he has done,

and great our rejoicing through Jesus the Son,

but purer and higher and greater will be

our joy and our wonder, when Jesus we see. 

Refrain

 

1 To God be the glory, great things he has done! So loved he the world that he gave us his Son, who yielded his life an atonement for sin, and opened the life-gate that all may go in. There is no glory apart of that belonging to our God who is our Maker, Creator, Redeemer, Savior, Lord, and Friend. The only Begotten Son of God, our Lord Jesus Christ, was obedient to His Father unto death in the redemption of the elect of God. Just as the Door of the Ark of Noah was the only gateway to salvation for the pre-deluvian masses of whom only eight souls gained entry. That Door was closed by God since man does not have the volition to close the door of salvation on mankind. ¹⁶ And they that went in, went in male and female of all flesh, as God had commanded him: and the Lord shut him in. (Genesis 7:16)  Christ is not only the door of the Sheepfold, but the Door to Heaven and Salvation itself. Only He can open that Door

 

2 Great things he has taught us, great things he has done, and great our rejoicing through Jesus the Son, but purer and higher and greater will be our joy and our wonder, when Jesus we see. The Immutable Word of God is the greatest gift we can possess for it is the very image of the only Begotten Son of God in written form: 1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. ² The same was in the beginning with God. ³ All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. ⁴ In him was life; and the life was the light of men. (John 1:1-4)  Our Lord’s coming was the crux of all time and society. It divided eternity past from eternity future. But for Him, there is no past or future, for He is the Eternal Presence – the Great I AM! It is remarkable that most of the hymns of the blind Fanny Crosby convey a sense of seeing the Lord. Perhaps in her physical blindness her spiritual vision was far keener than our physical vision.

 

Refrain:

Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord,  Let the earth hear his voice! Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord!  Let the people rejoice! O come to the Father through Jesus the Son and give him the glory, great things he has done! Even the inanimate world responds to the commands of God and His natural law. Mankind is not so responsive to the Commandments of God as these natural elements of the earth. But the day looms large when at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth;And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. (Philippians 2:10-11)

 

Let every thing that hath breath praise the LORD. Praise ye the LORD. (Psalm 150:6)  

 

There is only one approach to the Father and that is through His only Begotten Son, Jesus Christ.

AOC Sunday Report – Second Sunday after Easter

 

Happy Second Sunday after Easter!  The Day of the Resurrection!  Not bunnies, eggs, flowers and chocolates.

 

The AOC Sunday report can be downloaded RIGHT HERE.

 

We have excellent sermons today from Bishops Jerry, Roy, Yves and me, as well as Rev Bryan and a First Sunday after Easter sermon from Rev Stephen Cooper.  Each of them is really good, interesting and different. They are all very easy reads, each is well worth your time.

 

Bishop Hap’s sermon can be viewed on video HERE -> https://youtu.be/jXfttChJRUo His sermon looks at the unifying message of the Collect, Epistle and Gospel and examine how they share a common message of action as we continue to celebrate Jesus’ delivery of the promise of life eternal with Him in our life to come.  This Day of the Resurrection is when the promise of eternal life was delivered. Remember, your eternal life does not start when your body dies, but when you accept it with your soul.  So, act in a manner consistent with the fact you will live forever and be responsible for your actions forever. Action, not diction is what counts. It all comes together.

 

As always, we have a lot of people who desire your prayers. I know that seems to never change, that is because the need is always there.  Once again today we ask you start with the Richards family; Rachel Richards is still in very serious condition after a very bad car accident. They are the wife and daughter of Rev Joshua Richards.  Rachel’s injuries are severe.  More details in the report.

 

As we witness the miracle of our Lord’s return, are we following up with action on our part? We all need to see if we are really opening our heart to God’s guidance in the form of the Holy Ghost. If we’re not, and I doubt any of us really are as much as we could, we need to try harder and harder to do that. It is very difficult to follow God’s instructions if you don’t listen to them.

 

May you set your course on the constant North Star of our Lord.

 

Godspeed,

 

Hap Arnold

Bishop Coadjutor

Anglican Orthodox Church Worldwide 

Second Sunday after Easter - Propers with explanation – Bishop Hap’s Sermon – With Video

 

Bishop Hap’s sermon is below the propers and can be viewed on video HERE ->https://youtu.be/jXfttChJRUo

 

Bishop Hap’s sermon looks at the unifying message of the Collect, Epistle and Gospel and examine how they share a common message of action as we continue to celebrate Jesus’ delivery of the promise of life eternal with Him in our life to come.  This Day of the Resurrection is when the promise of eternal life was delivered. Remember, your eternal life does not start when your body dies, but when you accept it with your soul.  So, act in a manner consistent with the fact you will live forever and be responsible for your actions forever. Action, not diction is what counts. It all comes together.

The Propers for today are found on Page 171-172, with the Collect first:

 

The Second Sunday after Easter.

The Collect.

 

A

LMIGHTY God, who hast given thine only Son to be unto us both a sacrifice for sin, and also an ensample of godly life; Give us grace that we may always most thankfully receive that his inestimable benefit, and also daily endeavour ourselves to follow the blessed steps of his most holy life; through the same thy Son Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.

 

This morning’s Epistle came from the First General Epistle of St. Peter, beginning at the Nineteenth Verse of the Second Chapter. The Epistle reminds us that Christ, who was completely without sin or guile, not only died for our sins, but suffered humiliation and torture without complaint for us.  Thus, if we, because we believe in God and our Lord Jesus, are subjected to unfavorable comment, criticism or even persecution, we should bear this gladly, as our Lord gave us his example.  If we want to benefit from the Lord’s sacrifice, then we need to try to follow in his footsteps.  We need to look to His example to live our lives.

 

We are as sheep going astray who have been returned to the flock by our Lord, the Shepherd and Bishop of our souls.

 

We were asked the question, who is this man Jesus?  We answered, he is the Son of God; are we following him?  In this Epistle again, we are admonished to follow our Lord.

 

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HIS is thankworthy, if a man for conscience toward God endure grief, suffering wrongfully. For what glory is it, if, when ye be buffeted for your faults, ye shall take it patiently? but if, when ye do well, and suffer for it, ye take it patiently, this is acceptable with God. For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps: who did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth: who, when he was reviled, reviled not again; when he suffered, he threatened not; but committed himself to him that judgeth righteously: who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed. For ye were as sheep going astray; but are now returned unto the Shepherd and Bishop of your souls.

 

Today’s Gospel came from the Tenth Chapter of the Gospel according to St. John beginning at the Eleventh Verse. Using the words that give this Sunday its name, Jesus said: I am the good shepherd; the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.  He goes on to say He is not a hireling who cares not for the flock, but rather the shepherd himself.  He understands his job and puts it first, before his desires.  Jesus knows each of His sheep and they know Him, even as He knows His Father and His Father knows Him.  Because we are His sheep, He willingly laid down His life that we might live.  Jesus also points out He is not here to shepherd only the Jews, but all men, And there are other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one flock, and one shepherd.

 

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ESUS said, I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep. But he that is an hireling, and not the shepherd, whose own the sheep are not, seeth the wolf coming, and leaveth the sheep, and fleeth: and the wolf catcheth them, and scattereth the sheep. The hireling fleeth, because he is an hireling, and careth not for the sheep. I am the good shepherd; and know my sheep, and am known of mine, even as the Father knoweth me, and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep. And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one flock, and one shepherd.

Hap Arnold

Bishop Coadjutor

Anglican Orthodox Church Worldwide

Bp Hap brings the Collect, Epistle and Gospel together because as is always the case there is a unifying message in the Scripture for this Sunday.   Bp Hap’s sermon can be viewed on video HERE ->https://youtu.be/jXfttChJRUo

Good morning! I hope you are all doing well. I know you were looking for a sermon from Bishop Jack, but he is on travel so you get one from me.  We are in the Easter Season which consists of Easter and the following four Sundays, through Rogation Sunday.  This is a time we should work on centering our lives on the central figure in our religion, Jesus Christ.  

 

In today’s sermon we will be looking at the unifying message of the Collect, Epistle and Gospel and examine how they share a common message of action as we continue to celebrate Jesus’ delivery of the promise of life eternal with Him in our life to come.  This Day of the Resurrection is when the promise of eternal life was delivered. Remember, your eternal life does not start when your body dies, but when you accept it with your soul.  So, act in a manner consistent with the fact you will live forever and be responsible for your actions forever.

 

Let’s start by reading the Collect for today:

 

The Second Sunday after Easter.

The Collect.

 

A

LMIGHTY God, who hast given thine only Son to be unto us both a sacrifice for sin, and also an ensample of godly life; Give us grace that we may always most thankfully receive that his inestimable benefit, and also daily endeavour ourselves to follow the blessed steps of his most holy life; through the same thy Son Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.

 

Consider these words from the Collect:

 

… given thine only Son to be unto us both a sacrifice for sin, and also an ensample of godly life; Give us grace that we may always most thankfully receive that his inestimable benefit, and also daily endeavour ourselves to follow the blessed steps of his most holy life …

 

To understand the importance of Jesus’ sacrifice, it is critical to understand He is the only begotten Son (John 3:16) of God.  He is also referred to in places as The Word, the means by which God has given His instructions to the world.  But, more than that, 1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 The same was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.   (John 1:1-3)  Though the corrupted versions of the Bible (NIV, NKJV, RSV, etc) have attempted to erase His Divine Status and the role He plays in our salvation, that does not change the reality of Who He is. He is in simplest terms, the great I AM.  He was the one who brought light into this World. He has been there since before the beginning of time, before the beginning of what we know as our Universe. He created this world, it is by rights His. It is not the true possession of the Prince of this World, otherwise known as Satan. When Satan tempted Christ in the wilderness, he offered Christ something that was not his to give away. This shows how he truly does not understand God or Christ. Christ is the one who created this world and truly is the rightful owner of it and not Satan.  God values us so highly that He sent His only begotten son that all who believe on Him should not perish but have everlasting life.  

 

If we recognize anything close to the magnitude of the sacrifice made on our behalf by our Lord and Savior, we will do our best to put away all hate and evil thinking that we might more successfully follow His instruction and example.  Carefully study Scripture, no matter how many times you read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them you will not find one instance of Jesus being mean or nasty, taking revenge or even being condescending.   We must do whatsoever lieth within us to do ye likewise. If we do not, we are doomed.  We will try and fail.  But, remember, you cannot be beaten if you do not give up.

 

This brings us to Peter’s point in the Epistle, Christ serves as a perfect example for the conduct of our lives. Not only was He sent to sacrifice His Life for us that we might have eternal freedom, He was sent to provide a perfect example of us, to how we should live our lives. There again the Epistle and the Collect tie together amazingly well. Very fittingly, His Ministry acts as the pattern we should look to emulate in our trials and tribulations here on Earth. His Ministry was based upon action. It then follows that we should we in our earthly attempt to follow Him center our words on action.  We need to not just speak nice words but back them up with nice actions as well. As our friend KT pointed out recently, our actions show who we truly are and what we truly believe.  This also connects with the Bible verse from Matthew (6:21) that says “For where your treasure is, your heart will be also.” If we treasure and believe upon Him, our actions will show that we do indeed believe and value Him highly.

 

If we do wrong actions and suffer for it, there is little honor; for we were wrong.  But, if we do right actions, that is follow God’s Will, and suffer for it, there is in fact glory, laud and honor there.  Jesus went to His death on the Cross that we might be accounted as perfect at our final accounting rather than being held accountable for our failures.  He who is, was and always will be perfect suffered great pain that we might live life eternal.  If He did that for us, should we not follow that example and follow His Direction, counting the cost only after the work is done? We can be assured that no matter how bad our sufferings and tribulations here are on Earth, Jesus had it far worse. Not only did He die a painful death, but then He had to descend into Hell and fight the Devil. I think we have it better than He did as far as suffering goes. Just something to think about next time we think our sufferings are so awful. 

 

We are, after all, much like sheep, following the lead of those around us, somewhat like lemmings, it seems.  We have great need of a shepherd to lead us back from the edge of The Pit and to life, back to those verdant pastures and still waters. This Shepherd never will fail to lead us back to the pastures, we just have to pick up the guidance from the Holy Ghost and follow the path He has set for us. 

 

In order to follow His Directions to the path He has set for us, we have to let go of our pride, vanity and arrogance and accept His Guidance and teachings of humbleness and humility into our hearts. We have to realize we cannot do this on our own; we cannot save ourselves and we need God’s influence in our lives.   We have to allow the Holy Ghost to enter into our hearts and once He is in accept His Direction and Guidance and then act upon that guidance. It is not good enough just to say we believe, we must actually believe. Actually, believing means if we truly believe on Him, we have no choice but act in a manner consistent with Scripture.  

 

Acting is the key word here, not just talking about it, but acting. It isn’t good enough just to read Scriptures and go on our merry way and act like we did before we read them. We have to apply the key principles of Scripture in our lives and shine the light of Christ to those around us.

 

The Gospel notes the difference of ownership.  Our true owner will, and I might add, has, given His Life so we might be protected from the ravening wolves of this world, the Prince of this World.  We are cautioned to 8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:(1 Peter 5:8) But, sobriety only gets you so far; sheep do poorly against wolves and lions. We alone cannot defend ourselves against this great spiritual threat. We need one who is experienced in protecting our souls against the spiritual wolves and lions of this world. Jesus is that experienced protector we need.  Make no mistake, we need the help of that Good Shepherd.  That Good Shepherd calls to each of us, we need the Holy Ghost in our hearts to hear the call.  Regardless of what you have been told by those of this world, there is only One God, One Lord, One Savior.  Thus, there is only One Flock; there are many ways to follow Scripture, but they must all have the same general plan.  That is the reason for the creeds, the reason we tell all to compare what is preached against what is in Scripture.  We need to daily work towards doing a better job of following God’s Will.

 

We need help, He provides it, we need to accept it.

 

The key is action, in this case our action.  We need to actually accept the offered help; like the life ring thrown to a drowning person, we must grab God’s proffered help, else we profit nothing.

 

Heaven is at the end of an uphill trail.  The easy downhill trail does not lead to the summit.  But, it takes Action, not Diction, to get there.  The way is hard, it is just not as hard as that easy downhill trail to The Pit everthing considered.

 

Hard as it may seem at the time, there is much joy and satisfaction to be found in proper action.

 

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