Twentieth
Sunday after Trinity
The
Collect.
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O
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ALMIGHTY and most merciful God, of thy bountiful goodness keep us, we
beseech thee, from all things that may hurt us; that we, being ready both in
body and soul, may cheerfully accomplish those things which thou commandest;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Certainly, God is full of goodness for He is all-in-all, and there is
no imperfection or impurity in Him. Therefore, His goodness is bountiful! Every
good and perfect gift comes down from God. (James 1:17) James does not say,
‘some, or ‘most’, but ALL good gifts! These gifts include life, joy, love,
friends, family, church, and health. If it is GOOD, it is from GOD! The servant
of God is both ready and cheerful in his approach to service. Those things
commanded by Christ will certainly be accomplished by His elect if they are
READY to proceed in joy and not dread.
The Epistle
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ee then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but
as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil. Wherefore be ye not
unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is. And be not drunk with
wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit; speaking to yourselves
in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your
heart to the Lord; giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father
in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ; submitting yourselves one to another in
the fear of God.
The Holy Gospel
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J
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esus said, The kingdom of
heaven is like unto a certain king, which made a marriage for his son, and sent
forth his servants to call them that were bidden to the wedding: and they would
not come. Again, he sent forth other servants, saying, Tell them which are
bidden, Behold, I have prepared my dinner: my oxen and my fatlings are killed,
and all things are ready: come unto the marriage. But they made light of it,
and went their ways, one to his farm, another to his merchandise: and the remnant
took his servants, and entreated them spitefully, and slew them. But when the
king heard thereof, he was wroth: and he sent forth his armies, and destroyed
those murderers, and burned up their city. Then saith he to his servants, The
wedding is ready, but they which were bidden were not worthy. Go ye therefore
into the highways, and as many as ye shall find, bid to the marriage. So those
servants went out into the highways, and gathered together all as many as they
found, both bad and good: and the wedding was furnished with guests. And when
the king came in to see the guests, he saw there a man which had not on a
wedding-garment: and he saith unto him, Friend, how camest thou in hither not
having a wedding-garment? And he was speechless. Then said the king to the
servants, Bind him hand and foot, and take him away, and cast him into outer
darkness; there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. For many are called,
but few are chosen.
In the Prayer of Collect, the Epistle and the following Gospel, we have a clear
call to reliance upon the bountiful blessings of God to grant us provision of
both body and soul. Without that provision, we are naked and without
sustenance. God is not the Maker of His Masterpiece of Creation – mankind – for
the sake of living a life of spiritual or physical penury, but to receive all
of the blessings our teeming cups can hold of His bountiful storehouse of
blessings. To some, He gives not only spiritual, but great material blessings
according to each our individual capacity to use to His glory and not that of
self.
Jesus so often spoke in Parables so that those whose hearts are open and humble
might understand; and so those whose hearts were arrogant, proud and hardened
would not so understand. We understand as much truth as we are willing to
digest. It was against the interests of the worldly interests of the rulers of
the Jews to understand and, so, they blinded their own eyes to profound truth.
The arrogance of the mind despises mystery. It must pry into every mystery and
pretentiously invent its secrets. We stake out our gardens of theology and
plant, respectively, our trees of Calvin, Arminius, or some other, while
refusing to hear any contrary points from Scripture. We will accept only those
parts of Scripture that will water our preferred trees. But Christ, in His
parables, is a revealer of mystery to the open hearts of the faithful, and
Concealer of Mystery to those who proudly assert THEIR own opinions to the
detriment of faith.
The sermon text today is of a great man who was planning a grand
wedding feast for His Son. He had gone to great expense and time-consuming
preparation to insure that every detail was perfect. So, Jesus opens the
Parable with the story of a marriage feast. Marriage is so important to Christ
that He performed His first miracle at Cana of Galilee (which just happened to
be a marriage feast.
From its inception as the first institution of God in the Garden at
Eden, marriage has been sacred and Holy to God – and it must be to us as well.
It is an earthly model for the Kingdom of God and the great marriage between
Christ and His Bride, the Church.
Let’s examine
the nature, first of all, of this invitation:
1.
It is extended to everyone, wide
and far.
2.
It will be rejected by the
heartless and indifference
3.
Rejection provokes the
justifiable ANGER of GOD! – Each of us exists either under His kind favor or
His great anger. Under God's anger, or under God's love, we must be, whether we
will or not. We cannot flee from His presence. We cannot go from His Spirit. If
we are loving, and so rise up to heaven, God is there—in love. If we are cruel
and wrathful, and so go down to hell, God is there also—in wrath. With the
clean He will be clean; with the froward man He will be froward. On us, and us
alone, it depends whether we shall live under God's anger or live under God's
love.
“The kingdom of heaven is like unto a certain king, which
made a marriage for his son,” This certain king is God the Father. Do I need tell you who the son
represents? None other than Jesus Christ, the only Begotten Son of God.
“And sent forth his servants to call them that were bidden
to the wedding: and they would not come.” The great prophets
were these servants who called those who were bidden to come, but Israel would
not hear them and did not come. They even stoned many of these prophet
messengers, and others they sawed in half.
“Again, he sent forth other servants, saying, Tell them
which are bidden, Behold, I have prepared my dinner: my oxen and my fatlings
are killed, and all things are ready: come unto the marriage.” The Great King leaves nothing to chance. He
prepares ALL we need for our comfort and nourishment and joy. The
sacrifice has been made for us – all we must do is come. He desires to honor us
by allowing us to honor His Beloved Son.
“But they made light of it, and went their ways, one to
his farm, another to his merchandise:”
Here we see the dreadful preoccupation of the world, and even the church, with
our own devices – money, trade and barter, etc. The service to God seems a
light thing to them. We today are sorrowfully no different. We ‘do our duty’ in
attending service once on Sunday, go back to our troughs and mud, and live as
if God were not watching.
“And the remnant took his servants, and entreated them
spitefully, and slew them.”
You will recall how wrongly they treated Samuel, Moses, Jeremiah and all the
prophets. Even Abel was slain by his brother for living and teaching
righteousness. The Apostles, most of whom died brutal deaths, were no
less dishonored by those who knew no honor.
“But when the king heard thereof, he was wroth: and he
sent forth his armies, and destroyed those murderers, and burned up their city.” If you have been living under the delusion that
God will always show mercy and kindness, you are wrong. Christ Himself shall
return to claim His own, and the remainder shall be put to the sword and cast
into Hell without mercy! They will have sealed their own fate through the
neglect of the things of God. If you have not loved God in this life, you
cannot love Him in the next. The tares (unbelievers) shall be gathered by the
Holy Angels and burned.
“Then saith he to his servants, The wedding is ready, but
they which were bidden were not worthy. 9 Go ye therefore into the highways, and as many as
ye shall find, bid to the marriage.” Most of
the Israel depended upon their pedigree as sons of Abraham; however, they did
not rightfully belong to the Old Testament Church of Abraham who looked to the
coming of Christ. These being rejected, God turns to all who will come. All who
love Christ are adopted into that great Church and are Israel indeed. None are
to go without invitation! “
“So those servants went out into the highways, and
gathered together all as many as they found, both bad and good: and the wedding
was furnished with guests.“
This is like the great dragnet
of souls mentioned in Matthew 13:47-48. It
drew every kind of fish, both good and bad, and the fisherman (angels) sat down
and separated them. Or the fields of wheat and tares growing together picture
this same truth.
“And when the king came in to see the guests, he saw there
a man which had not on a wedding garment: 12 And he saith unto him,
Friend, how camest thou in hither not having a wedding garment? And he was
speechless. 13 Then said the king to the
servants, Bind him hand and foot, and take him away, and cast him into outer
darkness; there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” Do we desire to be properly attired at this great and distinguished
feast? If so, we must take on the White Robe of Righteousness which
Christ offers to cover our rags and filth. The prodigal son received that
Robe from His Father on his return from feeding the pigs in a far country. See also,
Isaiah 4:1 – “And in that day seven women shall take hold of one man,
saying, We will eat our own bread, and wear our own apparel: only let us be
called by thy name, to take away our reproach.” These are the
seven churches, I humbly believe, who wish to be nominal Christians only. They
will eat their own bread and not the Bread of Heaven He offers, and will wear
their own filthy rags of sin instead of His Robe of Righteousness. But
they desire the dignity of being called, only, by His name.
“For many are called, but few are chosen.”
Friend, it is quite possible that you have been called and invited, but never
accepted the invitation. A gift may be offered, but it is not fully a gift
until it has been received. Have you accepted, with serious heart and intent, the
Redemption made available through the blood of Christ? Are you of that FEW who
are both called and chosen; or have you left the forgotten invitation among all
of the worldly papers that clutter your desk?
Rev Rick Reid of
Saint Peter’s Sunday Sermon
We are happy to have a
sermon from Reverend Rick Reid, minister of Saint Peter’s, whose congregation
is right at the Worldwide Headquarters of the Anglican Orthodox Church. Rev Rick has all the resources and challenges
right at hand.
Overcoming Fear
The world we live in affords us so many opportunities to experience
fear and anxiety, but there can be no mistaking that God does not intend for us
to live a life of fear. God’s word is filled with promises, that we can
overcome any fear, and that we do not need to let it affect us. In fact, the phrase
do not fear or fear not is mentioned 365 times in the Bible. When Timothy was going through a tough
time as a young Pastor, Paul
wrote to him in his second letter: 2 Timothy 1:7 For God has not given us a spirit of fear:
but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.
This verse tells us the spirit of fear is not of God! We can know if we have fear, it is not
what God wants for us. He did not give it to us. We know when we feel fear, we know it isn’t from God.
We have to realize God didn’t give us a spirit of fear, but He did give us a
different spirit. He gave us His Spirit, The Holy Spirit, (the great
comforter).
Paul again tells Timothy 2 Timothy 1:14 That good thing which was committed unto
thee keep by the Holy Ghost which dwelleth in us. And also tells the
Ephesians 3:16 That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be
strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man.
God’s Spirit lives in, and abides in, you. Not just near you, but right
inside of you! Everywhere you go, and in everything you do, God’s Spirit is
with you. Since God’s Spirit is in us, we are not to be afraid. The Spirit that
He has given us is not cowardly or timid, is not lacking in love, and is not
confused and unstable. It is a Spirit of power, love and a sound mind.
No matter what we are going through, or how weak our human spirit
feels, we have power (already), on the inside of us. When we feel like we
cannot get along with another person, or when we don’t like anyone, much less
love them, we have love on the inside of us. When we feel life is too much,
that there are too many decisions to be made, and we feel like we are losing
our minds, we must remember we have a sound mind right on the inside of us! We
don’t have to be afraid, because God has given us His Spirit to combat anything
that would make us afraid.
We may not always feel like His Spirit is there doing His job, but that
isn’t because of anything God has, or hasn’t done. We have to nurture and grow
in Christ so we can recognize and receive that gift in our lives. We can’t live
our lives always being worldly or carnal minded, and expect to fully and
completely, receive that gift.
As Paul told the Corinthians in his first letter: (1 Corinthians 3:1-3, 3:1-3), And I,
brethren, could not speak unto you as unto spiritual, but as unto carnal, even
as unto babes in Christ.2 I have fed you with milk, and not
with meat: for hitherto ye were not able to bear it, neither yet now are ye
able.3 For ye are yet carnal: for whereas there is among you
envying, and strife, and divisions, are ye not carnal, and walk as men?
What he is saying is that even though they are believers, Paul could
only give them the milk of God’s word……meaning the basic elementary things, and
could not give them the meat….the deeper and even more useful things of God
because they were still carnally or worldly minded. They were still following
after the flesh rather than following after the spirit.
If we want to allow the Holy Spirit to do His work in our lives as
effectively as He can, we must seek after spiritual things. We must take time
to read and study God’s word, to pray, and to have fellowship with our Lord.
When we do these things we are stirring up the gift that God has given
to us, as Paul instructed Timothy to do in his second letter. (2 Timothy 1:6). 6 Wherefore I put thee in remembrance that thou stir up the gift of God,
which is in thee by the putting on of my hands. He says as we stir
up the gift, the fear will decrease and we will see that power, love, and sound
mind, increase in our day to day life.
So begin to stir up the gift that God has given you to help you conquer
any fear that is trying to have a hold in your life, and remember fear's allies
are sin and Satan. Paul has this to say about Satan in his second letter to the
Corinthians: (2nd
Corinthians 2:11) “Lest Satan should get an advantage of us:
for we are not ignorant of his devices.”
If you know your enemy, you know how to
defeat him. We must all be positive thinkers regarding Satan: Positive that he
does indeed, exist. Positive that he wants to defeat us and keep us from
heaven. Positive that evil is lurking in many corners of the world. Most
importantly, we must also be positive that our Lord and Saviour is stronger
than any enemy we may encounter.
As we read in 1st John 4:4“Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater
is he that is in you, than he that is in the world.”St. Paul puts it this way in his letter to the Philippians: Philippians 4:7-8
“And the
peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds
through Christ Jesus.
Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever
things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure,
whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be
any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.”
In other words we need to fix our thoughts
on Jesus for he is always true, as he told us: I am the way, the truth,
and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” John 14:6
The next time you are gripped by fear remember what we talked about
today, and remember the words of the Psalmist:
Psalms 56:3 "What time I am afraid, I will
trust in thee.
