Mr. Donald Lee Fultz is being ordained to the
Diaconate at St Peter's today. The following sermon is taken from the Gospel
Lection for the ordination of Deacons:
Opening Prayers:
For the Church.
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GRACIOUS Father, we humbly beseech
thee for thy holy Catholic Church; that thou wouldst be pleased to fill it with
all truth, in all peace. Where it is corrupt, purify it; where it is in error,
direct it; where in anything it is amiss, reform it. Where it is right,
establish it; where it is in want, provide for it; where it is divided, reunite
it; for the sake of him who died and rose again, and ever liveth to make
intercession for us, Jesus Christ, thy Son, our Lord. Amen.
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LMIGHTY God, the giver of all good
gifts, who of thy divine providence hast appointed divers Orders in thy Church;
Give thy grace, we humbly beseech thee, to all those who are to be called to
any office and administration in the same; and so replenish them with the truth
of thy doctrine, and endue them with innocency of life, that they may
faithfully serve before thee, to the glory of thy great Name, and the benefit
of thy holy Church; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Processional
Hymn is Advent Hymn #005 (Lo, He Comes)
35 Let your loins be girded about, and your lights burning; 36 And
ye yourselves like unto men that wait for their lord, when he will return from
the wedding; that when he cometh and knocketh, they may open unto him
immediately. 37 Blessed are those servants, whom the lord when he
cometh shall find watching: verily I say unto you, that he shall gird himself,
and make them to sit down to meat, and will come forth and serve them. 38 And
if he shall come in the second watch, or come in the third watch, and find them
so, blessed are those servants. (Luke 12:35-38)
The first requirement of any clergy, whether Deacon,
Priest, or Bishop, is to have a humble heart. In fact, that is a requirement
for everyone who calls themselves Christian.
But for the clergyman, it becomes a much more grave
and solemn qualification. The clergy must render the same respect for the
people as they render unto him; and that respect must be earned through a
humble and contrite spirit.
The Office of Deacon, Mr. Fultz, is a most important
and necessary one. You will share the care and teaching of souls with the
priest, conduct Morning/Evening Prayer in his absence, preach the Word in due
season, and assist in any other way that your bishop prescribes.
35 Let your loins be girded about, and your lights burning
The Shepherd of the Church is neither, Bishop,
Priest, or Deacon, but the Lord Jesus Christ. He is the Good Shepherd of the
Sheep.
But He has granted to His ministers the duty of
safeguarding the sheep. He also grants us the privilege of feeding them in
green pastures of His Word, and watering them I the still waters of His Holy
Spirit.
Our lights that we must keep burning are those of
Jesus Christ and His Gospel.
36 And ye yourselves like unto men that wait for their lord,
when he will return from the wedding; that when he cometh and knocketh, they
may open unto him immediately.
The clergyman is not higher than the people to whom
he ministers, except by His calling and office to preach the word and conduct
the services of the church.
But the clergyman stands as an example of Christ-like
love and care for those precious souls that God has placed in his care.
The clergyman must be alert for all evidences of
error of understanding the Word, and improper execution of worship.
The devil does not rest either night or day. We must
be on guard against thaqt old roaring lion who seeks the destruction of souls –
including, and most particular, our own.
In what manner must the deacon, priest, or bishop
approach his formidable calling?
We find the answer in 1
Peter 5:1-4
“1 The elders which are among you I exhort, who am also an elder,
and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and also a partaker of the glory
that shall be revealed: 2 Feed the flock of God which is among
you, taking the oversight thereof, not by constraint, but willingly; not for
filthy lucre, but of a ready mind; 3 Neither
as being lords over God's heritage, but being ensamples to the flock. 4 And when the chief Shepherd shall appear, ye shall receive a
crown of glory that fadeth not away.” (1 Peter 5:1-4)
If we are the example that we are admonished to be, the people will
respond in the same kind of love and respect with which we conduct our lives
and actions toward them.
Note the term the Lord repeatedly uses for the
ministers – SERVANTS! Not lords, or masters, but lowly ministers. If we ever
forget that principle, we have lost our salt and savour as His ministers. 37 Blessed
are those servants, whom the lord when he cometh shall find watching:
verily I say unto you, that he shall gird himself, and make them to sit down to
meat, and will come forth and serve them.
The clergyman SERVES. He is not a dictator or a
potentate demanding that reverence due God alone. The respect shown him is the
kind that he earns demonstrates to those people in his care.
Sometimes the minister is called upon to serve in
menial tasks. He is not above sweeping the floors and cleaning the church if
necessary.
38 And if he shall come in the second watch, or
come in the third watch, and find them so, blessed are those servants.
The minister is to be ready for service at every
need. It matters not how well he knows the word or preaches if he has no love
for his own cure, or those poor who linger beyond the walls of the church.
We do not indulge in vain speculation on prophecies
of Christ soon return, but we are to be ready, and prepare of charges to be
ready, at ANY time of the Lord’s return.
John Jasper - 1812-1901 89 years of age.
BACKGROUND
Sixth Mount Zion Baptist Church
Seeing that they wouldn't leave, he composed himself
and walked back toward the edge of the pulpit.
And leaning over it, he said something like this:
"Brothers and sisters, when I think of the glory that shall be revealed in us; when I
think of the marvelous provisions of God's amazing grace; when I think of the things which I have
not seen, neither hath ear heard, nor entered into the heart of man to even imagine the things that God
hath prepared for his own, I can visualize that day when old John Jasper's last battle has been
fought and the last burden has been borne. I can visualize that day when this tired servant of God
shall lay down his burdens and walk up to the battlements of the city of God. Then as I stand outside the
beautiful gate, I can almost hear the mighty angel on guard say, 'John Jasper, you want your
shoes?'"
And I'm going to say, of course I want my shoes; my
golden slippers to walk the golden streets of the city of God, but not now.
"Then I can hear the mighty angel as he says,
'John Jasper, do you want your robe?'"
And I'm going to say, of course I want my robe; the
robe of linen clean and white which is the righteousness of the saints, but not
now. "Then the angel
will say, 'John Jasper, do you want your crown?'"
And I shall say, of course mighty angel, I want all
the reward that's coming to me, but not now.
"And I can hear him as he says, 'John Jasper,
would you like to see Moses, the great law-giver who led God's people out of
bondage on the way to the promised land?'"
And I'm going to say, of course mighty angel, I want
to hear Moses sing the song of Moses and the Lamb, but not now.
"Then the angel will say, 'John Jasper, wouldn't
you like to see Elijah, the great prophet who called down fire from heaven?
Wouldn't you like to shake hands with John, the beloved disciple who leaned on
the Master's breast at the Last Supper? Wouldn't you like to shake hands with
Paul, the great apostle to the Gentiles and the greatest church planter and
soul winner of all time?'"
And I'll say, of course mighty angel, I want to know
and to shake hands and to commune with those, the saints of God, who have won
the incorruptible crown. Yes, I have some loved ones over there I want to see
too, but not now. You see, mighty angel, first of all, before anything else,
first and foremost, I want to see my Jesus. I want to see the stripes He bore
for me, the nail prints that were rightly mine, and His side that was rent for
me so that I, John Jasper, would not have to die the death. I want to see the
smiling face of my Lord and touch the hem of His Holy Garment. Then, I will see
all of the other wonders of Heaven.”
Every minister should have that humble grace and
servant-spirit of the old slave, John Jasper.
