Saint Bartholomew the Apostle.
[August 24.]
The Collect.
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ALMIGHTY
and everlasting God, who didst give to thine Apostle Bartholomew grace truly to
believe and to preach thy Word; Grant, we beseech thee, unto thy Church, to
love that Word which he believed, and both to preach and receive the same;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
And, as this Red Letter Day falls
on a Sunday, we read the Collect for the Sunday also, which can be found on
Page 203:
The
Tenth Sunday after Trinity.
The
Collect.
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ET thy merciful ears, O Lord, be open to the prayers of thy humble servants;
and, that they may obtain their petitions, make them to ask such things as
shall please thee; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
24 And there was also
a strife among them, which of them should be accounted the greatest. 25 And he said unto them, The kings of the Gentiles exercise lordship over them; and they that
exercise authority upon them are called benefactors. 26 But ye shall not be so:
but he that is greatest among you, let him be as the younger; and he that is
chief, as he that doth serve. 27 For
whether is greater, he that sitteth at meat, or he that serveth? is not he that
sitteth at meat? but I am among you as he that serveth. 28 Ye are they which have
continued with me in my temptations. 29 And
I appoint unto you a kingdom, as my Father hath appointed unto me; 30 That ye may eat and drink
at my table in my kingdom, and sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of
Israel. (Luke
22:24-30)
It is often said, and I believe it to be true, there is greater strife in the
House of God than in the local cocktail lounge. There is constantly a struggle
of the spirit of man against his neighbor who seems to be getting above him in
the offices and functions of the Church. A far greater number of churches in
our day have split up over the interior décor of the Church than over more
serious matters of doctrine and practice. It is in the nature of man (and
unfortunately in the Christian as well) to assert SELF over his fellows. We
must constantly strive to put our selfish pride and interest beneath those of
the greater Church and people – especially so if we are ministers of God. Paul
strove constantly to subdue his own desires for the greater good: “But I
keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when
I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway.” (1 Cor 9:27) Paul
tells us that it is possible for the preacher to preach, and not abide by his
own words. 18 For I know
that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is
present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not. 19 For the
good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do.”
(Romans 7:18-19)
Now, unless we ministers and laity are far better than Paul, we must admit that
we often strive for those things that bring shame upon ourselves, the Church,
and the ministry itself. We take umbrage at trifles and let the weightier
matters go unaddressed. We argue and complain because we are not admired and
respected enough by inferiors, or even superiors. We desire the uppermost seats
in the fellowship of the Church and to be addressed with deference. I am a
bishop by the calling of God. I am by no means worthy to be called a bishop,
but God has called me; and that to which God calls us, He will make us worthy
to perform. It matters not to me if others call me bishop. It is enough for me
that I can be called a brother in Christ by those who know me. I deserve no
higher honor among the brethren than that which they recognize. We are all in
that category whether vestryman, committee member, treasurer, grounds keeper,
or whatever. We are all One in Christ Jesus and no lines of trivial authority
can divide us as being One in Him. Certainly, our positions as teachers and
preachers of the Word are vitally important, but that calling is important
because of the Word Itself and not because of any personal merit in our own
souls.
Let us observe how Jesus handled this strife that came among His disciples: “And
there was also a strife among them, which of them should be accounted the
greatest.” If there was unbounded strife among the disciples of Christ,
surely there must be the same in our midst to a greater or lesser extent
(depending on our sanctification in Christ). It is important to remember that,
if we are One in Christ, we shall be One with each other. Strife’s and
differences disappear when we all share that same faith in Christ. But the
disciples are concerned with SELF! Jesus addresses the matter as a
serious one.
“The kings of the Gentiles exercise lordship
over them; and they that exercise authority upon them are called benefactors.”
Yes, the world loves titles, power, and pelf, but not so with God. The princes
of old loved to be called ‘benefactors of the poor’ and so do many who perform
works of charity in our day. It is the invisible had that gives which is
rewarded in heaven and not the one which is clad in scarlet silk. In the time
of the Reformation, clergy were not addressed as “Father” or ‘Reverend” but as
Mister So-and-so. The point was to remind those of us in the ministry that we
are not above the flock of which we are only under-shepherds and not the Good
Shepherd. “But ye shall not be so: but he
that is greatest among you, let him be as the younger; and he that is chief, as
he that doth serve.” No, we shall not hold rank or title above
the people to whom we are supposed to be servant unless it be “SERVANT.” The
chief among us should be willing to do his part in cleaning the floors,
emptying the trash, and doing all such chores for which he may have the time.
Often, it is an utter necessity. For fifteen years, I was forced to serve – not
only as bishop and priest at St. Andrews, but also as janitor, secretary, and
babysitter. I wish I had done so willingly, but there was no choice. I grew
into the position of janitor and came to like it. The young people also saw
when I was working to clean the church and they chipped in and wound up doing
most of the work – VOLUNTARILY. I love them! If we put ourselves down, and
others up, we will find that we, too, may GROW into the role.
A great Anglican priest and poet of the 17th century wrote a series
of tracts to clergy on how they should treat their flock. Mr. Herbert was noted
for his humility and love for the brethren. I quote the introduction to his
book below:
I, BEING desirous,
through the mercy of God, to please him, for whom I am and live, and who giveth
me my desires and per formances ; and considering with myself that the way to
please him is to feed my flock diligently and faithfully, since our Saviour
hath made that the argument of a pastor s love ; I have resolved to set down the
form and character of a true pastor, that I may have a mark to aim at ; which
also I will set as high as I can, since he shoots higher that threatens the
moon, than he that aims at a tree. Not that I think, if a man do not all which
is here expressed, he presently sins, and displeases God ; but that it is a
good strife to go as far as we can in pleasing of him, who hath done so much
for us. The Lord prosper the intention to myself and others, who may not
despise my poor labours, but add to those points, which I have observed, until
the book grow to a complete pastoral. GEORGE HERBERT.
“For whether is greater, he
that sitteth at meat, or he that serveth? is not he that sitteth at meat? but
I am among you as he that serveth.” Jesus came among His
disciples as a servant. They SAT, and He SERVED. Which do you think the greater
of the two? His entire ministry was one of sacrifice and humble teaching and
preaching. He only took umbrage with one class of people – the proud ministers
of His day (Scribes, Pharisees, and priests of the Temple). There are times
when I believe that I have accomplished some great objective in preaching, but
the Lord always brings my infantile understanding back to the truth of WHO He
is and who I am. The contrast is stark to say the least. I pray always that I
never attempt to exalt myself above those to whom God has given me to teach. If
we believe we are brother, sister, mother, or father to those in the family of
God, how dare we place our own interest above any of them, or feel better or
more holy? Jesus makes this very clear.
In all our works of piety
and humility, do we believe God is unseeing? He watches and knows all. He sees
our secret acts of mercy, but disregards our public show of the same. “Ye are they which have continued with me in my
temptations.” He knows that His disciples have followed close on
for the years of His ministry. But He does not desire them to take that as a
source of pride, but of unbounded love. When we suffer for Christ, the more we
keep it private, the more He notices. Jesus did give us a new Commandment that
entails adherence to the other Ten: “A new
commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you,
that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my
disciples, if ye have love one to another.” (John 13:34-35) Who
do you suppose Christ is addressing with this new commandment? Was this
addressed only to those who call themselves Christians? No, it is addressed to
the clergy and laity alike with equal emphasis. We cannot scream at, or curse,
someone who is at the center of our affection, can we? Love across the whole
spectrum of the Church eliminates discord and disunion. If we are not loved,
perhaps it is because we have not loved enough. Love is a magnet that draws
love to itself. Have you known this?
Do you recall the hymn, “What
a Friend We Have in Jesus?” The author of that hymn was a man named
Joseph Scriven of Port Hope, Canada. He lost those he loved the most to tragedy
and death and moved from Ireland to Canada to get away from the sad memories.
There at Port Hope, he became known as the Good Samaritan of Port Hope.
He chopped fire-wood, mended fences, and did general repair work for the widows
and orphans of the city. He could not be hired for he did all of his work at no
cost. The love he had shared with those he lost was transferred to those who
needed it most while alive.
The reward of the saint is not in this worldly
theater, but in the coming Kingdom – that Kingdom of which Christ is Lord and
Sovereign. “And I appoint unto you a kingdom,
as my Father hath appointed unto me; That
ye may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom, and sit on thrones judging the
twelve tribes of Israel.” If we are to drink and eat at the
Table of the Lord, we must serve the tables of the socially downcast or lowest
member of the church – whether we are a pillar of the Church, a vestryman, or
especially a clergyman. For all are One in Christ Jesus.
