Who are we?

The center of the Traditional Anglican Communion; adhering to the Holy Bible (KJV) in all matters of Faith and Doctrine, a strict reliance on the Thirty Nine Articles of Religion, The two Sacraments of Baptism and Holy Communion, the Two Creeds, and the Homilies and formularies of the Reformation Church of England.

Verse of the Day

Sunday, November 2, 2014

Twentieth Sunday after Trinity

Belgrade – confluence of Sava and Danube Rivers last night    
Today we celebrated the Twentieth Sunday after Trinity and the revenge of Standard Time as we fell back an hour and darkness fell over the earth an hour earlier!

On Point
Someone asked, where do the quotes come from?  The answer is from the people who uttered them.  But, how did you find them?  Oh, that.  Some from Bishop Jerry, many from Rev Bryan Dabney, a few from other places, some from Rev Geordie Menzies-Grierson, but overall mostly from Bryan.  He always has some great ones to share.  On to the On Point quotes –

For the Love of God
Some writers use the word charity to describe not only Christian love between human beings, but also God’s love for man and man’s love for God. About the second of these two, people are often worried. They are told they ought to love God. They cannot find any such feeling in themselves. What are they to do? The answer is the same as before. Act as if you did. Do not sit trying to manufacture feelings. Ask yourself, ‘If I were sure that I loved God, what would I do?’ When you have found the answer, go and do it.

On the whole, God’s love for us is a much safer subject to think about than our love for Him. Nobody can always have devout feelings: and even if we could, feelings are not what God principally cares about. Christian Love, either towards God or towards man, is an affair of the will. If we are trying to do His will we are obeying the commandment, ‘Thou shalt love the Lord thy God.’ He will give us feelings of love if He pleases. We cannot create them for ourselves, and we must not demand them as a right. But the great thing to remember is that, though our feelings come and go, His love for us does not. It is not wearied by our sins, or our indifference; and, therefore, it is quite relentless in its determination that we shall be cured of those sins, at whatever cost to us, at whatever cost to Him.
Jack Lewis
Mere Christianity

Compound Interest
Though Christian charity sounds a very cold thing to people whose heads are full of sentimentality, and though it is quite distinct from affection, yet it leads to affection. The difference between a Christian and a worldly man is not that the worldly man has only affections or ‘likings’ and the Christian has only ‘charity’. The worldly man treats certain people kindly because he ‘likes’ them: the Christian, trying to treat every one kindly, finds himself liking more and more people as he goes on—including people he could not even have imagined him- self liking at the beginning.

This same spiritual law works terribly in the opposite direction. The Germans, perhaps, at first ill-treated the Jews because they hated them: afterwards they hated them much more because they had ill-treated them. The more cruel you are, the more you will hate; and the more you hate, the more cruel you will become — and so on in a vicious circle for ever.

Good and evil both increase at compound interest. That is why the little decisions you and I make every day are of such infinite importance. The smallest good act today is the capture of a strategic point from which, a few months later, you may be able to go on to victories you never dreamed of. An apparently trivial indulgence in lust or anger today is the loss of a ridge or railway line or bridgehead from which the enemy may launch an attack otherwise impossible.
Jack Lewis
Mere Christianity

The Foundation
[In a democracy] a common passion or interest will, in almost every case, be felt by a majority of the whole; a communication and concert results from the form of government itself; and there is nothing to check the inducements to sacrifice the weaker party or an obnoxious individual.
James Madison
Federalist No. 10, 1787
Fret not thyself because of evil doers, neither be thou envious against the workers of iniquity. For they shall soon be cut down like the grass, and wither as the green herb.
Psalm 37:1-2

Hatred stirreth up strifes: but love covereth all sins.
Proverbs 10:12

I will deliver thee out of the hand of the wicked, and I will redeem thee out of the hand of the terrible.
Jeremiah 15:21

·      Even those orders of governance which have been ordained by God can be perverted from their original purposes and transformed into realms of wickedness and vice.
·      Few men in history have ever even attempted to live by God’s laws.
·      God will not only judge the people of every nation and kingdom for their bad behavior, but he will judge them for the evil deeds of their rulers as well.
·      Godly rulers are a blessing to their people; while their wicked counterparts are a detriment to them.
·      God’s messengers— the prophets— have supplied mankind with warnings against bad behavior so that no person can say that they were truly unaware that what they were doing was evil in the eyes of God.
·      God’s judgment will come. It is not a question of IF but WHEN.
·      God’s justice demands obedience, and that all who will live in obedience will be preserved.
Bryan Dabney
AOC Minister

Seek ye the LORD, all ye meek of the earth, which have wrought his judgment; seek righteousness, seek meekness: it may be ye shall be hid in the day of the LORD’s anger.
Zephaniah 2:3

Go thy way; thy faith hath made thee whole..
St. Mark 10:52

He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful in much: and he that is unjust in the least is unjust in much.
St. Luke16:10

Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage.
Galatians 5:1

In vain do we pretend that God is our God if we do not receive his law into our hearts and resign ourselves to the government of it.
Matthew Henry
17th and 18th century English pastor and author

The lukewarm [Laodicean] Christian has enough of Jesus to satisfy a craving for religion, but not enough for eternal life.
David Guzik
20th and 21st century Christian pastor

And all the earth was of one language and one speech (Genesis 11:1). It is impossible not to draw parallels between the opening of the story of the Tower of Babel and the modern global village. Once again, the entire world is of one language and one speech. Everyone is connected to everyone, speaking to everyone and at least in the Western world, everyone is motivated by the same ideas. Ultimately, this uniformity leads to a war against the Creator and to the re-scattering of humanity. We are at the threshold of a new age. It could be that we are witnessing the waning of the modern nation state. Europe and the US are bankrupt. After an era of swift economic growth accompanied by moral decadence, the unavoidable stage of disintegration is upon us. And they said, Let us build for us a city and tower and its top will be in heaven, and we will make for us a name, lest we be scattered on the face of the earth (Genesis 11:4). The Tower of Babel was not a temple to God. It was a temple to man. The Western nations that have made man the focal point of existence are morally bankrupt and have lost their founding ethos. As a result, they are also economically bankrupt. Only a small bit of foresight is necessary to understand that the Western economies do not have any real ability to stand on their feet again. It is quite possible that we will also witness their political disintegration. Time and again, entities that are not states defeat the ever-weakening nation-states. In light of this reality, Israel must develop a long-term strategy that will take into account a completely different world structure than the one to which we have been accustomed in the modern era.
Moshe Feiglin
21st Israeli statesman
“Global Tower: A Torah Thought for Parshat Noach”, Oct-23-2014

I continue to hope and pray that the seemingly inexorable march towards a rending of this Republic can be resolved peaceably, but I am a student of history, and know that once the citizenry has judged the government is a threat and not a servant, then that government will fall, or will continue down the path of becoming monsters, devouring the very people they are sworn to protect.
Bob Owens
21st century American commentator

Propers
The Propers for today are found on Page 217-218, with the Collect first:

Twentieth Sunday after Trinity

The Collect.

O
 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.

The Epistle for today came from Saint Paul’s letter to the Ephesians beginning at the Fifteenth Verse of  the Fifth Chapter.  “… the days are evil.  … understand… 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; …” God wants us to be happy, to be good and to enjoy life.  The key to happiness is to do what God asks of you.  No more (you can’t), no less.  Though you fall short, keep trying, that is all God asks.   If you find this no other place, listen to the words of St. Paul.

S
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.

Today’s Holy Gospel came from the Twenty-Second Chapter of the Gospel according to St. Matthew beginning at the First Verse.  Talking to the priests and scribes, Jesus told one of the wedding parables, “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” he sent “his servants … into the highways” to “gather… 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?[1] 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.

J
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.

Bishop Ogles’ Sermon
Bishop Jerry is traveling to visit the Anglican Orthodox Churches in Serbia and Macedonia.  Right now, he is in Belgrade and meeting with AOC ministers there.  Today’s sermon starts off with the collect, and like always, it will give you a lot to consider in your heart.

Sermon Notes - From Belgrade, Serbia - 2 November 2014, Anno Domini

Twentieth Sunday after Trinity

The Collect.

O
 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.

A
nd Jesus answered and spake unto them again by parables, and said, 2 The kingdom of heaven is like unto a certain king, which made a marriage for his son, 3 And sent forth his servants to call them that were bidden to the wedding: and they would not come. 4 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. 5 But they made light of it, and went their ways, one to his farm, another to his merchandise: 6 And the remnant took his servants, and entreated them spitefully, and slew them. 7 But when the king heard thereof, he was wroth: and he sent forth his armies, and destroyed those murderers, and burned up their city. 8 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. 10 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. 11 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. 14 For many are called, but few are chosen.  (Matthew 22)

The heart of a Little Boy
(I have written out for the benefit of those who may only read these notes):

A little boy was diagnosed with a severe heart deformity which demanded surgery, or the boy would surely die. The surgery itself also presented a dangerous threat to the little boy’s life. The very professional cardiologist explained, in gruesome detail and with a measure of cold detachment, the serious nature of the surgery. The little boy seemed unmoved by the discussion, so the doctor said (with apparent irritation), “Don’t you know that I might find a condition that could kill you?” The little boy responded happily, “I know what you will find, and it makes me happy to know it.” The doctor was dumbfounded at the apparent indifference of the boy, but scheduled the surgery anyway.

Upon entering the chest cavity and seeing the little heart, the doctor was dismayed. The boy’s heart would require his greatest skill to repair. He worked professional and meticulously to undo a deadly condition that had afflicted the boy since birth. His professional pride, and not any sense of compassion, motivated the hands and mind of the cardiologist.

Against all odds, the surgery was a great success and the boy was restored with a normal heart at last.

As the doctor later explained to the boy the serious nature of the surgery and the damage he had found in the boy’s heart, the little boy smiled. The doctor, greatly puzzled, asked, “Do you mock my skills as a surgeon. Do you not believe what I have told you I found in your heart?”

The little boy replied, “You have not told me the most important thing you found in my heart which makes all the rest better – Jesus!” The cardiologist was shocked and humbled by this courageous little boy’s answer. As a result, he finally did find Jesus in his own heart.

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.

Let’s examine the nature, first of all, of the nature of this invitation:

·      It is extended to everyone, wide and far.

·      It will be rejected by the heartless and indifference

·      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 great King had composed a list of friends and subjects whom he had befriended with many kindnesses in the past. He was sure that they would be honored to come to the feast.

But these ungrateful acquaintances would not come.

The King was grieved that these people, whom he had helped so many ways, would not even honor His own Son. 4 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.

He was a King and unaccustomed to begging, but, for His Son’s sake, he besought the people to please come and honor His Son.

How did these vile people respond to the King’s pleadings?

5 But they made light of it, and went their ways, one to his farm, another to his merchandise: 6 And the remnant took his servants, and entreated them spitefully, and slew them.

The Great Sovereign of all power was angered:

7 But when the king heard thereof, he was wroth: and he sent forth his armies, and destroyed those murderers, and burned up their city.

In the year 70 AD (about 35 years after the crucifixion of Christ), the Roman commander, Titus, erected battlements against the walls of Jerusalem. After a prolonged siege in which the inhabitants of Jerusalem actually ate their own babies, the walls fell and Titus butchered every male, and took the females captive as slaves to the rough Roman guards.

 8 Then saith he to his servants, The wedding is ready, but they which were bidden were not worthy

All who reject the invitation of Christ are unworthy of His Grace and Love.

God the Father is seeking a bride for His only Begotten Son. He sent prophets and priest to invite ancient Israel to come unto Him. But what was done to these righteous from Abel to Zaccharias?

34 Wherefore, behold, I send unto you prophets, and wise men, and scribes: and some of them ye shall kill and crucify; and some of them shall ye scourge in your synagogues, and persecute them from city to city: 35 That upon you may come all the righteous blood shed upon the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel unto the blood of Zacharias son of Barachias, whom ye slew between the temple and the altar.  (Matthew 24:34-35)

When the servants (prophets) were murdered by the King’s subjects (old Israel),  the King sends forth his messengers to find others. None were to be ignored. Every persons, regardless of race, wealth, worth, or character were to be invited (the new Israel). All who will, COME.

 9 Go ye therefore into the highways, and as many as ye shall find, bid to the marriage.

The Apostles went forth to all nations following the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ, inviting all to come.

10 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

Many are found by the servants (evangelists) and are called, but simply being called to the throne of God is not enough: one must be chosen as well. God calls great numbers – in fact, all who will hear His voice, He calls. But hearing the voice of God requires, also, that we respond in obedience.

We may receive an invitation in the mail to visit with the President of the United States, but this will never happen unless we respond to the invitation.

We must come to Christ, not slothenly or sloppily dressed, but in our finest and most respectful apparel. And our demeanor must reflect that respect and reverence in His Presence as well.

11 And when the king came in to see the guests, he saw there a man which had not on a wedding garment:

We should never be careless in our service to Christ. We must be animated by the strong love we have for our precious souls. We must be fervent and mindful of every detail (Commandment).

We dare not come before Christ, under any circumstance, as His enemy. He considers all who come His Friends unless they prove unworthy through dress (lifestyle) or manners (behavior and appearance).

The King rebukes the man who came unprepared to show respect for the King or His Son:

12 And he saith unto him, Friend, how camest thou in hither not having a wedding garment? And he was speechless

This man had not received willingly the white robe of righteousness (salvation) which the father offers as a covering for our nakedness (sins).

On that day when we go before the White Throne of Judgment, if we have been desperate sinners, we will be as speechless in our defense as the woman taken in adultery. So was this man.

Our decisions made here on terra firma will decide our destinies in eternity – either heaven or hell.

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.

14 For many are called, but few are chosen

Sermon - Rev Jack Arnold
Church of the Faithful Centurion - Descanso, California
Todays sermon tied the Collect, Epistle and Gospel together and talked, as is oft the case, of the need for action, not simply diction.

Consider the words of the Collect, “…God … keep us, … from all things that may hurt us; that we, being ready both in body and soul, may cheerfully accomplish those things which thou commandest …”

The Collect asks God to keep us from the things that are bad for us and make our hearts ready so we can do the things He wants us to do ties perfectly with the Epistle and Gospel as almost always it does. Thomas Cramner was one smart man is all I have to say, how he managed to theme the collects around the unifying message of the Epistle and the Gospel is nothing short of brilliant.

One word that intrigues me from Paul’s letter to the Ephesians is “circumspectly”; which when I looked it up meant “wary and unwilling to take risks.”  I believe Paul meant in these troubled days, we should not be taking risks with our faith, but walking in that which has been tried and true for over two thousands years. We cannot risk comprising the integrity of the faith, with newfangled modernistic New Age spirituality, as some of the liberal mega churches are wont to do. If God has not changed over the millennia, why should we change what we believe?

Indeed, we should not change our position, if it is truly derived from His Holy Word, then it should never change. Any sermon or talk from a minister or bishop must be scrutinized by how it matches up with the concepts in Holy Scripture.  If it conflicts with Scripture, then you know that minister is not in line with His Word. We must all strive to be in congruence with His Word, be it bishop, priest, deacon or layperson. We are all working together in His Church to further His Cause. If we are not all on the same page, then we are not furthering His Work.

Paul warns us against the dangers of drunkenness, but he does not mean never to drink wine, as some, (Puritans and certain Baptists, among others) would take, but rather have “moderation in all things”; which is a similar idea to what Paul says in 1 Corinthians 6:12 “All things are lawful for me, but not all things are profitable. All things are lawful for me, but I will not be mastered by anything.”  Just because you can do something, like drinking or eating, does not mean that you should do it to excess where it can cause you harm. Eating too much can cause you stomach problems, something we want to avoid. Drinking too much can cause serious issues, not the least of which is hangovers. The worst is drinking to death.

Our Lord wants us to be moderate in our celebrations, not celebrating to the point of excess where bad things can happen to our bodies and our minds, but celebrating to where we are thankful to Him for all things, and for His Love.

This seems to be the unifying theme of both the Epistle and the Gospel for today.  Rather than turn to the excesses of this world, Paul says we must turn to God and be filled with His Grace of the Holy Spirit. Making joyful noises to the Lord, be it in prayer or in song, and giving thanks always for all things to God.

Giving thanks always to God should be one of our top priorities. More often than not we seem to forget who made us, who created the world we dwell in, who created the fantastic beasts on land and on the sea. It seems very strange we forget to thank God for all of these things, but we do. Making a joyful noise unto the Lord is part of how we can do this, besides prayer and thanksgiving. Be it through songs, happy declarations to the Lord or joyful worship, these are all ways we can send our joy unto our Lord.  This is part of the reason it is important to say prayers like the Gloria in the prayer book with “liveliness”, we are expressing our praise and thanksgiving unto God, for having sent His Son down to save us from our wicked selves.

In our lives, we should be grateful to God more than we are.  At least, I know I am often not thankful to Him, when I should be. That is the troublesome aspect of having free will, we so often exercise it, not to the Glory of God, but for our own means.  We have to turn away from that temptation, and let the Holy Spirit in and guide us, to thanking God for what He has done for us in our lives.

The Gospel’s story has troubled me for many years now, wondering why the King cast out a man, whose only error appeared to be that of the wrong clothes. When I thought about it more, and in many discussions, I found that in days of old, wedding garments were furnished by the host.  Thus, if one did not appear properly clothed it was because they intentionally chose not to be.  This brought me to the realization that the wrong clothes was Jesus’ metaphor for one who is not prepared for heaven, not walking in God, not filled with the Holy Spirit, and that is why he was cast out of the wedding (which is implied to be heaven. And the King stands in for God in the tale.) He was not prepared to enter the great feast of heaven. His incorrect clothing is a metaphor for many in our lifetime who are not in a prepared state to enter heaven, as they have neither confessed nor repented of their sins to our Lord and have not accepted Him as our saviour.

This man is very much like Esau, when he sold his birthright to Jacob. Esau did not care enough for his birthright, he wanted food more than the permanent status of the birthright which seemed so far off at the time. It is the same with this man and many others in the world. Through Christ, we have a birthright of our own, the Kingdom of God, as God’s adopted children. However, some will gladly trade away this birthright for a bauble or trinket in the present, not knowing what a foolish mistake they are making.

The Collect, Epistle and Gospel tie together, laying out, detailing and reinforcing the same message ultimately.  We have to ready and willing to listen to God, and walk in God, and act with the Holy Spirit in us, in order to have the right “clothes” to enter into the kingdom of heaven.

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?

The time to act is NOW.  Will you act?  For whom will you act?  Will you count the cost before you act?

Action, not diction, is what counts.  It is by your actions you are known.

Be of God - Live of God - Act of God

Bishop Dennis Campbell’s Sermon
Bishop Dennis is a brilliant speaker.  He is able to take biblical precepts and make them perfectly understandable, even to me.  Oft he provides the text of his sermons and I take the utmost pleasure in passing them on:

God and Country
Twentieth Sunday after Trinity
November 2, 2014

Several things combine to make this day an important day.  First of course, it is the Lord’s Day.  It is the Day God calls His people together to worship Him in His Church.  God meets with His people on this Day.  He comes to us with grace and blessings which He gives to us freely through the reading and proclamation of the Bible, through the sacraments, and through the communion of saints we spoke about in the Apostles’ Creed.  These things are meat and wine to our souls.  They strengthen us in our journey of faith.  There is an old Gospel song that says, “We’re marching upward to Zion, the beautiful City of God.”  But every traveler needs rest and food.  This day is rest and food to us.  It is meat the world knows not of.

At the same time,we give our love, faith, and worship to God.  Jesus said His meat is to do the will of God.  We, too can eat of that meat, and we do eat of it in many ways.  One of the most important is this gathering with our family in Christ to worship God.

Second, yesterday was All Saints Day, when we commemorate those who have gone before us in the faith and service of Christ.  Although we did not have a special service to commemorate the day, we can still commemorate it today.  Why commemorate All Saints Day? It reminds us we did not create the Church or the faith.  They have come to us as a gift through many generations of faithful people.  Many people devoted their lives to their preservation.  Many gave their lives rather than forsake them.  We are the beneficiaries of their labors and their love.  Thinking of their faithfulness reminds me that the Faith, the Church, and the worship of God are not toys to be played with according to our whims or the prevailing fads of this world.  They are treasures to be cherished. They were given to us intact, and it is our duty to  preserve and deliver them intact to the next generation.  We have what we have because of their faithfulness.  What will the coming generations have because of us?

Third, many churches celebrate the first Sunday after October 31 as Reformation Day. It was on October 31, 1517 that Martin Luther pinned his Ninety-Five Thesis to the church door in Wittenberg, Germany, which was a major event in the restoration of Biblical faith and worship to the Church.  I prefer the word “restoration” to “reformation” because the Faith and worship were not re made, as in creating a new one.  Rather, the old faith was restored to the Church.  The old faith had been almost obscured by additional ceremonies and doctrines that gradually crept into the Church, like a beautiful, marble building obscured by layers of gaudy paint and paper. The Reformers removed these layers, and the Church was able to see the real, Biblical faith again. 

Like All Saints Day, Restoration Day also reminds me to be careful about the Faith and Worship we have been given.  The Faith is not mine to change to make it more pleasing to myself or others.  The Church is not mine to be conformed to my tastes and ideas.  The Bible is not mine to edit according to the likes and dislikes of my sinful inclinations.  These things belong to God and are given to us as gifts of His grace.  They are to be used and preserved according to His will not ours.

There is yet another thing that makes this day important.  This Tuesday the American people will go to the polls and decide who they will entrust with the service of government at various levels.  This, too, is important, and warrants our attention, and our prayers, this morning.

Naturally our vote deserves prayerful attention.  The Bible says whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.”  If we plant good things in our lives we will reap good things.  If we plant bad things, we will reap bad things.  This is especially true in the spiritual realm.  If we plant Godliness in our souls, we will reap the blessings of Godliness, in this life, and in the life to come.  If we plant sin, or even a casual and lukewarm attitude toward God and the things of God, we will reap the fruit of ungodliness.  I often speak with people who have been very casual about God, and find that their casual faith cannot comfort them in the many, serious trials of life.  Such people often say God has let them down.  God wasn’t there when they needed Him.  And they are angry and bitter at God.  What else should they expect?  They are reaping what they have sown.  They built their houses on the sand instead of upon the rock of the word of God, and when the great storms of life struck them, their houses of sand collapsed. And they have no one to blame but themselves.

The same principle applies to a family, community, state, or nation.  If we sow evil things we will reap evil things.  If we sow good things we will reap good things.  If we elect ungodly people to office, they will do ungodly things.  I am not just saying they will allow vice and immorality to flourish.  They will do that.  But even worse, they will turn father against son and mother against daughter, and church against church as people contend for competing ideas and values.  And the more people compete, the more of their own real freedom they surrender, for they give more and more power to the government to decide and enforce what will and will not be allowed.

Even worse, they will corrupt government, and use its power to enrich themselves and harm others.  One of the worst things to happen in human history was when the wealthy families of Europe found they could enrich themselves even more if they could get one of their sons elected Bishop of Rome.  To achieve personal wealth and power, they corrupted the process by which the pope, and other leaders in the Church, were elected.  Greedy, worldly, and Godless men became Bishops, priests, and deacons, and led Europe into spiritual corruption and darkness.  It was because of this corruption that the Reformation/Restoration of the 16th and 17th centuries became necessary.  Even the Restoration was not complete; that is why Christianity is splintered and fragmented to this very day.

Long before the corruption of the Church leaders, people in civil government learned to use their positions to empower and enrich themselves and their supporters.  We must always be alert to such tactics.

We must never assume that a political person, or party is the solution to America’s problems, because America’s problems are not political.  America’s problems are spiritual, and spiritual problems can only be solved by spiritual means.  America;s problems will only be solved when Americans stop playing Church, and get serious about God. Our National Constitution, along with the Constitution of our own Commonwealth, is based on the hope that “we the people” are informed and involved in the political process, and that our ideals and values are solidly based on the teachings of God in the Holy Bible.  It presumes that we will elect people to office who uphold and support these same values, and that we will scrutinize every thing they say and every law they pass through the lens of Holy Scripture.  Without that lens and without that base, we no longer have anything to unify us as a people, or to judge the candidates and their laws.  Without it, principle and truth no longer form the basis of our unity.  We diversify according to special interests and political expediency.  The only validity of any law, and the only validity of any politician is the fifty-one percent vote.  And the fifty-one percent vote becomes nothing more than a tyranny of numbers.

Allow me one final observation.  The United States is not the Kingdom of God.  The Church is the Kingdom of God on earth, and the Church always lives in Rome.  Rome, as you remember, was sometimes very friendly to the Church, and sometimes very hostile to it.  The Church of Jesus Christ is scattered among many “Romes.”  We dwell in many nations, and none  is the Kingdom of God.  We must not confuse the nation with the Kingdom, or the state with the Church.  Having said that, I hasten to say we are always willing to pray and work for the well-being of the state. 

We are always willing to be good citizens, and to obey its just laws and honor its just rulers.  In that spirit, may we pray for our country, and responsibly cast our votes.

+Dennis Campbell
Bishop, Anglican Orthodox Church Diocese of Virginia
Rector, Holy Trinity Anglican Orthodox Church
Powhatan, Virginia

Roy Morales-Kuhn, Bishop and Pastor - St. Paul's Anglican Church - Anglican Orthodox Church
Bishop Roy is pastor of the biggest AOC parish West of the Mississippi and is in charge of the Diocese of the Epiphany. 

Twentieth Sunday after Trinity
2 November 2014
Ephesians 5.15-21         Matthew 22.1-14

The Collect.

O
 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.

In today’s Epistle and Gospel we find some hard sayings; sayings and precepts that have many times been taken out of context.   Why don’t we unpack them at this time and see what is being discussed by St Paul and Jesus as recorded by St. Matthew.

Paul is writing to the church at Ephesus, where great commercial activity took place, a wealthy city in the eastern part of the Roman Empire, and yet a thriving Christian enclave existed.  Paul was reviewing what characteristics should be seen by the unbelievers in the city.

A circumspect people, using time wisely, not given to wine, that is drunk with wine, and notice how he ties that into a spiritual sense of living.  “..be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit...”    He is saying don’t let the spirit of wine rule you, let the Holy Spirit of God rule you instead.  And how do you nourish that wisdom and understanding of the will of the Lord?  You speak to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, and here is the neatest part of that nourishing nature....  “....singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord...”

15  See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise,
16  Redeeming the time, because the days are evil.
17  Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is.
18  And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit;
19  Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord;

I remember as a young boy growing up overseas a lady who worked for us several times a week.  Gwen would come to our house about 8 o clock in the morning, she would gather up all the ironing {before the days of perma-press} and begin to sprinkle water on the clothes in preparation to do the ironing.  All the while Gwen would be humming or singing gospel songs and hymns.  I remember how positive she was, didn’t matter if her bus was late, or it was raining or if it was super hot, she was singing and making melody in her heart to the Lord.

I know one day I will see Gwen again.   She lived, breathed and exuded her faith every day.

In her every day life she was doing what Paul was instructing the church at Ephesus to do.

20  Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ;
21  Submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God.

The parable of the wedding feast is a direct indictment of the rejection of Messiah by the Jews.   The king is God, the Son is Jesus, the wedding is the consummation of the ages in the body of believers are finally brought to reconciliation with their Creator.   All this is in the process of being worked out in the three and a half years of Christ earthly ministry.

Time and again he would present himself to the Children of Israel, time and again they would reject him.   Now individuals, disciples, followers, those healed, those forgiven, they would believer Jesus and his message.   But those who thought they knew better, they had the Scripture, they had the Law, they had Tradition; they knew that this couldn’t be the One.   Why ?   Because the god of this world had blinded them to the prophecies, the types and shadows which predicted the coming of the Messiah.   Those who rejected God and his Son would abuse, ridicule or even murder the messengers who were sent to call God’s chosen to him.    In light of that, God then turned to others, he sent out the message to the rest of the world, calling all who would come, to join the feast. 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:

Now notice that both bad and good were called, then bad would be culled out ... “....when the king came in to see the guests, he saw there a man which had not on a wedding garment.”   The king (God) has him removed from the feast.   Here is another hard saying.  After the guest who wasn’t prepared was removed and cast into outer darkness, now comes the saying: many are called but few are chosen.      This and similar sayings from the Scripture should give warning, that there is not a universal salvation.  Not everyone is going to heaven.    Yes I know that is a hard saying.  I don’t determine who is going to heaven.   If you go back to the middle of the parable you notice that many were called, THEY rejected God’s calling.  From the human viewpoint, they made a choice.   They told God by their actions that they did not believe or did not care that God was calling them.      So the saying   “...Many are called but few are chosen..” can take on an entirely different meaning.    We do not determine the mind of God. 

When we read of Jesus parables we should understand that he is teaching us both by story and by example, what we should do as believers.  I ask you to re-read the passage from Ephesians, that is what we are to do, the passage from Matthew is why we are to do it.

As believers we are to live our lives as an example to the dying world.   We are to show the way, the truth and the life wherein all are to be saved.    The determination is how someone acts upon those warnings and teachings that they have heard, seen or experienced.

Let us pray:

A
lmighty and everlasting God, who hatest nothing that Thou hast made, and dost forgive the sins of all those who are penitent; Create and make in us new and contrite hearts, that we, worthily lamenting our sins and acknowledging our wretchedness, may obtain of Thee, the God of all mercy, perfect remission and forgiveness; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

A
lmighty and everlasting God, who art always more ready to hear than we to pray, and art wont to give more than either we desire or deserve; Pour down upon us the abundance of Thy mercy; forgiving us those things whereof our conscience is afraid, and giving us those good things which we are not worthy to ask, but through the merits and mediation of Jesus Christ, Thy Son, our Lord. Amen.

O
 God, who art the author of peace and lover of concord, in knowledge of whom standeth our eternal life, whose service is perfect freedom; Defend us Thy humble servants in all assaults of our enemies; that we, surely trusting in Thy defence, may not fear the power of any adversaries, through the might of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

And Jesus answered and spake unto them again by parables, and said,
2   The kingdom of heaven is like unto a certain king, which made a marriage for his son,
3  And sent forth his servants to call them that were bidden to the wedding: and they would not come.
4   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.
5  But they made light of it, and went their ways, one to his farm, another to his merchandise:
6  And the remnant took his servants, and entreated them spitefully, and slew them.
7  But when the king heard thereof, he was wroth: and he sent forth his armies, and destroyed those murderers, and burned up their city.
8  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.
10  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.
11  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.
14  For many are called, but few are chosen.


Rev Bryan Dabney of Saint John’s Sunday Sermon
We are fortunate to have Bryan’s Sunday Sermon.  If you want people to come to The Truth, you have to speak the truth, expouse the truth and live the truth.    This is really a good piece and I commend it to your careful reading.

Twentieth Sunday after Trinity

In our gospel today, our Lord spoke in a parable wherein he likened the kingdom of heaven to a marriage feast which a king put on for his son (St. Matthew 22:1-14). Part and parcel of this message is our Lord’s invitation for all to come and be received into his kingdom (v.9). The parable noted that the king’s servants did as they were commanded and found a goodly number of folks both bad and good (v.10). Our Lord also spoke of the king seeing a man there who did not have on a wedding garment (v.11). The king then enquired of the man why he came not wearing the proper attire to which he was speechless (v.12). The king then ordered that he be bound hand and foot and cast into outer darkness where there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth (v.13). Then our Lord concluded his tale with these words: For many are called, but few are chosen (v.14).

There is not a single parable recorded in the gospel accounts which could be regarded as spurious or for mere entertainment of the listener. Jesus was deadly serious in all his presentations of what he considered to be bad behavior and its attendant consequences. In this parable he was talking about the presentation of the gospel message. For with the preaching of the gospel, the only way to salvation will be made plain to the unregenerate as they would have not learned of God’s saving grace otherwise.

At the front end of this parable, our Lord warned those of his brethren who had rejected him as their Messiah that there would be a terrible price exacted on account of such (vv. 2-7). Historically speaking, we have the destruction of Jerusalem and the carting away of the people from the city into faraway lands as well as the leveling of the Temple itself as a testimony to the veracity of this parable. But our focus today will be on the second portion of this parable.

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 (vv.8-9). The gospel message is for all regardless of who they are— whether they be sinners of one kind or another— as all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23). The servants could not perceive the spiritual makeup of those called as they were not empowered look into their inward parts (v.10). Their job was to call all who would come to the feast not evaluate the secret places of their hearts.

Only after those who were bidden had come in did the king himself enter the room to find one of those bidden without a proper garment (v.11). Why would someone come to a wedding without dressing for the occasion? What disrespect would such a one show to him who had called him? Matthew Henry noted we should not blame the servants of the king as they had done what they were instructed to do. They had called and those that heard came.

Now we get into the fundamentals of the gospel itself. To be called of God is to be called to repent and turn from sinful behaviors. It is a call to accept Jesus Christ as Saviour and Lord. It is a call to be accepted into the beloved through a baptism of the Holy Ghost. It is a call to worship and serve God in such a manner that reveals the true state of one’s soul in relation to the Godhead. It means being born again. It means putting off the old man and the lusts of the flesh and the pride of life. It means being renewed in one’s mind. Matthew Henry noted concerning this passage that, “The wedding garment is an inward thing” and that is why the king did not rebuke his servants for letting the man into the feast. The fault was with the man himself for presuming that no one would know his heart. The Lord does indeed have the power to see inside the hearts of men especially those who are false professors of the faith. He knows all too well their deceitfulness and their chicanery.

How often do people come to church with their hearts set on things other than the gospel? How many come to salve their consciences by simply being seen in church? How many believe that the Bible is factual in but a few places, rather than the truth in every place? How many come bearing a mask of righteousness and feigning a humble nature via a false piety? How many come to church with an inclination to disbelieve rather than to believe the fundamentals of the Christian faith? How many come seeking to turn the faithful away from the truth of God’s word written so that they will be turned unto fables? How many readily accept any contradiction to those messages which the Bible proclaims as truth? How many have come into the body of Christ expressing their love for Christ all the while denying God’s word written which affirms him as Saviour and Lord? How many do not recognize that the Jesus Christ is Lord of all aspects of their lives? How many have partaken of the sacraments without faith and without a care as to what they were doing other than ingratiating themselves to those within the body of Christ? How many come precisely because their particular church body has been turned from truth to error?

The ministers of God cannot see the false professors as they are, but our Lord does. And what does he call for regarding such persons? Does he give them a pass? Does he overlook their shortcomings? This parable is not about a cruel and heartless God who harshly judges the offenses of those who did not know better upon hearing the gospel of truth. No, this is about rooting out deception. This is about dealing with liars and fraudsters. This is about God’s righteousness being proclaimed and that his omniscience renders every heart an open book. Our Lord said, For there is nothing covered, that shall not be revealed; neither hid, that shall not be known (St. Luke 12:2).

And God’s just punishment for this deception is perdition and everlasting torment. As Matthew Henry reminded his readers concerning the errant guest, “He is condemned to be manacled and shackled. Damned sinners are bound hand and foot by an irreversible sentence. They can neither resist nor overrun their punishment... Hypocrites are taken away from the king and the kingdom... the damnation of hypocrites... is utter, extreme darkness... Hypocrites go by the light of the gospel down to utter darkness.” Hell is a place of torment and rage. Grant Jeffrey noted that, “We have all heard people foolishly joke that when they die and go to Hell, they will hold a great party because all their friends will be there as well. These careless jokes reflect the almost total absence of belief in the reality and horror of an eternity in Hell... Consider for a moment the companions who will share Hell with those who stubbornly resist God’s mercy to the very end... Hell will be filled forever with untold billions of angry sinners who will still possess bodies that can feel pain, but can never die. In their pain and rage against God’s justice, these angry sinners will curse God and each other...” And D. James Kennedy offered the following concerning Hell: “When you have been in hell a hundred billion trillion eons of centuries, you will not have one less second to be there... You will be in utter darkness, fleeing this way and that...” How horrid! And that is reality of being separated from God, but such a future is entirely avoidable.

Beloved in Christ, be straight and truthful with God in your devotions and confessions. If you truly believe and accept Jesus Christ as your Saviour and Lord then you have nothing to fear of perdition. A wonderful new world awaits you wherein righteousness dwells. There will be such joys in heaven which our earthly minds cannot fathom. The Bible tells us that eye hath not seen nor ear heard what the Lord has in store for those that love him and keep his commandments (Isaiah 64:4 and I Corinthians 2:9). If you are truly in Christ Jesus then you already have a proper wedding garment! God can see it on you! But while others may not see it, they will necessarily see your fruits along with your witness. Therefore be obedient to the will of our Lord and Saviour. Pray in the Spirit. Uphold righteousness in your daily life and work. Proclaim God’s graciousness to those around you as the Spirit gives you leave to do. Call upon all to come to the feast, but warn them also to come properly attired so that they will be accepted into the beloved as faithful members of Christ’s body. The gospel message is timeless and is in vogue regardless of a person’s age or condition, but it is limited to the living. Once death has overtaken a person, the offer to come to God in Christ will have expired. Don’t be caught unawares for truly many are called, but few are chosen.

Let us pray,

F
ather, assist us with thy most holy Spirit to proclaim the good news of Jesus Christ to those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death; that they too might turn from their sins and trespasses and become new creatures in Christ; for this we ask in his most holy name. Amen.

Have a blessed week, Bryan+



[1] In that day, the giver of such a feast would have provided wedding garments for those who traveled far and were unable to bring one.  In our case, Jesus provides the appropriate garb to those who will wear it, not just accept it and put it to one side.