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Saint Luke the Evangelist. [October
18.]
The Collect.
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LMIGHTY God, who didst inspire
thy servant Saint Luke the Physician, to set forth in the Gospel the love and
healing power of thy Son; Manifest in thy Church the like power and love, to
the healing of our bodies and our souls; through the same thy Son Jesus Christ
our Lord. Amen.
And,
as the Feast of Saint Luke supersedes the Twentieth Sunday after Trinity, we
read that Collect also!
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.
1 The
former treatise have I made, O Theophilus, of all that Jesus began both to do
and teach, 2 Until the day in
which he was taken up, after that he through the Holy Ghost had given
commandments unto the apostles whom he had chosen: 3 To whom also he
shewed himself alive after his passion by many infallible proofs, being seen of
them forty days, and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God: 4 And, being
assembled together with them, commanded them that they should not depart from
Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father,
which, saith he, ye have heard of me. 5 For John truly baptized with water; but ye shall be
baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence. 6 When they
therefore were come together, they asked of him, saying, Lord, wilt thou at
this time restore again the kingdom to Israel? 7 And he said unto
them, It is not for you to know the times or the
seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power. 8 But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is
come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all
Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth. 9 And when he had
spoken these things, while they beheld, he was taken up; and a cloud received
him out of their sight. 10 And while they looked stedfastly toward heaven as he went
up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel; 11 Which also said,
Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which
is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen
him go into heaven. (Acts 1:1-11 KJV)
Today's lectionary text from the Book of Acts is, like all other parts of the
Bible, more sensible and cohesive if quoted in a fuller context; and so I have
also included three additional verses to those suggested by the lectionary.
Practically all ancient and reliable authorities attribute the Book of Acts to
the writing of Saint Luke as inspired by the Holy Ghost. It is of such a
balanced and broad nature I do not doubt that fact.
This date in the Church calendar is an opportune time to commemorate St. Luke
and even the beginning of the Advent Season. St. Luke, in His Gospel, recorded
actual eye-witness accounts of the life of Christ. In this present book, he
gives us an account of the Second, and yet unseen, Advent of the Lord Jesus
Christ.
I sent out a quote yesterday of Philip Schaff on the importance of history
concerning the church: "How shall we labor with any effect to build up
the church if we have no thorough knowledge of her history? History is, and
must ever continue to be, next to God's Word, the richest foundation for
wisdom, and the surest guide to all successful practical activity." ~
Philip Schaff. Schaff was a renowned writer and historian of the last century
concerning the Church. I believe the above quote to be the most profoundly
important of all that he wrote in the many volumes of work he authored. So Acts
is the beginning history, continuing history, and future history of the Church.
It is one book of the Bible that is incomplete because the history of the
Church is being written in the lives of believers today.
The glory of St. Luke is like unto the glory of the pen-quill with which
Shakespeare, Hafez, or Longfellow wrote their masterpieces. It is not the quill
that embodies meaning, but the mind behind the author who conceived and wrote
the story - even if by means of a scribe such as St. Luke (the Quill).
Our lives
authenticate who we are
Each of you today are writing the story of the church by the living testimony
that the world observes in your lives. Hopefully, the chapters will be
extensive and intense for beauty. You will acknowledge that the first Bible
anyone may see could be that written on the pages of the lives of the church.
Look at the opening line of this important Book: "The former treatise
have I made, O Theophilus, of all that Jesus began both to do and teach."
All that Jesus taught, was also revealed in His actions of compassion, healing,
enlightenment, and even judgment. If we are to teach Bible studies, it is
incumbent upon us to live a life that will document the credibility of what we
teach. No one would venture to have a pile-driver repair a tooth cavity any
more than he would hire a dentist to break up a concrete walkway. The teacher
must live what he teaches - and Jesus did that.
Note also (from verse 2) that Jesus chose the apostles Himself, and they did
not choose Him. No man chooses to become a minister of the Lord unless He is
first called, chosen, and empowered by the Holy Ghost to undertake so mighty a
work. Many are called and chosen, but have weak ears to hear the call. Those
the Lord will make an "offer they cannot refuse."
The veracity of all Holy Scripture rests upon six fundamental facts of faith:
1) that God is Maker and Creator of all things visible and invisible; 2) that
Jesus was conceived of the Holy Ghost by the Virgin Mary; 2) that He lived a
sinless life; 4) that He was crucified and buried for the redemption of our
sins; 5) that He rose again from the tomb on the third day; and 6) that He
ascended to Heaven where He sits on the Right Hand of God the Father. All of
these are summarized in our Apostles Creed and proved by Scripture. Even
secular history attests to these fundamentals more than any other single event
in history. "He shewed himself alive after his passion by many
infallible proofs, being seen of them forty days, and speaking of the things
pertaining to the kingdom of God." In the pulpits of most churches
today, there seems to be a loss of memory concerning these fundamentals for
they are barely mentioned even at Easter.
Faith demands
patience:
"but wait for the promise of the Father,
which, saith he, ye have heard of me."
Sometimes our patience is required in the service of the Lord. We do not like
'waiting.' We believe that our works will yield immediately results, but our
schedule differs from the timeline of Heaven. Abraham received the Promise 2000
years before its consummation in a manger at Bethlehem. He waited and waited -
and so did all of the Godly lineage from Abraham until Christ. They looked for
the Promise of His coming, and Abraham saw it, by faith, from 2000 years past.
Baptism is
more than a wet head:
"For
John truly baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost
not many days hence." What is the difference in a saint and a
hypocrite, or a Pharisee and a disciple? A hypocrite or a Pharisee may know
much more words of the Bible than some true believers - certainly, the Devil
knows more than we. "Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest
well: the devils also believe, and tremble." (James 2:19 KJV) So what
does St. Luke tell us that differentiates between a simple Bible scholar and a
true Bible believer? Is it not the aid and comfort of the Holy Ghost to call to
remembrance all things that Scripture has taught us of Christ? Once we have a
head knowledge of God - His Creation, His Kingship, His Son - what else is
needful? We have a solid understanding in our head, but that head knowledge
must be written in the ink of love on our hearts by the Holy Ghost.
Do not get
trapped by timelines and genealogies:
How many 'for profit' books are being written today, and gaining much filthy
lucre for the authors, on prophecy of the end times? or going to Hell or Heaven
and back without either a scorch or a crown? This is not our great concern. Christ
may come for you in the next ten minutes via a massive heart attack or
automobile accident. Why concern ourselves with the trivials? Why not exercise
the patience of the saints and allow Christ to surprise us with that dawning of
Eternity! " When they therefore were come together, they asked of him,
saying, Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel? And
he said unto them, It is not for you to know the
times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power."
"Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my
words shall not pass away. But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the
angels of heaven, but my Father only. But as the days of Noe were, so shall
also the coming of the Son of man be." (Matt 24:35-37)
And what, pray tell, were the days of Noah like? Just like today, the people
ridiculed the righteous teacher. Just like today, the imaginations of men's
heart was continually evil. "And GOD saw that the wickedness of man was
great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was
only evil continually." (Gen 6:5 KJV) Just as men are eating and
drinking to gluttony, and having no respect of marriage or distinction of
sexes, so were the men of Noah's Day: "For
as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying
and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark,"
(Matt 24:38) So
I suppose you can use those prolific publications that nail down the very day
and hour of Christ's coming for kindling. (Material used to start a fire for
the younger ones here, and what a fire those books will fuel in the hereafter)
Do not fret
about the 'mode' of Christ's coming - scripture tells us all we need to know:
Luke closes his text for today with this important glimpse of the Second
Advent: And when he had spoken these things, while they beheld, he was taken
up; and a cloud received him out of their sight. And while
they looked stedfastly toward heaven as he went up, behold, two men stood by
them in white apparel; Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing
up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall
so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven.
Yes, the scriptures tell
us that Jesus was "received by a cloud' (verse 9 above) at His
ascension! It is quite appropriate that a cloud received Him for He was that
Pillar of Cloud by Day and Fire by Night that both led and followed the
children of Israel out of bondage in Egypt. He was the One whom the cloud
covered on the Mount of Transfiguration. He was received by a cloud, and He
shall return in a cloud. "Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye
shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth
shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen
(Rev 1:7)
So dear friends, do not be
dismayed by the cloudy days - they may herald the return of our Lord. Are you
ready?
