Circumcision of Christ - Propers with explanation – Rev Jack’s Sermon– With Video

Rev Jack brings the Propers together today.    His sermon is below the propers and can be viewed on video here -> https://youtu.be/AM283jncTiE

 

Today’s Collect reflects our need for God’s help to live in and by His Rules as Jesus did, the first obvious example being His Circumcision.  In his Epistle to the people of Philippia Paul points out God had given a name exaulted above all others and that we should acknowledge that in our actions.  The Gospel is Luke’s accounting of the angels visiting the shepherds in the field and their subsequent trip to see Jesus in the manger.  Jesus came in a humble manner with the Force of God behind him.  It all comes together, listen or read to understand how. 

Circumcision of Christ

 

Today we celebrate the circumcision of Jesus in accordance with Jewish tradition, eight days (according to the Semitic and southern European calculation of intervals of days) after his birth, the occasion on which the child was formally given his name.  The circumcision of Jesus has traditionally been seen, as explained in the popular 14^th century work The Golden Legend, as the first time the blood of Christ was shed, and thus the beginning of the process of the redemption of man, and a demonstration Christ was fully human and of his obedience to Biblical law[1]. No longer celebrated by many churches, including the Roman and TEC, it is still the Eighth Day.  That has not changed and so we celebrate the event as it is referred to in scripture, thus should it be recalled.

The propers for today are found on Pages 105-106, with the Collect first:

 

The Circumcision of Christ.

 

[January 1.]

 

The Collect.

A

LMIGHTY God, who madest thy blessed Son to be circumcised, and obedient to the law for man; Grant us the true circumcision of the Spirit; that, our hearts, and all our members, being mortified from all worldly and carnal lusts, we may in all things obey thy blessed will; through the same thy Son Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

 

The Nativity of our Lord, or the Birthday of Christ,

commonly called Christmas Day.

[December 25.]

The Collect.

 

A

LMIGHTY God, who hast given us thy only-begotten Son to take our nature upon him, and as at this time to be born of a pure virgin; Grant that we being regenerate, and made thy children by adoption and grace, may daily be renewed by thy Holy Spirit; through the same our Lord Jesus Christ, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the same Spirit ever, one God, world without end.  Amen.

 

¶ This Collect is to be said daily throughout the Octave.

 

The Epistle for today came from Paul’s letter to the people of Philippia, starting at the Ninth Verse of the Second Chapter. The portion of the letter used as today’s Epistle is relatively short.  God has sent His Son to earth and given him a name above all others, Jesus[1].  Paul exhorts his fellow followers to continue to follow the Lord, not only while he is watching them, but at all times.  God will give them the will and ability to do good, but only if they do their best to follow Him.

 

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OD also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.

 

The Gospel for today came from the Gospel according to Saint Luke, the Second Chapter, beginning at the Fifteenth Verse. Today’s Gospel recounts the angels visit to the shepherds who came into Bethlehem to pay homage to Jesus in the manger.  It also documents the circumcision of Jesus, bringing Him under the Law.  He who: Is, Was and always Will be, put Himself under the Law, that He might fulfill the Law and be our salvation.

 

Our salvation from the Law came from the perfect sacrifice one time for the sins of all mankind for all time.  The sacrifice had to be a perfect human, one who did not exist until Jesus came.   That perfect human had to enter in to the Law, had to be subject to the Law.  Thus, Jesus submitted Himself unto the Law that he might in the end have dominion over the Law.

 

A

nd it came to pass, as the angels were gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds said one to another, Let us now go even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us. And they came with haste, and found Mary, and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger. And when they had seen it, they made known abroad the saying which was told them concerning this child. And all they that heard it wondered at those things which were told them by the shepherds. But Mary kept all these things, and pondered them in her heart. And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, as it was told unto them. And when eight days were accomplished for the circumcising of the child, his name was called JESUS, which was so named of the angel before he was conceived in the womb.

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[1] The name Jesus, savior, is the Greek form of the Hebrew name Joshua, which was originally Hoshea (Num. 13:8, 16), but changed by Moses into Jehoshua (Num. 13:16; 1 Chr. 7:27), or Joshua. After the Exile it assumed the form Jeshua, whence the Greek form Jesus.  It was given to our Lord to denote the object of his mission, to save.

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[1] The act of circumcision is often used in Scripture as an allegory for The Law, that is the system of the 613 laws referred to as Mosaic Laws under which Jews operated since the time of Moses.

Sermon - Rev Jack Arnold

Church of the Faithful Centurion - Descanso, California

Rev Jack’ sermon can be viewed on video RIGHT HERE -> https://youtu.be/AM283jncTiE

 

Today we recall the circumcision of our Lord and Savior.  He is God, yet He is under The Law. How can this be one might ask? If He is God could He just choose not to obey His Own Laws if He so desires? Not all those 613 laws were those called Moral, that is to say the Ten Commandments, but there are those which are moral and there are also laws of God or physics.   To answer the question posed earlier, God, the Ultimate Being, is subject to the laws He made.  

 

While He can, and does on the very special occasion, disregard them such as when the shadow went backwards, for the most part He, too, is subject to The Laws[1].  Why?  Because they were made for the general good of this world.  They establish the moral code we are to follow if we are to be good citizens of His Kingdom. We see what happens when people do not follow the Laws God set out for us to live by. 

 

If we stop living by The Laws, then we are no better than the animals of this world, who live by no such Laws whatsoever. Then, there is no benefit, no reason, for us to follow Christ if we do not live by the laws He has set before us. That is the whole reason to have the Laws, to rein in our evil desires and make us a holy and wholesome people. Without the Laws, we would be not wholesome and vicious and vile individuals. You can see what would happen as you see the forces of Evil attempting to destroy and discredit Christianity all across the globe. The results of their infiltration in various governments are resulting in less people following the Law and thus less people being wholesome and good and instead being encouraged to pursue their own desires at the cost of their soul and eternal life.

 

If we think do not need to follow these laws, then how could we claim to be following Him? We follow Him because He is the embodiment of all that is good and pleasing, unlike the world, which seems to be the embodiment of pure evil and sickness.  They are revolted by God because as they are born of the darkness and not having accepted His Son and His Grace, they cannot bear to look upon the brightness of God. They are like the Orcs of the Lord of the Rings who are disgusted and in fact harmed by sunlight as they are creatures of the darkness.  Moses not being able to look upon God without a veil was also an allegory to this simple fact. If we remain in the darkness, we cannot bear to look upon Him, the Living Light.  So, we need to let the Holy Ghost enter into our hearts and allow us to bask in His Everlasting Glory and Light.

 

Evil and sin are diseases which can only be cured by being regenerated through the Holy Ghost.  We cannot cure these diseases on our own, as the blind cannot lead the blind in this case, or more appropriately the sick cannot heal the sick. We need the perfect healer of the Holy Ghost to enter into our hearts and cure us of the malady of sin. As a rule, God does not break His own Laws; in the very unique cases He does it is for an extremely good reason. This world needs a system of order so that things are done in an orderly manner and not confusion. Without a system of order, there is chaos.  God is not chaos; God never brings confusion. Chaos and Confusion is not of God, but of the Devil. 

 

God never tests, but when we are tested by this world, He monitors the results. He is very much like the proctors who monitored my online exams at WGU.  He did not write our tests; however, He is always watching to see how we perform in stressful and trying situations. He brought the new covenant or new agreement to us through His Son, our Savior, Jesus Christ.  Knowing we cannot ever be perfect, He gave us a way to be accounted as perfect at the Judgment Day – One Sacrifice, Made One time, by One Man who was God, for All Mankind for All Time.  Jesus is our light and our life.  Through Him all things are possible.  

 

All salvation takes is the simple understanding of a child or a shepherd.  The simple truth that is Christ.  He is not complex.  His message is not sophisticated.  He is the way.  The One Way!

 

Paul’s Epistle tells us God has set Jesus at the top of the universe’s food chain, so to speak when he says at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, Lord, that is Lord of All.  And why? to the glory of God the Father.  For God created everything, yet of Him was Jesus begotten.  Jesus is the one who created the Earth, so it makes sense that He is at the top of the universes food chain. Recognizing this simple but very important fact, we need to do our best to put Him first in our hearts. We need the help of the Holy Ghost to put Jesus first, as Paul tells us, For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.  Notice the to will and to do.  We are not only to talk, but more importantly to walk.

 

When you read the rather straightforward accounting of the shepherds being told of the birth of Jesus and their trip into the village to see the newborn babe Luke gives, do wonder what they thought?  Here they have been told the King of Kings had just been born in Nazareth; when they come to town, they find a little baby, wrapped in rags, in an animal feeder.  Not a kingly sight, not even a common sight, but an almost pitiful sight.  A sophisticated and clever thinker might have doubted the angels and let those thoughts lead them further from The Truth.  Yet, in their simple acceptance of the angels’ tidings, they started the spread of The Word. They were truly the first of all those converted to followers of Christ. They had the faith as a child would which is to simply believe what they have seen and been told and not to excessively question it. For us, this is the start of the lesson that our faith must be “as a child”, simple, not complex, not looking to count those angels dancing on the head of the pin, just knowing and believing that however many angels are required to dance on the head of the pin, so will the number be.

 

This is the first day of the New Calendar Year.  Remember also, it is the first day of the remainder of your life here on earth, let it count for something. The line of time stretches from the unfathomable past to the unknowable future.  Where the finger of God touches that line is The Present.  The Present.  The only place in which we can exist; we live in the present, the past will never come again and tomorrow never comes. We can only act in the present, the here and now.  Take the right path, starting right now.

 

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?

 

It is by our actions we are known.

 

Be of God - Live of God - Act of God

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[1] Yet, do not misapprehend, we know but little of His Laws and the laws of the universe as He made them.  Our grasp of the space time continuum is little beyond that possessed  by those at Moses time.  He is, was and always will be.  We live in the present, remember the past and prepare for what will be, the best we can.

An Holy Unction – 31 December 2022, Anno Domini

 

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ITTLE children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that antichrist shall come, even now are there many antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last time. 19 They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would no doubt have continued with us: but they went out, that they might be made manifest that they were not all of us. 20 But ye have an unction from the Holy One, and ye know all things. 21 I have not written unto you because ye know not the truth, but because ye know it, and that no lie is of the truth. 22 Who is a liar but he that denieth that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist, that denieth the Father and the Son. 23 Whosoever denieth the Son, the same hath not the Father: (but) he that acknowledgeth the Son hath the Father also.  (1 John 2:18-23)

 

            I have chosen only the first six verses of today's lectionary text on 1 John 18 since far greater space would be needed to cover the entire text. Antichrists have been with us from the beginning of the Gospel and will continue in our midst until the return of our Lord Jesus Christ. Though antichrist may be identified as an individual man, he may also be represented as institutions and governments. It is fairly simply to recognize antichrist governments such as Communist China, North Korea, Venezuela, and, more increasingly, even our own government in the United States that wish to ban Christian prayer, Holy Days, and religious conviction.

 

We cannot claim a belief in God and yet deny His only Begotten Son, Jesus Christ. But Jesus Christ keeps getting in the way of the religious and government agenda. If only that ‘Stone of Stumbling’ which is Christ could be removed as an impediment to their global, Tower-of-Babel, ambitions! “Unto you therefore which believe he is precious: but unto them which be disobedient, the stone which the builders disallowed, the same is made the head of the corner, And a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offence, even to them which stumble at the word, being disobedient: whereunto also they were appointed.”  (1 Peter 2:7-8)

 

            The Lord Jesus Christ even keeps getting in the way of many mainline churches who deny His Word and are turned to open rebellion to it. They seek social respectability and a presumed ‘sophistication’ to the simply obedience required of the Church and people of God.

 

            We are about to embark upon a new year. It may be a landmark year in which the Holy Spirit of God moves upon the face of the waters of America, as He did in Genesis 1:2 at the beginning of Creation and restores our faith and obedience to Him; or, it could otherwise be a year in which we sink so deeply into the abyss that recovery without an awful judgment is impossible. There was a time in the apostacy of Israel that restoration became impossible and hard bondage in Babylon was the result. The ‘red-line” of God is not the same as that of politicians and apostate churches. That Red-Line of God was drawn in the sands afoot the cross at Golgotha by the blood of His dear Son. Shall we who have known Him as a nation and as a Church turn away in ridicule of that Red Line? Yes, we may do so, but I can assure you, God is aware of the dark secrets of the heart: “Be not deceived; God is not mocked.” (Galatians 6:7a)

 

            In the Roman calendar, the Roman idol, Janus, was a two-faced figure with one face looking back, and the other looking forward. Our month of January is named for that idol. Of course, the principle illustrated in the wisdom of looking back upon the wisdom of the past and looking forward to the challenges of the future with our thinking fortified by that wisdom. But modern society has forgotten that backward-looking face. We have abandoned the wisdom of the ancients, and of God, for perversions that have forever been rejected by past generations. Do you consider that wise? Have we become so self-sufficient that we no longer need that proven wisdom of the past and are ready to launch out into uncharted waters – the same that brought a fiery destruction to the Cities of the Plain (Sodom and Gomorrah)?

 

            In the coming New Year, will you be friends of the Lord Jesus Christ of or antichrist – the choice is ours? "Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you." "Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you." "Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you." "These things I command you, that ye love one another." "If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you." "If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you." (John 15:14-19)

The Holy Innocents – 28 December 2022, Anno Domini

 

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HEN Herod, when he saw that he was mocked of the wise men, was exceeding wroth, and sent forth, and slew all the children that were in Bethlehem, and in all the coasts thereof, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had diligently enquired of the wise men. 17 Then was fulfilled that which was spoken by Jeremy the prophet, saying, 18 In Rama was there a voice heard, lamentation, and weeping, and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children, and would not be comforted, because they are not.  (Matthew 2:16-18)

 

                        Herod’s guilt of the massacre of the infants of Bethlehem does not eclipse the national guilt of America in the murder of millions of innocent babies in the mother’s womb. But the mindset was the same – it satisfied his convenience of power just as abortion is a convenience to evade moral responsibility for one’s criminal acts.

 

            Herod was a great deceiver and would find complete comfort as a member of the Executive, Legislative or Judicial Branches of the United States government today – he would find himself in agreeable company to his treacherous disposition.

 

            When the Wise Men evaded his request for knowledge of the Christ-Child, Herod was enraged. Such a king as would be heralded by the prophesied Star would, in his mind, be a great threat to his own throne. But why specify all male of two years age and under according to the time which he had diligently enquired of the wise men? The appearance of the Star marked the birth of the Christ-Child. Counting the time down from first sight in the distant East where the Wise Men first saw the Star, Herod calculated two years duration considering their travel time. By the time the wise Men had traversed mountain and desert wilderness, His estimate approximated two years. To be sure that the Christ-Child was included in the massacre, he ordered all infants from two years and under to be killed.

 

            You will recall when the Wise Men arrived to see the Infant Jesus, He was no longer in the stable yard, but in a permanent dwelling. And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense, and myrrh. (Matthew 2:11) This visitation necessarily occurred some months from the first sighting of the Star.

 

            Consider the mournful cries of the mothers that night in tiny little Bethlehem as their precious children were dragged from their arms and put to the sword before their very eyes. Mother’s had far greater love for their children in those dark days than many have in the world today. The heart of man can be most cruel when supported by malicious government! Legalization of murder is still murder in the eyes of God.The Prophet Jeremiah had uttered the prophecy of this event more than six centuries before the fact: ¶Thus saith the Lord; A voice was heard in Ramah (Bethlehem), lamentation, and bitter weeping; Rahel weeping for her children refused to be comforted for her children, because they were not. (Jeremiah 31:15)  Bethlehem was the home city of David and the burial place of Rachel, the beloved wife of Jacob and mother of Joseph.

 

            The innocent babes of Bethlehem were the first martyrs of Christ to occur during His ministry, and they certainly share in a heavenly bliss with Christ as I write. Being babes, they had no sin, but even if they did have, their blood sacrifice was more efficacious to wash away their sins than that of goats and oxen. Their blood was shed for Christ whose blood would redeem them of the taint of sin at the last.

 

            Can such atrocities be repeated in our modern world? The question is rhetorical! It is being repeated daily even today by moslem radicals in the middle east, and by sterile hospital environments where the white-gowned ministers of death take the lives of innocent babies ere they see their first sunrise – God forbid!

 

             How does God view a nation that sheds innocent blood? That innocent blood be not shed in thy land, which the Lord thy God giveth thee for an inheritance, and so blood be upon thee. (Deuteronomy 19:10) The following text fairly sums the present moral state of the Land Beautiful: Their feet run to evil, and they make haste to shed innocent blood: their thoughts are thoughts of iniquity; wasting and destruction are in their paths. The way of peace they know not; and there is no judgment in their goings: they have made them crooked paths: whosoever goeth therein shall not know peace.  Therefore is judgment far from us, neither doth justice overtake us: we wait for light, but behold obscurity; for brightness, but we walk in darkness. We grope for the wall like the blind, and we grope as if we had no eyes: we stumble at noonday as in the night; we are in desolate places as dead men. (Isaiah 59:7-11)  All logic and judgment has abandoned us in our lust for more and more sin.  I no longer pray for God to bless America in her current state, but that God would save America so that He will then be able to bless her once more.

AOC Sunday Report – Christmas Day

 

Merry Christmas!

The AOC Sunday Report can be downloaded RIGHT HERE!  

Today we have excellent sermons from Bishops Roy and Dennis, as well as from Revs Jack and Bryan.  Each is very different, but very good.  Rev Jack brings the Propers together today.    His sermon can be viewed on video RIGHT HERE -> https://youtu.be/Ri00wNVhFL0. Today’s Collect reflects our need for God’s help to fulfill the role we have been given as His adopted children.  In the Epistle Paul relates the history behind’s Christ’s arrival here on earth. The Gospel ties Jesus to The Word of God and points out while His own received Him not, those who have have been given power to become the sons of God.  It all comes together, listen or read to understand how. 

Every week we ask you to pray for those on our list, today is actually different, today I plead with you to pray for our bishop in Pennsylvania, Jim Flanagan.  He is one of the finest men I have ever had the privilege of knowing.  His devotion to country, church and family is only exceeded by his devotion and love of our Lord.  He is nearing the end of his time here on earth after a long fight with many assorted challenges.  I ask your favor in praying to God in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ that Jim might make it beyond Christmas and have a safe passing home.

There is a lot going on this week both in the church and the world.  Sometimes it seems daunting, if it does open your heart to God's help.  He will provide the strength you need.

Godspeed,

Hap
Church of the Faithful Centurion
Descanso, California
United States of America

Christmas Day - Propers with explanation – Rev Jack’s Sermon– With Video

 

Rev Jack brings the Propers together today.    His sermon is below the propers and can be viewed on video HERE -> https://youtu.be/Ri00wNVhFL0

 

Today’s Collect reflects our need for God’s help to fulfill the role we have been given as His adopted children.  In the Epistle Paul relates the history behind’s Christ’s arrival here on earth. The Gospel ties Jesus to The Word of God and points out while His own received Him not, those who have have been given power to become the sons of God.  It all comes together, listen or read to understand how. 

The propers for today are found on Page 96-98, with the Collect first:

 

The Nativity of our Lord, or the Birthday of Christ,

commonly called Christmas Day.

[December 25.]

The Collect.

 

 

A

LMIGHTY God, who hast given us thy only-begotten Son to take our nature upon him, and as at this time to be born of a pure virgin; Grant that we being regenerate, and made thy children by adoption and grace, may daily be renewed by thy Holy Spirit; through the same our Lord Jesus Christ, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the same Spirit ever, one God, world without end.  Amen.

 

¶ This Collect is to be said daily throughout the Octave.

 

The Epistle for Christmas Day came from the Epistle of Paul the Apostle to the Hebrews, the First Chapter, beginning at the First Verse: 

 

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OD, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds; who  being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high; being made so much better than the angels, as he hath by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they. For unto which of the angels said he at any time, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee? And again, I will be to him a Father, and he shall be to me a Son? And again, when he bringeth in the first-begotten into the world, he saith, And let all the angels of God worship him. And of the angels he saith, Who maketh his angels spirits, and his ministers a flame of fire. But unto the Son he saith, Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: a sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of thy kingdom. Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated iniquity; therefore God, even thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows. And, Thou, Lord, in the beginning hast laid the foundation of the earth; and the heavens are the works of thine hands: they shall perish; but thou remainest; and they all shall wax old as doth a garment; and as a vesture shalt thou fold them up, and they shall be changed: but thou art the same, and thy years shall not fail.

 

The Gospel for Christmas Day came from the Gospel according to Saint John, the First Chapter, beginning at the First Verse.  This particular Gospel is known as the Last Gospel as it comes from the last Gospel to be written, that of St. John, and it brings the final Word of Jesus to us.

 

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N the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life; and the life was the light of men. And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not. There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all men through him might believe. He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light. That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world. He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not. He came unto his own, and his own received him not. But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.

Sermon - Rev Jack Arnold

Church of the Faithful Centurion - Descanso, California

Rev Jack’ sermon can be viewed on video RIGHT HERE -> https://youtu.be/Ri00wNVhFL0

 

Today’s sermon brought the Collect, Epistle and Gospel together and is partly contained in the forewords above. 

Before we start, let me say to me the most amazing and impressive thing about Christmas, the celebration of the earthly birth of our Lord and Savior, is that Jesus came into this world to give us eternal life, guidance and inspiration knowing exactly how He would leave.  But, He came anyway, Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. (John 15.3)

 

Today’s sermon is the message of Christmas.  He came unto his own, and His own received Him not.[1]  Christ came unto His own, the people he created, to show them the Word which He is the living embodiment of, the Living and True Scripture. They received neither the written Word His Apostles wrote, nor the spoken Word from His Mouth He spake unto them. But as many as received Him, to them he gave the power to become the sons of God.  He has adopted us unto his family, through His Word, which he has spoken unto us, that we may fulfill it and live in harmony with others in this word.

 

And the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us.  This speaks to the living incarnate nature of the Word, (Christ) who dwelt among us 2,000 years ago, that He might understand our nature completely, so that He could teach us with understanding, understanding to which the Devil has no access. If He lived in our conditions, it would be easier for Him to relate to us when He taught and spake the Word of His Father. 

 

Jesus has a big advantage over our opponent the Devil. He not only created us, but He lived among us in our bodies so he could experience the trials and temptations of being a human Himself. Thus He was able to provide us expert guidance on how to get through the trials and temptations of this live. This is something that the Devil has never been able to experience and never be able to understand. Jesus also knew how the Devil operates and thus He was able to provide us an example with how the Devil and his temptations should be dealt with. 

 

 And we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.  In That Word, He spake both full of grace and of truth as John said in the last Gospel.  If we will accept His grace and truth though the Holy Ghost, then can we do things for His Glory. Without that in our hearts, we cannot do anything for Him.  We are imperfect creatures, but now accounted for and spoken for by Christ. With the Word, we are empowered to do things for Him. The birth of Christ would foreshadow his death, which would bring about the ultimate freedom, that from sin and death. We must remember on this Christmas Day that Jesus’s arrival here would culiminate in Good Friday and His Death upon the Cross and then his battle with the Devil for our souls and then His Resurrection.

 

 

That is such an important point. 16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. (John 3:16)  Not just that God, the Almighty Creator of Heaven and Earth, would send His only begotten Son, but that the Son came knowing not only that He, King of Kings, would be born in a manger, live a life of relative poverty, but that He would die a horrible, horrible death so we might have eternal life.  He came to this miserable planet for us, to give us life eternal!  He knew when He came here precisely how He would leave, yet He came anyway.  Think of that on this Christmas Day! This truly shows how much God loves us miserable sinners that He would send his only son to die for us, that we should not perish but have every lasting life!

 

Today we recall the birth of our Lord and Savior, the only means by which we, imperfect creatures with free will, might be accounted as perfect before God when our day of judgment comes.  Born, not in a palace, but in a stable, He is all that we have been promised.  Taking the substance of Man, all Man and all God, He knows our temptations, He knows our failures, He knows our failings, He knows our sorrow; He also knows our happiness, our small triumphs, our hopes and our dreams.  He is the only one in this world who will never fail us in the slightest.  We need to remember this everytime we encounter individuals on this Earth who fail us. We must return to the ones who never will fail us, God the Father, Jesus and the Holy Ghost. While people may stab us in the back and betray us, we can count on God to always have our back and give us perfect counsel everytime.

 

He gives us His example to follow.  If we will but follow Him, we will draw closer to God.  He made the world, He knows the world.  He defeated the Prince of this World, thus with His Help, so will we.  This is a day of joy, foreshadowing a day of sorrow, leading to the greatest joy of all. We need to remember sometimes that when good events happen, sometimes there will be bad events happening. But in God’s ultimate plan, all will work out in the end for the ultimate joy and benefit to those who have stayed the course and followed Him and His Son.

 

Let us joyfully receive Him into our hearts and homes, that we might do what He asks and spread the Joy of His Arrival on Earth that we might prepare for His Second Coming. If we do this and what he asks, which is a common theme that stays the same throughout the Christian Year, we shall be Blessed with good things, as a result of doing what He asks. On this Christmas Day, let us Rejoice in His Coming and begin our preparations for His Second Coming.

 

Let this be a blessed and happy Christmas.  He has come to us!

 

Be of God - Live of God - Act of God

---

[1] John 1:11

The Twelve Days of Christmas - 24 December 2022, Anno Domini

 

A

ND it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Cæsar Augustus, that all the world should be taxed. 2 (And this taxing was first made when Cyrenius was governor of Syria.) 3 And all went to be taxed, every one into his own city. 4 And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judæa, unto the city of David, which is called Bethlehem; (because he was of the house and lineage of David:) 5 To be taxed with Mary his espoused wife, being great with child. 6 And so it was, that, while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered. (Luke 2:1-6)

 

Collect for Christmas Eve

 

O

 GOD, who makest us glad with the yearly remembrance of the birth of thine only Begotten Son Jesus Christ: Grant that we as joyfully receive him for our Redeemer, so we may with sure confidence behold Him when He shall come to be our Judge; who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Ghost, one God world without end. Amen.      (Yaken from the Gelasian Sacramentary Sarum, translated in 1549, Book of English Collects)

 

            I believe just as many Christians have heard and sung the carol, On the Twelfth Day of Christmas, as those who have no idea that Christmas has traditionally been celebrated in the Church of England during the twelve days of the season called Christmastide beginning on 25^th December and ending on Epiphany – 6^th January. This is consistent with the traditional Church Yearly Calendar and Lectionary (1662 or 1928 BCP) that is designed to provide a broad understanding of the life and works of Christ by the prescribed sermon Gospel texts, Epistles, Old Testament readings and Psalms for each Sunday as well as each day of the week. The lectionary provides readings not only for Sunday and Communion worship but for Morning and Evening Prayer for each day of the week as well. 

 

            The 1^st Day of Christmastide is the Nativity of our Lord (or Christmas Day) observed with appropriate Scripture readings.  In the days following the first day of Christmastide follows the days observing St. Stephen the Martyr (December 26^th), St. John the Evangelist (27^th December), the Massacre of the Holy Innocents at Bethlehem (28^th December), the 1^st Sunday after Christmas, the Circumcision of Christ (1^st January), the 2^nd Sunday after Christmas, and ending 6^th January with the beginning of Epiphany Season (the Manifestation of Christ to the Gentiles illustrated by the coming of the Wise Men to visit the Christ Child). Christ came unto his own and there was no room found in the inn, but He came for both Jew and Gentile who would believe in the promise of a Redeemer made to Abraham. “10 He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not. 11 He came unto his own, and his own received him not. 12 But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: 13 Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.”  (John 1:10-13)  The coming of the Wise Men from the East symbolizes the acceptance of the Gentile nations of faith. The daily Morning and Evening Prayer Services intervening the Sundays of the season also bolster the joyful Spirit and meaning of Christmas.

 

            There is much beauty illustrated in both truth and majesty in the Church Calendar, but especially at the Christmas Season. Whether Anglican, Baptist, or Presbyterian, I believe the Lectionary Readings of the traditional Book of Common Prayer of the Reformation Church of England will provide abundant spiritual benefits to all who take it up.

 

            Merry Christmas and a joyful Christmastide of twelve days. Don’t let go of the Spirit!

Christmas Day - 25 December 2022, Anno Domini (In the Year of our Lord)

  

25 December 2022, Anno Domini (In the Year of our Lord)

 

Christmas Greetings from the Anglican Orthodox Communion Worldwide

 

A

ND so it was, that, while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered. 7 And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn. (Luke 2:6-7)

 

            Is it not amazing the spirit of Love waxes so strong and abundant during the Season of Christmas? Why is that spirit so strong among every level of society at Christmas? It is because “God is Love,” and love came down during that season we celebrate His birth. 

 

            There are those among us who try to call into question the date of 25^th of December as the date of His birth. Great effort is made to say that the Church should not celebrate Christmas because it cannot be proven to be the accurate date of His birth. The efforts they expend in such vain babblings is quite impressive even if disappointing. 

 

            I personally believe the consistency of the acts of God point clearly to December 25^th – not because I have read arguments on pointing to the possibility on the Hebrew Calendar, but rather because I see that God plants proofs for our conjecture in His Holy Word and Acts. God must have begun His Creation of the world in the Spring of the year in order to provide healthy environments for the green life to grow. Moreover, His Passover in Egypt (the Lord’s Passover in Old Testament terms) occurred in the spring of the year – either March or April (14^th Nisan). Noah’s Ark rested in that same month of the year which heralded a ‘New Beginning and a New Creation.’ 

 

            Our Lord Jesus Christ was crucified on Nisan 14 at the beginning of Passover and He was the Lamb of God – our Passover – that was sacrificed from before the foundations of the world. It seems logical that the Archangel, Gabriel, would have visited Mary during the same period to symbolize that greater “New Beginning.’ If so, Christ would have been conceived in March or early April. Nine months later would place his birth very close to December 25^th. But suppose my calculations are wrong? Is It wrong to celebrate the coming of our Redeemer into the world on any day of the year – even 365 days? “Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days.” (Colossians 2:16)

 

            Disregard those whose constant arguments that condemn our joys and celebrations of the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ at Bethlehem grow more and more vocal as everything else that points to a Savior is being demeaned by a world gone mad.

 

            Christmas is a time that brings such warm memories and feelings of mutual felicity that any argument against its celebration is not only ridiculous, but futile as well. Those who love the Lord, and love one another, will never be convinced to forego the celebration of His birth. The best memories of my life are of the Godly Christmas carols, the ancient stories of the shepherds, the Wise Men, and Mary and Joseph (as they traveled to an inn in Bethlehem that afforded no shelter for them). It is not Santa Claus, or silly Christmas ditties that I remember, but the majestic carols that relate the biblical account in beauty. These make an indelible impression upon the minds and memories of all of faith in Christ.  

 

            I pray all who read this letter will have a warm and joy-filled Christmas Season – one celebrated not, just one day, or twelve, but 365 days of the year.

 

MERRY CHRISTMAS ONE AND ALL!

 

A Happy & Blessed Christmas!

Jerry L. Ogles

Presiding Bishop

Anglican Orthodox Communion Worldwide

The First Christmas Carol - a Devotion for 23 December 2022, Anno Domini

 

A

ND suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, 14 Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men. 

(Luke 2:13-14 - Gloria in excelsis Deo!)

 

            I love the Church Year Calendar, and the Seasons I love best are Advent and Christmastide. Were it not for Christmas, there would be no Easter. Advent is the season of eager anticipation of the Coming of the Christ-Child. It very smoothly fades into that most Holy Season of Christ incarnation at Bethlehem.

 

            Christmas has always been a time of joyous song and caroling, in fact, some of the most beautiful hymns in the hymnal are Christmas hymns. So, it seems very appropriate that the very first Christmas hymn was sung by a host of angels to an audience of poor shepherds on a hill overlooking sleepy little Bethlehem. The simplicity of the coming of the Lord as a baby is stunning to the minds of the world whose hearts are set upon earthly grandeur. Though an old 18^thcentury French hymn, Angels we Have Heard on High, captures the beauty and essence of the birth of our Lord, its refrain was not man-made – the refrain, Gloria, in excelsis Deo,’ came from the heart of God and the angelic hosts of Heaven within minutes of the Lord’s birth. This was the very first Christmas carol sung in majestic voice. And what were the stage props for such a chorus? It was the purple canopy of the high desert night sky and the brilliant gleaming of the stars through the pristine air.

 

            The setting, too, was extraordinary. Bethlehem was a tiny village whose livelihood was bolstered by the raising of lambs to be sold to those enroute to the Temple for a sacrifice.  So, it is perfectly appropriate that the innocent Lamb of God would be born in such a place. The Roman Emperor, Caesar Augustus at the time, probably had no idea of the location of that village even if his tax collectors did. But Augustus was moved, beyond his full understanding, to proclaim the registration of all in their home city at the time. Bethlehem happened to be the ancestral city of Joseph.  Therefore, Joseph was compelled to travel to Bethlehem at precisely the time mandated by Almighty God for the birth of His only Begotten Son at such a venue. 

 

            The inn-keeper perhaps was a good man. He was unaware of the majestic nature of the child Mary carried in her womb. He honestly had no room but was willing to accommodate a desperate couple by allowing them use of his stable. This reminds us of those present on the occasion. There was Mary and Joseph, and the beasts of the field as onlookers to the glorious occasion. The child was laid in a wooden trough (manger) used for feeding the beasts of the field. 

 

            Almost simultaneous to the birth, there were poor shepherds with their flocks keeping watch on the hills overlooking the village. Suddenly, to their amazement, there can a burst of light that filled the night sky, and a great Angel appeared to share the news of the birth of a Savior. 7 And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn. 8 And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. 9 And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. 10 And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. 11 For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. 12 And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. (Luke 2:7-12) Then came the chorus of Angels to sing that first Christmas carol.

 

            All these events took place without the knowledge of the kings and potentates of the land, or even of the landed gentry. It was for the poor and downtrodden that Christ came, and those who know Him not are the poor and downtrodden regardless of wealth or fame. 

 

Do you know Him?