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| One on His Right Hand and the other on His Left Hand. Be careful what you ask for, you may get it. |
The Propers for today are found on Page 246-247, with the Collect first:
Saint James the Apostle. [July 25.]
The Collect.
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RANT, O merciful God, that, as thine holy Apostle Saint James, leaving his father and all that he had, without delay was obedient unto the calling of thy Son Jesus Christ, and followed him; so we, forsaking all worldly and carnal affections, may be evermore ready to follow thy holy commandments; through the same Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
And the Collect for the superseded Sunday:
The Eighth Sunday after Trinity.
The Collect.
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GOD, whose never-failing providence ordereth all things both in heaven and earth; We humbly beseech thee to put away from us all hurtful things, and to give us those things which are profitable for us; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
The text serving as the Epistle for today comes from Acts of the Apostles, the Eleventh Chapter, beginning at the Twenty-Seventh Verse:
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N these days came prophets from Jerusalem unto Antioch. And there stood up one of them named Agabus, and signified by the spirit that there should be great dearth throughout all the world: which came to pass in the days of Claudius Cæsar. Then the disciples, every man according to his ability, determined to send relief unto the brethren which dwelt in Judæa: which also they did, and sent it to the elders by the hands of Barnabas and Saul. Now about that time Herod the king stretched forth his hands to vex certain of the church. And he killed James the brother of John with the sword. And because he saw it pleased the Jews, he proceeded further to take Peter also.
Here endeth the Epistle
This morning’s Gospel comes from the Gospel according to Saint Matthew, the Twentieth Chapter beginning at the Twentieth Verse:
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HEN came to him the mother of Zebedee’s children with her sons, worshipping him, and desiring a certain thing of him. And he said unto her, What wilt thou? She saith unto him, Grant that these my two sons may sit, the one on thy right hand, and the other on the left, in thy kingdom. But Jesus answered and said, Ye know not what ye ask. Are ye able to drink of the cup that I shall drink of, and to be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with? They say unto him, We are able. And he saith unto them, Ye shall drink indeed of my cup, and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with: but to sit on my right hand, and on my left, is not mine to give, but it shall be given to them for whom it is prepared of my Father. And when the ten heard it, they were moved with indignation against the two brethren. But Jesus called them unto him, and said, Ye know that the princes of the Gentiles exercise dominion over them, and they that are great exercise authority upon them. But it shall not be so among you: but whosoever will be great among you, let him be your minister; and whosoever will be chief among you, let him be your servant: even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.
Sermon – Reverend Jack Arnold - Time and Action
Church of the Faithful Centurion - Descanso, California
Today’s sermon brought the Collect, Epistle and Gospel together and is partly contained in the forewords above.
Consider the words from the Collect, wherein we ask God that we might be like … James, leaving his father and all that he had, without delay was obedient unto the calling of thy Son Jesus Christ, and followed him; so we, forsaking all worldly and carnal affections, may be evermore ready to follow thy holy commandments …
The Collect reminds us as James forsook the world and the carnal pleasure of it to follow Christ, if we too are to truly be followers of Christ we must follow his example. He was making a good living being a fisherman but he forsook that when he followed Christ. We don’t necessarily have to give up our jobs, but the message is clear that if doing our jobs will hinder our ability to follow Christ (i.e, if they ask us to do anything immoral/against Scriptures) then in that case it probably would be a good idea to quit our jobs and find one with a corporate culture that is more aligned with the values of Scripture. It is getting harder and harder to find one these days, but I believe it is still possible. It is getting harder and harder to be a professing Christian in this country as the liberals have obtained all the power in the government and are using the full power of the government to persecute Christians.
The second half of the Book of Luke the Physician is entitled The Acts of the Apostles and recounts the time after the crucifixion and resurrection. It covers the demise of many of Christ’s followers, among them James, the son of Zebedee. It warns us that if we are to truly follow Christ we must expect we will be persecuted and quite possibly killed for our faith. That is the cost of following Christ, we lose the respect of the world, but what we do gain is eternal life and the respect of God. If you look at it in those terms, losing the respect of the world is a fleeting thing and only temporal, but eternal life and God’s respect is eternal.
The Gospel recounts James’ mother asking her sons be Jesus’ righthand men. Her request somewhat reminds me of Jesus’s words, Forgive them Father for they know not what they do… Jesus went on to explain that position was not His to appoint but that of God the Father’s and that positions are not worth squabbling over. It is what you do with that position to help others that makes difference. To have a higher position and abuse it or not use it properly is not what the church is about. Jesus explains it is about helping other people and sharing the Good News with those people and it is in the end all about the individual’s actions that make the position.
So, what to make of this?
Action counts. For by their actions ye shall know them.
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
