Worldwide Communion
Second Sunday after Trinity
June 14, 2026
Sunday Report
Sunday
Second Sunday after Trinty
The propers are special prayers and readings from the Bible. There is a Collect for the Day; that is a single thought prayer, most written either before the re-founding of the Church of England in the 1540’s or written by Bishop Thomas Cranmer, the first Archbishop of Canterbury after the re-founding.
The Collect for the Day is to be read on Sunday and during Morning and Evening Prayer until the next Sunday. The Epistle is normally a reading from one of the various Epistles, or letters, in the New Testament. The Gospel is a reading from one of the Holy Gospels, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. The Collect is said by the minister as a prayer, the Epistle can be read by either a designated reader (as we do in our church) or by one of the ministers and the Holy Gospel, which during the service in our church is read by an ordained minister.
The propers are the same each year, except if a Red-Letter Feast, that is one with propers in the prayerbook, falls on a Sunday, then those propers are to be read instead, except in a White Season, where it is put off. Red Letter Feasts, so called because in the Altar Prayerbooks the titles are in red, are special days. Most of the Red-Letter Feasts are dedicated to early saint’s instrumental in the development of the church, others to special events. Some days are particularly special and the Collect for that day is to be used for an octave (eight days) or an entire season, like Advent or Lent. The Propers for today are found in the Book of Common Prayer page 188-190.
The Collect for the Second Sunday after Trinity.
O Lord, who never failest to help and govern those whom thou dost bring up in thy stedfast fear and love; Keep us, we beseech thee, under the protection of thy good providence, and make us to have a perpetual fear and love of thy holy Name; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Epistle for Second Sunday after Trinity. I St. John iii. 13.
MARVEL not, my brethren, if the world hate you. We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren. He that loveth not his brother abideth in death. Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer: and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him. Hereby perceive we the love of God, because he laid down his life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. But whoso hath this world’s good, and seeth his brother have need, and shutteth up his bowels of com-passion from him, how dwelleth the love of God in him? My little children, let us not love in word, neither in tongue; but in deed and in truth. And hereby we know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our hearts before him. For if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things. Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, then have we confidence toward God. And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight. And this is his commandment, That we should believe on the name of his Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, as he gave us commandment. And he that keepeth his commandments dwelleth in him, and he in him. And hereby we know that he abideth in us, by the Spirit which he hath given us.
The Gospel for Second Sunday after Trinity. St. Luke xiv. 16.
A CERTAIN man made a great supper, and bade many: and sent his servant at supper time to say to them that were bidden, Come; for all things are now ready. And they all with one consent began to make excuse. The first said unto him, I have bought a piece of ground, and I must needs go and see it: I pray thee have me excused. And another said, I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I go to prove them: I pray thee have me excused. And another said, I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come. So that servant came, and shewed his lord these things. Then the master of the house being angry said to his servant, Go out quickly into the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in hither the poor, and the maimed, and the halt, and the blind. And the servant said, Lord, it is done as thou hast commanded, and yet there is room. And the lord said unto the servant, Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled. For I say unto you, that none of those men which were bidden shall taste of my supper.
On Point:
Always on Duty, from the Family Altar
"And as he spake, a certain Pharisee besought him to dine with him: and he went in, and sat down to meat." Luke 11:37
Our Lord was not ashamed to be the guest of publicans and sinners — but neither did he reject the invitations of the rich and influential. He was ready to go wherever there was an opportunity of doing good, even to social feasts and large dinner-parties. Of course we are safe in following His example; but we must read on a little farther, and then we shall see that He always used these opportunities as occasions of doing good.
We may go to any place where we can do the part of a messenger of God to other souls. We are never to be off duty as Christians, and as Christians we must be always Christ's servants, ready to bear blessings from Him to others. We are to be sure, before we accept an invitation to any place, that our Master has an errand there for us. Then when we go, we are to improve the occasion for doing good in some way, to some who are there.
Christ never went to any such places of amusement as offer their temptations to young people in these days; and yet this same principle applies to these. "Is it right for me to attend the theater or the dancing-party?" Well, can you go there as a Christian? Can you confess Christ there? Can you talk of him to others? Can you ask his blessing on your going? Can you go as his messenger — sure that he sends you there? It is time we began to look at these matters very honestly and frankly. If we are Christians — we are to be Christians seven days in the week, and everywhere.
Then we are to be Christians always on duty. A young clergyman who had been reproved by his bishop for certain unministerial conduct, sought to excuse himself by saying that he was not on duty at the time. The bishop replied: "A clergyman is never off duty." This is true of every Christian. Wherever we go — we represent our Master.
Jerry Ogles, Presiding Bishop
Metropolitan AOC Worldwide
We are fortunate to get copies of Bishop Jerry’s you tube links, devotions on the Prayer of the Collect and sermon notes.
Bishop Jerry creates videos on various subjects, they last just under ten minutes and this week’s videos are listed below:
Bishop Ogles Blog:
https://anglicanorthodoxchurch.blogspot.com
Bishop Ogles You Tube Channel
that is free to subscribe: all of his videos at:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuW3bgXBJFomPB5mZ4Oigxg
Video Devotion for the First Sunday after Trinity: Bishop Jerry Ogles
Bishop’s Blog: https://anglicanorthodoxchurch.blogspot.com/2026/06/youtube-video-player_01949940018.html
You Tube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DPOrUrDA_7I
Thursday Night Devotion: The Sufficiency of the Holy Scripture
Bishop’s Blog: https://anglicanorthodoxchurch.blogspot.com/2026/06/youtube-video-player_0240670022.html
You Tube link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8lBVJFpNGs&t=1s
Hymn Devotion for a Saturday Evening
Bishop’s Blog: https://anglicanorthodoxchurch.blogspot.com/2026/06/youtube-video-player_0829887637.html
You Tube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m0i9fIrWqug
Video Devotion for the First Sunday after Trinity: Bishop Jerry Ogles
Bishop’s Blog: https://anglicanorthodoxchurch.blogspot.com/2026/06/youtube-video-player_01949940018.html
You Tube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DPOrUrDA_7I
LIGHTING CANDLES
~ June 14 ~
“In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. 2And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. 3And God said, Let there be light: and there was light. 4And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness. 5And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first day.” (Genesis 1:1-5)
“Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house.” (Matthew 5:15)
“It is better to light a candle than to curse the darkness,” is a popular quote often misapplied to Confucius. There is an explanation for that misunderstanding. The quote comes from a sermon preached in 1907 by William A. Watkinson entitled, The Invincible Strategy. The sermon was published in a China Inland Missions periodical and became popular in China and, as a result, was attributed by them to Confucius.
We find a beautiful illustration of the candle of understanding in the extra-canonical Book of 2 Esdras 14:25 (KJV) – “And come hither, and I shall light a candle of understanding in thine heart, which shall not be put out, till the things be performed which thou shalt begin to write.” This text was likely familiar to Bishop Hugh Latimer who, on October 16, 1555, was tied to the burning stake at Oxford with Bishop Ridley to whom he cried out, as the bundle of sticks caught fire beneath them, “Be of good comfort, Master Ridley, and play the man; we shall this day light such a candle, by God’s grace, in England, as I trust shall never be put out.” Latimer became that very human candle that did, indeed, open the eyes of England to the faith of the Protestant Reformation. So, there are different kinds of candles to shed light on truth and as well as to reveal error.
Light must be lifted on high for maximum advantage; thus, our Lord said: “Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house.” (Matthew 5:15) The light of truth and love in the Christian cannot be hidden else it is no light at all. It fails to serve its purpose if hidden.
It is amazing that a single candle can disperse an entire room of darkness. Darkness cannot abide light at all because darkness has no value at all – it is simply the absence of light. Light requires fueled energy to generate – darkness requires nothing but light’s absence. Only a small faith is required to dispel much darkness, and a beacon light of faith can illuminate the world. Our bodies would be in absolute darkness were it not for its candle – the eye. (See Matthew 6:22)
Our Lord referred to John the Baptist as a light: “He was a burning and a shining light: and ye were willing for a season to rejoice in his light.” (John 5:35) He was a reflected light of the greater light of God’s Word. But just as John was a “burning and shining light,” so must all who confess the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ. “Let your loins be girded about, and your lights burning.” (Luke 12:35)
Have we hidden the Word in our hearts that we might not sin against God? The Word is the fuel that the Holy Spirit burns to provide the light for our souls. “We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts.” (2 Peter 1:19)
Without the oil of the Holy Ghost, we stumble in darkness seeking the bridegroom just as the five virgins who had no oil for their lamps and were rejected from attending the marriage supper. It is love of Christ that compels us to make preparation of the oil of God’s Word. The careless virgins did not do so, but believed sleep and leisure more important than preparation.
There can be no life without light. It is the light of the sun that enables the photosynthesis of plant life and, in extended measure, all animal life. The moon has no light of its own – it only has reflected light – and the only light a Christian has is reflected light of the sun of righteousness. The sun is the brightest star in our heaven, though it is not the largest. It is brightest because it is near to us just as the Lord Jesus Christ is near to all of faith. He will neither leave nor forsake us. He is the bright and morning star throughout our dark walk of night on this earth; but, then comes the bright sun of righteousness to provide light for the endless day of paradise.
Do you have oil for your lamp? Are you providing light for others, or are you as the ‘black holes’ of space, so selfish of light that none escapes your gravitational field so none can see it?
Light your candle and lift it high for all to see! Be that lighthouse beacon that draws the lost ships to harbor, and the harbor lights to prevent grounding on the shoals of the harbor. Christ is your Light and He is the Word you know to be all truth. The only way to know the Way, the Truth, and the Life is to study it more than one day in seven.
“Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” (2 Timothy 2:15)
Bishop Jerry Ogles, Daily Devotion p. 166
Roy Morales-Kuhn, Bishop and Pastor
Saint Paul's Anglican Church - Diocese of the Midwest Anglican Orthodox Church -Suffragan Bishop of the AOC
Morning Prayer – Second SUNDAY AFTER TRINITY
Psalms 19: First Lesson: Deuteronomy 20:1-9; Second Lesson: Luke 9:57-62
O Lord, who never failest to help and govern those whom thou dost bring up in thy stedfast fear and love; Keep us, we beseech thee, under the protection of thy good providence, and make us to have a perpetual fear and love of thy holy Name; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
hymns # 369, 263,368
“The Wonder of God’s Creation”
Now that the nights are warmer, if we do not have a rain storm, you can go outside and see the very night sky that David gazed upon so many millennia ago which inspired his nineteenth psalm. When he wrote of this wonder; the night sky and the day time sky; he tells us that it is God’s glory that is declared by the very handy work of the Creator.
This psalm can be divided into at least two parts, honoring the Creator and the perfect law of God, with a subscript about how to use said law.
I. The record of that created, in that which we may easily read of the power and godhead of God our Creator, Ps 19:1-6:
1The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handywork. 2Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night sheweth knowledge. 3There is no speech nor language, where their voice is not heard. 4Their line is gone out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world. In them hath he set a tabernacle for the sun, 5Which is as a bridegroom coming out of his chamber, and rejoiceth as a strong man to run a race. 6His going forth is from the end of the heaven, and his circuit unto the ends of it: and there is nothing hid from the heat thereof.
Just the very existence of the creation, especially the heavens, the sun, the moon and all the lesser lights speaks to something or someone who created it all. We find a similar reasoning in the book of Romans the first three chapters. St. Paul writes that those without Christ really have no excuse to not seek Him, because everything around them speaks of creation and a Creator. This ‘creation language’ is uttered around the world, there is no place that cannot see the handy work of God. We are constantly reminded of creation by the visual and auditory senses that surround us daily. The heat of the sun, as it transverses the sky, nothing is hid from that heat; today it may be hard to see that unless you have no air conditioning at your place of work or home. Ask the gardener about the heat of the sun in full summer when we have had no rain for weeks! Yes, the heavens declare the glory of God.
II. The book of the scriptures, which makes known to us the will of God concerning our duty:
Ps 19:7-11
7The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul: the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple. 8The statutes of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart: the commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes. 9The fear of the LORD is clean, enduring for ever: the judgments of the LORD are true and righteous altogether. 10More to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold: sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb. 11Moreover by them is thy servant warned: and in keeping of them there is great reward.
These five verses outline the will of God in six parts.
I. The law of the Lord is perfect, when we understand it, it converts the soul. {turning us from wickedness to life}.
II. The Lord’s testimony is sure, it is unwavering, secure; it makes the simple wise.
III. The statutes of the Lord are right, that makes one’s heart rejoice. There is no question that His statues are correct, thus the heart is at peace.
IV. The Lord’s commandment is pure. That is a simple concept and being as such will enlighten the eyes of the reader, in fact will continue to enlighten them.
V. The respect and worshipful position the reader takes toward the Lord is cleansing. That clean is forever.
VI. And finally, the judgments of the Lord are true and righteous. We know that when the Lord judges his own, he will be just and in that judgement we know that he will only be righteous.
It should be of great peace that we should know that the Lord judges us, not we ourselves.
We finish out this section of the psalm with eternal aspect of following the Lord. These precepts are to be more desired than gold or sweet honey; in fact they are so important to David, and by example us, that he writes this last verse. ‘...moreover by them {the six concepts in these verses} is thy servant warned: and in keeping them there is great reward.’ He implies that this great reward is Salvation. Nothing else matters, honey may spoil, gold can be stolen, but your Salvation is a gift from God, no one can take that from you.
III. He shows the excellency and usefulness of that book and then teaches us how to improve it,
Ps 19:12-14
12Who can understand his errors? cleanse thou me from secret faults. 13Keep back thy servant also from presumptuous sins; let them not have dominion over me: then shall I be upright, and I shall be innocent from the great transgression. 14Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer.
In the final three verses we find David petitioning the Lord to keep him from all sin, to not let the sin dominate his life, to cleanse him from secret faults, to make him innocent from the great transgression. That being the sin that separates us from God. David understood the sin of Adam, he understood that because of Adam, he, David was also separated from the Lord.
In one of the great ascriptions of the prayer book, David pens the following: “Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O Lord, my strength and my redeemer.” When we pray this we are asking for Divine aid in guiding our heart and mind, so to bring glory to God, not dishonor. This is not a meaningless prayer, such humbleness and an almost aching desire to do right by God, this is what David’s prayer seems to express.
When David finishes this psalm in that manner, he signals to us that the Lord is our strength. The Lord is our redeemer. We too should ask the Lord to accept the words of our mouth and the meditation of our heart. As followers of His Son Jesus, we too should be open to his Word, open to his correction, open to his Way. Amen.
Let us pray:
O Lord, we join our unfeigned thanks for all thy mercies; for our being, our reason, and all other endowments and faculties of soul and body; for our health, friends, food, and raiment, and all the other comforts and conveniences of life. Above all, we adore thy mercy in sending thy only Son into the world, to redeem us from sin and eternal death, and in giving us the knowledge and sense of our duty towards thee. We bless thee for thy patience with us, notwithstanding our many and great provocations; for all the directions, assistance, and comforts of thy Holy Spirit; for thy continual care watchful providence over us through the whole course of our lives, and particularly for the mercies and benefits of the past day: beseeching thee to continue these thy blessings to us; and to give us grace to show our thankfulness in a sincere obedience to his laws, through whose merits and intercession we received them all, thy Son our Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.
THE LORD bless us, and keep us. The LORD make his face to shine upon us, and be gracious unto us. The LORD lift up his countenance upon us, and give us peace, both now and evermore. Amen.
IN Christ alone during Trinity
+Roy
Jack Arnold
Bishop of the Diocese of the West – AOC USA
Education and Training Anglican Orthodox Church Worldwide
Church of the Faithful Centurion
Second Sunday after Trinity
Today’s sermon brought the Collect, Epistle and Gospel together and is partly contained in the forewords above.
Consider these words from the Collect:
… who never failest to help and govern those whom thou dost bring up in thy stedfast fear and love; Keep us, we beseech thee, under the protection of thy good providence, and make us to have a perpetual fear and love of thy holy Name…
We must fully understand and acknowledge God will help and lead us, but only if we will look to Him for that help and leadership. The key being here we have to look to Him for said help and leadership. The spiritually blind (us) cannot lead the blind (also us). We are spiritually blind without God’s help. We must realize that we are in desperate need of His Guidance if we are to stay on that narrow and uphill path towards heaven. Thus, we need to pray for the Holy Spirit to enter into our hearts, souls and minds that we might stay on that narrow uphill course that He has charted for us.
What is the good providence that the collect speaks of? When I researched the definition, it means the protective care of God. So, this means that we are asking to have God keep us under the protection of His most excellent protective care. I am sure that in some point in each and everyone of our lives, we will find ourselves in need of His Providence. This is a benefit to us as believers and I find myself grateful to be under His Care and Protection.
Speaking of time of need; when do we need God? Pretty much whenever we are not perfect, which would be all the time.
The Epistle is a great illustration of why we need guidance from the Holy Ghost all the time. The world is not a nice place and at times it gets depressing to be in. The world is not a friendly environment to those of us who are on God’s side. John says we should not be surprised that the world hates us. For the World does not know of God and His Word so they fear that which they do not understand, namely the Word. He is telling us to cheer up for through Jesus’s one time sacrifice for all time for all mankind, we have passed from death to life, thus making death a hollow threat from the enemy. The enemy can still make our lives miserable, but what they cannot do is take our eternal future away which Jesus has secured for us. If we make sure to remember that, then that will help ease our trials and tribulations and make our troubles a bit less.
With that being said, God is the only one who can protect us spiritually from the assaults of the Satanic forces in this world. The help of the Holy Ghost is an advantage that we have over those who are of this world. John points out the great difference between us and the people of this world. We love our fellow humans believers or not, whereas the people of this world hate each other and especially those who have the Holy Spirit within them, thus as St. John says they abideth in death. It can be difficult at times to love those around us, but that is what God has called us to do to the best of our abilities with the help of the Holy Spirit.
We are to perform this task of loving people around us with great cheer. There is no true love without cheerfulness and a giving heart. In order to have God’s love, we have to love those around us. It is easy to say we need to love people around us. It is much harder to put the actual love into practice, but it must be done all the same. It does not matter how we feel about it, what matters is that it is what God has asked us to do However, as long as we do our best to actually love those around us, then that is all God asks. We may be serious at times, but we can still be cheerful in that we have the love of God within our hearts and we can spread that to others. Don’t forget the little reminder from GK Chesterton:
The Bible tells us to love our neighbors, and also to love our enemies; probably because generally they are the same people.
The Gospel focuses on prioritization. It calls us to put the things that are really important in the list of things to do above the things that are not really important. We tend to put things that are not really important above the things that are really important and that is why we get in a lot of trouble in our lives. It all goes back to the want versus need issue. Two different words, often used interchangeably by people, but this is incorrect. We need to think about what is important to us and to God. We will find that most of the time that they are different. When they are different this is where we need the help of the Holy Ghost to prioritize what is important to God versus what we selfishly in our imperfect nature want, then once we have sorted that, do our best to follow what is important to God and ultimately to us and overcome our wants that are not in the end important.
People do what is important to them. When they feel guilty, they come up with excuses, but in reality, they please themselves. This is a common reason why there are so few people in churches these days, besides the fact that the churches have by and large embraced heretical teachings, which puts the people off of going to churches. We must be cognizant of this fact and make sure we are not giving people a reason to not attend church. A sure fire way to avoid this is to stick to preaching from Scripture and following the principles contained within.
So, what we need to do is ask the Holy Ghost for help to make God’s agenda ours; thus when we please God, we please ourselves. A win – win situation. And it will make us far happier people as a result, which is what God’s plan is for us all along
If we do not make time for God, how do we expect Him to make time for us? If we will not diligently study the lessons He has left for us, how can we expect to know what He wants us to do?
Do you recall more sage words from GK Chesterton?
Christianity has not been tried and found wanting; it has been found difficult and not tried.
We need to come to church and read the Bible so we can find out what God wants. But, the idea is not to find out what He wants so we can work around it or live with it, but rather to live it. To live it means we have to put the concepts that Jesus taught us, to love God and love thy neighbor as thyself into practice. Sometimes this will be easy, other times it will be hard, but no matter how easy or hard it is, it is something that must be done all the same. And it is something that once again we need the help of the Holy Ghost for.
If we find out what God wants and decide to actually do it instead of avoid it, we are still faced with an often huge problem of where do we get the strength to accomplish this task. However, the answer is simple, it comes from God, the Holy Ghost. He never asks us to do anything we cannot do good enough for Him if we rely on Him. Never.
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
+Bishop Jack Arnold
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Rev Bryan Dabney of Saint John’s AOC Vicksburg, Mississippi
We are always grateful to get these wonderful sermons from Rev. Bryan, they keep us on our toes!
Sermon Text for The Second Sunday after Trinity:
In our gospel lesson for today, our Lord presented the parable of a great supper (St. Luke 14:16-24). The Rev. Matthew Henry noted that this parable illustrated our Lord’s presentation of the gospel message to the Jews of his generation. He bade them come to his supper that they might enjoy the benefits of the gospel and become what God had intended for them to be: the sons and daughters of God and co-heirs with Christ in glory. We also learned from this parable that most would not accept, so our Lord then sent his servants to call those who were poor, the maimed, and the halt and the blind. Now these characteristics were not meant to be understood only in their literal sense, though our Lord does extend his calling to persons who are so afflicted.
Those whom he referred to as being poor match the description of those identified as such in the Beatitudes: Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. (St. Matthew 5:3). To be made fit for the kingdom of heaven, we must rid ourselves of those earthly desires and passions that conflict with the Christian life. Our Lord said, No man can serve two masters... (6:24) which clarifies the point being made. Before we can truly know the love of God, we must first establish a relationship with him in Christ Jesus and be cleansed of our sins and trespasses which have rendered us poor in faith. How many people who bear the name of our Lord are so poor in their spiritual life precisely because they are filled with the spirit of this world?
The maimed are those who realize that their lives have been crippled by sin and are seeking to be relieved of their handicap by the Great Physician and Healer of men’s souls. Jesus Christ offers us spiritual healing which we cannot obtain anywhere else. He also can heal us of our physical ailments as well, if it is within his purposeful will so to do. How many so-to-speak Christians are crawling through this life because they will not heed the Master’s call and thus find rest and healing for their souls?
The halt or limping are those who, though technically crippled, are able to get around. While having some capacity, they nevertheless see the need for a Saviour to assist them. How many Christians are so crippled in their faith that they simply hobble along through this life while refusing to accept our Lord’s call to follow his path and keep his commandments and be healed?
The blind are those who cannot see their way to spiritual happiness but desire to have a guide to God. They will come to our Lord only if the true servants of God will lead them. How many who claim to know Christ are blind to him because they have placed their trust in false teachers and ministers who have convinced them that God’s word is flawed, or some how too vague for them to understand? And like the members of the Laodicean church, they may be described as, wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind and naked. (Revelation 3:14-19) One’s spiritual condition is therefore determined by whether or not one truly has a heart for God and desires to do his will as expressed in his word written.
Now let us consider the excuses of those who did not come the great supper. The first person called responded with, I have bought a piece of ground, and I must needs go and see it. As the Rev. Matthew Henry noted concerning this man, “His heart was so much on enlarging of his estate. Those that have their hearts full of the world and [are] fond of laying house to house and field to field, have their ears deaf to the gospel invitation.” St. Paul once admonished, For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called, but God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the mighty, and the base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are: that no flesh should glory in his presence. (I Corinthians 1:26-29). While there is nothing unbiblical in a person acquiring property; the real message here is: if you are putting the acquisition of earthly things ahead of communing with God, then you have no heart for him.
Many souls who bear the name of Christ know who he was, but not who he is. They go through this life bowing before the gods which hold their interest and their hearts. They have so compartmentalized their lives with everything they have to do to advance themselves during the week on one side, and a smidgen of time on Sunday (and maybe on Wednesday evenings) which is reserved for God on the other. God is not considered apart from the appointed time on their schedule and they rarely apply godly principles in their commercial interests much less their private moments. They do not understand that all of life is subject to God. What a rude awakening they will have on Judgment Day when they hear the words of our Lord, I never knew you, depart from me ye that work iniquity. (St. Matthew 7:23).
But before you take the position that such a view is too harsh, consider Article XIII of our Articles of Religion which states in part that, “Works done before the grace of Christ, and the inspiration of his Spirit, are not pleasant to God, forasmuch as they spring not of faith in Jesus Christ... “Just because one did a good work in the name of Jesus Christ does not mean that such a person is in fact a born-again believer in Jesus Christ. The unregenerated person’s works possess no salvific qualities for no man can be saved by the works of the flesh apart from a lively faith in Jesus Christ, and a heart to do his will. Our Lord said, If ye love me, keep my commandments. (St. John 14:15).
The second excuse given was that of a man who had purchased a yoke of oxen and had not tried them out. What could be more important for our spiritual health and well-being than our fellowship with the Lord? When other things are more important than spending time with the very person who suffered in our place— who made it possible for us to have eternal life— one would have to question that person’s relationship with the Godhead. We should follow the example of David who said, I was glad when they said unto me, Let us go into the house of the LORD. (Psalm 122:1). What greater joy is there? Who better than the King of Kings and Lord of Lords should we desire to break bread with? How can anyone who claims to love God, refuse such a wonderful offer? And yet, many who bear the name of Christ do so every day by rejecting God’s word written because they want to live life on their terms and not on God’s. They will miss heaven because they refused the calling of God’s Son to come and feast with him.
At every administration of the Holy Communion, we obey the Lord’s commandment to break the bread and drink from the cup of his table until he comes. We do so in remembrance of his sacrifice for us. And we rejoice in his offering of grace to us, for it is by means of his grace that we have that blessed hope of eternal life in his kingdom. But in order to gain admission to his place of rest and reward, we must respond in the affirmative to his calling because his all sufficient grace is made available to whosoever will not “whosoever won’t.”
The third excuse was made by one who had just taken a wife. The Law said that such would be acceptable for a man going to war (see Deuteronomy 20:7). But the issue at hand in our parable is incongruent with this excuse as one is being called to attend a feast and the Law did not excuse a man from his religious duties if he had recently taken a wife. As the Rev. Matthew Henry noted, “[The man] pretends that he cannot [come] when the truth is, he will not.” Our Lord said, If any man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple. (St. Luke 14:26). What he meant is clear: he that would not love the Lord more than all else is not worthy to be called his disciple. We have to put the Lord first in all things.
When our Lord communicated this parable, he revealed the true spiritual states of those who were listening. Not many were willing to accept him as the Messiah and, by extension, follow his teachings because they had other plans in mind. The Devil loves to insinuate in our minds “other plans” that we might lose our sense of purpose which is to have fellowship with our Saviour and thus be freed from the tyranny of Satan’s grasp. Only through our fellowship with our Lord and Saviour are we guaranteed a seat at his wedding feast. And only through him who laid down his life for us— taking the punishment that we rightly deserve— do we have that blessed assurance of a place in his kingdom forever.
The regenerate Christian understands that all who are in Christ Jesus have been redeemed from sin and death via his shed blood on our behalf. So when our Lord bids us come, we ought to, out of pure gratitude, drop what we are doing and come to him with praise and thanksgiving in our hearts for that is what a true child of God will do. May God touch your heart today to do his will and walk in his paths.
Let us pray:
Holy Father, you have given to us the gift of eternal life by means of the shed blood of thine only begotten Son, Jesus Christ ; may it please thee to inspire us to grow daily into his likeness; that being so transformed, we might be made more effective witnesses for thee in this sin-darkened world; and this we ask in his most precious name. Amen.
Have a blessed week!
Bryan+
I have received updates from a few and those will be the first added to the list. Please send all prayer requests and updates to aocworldwide@gmail.com for future reports. If you would like to be removed from list just respond with remove in the subject line.
Prayer Needed:
Charlie Carlisle – recovering at home now following various elements
Donny Clark – hospitalized for stroke – Anne – overseeing his care
Alice Raymer – in rehab following a hospitalization for a TIA
Beverly Tatum – Fall, injured shoulder, Howard Tatum – cancer Treatment, caretaking
Yves Mera – coronagrapshy scheduled to assess need for surgery, heart- coronary artery
Ryan – ex-muslim to be baptized – keep safe from Evil forces
Camella – Breast Cancer
Chelsea – expecting Baby in July (Baby heart issues, will need 3 surgeries right after birth, finance problems, pray for Zach – Chelea’s husband and the baby
Donny – hospitalized due to multiple strokes and inability to speak, pray for David and Anne, family who are helping him in recovery
Dan Fordice – pray for his family who are mourning Dan killed in a plane crash
Mike Gettinger – traveling to the Vietnam wall and family at home awaiting his return
Kristen – surgery went well, continue praying for Recovery
Yves Mera: A Vascular Leukopathy was detected, stage 1 and possible clot in the carotid – TBA
Betty Davis: stroke, hospitalization and praying for complete recovery
Deborah Johns – heart issues – pray for heart strength & strong blood oxygen levels for surgery
Ben Hancock – treatment for colon cancer
Rev. Geordie: needs prayer for medical issues
Debbie Grimes: colon cancer – surgery
Man, who is a friend of many – Brain Cancer
Bobby Effinger – recovery from heart surgery and ongoing heart issues
Steven – recovering from surgery on scar tissue compressing his Spinal Accessory Nerve
Brannon – hospitalized due to chronic unknow source of muscle spasms – 3 year old
Rency – 2 year old suffering from RETTS Syndrome
Joseph Broddie – recurring throat cancer
David Williams – serious cardiac issues – pray for David and wife Sherie for coping with changes
Jack Williams – had to enter long term care due to vascular dementia – pray for wife Karen
Colby Landry – cancer. Please pray for his wife, Leah and their family at this time of trial.
Persecuted Christians – subject to persecution and imprisonment for their faith.
Bobby Bryan – suffering with cancer and cardiac issues.
For an increase in the true faith in Jesus Christ here and across the globe.
USA – Leaders, citizens, military, first responders – President Trump & all Cabinet Members Safety
David – needing Hip transplant
Ophelia – crippling arthritis pain
Dennis Potrikus – fall with bad knees – recovering his rehab
Donna – ongoing radiation and Chemotherapy. Pray for successful remission
Roy – Bulging disc – upcoming surgery
Michelle – metastasized lung cancer – treatment stopped due to low hemoglobin- pray increase in
Dave – COPD – breathing issues – getting used to using oxygen – shortness of breath
Bryan and Lisa – adjusting to son moving away from home for ease of travel to employment
Kathy - skin cancer
Extended Issues need continued prayer;
Laurie with long Covid Symptoms – Extreme exhaustion, heart palpitations, breathing problems and unstable blood pressures are constant worries causing depression to settle in.
Malcom Allred – Cancer Treatment
Keep Praying for the following:
Shamu-health issues, Jan Jessup-neuro dementia, AOC USA, AOC Missions – Myanmar,
Harper-IBS, Jim Sevier- God’s Peace, Linda – multiple myeloma, Donna-chemotherapy,
Alicia-caregiver, Sophie, Colin and Lori Beall – cancer, Malou – cancer, Archie- CHF,
Eloise, Janice, Katie, Bobby, Myra Cox, Faye Miller,
Points to Ponder:
I may be allowed to say that none need warnings so much as the ministers of Christ’s gospel. Our office and ordination are no security against errors and mistakes. It is, alas, too true that the greatest heresies have crept into the Church of Christ by means of ordained men. Neither episcopal ordination, nor Presbyterian ordination, nor any other ordination confers any immunity from error and false doctrine. Our very familiarity with the gospel often begets in us a hardened state of mind. We are apt to read the Scriptures, and preach the Word, and conduct public worship, and carry on the service of God, in a dry, hard, formal, callous spirit. Our very familiarity with sacred things, except we watch our hearts, is likely to lead us astray... Let us pray that we may be kept from error, and never forget that the Twelve Apostles themselves were men to whom the great Head of the Church addressed these words: “Take heed and beware.”
The Most Rev. J. C. Ryle
So the sheep may feel complete confidence and satisfaction in that Good Shepherd who knows the Way, the Truth, and the Life, and is, Himself, that Way – that Truth – that Life. He knows the mountain trails because He has made the mountains. He knows the still waters for He is the Water of Life. He knows the place of resting peace and safety for His sheep for He is the very Ark of security and salvation.
Our Lord Jesus Christ confirmed all that God had promised in long ago prophecies of a Redeemer. He is explicitly described by the aging King of Israel, David, in the 23rd Psalm. It matters not to you or me how Good Jesus is as a Shepherd unless He is our Shepherd; and David KNEW Christ to be his Savior and Shepherd. The Good shepherd will see that His sheep lack nothing that is essential for their health and wellbeing. He knows better than they the good way, and He will urge them from the dangerous and treacherous mountain gorges with His gentle staff and cajoling Voice. All of His sheep may proclaim with David: “The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want!”
The Most Rev. Jerry L. Ogles, excerpt from Sermon for Second Sunday After Easter.
