Exodus – Chapter 34 – 5 March 2015, Anno Domini (Year of our Lord)

I will write upon these tables the words that were in the first tables, which thou brakest

1 And the LORD said unto Moses, Hew thee two tables of stone like unto the first: and I will write upon these tables the words that were in the first tables, which thou brakest. 2 And be ready in the morning, and come up in the morning unto mount Sinai, and present thyself there to me in the top of the mount. 3 And no man shall come up with thee, neither let any man be seen throughout all the mount; neither let the flocks nor herds feed before that mount.

The patience and long-suffering of the Lord toward His elect people is beyond comprehension of man. When so great a Sovereign as the Creator of the Universe takes the time to write with His own Finger, once, upon Tables of Stone for our benefit, how can we understand such a High Majesty deigning to do so for mortal and sinful man? But when that same Sovereign will deign to write anew upon Tables of Stone which were broken as a result of our idolatry and licentious behavior, how much more remarkable! It is a most comforting thought to realize that we will come to the end of God’s Judgment long before we out-wear His Mercy and Grace.

           

I was blessed to have a mother who, for all the days that I was with her, had a song in her heart. It may have been owing to her Irish heritage, or maybe even a more direct blessing of God, but she sang all day long the great hymns of the Church, folk songs, and even patriotic songs, as she went about her daily chores. Once as she sang “Are you Washed in the Blood of the Lamb,” I was a bit troubled by the lyrics. I was in the 3^rd grade and had figured most things out by then, but I couldn’t figure out how being washed in the blood of a Lamb would cleanse me. I asked my mother about it. My mother gave me a clean sheet of paper and said, “OK, son, I want you to write down the most important things you do today on this paper. Do not erase anything; just write down those things that are most important to you.” Well, I was proud of myself, so I wrote down how well I had done in school – perhaps with some fair embellishment. I noted that I had eaten all of my vegetables in the school cafeteria – major exaggeration! I commented on how well I had answered questions in class without feeling the need to admit how wrong I was on some. And, at the last of the day, I wrote how well I had done my chores – at least those I had properly done. My mother collected the paper at bedtime. She looked at it without comment.

           

This went on for seven days. Each morning, I was given a clean sheet of paper free of embellishments. At the close of the seventh day, my mother brought my seven papers to my attention and noted all the good that I had done, but she had an uncanny insight to the places where I had exaggerated the truth (in other words, lied!) and pointed these out to me. She also remarked, with disappointment, that all of my comments were about ME!  But that was not her most important object. She said that every day, God gives the Christian boy or girl a clean sheet of paper that has been washed by the blood of Jesus. The blood is invisible, but it washes away every smudge and lie that we have told. She told me that I might even fool her with my equivocations, but I could never fool God because He sees me always. She said the thing that most disappointed her about my papers were that they never once mentioned prayer, or the Bible, or the God who loved me so much as to shed His cleansing blood that I might have a clean sheet of paper in life every awakening hour. I never forgot that experience, and it would be well with us that we recall the patience and mercy of God in dealing with us in our own failures and sins.

           

When we, as children, mess up something our parents have prepared for us, we may be required to do some of the work ourselves in undoing the mess. Note that God tells Moses this time to hew the Tables of Stone himself wherein in the first writing of the Commandments, He hewed them Himself. Our sins result in greater toils and labors on our part in seeking restitution with God. So Moses hews the Tables, and God writes anew the Commandments which were broken at the sight of Israel’s idolatry and orgies. “And the LORD said unto Moses, Hew thee two tables of stone like unto the first: and I will write upon these tables the words that were in the first tables, which thou brakest.”

           

God is a bit more confining with His grace now than before. He tells Moses to come up the Mount alone – Joshua was not to follow even at a distance, and neither was any man or animal to be seen on the Mount or around its base. So Moses, when morning breaks, ascends the Mount with the two Tables of Stone in hand.  The Lord descends in a cloud upon the Mount to meet with Moses, to STAND with him, and to discuss with him. 5 And the LORD descended in the cloud, and stood with him there, and proclaimed the name of the LORD.

           

Notice in the following verses how solemnly the Lord proclaims His Name and Nature:  6 And the LORD passed by before him, and proclaimed, The LORD, The LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth, 7 Keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, and that will by no means clear the guilty; visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, and upon the children's children, unto the third and to the fourth generation. I consider this a matter of profound importance and enlightenment to our spirits. Some consider reverence and formality in prayer unimportant, but the Lord does not. He desires that we acknowledge His holiness and majesty in prayer. He already knows what we need, but He desires to hear our love and respect in our prayers to Him. He says clearly that He forgives iniquity, but will, by no means, clear the guilty. What does this mean? It means that we are accounted righteous before God when we have repented of our iniquity and claim the salvation of Christ!

           

We Anglicans get blamed for too much bowing in our prayers, but Moses, with every encounter with God, bowed his head to the ground. “ 8 And Moses made haste, and bowed his head toward the earth, and worshipped. 9 And he said, If now I have found grace in thy sight, O Lord, let my Lord, I pray thee, go among us; for it is a stiffnecked people; and pardon our iniquity and our sin, and take us for thine inheritance.” Unless we are forgiven, every one of us, for our sins, we can in no wise be accounted the inheritance of the Lord.

God makes a covenant

God is constantly having to remind a rebellious people of His covenants He makes with them:  10 And he said, Behold, I make a covenant: before all thy people I will do marvels, such as have not been done in all the earth, nor in any nation: and all the people among which thou art shall see the work of the LORD: for it is a terrible thing that I will do with thee. 11 Observe thou that which I command thee this day: behold, I drive out before thee the Amorite, and the Canaanite, and the Hittite, and the Perizzite, and the Hivite, and the Jebusite.  God assures us of His Providence and Protection before the enemy, but He adds a serious warning:  12 Take heed to thyself, lest thou make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land whither thou goest, lest it be for a snare in the midst of thee: 13 But ye shall destroy their altars, break their images, and cut down their groves: 14 For thou shalt worship no other god: for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God: 15 Lest thou make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land, and they go a whoring after their gods, and do sacrifice unto their gods, and one call thee, and thou eat of his sacrifice; 16 And thou take of their daughters unto thy sons, and their daughters go a whoring after their gods, and make thy sons go a whoring after their gods. 17 Thou shalt make thee no molten gods. You may recall that the children of Israel did precisely these proscribed acts after the false prophet, Balaam, had advised Balak at Peor to cause the Children to commit fornication and to turn to idols.  

           

We have a foretaste of our Lord’s Supper here in Exodus – the Feast of Unleavened Bread which was begun at Passover. Leaven symbolizes sin and error; therefore do we use unleavened bread to symbolize the perfection of the Body of Christ. The symbol should match that which it symbolizes.  18 The feast of unleavened bread shalt thou keep. Seven days thou shalt eat unleavened bread, as I commanded thee, in the time of the month Abib: for in the month Abib thou camest out from Egypt. 19 All that openeth the matrix is mine; and every firstling among thy cattle, whether ox or sheep, that is male. 20 But the firstling of an ass thou shalt redeem with a lamb: and if thou redeem him not, then shalt thou break his neck. All the firstborn of thy sons thou shalt redeem. And none shall appear before me empty. 21 Six days thou shalt work, but on the seventh day thou shalt rest: in earing time and in harvest thou shalt rest. 22 And thou shalt observe the feast of weeks, of the firstfruits of wheat harvest, and the feast of ingathering at the year's end. 23 Thrice in the year shall all your men children appear before the Lord GOD, the God of Israel. 24 For I will cast out the nations before thee, and enlarge thy borders: neither shall any man desire thy land, when thou shalt go up to appear before the LORD thy God thrice in the year. 25 Thou shalt not offer the blood of my sacrifice with leaven; neither shall the sacrifice of the feast of the passover be left unto the morning. 26 The first of the firstfruits of thy land thou shalt bring unto the house of the LORD thy God. Thou shalt not seethe a kid in his mother's milk. 27 And the LORD said unto Moses, Write thou these words: for after the tenor of these words I have made a covenant with thee and with Israel. Be it sufficient to say that the first fruits belong to the Lord.

Moses Descends from the Mount after Forty Days:

            Once again we see the significance of forty days being emphasized in this account. Moses, representing the Law, fasted forty days and forty nights. Ellijah, representing the prophets, fasted forty days and forty nights. And Jesus Christ, representing the consummation of all of the Laws and the Prophets, fasted forty days and forty nights. This is the reason for our Lenten Season of fasting.  28 And he was there with the LORD forty days and forty nights; he did neither eat bread, nor drink water. And he (that is, God, Deut 10:1-4) wrote upon the tables the words of the covenant, the Ten Commandments.

           

            Our living testimony that condemns the world of sin may not be visible to us. It is not a thing that we would boast about, but others see and know when we have been in close communion with God. Our countenance is changed in ways that we may not comprehend.  29 And it came to pass, when Moses came down from mount Sinai with the two tables of testimony in Moses' hand, when he came down from the mount, that Moses wist not that the skin of his face shone while he talked with him. 30 And when Aaron and all the children of Israel saw Moses, behold, the skin of his face shone; and they were afraid to come nigh him.”

           

The world of atheists and unbelievers are fearful of all who trust in God, and claim to hold our Lord in contempt. We shall see at last who is held in contempt. I honestly do not believe that there is any true atheist. I believe they hate the sovereignty of God, or any other, over them. They know that they cannot admit there is a God, else they would necessarily need to change their ways. They like the ways of hedonism and wickedness, so they are constant in their vile denunciation of any expressions of Godliness which they fear.

           

            The people of God will follow the example of their Godly rulers.  31 And Moses called unto them; and Aaron and all the rulers of the congregation returned unto him: and Moses talked with them. 32 And afterward all the children of Israel came nigh: and he gave them in commandment all that the LORD had spoken with him in mount Sinai.

           

The Vail of Moses is a mystery. It was perhaps needed to shield the onlookers from the brilliance of his face after being with the Lord. Jesus, no doubt, placed a spiritual vail over His face as He communed with the two disciples on the road to Emmaus – they did not recognize Him until He removed that spiritual vail through the breaking of bread. 33 And till Moses had done speaking with them, he put a vail on his face. 34 But when Moses went in before the LORD to speak with him, he took the vail off, until he came out. And he came out, and spake unto the children of Israel that which he was commanded. 35 And the children of Israel saw the face of Moses, that the skin of Moses' face shone: and Moses put the vail upon his face again, until he went in to speak with him.

CONCLUSION:

            God forgave the national sins of Israel; and God will forgive our own national sins if we humble ourselves and repent. But sin puts a distance between us and God. We become as Prodigals who live lavishly, grow depraved and hungry, and then return to our loving Father who NEVER left us. Sins are forgiven by God when we repent of them, but sins leave scars nonetheless. God may not abide with willful sinners, so we create a separation between us and God with our sins.

           

We see the need for humility in prayer before God, as Moses demonstrates, and we learn of the honor and reverence due God in our prayers.

           

Just as God had led Israel, with a mighty out-stretched arm, out of Egypt and with many accompanying miracles, He has also led our own nation in the same wise. Our freedom and liberty were purchased with the blood of many patriotic Christian men, but also attended by the miraculous intervention of God. So after being the beneficiaries of so much blessing of God, Israel turned away from God and paid a heavy penalty. We, too, as a nation have known the tender mercies of God, and turned away to lesser gods of money, sex, drugs, and other hedonistic pursuits. Do you believe we will get away with it any more than the Children of Israel?

Exodus – Chapter 33 – 4 March 2015, Anno Domini (Year of our Lord)

5 For the LORD had said unto Moses, Say unto the children of Israel, Ye are a stiffnecked people: I will come up into the midst of thee in a moment, and consume thee: therefore now put off thy ornaments from thee, that I may know what to do unto thee.

Sin ALWAYS separates us from a Holy God. The one thing that offends God beyond measure is spiritual adultery (idolatry). Those who are committed reprobate sinners are already damned and are so far separated from God as Hell is distant from Heaven; but the professing Christian who claims the salvation of Christ, and then is deceived by the charms and attraction of false religions promising prosperity, sex and replacing the sovereignty of God with SELF, will incur the full and present wrath of God. This, the Children of Israel have done in turning to false gods of silver and gold, and the lusts of the flesh. They had enjoyed the miraculous rescue of God from bondage in Egypt, and His daily provision for their needs in the wilderness. Yet, they have turned to the sordid and dissolute lifestyle of the profligate sinner and idolater.

So God, not being capable of tolerating sin in His Presence, has moved outside the camp of the Israelites. It is a disgrace to the church today that many more devoted Christians are without the greater camp claiming Christ, than those within. Christ Himself was sacrificed without the camp, and those who are in a sincere relationship with Christ may feel it imperative to leave the modern church of sinful error and live without the gate with God.

It is sadly true that it is possible to live in a presumed living relationship with the Lord, but the Lord has refused to abide with YOU. He abides at a distance, and that is a tragic circumstance that has eternal implications to our souls.

1 And the LORD said unto Moses, Depart, and go up hence, thou and the people which thou hast brought up out of the land of Egypt, unto the land which I sware unto Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, saying, Unto thy seed will I give it: 2 And I will send an angel before thee; and I will drive out the Canaanite, the Amorite, and the Hittite, and the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite: 3 Unto a land flowing with milk and honey: for I will not go up in the midst of thee; for thou art a stiffnecked people: lest I consume thee in the way. The angel of the Lord will no longer accompany His chosen people. Instead, God sends “an angel” to guide and direct them. Though many in the camp of the Israelites are of the physical seed of Abraham, few are of the promised seed of faith of Abraham. This will remain true until Shiloh comes. Only those who believe the promises made to Abraham are the true children of Israel without respect to racial or national boundaries.

4 And when the people heard these evil tidings, they mourned: and no man did put on him his ornaments. 5 For the LORD had said unto Moses, Say unto the children of Israel, Ye are a stiffnecked people: I will come up into the midst of thee in a moment, and consume thee: therefore now put off thy ornaments from thee, that I may know what to do unto thee. 6 And the children of Israel stripped themselves of their ornaments by the mount Horeb.  Knowing that the angel that now leads is not the great Angel of the Lord with God’s “name in Him” is further profound evidence to them that the Lord will no longer be personally with them even if His protection remains. Those same kind of ornaments from which the Golden Calf was made are the kinds that they now cast aside to demonstrate some modicum of contrition. Perhaps now is the time for Christian churches to cast aside the ornaments of false worship (tongues and false miracles) that have defined them for many years now.

7 And Moses took the tabernacle, and pitched it without the camp, afar off from the camp, and called it the Tabernacle of the congregation. And it came to pass, that every one which sought the LORD went out unto the tabernacle of the congregation, which was without the camp. 8 And it came to pass, when Moses went out unto the tabernacle, that all the people rose up, and stood every man at his tent door, and looked after Moses, until he was gone into the tabernacle. 9 And it came to pass, as Moses entered into the tabernacle, the cloudy pillar descended, and stood at the door of the tabernacle, and the LORD talked with Moses. 10 And all the people saw the cloudy pillar stand at the tabernacle door: and all the people rose up and worshipped, every man in his tent door.  The full Tabernacle was yet to be constructed, so this was doubtless a temporary tent of worship for the congregation. Moses labels it the Tabernacle of the Congregation. Now the Lord would not be entering the camp of His miscreant people, but would descend on the Tabernacle without the camp to talk with Moses.

11 And the LORD spake unto Moses face to face, as a man speaketh unto his friend. And he turned again into the camp: but his servant Joshua, the son of Nun, a young man, departed not out of the tabernacle.  Moses had lost no credibility with God since Moses had not participated in the idol worship of the Children of Israel. Joshua, too, had remained faithful to God and remained in the good graces of the Most High. In fact, Joshua would later be privileged to lead Israel into the Promised Land in lieu of Moses.

12 And Moses said unto the LORD, See, thou sayest unto me, Bring up this people: and thou hast not let me know whom thou wilt send with me. Yet thou hast said, I know thee by name, and thou hast also found grace in my sight. 13 Now therefore, I pray thee, if I have found grace in thy sight, shew me now thy way, that I may know thee, that I may find grace in thy sight: and consider that this nation is thy people.  Moses is living up to his role as an intercessor for his people and as a type of Christ. Remember the words of Christ on the night of His betrayal into the hands of His enemies: “I have manifested thy name unto the men which thou gavest me out of the world: thine they were, and thou gavest them me; and they have kept thy word. Now they have known that all things whatsoever thou hast given me are of thee. For I have given unto them the words which thou gavest me; and they have received them, and have known surely that I came out from thee, and they have believed that thou didst send me. I pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for them which thou hast given me; for they are thine. And all mine are thine, and thine are mine; and I am glorified in them.” (John 17:6-10)  Moses is praying for that which only Christ was able to confirm – those who rightly belong to the family of God.

14 And he said, My presence shall go with thee, and I will give thee rest. 15 And he said unto him, If thy presence go not with me, carry us not up hence. 16 For wherein shall it be known here that I and thy people have found grace in thy sight? is it not in that thou goest with us? so shall we be separated, I and thy people, from all the people that are upon the face of the earth. Moses, because of the unfaithfulness of his people, begins to have doubts and fears. God has promised to go with Moses, but not the people (except at a distance). Moses, like Jesus, refuses to be saved alone – he desires that he and his people find grace in the eyes of the Lord, or nothing.

17 And the LORD said unto Moses, I will do this thing also that thou hast spoken: for thou hast found grace in my sight, and I know thee by name. For the sake of Moses, God says that He will agree to all of the terms Moses prays for. Though the people themselves are not worthy, they will find grace based on the merits of Moses’ faith. Is this not the way that we are accounted righteous before the Lord as well – “not weighing our own merits, but pardoning our offenses, through Jesus Christ or Lord.” (from the Invocation, 1928 Book of Common Prayer)

18 And he said, I beseech thee, shew me thy glory. 19 And he said, I will make all my goodness pass before thee, and I will proclaim the name of the LORD before thee; and will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will shew mercy on whom I will shew mercy. 20 And he said, Thou canst not see my face: for there shall no man see me, and live. 21 And the LORD said, Behold, there is a place by me, and thou shalt stand upon a rock: 22 And it shall come to pass, while my glory passeth by, that I will put thee in a clift of the rock, and will cover thee with my hand while I pass by: 23 And I will take away mine hand, and thou shalt see my back parts: but my face shall not be seen. (Ex 33:1-23) Here is a mystery that I will not pretend to fully comprehend, but fully believe I certainly do.

What points do I not understand?

I do not know in what way the glory of the Lord was made visible to Moses.

I do not know why this was important for Moses to see since he communed personally with the Lord.

What points I do understand?

I do know that God revealed Himself in part to Moses visually based on the text itself.

I do know that God makes it clear that He will have mercy on whom He pleases.

I do know that Moses was hidden by God in the cleft of a Rock – this Rock I believe to represent the Lord Jesus Christ, and, since this occurred at Mount Horeb, could likely be that same Rock which Moses struck and out of it flowed bountiful fountains of water. God protected Moses from His own brilliance.

Conclusion

Our churches today are no less wicked than the Roman church at the time of the Reformation, perhaps even more so. We have turned to false gods of easy-believism, false miracles, exaltation of self, opulence, unfaithfulness to the Commandments of God, and false prophets. This falling away, God has tolerated for a very long time. But you may trust the Word of God that He will not withhold His hand of judgment forever. We need men such as Moses and Joshua to stand in the hedge and hold high the Gospel Banner. And we need to rally about that Ancient Landmark of God’s Word which is represented by that banner.

I believe God has already withdrawn from the camps of most churches today. But, hopefully, He has not gone out of sight - just as the Tabernacle was just without the camp. If America continues on the path of hedonism, fornication, licentious abandon, and irreverence for the things of God, we may be certain that God will remove His Tabernacle such a distance away from us that we may be assured of a terrible destruction.

Devotion on Hymns of the Church (Hymn 56 - O Kind Creator, Bow Thine Ear) – 3 March 2014, Anno Domini (In the Year of our Lord)

1 In thee, O LORD, do I put my trust; let me never be ashamed: deliver me in thy righteousness. 2 Bow down thine ear to me; deliver me speedily: be thou my strong rock, for an house of defence to save me. 3 For thou art my rock and my fortress; therefore for thy name's sake lead me, and guide me. 4 Pull me out of the net that they have laid privily for me: for thou art my strength. 5 Into thine hand I commit my spirit: thou hast redeemed me, O LORD God of truth. (Psalms 31:1-5)

The prayer of the shepherd Psalmist of Israel is the prayer of all who repent of their sins and cast all their burdens upon that magnanimous altar of Mercy made available in the shed blood of our Redeemer, the Lord Jesus Christ.

This ancient Lenten hymn, O Kind Creator, Bow Thine Ear, calls our consciences to the Pillar and Post of our Salvation in Christ. There is nothing of prideful nature to be found in its beautiful lyrics. The lyrics were composed, by attribution, to Gregory I in the sixth century. The musical score, Jesu Carona, Canons,  used today is composed by one of the greatest composers ever to see the light of day, George Fredrick Handel. (1685-1759)

O Kind Creator, Bow Thine Ear

O Kind Creator, bow thine ear


to mark the cry, to know the tear


before thy throne of mercy spent


in this thy holy fast of Lent.



Our hearts are open, Lord, to thee:


thou knowest our infirmity;


pour out on all who seek thy face


abundance of thy pardoning grace.



Our sins are many, this we know;


spare us, good Lord, thy mercy show;


and for the honor of thy name


our fainting souls to life reclaim.



Give us the self-control that springs


from discipline of outward things,


that fasting inward secretly


the soul may purely dwell with thee.



We pray thee, Holy Trinity,


one God, unchanging Unity,


that we from this our abstinence

may reap the fruits of penitence.

 “O Kind Creator, bow thine ear to mark the cry, to know the tear before thy throne of mercy spent in this thy holy fast of Lent.” To whom is our prayer of Lenten Fast addressed? Is it not to the Kind Creator of our lives and souls, Jesus Christ? (John 1:1-3) Knowing the Majesty, to whom our petitions are made, to be the Lord of Lord, and King of Kings, perhaps our reverence and humility will be at its zenith. It is beyond sound logic that such an high Sovereign would deign to bend an ear to hear the prayers of such unworthies as we are, but He does. He is an amazing Savior who bled and died for us while we were yet enemies. He knows both the sound and source of our crying. The tears we shed should be surrendered to One who is able to bear them without hard judgment. Is it not the Lord who will take our tears and store them up in Heaven? “Thou tellest my wanderings: put thou my tears into thy bottle: are they not in thy book?” (Psalms 56:8) Perhaps these tears are those that washed the feet of Jesus at Simon’s House. We fast not unto ourselves, but for Him before whose Throne we seek for Mercy.

 “Our hearts are open, Lord, to thee: thou knowest our infirmity; pour out on all who seek thy face
abundance of thy pardoning grace.” Our hearts are always open to Christ. He knows every mystery and thought of it; however, our hearts in prayer are open to Him in faith and Communion. We pray such thoughts at the commencement of every Holy Communion in the Collect for Purity: “ALMIGHTY God, unto whom all hearts are open, all desires known, and from whom no secrets are hid; Cleanse the thoughts of our hearts by the inspiration of thy Holy Spirit, that we may perfectly love thee, and worthily magnify thy holy Name; through Christ our Lord. Amen.” He knows that we are weak as water, yet, in Him, we are made strong. All who diligently seek His face shall find Him, and with the finding, find pardoning grace and mercy. It is fitting that every fast be broken with Communion to the Lord.

 “Our sins are many, this we know; spare us, good Lord, thy mercy show; and for the honor of thy name our fainting souls to life reclaim.” Are your sins as many? Yes, for even if you have only one on your charge sheet, that is one too many to enter into the gates of Heaven. Of course, we all were burdened down with more sin than we could even remember. “Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool. 19 If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land: 20 But if ye refuse and rebel, ye shall be devoured with the sword: for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it. (Isaiah 1:18-20) Since there is no sacrifice we can make to atone for a single sin, or any good work we can claim that will justify, there is only one sacrifice that will suffice – the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. Christ has considered it honor to redeem us. What a great discredit and dishonor we do His Holy Name when we reject that mighty salvation and kindly offering!

 “Give us the self-control that springs from discipline of outward things, that fasting inward secretly the soul may purely dwell with thee.” That self-control that springs forth from things outwardly is gained during holy and reverent worship, and living a life of love that reflects the inward quality of that love. Our fasting is, indeed, to be an inward fasting so that no man knows but our own hearts. The hidden fast that we practice will not be heralded by an uncomely smear of ashes on our forehead to boast to others of our piety, but an ash-heap of such smeared upon the door posts and lintels of our hearts.  Moreover when ye fast, be not, as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance: for they disfigure their faces, that they may appear unto men to fast. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. But thou, when thou fastest, anoint thine head, and wash thy face; That thou appear not unto men to fast, but unto thy Father which is in secret: and thy Father, which seeth in secret, shall reward thee openly. (Matt 6:16-18) To be absent (in outward appearances) is to be present with the Lord (in His Throne Room of your heart).

 “We pray thee, Holy Trinity, one God, unchanging Unity, that we from this our abstinence may reap the fruits of penitence.” How is it possible to pray to the Trinity as an unchanging Unity? The Holy Trinity is comprised by Three Persons in One. How can they be One? Because they agree in every point. If we are truly in Christ, we, too, are One with Christ and, therefore, One with the Father and Holy Ghost. “And now I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to thee. Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that they may be one, as we are. 12 While I was with them in the world, I kept them in thy name: those that thou gavest me I have kept, and none of them is lost, but the son of perdition; that the scripture might be fulfilled.” (John 17:11-12) “And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one: I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me.” (John 17:22-23)

Abstinence from sin is penitence toward God. Have we fasted from our sins? If we were able to do that, what of the opposite side of the coin – good works? Have we labored to satisfy the desperate need of the man by the wayside on the Jericho road? Has our former hearts of greed and selfish want been changed to hearts of love and compassion? If not, it matters not what works of contrition or penitence we perform, for without love, all of our good works are of no worth. (1 Cor 13)

Sermon Notes - Second Sunday in Lent - Saint Andrews Church - 1 March 2015, Anno Domini (In the Year of our Lord)

You can read the entire AOC Sunday Report RIGHT HERE!

The Second Sunday in Lent.

The Collect.

A

LMIGHTY God, who seest that we have no power of ourselves to help ourselves; Keep us both outwardly in our bodies, and inwardly in our souls; that we may be defended from all adversities which may happen to the body, and from all evil thoughts which may assault and hurt the soul; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

And due to the rubric, the Collect for the Day is followed by the Collect for Ash Wednesday, which is found on Page 124:

The first day of Lent, commonly called
Ash Wednesday.

The Collect.

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

¶ This Collect is to be said every day in Lent, after the Collect appointed for the day, until Palm Sunday.

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ESUS went thence, and departed into the coasts of Tyre and Sidon. And, behold, a woman of Canaan came out of the same coasts, and cried unto him, saying, Have mercy on me, O Lord, thou son of David; my daughter is grievously vexed with a devil. But he answered her not a word. And his disciples came and besought him, saying, Send her away; for she crieth after us. But he answered and said, I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel. Then came she and worshipped him, saying, Lord, help me. But he answered and said, It is not meet to take the children’s bread, and to cast it to dogs. And she said, Truth, Lord: yet the dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from their masters’ table. Then Jesus answered and said unto her, O woman, great is thy faith: be it unto thee even as thou wilt. And her daughter was made whole from that very hour.  (Gospel of St. Matthew 15:21-28

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Verse 21: The Stage is set

Christ is journeying outside the limits of Israel. He has gone for a rest from the great turmoil stirred up by his ministry in Israel. He seeks seclusion. But more importantly, He has an appointment with a Syro-Phoenician woman along the coast of Tyre and Sidon. The Lord never went anyplace without a firm reason.

  Look at the 7th chapter of the Gospel of St. Mark beginning at the 24th verse:
  24 And from thence he arose, and went into the borders of Tyre an Sidon, and entered into an house, and would have no man know it: but he could not be hid. 25 For a certain woman, whose young daughter had an unclean spirit, heard of him, and came and fell at his feet:

            The distance from Genneserat (where the Lord began the journey) was a distance of about 35 miles by foot. He was already tired and weary, yet He made the trip for the sake of a woman whose heart was breaking for her little daughter.

The woman who came out from Canaan was not a member of the Jewish religion. Today, she would not be considered a church member. She was plainly an 'outsider' seeking the benefits of Christ. She was a gentile woman who would soon become a member of the household of Israel.

Notice her approach to Jesus:  "O Lord, thou Son of David" This is an acknowledgement of WHO Christ is. She did not approach Him as the rich young ruler in Mark:
   And when he was gone forth into the way, there came one running, and kneeled to him, and asked him, GOOD MASTER, what shall I do that I may inherit eternal life. (Mark 10:17)

This woman calls Jesus LORD and "Son of David". She obviously did not learn this through religious education, but by inspiration. She was a woman of wisdom who sought good for her daughter.

You will notice that she did not demand anything or ask for a right to be granted. She asked only for Mercy!

She was a good mother and had a burning desire to help her daughter. How many daughters are disobedient today to God, and yet their mother's do not bring the issue to Christ in prayer?

 How many sons are associating with unsavory persons, yet their parents care not?

How many young people are living together out of wedlock or some other shameful lifestyle, yet the parents are silent before God – or worse, even assist them to do evil?

This was no such woman. She was a lady of character and insight. She knew only one resolution for the problem of her daughter – and that was Christ!

It is the duty of parents to pray for their children, and to be earnest in prayer for them, especially for their souls. Have you a son, a daughter, grievously vexed with a proud devil, an unclean devil, a malicious devil, led captive by him at his will? This is a case more deplorable than that of bodily possession, and you must
 bring them by faith and prayer to Christ, who alone is able to heal them.

Christ answered not a word to the woman. Have you ever prayed diligently and received no answer right away. Did you give up asking? Not this woman. Christ was testing this woman's faith  as a testimony, not only to his present disciples, but to us today. He knew already the woman would persist because He looks upon the heart and not the outward appearance.

Notice how those close to Christ attempted to keep the woman from appealing to Christ? Just like blind Bartimaeus:

46 And they came to Jericho: and as he went out of Jericho with his disciples and a great number of people, blind Bartimaeus, the son of Timaeus, sat by the highway side begging. 47 And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out, and say, Jesus, thou son of David, have mercy on me.

48 And many charged him that he should hold his peace: but he cried the more a great deal, Thou son of David, have mercy on me. (Mark 10:46-48)

The disciples, those close to Jesus, those who are IN the church, try to prevent the blind Bartimaeus, the little children, and now this woman, from making appeal directly to Christ. Why? Pride. Maybe greed. Often it is those who are in the Church whose selfish deeds and lifestyles keep others from coming to Christ.

They think themselves more privileged than others. This was demonstrated also in Matthew: 
13 Then were there brought unto him little children, that he should put his hands on them, and pray: and the disciples rebuked them. 14 But Jesus said, Suffer little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me: for of such is the kingdom of heaven. (Matthew 19:13)

When Jesus told the woman that he was sent only to the "lost of the House of Israel," the woman pressed on with her petition. She came closer even and worshipped him. (Mark 7:24)

Jesus told the woman: “It is not good to take the bread of the children, and to cast it to the dogs.” This is not a harsh comment, but a gentle one. The Greek word here for ‘dogs’ is ‘puppies.’  How does the woman respond? Her response sealed her petition’s grant as well as her salvation, as she became a full-fledged member of Israel and a daughter of Abraham – though a lost gentile previously. “Know ye therefore that they which are of faith, the same are the children of Abraham. And the scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the heathen through faith, preached before the gospel unto Abraham, saying, In thee shall all nations be blessed. So then they which be of faith are blessed with faithful Abraham.” (Gal 3:7-9).

“But she said: Yea, Lord; for the whelps also eat of the crumbs that fall from the table of their masters.” Even a bread crumb is still bread, is it not?

How could Jesus send one of so great a faith away empty? He would not!

Because of her great humility AND persistence, Jesus paused long enough for the situation to be absorbed by the disciples. And because of her great faith, He knew that He would grant her prayer.

When Christ answers prayers, He grants us a total remedy – not partial.

Jesus noted the great faith of this woman who was foreign to the Jewish faith. She was not a church member, but her faith was great. Jesus said: “O woman, great is thy faith.”

Jesus granted her the desire of her heart: "be it done to thee as thou wilt: and her daughter was cured from that hour."

How great is your faith? Do you pray for your sons and daughters? Do you demand an answer, or do you ask only for mercy depending upon the great love and compassion of God? The Canaanite woman ask only for mercy.

"Go thou and do likewise."