260830 AOC Sunday Report

 

Anglican Orthodox Church _sm

 

Worldwide Communion

Thirteenth Sunday after Trinity
 August 30, 2026

Sunday Report

Thirteenth 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 207-209.

 The Collect for the Thirteenth Sunday after Trinity.

ALMIGHTY and merciful God, of whose only gift it cometh that thy faithful people do unto thee true and laudable service; Grant, we beseech thee, that we may so faithfully serve thee in this life, that we fail not finally to attain thy heavenly promises; through the merits of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

 Epistle for Thirteenth Sunday after  Trinity.   Galatians iii. 16

TO Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ. And this I say, that the covenant, that was confirmed before of God in Christ, the law, which was four hundred and thirty years after, cannot disannul, that it should make the promise of none effect. For if the inheritance be of the law, it is no more of promise: but God gave it to Abraham by promise. Wherefore then serveth the law? It was added because of transgressions, till the seed should come to whom the promise was made; and it was ordained by angels in the hand of a mediator. Now a mediator is not a mediator of one, but God is one. Is the law then against the promises of God? God forbid: for if there had been a law given which could have given life, verily righteousness should have been by the law. But the scripture hath concluded all under sin, that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe. 

 

The Gospel for Thirteenth Sunday after Trinity. St. Luke. x. 23.

BLESSED are the eyes which see the things that ye see: for I tell you, that many prophets and kings have desired to see those things which ye see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things which ye hear, and have not heard them. And, behold, a certain lawyer stood up, and tempted him, saying, Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life? He said unto him, What is written in the law? how readest thou? And he answering said, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbour as thyself. And he said unto him, Thou hast answered right: this do, and thou shalt live.

 On Point:  Written by Bishop Jerry Ogles

 THE CANDLE OF THE LORD

“The spirit of man is the candle of the Lord, searching all the inward parts of the belly.” (Proverbs 20:27)

            A candle is a meager light compared to the brilliance of the sun, yet a single candle will disperse a room full of darkness. The candle is referred to in many parts of Holy Scripture. If it were not an important object of illustration and truth, God would not have made reference to it so very often. I live in lower Alabama – the Baptist belt of the United States. The Baptists are a good people who trust in God’s Word, but they do have problems with candles. Some of my clergy brothers have admonished me for the display of the Gospel and Epistle candles on the Lord’s Table (not an altar, for that suggests a continuing sacrifice of the Lord).

            I explain to them the importance of graphic objects which the Lord used in teaching – vessels of wood and stone, Rose of Sharon, Brazen Serpent, Lamb, whited sepulchers, salt and light, snails and spiders, etc. Then I direct their attention to the fifth verse of the second chapter of Revelation: “Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent.” I then inform them that we in the Anglican Church still have our candles while those of others have been taken away. They are not happy with that response, but they go away without further argument.

            The Lord uses His candle to search out the depths of man’s soul. And what is that candle? According to the verse quoted from Proverbs 20:27, it is the “spirit of man.” It is amazing to realize that God uses our own spirits to search out the mysteries hidden deep in the dark chambers and sinews of our hearts.

            Of course, God will not abide where sin rules a heart. But in the Christian heart, He abides forever for all darkness and sin have been vanquished by that Sovereign of our hearts who abides there forever. The heart of the believer is the Temple of God because He sits as King of that heart. When the elect soul receives Christ as Lord and Savior, his candle is no longer fueled by the resources of the world, but by the oil of the Holy Ghost. It lights the Straight and Narrow Way that leads up to Heaven. The earthly candle is dark and without the oil of the Holy spirit to provide sufficient light for the way except that Broad and Crowded Way that leads down to destruction.

            The Candle that God provides to the elect is one that may be seen from the candle stick of faith upon which it is displayed to provide light for others. “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. ¹⁶Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.” (Matthew 5:15-16)

            Light reveals the way clearly in which we walk. It reveals the good as well as the bad. The lighted path lies exposed before us, and the rocks and crevices of the wayward slopes are also illumined for our notice and safety.

            A faith that is hidden from the world is not faith at all. The world hides its sin from light, but the elect soul in Christ is a light unto himself. “Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid.” (Matthew 5:14)

            But isn’t Christ the Light of the world? “Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.” (John 8:12)

            Well, aren’t the two text above in contradiction one with the other? Not at all when we consider that Christ is the Sun of Righteousness: “But unto you that fear my name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in his wings…” (Malachi 4:2), and, “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 (our Sun) arise in your hearts.”

(2 Peter 1:19)

            So, how does this mitigate the seeming conflict of Matthew 5:14 and John 8:12? It is simple and glorious! We have no light whatsoever apart from that with which we are indued by Christ. But how are we, then, the Light of the World? It is because we, like the moon, receive our Light from our Sun of Righteousness. Our Light is not self-generating as is His. So, our light is a reflected light for all to see when properly revealed to those around us.

 

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

 

Sermon Summary Trinity 13: Christ and the Lawyer: Part 1

 Bishop’s Blog: https://anglicanorthodoxchurch.blogspot.com/2026/08/youtube-video-player_01533801345.html

 You Tube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Egal9d6ddwM

Sola Gratia

 “O LORD God of hosts, hear my prayer: give ear, O God of Jacob. Selah.  Behold, O God our shield, and look upon the face of thine anointed.  For a day in thy courts is better than a thousand. I had rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God, than to dwell in the tents of wickedness.  For the LORD God is a sun and shield: the LORD will give grace and glory: no good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly.  O LORD of hosts, blessed is the man that trusteth in thee.” (Psalm 84:8-12)        

 

 The pillars of Reformation Faith have been summarized in Five Solas (Sola meaning Alone) – Sola Scriptura (Scripture Alone), Sola Fide (Faith Alone), Sola Gratia (Grace Alone), Solus Christus (Christ Alone), and Soli Deo Gloria (Glory to God Alone).

 There is an interesting account that is told of the life of Jonathan Edwards, third president of Princeton and one of America’s greatest theologians. (Author of “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God” – the most famous sermon ever preached in America). Edwards had a daughter who was both ungovernable and incorrigible – infirmities unknown to the outside world. A fine young man fell in love with the girl and asked Edwards for his daughter’s hand for in marriage. “You cannot have her,” was the brisk response. “But why not?” answered the young man. “I love her, and she loves me.” “You cannot have her,” was the repeated response. “But why not?” asked the boy. “Because she is not worthy of you,” replied Edwards. “But,” responded the boy, “She is a Christian is she not?”  “Yes, she is a Christian, but the grace of God can live with some people with whom no one else could ever live,” said Edwards. How true! If Grace can abide in me and my foibles, He can plainly live with any others. Until we recognize that fact, we can never have an amicable relationship with grace.

 How does one earn the grace of God? That is a simple question with an even more simple answer: No one can earn God’s grace – it is a free gift.

“Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over them that had not sinned after the similitude of Adam's transgression, who is the figure of him that was to come.  But not as the offence, so also is the free gift. For if through the offence of one many be dead, much more the grace of God, and the gift by grace, which is by one man, Jesus Christ, hath abounded unto many.  And not as it was by one that sinned, so is the gift: for the judgment was by one to condemnation, but the free gift is of many offences unto justification.” (Romans 5:14-16)  

 By definition, grace must be unmerited. We can do nothing to earn the grace of God. Grace is not only a gift, but it is more – it is a free gift. But is that consistent with proper grammar? Yes, certainly when you consider that many gifts are given by men to gain privilege or favor. But a free gift has no strings attached.

Let us note the biblical counsel of the XIII Article of Religion of the English Reformation Church:

XIII. Of Works before Justification: “Works done before the grace of Christ, and the Inspiration of the Spirit, are not pleasant to God, forasmuch as they spring not of faith in Jesus Christ; neither do they make men meet to receive grace, or (as the School-authors say) deserve grace of congruity: yea rather, for that they are not done as God hath willed and commanded them to be done, we doubt not but they have the nature of sin.” (1928 Book of Common Prayer) 

 This means that nothing we do of our own volition is of worth without Christ moving in our beings to favor those works – even the best of charitable works. “Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal. And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing.  And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing.” (1 Corinthians 13:1-3)  

 The Book of Ephesians is one of many Books of the New Testament through which runs a rich vein of God’s Grace. “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ:  According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love: Having, predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will, To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved. In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace; Wherein he hath abounded toward us in all wisdom and prudence.” (Ephesians 1:3-8) Even the clear counsel of God, however, is often not sufficient to convince the self-centered heart that salvation is an act of grace outside any personal merit or action on his part.  

In chapter two of Ephesians, we are clearly told that we are “dead in trespasses and sin.” As far as I know, the dead can do nothing even if they had a will to do it – and they do not! “And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins; Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience: Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others. But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus.” (Ephesians 2:1-6) Ah, yes! You and I were both still-born in sin and trespasses, but while we yet slept in the death of sin, we were aroused and made alive in Christ. “For the living know that they shall die: but the dead know not any thing, neither have they any more a reward; for the memory of them is forgotten.” (Ecclesiastes 9:5)

 Remember back to another dead man that had lain so long in the tomb that his body was putrefying – Lazarus by name. His body was still and helpless. His mind no longer had a hint of conscious thought. The cell tissues of his body were in decay, and his blood was clotted within his veins. That, friend, is death. It hobbles the feet, locks the jaw, and blinds the eyes. It stops the ears, and empties the mind. So did Lazarus lie dead and helpless in a stone-cold tomb. He was not conscious of the fanfare without the tomb as the Lord approached. He was not cognizant of the time that had elapsed from his death until that moment that Christ spoke. In his death wrappings, his body was assuming the structure of the dust from which it sprang.

 Lazarus had done nothing to merit the special favor of being resurrected from the grave. It was the fate of all who died. But Christ came and stopped before the tomb. He had the friends of Lazarus remove the stone to the tomb’s entrance.  “. . . Said I not unto thee, that, if thou wouldest believe, thou shouldest see the glory of God?  Then they took away the stone from the place where the dead was laid. And Jesus lifted up his eyes, and said, Father, I thank thee that thou hast heard me.  And I knew that thou hearest me always: but because of the people which stand by I said it, that they may believe that thou hast sent me.” (John 11:40-42) All great service to God is preceded by prayer. In this case of Christ resurrecting Lazarus, He uttered His prayer for the benefit of those who heard it for the Father knew the yearnings of His heart aforementioned. Lazarus was exactly dead like the lost sinner is spiritually dead.  No power on earth could benefit Lazarus. That is why Jesus lifted up His eyes to the Father, and so should we in times of desperate need.

 “And when he thus had spoken, he cried with a loud voice, Lazarus, come forth.” (John 11:43)  Just how loud was that Voice of Christ? It was so loud that it penetrated time and eternity. It penetrated the stone walls of the tomb of Lazarus. It penetrated ears that had been dead for four days. It penetrated a heart that had grown cold and rigid. But at the sound of that voice, a warm surge began to pulse in that old dead heart. Suddenly, the blood began to circulate in the arteries and veins of Lazarus. His mind was made alert, and he obeyed the command of Jesus even though he was hobbled by the tightly wound grave clothes.

The Holy Spirit beckons to life those whom He calls from the grave of sin; and then what does He do? He does precisely what our Lord does for Lazarus: “. . . Loose him, and let him go.” (John 11:44)

 We are set free in Christ from death just as was Lazarus. “If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.” (John 8:36) That is an act of free grace alone and not the work of any man – dead or alive.

 

  

  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 – Twelfth Sunday after trinity

Psalm 73; First Lesson: Habakkuk 1:12-2:4, 14; Second Lesson: Hebrews 10:35-39

ALMIGHTY and merciful God, of whose only gift it cometh that thy faithful people do unto thee true and laudable service; Grant, we beseech thee, that we may so faithfully serve thee in this life, that we fail not finally to attain thy heavenly promises; through the merits of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

 Hymns # 609,145, 368

 

What! Must I be patient again?

      Something that we must understand when we are trying to figure out the Lord’s time and our impatience: it is that He does not work on our schedule. As we see evil being perpetrated all around us, by some very nefarious folk, we must always bear in mind that great phrase; “…Vengeance is mine saith the Lord...” (Romans 12:19) So while we are fretting about bad guys getting away with everything, at least as far as we can see, stop doing that. Man can design mischief that defies the sense of common decency, and yet the Lord designs good, no matter what, and we must be assured that it will be His designs that will prevail. Yes, for us wickedness seems to prosper, but understand that is in God’s time, not ours, and because God is holy does not approve of said wickedness. Remember Jonah complained to God because he did not bring judgement to the people of Nineveh, because God was not finished with them in as far as their repentance was concerned.

    A number of the minor prophets were annoyed at God for allowing His patience to be abused, they wanted swift retribution for the wickedness being done. Now I ask, what if the shoe was on the other foot?  What if we are the ones abusing God’s patience, would we want Him to punish or bring judgement swiftly on us? This fact alone should make us reflect on the following thoughts: “Let us remember, whatever advantages we possess, we must give all the glory to God. God will soon end successful and splendid robberies. {evil folks} Death and judgment shall make men cease to prey on others, and they shall be preyed on themselves.” (Matthew Henry)

   Habakkuk reinforces this concept here in verse twelve of his first chapter

 ¹²Art thou not from everlasting, O LORD my God, mine Holy One? we shall not die. O LORD, thou hast ordained them for judgment; and, O mighty God, thou hast established them for correction….³For the vision is yet for an appointed time, but at the end it shall speak, and not lie: though it tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry.

   Let’s read what a commentator has to say about this doubt with the Lord’s timing:

 When tossed and perplexed with doubts about the methods of Providence, we must watch against temptations to be impatient. When we have poured out complaints and requests before God, we must observe the answers God gives by his word, his Spirit, and providences; what the Lord will say to our case. God will not disappoint the believing expectations of those who wait to hear what he will say unto them. All are concerned in the truths of God's word. Though the promised favour be deferred long, it will come at last, and abundantly recompense us for waiting. The humble, broken-hearted, repenting sinner, alone seeks to obtain an interest in this salvation. He will rest his soul on the promise, and on Christ, in and through whom it is given. Thus he walks and works, as well as lives by faith, perseveres to the end, and is exalted to glory; while those who distrust or despise God's all-sufficiency will not walk uprightly with him. The just shall live by faith in these precious promises, while the performance of them is deferred. Only those made just by faith, shall live, shall be happy here and for ever. (Matthew Henry)

   In conclusion of today’s lesson, let us look at the great history letter, the book of Hebrews, chapter 10:35-39.

  Here are a couple of ideas to take away from these five verses.  

A. Patience

B. The Promise

C. Living by Faith

D. Endurance

1. There are many afflictions against Christians on a daily basis, maybe not so much here, but world-wide.  ³⁵Cast not away therefore your confidence, which hath great recompense of reward. ³⁶For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise.

 2. The Christian spirit is not selfish, it makes us understand the suffering of others, helping them, praying for them, visiting them, as we understand that all things here are but shadows; soon to go away. ³⁷For yet a little while, and he that shall come will come, and will not tarry. ³⁸Now the just shall live by faith: but if any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him.

3. The happiness of the saints in heaven are for eternity, the enemy can never take that way as they did here on earth, this very fact will make our trials here ever more worth enduring. ³⁹But we are not of them who draw back unto perdition; but of them that believe to the saving of the soul.  “...those who have been kept faithful in great trails for the time past, have reason to hope for the same grace to help them still to live by faith, till they receive the end of their faith and patience, even the salvation of their souls. Living by faith, and dying in faith, our souls are safe for ever.” (Matthew Henry)

  Let us pray:

ALMIGHTY God, our heavenly Father, guide, we beseech thee, the Nations of the world into the way of justice and truth, and establish among them that peace which is the fruit of righteousness, that they may become the Kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.

 

ASSIST us mercifully, O Lord, in these our supplications and prayers, and dispose the way of thy servants towards the attainment of everlasting salvation; that, among all the changes and chances of this mortal life, they may ever be defended by thy most gracious and ready help; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

THE grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Ghost, be with us all evermore. Amen.

   IN Christ alone during Trinity
                                                                                                                  +Roy

                                                                           

                      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 Thirteenth Sunday after Trinity:

In our gospel lesson (St. Mark 3:31-35) our Lord was informed that his mother and siblings had come to see him while he was teaching. And his reply was and remains the thought-provoking Who is my mother and my brethren? (St. Mark 3:33) Far too many Christians have overlooked our Lord’s response. The gospel of truth speaks of the saved and the unsaved (St. John 3:16-18). It speaks of safe sheep and lost sheep (St. Matthew 10:6; St. John 10:27). It speaks of those who have fellowship with God through Jesus Christ, and of those who have no fellowship with him because they are participants in the unfruitful works of darkness (II Corinthians 6:14-18; Ephesians 5:11; Philippians 1:3-7).

The totality of the gospel message is this: As all have been called of God to salvation in the name of his only begotten Son, if any accept that calling by faith, then such a one will be saved from eternal death and damnation and will be received of God the Father as a child by adoption and a co-heir with Christ in his eternal kingdom. Our adoption and co-heirship then has made us brethren of Christ in agreement with his response to his disciples: And he looked round about on them which sat about him, and said, Behold my mother and my brethren! For whosoever shall do the will of God, the same is my brother, and my sister, and mother. (St. Mark 3:34-35).

In his epistle to the Ephesians, the apostle Paul wrote that God, hath chosen us in [Christ] before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love: having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will, to the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved. (1:4-6). God has made known to us according to the good pleasure of his will—which is a mystery (v. 9)— that from the moment we came to Christ, we were saved from our sins. We have been bought with a price (I Corinthians 6:20), and on that account, we are subject to the will of God in Christ. And so when our Lord said, For whosoever shall do the will of God, the same is my brother, and my sister, and mother. (St. Mark 3:35) he was speaking of those who would come to accept his free gift. He was speaking of those whom he would purchase with his own blood at Calvary’s cross. He was speaking of those so purchased as his kinsmen in a way similar to that of his mother and siblings.

The apostle Peter stated plainly the crux of the matter concerning the name of our Lord that, Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved. (Acts 4:12). Our Lord gave us his expressed methodology for praying when he said to his disciples, And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. (St. John 14:13). And St. John tells us in his first epistle, ...if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous: and he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also the sins of the whole world. ( 2:1-2). The Lord’s Prayer is the template for all our prayers wherein we pray, Our Father, who art in heaven... (St. Matthew 6:6-13).

And in no case are we to seek assistance of those who have departed this life as that would be a form of necromancy which the word of God clearly prohibits. Dr. Merrill Unger once observed, “Necromancy is not a demonological phenomenon distinct in itself, but merely a particular aspect and mode of divination... Divination embraces all attempts to obtain clandestine information from the denizens of the spiritual world, so that necromancy is to be classified under it and as a phase of it. Its distinguishing mark is that the knowledge desired is sought from the spirits of deceased persons. The word itself is very expressive of the sphere it embraces, and denotes literally divination (manteia) by consulting the dead (nekros) (Biblical Demonology, p. 143).” So it follows that any attempt to contact departed souls is, and ever has been, a forbidden and fruitless activity. King Saul’s attempt to have the witch of Endor conjure up the spirit of the prophet Samuel (see I Samuel 28) is a fit example. While the king was permitted of God to have Samuel rise out of his rest before him, notice the situation that God interrupted by his intervention in this matter. The witch of Endor would have used her familiar spirit to impersonate Samuel and God wanted the real prophet Samuel to communicate what was going to happen the next day at the Battle of Mount Gilboa. Thus, as true kinsmen of our Lord we will follow God’s word written which will preclude us from making any such prayer or petition to fellow mortals who have departed the precincts of this life.

Our Lord has commanded us to worship God in spirit and in truth. He has called us to ask directly of the Father for our needs and concerns. And while it is acceptable to ask fellow mortals to pray for us. Nevertheless, such excludes seeking the prayers of those who have departed into God’s peace. That was not sanctioned under the Old Testament regime and neither is it permissible under the New. Remember the parable of the rich man and Lazarus (St. Luke 16:19-31)? Did not the rich man ask that Lazarus be sent back to inform his brethren so that they would not come into perdition? Did not father Abraham tell the rich man, They have Moses and the prophets let them hear them?

So let us then as kinsmen of our Lord keep ourselves solely to the things of Scripture and not fall into the devil’s trap of human traditions long held and without biblical precedent. Take a stand today to keep God’s word and commandment. Trust in God’s word written against all else, and you will find that God will bless your life. What’s more, you will be guaranteed a hearty welcome into God’s kingdom as a kinsman of him who is our Saviour, Redeemer and Friend, even Jesus Christ our Lord.

Let us pray,

Father, assist our witness to those around us, that they too might follow our lead and be made right with you in all things; for this we ask in the name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.

Have a blessed week!
Bryan+

 

Rev. David McMillan
AOC Minister at Large
Alabama

We are Fortunate today to have a sermon from Rev. David McMillian

 

    Esther III ch. 6-10: "The Deliverance of the People of God"

   This is where the rubber meets the road. God delivers the people of God. This does not happen automatically, and in that we discover the true doctrine of the Providence of God. He works through means, and His people. We are not puppets. He values our choices as His people and we have them. We can choose to stand by and say, "Do it God", but He does not work that way, does He? (sidenote- I see much confusion among people about this. They try and put themselves in a place where they try and understand God's ways, but as Isaiah says," My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways, my ways saith the LORD." (Is. 55:8)

1. Chapter 6. The King cannot sleep. Here begins the rescue of the Jews from Haman and those who do His people harm. Here again I review the Heidelberg Confession of Faith (another reformed Confession of faith as the 39 articles) on God's providential direction of our lives. 

 Question: "What does it benefit us to know that God has created all things and still upholds them by his providence?

Answer: We can be patient in adversity, thankful in prosperity, and with a view to the future we can have a firm confidence in our faithful God and Father that no creature shall separate us from his love; for all creatures are so completely in his hand that without his will they cannot so much as move"  

We think that the little things do not matter, but they do, and God works His will through them.

In his sleeplessness he discovers he did not honor Mordecai after the two plotters tried to harm the King. In a stunning reversal Haman tells the king to honor the man who the king wants to honor with royal robes. Thinking he was talking about Haman himself he finds he is not, and Mordecai the Jew is rewarded.

Application - What things have we done and is there reward in them? Yes, for God sees.

2. Chapter 7-8. Queen Esther has her banquet, and asks the King to save the Jews, her people. Haman is hung on the gallows he made for Mordecai. "And in every province, and in every city, whithersoever the king's commandment and his decree came, the Jews had joy and gladness, a feast and a good day. And many of the people of the land became Jews; for the fear of the Jews fell upon them. (Esther 8:17)

This should be happening today as well in our places of worship as people see God delivering His people. We spoke of I Peter 3 earlier and how our witness can be influential.  

"¹Likewise, ye wives, be in subjection to your own husbands; that, if any obey not the word, they also may without the word be won by the conversation of the wives; ²While they behold your chaste conversation coupled with fear." (1 Peter 3: 1-2)

Christ is our example I Peter 2. "²¹For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps: ²²Who did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth: ²³Who, when he was reviled, reviled not again; when he suffered, he threatened not; but committed himself to him that judgeth righteously:"

Application: Our behavior should reflect our Saviour, and it does matter. We have influence through our lives. Our actions do show witness. Walk the walk as we talk the talk.

3.  Chapter 9-10: Because of Esther's faithfulness the Jews destroy their enemies.

Purim, the festival of lots is celebrated. God shows Himself faithful to His people who trust in His Divine providence despite what the wicked and evil doers practice around us.

Matthew Henry said, "Mordecai was truly great, and his greatness gave him opportunities of doing the more good. He did not disown his people the Jews, and no doubt kept to the true religion. He did not seek his own wealth, but the welfare of his people. Few have it in their power to do so much good as Mordecai; but all have it in their power to do hurt, and who has it not in his power to do some good? We are not required to do what is not in our power, or is unsuited to our station; but all are bound to live under the influence of the tempers displayed in the saints, whose examples are recorded in the Bible. If we live by the faith of Christ, we shall be active according to the ability and opportunities he gives us, in promoting his glory and the best interests of men. If our faith be genuine, it will work by love. Wait in faith and prayer, and the event will be safe and glorious; our salvation is sure, through our Lord Jesus Christ."

 Application - In what way can we be faithful despite the problems? We can be depressed about things, but if we trust in God's providence, He will work it out. Here Romans 8:28 works "And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, too them who are called according to His purpose."

Conclusion:

This is at the heart of our Christian faith. Without faith we cannot please Him That means believing without seeing the results right away. In God's time all will be made plain. "¹⁸But the Jews that were at Shushan assembled together on the thirteenth day thereof; and on the fourteenth thereof; and on the fifteenth day of the same they rested, and made it a day of feasting and gladness. ¹⁹Therefore the Jews of the villages, that dwelt in the unwalled towns, made the fourteenth day of the month Adar a day of gladness and feasting, and a good day, and of sending portions one to another." (Esther 9:18-19) In fact, this focus on Mordecai and Esther’s hope brings us all the way back to the curious feature of this book, that God is never mentioned. When God’s people are in exile, unable to obey the Torah perfectly, and when God seems absent, does this mean God is done with Israel? Has he abandoned his promises?

 The book of Esther says no. The story invites us to see that God can and does work in the mess and moral ambiguity of human history." (from the  bibleproject.com)

 David D. Mc Millan,
  Pastor, & Chaplain (Major) US Army, ret.

  

The Rev. Don Fultz
Rector of St. Peter’s AOC located in the AOC National Office

 We are grateful to have this sermon today from Rev. Don Fultz from

St. Peter’s AOC, Statesville NC

  

Thirteenth Sunday after Trinity Sunday

Luke 10:23-37: The Good Samaritan

Today’s Gospel reading includes a very familiar story. It is the parable of the Good Samaritan. It takes place within the context of Jesus teaching the disciples and crowds that gathered to hear his words. A parable can sometimes be a means of getting a man to drop his guard just long enough that he learns who and what he really is. In the Old Testament the best example of that is the Prophet Nathan’s story told to King David about the little ewe lamb that belonged to another man.  David had committed two of the greatest sins Adultery with Bathsheba and murder of her husband Uriah. God had sent Nathan to David to remind him of these sinful acts and tell him of God’s displeasure with him. So Nathan tells David a story about a rich man that had exceeding many flocks and herds and was having a special guest.   So instead of killing one of his own lambs he stole the only one from his poor neighbor, a pet, and had it killed for the feast with his guest.  When David heard this story, he was livid and said to Nathan, “as the Lord liveth, the man that hath done this thing shall surely die. And he shall restore the lamb four fold, because he did this thing, and because he had no pity;” Then Nathan said to David “Thou art the man.” (2nd Samuel 12:1-7)

In the Gospels, perhaps the finest example of this is Jesus' parable about the Good Samaritan, with its final and equally strong directive to the lawyer “Go and do thou likewise.” Unlike modern Lawyers, the lawyer in this parable was a religious scholar, an expert in the Law of Moses, with all of its many rules and regulations. To understand the discussion between this lawyer and Jesus we must remember that, long before this, the Law of Moses had been summed up in that admonition to love God with heart, soul, mind, and strength, and to  love your neighbor as yourself. And so, when the lawyer put his question to Jesus, “What must I do to inherit eternal life?” Obviously, the lawyer must have believed in life after death or he wouldn’t have asked this question. However, his main motive for asking the question is that he wanted to cross-examine Jesus as an interpreter of the sacred Law. But Jesus turned the tables on His questioner, first by showing that the lawyer already knew the answer to his own question, and then by making him measure his life by the standard he, himself, set up in this battle of wits.

Jesus, in fact, did not answer that question, but replied by asking a question of His own: “What is written in the Law? How readiest thou?” The lawyer answered, by quoting from the Old Testament passages in Deut. 6:5 and Lev. 19:18 “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbor as thyself. Thou has answered right, Jesus told him. This do and thou shalt live.” It was then that the lawyer, unable to spring his trap on Jesus, asked the question that was really foremost in his mind: “And who is my neighbor?”  The lawyer’s question in verse 29 is typical of the legal approach. The law must be defined. The lawyer wanted Jesus to define who his neighbor was.

Did his neighbor include his friends and acquaintances? Was any non-Jew his neighbor, and if so what categories of Gentiles? Jesus never gave the man a definition of a Neighbor in his terms.  Instead, Jesus gave an illustration of what it is like to be a neighbor to someone in need. In this instance acting as a neighbor meant overcoming the barrier of racial and religious prejudice to give practical help. He uses the well-known Parable of the Good Samaritan to illustrate to the Lawyer how a good and loving neighbor should act. 

What about this parable? First, we see this lonely traveler, no doubt a Jew, making his way along what was called in those days the “Path of Blood,” seventeen miles of dangerous rocky and desert road between Jerusalem and Jericho. Suddenly, the robbers swooped down out of the hills, beat up this man, stripped him of his money and anything of value, left him half-dead and then vanished as quickly as they came. A bit later, along came two pillars of the Jewish church, one after the other, a priest and a Levite. These two pillars of the Jewish faith could not help but see the robber's victim after all, he was lying there in plain sight, but they did not lift a finger to help him. Why? We do not know, and cannot be sure. There are always so called good reasons to avoid involvement when we are faced with a difficult or distasteful duty. So, off went the priest and Levite, passing by on the other side.

Then, soon after, there came along of all people, a Samaritan-looked down upon and considered a half-breed by the Jews. One glance at the victim was enough to move his pity. Dismounting, he applied what help he could on the spot; wine and oil to disinfect the wounds, and bandages to bind them up. Then he placed the man on his animal, and he went with him to the nearest inn, to care for him that night. The next morning he came to the owner of the inn, gave him some money, and said: “Take care of him, and whatever more you spend, when I come again, I will repay you.” What a truly extravagant love this was! He did not even know the victim's name. Even so, he was prepared to do whatever was necessary to nurse this man back to health.

The story over, Jesus asked the final question: “So which now of these three, thinkest thou, was a neighbor unto him that fell among the thieves?” The lawyer gave him the only answer he could. “He who showed mercy on him.” Jesus said, “Go and do thou likewise.”

No parable Jesus told, except perhaps for the Prodigal Son, has been so loved and Known as this one. There are hospitals and even charitable organizations named after this parable. Even George W. Bush when He was inaugurated as the 43^rd President made reference to this parable in his short speech. When he was talking about compassion for the poor, he said that “some needs and hurts are so deep they will only respond to a mentor’s touch or a pastor’s prayer.” 

Then there was this remarkable paragraph in his inauguration speech: “Many in our country do not know the pain of poverty. But we can listen to those who do. And I can pledge our nation to a goal:  When we see that wounded traveler on the road to Jericho, we will not pass to the other side.”

But do we sentimentalize the story? Has it merely become the story of a man who did his good deed? Is the point of the parable merely the virtue of doing a good work? Is it not, rather, that our neighbor may end up being the person we would least expect? The Samaritan man in this story was, as far as the Jews were concerned, a socio-religious outcast. Putting the words “neighbor” and “Samaritan” in the same sentence seems, to Jesus’s audience like a contradiction in terms.  Their world view was being challenged.

The lawyer could not really love his neighbor because he did not know who his neighbor was.  Jews only considered other Jews as their neighbors. They despised all non-Jews and especially half-breeds such as the Samaritans. Jesus answer was this: Love for one's neighbor has no boundaries or restrictions, but only asks for the opportunity to be put to use. When you think of it this way, it ceases to be just the story of the man who did his good deed. It is, instead, a story about the nature of true love; the love of God for us which is revealed in this life through our love for our neighbor. 

So to ask, “Who is my neighbor?” is still the wrong question. Love asks, To whom can I be a neighbor? To all of us who bear the name of Christ, he says, Go and do what the Samaritan did to any and to all you meet along the path of this life. But, there is even more about the love of God here, something which is essential to fully understanding this parable, and will keep this parable from becoming nothing more than a bit moralizing.

Jesus Himself is the Good Samaritan. He was, and still is among many, hated like the Samaritans were hated. Isaiah tells us in chapter 53 and verse 3, “He is despised and rejected of men, a Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief.” He became, by His sacrifice on the cross, the Good Samaritan for all of us. St. Paul tells us in Romans 5;8: “But God commendeth his love for us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”    

Through the power of the Holy Spirit, Jesus carries us to safety. Not to an Inn, but to the Community of Saints, the Holy Christian Church. It is here, among other victims that our Good Samaritan has rescued, that we continue to recover. Just as the Good Samaritan told the innkeeper, “take care of him, and whatsoever thou spendest more, when I come again, I will repay thee. “So also Jesus tells his disciples and us in Matt. 28:20: “Behold I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world.”

He helps us when everything else fails. He cleanses the wounds of our sins, and binds them up again that we might be healed, strong and healthy once again. He has healed us eternally through the life He brings us in His death, that life that will never end. And since all of this is true, we are under the sacred obligation to do as He did, as much as we are able. This is just what Jesus was talking about when He said in Matt. 25:40, “Inasmuch as you have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, you have done it unto Me.”

He who served us in this way is honored when we serve Him as He comes to us, hidden in all the poor and hopeless neighbors we meet in this life. He now serves us with His holy body and blood for the remission of our sins. 

He bids us go and do as He has done: to give lavishly and fully to anyone who is our neighbor. For in loving our neighbor even as we love ourselves, we love God with all our heart, and with all our soul, and with all our mind, and with all our strength. And because He has made His love for the neighbor into our love, we are the true inheritors of eternal life.

In the name of the Father, Son and Holy Ghost.

The Rev. Don Fultz+

 

AOC Worldwide Prayer List –

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:

Nepal – Flood survivors and families of those who lost loved ones

Philippine Island – Mud slide survivors – Baguio City still suffering, schools closed

Sandy Carpenter – Congestive Heart Failure – weak limbs – husband, Darryl and their family

Michele Gee- stage 3 cervical cancer

Darryl and Jennifer Baughn - assisting Darryl’s mother who is suffering with end of life issues

 Arnold and Martha Robbins – Senior Health issues

 Rhett Carter – head and neck issues – injuries work related – comfort for parents, John & Karen

 Donny Clark – hospitalized for stroke – Anne – overseeing his care

Kathy – new tests regarding her eye and the ability to keep one or both – severe anxiety

Baby Baelin – Baelin is still in NICU – recent blood clot and infection – please keep praying

Donny – hospitalized due to multiple strokes and inability to speak, pray for David and Anne, family who are helping him in recovery

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

Joseph Broddie – recurring throat cancer

David Williams – serious cardiac issues – pray for David and wife Sherie for coping with changes

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

Ophelia – crippling arthritis pain

Dave – COPD – new diagnosis of Diabetes type 2 – Gastritis episode

Mary Lou – Praise the Lord, she is moved in and unpacking – keep praying for strength

 

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,  Harper-IBS,
Jim Sevier- God’s Peace, Linda – fall this week multiple buises, Alicia-caregiver, Sophie,
Colin and Lori Beall – cancer, Malou – cancer, Janice, Bobby, Myra Cox, Faye Miller, Diane, Alice, Yves Mera, Lucile, Ryan, Steven, Rency, Jack & Karen, Brannon, Joyce,  Camella, Charlie, Dennis, Beverly and Howard, Betty, Deborah, 

Points to Ponder:

 

Patience and comfort suppose trouble and sorrow, but each move us to seekthe comfort of the scriptures which were written that we might know what to hope for from God.
The Rev. Matthew Henry

Wherever you may live, and whatever may be your trials... nothing should prevent your aiming at the highest standard, to behave like one who believes that Christ is coming again. You should resolve , by God’s help, so to live, that the day of Christ shall find you needing as little change as possible. You should seek to have tastes so heavenly, affections so spiritual, a will so subdued, a mind so unworldly, that when the Lord appears you may be thoroughly in tune with his kingdom... Let there be light in your heart continually; Christ dwelling there by faith, felt, known and experienced by your soul. Let there be light in your life continually; Christ reflected there, followed, imitated and copied. Seek to be a light in the world, and nothing less, a bright light, a clear light, a light that men can see afar off. Do this and you will put on the armour of light.
The Most Rev. J. C. Ryle – Are you ready for the End of Time? pg. 80

So to ask, “Who is my neighbor?” is still the wrong question. Love asks, To whom can I be a neighbor? To all of us who bear the name of Christ, he says, Go and do what the Samaritan did to any and to all you meet along the path of this life. But, there is even more about the love of God here, something which is essential to fully understanding this parable, and will keep this parable from becoming nothing more than a bit moralizing.
The Rev. Don Fultz – 13^th Sunday after Trinity

This is at the heart of our Christian faith. Without faith we cannot please Him That means believing without seeing the results right away. In God's time all will be made plain. "¹⁸But the Jews that were at Shushan assembled together on the thirteenth day thereof; and on the fourteenth thereof; and on the fifteenth day of the same they rested, and made it a day of feasting and gladness. ¹⁹Therefore the Jews of the villages, that dwelt in the unwalled towns, made the fourteenth day of the month Adar a day of gladness and feasting, and a good day, and of sending portions one to another." (Esther 9:18-19) In fact, this focus on Mordecai and Esther’s hope brings us all the way back to the curious feature of this book, that God is never mentioned. When God’s people are in exile, unable to obey the Torah perfectly, and when God seems absent, does this mean God is done with Israel? Has he abandoned his promises? The book of Esther says no.
The Rev. David McMillan, Esther Part 3

So let us then as kinsmen of our Lord keep ourselves solely to the things of Scripture and not fall into the devil’s trap of human traditions long held and without biblical precedent. Take a stand today to keep God’s word and commandment. Trust in God’s word written against all else, and you will find that God will bless your life. What’s more, you will be guaranteed a hearty welcome into God’s kingdom as a kinsman of him who is our Saviour, Redeemer and Friend, even Jesus Christ our Lord.
Bishop Roy Morales-Kuhn, 13^th Sunday after Trinity

How can you have no regrets about your life lived and be considered fit for heaven? Without a humble, contrite heart, without a coming to God’s throne of grace to seek his pardon in the name of Christ, there can be no assurance of salvation. Those who have no regrets have nothing to confess and without their true confession, without their recognition of their sins they are lost.
The Rev. Bryan Dabney

Christ is our Good Shepherd. He has proved this by laying down His life for the sheep... His peace exceeds all that the world can offer... His love for us surpasses all knowledge... The joy of His love is beyond expressing... An abundant life in Christ is a super-natural life. No creature that God has made is capable of being ‘born again’ except man! ... It is a fact that we must first be born into this world to have the privilege to be born into Heaven. This comprehends the tiny fetus conceived in the womb and murdered before it can know sin, or see the light of day. This spiritual re-birth opens the flood-gates of Living Waters to our parched souls... The Way, the Truth, and the Life is of no benefit unless His Way,His Truth, and His Life becomes your own through the benefits of the Cross that He suffered.
Bishop Jerry Ogles -Reason for Hope, pg. 54-55