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The Seventeenth Sunday after Trinity, 2019
Pastor Gregory L. Jackson
The Confession of Sins
The Absolution
The Introit p. 16
The Gloria Patri
The Kyrie p. 17
The Gloria in Excelsis
The Salutation and Collect p. 19
The Epistle and Gradual
The Absolution
The Introit p. 16
The Gloria Patri
The Kyrie p. 17
The Gloria in Excelsis
The Salutation and Collect p. 19
The Epistle and Gradual
The Gospel
Glory be to Thee, O Lord!
Praise be to Thee, O Christ!
The Nicene Creed p. 22
Praise be to Thee, O Christ!
The Nicene Creed p. 22
In the Unity of the Spirit
The Preface p. 24
The Sanctus p. 26
The Lord's Prayer p. 27
The Words of Institution
The Agnus Dei p. 28
The Nunc Dimittis p. 29
The Benediction p. 31
The Hymn # 361 O Jesus, King
The Sanctus p. 26
The Lord's Prayer p. 27
The Words of Institution
The Agnus Dei p. 28
The Nunc Dimittis p. 29
The Benediction p. 31
The Hymn # 361 O Jesus, King
In Our Prayers
- Andrea is doing very well.
- Carl Roper and his wife Lynda.
- Thanksgiving - Elizabeth Mior is seeing the cancer depart.
- Pastor K and Doc Lito Cruz - dealing with diabetes.
- Those looking for work and a better income.
- Glen Kotten is visiting the Philippines this month. We met him at the Shraders. Pastor Shrader continues his battle with cancer. Pastor Shrader's congregation is in fellowship with us and the Bethany Philippine Mission - they are also contributing to the effort.
KJV Ephesians 4:1 I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called, 2 With all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love; 3 Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. 4 There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling; 5 One Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6 One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.
KJV Luke 14:1 And it came to pass, as he went into the house of one of the chief Pharisees to eat bread on the sabbath day, that they watched him. 2 And, behold, there was a certain man before him which had the dropsy. 3 And Jesus answering spake unto the lawyers and Pharisees, saying, Is it lawful to heal on the sabbath day? 4 And they held their peace. And he took him, and healed him, and let him go; 5 And answered them, saying, Which of you shall have an ass or an ox fallen into a pit, and will not straightway pull him out on the sabbath day? 6 And they could not answer him again to these things. 7 And he put forth a parable to those which were bidden, when he marked how they chose out the chief rooms; saying unto them, 8 When thou art bidden of any man to a wedding, sit not down in the highest room; lest a more honourable man than thou be bidden of him; 9 And he that bade thee and him come and say to thee, Give this man place; and thou begin with shame to take the lowest room. 10 But when thou art bidden, go and sit down in the lowest room; that when he that bade thee cometh, he may say unto thee, Friend, go up higher: then shalt thou have worship in the presence of them that sit at meat with thee. 11 For whosoever exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted.
Seventeenth Sunday After Trinity
Lord God, heavenly Father: We beseech Thee so to guide and direct us by Thy Holy Spirit, that we may not exalt ourselves, but humbly fear Thee, with our whole hearts hear and keep Thy word, and hallow the Lord's day, that we also may be hallowed by Thy word; help us, first, to place our hope and confidence in Thy Son, Jesus Christ, who alone is our righteousness and Redeemer, and, then, so to amend and better our lives in accordance with Thy word, that we may avoid all offenses and finally obtain eternal salvation, through Thy grace in Christ, who liveth and reigneth with Thee and the Holy Ghost, one true God. world without end. Amen.
Background for the Sermon - Ephesians 4:1-6 - On the Trinity
So many of the worldly wise claim there is no Trinity in the Bible. G. Knapp, the patron saint of Objective Justification, did not think the Trinity was supported by the Bible. The term is late, shorthand for the concept, but the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are everywhere in the Scriptures.
In Genesis 1, the Father commands, and the Son (the Logos) executes the command, the Spirit witnessing to the Six-Day Creation. John 1 provides additional details about the Logos (the Son) and Creation.
Numbers 6 has this often used benediction -
24 The Lord bless thee, and keep thee:25 The Lord make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee:
26 The Lord lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace.
And yet the Three are One -
Deuteronomy 6:4 Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord:
Is it by accident that I AM (God's Name) says, "I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob"? Exodus 3:6
Not only the Great Commission names the Trinity, but the terms come together throughout the New Testament. See The Holy Trinity Revealed in the Scriptures. Matthew 28:19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:
This Ephesians passage names the Trinity. How can anyone miss this fact? It is given, data, which cannot be refuted, and the Scriptures throughout the Bible give us a complete, plain picture of the Godhead, Three-in-One, or the Unity of the Three Persons and the Three-ness of One God.
The most important emphasis in the Bible is God becoming man, born of a Virgin, as predicted in Isaiah 7 and 9. Therefore, the story of Jesus, from the beginning - at Creation - until now - is the utmost truth to know and hold to our hearts.
In the Unity of the Spirit
KJV Ephesians 4:1 I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called,
This is a powerful lesson in two sentences, a few verses. If any of our theologians were asked to cover as much material, they would issue a two volume masterpiece - Toward a Possible Conclusion about Some Tentative Theories, Though Scholars Are Divided.
The best argument for the inspiration of the Holy Spirit in the Bible is the compact, concise style in plain words that should lead us to be astounded. But we take it for granted when we should instead mull over the meaning of so few words.
The Christian Church was built upon preaching the Gospel of Jesus, the faith of Jesus and faith in Jesus as the Savior. The Scriptures are the bedrock, and preaching must be based directly upon that bedrock (not Rocky Johnson, Simon bar Jonah). Jesus said, in effect, "Upon this Bedrock I will build my Church." The bedrock is the Son of God, not Peter, not the confession of Peter who quickly rebuked Jesus for predicting His Atonement.
the prisoner of the Lord
Notice what a fine twist Paul put on his captivity and almost certain death. He did not curse Rome or his enemies. He saw this as God's will, because we know God can and will do anything, according to His far-sighted wisdom. Paul's new title is "prisoner of the Lord" and that will glorify the Savior and expand His Church through persecution.
Paul is begging his fellow-believers and us to walk, to conduct our lives, worthy of the calling by which Christ called us. The disciples did not come looking for Him. He invited them to be followers. In the same way, the Holy Spirit invited us to be His disciples. That term means "learners" and some of them dropped out from the larger group, saying "These are hard sayings." (John 6)
When we say we are called by the Spirit, it is the same as saying we are called by the Gospel. The Gospel and Spirit working together have the power to convert. We do not have the wisdom and knowledge to do that. Paul reminded the Thessalonians that their very conversion was proof of the efficacy of God's Word. They experienced the conversion and knew it to be real.
walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called,
Vocation is the word we use for being called by the Spirit to be Christian believers. Therefore, any person who believes in Christ alone as the Savior is called by the Gospel, not the result of persuasion and logic.
In parades we see bands marching down the street, in uniforms, though they each have a different role. The hats, feathers, and other equipment is to be worn just so, and they are to march in order, though they vary so much in abilities, height, weight, and ability. Wearing the bass drum, I did not pay attention as I should and marched into the row ahead, drum first, causing laughter on the sidelines.
So Paul says walk worthy of that vocation. It is our uniform or livery, as Luther wrote in Europe, where items of clothing actually represent towns and customs.
Luther:
1. This, too, is a beautiful sermon, delivered by Paul to the Ephesians, concerning the good works of Christians, who believe and are obedient to the doctrine of the Gospel. In the knowledge of good works Paul desires Christians to grow and increase, as we learned in the epistle for last Sunday. The ground of all doctrine, of all right living, the supreme and eternal treasure of him who is a Christian in the sight of God, is faith in Christ. It alone secures forgiveness o£ sins and makes us children of God.
I was talking with one member this week, and we discussed the unbecoming behavior of so many in the visible church and how that was excused for one reason or another. Forgiveness does not excuse living according to our own impulses. Paul provided some descriptions of the Christian who really does follow Christ.
2 With all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love; 3 Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.
We should immediately recognize these as attributes of Christ Himself.
Matthew 11:29-30 King James Version (KJV)
29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.
30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.
Jesus had reason to use His divine majesty but seldom did so. In contrast, many people adopt a regal attitude and cause all kinds of conflict and trouble because of it. Because we all get irritated at times, Proverbs 15 says, "A soft answer turns away wrath." But grievous words stir up anger.
Customer service people agree that threats and anger make them dig in and do the minimum in response to a grievance. However, being understanding of the service person will get the best kind of response. It is a simple matter of logic - the Law makes us do the minimum. The Gospel motivates us to think of the other person.
The Savior is not only an example, but He is also the example of being meek, lowly, and long-suffering. He slowly built up the knowledge and faith of the disciples from their daily lessons and experiences. Even then they scattered during the arrest. His patience with them gave them the opportunity to repent and have faith in the risen Lord, far beyond their expectations when they were first called.
Many wanted Jesus to be the new David and drive out the Romans as the soldier-king, but He accomplished more with His death and resurrection than a war could have done. After all, there have been many wars and people have trouble remembering a fraction of them. Some civilizations from the past have gone out of existence and memory because of their temporary grandeur and subsequent droughts, wars, and decadence.
What people wish in material gain is nothing compared to the spiritual treasures of the Gospel, which are long-lasting, even to eternity.
forbearing one another in love
Anger and issuing orders can have a short-term effect, but forbearance has a long-time effect. It is far better to have patience multiplied than to have everyone playing top dog. I had a boss in insurance, who always encouraged people when he could have been critical. His rights included being in charge in whatever way he wanted, but one thing he did was to forbid office sniping. If it continued, he called the parties together for a "come-to-Jesus" session of repentance and forgiveness. As a result, patience was built up instead of getting even.
3 Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.
Faith in Christ unifies and that comes from the Gospel of forgiveness, which gives us peace. There can be no true peace without forgiveness, so this medicine is given to us through the Means of Grace, the invisible Word of preaching and teaching, the visible Word of Holy Communion (and baptism).
One cannot be in the communion of believers and act as if the Word had no bearing on conduct. Inevitably, when people absolve themselves without contrition, more conflict follows. Such attitudes are transferred to others when just the opposite would be good, beneficial, and God-pleasing.
We members of the Augsburg Confession (all who agree with the Augsburg Confession, whether members here or elsewhere) have a great opportunity to show what it means to be the true Pentecostals, emphasizing the Spirit in the Word, and the divine power of the Word.
4 There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling; 5 One Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6 One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.
This is one of the great passage in the entire Bible. There are seven one's and the Holy Trinity is invoked (for a total of seven). As Lenski wrote, Paul is invoking the One, Holy, Christian, and Apostolic Church, often called Una Sancta, for short for those who took Latin 101.
First of all, this shows once again the Trinitarian message of the entire Bible. It is not an alien philosophy but the unique mystery taught by the Spirit in the Word.
The unity of the Spirit means there is one revealed Truth throughout the Bible, without error or contradiction. As we know from human experience, people are eager to find fault and confuse matters. Sometimes it is done for humor, when we kid others, which is a mark of affection. At other times it is a way to distract, confuse, and cover over something. When we are confused or conflicted about the truth of the Bible, which can happen for many reasons, we have the assurance of the unified Truth of the Word and of Jesus Christ, the Son of God and Savior.
