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| Norma A. Boeckler graphic |
The Twenty-Second 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
The Unforgiving Servant
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 #50 Lord Dismiss Us
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 #50 Lord Dismiss Us
In Our Prayers
- Carl Roper and his wife Lynda.
- Pastor K and Doc Lito Cruz - dealing with diabetes.
- Those looking for work and a better income.
Pastor and Mrs. Gregory Jackson will celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary on Friday, November 22nd. The orchids on the altar are from Alicia Meyer.
KJV Philippians 1:3 I thank my God upon every remembrance of you, 4 Always in every prayer of mine for you all making request with joy, 5 For your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now; 6 Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ: 7 Even as it is meet for me to think this of you all, because I have you in my heart; inasmuch as both in my bonds, and in the defence and confirmation of the gospel, ye all are partakers of my grace. 8 For God is my record, how greatly I long after you all in the bowels of Jesus Christ. 9 And this I pray, that your love may abound yet more and more in knowledge and in all judgment; 10 That ye may approve things that are excellent; that ye may be sincere and without offence till the day of Christ; 11 Being filled with the fruits of righteousness, which are by Jesus Christ, unto the glory and praise of God.
KJV Matthew 18:23 Therefore is the kingdom of heaven likened unto a certain king, which would take account of his servants. 24 And when he had begun to reckon, one was brought unto him, which owed him ten thousand talents. 25 But forasmuch as he had not to pay, his lord commanded him to be sold, and his wife, and children, and all that he had, and payment to be made. 26 The servant therefore fell down, and worshipped him, saying, Lord, have patience with me, and I will pay thee all. 27 Then the lord of that servant was moved with compassion, and loosed him, and forgave him the debt.
28 But the same servant went out, and found one of his fellowservants, which owed him an hundred pence: and he laid hands on him, and took him by the throat, saying, Pay me that thou owest. 29 And his fellowservant fell down at his feet, and besought him, saying, Have patience with me, and I will pay thee all. 30 And he would not: but went and cast him into prison, till he should pay the debt.
31 So when his fellowservants saw what was done, they were very sorry, and came and told unto their lord all that was done. 32 Then his lord, after that he had called him, said unto him, O thou wicked servant, I forgave thee all that debt, because thou desiredst me: 33 Shouldest not thou also have had compassion on thy fellowservant, even as I had pity on thee? 34 And his lord was wroth, and delivered him to the tormentors, till he should pay all that was due unto him.
35 So likewise shall my heavenly Father do also unto you, if ye from your hearts forgive not every one his brother their trespasses.
TWENTY-SECOND SUNDAY AFTER TRINITY
O almighty, eternal God: We confess that we are poor sinners and cannot answer one of a thousand, when Thou contendest with us; but with all our hearts we thank Thee, that Thou hast taken all our guilt from us and laid it upon Thy dear Son Jesus Christ, and made Him to atone for it: We pray Thee graciously to sustain us in faith, and so to govern us by Thy Holy Spirit, that we may live according to Thy will, in neighborly love, service, and helpfulness, and not give way to wrath or revenge, that we may not incur Thy wrath, but always find in Thee a gracious Father, through Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with Thee and the Holy Ghost, one true God, world without end. Amen.
Background for the Gospel Sermon
If people would be asked to identify one key feature of the teaching of Jesus, they would probably say, "The parables." Some are relatively long and others quite short - the Kingdom of God is like leaven (Matthew 13).
The parables about Creation draw us in because we can observe the same things about nature, or about His Creation (John 1:3). Many parables are short stories, so the message comes from the plot and a certain amount of droll humor, such as the size the servant's debt compared to the tiny amount owed him.
Like word-association, the parables use more words to help us remember a few words, often at the end of the parable. We connect the plot to the lesson and the conclusion sticks with us better.
The great and wise in the Vatican decided to have a three-year cycle to make the lessons less repetitive! The same leaders said, "Let's use Marian blue as a liturgical color to honor Mary and her Immaculate Conception." In fact, the one-year repetition of the lessons helps us know one body of texts that form the basis of the Christian Faith.
The Unforgiving Servant
KJV Matthew 18:23 Therefore is the kingdom of heaven likened unto a certain king, which would take account of his servants. 24 And when he had begun to reckon, one was brought unto him, which owed him ten thousand talents.
This lesson is best understood as the concluding explanation for Jesus teaching about forgiveness. Just before, Peter asked about how many times he should forgive his brother, "As many as seven times?" That has a history behind it, so Peter's offer was generous.
But Jesus said, "Not seven times, but seventy times seven." That figure was so great, one can hardly imagine.
Matthew 18:15ff is - If your brother sin against you, go and tell him his fault... That not only concerns being direct with someone but also with the steps of excommunication, if necessary.
Matthew 18:18 is about the keys, which are largely overlooked. Whatever is loosed (forgiven) on earth is forgiven in heaven. Whatever is bound (not forgiven) on earth is not forgiven in heaven.
Matthew 18:18 - Wherever two or three are gathered together - asking in the Name of Jesus. That is when Peter asked his question about forgiving his brother seven times.
So this parable illustrates and explains Jesus' shocking response 490 times!, which is really a lesson in God's mercy and how we should respond to His forbearance.
The King is God, and He is auditing accounts. So one man, representing us all, was brought before Him, owing a fantastically large amount of money - 10,000 talents. This is the droll humor of the parable, because the amount is equal to all the tax collected by Rome in a province in a year or two. We would say millions of dollars. Lenski believes it is reflective of the Ten Commandments, like Luther saying we cannot get past the First Commandment, let alone the rest, in regards to breaking it.
The relationship between debt and sin is clear. Uncovering a debt has the same effect as disclosing sin. The individual knows and feels the judgment.
The heart of all false doctrine is the notion that people can appease God or pay for their sins. The greedy and corrupt exploit this by asking, "Have you done enough?" World religions have various schemes to pay the debt through works. This creeps into Christianity and turns Moses into the Savior and Jesus into the accusing Judge.
25 But forasmuch as he had not to pay, his lord commanded him to be sold, and his wife, and children, and all that he had, and payment to be made.
There must be payment so the parable has the man, wife, and children threatened with being sold into slavery to pay for the debt. This is when the guilty face the accounting, for we are all guilty. Today many people seek some way of obtaining peace within, because they have a grasp of their sin but not a solution for it.
26 The servant therefore fell down, and worshipped him, saying, Lord, have patience with me, and I will pay thee all. 27 Then the lord of that servant was moved with compassion, and loosed him, and forgave him the debt.
The servant's response was dramatic and incredible at the same time. He fell down before the King, who is God, and in his contrition, promised to pay back everything. He had nothing, as previously disclosed, and could never do that. Although the servant had nothing to offer, the King was moved with pity and set the man free, forgiving the entire debt.
That should have created a great sense of thanksgiving and joy. For far less, we would be willing to celebrate.
This was a foreshadowing of the Atonement of the Son. Though without sin, He paid the price than no person can pay for his own sins.
the lord of that servant was moved with compassion
There is nothing about the servant's merit or works. God's mercy is beyond our comprehension and goes against our logic. That is why the surest sign of rationalism is a distortion of Justification by Faith, which is God's revelation, God's mystery.
Sometimes we see something more clearly when a contrast is made, and so we have that here.
28 But the same servant went out, and found one of his fellowservants, which owed him an hundred pence: and he laid hands on him, and took him by the throat, saying, Pay me that thou owest. 29 And his fellowservant fell down at his feet, and besought him, saying, Have patience with me, and I will pay thee all. 30 And he would not: but went and cast him into prison, till he should pay the debt.
It is safe to say that this debt is quite small, puny compared to the one just forgiven. But there was no chance to plead for mercy. The forgiven servant grabbed a fellow-servant and demanded payment.
His fellow-servant begged for patience, but he was thrown into prison "until he should pay the debt," which would have been difficult.
He threw his fellow-servant into prison for a tiny debt, compared to what he owed, for which he received forgiveness. Of course, this is the mirror - the Law, showing us what we are really like, since God forgives for freely every day and we harbor grudges.
31 So when his fellowservants saw what was done, they were very sorry, and came and told unto their lord all that was done. 32 Then his lord, after that he had called him, said unto him, O thou wicked servant, I forgave thee all that debt, because thou desiredst me: 33 Shouldest not thou also have had compassion on thy fellowservant, even as I had pity on thee? 34 And his lord was wroth, and delivered him to the tormentors, till he should pay all that was due unto him.
35 So likewise shall my heavenly Father do also unto you, if ye from your hearts forgive not every one his brother their trespasses.
So the parable is mostly about mankind's lack of forgiveness and the consequences. Most of the emphasis, most of the words, are devoted to the importance of being as forgiving as God is.
Because so many are confused about the Gospel, some advocate forgiving without any contrition on the part of the other person. It is true that we have to let go of the harm done to us, but that is not the same as saying to the unrepentant, "I forgive you."
The King was long-suffering and moved to pity when the servant was distraught. Why did this not have its affect on the servant?
That emphasizes our pattern of behavior when we take God's mercy and abundance for granted. instead of earning forgiveness, we are moved to forgive by God's mercy through Christ.
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| Norma A. Boeckler |
