Ask And The Light Shall Shine Upon You

2 Corinthians 3:12-4:1-6; Luke 11:13; John 16:23-24; KJV; Transfiguration Sunday.

Give Thanks For Those Who Share The Gospel!

1 Thessalonians 1:1-10 KJV; 21st Sunday after Pentecost; Give thanks for all who by the power of the Holy Spirit share the Good News of Jesus the Christ.

We Do Not Abuse Family

Romans 8:12-17; Romans12:18; KJV As member of earthly families as well as adopted members of the family of God we support one another that God might be glorified.

One Baptism

1 Corinthians 1:1-18; Ephesians 4:1-6 KJV; We are united in one baptism; by faith. It is a gift from God!

No Grumbling Or Arguing!

Philippians 2:14-16; No grumbling; nor arguing so that you might shine like stars on the day of Jesus the Christ.

Called To Be Apostles And Servants Of Christ

Romans 1:1,3-7 KJV; Separated unto the gospel of God to be apostles and servants of our Lord Jesus the Christ.

Deliver Us From Evil Works

2 Timothy 4:14-18 KJV; 20th Sunday after Pentecost; Deliver us from those who persecute for proclaiming the Good News of Jesus the Christ.

Meeting Jesus

2 Timothy 4:6-8 KJV We meet Jesus in the Word and Sacraments.

Paul and Lydia; You and Me Acts 16

Acts 16: 9-15 KJV

Unworthy

None Other Than Almighty God Can Deliver You

Be Kind

For so is the will of God, that with well doing ye may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men: As free, and not using your liberty for a cloke of maliciousness, but as the servants of God. (1 Peter 2:15-16 KJV)

It does very little good to respond harshly to the harsh words or actions of others. That will only create more dissension and division. It brings about more drama and stress to one's life. It does not glorify God!

Rather God is glorified when we show kindness to those who attack us. If we must and sometimes we must correct someone it is out of love for them.

St. Peter encourages us to to put to silence the ill-speaking tongues our actions. St. Paul's letter to the Romans does the same and adds that by doing so we heap coals of fire upon their heads. It is up to God to decide whether vengeance is warranted and then He will take care of the vengeance. It is our call to love our neighbors and to serve them according to their needs; but, not necessarily their wants as wants are often self-serving and do not glorify God.

"Distributing to the necessity of saints; given to hospitality.

Bless them which persecute you: bless, and curse not.

Rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep.

Be of the same mind one toward another. Mind not high things, but condescend to men of low estate. Be not wise in your own conceits.

Recompense to no man evil for evil. Provide things honest in the sight of all men.

If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men.

Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.

Therefore if thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him drink: for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire on his head.

Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good."

                                                                        (Rom 12:14-21)

God help us to glorify Him by being kind even to our enemies and live in peace.

God's Peace - Pr. J.

Dubious Accusations

And when they had been there many days, Festus declared Paul's cause unto the king, saying, There is a certain man left in bonds by Felix:

About whom, when I was at Jerusalem, the chief priests and the elders of the Jews informed me, desiring to have judgment against him.

To whom I answered, It is not the manner of the Romans to deliver any man to die, before that he which is accused have the accusers face to face, and have licence to answer for himself concerning the crime laid against him.

Therefore, when they were come hither, without any delay on the morrow I sat on the judgment seat, and commanded the man to be brought forth.

 Against whom when the accusers stood up, they brought none accusation of such things as I supposed:

But had certain questions against him of their own superstition, and of one Jesus, which was dead, whom Paul affirmed to be alive.

And because I doubted of such manner of questions, I asked him whether he would go to Jerusalem, and there be judged of these matters.

                                                                             (Acts 25:14-20 KJV)

Paul finds himself in custody; being questioned by Festus; being accused of things that are not even criminal offenses by the Jews. Paul has challenged them to send him to Caesar to be tried since it is his right as a Roman citizen. But, Festus can find no charge that he can bring to warrant sending Paul to trial.

We see it all the time. People are falsely accused publicly. Reporters seem to be  getting real good at it in recent years.  They judge situations before all of the story is actually in. The stories explode without the truth ever being uncovered. By the time the accusations get to court, everyone has their opinions about guilt or innocence based on biased reports; sometimes out right lies. Innocent men and women's reputations are dragged through the mud without any good cause.

Usually the cause has to do with things like a desire for things that don't belong to you or maybe just a desire for more power. Forget your ego; forget your desire for power. Live life and let others live their lives as well! 

There is enough real crime in the world to have to deal with. Why waste anyone's time with petty and slanderous disputes? Petty disputes can be taken care of without going to court. All it takes is a little bit of empathy and the willingness to listen to and to talk to one another without attacking them. 

Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering;

Forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye.

And above all these things put on charity, which is the bond of perfectness.

And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one body; and be ye thankful. 

                                                                                          (Col 3:12-15)

God's Peace - Pr. J

Forgive And Pray For Your Enemies

But he, being full of the Holy Ghost, looked up stedfastly into heaven, and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God,

And said, Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing on the right hand of God.

Then they cried out with a loud voice, and stopped their ears, and ran upon him with one accord,

And cast him out of the city, and stoned him: and the witnesses laid down their clothes at a young man's feet, whose name was Saul.

And they stoned Stephen, calling upon God, and saying, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.

And he kneeled down, and cried with a loud voice, Lord, lay not this sin to their charge. And when he had said this, he fell asleep. 

                                                                                    (Acts 7:55-60 KJV)

There are times when we might think that we will never be able to forgive someone. Yet, here is Stephen following in the footsteps of Jesus, forgiving those who are putting him to death. A young man Saul, is witness to this event. This young man you probably know better as St. Paul, missionary to the gentiles. Yes, Paul the great persecutor of Christians was there to witness and encourage the stoning of Stephen. 

Saul persecuted Christians. That is, he persecuted them until the day that he met the ascended Lord on his way to Damascus to hunt down even more Christians. In that encounter with the Lord, the Lord asked Saul why he was so busy persecuting him. That was the day that the old man in Saul died and Paul began to live and serve the Lord even to his own death. One of the most ardent persecutors of Christians became one of the greatest missionaries ever once he met the Lord. We can never know what the Lord has in store for any of us, not even our enemies.

Forgive your enemies and pray for them, even as our Lord Jesus and Paul and many other saints have gone to their deaths, praying for and forgiving their enemies. For our hope is not in this world. Our hope lies in the promise that as we draw our last breaths that we, too, might look to the heaven and see the glory of God, with Jesus standing at His right hand.

God's Peace - Pr. J

The Just Shall Live By Faith

So, as much as in me is, I am ready to preach the gospel to you that are at Rome also.

For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.

For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith.

                                                                                  (Rom 1:15-17 KJV)

Paul was eventually taken to Rome where he would be executed. He was fully prepared to go to his death if it afforded him the opportunity to share the Good News of Christ. This man who once put fear in the hearts of men was not afraid to die in order that by faith all who believe in the life giving death of Jesus the Christ would be found righteous in the eyes of God. All who believe; no matter who they are or what they had done, who receive life in the eternal presence of God.

It is not because he proclaimed the Good News that Paul is considered righteous before God. He proclaimed the Good News because he knew that he was considered righteous by faith in the One who loved him so much that he was willing to die for him.

Paul took Jesus' words literally. "And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me." (Luke 9:23) By faith alone in Christ alone, Paul gave up his old life to follow Jesus even to his own execution.

Let us not be ashamed or afraid to share the gospel of Christ. It is the power of God unto salvation for all who believes!

God's Peace - Pr. J.

Sin Abides In Me

For that which I do I allow not: for what I would, that do I not; but what I hate, that do I. If then I do that which I would not, I consent unto the law that it is good. Now then it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me. For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not. For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do. Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me. I find then a law, that, when I would do good, evil is present with me. For I delight in the law of God after the inward man: But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members. O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death? I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord.  (Rom 7:15-25a KJV)

St. Paul served tirelessly to serve the Lord. He knew that he was a wretched man; that sin dwelt within him and that sin tried very hard to direct his ways.

None of us are without sin. There is indeed a war that goes on inside of us. We may desire to do what is good; what is right; but, temptations come and sometimes we are not even aware that they are temptations. They come and we succumb.

We turn our backs on God. We turn our backs on fellowman as we strive to fulfill out own desires. But, in the end; hopefully, we know that what we have done cannot be done undone by any good works of our own. The only help that can be found is by faith in the one who was and is sinless. The only help for our souls is in faith in the one who died for us. Salvation is ours only through faith in the one who was willing to face sin, death, and the power of the devil for us, Jesus Christ our Savior and Lord.

Prior to his relationship with Jesus, St. Paul had persecuted Jesus' followers. He had them killed. Yet, by faith in the promises of God through Christ Jesus, Paul knew that his sins were forgiven. He did not deserve to be forgiven even as we do not deserve to be forgiven. It was by faith alone in the life giving sacrifice of our Lord Jesus that he knew that he was saved and reconciled to God for all of eternity.

"For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast." (Eph 2:7-9)

God's Peace - Pr. J.

Imprisoned

"Yet for love's sake I rather beseech thee, being such an one as Paul the aged, and now also a prisoner of Jesus Christ. I beseech thee for my son Onesimus, whom I have begotten in my bonds: Which in time past was to thee unprofitable, but now profitable to thee and to me.."

                  (Philemon 1:9-11 KJV)

Greetings: 

I remember receiving word that a young friend (a former secretary) had "received life." Now in the Christian context you might assume that he has received Christ into his life; that he has received the promise of eternal life. I wish that I could say that this was so. He "received life" in the worldly context. He received three life sentences in prison, without parole. When I heard the sentence he had received, in grief, I voiced it aloud: 

"HE RECEIVED LIFE." 

Still, there is hope to be found hope in those words. It is my hope that his sentence in this world is a sign to me that he has received life eternal, although he may not realize that fact, yet. I have prayed for him often; that we would be one in Christ; that he would enter into the Body of Christ. It is painful for me to think of one so young living behind bars for another 50 or 60 years. But, it is reality. A reality that may seem cruel, but may also be the very opportunity needed for him to "receive life." This friend of mine received the consequences of his actions in this world; yet, he still has the opportunity for freedom; a freedom that is found only in Christ; for all of eternity. 

St. Paul spent a good portion of his ministry behind bars. Although scripture has no record of how many received the truth of Christ through the word spoken by Paul, I am sure there were quite a few. We read in Philemon, that he who was in prison had converted the young man, Onesimus.  I guess you could say Paul was called to prison ministry, but not in the way most of us view prison ministry. Paul was there, living it. One on one, he experienced the pain and suffering of those in prison with him. Because he suffered the same pain, he understood and because he understood others listened and received life. 

There is a prison that we don't recognize as easily as we do the earthly prison surrounded by bars and barbed wire. That prison is our bondage to sin; our bondage to the desires and ways of this world; our desires to be served rather than serve in the love of Christ. This prison is harder for us to recognize and so often we never even desire freedom from it. Many actually come to like it in these chains. Within the walls of a correctional facility freedom can be found in Christ Jesus; freedom to love and serve as the world is not competing quite as loudly for first place in your life. 

Jesus promised that: "..the truth shall set you fee." (John 8:32) However, for those of us who may be bound in a prison of worldly comforts of self-serving desires and pursuits, it's really hard to see the truth (often preferring not to see the truth, about our need for forgiveness, so we don't ask for it), remaining in bondage to sin. 

As we consider our own freedom; let us ask God to reveal to us whether we are truly free. Let us pray first for salvation, for freedom in Christ. Let us pray for one another, in love, that forgiveness in Christ be received by all God's children who find themselves in prison: both the correctional facilities and those chained to the desires of this world. Let us also pray a prayer of Thanksgiving for our Prison Chaplains and all who work in the Prison Ministry for bringing the Light of Christ into such darkened lives. 

God’s Peace – Judy

Justified By Faith Alone

"Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified." (Gal 2:16 KJV)

Remembering the poor is a good thing. We are called to love our neighbors. We are called to be charitable. But, sometimes we can get so wrapped up in doing good; those things which our traditions dictate, that we forget that we are not justified by our good works and we go about acting like we've done something grand that can be credited to us. Paul had to confront Peter about this. Although Peter accepted and even approved Paul's ministry to the gentiles, Peter kept himself apart from the gentiles. He was saying grace, grace... but, he was living by the laws of tradition.

Paul reminds us that righteousness cannot be gained through the law. It is by the grace of God that we are found righteous. It is by the grace of God that we are saved. We earn none of it. We deserve none of it. And.. if good works are done through us let us remember these words of Paul. "I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me." (Gal 2:20)

So when we start thinking that we are accomplishing much, let us remember that it is not we who accomplish these things. Thanks be to God for the abiding presence of Christ! 

God's Peace - Pr. J

Accepted or Rejected

And when we came to Rome, the centurion delivered the prisoners to the captain of the guard: but Paul was suffered to dwell by himself with a soldier that kept him.

And it came to pass, that after three days Paul called the chief of the Jews together: and when they were come together, he said unto them, Men and brethren, though I have committed nothing against the people, or customs of our fathers, yet was I delivered prisoner from Jerusalem into the hands of the Romans.

Who, when they had examined me, would have let me go, because there was no cause of death in me.

But when the Jews spake against it, I was constrained to appeal unto Caesar; not that I had ought to accuse my nation of.

For this cause therefore have I called for you, to see you, and to speak with you: because that for the hope of Israel I am bound with this chain.

And they said unto him, We neither received letters out of Judaea concerning thee, neither any of the brethren that came shewed or spake any harm of thee.

But we desire to hear of thee what thou thinkest: for as concerning this sect, we know that every where it is spoken against.

                                                                                Acts 28:16-22 KJV

There were always be those who support the servants of God and there will also always be those who will do anything and everything to subvert the message brought by God's servants.

Paul had finally made it to Rome under guard. The believers from the area went to meet him when they heard that he was there. The local Jewish leaders also wanted to hear from him. But, they wanted to hear because they have heard only bad things about this Christian sect. Whether it is accepted or rejected; Paul, the prisoner, was still provided opportunities by God to proclaim the message of the Kingdom through Jesus Christ to many people.

Sometimes, we will share the Good News with people whom we think might be open to it. At other times, we will keep our lips closed for fear that the message (and we) will be rejected. This was not the way that Paul followed. It was definitely not The Way of Jesus. The Good News is for all people. Do not be afraid to share it.

We are called and sent to share the message of forgiveness and reconciliation in the Kingdom through the sacrifice of Jesus. Maybe we should ask ourselves what news it is that we share most often with others. Is that message about our favorite sports team or politician or maybe television star or musician? 

Hmmm... We humans tend to place a lot of emphasis on false gods. What about sharing the message of peace; the peace that is received in the knowledge of what Christ has done for us? For the Christian, there can be no greater focus than on sharing the message of salvation through Jesus Christ our Lord with those who do not know him. Do not be afraid to do that! Whether the message is accepted or rejected, it is still the message that saves lives. Give them a chance to know it and to know Him!

God's Peace - Pr. J

Upset By The Truth

"And Paul, earnestly beholding the council, said, Men and brethren, I have lived in all good conscience before God until this day.

And the high priest Ananias commanded them that stood by him to smite him on the mouth.

Then said Paul unto him, God shall smite thee, thou whited wall: for sittest thou to judge me after the law, and commandest me to be smitten contrary to the law?

And they that stood by said, Revilest thou God's high priest?

Then said Paul, I wist not, brethren, that he was the high priest: for it is written, Thou shalt not speak evil of the ruler of thy people.

But when Paul perceived that the one part were Sadducees, and the other Pharisees, he cried out in the council, Men and brethren, I am a Pharisee, the son of a Pharisee: of the hope and resurrection of the dead I am called in question.

And when he had so said, there arose a dissension between the Pharisees and the Sadducees: and the multitude was divided.

For the Sadducees say that there is no resurrection, neither angel, nor spirit: but the Pharisees confess both.

And there arose a great cry: and the scribes that were of the Pharisees' part arose, and strove, saying, We find no evil in this man: but if a spirit or an angel hath spoken to him, let us not fight against God.

And when there arose a great dissension, the chief captain, fearing lest Paul should have been pulled in pieces of them, commanded the soldiers to go down, and to take him by force from among them, and to bring him into the castle.

And the night following the Lord stood by him, and said, Be of good cheer, Paul: for as thou hast testified of me in Jerusalem, so must thou bear witness also at Rome."

                                                                                   Acts 23:1-11 KJV

The truth has a tendency to upset people who insist on living their own truth, which is no truth at all; but, a justification for our sinful beliefs and lifestyles. They will rebel and this will attack those who speak the truth in attempts to make themselves look good and right.

With much turmoil, Paul testified to the resurrection of the dead in Jerusalem. The uproar that accompanied it was so horrific that the troops had to get Paul out of there for his own safety. "The following night the Lord stood near Paul and told said, 'Take courage! As you have testified about me in Jerusalem, so you must also testify in Rome.'” (vs 11) And, so he will. Under guard Paul will be taken to Rome to testify to the truth in Jesus Christ again. He will witness to the resurrection and eternal life in Christ even as he makes that journey.

Where is our journey taking us? Along "The Way," will we be witnesses of the love of God in Christ Jesus; regardless, of how many might attack us because their lives are upset by the truth? How many lives will be changed by hearing the Word?

God's Peace - Pr. J