MAC KIRK

Lessons and Carols Meditation DEC 27 Today we have listened to the Lessons and Carols , some have read, all have sung, and done what was done first in 1918 by English parishes and now done all over the world . Chaplain Eric Milner-White , and a priest in the Church of England wrote this service after WWI . After the bleakness and despair of that war a note of hope and joy as well as God's grace sounded in the ears of those who came reverently and expectantly to hear . This reminded me of another time when God spoke after a silence of many centuries. After the last prophet, Malachi, there were many years of no revelation. God was not speaking as He did in time past. When the Angel Gabriel came to Zacharias on the right hand of the altar of incense, it is said by Luke, " And when Zacharias saw him he was troubled, and fear fell upon him." Luke 1:11 What was the first word from heaven?" Fear not..." " I am Gabriel , that stand in the presence of God ...

Christmas EVE 2015 " O Virgin of Virgins, how shall this be? for neither before thee was any like thee, nor shall there be after. Daughters of Jerusalem, why marvel ye at me? the thing which ye behold is a divine mystery." Slipper Chapel, England. Our Lady Statue inscription A CHRISTMAS QUESTION a Child is born. A Son is Given. Isaiah 9" a Child"- a real human person with thoughts, emotion , and pain , just as you and I ----really human a Son- Jesus Christ, God's eternal Son, " begotten of His Father from before all worlds, begotten----not made, being of the same substance with the Father." 1. Is it so? Yes, the child was born in our world and in our history. But is the child born to us? ----is He our Saviour? If so---that the Child wrapped in swaddling clothes in Bethlehem's manger is born to you, then you are born from above, born again. FOR THIS CHILD IS NOT BORN TO YOU, UNLESS YOU ARE BORN TO THIS CHILD. How can we know??? a...

Advent IV . Philippians 4 Have you been anxious about anything lately? Do you feel peaceful? Or are you being torn apart by things, people and events? What is disturbing your peace? How can you recover your Christian assurance and peace in this life and for the life to come? Is the Christmas hustle and bustle getting you in the fast lane? What I like about the church's observance of Advent is that it is a slowing down and a renewal of our vows, our faith, and our lives should be in harmony with His will and His Spirit instead of ...well you can fill in the blank! Interesting , and I think I may have touched on this issue last year since it is the same Epistle , but the background of Rejoice, the peace of God which passes all understanding, and do not be anxious ( be careful for nothing in the KJV) is a situation in the church at Philippi. We can see it in 4:2 where Paul says, " I beseech Euodias, and beseech Syntyche, that they be of the same mind in the Lord...

What is the spirit of Advent? Advent III-I Thessalonians 5:12-23 I think we know the spirit of Christmas about the birth of Jesus and His glory in the manger, but what is the spirit of Advent? Advent in the Roman tradition , four weeks , was not always penitential. The Gallic Church had a nine week Advent , more penitential, and eventually we now have penitential but it is a " joyful of preparation for the Feast of the Lord's Nativity."p. 49 Handbook of Christian Feasts and Customs, FR Francis Weiser. The third Sunday, Gaudete , " bears a special character of joy." p. 52,Handbook In Advent, the Gloria is omitted, and in Morning/Evening Prayer we say the Litany. Today we look at an alternate Epistle reading for today Sunday Advent III from I Thessalonians. What are some of the special characteristics of a time of preparation for our Lord's birth? In Friday's morning prayer we heard the Gospel of Mark 4:24 , " unto you that hear shall more b...

How Should We Begin a New Church Year of Advent? Luke 1:5-25 Today's Gospel that we will consider is about Zacharias , Elisabeth and the birth of a child, that was unexpected. (John the Baptist) " And they had no child, because that Elisabeth was barren." 1:7 Not only that but they were both quite old. " well stricken in years. This account today is for us as we contemplate the spiritual lives we sometimes feel that we are going through the motions. In the silence of our meditation, God does hear and know, and He acts. I Corinthians 2:9 came to my mind, " Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him." God wishes our silence and our trust. I like this:" We need to find God, and he cannot be found in noise and restlessness. God is the friend of silence. See how nature - trees, flowers, grass- grows in silence; see the stars, the moon and the sun, how they mov...

Christ the King Sunday---2015 The question we are dealing with this week is " if Christ is our King, then why is the world the way it is?" Christians live in the world now, and we wonder if Christ rules and defends us, why does it seem that the world is so difficult to live in with its tragedies, disappointments, and difficulties? I would say our understanding is quite limited and therein lies our problem. No , we are not God, but somehow we try to be little gods, and our thinking therefore is human, and not divine. " For now we see through a glass darkly, but then face to face: now I know in part...." I Corinthians 13:12 Q: How doth Christ execute the office of a king? ---Scots Catechism ( Westminster) A: Christ executeth the office of a king, in subduing us to himself,1 in ruling and defending us,2 and in restraining and conquering all his and our enemies.3 1. Psalm 110:3. Thy people shall be willing in the day of thy power, in the beauties of holiness...

Malachi ---a message for all for pre-Advent Malachi opens his book with a rather remarkable statement that should guide as well in all of our lives. " I have loved you,saith the LORD." The temple had been rebuilt in the time of Nehemiah ( rebuilt the wall), Haggai and Zechariah ( rebuilt the temple) , and now the people were ignoring the worship and service of God after being back from Bablyon for a hundred years. The same failures and sins were still a problem for the people. They were intermarrying pagan women Malachi 2:11; they were not putting the temple as a priority and holding back the tithe from the House of God, Malachi 3:8-10; the services in the Lord's House were only a form and lacked true devotion. " It is possible to attend the temple, bend the knee,and make an offering regularly, but unless there is love in the heart there is no communion with God. To go to the temple merely as a matter of duty is to blaspheme." Living Message of the Books ...

The Christian and the Government. Matthew 22: 21 "Though absent from the heavenly City, we are none the less its citizens, for the Church on earth and the Church in heaven are in truth one, and the Kingdom of Grace is but a suburb of the Kingdom of Glory." --Melville Scott, The Harmony of the Collects, Epistles, and Gospels As Christians we are all faced with living with one foot in the kingdom of heaven, of which we are a member by faith and profession as well as citizens of this era we live in. The testings we face here are always to be placed in relationship to our heavenly heritage. The epistle reminded us today, " our citizenship is in heaven." Philippians . When tested and tried by the Pharisees and the Herodians ( a Jewish group known for supporting Herod), Jesus was not caught as they tried to "entangle him." Matthew 22: 15. He asked them to show him a coin, and the famous quote we all know came out of his lips, " Render unto Caesar ...

Friendship---a topical message on ALL SAINTS 2015 Friendship is the only cement that will ever hold the world together. – Woodrow T. Wilson Don’t walk behind me; I may not lead. Don’t walk in front of me; I may not follow. Just walk beside me and be my friend. — Albert Camus Friendship is born at that moment when one person says to another: ‘What! You too? I thought I was the only one. ― C.S. Lewis A friend is one that knows you as you are, understands where you have been, accepts what you have become, and still, gently allows you to grow. – William Shakespeare A personal illustration as I begin after these thoughts. I was new to active duty Army, and my first unit was a light infantry hard-charging combat battalion called the "Wolfhounds". I had no conception of what I was supposed to be doing ( even though I had been in the National Guard for 18 months from North Dakota, and was a graduate of the Chaplain Officer Basic Course!) My Chaplain sponsor in the brig...

"What about that devotional life with God?" October 25, 2015 DR Alexander Mac Claren was a well known English non-conformist clergyman in England in the 1800's. I was fortunate to inherit almost the entire series of his commentaries from my great-grandfather's library passed on to my grandfather. One quote that has stuck with me is this that I heard, " As you read the Bible, keep an eye on the newspaper." Because of that DR Mac Claren used to have all the books in his library interspersed with Biblical studies, and so to speak many books of/about the world. He was saying we have to bring " God to man and man to God" by connecting. He was right. Our meditations on Holy Scripture must be true, relevant and timely or they will be largely ignored and unapplied. Unfortunately many priests, preachers, homilists , men of the cloth get it wrong. They themselves are not in the Word enough to know it , and so their congregations are fed milk a...

ST Luke Day; 2 Timothy 4:5--- " Watch thou in all things , endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist..I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith; henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing....Only Luke is with me..." " Let us resolutely drive out all unbelief, and endeavor to get rid of doubts and fears.....there is no excuse for fear where God is the foundation of our trust." Charles Spurgeon A final refusal to recant her beliefs landed Anne a conviction of heresy for denying the doctrine of transubstantiation and she was sentenced to death. Unable to stand, she was carried on a chair to Smithfield just outside the London Wall. She was fastened to the stake by a chain wrapped around her waist to hold her up and then burned alive alongside three fellow martyrs. These men ...

17th Sunday after Trinity Today's Lessons are about our humility. This may be a short sermon. ( laugh) Humbleness is not our call we feel. We usually are not humble. Just look at how we drive. Look at how we live. We see things and needs and try and look the other way. It is hard to be humble when we are so great. Well, the Gospel and Epistle for today seem to call us in a far different direction. 1. Jesus goes everywhere. It is easy to go where we are wanted, but not so easy to go where we are not wanted, or accepted. He goes into the house of one of the chief Pharisees. Luke 14:1 . He accepted the invitation obviously. But He did not leave there without setting them straight in their attitudes and manners toward others. My great grandfather ( Campbell Morgan of London) notes vs 7, " them that were bidden" and believes they were making a mockery of the Sabbath as it was meant for worship, not feasts. Basically they did not keep the Sabbath even t...

Trinity 16--- Luke 7 The account of Jesus raising the widow's son in the small town of Nain near Nazareth is a pattern for our action as well. First, let's take a look at the pattern of Jesus' action for this woman who lost her only son, and then see how that should apply to our Christian living. First, Jesus saw what was going on . " And when the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her, and said unto her, ' Weep not.'" I wonder if we know this in our Christian lives. He knows us. There are times when God seems absent in our days, but He is working out His purposes for His people. He does not forget or not know. He has compassion on us. God's no's are compassionate. Did you ever pray for a certain thing or difficulty and God seemed silent, or you ended up with an outright no? All His ways are love. Isaiah tells us ch 55, " For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways , saith the Lord." ...

Trinity 15 Seeking what lasts It is appropriate that while writing this I am hearing about 9-11 . No one knew that this would happen as they went to work that day. Loss, grief and panic followed. I was thrilled to be honest to watch the video of the man who shot Osama Bin Laden as he hugged and talked with family members of those who lost family on 9-11. It helped him to acknowledge their loss , and they were able to thank him for being the one to kill the murderer who was responsible for so many deaths on that day. I confess I had to switch the channel as the Today show showed the original impact of the two planes in their broadcast. A little tear came down from my eye. It is important to remember September 11. We must not ever forget those who died and those who answered the call to service to our country that day , firefighters, police, the Soldiers who invaded Afghanistan and Iraq. Do you remember where you were on 9-11 and what you were doing? This Sunday...

Trinity 14 Galatians 5 Charles Spurgeon the well known reformed Baptist said it this way about joy in our lives that touched me:" It is exceedingly beneficial to our souls to mount above this present evil world to something nobler and better. It would be well if the dwellers in the valley could frequently leave their abodes among the marshes and the fever mists , and inhale the bracing element upon the hills. It is to such an exploit of climbing that I now invite you. May the Spirit of God assist us to leave the mists of fear and the fevers of anxiety , and all the ills which gather in this valley of earth, and to ascend the mountains of anticipated joy and blessedness. May God the Holy Spirit cut the cords that keep us here below, and assist us to mount." "...the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law." 5:22 1. Our faith should be the center of our joyful C...

Trinity 13. " But the scripture hath concluded all under sin, that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe." Galatians 3:22 There are some key words here we should think about in this short text from the Apostle's letter to the Galatians: "the scripture" "all under sin" "promise by faith of Jesus Christ" "given" "to them that believe" First of all the Scripture . Who believes that the Scriptures are the Word of God and of Christ? Jesus did. He accepted the Old Testament of the Jewish people as God -breathed Scripture. He constantly quoted the Scripture to the leaders of the church /synagogue at that time. It was the Scriptures that Jesus referred to on that walk on Resurrection Evening to Cleopas and his companion. " And beginning at Moses and all the prophets he expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning Himself." Luke 24:27 The Scrip...

12th S. after Trinity 2 Corinthians 3:4 God has made us sufficient and competent to do His work. " Our sufficiency is of God", the Apostle says. " All morning an instructor had been explaining leadership to a class of police recruits. Calling a man to the front of the class he handed him a piece of paper on which was written, ' You are in charge. Get everyone out of the room without causing a panic.' The recruit was at a loss for words and returned to his seat. The second man summoned tried, ' Everybody outside. Go!' No one moved. A third man glanced at the insructions, smiled and said, ' All right , men. Break for lunch.' The room emptied in seconds." sermonillustrations.com As Christians we are equipped to do God's work because we have His Spirit. Our confidence and competency comes from Christ . I Timothy 1:15 says it this way ," And I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who hath enabled me....and the grace of o...

11th after Trinity Old Testament Lesson- Genesis 37:3-4,12-35 Trusting in the Fruits - from Henri Nouwen's Bread for the Journey "We belong to a generation that wants to see the results of our work. We want to be productive and see with our own eyes what we have made. But that is not the way of God's Kingdom. Often our witness for God does not lead to tangible results. Jesus himself died as a failure on a cross. There was no success there to be proud of. Still, the fruitfulness of Jesus' life is beyond any human measure. As faithful witnesses of Jesus we have to trust that our lives too will be fruitful, even though we cannot see their fruit. The fruit of our lives may be visible only to those who live after us. What is important is how well we love. God will make our love fruitful, whether we see that fruitfulness or not." As I reflected again on the life of Joseph from its inception in Genesis 37, I thought of the above quote. Often it does not appear th...

Loss and Find- Lost and found Luke 15 Today's well-known story is so well-known that it can be too familiar in the sense that people think there is nothing more to be gained from it. But lthe word of God is "living and active" ; there is always something to be gleaned from it. It may be compared to listening to a choral piece from choral evensong in Oxford, England. You listen and listen and listen again for it is so moving in its beauty with the young and older voices together. Feeding the birds is such a hobby for me that I often am so amazed at their beauty. The cardinals are the prettiest. A priest friend of mine told me that cardinals it is rumored by ancient tradition are your family that you have lost coming to visit you . I know that is not true, but every time I look at them I think of those I too have lost and miss. Have you ever thought of the parable of the Forgiving father or the Prodigal Son from the side of the human loss in it? I saw the ...

Providence of God 8th S. after Trinity Today's prayer ( collect) expresses some very powerful ideas: "O GOD, whose never-failing providence orders all things both in heaven and earth; We humbly beseech Thee to put away from us all hurtful things, and to give us those things which are profitable for us; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen." Luther said it this way:" "...my salvation is in God's hand and not my own. He will be faithful to His promise to save me, not on the basis of what I do but according to His great mercy." Martin Luther Bondage of the Will God's providence ( pro- video---He sees before it happens) never fails. All things in heaven and earth are ordered by God. " Not only when thou wast born into the world did Christ love thee, but His delights were with the sons of men before there were any sons of men. Often He did think of them; from everlasting to everlasting He had set His affections upon them....If He ha...