MAC KIRK

  Friendship---a topical message on ALL SAINTS  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 brigade was a

  The Wedding Feast   & Faith from Matthew 22   The Readings   The First Lesson  (Third Set of Propers)   Exodus 32:1-6, 15-20, 30-34   And when the people saw that Moses delayed to come down out of the mount, the people gathered themselves together unto Aaron, and said unto him, Up, make us gods, which shall go before us; for as for this Moses, the man that brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we wot not what is become of him. And Aaron said unto them, Break off the golden earrings, which are in the ears of your wives, of your sons, and of your daughters, and bring them unto me. And all the people brake off the golden earrings which were in their ears, and brought them unto Aaron. And he received them at their hand, and fashioned it with a graving tool, after he had made it a molten calf: and they said, These be thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt. And when Aaron saw it, he built an altar before it; and Aaron made proclamation, and

  Luke The First Lesson   Isaiah 52:7-10   How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace; that bringeth good tidings of good, that publisheth salvation; that saith unto Zion, Thy God reigneth Thy watchmen shall lift up the voice; with the voice together shall they sing: for they shall see eye to eye, when the Lord shall bring again Zion. Break forth into joy, sing together, ye waste places of Jerusalem: for the Lord hath comforted his people, he hath redeemed Jerusalem. The Lord hath made bare his holy arm in the eyes of all the nations; and all the ends of the earth shall see the salvation of our God.   ALMIGHTY God, who didst inspire thy servant Saint Luke the Physician, to set forth in the Gospel the love and healing power of thy Son; Manifest in thy Church the like power and love, to the healing of our bodies and our souls; through the same thy Son Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.   The Epistle 2 Timothy iv.

  Heb 11: 32-12:2   A Witness to Life Readings-   OT Exodus 14:5-14, 19-21, 24-28, 30   And it was told the king of Egypt that the people fled: and the heart of Pharaoh and of his servants was turned against the people, and they said, Why have we done this, that we have let Israel go from serving us? And he made ready his chariot, and took his people with him: And he took six hundred chosen chariots, and all the chariots of Egypt, and captains over every one of them. And the Lord hardened the heart of Pharaoh king of Egypt, and he pursued after the children of Israel: and the children of Israel went out with an high hand. But the Egyptians pursued after them, all the horses and chariots of Pharaoh, and his horsemen, and his army, and overtook them encamping by the sea, beside Pihahiroth, before Baalzephon. And when Pharaoh drew nigh, the children of Israel lifted up their eyes, and, behold, the Egyptians marched after them; and they were sore afraid: and the children of Israel

 "How many timid, anxious hearts has this sweet outpouring of quiet trust braced and lifted to its own serene height of conscious safety! This psalmist is so absorbed in the thought of his Keeper that he barely names his dangers. With happy assurance of protection, he says over and over again the one word which is his (protection) against foes and fears. Six times in these few verses does the thought recur that LORD is the Keeper of Israel and the single soul ( Jacob). The quietness that comes of confidence is the singer’s strength. Whether he is an exile, looking across the plains of Mesopotamia towards the blue hills. which the eye cannot discern, or a pilgrim catching the first sight of the mountain on which the LORD  sits enshrined"  Bible Hub commentary, " Expositor's Bible" He may have an exile in Bablyon and he looks to the hills around Jersualem " As the mountains are round about Jerusalem, so the LORD is round about His people from henceforth even

 Trinity 17 and Lessons from the healing of the man with the dropsy Luke 14 17th Sunday after Trinity- OT Jeremiah 13:15-21, Epistle is Ephesians 4 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 th