MAC KIRK

 Third Sunday in Advent Zeph 3:14-20 Ps 85 Phil 4:4-9 Luke 3:7-20         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 before, 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,...

  Luke 1:26-56; Isaiah 55.  Advent II ( Readings are from 1928 Book of Common Prayer- Morning Prayer )  Mary and Elizabeth   C. S. Lewis said, "  There are far, far better things ahead than any we leave behind." Mary and the Angels Luke 1:26-38 What a Gospel for today! It is full of great news and Divine Announcements and the appearance of the Angel Gabriel. To all who are struggling with the life here in so many ways we are all surrounded by such love and mystery that it is overwhelming wonderful! It saddens me at some level, but gives me hope that people who normally do not have any spiritual interest at most times of the year, come to this account in Luke with angels and have interest and wonder. First, What is this " Gabriel"? A man in Daniel who comes to Daniel touching him, perhaps flying to assure him that God would give him understanding. Daniel 9:21 The Angel Gabriel, lit. Geber el = man of God. He is called an angel in Luke 1. This is angelos in Greek....

  Advent I.  Dec 1. How Do We Begin Again? Jeremiah 33:14-16;1 Thessalonians 3:9-13; Luke 21:25-36 I saw this the other day and I have been thinking about it...." Forgiveness is re-gifting the grace that God gave you."  Some how we are stuck.  If the truth be told, we are locked into where we are and what we are doing without hope of getting any light.  We should take advantage of the new season we are in today to ask, " How do we start?"   When I use the lawnmower, I check the oil religiously, and try and see how the air filter is doing by taking it out. I may even turn the lawnmower slightly on its side to see what is going beneath it.  Any grass from last time still in there?  Does the blade turn?  On another way of looking I have a fitbit watch and I wondered why it was not charging.---  Seems the back is magnetic.  It had a paper clip stuck there, and when I plugged the charger in I could not figure out why it was not char...

  Matthew 25:31-46 Stir up Sunday.   This is the Sunday before Advent.  This is Thanksgiving week Sunday. It is also called Christ the King Sunday "  STIR up, we beseech thee, O Lord, the wills of thy faithful people; that they, plenteously bringing forth the fruit of good works, may by thee be plenteously rewarded; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen." ( 1928 Book of Common Prayer, Sunday next before Advent) from A Calendar of Saints by Bentley " The strong must make sure that they care for weak.  The rich must be certain to give enough to supply all the needs of the poor .  The poor must thank God for supplying their needs.... We all need each other: the great need the small, the small need the great. In our body, the head is useless without the feet and the feet without the head. The tiniest limbs of the body are useful and necessary to the whole." Clement  This sums up today's message quite well.  All week what has struck me about the Scriptur...

  Parables in Matthew 13.  Wheat and the Darnel ( Weeds-Tares) We see the parable of the wheat and the chaff/darnel interposed between some more familiar parables...the parable of the sower for example. The parable we wish to discuss today begins in v. 24.  In v 36 the parable is explained by Jesus after the disciples ask him what it means.  The wheat is worth something but apparently the darnel, or tare is not," zizanion: zizanium (a kind of darnel resembling wheat) Original Word: ζιζάνιον, ου, τό Part of Speech: Noun, Neuter Transliteration: zizanion Phonetic Spelling: (dziz-an'-ee-on) Definition: zizanium (a kind of darnel resembling wheat) Usage: spurious wheat, darnel; a plant that grows in Palestine which resembles wheat in many ways but is worthless. HELPS Word-studies 2215 zizánion (plural, tares/zizania) – a tare (darnel); (figuratively) a pseudo-believer (false Christian); a fruitless person living without faith from God and therefore is "all show and no go...

  Celebrating Faith in others and in ourselves   All Saints Sunday Nov 3 "It will be said on that day, Lo, this is our God; we have waited for him, so that he might save us. This is the Lord for whom we have waited; let us be glad and rejoice in his salvation."  Isaiah 25:9 " A Christian knows that death shall be the funeral of all his sins, his sorrows, his afflictions, his temptations, his vexations, his oppressions, his persecutions. He knows that death shall be the resurrection of all his hopes, his joys, his delights, his comforts ,his contentments." Thomas Brooks . He (1608–1680) was an English non-conformist Puritan preacher and author. “Hope is the thing with feathers That perches in the soul  And sings the tune without the words And never stops at all.” EMILY DICKINSON The Christian life has waiting and hope.  It has many other things in Isaiah, Revelation and John . The Hebrew word for waiting is Transliteration: qavah Phonetic Spelling: (kaw-vaw'...

  New American Standard Bible. " He will not fear evil tidings; His heart is steadfast, trusting in the LORD." Ps. 112:7 "Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the LORD delivers Him out of them all." Ps. 34:19 " The Navy on Monday identified the two aviators who died when their EA-18G Growler jet crashed into the Washington state wilderness last week.  Lt Cmdr. Lyndsay Miley Evans , a naval flight officer, and Lt. Serena Dug Wileman, a naval aviator, both 31 years old and from California died on Oct 15 when their aircraft crashed near Mt. Rainer, setting off a days-long , search- and- rescue mission. The service described the two women as "trailblazing" aviators in a press release on Monday, and the cause of the deadly crash remained under investigation. They were decorated combat veterans who distinguished themselves during their squadron's recent deployment to the Red Sea aboard the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower." military.com/daily-new...

      " None can adquately describe the radical contrast there is between the bondage and misery of the service of sin and the liberty and peace of practical holiness. But anyone who has personally experienced both, need have no difficulty in determing whether he be out of Christ or yoked to Him. If you have a peace which passes all understanding and a joy which the world knows nothing of, you are a godly person. If despite both inward and outward opposition, you find obedience to Christ desirable and agreeable, then, His Spirit must indwell you, and the more you grow in grace, the easier His yoke and the lighter His burden."  Arthur Pink , " Identification of the Ungodly"     ARTHUR W. PINK (1886-1952) was an English Christian evangelist and biblical scholar known for his staunchly Calvinist and Puritan-like teachings) The Collect St. Luke the Evangelist ALMIGHTY God, who didst inspire thy servant Saint Luke the Physician, to set forth in the Gospel the lo...

  Let's dive into Hebrews.    This letter written was" by we do not know". Possibly Paul, Barnabas, Apollos or Clement. ( even Peter) Origen said, " Only God knows".  But its majesty, organized arguments, and beautiful exaltation of Christ as High Priest gives it a message that we sorely need today.  It is full of warnings , but done in such a way that the believer is strengthened.  Written to the " Hebrews" it encourages Jewish Christians to not give in but to know Christ and to keep perservering in their faith. Do not return to their old ways .  Here we too are reminded we live in such a world that does not give us much to anchor on to.  We too face a world which assaults the Christian faith by its indifference to the truth, and the pressure of persecution. 1. What then is the anchor of our souls?  God has spoken ( aorist tense indication of finality ; this is the last revelation TJH-  Bishop Theophilus J. Herter) and He has spoken in ...

 Growing in Grace    Last Sunday we talked about the word Eucharist which we saw meant good grace literally in the original language.  We are thankful if we realize that grace is our inheritance in Christ.  We realize we are to live by grace, and not our own striving.  Of course we should strive for holiness in our Christian life, " Pursue peace with all people, and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord:  looking carefully lest anyone fall short of the grace of God; " in Hebrews 12:14-15 I want to look at the question of how we should do that . A good illustration of this is in 2 Chronicles 34 where the law of God is rediscovered in Israel by the prophets and people . Imagine that!  A re-commitment to God is made after they find it. " because your heart was tender, and you humbled yourself before God when you heard His words against this place and against its inhabitants, and you humbled yourself before Me, and you tore your clothes and...

  Luke 22:19  Quarterly Holy Communion Meditation "And he took bread, and gave thanks, and brake it, and gave unto them, saying, This is my body which is given for you: this do in remembrance of me."     I have never forgotten what my teacher told me in seminary, " Don't wait to preach it before you live it."  Dr.  Robert Rudolph    That may be what is wrong with many today...in churches, in homes etc....We have to know what to do ; so we should we should preach it if it is in the Bible. We fail to do it, but that is the point! We can only live by God's help and grace.  Many fail to understand this, because it is a great mystery , but it is at the heart of the reformed and Biblical faith----and grace should be taught and preached.   Grace.  It is undeserved , and unconditional  . God does not forsee who believes and receives them. He gives His Spirit to those whom He has known and loved from all eternity.  That i...

  Listening and Discouragement Isaiah 50:4-9a; James 3:1-12; Psalm 116:1-8;Mark 8:27-38 Listening . This is one fact of what our Scriptures are about today. “ Listening is one of the best gifts one human can give another. It requires our full attention. It calls for a mind-set of appreciation, curiosity and wonder for the other person. We can’t be thinking about what we are going to say in response, or how we would handle the situation , or what’s going on at work or at home. We must let go of our own agenda for the moment, which is not an easy thing to do.” From Practicing the Sacred Art of Listening by Lindhal. " Courage is what it takes to stand up and speak. Courage is also what it takes to sit down and listen. " Winston Churchill  or " Listening is a hug you give with your mind."  Barbara Nixon and this one is the money shot, " We need silence to be able to touch souls."  Mother Teresa When Jesus asked the disciples “ Whom do men say that I am?” The r...

  Esther ch. 6-10 "The Deliverance of the People of God"    This is where the rubber meets the road .  God delivers the people of God.  This does not happen automatically, and in that we discover the true doctrine of the Providence of God.  He works through means, and His people.  We are not puppets.  He values our choices as His people and we have them.  We can choose to stand by and say, " Do it God", but He does not work that way, does He?  ( sidenote- I see much confusion among people about this.  They try and put themselves in a place where they try and understand God's ways, but as Isaiah says " My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways, my ways declares the LORD. " Is. 55) 1. The King cannot sleep. Chapter 6.  Here begins the rescue of the Jews from Haman and those who do His people harm. Here again I review the Heidelberg Confession of faith on God's providential direction of our lives.  Q" What does...