Luke and the Medical

     " 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 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.

LUKE the Dr…..and there are Doctors!  We celebrate Luke today ( Oct  18 or today 20) the physician. OT: Isaiah 52:7-10; Epistle:2 Timothy 4:5-13; Gospel :Luke 4:14-21; Sermon- " There are Doctors , and there are Doctors!"

Doctors, nurses, their staff are important people in our lives.  Who can remember when drs made house visits?  I remember when I lived in Philadelphia as a kid. I was very sick.  Dr. Coffee came to see me. ( was it a flu bug --I forget).  Now paperwork seems to be the issue when they can't spend the time , but some still seem to do it. We all have great memories and present ones of some good medical care we have received. Today is the Day ( actually 18 Oct) to remember doctors and medical all.  

Continue in prayer, and watch in the same with thanksgiving; Withal praying also for us, that God would open unto us a door of utterance, to speak the mystery of Christ, for which I am also in bonds: That I may make it manifest, as I ought to speak. Walk in wisdom toward them that are without, redeeming the time. Let your speech be alway with grace, seasoned with salt, that ye may know how ye ought to answer every man. All my state shall Tychicus declare unto you, who is a beloved brother, and a faithful minister and fellowservant in the Lord: Whom I have sent unto you for the same purpose, that he might know your estate, and comfort your hearts; With Onesimus, a faithful and beloved brother, who is one of you. They shall make known unto you all things which are done here. Aristarchus my fellowprisoner saluteth you, and Marcus, sister's son to Barnabas, (touching whom ye received commandments: if he come unto you, receive him;) And Jesus, which is called Justus, who are of the circumcision. These only are my fellowworkers unto the kingdom of God, which have been a comfort unto me. Epaphras, who is one of you, a servant of Christ, saluteth you, always labouring fervently for you in prayers, that ye may stand perfect and complete in all the will of God. For I bear him record, that he hath a great zeal for you, and them that are in Laodicea, and them in Hierapolis. Luke, the beloved physician, and Demas, greet you. Salute the brethren which are in Laodicea, and Nymphas, and the church which is in his house. And when this epistle is read among you, cause that it be read also in the church of the Laodiceans; and that ye likewise read the epistle from Laodicea. And say to Archippus, Take heed to the ministry which thou hast received in the Lord, that thou fulfil it. The salutation by the hand of me Paul. Remember my bonds. Grace be with you. Amen.   ( Colossians 4:2----)

 Paul calls Luke in his letter to the Colossians 4:14 , " the beloved physician". This was quite a commendation. He was beloved by God and Paul calls him beloved. What will be said about us? Are we resolute in our faith, trustworthy in doing the work of sharing the good news, the gospel ? Can God count on us? Can people count on us? Do we have resolute beliefs that come our faith in Christ and the Holy Scriptures, or do we drift with the times and the feelings of the moment? Do we look like the house built on rock or the house built on sand?

The author speaks of a high fever Luke 4:38 Simon's mother-in-law while Mt 8:14 speak only of a fever,  and Mark 1:30 as well so medical knowledge seems to be present.  The author speaks of a man full of leprosy 5:12 , so it was an advanced case.   8:43 the author speaks of an issue of blood 12 yrs " (she) had spent all her living upon physicians , neither could be healed of any ...Mk 5:26 says this as well. But Jesus healed her when she touched His garment.

I titled this sermon because there are doctors and there are doctors and it takes a real DR to help us .....!  As we know some do not do as well as others. Of course our Lord is spoken of as the Great Physician Luke 4:23 ( Mark 2:17 " They that are whole have no need of a physician but they that are sick; I came not to call the righteous , but sinners" Luke 5:32 adds to repentance.)

---How does our faith into our work lives?  That is the real question.  Having a foundation in our lives helps us do our jobs better for God and man.  Luke was such a person.  He believed, and told about God and our Lord in such a way that others heard it .  He wrote Acts of the Apostles as well it is believed. As a Gentile,  Luke wrote for the salvation of all.  He traveled with the Apostle Paul.  Luke alone tells of the birth of Jesus, and moreover tells of the Lord's love for all women.

 A martyr is a witness. Mark Died in Alexandria , Egypt , after being dragged by horses through the streets until he was dead .

 Luke Was hanged in Greece as a result of his tremendous preaching to the lost.

 John Faced martyrdom when he was boiled in huge basin of boiling oil during a wave of persecution in Rome . However, he was miraculously delivered from death. John was then sentenced to the mines on the prison island of Patmos . He wrote his prophetic Book of Revelation on Patmos . The apostle John was later freed and returned to serve as Bishop of Edessa in modern Turkey . He died as an old man, the only apostle to die peacefully.

 Peter was crucified upside down on an x-shaped cross. According to church tradition it was because he told his tormentors that he felt unworthy to die in the same way that Jesus Christ had died.

Today we celebrate the medical----There are nurses, and there are nurses too.  I found Jo Taylor informative who said in her column, " Things I have learned from being an ER Nurse"---  " There really is a light in your eyes that goes out when you die.  It is humbling to watch. ...Playing practical jokes on the doctors makes the day go by faster.  Surgeons don't have the ER sense of humor. If you tell a mother that her 18 year old son is dead, you will remember her face and her name forever. If you advocate for a mother to hold her 7 year old child one more time, she will remember your face and your name forever."

Here are some more, " Everyone's spelling nurse wrong.  It's spelled ANGEL."

Perhaps we should include Chaplains in this as well who deal with people of all faiths and try and bring man to God and God to man .

"We pray for all doctors, nurses and emergency workers. May they rejoice in the skills you have given them which enable them to bring hope, healing and wholeness to those in their care. May they also know guidance and support in times of pain and frustration when their skills are not enough to prevent permanent injury, disability or death. Bless each one of them, that they may be a blessing to others."

(c. Barbara A Scott ‘Shaping Prayer)

It is really all about the soul and body set forth in the Gospel " the love and healing power of thy Son..."  So we pray the Church as well would manifest this too...the power and love of Christ to the healing of our bodies and our souls. 

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