...
in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Amen. Through
the prayers of our holy Fathers, Lord Jesus Christ our God, have mercy on us and
save us. Amen. Glory to You, our God, Glory to You.
O Heavenly King,
the Comforter, the Spirit of truth, You are everywhere and fill all things, Treasury
of blessings, and Giver of life: come and abide in us, and cleanse us from every
impurity, and save our souls, O Good One.
Holy God, Holy Mighty, Holy Immortal,
have mercy on us (three times).
Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost, as it is now, was in the beginning, and ever
shall be, world without end. Amen.
All-holy Trinity, have mercy on us. Lord, cleanse us from our sins. Master, pardon our iniquities. Holy One, visit us and heal our infirmities for
Your Name’s sake. Lord have mercy (three times).
August
24, 2014 Sunday Sermon, Sheep Ranching
The
Orthros (Matins) Gospel
John 21:14-25 King James Version, Edited
and Paraphrased
This is now the third
time Jesus showed himself to his disciples, after He had raised from the dead.
When they had eaten,
Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon bar Jonah, do you love Me more than these?” He replied, “Yes, Lord; You know that I love You.”
He said unto him, “Feed My lambs.”
He said to him the second
time, “Simon bar Jonah, do you love Me?” He replied, “Yes, Lord; You know that I love You.”
He said to him, “Shepherd My sheep.”
He said to him the
third time, “Simon bar Jonah, do you love Me?” Peter was grieved because He said to him for the
third time, “Do you love Me? So he replied,
“Lord, You know all things; You know that I love You.” Jesus said to him, “Feed My sheep.”
“Amen, amen, I say to
you, when you were young, you dressed yourself, and went wherever you wished:
but when you are old, you shall stretch out your hands, and others will dress you,
and carry you where you do not wish to go.”
This He spoke, signifying by what death he should glorify God. When He had finished saying this, He said to
him, “Follow me.”
Peter, turning about,
seeing the disciple whom Jesus loved following, who also leaned on his breast
at supper, the one who also said, “Lord, who is he that betrays You?”
Peter seeing him said
to Jesus, “Lord, and what shall this man do?”
Jesus said to him, “If I wish that he tarry till I come, what is that to
you? You follow me.”
Then this saying went
abroad in The Church that this disciple would not die: yet Jesus did not say to
him that he would not die; but, “If I wish that he tarry till I come, what is
that to you?” This is the disciple who testifies
of these things, and wrote these things: and we know that his testimony is
true. There are also many other things
which Jesus did; which, if they were all written, I suppose that even the world
itself could not contain the books that could be written. Amen.
The
Homily
Let’s face it. The primary function of The Church leaders is
sheep ranching. The sheep need to be
shepherded; foremost among the shepherding tasks, the sheep need to be
fed. Whatever the name or title of a
ministry servant, the first priority is feeding sheep.
There are many such names and titles:
the day will not suffice to list them all.
The Bible lists a few: Prophets, Priests, Kings, Apostles, Deacons,
Evangelists, Servants. There are myriads
of other such names and titles. Here
Peter, first among equals of the Apostles is addressed. Now, if the first priority of the chief among
the Apostles is feeding sheep; then the first priority of all Christians, of The
Whole Apostolic Church is feeding sheep.
So I ask you again, ministry servant
of God and His Church, whatever your name or title may be:
·
Was your flock sent home
today without a homily or sermon preached from God’s Word?
·
Was your flock sent home
today without Communion and its abiding message that all must become Christ
like, all must become Saints? All are sinner-saints,
but the sinner within us is being put to death by God’s grace.
·
Were the poor in your
community turned away without clothing, food, or shelter? Has the diaconal ministry among us been so
marginalized: so corrupted, forgotten, or redefined that it no longer functions
as it should and did in the book of Acts?
The first deacons were appointed to ensure that every member of The
Church was adequately fed. Then from
this platform of mercy, they reached out as evangelists to our lost and dying
world.
In the first century there were no
hospitals, insurance providers, places of refuge, or schools. There was only The Church. She was Whole and Apostolic, and remembered that
job one was sheep ranching.
Let us together, remember who we
are, we are sheep with many names and titles; yet, we are all sheep, and our
first priority is making sure that all the other sheep are fed. We are sinner-saint-shepherd-servants, and
job one is preparing life sustaining meals for both the human body and the
human spirit. In one word, we are
preparing and distributing soul food.
[1] If you have been blessed or helped by any of these meditations,
please repost, share, or use any of them as you wish. No rights are reserved. They are designed and intended for your free
participation. They were freely
received, and are freely given. No other
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