Blessed be God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
And blessed be his kingdom, now and forever. Amen.
Jesus said, "The first commandment is this: Hear, O Israel: The Lord your God is the only Lord. Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength. The second is this: Love your neighbor as yourself. There is no commandment greater than these." Mark 12:29-31
If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. But if we confess our sins, God, who is faithful and just, will forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 1 John 1:8,9
We confess our sins against God and others.
Silence may be kept.
Most merciful God, we confess that we have sinned against you in thought, word, and deed, by what we have done, and by what we have left undone. We have not loved you with our whole heart; we have not loved our neighbors as ourselves. We are truly sorry and we humbly repent. For the sake of your Son Jesus Christ, have mercy on us and forgive us; that we may delight in your will, and walk in your ways, to the glory of your Name. Amen.
May Almighty God have mercy on us, forgive us all your sins through our Lord Jesus Christ, strengthen us in all goodness, and by the power of the Holy Spirit keep us in eternal life. Amen.
THE GLORIA
Glory to God in the highest,
and peace to his people on earth.
Lord God, heavenly King,
almighty God and Father,
we worship you, we give you thanks,
we praise you for your glory.
Lord Jesus Christ, only Son of the Father,
Lord God, Lamb of God,
you take away the sin of the world:
have mercy on us;
you are seated at the right hand of the Father:
receive our prayer.
For you alone are the Holy One,
you alone are the Lord,
you alone are the Most High,
Jesus Christ,
with the Holy Spirit,
in the glory of God the Father. Amen.
The Collect
Keep, O Lord, your household the Church in your steadfast faith and love, that through your grace we may proclaim your truth with boldness, and minister your justice with compassion; for the sake of our Savior Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
Old Testament Genesis 18:1-15, (21:1-7)
The Lord appeared to Abraham by the oaks of Mamre, as he sat at the entrance of his tent in the heat of the day. He looked up and saw three men standing near him. When he saw them, he ran from the tent entrance to meet them, and bowed down to the ground. He said, “My lord, if I find favor with you, do not pass by your servant. Let a little water be brought, and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree. Let me bring a little bread, that you may refresh yourselves, and after that you may pass on—since you have come to your servant.” So they said, “Do as you have said.” And Abraham hastened into the tent to Sarah, and said, “Make ready quickly three measures of choice flour, knead it, and make cakes.” Abraham ran to the herd, and took a calf, tender and good, and gave it to the servant, who hastened to prepare it. Then he took curds and milk and the calf that he had prepared, and set it before them; and he stood by them under the tree while they ate.
They said to him, “Where is your wife Sarah?” And he said, “There, in the tent.” Then one said, “I will surely return to you in due season, and your wife Sarah shall have a son.” And Sarah was listening at the tent entrance behind him. Now Abraham and Sarah were old, advanced in age; it had ceased to be with Sarah after the manner of women. So Sarah laughed to herself, saying, “After I have grown old, and my husband is old, shall I have pleasure?” The Lord said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh, and say, ‘Shall I indeed bear a child, now that I am old?’ Is anything too wonderful for the Lord? At the set time I will return to you, in due season, and Sarah shall have a son.” But Sarah denied, saying, “I did not laugh”; for she was afraid. He said, “Oh yes, you did laugh.”
The Lord dealt with Sarah as he had said, and the Lord did for Sarah as he had promised. Sarah conceived and bore Abraham a son in his old age, at the time of which God had spoken to him. Abraham gave the name Isaac to his son whom Sarah bore him. And Abraham circumcised his son Isaac when he was eight days old, as God had commanded him. Abraham was a hundred years old when his son Isaac was born to him. Now Sarah said, “God has brought laughter for me; everyone who hears will laugh with me.” And she said, “Who would ever have said to Abraham that Sarah would nurse children? Yet I have borne him a son in his old age.”
The Response
Psalm 116:1, 10-17 Dilexi, quoniam
1 I love the Lord, because he has heard the voice of my supplication
because he has inclined his ear to me whenever I called upon him.
10 How shall I repay the Lord *
for all the good things he has done for me?
11 I will lift up the cup of salvation *
and call upon the Name of the Lord.
12 I will fulfill my vows to the Lord *
in the presence of all his people.
13 Precious in the sight of the Lord *
is the death of his servants.
14 O Lord, I am your servant; *
I am your servant and the child of your handmaid;
you have freed me from my bonds.
15 I will offer you the sacrifice of thanksgiving *
and call upon the Name of the Lord.
16 I will fulfill my vows to the Lord *
in the presence of all his people,
17 In the courts of the Lord's house, *
in the midst of you, O Jerusalem.
Hallelujah!
The Epistle Romans 5:1-8
Since we are justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have obtained access to this grace in which we stand; and we boast in our hope of sharing the glory of God. And not only that, but we also boast in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not disappoint us, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us. For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. Indeed, rarely will anyone die for a righteous person – though perhaps for a good person someone might actually dare to die. But God proves his love for us in that while we still were sinners Christ died for us.
The Gospel Matthew 9:35-10:1-23
Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom, and curing every disease and every sickness. When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore ask the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.”
Then Jesus summoned his twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to cure every disease and every sickness. These are the names of the twelve apostles: first, Simon, also known as Peter, and his brother Andrew; James son of Zebedee, and his brother John; Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus; Simon the Cananaean, and Judas Iscariot, the one who betrayed him.
These twelve Jesus sent out with the following instructions: “Go nowhere among the Gentiles, and enter no town of the Samaritans, but go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. As you go, proclaim the good news, ‘The kingdom of heaven has come near.’ Cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out demons. You received without payment; give without payment. Take no gold, or silver, or copper in your belts, no bag for your journey, or two tunics, or sandals, or a staff; for laborers deserve their food. Whatever town or village you enter, find out who in it is worthy, and stay there until you leave. As you enter the house, greet it. If the house is worthy, let your peace come upon it; but if it is not worthy, let your peace return to you. If anyone will not welcome you or listen to your words, shake off the dust from your feet as you leave that house or town. Truly I tell you, it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah on the day of judgment than for that town.
“See, I am sending you out like sheep into the midst of wolves; so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves. Beware of them, for they will hand you over to councils and flog you in their synagogues; and you will be dragged before governors and kings because of me, as a testimony to them and the Gentiles. When they hand you over, do not worry about how you are to speak or what you are to say; for what you are to say will be given to you at that time; for it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you. Brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child, and children will rise against parents and have them put to death; and you will be hated by all because of my name. But the one who endures to the end will be saved. When they persecute you in one town, flee to the next; for truly I tell you, you will not have gone through all the towns of Israel before the Son of Man comes.”
The Sermon Fr. Gaetz
If we were meeting in the church sanctuary, you would notice some significant changes. The Easter Candle is no longer lit but placed at the Baptism Font to be used for Baptisms and funerals. The paraments (altar, pulpit and lectern hangings) have changed from white or red to green. All this signifies that the seasons have changed. Ever since Advent back in December 2019, we have been marking events in the life of Jesus. Now we turn to what is sometimes called ‘Sundays after Pentecost” or “Sundays of Ordinary Time.’ We’ll be focusing on the teachings of Jesus from now to Christ the King Sunday in November. The Gospel readings will be primarily from the Gospel of St. Matthew. The Lectionary (the official list of readings for each Sunday) will come either from the stories in the Old Testament telling “The story of Salvation” leading up to the birth of Jesus or from a wide variety of places that try to enhance the Gospel reading for the day. I have chosen this year to read from the “Story of Salvation” list.
I am old enough to remember when the Liturgy had a slightly different order. (At least the Lutheran Liturgy did, and it usually followed the Book of Common Prayer closely) In those “good old days,” the sermon did not follow directly after the Gospel reading and the sermon was often focused on the Old Testament Lesson or Epistle. With the sermon directly after the Gospel preachers (like me) tend to preach almost exclusively on the Gospel lesson. This year, using the Salvation History lessons I hope to preach a lot more often on the Old Testament.
Starting today. Let’s give it a try.
The story takes place by the oaks of Mamre near modern day Hebron. Now, that bit of geography is not especially important EXCEPT – it serves to anchor The Story of Salvation in an actual historical place. The Bible tells us about God’s activity in history in actual places, not clever myths that might better start “Once Upon A Time.” Real places, real people and real events. Why is that important? Because if God was active in real places with real people “back then” we can expect that he is still active in real places with real people today – you and me.
Be careful, I am not saying the stories do not need interpretation or translation from their original settings. Let me explain by looking at one of the most often debated stories – Noah’s Ark. Sounds improbable doesn’t it? All that livestock – 2X2. Some long extinct by the time people lived on the earth. So some say – Ah Ha… It never happened. God was not active in that “history.” In fact – It’s not history at all. It’s a myth. BUT, follow this:
The story is old. Older in fact than the written Bible. When people lived in one place all their lives. In the Middle East, that would have been along river banks in valleys. Most people had no idea there were people and strange animals “over the hill” in the next valley. SO, when floods came, and they often did, for them it was a flood of the entire world. The only world they knew existed. The Bible says that in one of those valleys, a great flood destroyed everything, but God was active in that history “saving” a few who would one day produce a generation that included Abraham. Indeed, I think seen that way even Noah and his Ark are history. History where God was active.
By the way, God was active “for the long haul.” Did I mention Abraham? – you remember him, over there at Mamre where the history continues all the way to another generation that produced a guy by the name of Jesus. Another real person living in a real place – God active in history. And eventually it gets to us, thousands of years later and we get to be part of that holy history. That’s why this story and all the others are important. They call us to recognize that God is active in the history of our time. In our lives.
YIKES – that may even mean in a time of profound social unrest piled on top of the COVID-19 virus. I don’t know what it’s all about any more than Abraham and Sarah did, but I do believe, based on the history, that God has the long haul in mind. Even when I don’t have it all, or even a tiny corner of it, in hand, God does. He’s had lots of experience. You might even say it’s his very nature to be out there in front of us leading the way and behind us picking up the pieces.
Finally, I can’t resist pointing out how human the stories are. People and situations so relatable.
I love the fact that the God of the Bible has a sense of humor. Today’s story has all that laughing. Sometimes it’s important to have a sense of humor. It keeps us from getting too full of ourselves and that’s important when we try to understand the Epistle Lesson today. Justification! Being set right with God requires that we not be too full of ourselves. The message remains the same. Relax, God has got this. He’s had plenty of experience. We can trust Him. The Bible (history) tells us so. Amen.
THE NICENE CREED
We believe in one God,
the Father, the Almighty,
maker of heaven and earth,
of all that is, seen and unseen.
We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ,
the only Son of God,
eternally begotten of the Father,
God from God, Light from Light,
true God from true God,
begotten, not made,
of one Being with the Father.
Through him all things were made.
For us and for our salvation
he came down from heaven:
by the power of the Holy Spirit
he became incarnate from the Virgin Mary,
and was made man.
For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate;
he suffered death and was buried.
On the third day he rose again
in accordance with the Scriptures;
he ascended into heaven
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead,
and his kingdom will have no end.
We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life,
who proceeds from the Father and the Son.
With the Father and the Son he is worshiped and glorified.
He has spoken through the Prophets.
We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church.
We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins.
We look for the resurrection of the dead,
and the life of the world to come. Amen.
THE PRAYERS
In peace, let us pray to the Lord.
A brief silence
For the Church and her witness of hope to the world, that in every city, village and home across the globe the voice of the Lord may be heard by the faithful preaching of the Gospel, let us pray to the Lord: Lord, have mercy.
For those who labor in the fields of the Lord today and for the Lord to raise up laborers for His harvest fields, that their work may be blessed and they may be protected and defended against the enemies of the Kingdom, let us pray to the Lord: Lord, have mercy.
For Michael and DeDe, our bishops, and Nelson, our Rector, give them the resources to accomplish what the Lord has given us to do despite all obstacles and temptations, that united in the faith we may serve the Lord with joy, let us pray to the Lord: Lord, have mercy.
For all who live under the flag of our nation, for those who govern in this country, and for the causes of peace and justice, that we may all be given grace and freedom to serve the Lord honorably and in accord with His Word, let us pray to the Lord: Lord, have mercy.
For the poor and hungry, the homeless and unemployed, and the oppressed, that the Lord would grant them mercy, and that we may help to relieve their suffering and want, let us pray to the Lord: Lord, have mercy.
For the sick, that the Lord would grant them healing; for the wounded in spirit, that the Lord would make them whole; and for the grieving, that the Lord would comfort them, especially all affected by the ongoing pandemic and civil unrest and their effects and those whom we now pray, let us pray to the Lord: Lord, have mercy.
For those who know the riches of the Lord’s blessings, that they may cheerfully return to the Lord the tithes and offerings of a grateful heart and give generously to the many agencies working to help those in need, let us pray to the Lord: Lord, have mercy.
For the dying, that they may have peace at the last; and for our grateful remembrance of all those who have died in Christ, that in the fullness of time the Lord may bring us with them into His everlasting presence where sin and death will trouble us no more, let us pray to the Lord: Lord, have mercy.
O blessed Lord, through Abraham AND Sarah You established a people for Yourself and from them You delivered up Your own Son to be our Savior. By His sufferings and death, He has redeemed us sinners from our sins, and by His resurrection He has released us from the fear of death. Help us to live as Your own people, doing the good works for which we were created, and praying with confidence the petitions and supplications of our hearts; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
So now we pray with confidence to the Father the words our Lord Jesus taught us.
Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy Name,
thy kingdom come, thy will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever and ever. Amen.
Blessing
God, the Source of glory,
God, the Word of life,
God, the Spirit of truth + bless us all,
now and forever.
Amen.
We go forth into the world to serve God with gladness; to be of good courage;
To hold fast to that which is good; to render to no one evil for evil;
To strengthen the fainthearted; to support the weak;
help the afflicted; to honor all people.
To love and serve God, rejoicing in the power of the Holy Spirit.
Thanks be to God.
Amen.
Today, June 14th is Flag Day. In recent years flags have become problematic. I am one who doesn’t entirely understand all the issues and I’m open to the ongoing conversations but for now I believe the flag is a symbol of the nation for which it stands. No more – no less. So I gladly pledge allegiance to the United States with all it’s faults. A place where we are most blessed. A place worth working constantly to make better.
PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE TO THE FLAG
I Pledge Allegiance to the Flag
of the United States of America,
and to the Republic
for which it stands,
one Nation under God,
indivisible,
with liberty and justice for all.