Trinity 23, 2002

 The Twenty-Third Sunday after Trinity, 2022

Pastor Gregory L. Jackson

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Bethany Lutheran Church, 10 AM Central Standard Time

The Hymn #4          God Himself Is Present        
The Confession of Sins
The Absolution
The Introit p. 16
The Gloria Patri
The Kyrie p. 17
The Gloria in Excelsis
The Salutation and Collect p. 19
The Epistle and Gradual
The Gospel
Glory be to Thee, O Lord!
Praise be to Thee, O Christ!
The Nicene Creed p. 22
The Sermon Hymn #334            Let Me Be Thine Forever

Be Followers of Christ

The Communion Hymn #316                O Living Bread  
The Preface p. 24
The Sanctus p. 26
The Lord's Prayer p. 27
The Words of Institution
The Agnus Dei p. 28
The Nunc Dimittis p. 29
The Benediction p. 31
The Hymn # 309               O Jesus Blessed Lord 

Prayers and Announcements

• In treatment - Kermit and Maria Way; Randy Anderson; Callie and her parents; Pastor Jim Shrader and Chris.
• Wednesday, Thanksgiving Eve, 7 PM Vespers.

KJV Philippians 3:17 Brethren, be followers together of me, and mark them which walk so as ye have us for an ensample. 18 (For many walk, of whom I have told you often, and now tell you even weeping, that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ: 19 Whose end is destruction, whose God is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame, who mind earthly things.) 20 For our conversation [ πολιτευμα, citizenship ] is in heaven; from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ: 21 Who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body, according to the working whereby he is able even to subdue all things unto himself.

KJV Matthew 22:15 Then went the Pharisees, and took counsel how they might entangle him in his talk. 16 And they sent out unto him their disciples with the Herodians, saying, Master, we know that thou art true, and teachest the way of God in truth, neither carest thou for any man: for thou regardest not the person of men. 17 Tell us therefore, What thinkest thou? Is it lawful to give tribute unto Caesar, or not? 18 But Jesus perceived their wickedness, and said, Why tempt ye me, ye hypocrites? 19 Shew me the tribute money. And they brought unto him a penny. 20 And he saith unto them, Whose is this image and superscription? 21 They say unto him, Caesar's. Then saith he unto them, Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar's; and unto God the things that are God's. 22 When they had heard these words, they marvelled, and left him, and went their way.

Twenty-Third Sunday After Trinity

Lord God, heavenly Father: we thank Thee that Thou hast hitherto granted us peace and graciously spared us from war and foreign dominion: We pray Thee, graciously let us continue to live in Thy fear according to Thy will, giving no cause for wars or other punishment; govern and direct our magistrates, that they may not hinder the obedience due to Thee, but maintain righteousness, that we may enjoy happiness and blessing under their government, through our Lord Jesus Christ, who liveth and reigneth with Thee and the Holy Ghost, one true God, world without end. Amen.

Background for the Sermon on Philippians 3:17-23

The context for today's Epistle is the the righteousness of faith -

Philippians 3:4 Though I might also have confidence in the flesh. If any other man thinketh that he hath whereof he might trust in the flesh, I more:5 Circumcised the eighth day, of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, an Hebrew of the Hebrews; as touching the law, a Pharisee; 6 Concerning zeal, persecuting the church; touching the righteousness which is in the law, blameless. 7 But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ. 8 Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ, 9 And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith: 10 That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death;11 If by any means I might attain unto the resurrection of the dead.12 Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect: but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Christ Jesus.

but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith:

αλλα την δια πιστεως χριστου την εκ θεου δικαιοσυνην επι τη πιστει

Be Followers of Christ

KJV Philippians 3:17 Brethren, be followers together of me, and mark them which walk so as ye have us for an ensample [example]. 

Paul is dealing with false teachers, who want to draw the Philippians away from the Gospel. This is naturally going to take place where Paul is the Apostle and those raised on the righteousness of works are there to belittle his message and draw the Christians back into the righteousness of the Law. The majority group can use the backing of the Roman government while Paul remains a focus of their attention and attempts to take them back into the majority at the time. This verse has the meaning of - Always be followers of me and Christ. And always mark (observe) those who also walk with Christ and the Gospel.

The apostates want to make Paul into a self-centered egomaniac, because his Gospel of Faith is against their own righteousness of works. He is saying - All of us who follow the faith of Christ walk in harmony, because of that faith.

Note (mark, observe) that the Faith of Christ is emphasized in Romans 3, Galatians, and Philippians as the ultimate emphasis on Faith. This faith belongs to Jesus because He trusted that following the commands of God the Father would accomplish His mission.

We still use that concept today - how we walk. Some of Jesus' followers were antagonized by His message in John 6 and "no longer walked with Jesus." Doctrine and behavior go together. Jesus knew His mission and walked toward Jerusalem deliberately rather than staying away. He even paced Himself so that raising Lazarus from the dead would trigger the excuses for crucifying Him.

18 (For many walk, of whom I have told you often, and now tell you even weeping, that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ: 19 Whose end is destruction, whose God is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame, who mind earthly things.)

Some will always be drawn away from the Faith of Christ, and it is done by appealing to the flesh, not the Gospel, no matter what they say. They build their cathedrals for the "Glory of God!" They avoid anything that might hurt their attendance and progressively (or regressively) walk about from the Gospel. Some maintain churchly wealth by being radical Leftists (California and NYC). Some are openly antagonistic (in a sophisticated way) toward the Scriptures. When they sent The Episcopalian to me, I noticed that the denomination's paper would have opposing views on the same page - Christ did rise from the dead versus Christ did not.

I traced the long history of Church Growth in ELCA, WELS, Missouri, and more. They said, "No we are not doing that at all. You are lying." And they increased the speed of their downfall. Church Growth is the first booster to drive people directly into the ground, grinning all the way at the thrills and and carnal rewards.

Boomers thought they were the Me Generation, but now we are watching the Me-Me-Me Generation. That's what we said as children when asked who wanted an ice cream cone or another cookie or three. "Me! Me! Me!" That means today, "if that is what you like, it is good."

20 For our conversation [ πολιτευμα, citizenship ] is in heaven; from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ:

Lenski says "commonwealth" rather than citizenship. The word comes from the Greek for city or village. "Where do you live?" generates many different answers. In St. Louis, The Hill is an ethnic neighborhood so guarded that houses are only pass on to those who belong. NYC is defined by neighborhoods and schools. Britain found that the name British Empire was a bit too uppity, so it is now The Commonwealth.

The Apostle Paul was a Roman Citizen, a very great and powerful title, which allowed him privileges even while in prison and facing death.

Those who believe in Christ and His teachings are citizens of Heaven on earth, walking on the path toward Heaven.

KJV Psalm 119:105 Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.

Jesus Christ is that Light, as He preached in the Gospel of John. 

I am constantly impressed, more like oppressed, by all the church organizations which count on failed management methods to recover from decades of neglect in the spiritual realm, as if our citizenship is in the golf club and our light is Peter Drucker.

The issues that annoy us will always be there, but the spiritual treasures of the Scriptures help us see the transcending glory of God's will and His grace. A video on the mysteries of the pyramids proved that they still do not know how ancient engineers designed and built them. Far greater are the mysteries of the Scriptures. They teach us and we marvel, as we should. Only the Holy Spirit reveal the meaning of the Word, and we can never know all of it, or even a fraction. But the basic teachings are clear and guide use in eevery possible way.

21 Who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body, according to the working whereby he is able even to subdue all things unto himself.

Because the God-Man Jesus Christ is the Lord of Creation, the Light of the World, the Good Shepherd, we look to Him as our guide toward the ultimate fulfillment. In The Pilgrim's Progress, which is a walk toward Heaven, Christian encounters many dangers and threats, making mistakes of his own. But he also finds places of rest and delight, plus answers that come from the Word of God. When imprisoned in the Castle of Doom (much like Bunyan's own prison) Christian is taught to reach into his pocket to escape. There he finds the Promises (keys) that unlock all the doors. They were there all along. So are our worries, depression, and anxieties.

The best prescription is a dose of comforting Scripture readings and prayer. Ephesians and the Gospel of John, plus the Psalms - the great teachings of God's comfort and forgiveness.