The Birth Of John The Baptist Sunday, Christ The KING Presbyterian Ministries, Rev Paul Wallace
Paul Wallace
Ordained Pastor, Both Conventional & Social Media Ministries, Fire Department Chaplain, Maintenance Worker 1, Certified Safety Professional, Proven Governmental Leader, True Team Builder, You will love all of this resume
The Birth Of John The Baptist
With Wednesday Used as the Dividing line on whether to celebrate the Nativity Of John The Baptist Pre or Post June 24 we of course are using the Post rule for which Sunday to pick,
I also know that many of our fellow Americans are Devastated by the Supreme Court Reversal of Row V Wade, and the upholding of the Mississippi 15 week Abortion rule as consequence.
Perhaps you can imagine that the devastation you are feeling is exactly how we have felt as Republican President from even Ronald Reagan promised to reign in Abortion on demand, while in stead we saw a steady increase of the violence perpetrated on the Unborn Children that devolved into Partial Birth abortion that even had the Late New York Democrat Senator Patrick “WASHINGTON (AP) _ Sen. Daniel Patrick Moynihan, D-N.Y., a longtime abortion rights supporter, is breaking with his own party to condemn a controversial late-term abortion procedure as tantamount to infanticide.”
Perhaps 63,459, 781 Babies who never got the chance to make a choice, the same choice their parents whose Mothers chose life, just might have chosen the same for them.
So Yes, we are elated that the Supreme Court sent the abortion question back where it always belonged, to the State Legislatures, and not make law from the bench.
I also challenge you to pick up a copy of the US Constitution, and please turn to the section that shows us the Constitutional Right to have an abortion?
A little fact check, abortion is sadly still legal, and radically in many States, so the Court did NOT End abortion, nor “Wipeout a Constitutional Right” never IN the Constitution as MSM Propogandist Falsely reported to their indoctrinated sheep.
Let’s go to our lesson
It might be interesting to note had we been in Quebec, June 24 is a Provincial Holiday so they do not have to worry about such a rule of course.
The Nativity of John the Baptist is one of the Major Road Marker throughout the year that we take note of as we will note in our Lesson, it is Celebrated as recorded in Luke 1, Six Months previous to Christmas as The Prophet coming in the spirit of Elijah must precede the Messiah and He does, but let’s not get confused, John The Baptist and Elijah are not one in the same as the Transfiguration of Jesus attest to, as Peter didn’t say “Let us build two booths, one for Moses, and one for this guy who looks like John the Baptist. No Peter specifically says Elijah, and Matthew recalls the Transfiguration as happening after John the Baptist Beheading (Ch 14 V Ch 17).
Please also don’t miss by the mercy of the HOLY SPIRIT, the Genealogy and the fact that the name John stuns the relatives as you read through the list, Plenty of repeats, but absolutely NO John.
Though not done in the majority of the Church We will use Blue today to mark the birth of John, one of 3 Sundays we will use Blue, the other two are the two annunciations by Gabriel.
Let’s Run to worship
Call To Worship
Psalm 122:1 ¶ <<A Song of Ascents, of David.>> I was glad when they said to me, "Let us go to the house of the LORD."
(NAS95)
Processional
GOD Of Our Fathers
The Wonderful procession and Singing of Choir & Congregation at St. Bartholomew Episcopal Church, New York City, New York
The usage of the Processional Cross in the Liturgy dates back several centuries. The origin of this tradition is commonly credited to St. Augustine of England who died in 604. In the 8th century, St. Bede wrote Historia ecclesiastica gentis Anglorum (Ecclesiastical History of the English People), and in this document he included a description of Augustine of England, the first Archbishop of Canterbury, carrying a processional cross.
We also link its use to the 4th Century when Constantine conquers Maxentius having followed an iron processional cross (rather than the Chi-Rho symbol on shields) and is immediately afterward, rather than on his death-bed, catechized and baptized by a Bishop Sylvester prior even to the Council of Nicaea!
The fact that the Emperor of Rome would follow behind a processing Cross is huge, and makes one wonder why it was ever discarded from Worship.
We are also reminded that the cross is NOT an idol but the worldwide symbol of the Christian Faith
Passing of the Peace Of Christ
May The Peace Of Christ Be With You
Response By All: And Also With You
Please Take a Moment To Pass The Peace Of Christ
Hymn
Joyful, Joyful We Adore Thee
Royal Albert Hall, London, England
First Reading
Isaiah 40:1 ¶ "Comfort, O comfort My people," says your God.
2 "Speak kindly to Jerusalem; And call out to her, that her warfare has ended, That her iniquity has been removed, That she has received of the LORD'S hand Double for all her sins."
3 ¶ A voice is calling, "Clear the way for the LORD in the wilderness; Make smooth in the desert a highway for our God.
4 "Let every valley be lifted up, And every mountain and hill be made low; And let the rough ground become a plain, And the rugged terrain a broad valley;
5 Then the glory of the LORD will be revealed, And all flesh will see it together; For the mouth of the LORD has spoken."
6 A voice says, "Call out." Then he answered, "What shall I call out?" All flesh is grass, and all its loveliness is like the flower of the field.
7 The grass withers, the flower fades, When the breath of the LORD blows upon it; Surely the people are grass.
8 The grass withers, the flower fades, But the word of our God stands forever.
Malachi 4:5 "Behold, I am going to send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and terrible day of the LORD.
6 "He will restore the hearts of the fathers to their children and the hearts of the children to their fathers, so that I will not come and smite the land with a curse."
(NAS95)
This Is The Word Of The LORD
Response By All: Thanks Be To GOD!!!
Hymn
On Jordon’s Bank The Baptist’s Cry
The Southwell Minster Choir, Southwell, England
The LORD’S Prayer & Nicene Creed
Matthew 6:9 ¶ And Jesus said "In this manner, therefore, pray:
Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name.
10 Your kingdom come. Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven.
11 Give us this day our daily bread.
12 And forgive us our debts, As we forgive our debtors.
13 And do not lead us into temptation, But deliver us from the evil one. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.
Christian What Do You Believe?
I believe in God the Father Almighty,
Maker of heaven and earth;
and of all things visible and invisible.
And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God,
begotten of his Father before all worlds:
God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God,
begotten, not made; being of one substance with the Father,
by whom all things were made:
Who for us men and for our salvation came down from heaven,
and was incarnate by the Holy Spirit of the virgin Mary,
and was made man;
and was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate.
He suffered and was buried;
and the third day he rose again according to the Scriptures,
and ascended into heaven,
and sits on the right hand of the Father.
And he shall come again with glory
to judge both the living and the dead
whose kingdom shall have no end.
And I believe in the Holy Spirit,
The Lord, and Giver of Life,
who proceeds from the Father and the Son,
who with the Father and the Son
together is worshipped and glorified;
who spoke by the prophets.
And I believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church.
I acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins.
And I look for the resurrection of the dead
and the life of the world to come.
Amen.
The Doxology
Praise GOD From Whom All Blessings Flow: Tune All Creatures of Our God and King
Hymn
These Are The Days Of Elijah
Robin Marks
Second Reading and Lesson
Lu 1:1 ¶ In as much as many have undertaken to compile an account of the things accomplished among us,
2 just as they were handed down to us by those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and servants of the word,
3 it seemed fitting for me as well, having investigated everything carefully from the beginning, to write it out for you in consecutive order, most excellent Theophilus;
4 so that you may know the exact truth about the things you have been taught.
5 ¶ In the days of Herod, king of Judea, there was a priest named Zacharias, of the division of Abijah; and he had a wife from the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth.
6 They were both righteous in the sight of God, walking blamelessly in all the commandments and requirements of the Lord.
7 But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and they were both advanced in years.
8 Now it happened that while he was performing his priestly service before God in the appointed order of his division,
9 according to the custom of the priestly office, he was chosen by lot to enter the temple of the Lord and burn incense.
10 And the whole multitude of the people were in prayer outside at the hour of the incense offering.
11 And an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing to the right of the altar of incense.
12 Zacharias was troubled when he saw the angel, and fear gripped him.
13 But the angel said to him, "Do not be afraid, Zacharias, for your petition has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you will give him the name John.
14 "You will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth.
15 "For he will be great in the sight of the Lord; and he will drink no wine or liquor, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit while yet in his mother's womb.
16 "And he will turn many of the sons of Israel back to the Lord their God.
17 "It is he who will go as a forerunner before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah, TO TURN THE HEARTS OF THE FATHERS BACK TO THE CHILDREN, and the disobedient to the attitude of the righteous, so as to make ready a people prepared for the Lord."
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18 Zacharias said to the angel, "How will I know this for certain? For I am an old man and my wife is advanced in years."
19 The angel answered and said to him, "I am Gabriel, who stands in the presence of God, and I have been sent to speak to you and to bring you this good news.
20 "And behold, you shall be silent and unable to speak until the day when these things take place, because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their proper time."
21 The people were waiting for Zacharias, and were wondering at his delay in the temple.
22 But when he came out, he was unable to speak to them; and they realized that he had seen a vision in the temple; and he kept making signs to them, and remained mute.
23 When the days of his priestly service were ended, he went back home.
24 After these days Elizabeth his wife became pregnant, and she kept herself in seclusion for five months, saying,
25 "This is the way the Lord has dealt with me in the days when He looked with favor upon me, to take away my disgrace among men."
Lu 1:26 ¶ Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city in Galilee called Nazareth,
27 to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the descendants of David; and the virgin's name was Mary.
28 And coming in, he said to her, "Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you."
29 But she was very perplexed at this statement, and kept pondering what kind of salutation this was.
30 The angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary; for you have found favor with God.
31 "And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name Him Jesus.
32 "He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David;
33 and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and His kingdom will have no end."
34 Mary said to the angel, "How can this be, since I am a virgin?"
35 The angel answered and said to her, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; and for that reason the holy Child shall be called the Son of God.
36 "And behold, even your relative Elizabeth has also conceived a son in her old age; and she who was called barren is now in her sixth month.
37 "For nothing will be impossible with God."…..
Lu 1:56 And Mary stayed with her about three months, and then returned to her home.
57 ¶ Now the time had come for Elizabeth to give birth, and she gave birth to a son.
58 Her neighbors and her relatives heard that the Lord had displayed His great mercy toward her; and they were rejoicing with her.
59 And it happened that on the eighth day they came to circumcise the child, and they were going to call him Zacharias, after his father.
60 But his mother answered and said, "No indeed; but he shall be called John."
61 And they said to her, "There is no one among your relatives who is called by that name."
62 And they made signs to his father, as to what he wanted him called.
63 And he asked for a tablet and wrote as follows, "His name is John." And they were all astonished.
64 And at once his mouth was opened and his tongue loosed, and he began to speak in praise of God.
65 Fear came on all those living around them; and all these matters were being talked about in all the hill country of Judea.
66 All who heard them kept them in mind, saying, "What then will this child turn out to be?" For the hand of the Lord was certainly with him.
67 ¶ And his father Zacharias was filled with the Holy Spirit, and prophesied, saying:
68 "Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, For He has visited us and accomplished redemption for His people,
69 And has raised up a horn of salvation for us In the house of David His servant--
70 As He spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets from of old--
71 Salvation FROM OUR ENEMIES, And FROM THE HAND OF ALL WHO HATE US;
72 To show mercy toward our fathers, And to remember His holy covenant,
73 The oath which He swore to Abraham our father,
74 To grant us that we, being rescued from the hand of our enemies, Might serve Him without fear,
75 In holiness and righteousness before Him all our days.
76 "And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High; For you will go on BEFORE THE LORD TO PREPARE HIS WAYS;
77 To give to His people the knowledge of salvation By the forgiveness of their sins,
78 Because of the tender mercy of our God, With which the Sunrise from on high will visit us,
79 TO SHINE UPON THOSE WHO SIT IN DARKNESS AND THE SHADOW OF DEATH, To guide our feet into the way of peace."
80 And the child continued to grow and to become strong in spirit, and he lived in the deserts until the day of his public appearance to Israel.
(NAS95)
The Holy Gospel Of Our LORD Jesus Christ
Response By All: All Glory To YOU LORD Christ
Lesson The Birth of John The Baptist
Why are we again talking about Luke 1 in June?
When I first penned this lesson I was having one of those weeks where I wrote the message based on one I taught in North Texas A few years ago at this time, and ended up ripping it up as being to wordy for the long Passage we just read.
I decided to turn the lesson into a homily, and look at a couple of brief points.
First we celebrate the Birth of John the Baptist here in June as he really was 6 months older than his Cousin Our LORD and Savior Jesus Christ.
We also remember that one of the goals I am committed to is returning the true events of the Bible to the Calendar year and allowing us to be able to know quickly the dates and enjoy them year in and year out.
I will bet that many Churches (most of them call themselves Reformed Protestant) will give little thought to this being the week we celebrate John’s Birth, and yet what pivotal promise in the Course of our salvation it was.
The LORD laid out a clear map for us to follow, and after 400 years of silence it is Broken as we open up Luke 1 with the LORD doing what the LORD does best, making the impossible a sure thing.
I listened to Bill Maher a number of years ago, speaking to Charlie Rose about the “impossibility of Jonah being swallowed by a fish” and I realized that Mr. Maher is perhaps closer to the Kingdom of Heaven than most people sitting in Church pews each week, as he actually sees these event as humanly impossible.
With the case of Elizabeth Mary’s cousin being able to conceive this was the case as Dr. Luke the recorder of this history was clear to point out She was barren, period.
We know the players in this real event, and we know that Gabriel announces to Zacharias the Birth of this son, to be named John even though their where NO John’s in the entire line of David.
This Genealogy in Luke (Mary’s Genealogy) is very important to wrap our heads around, and I pray the only ONE who can teach us the HOLY SPIRIT will indeed open our eyes as we not NO one is named John and yes there are many repeated names as we do today here is the list for reference
Lu 3:23 When He began His ministry, Jesus Himself was about thirty years of age, being, as was supposed, the son of Joseph, the son of Eli,
24 the son of Matthat, the son of Levi, the son of Melchi, the son of Jannai, the son of Joseph,
25 the son of Mattathias, the son of Amos, the son of Nahum, the son of Hesli, the son of Naggai,
26 the son of Maath, the son of Mattathias, the son of Semein, the son of Josech, the son of Joda,
27 the son of Joanan, the son of Rhesa, the son of Zerubbabel, the son of Shealtiel, the son of Neri,
28 the son of Melchi, the son of Addi, the son of Cosam, the son of Elmadam, the son of Er,
29 the son of Joshua, the son of Eliezer, the son of Jorim, the son of Matthat, the son of Levi,
30 the son of Simeon, the son of Judah, the son of Joseph, the son of Jonam, the son of Eliakim,
31 the son of Melea, the son of Menna, the son of Mattatha, the son of Nathan, the son of David,
32 the son of Jesse, the son of Obed, the son of Boaz, the son of Salmon, the son of Nahshon,
33 the son of Amminadab, the son of Admin, the son of Ram, the son of Hezron, the son of Perez, the son of Judah,
34 the son of Jacob, the son of Isaac, the son of Abraham, the son of Terah, the son of Nahor,
35 the son of Serug, the son of Reu, the son of Peleg, the son of Heber, the son of Shelah,
36 the son of Cainan, the son of Arphaxad, the son of Shem, the son of Noah, the son of Lamech,
37 the son of Methuselah, the son of Enoch, the son of Jared, the son of Mahalaleel, the son of Cainan,
38 the son of Enosh, the son of Seth, the son of Adam, the son of God.
(NAS95)
It is these tensions that I call the head snapping moments in the Bible that sadly get miss preached as they are also the whole point and normally get overlooked.
Such examples happen weekly and sadly the low hanging fruit gets missed for some agenda driven point that really is either not there or really NOT the point.
But why are they missed?
Well is most likely do to a poor understanding of our starting point.
If you by GOD’S Grace have been walked to the real point where you see that causing Jonah to be swallowed for real by a fish and allowing him to live in that fish for 3 days is scientifically impossible, and that you own personal conversion was even a more impossible, then the LORD has opened your eyes to the truth.
It is why I like to say the whole Bible is about the LORD putting Camels through the eyes of needles, as Jesus HIMSELF says Mt 19:26 And looking at them Jesus said to them, "With people this is impossible, but with God all things are possible."
Our Next head snapping moment is in the very naming of the baby on the eight day John, as NO one in David’s line was named John, and as we do today our children are named after familiar names so John is indeed a shocker!
Do yourself a favor and read through Luke’s record of Mary’s genealogy in Chapter 3, and note the repeated use of names as we still do.
So John will come in the Spirit of Elijah, but what does the LORD also do?
2nd Kings 1:8 They answered him, "He was a hairy man with a leather girdle bound about his loins." And he said, "It is Elijah the Tishbite."
Matthew 3:4 Now John himself had a garment of camel's hair and a leather belt around his waist; and his food was locusts and wild honey.
HE even dressed them alike so if the Religious Leaders really were able to open their spiritual eyes on their own they would NOT have been able to NOT notice John is the prophet promised in the spirit of Elijah.
As I promised this would be brief, and I hope it has whet your appetite to dig into these passages more.
Just think in Six Months we will be Celebrating the Birth again of Our LORD and Savior Jesus Christ.
Next week we will look at an overview of Matthew Chapter 9
Hymn
All Glory Laud And Honor
Faith Presbyterian Church, Tacoma, Washington, Organist Mr. Ron Bechtel
The LORD’S Feast
1Co 11:23 ¶ For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus in the night in which He was betrayed took bread;
24 and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, "This is My body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of Me."
25 In the same way He took the cup also after supper, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in My blood; do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me."
26 For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until He comes.
27 Therefore whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner, shall be guilty of the body and the blood of the Lord.
28 But a man must examine himself, and in so doing he is to eat of the bread and drink of the cup.
29 For he who eats and drinks, eats and drinks judgment to himself if he does not judge the body rightly.
Let Us Love And Sing And Wonder
Faith Presbyterian Church, Tacoma, Washington, Organist Mr. Ron Bechtel
The LORD’S Benediction
Hebrews 13:20 May the God of peace, who through the blood of the eternal covenant brought back from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great Shepherd of the sheep,
21 equip you with everything good for doing his will, and may he work in us what is pleasing to him, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.
Let Us Go Forth As Those Who Love And Proclaim Our Risen LORD and Savior Jesus Christ.
Response By All: Thanks Be To GOD, Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia, AMEN!!!
Recessional
Ye Watchers And Ye Holy Ones
St. Bartholomew Episcopal Church, New York City, New York