Preparing to build on a solid foundation

09 Sunday Jul 2017

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Sermon 09 July 2017

Preparing to build on a solid foundation  by Fr. Dana

Taking stock:

  • We must count the cost
  • We must build with lasting materials
  • God will give the increase
  • Be strong and very courageous!

Lectionary:  Song of Solomon 2:8-13; Psalm 45:7-15; Romans 7:15-25a; Matthew 11:16-19, 25-30

Referenced Scriptures:  Matthew 28:18-20; Luke 6:47-49; Ephesians 2:19-22; Luke 14:27-33; 1 Corinthians 3:9-15; 1 Corinthians 3:5-8; Joshua 1:2b-9

Recording:  https://1drv.ms/u/s!AvYHlhfoSlmRmzHnKGqsyTgxv6G0

Our response to Jesus’ lament

03 Monday Jul 2017

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Sermon 02 July 2017

Our response to Jesus’ lament by Fr. Dana

  • Jesus laments, wishing to gather us in but we refuse
  • Mankind rejects God’s love again and again throughout history
  • The cause is MICE: Materialism, Ideology, Compromise, Ego *
  • The solution is 4I’s: Identify, Involve, Invest, Increase *

Lectionary:  Jeremiah 28:5-9, 15-17; Psalm 89:1-4, 19-21, 35-37; Romans 6:12-23; Matthew 10:37-42

Referenced Scriptures: Matthew 23:37-38a/Luke 13:34-35a; Acts 7:35-42a; 2 Samuel 11-12; Luke 10:25-37; Genesis 25:29-34; Matthew 15:18-20a; Matthew 7:3-5/Luke 6:41-42

* Concepts from Bp. Michael Davidson, Cathedral Church of The King, Olathe, Kansas  USA

Recording – St. Stephen’s CEC, London:  https://1drv.ms/u/s!AvYHlhfoSlmRmy6ACIJMliLEkOYl

Recording – St. Andrew’s mission, Edinburgh:  https://1drv.ms/u/s!AvYHlhfoSlmRmy9kzrxypJQqISZ8

When your pursuit fails

28 Wednesday Jun 2017

Posted by in Followers of Jesus, Scripture, The Journey

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Is there an intention, plan, or project in your life which is failing?  If so, could that pursuit be from your own desires rather than God’s will for you?  Sometimes it’s hard to tell.  What should you do?

I recommend:
1. Lay it on the altar – offer your desire up to God to do with as He will
2. Ask God, who is your loving Father, that if your pursuit is not His will He would take away the desire in your heart
3. Then ask Him, that if your pursuit is His will He would give you the courage, strength, and perseverance to keep working until it comes to pass
4. Finally, ask Him to show you the way forward; He may have a different route to your destiny

This is not a one-time action, either.  Always hold plans in your hands loosely, as God may desire to change your direction at any point.  Trust Him: He knows what He is doing.

Whatever your pursuit, ALWAYS live in the present even as you pursue the future.  God desires us to “bloom where we are planted”, to bear fruit in our present circumstances.  That’s why He told the Israelites as they were heading into captivity, “And seek the peace of the city where I have caused you to be carried away captive, and pray to the Lord for it; for in its peace you will have peace.” (Jeremiah 29:7)  Paul and Silas sang in prison with their feet in the stocks, and the jailer and his entire household were saved.  Don’t be so focused on the future completion of your pursuit that you neglect to do good to those around you today.

Finally, be of good courage.  Keep in remembrance the words of the Pharisee Gamaliel to the High Priest and his council when Peter and the other apostles were preaching and healing in the Name of Jesus:
“…if this plan or this work is of men, it will come to nothing; but if it is of God, you cannot overthrow it—lest you even be found to fight against God.” (Acts 5:28b-39)

A new plant in the garden of the Church

25 Sunday Jun 2017

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Sermon 25 June 2017  (Corpus Christi)

A new plant in the garden of the Church by Fr. Dana

  • Fundamental principles of gardening
  • The Church is a garden established by God
  • Man’s tending of it has failed
  • God sovereignly created a new hybrid plant in the garden
  • It’s all about the heart: behaviour flows from the heart
  • The Church is made up of families and individuals, both of which are also gardens which must be tended
  • Today we celebrate God’s intervention in the garden: the ICCEC

Lectionary:  Ezekiel 37:1-14; Psalm 19:1-14; 1 Corinthians 12:1-13, 27-31; Mark 16:15-20

Referenced Scriptures:  Judges 21:25; John 17:21-22; 1 Samuel 4:1-11; Exodus 33:15b; Acts 19:11-20; Acts 4:32-5:11; Isaiah 30:21; Matthew 7:21-23

Recording:  https://1drv.ms/u/s!AvYHlhfoSlmRmyw7ptwyosiCIVe4

Corpus Christi: The Body of Christ

19 Monday Jun 2017

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Sermon 18 June 2017  (Corpus Christi)

Corpus Christi: The Body of Christ by Fr. Dana

  • The Ark of the Covenant: a very special and unique object
  • The law, the manna, and Aaron’s rod: all point to Christ
  • The Mercy Seat: the place where God speaks and where blood atones for sin
  • The Altar: the Mercy Seat of the new covenant
  • The Body of Christ: we receive it, and we become it

Lectionary:  Exodus 25:21-30; Psalm 111; 1 Corinthians 11:23-30; Luke 24:30-35

Referenced Scriptures:  John 6:30-33; Hebrews 2:10; Leviticus 16:2-15; Leviticus 17:11; Hebrews 12:24; John 6:51; Ephesians 4:4-6a; Ephesians 4:11-12, 15-16

Recording:  https://1drv.ms/u/s!AvYHlhfoSlmRmyo56wcVQ766x2ft

Authority: the conflict of the ages

11 Sunday Jun 2017

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Sermon 11 June 2017  (Trinity)

Authority: the conflict of the ages by Fr. Dana

  • Paul previously said, “Judge yourself, and you will not be judged”
  • Jesus gave His disciples authority to make disciples and pass that authority on
  • He also promised to be with each and every one of those disciples, even to the end of the age
  • Paul tells us to examine ourselves, whether we are in the faith
  • If we are, Christ is in us and we have the authority and responsibility to make disciples

Lectionary:  Genesis 1:26-2:4; Psalm 8:1-9; 2 Corinthians 13:5-14; Matthew 28:16-20

Referenced Scriptures:  1 Corinthians 11:27-32; 2 Corinthians 13:1-4

Recording:  https://1drv.ms/u/s!AvYHlhfoSlmRmygaQuT5bXy9nX2H

Who is essential?

04 Sunday Jun 2017

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Sermon 04 June 2017  (Pentecost)

Who is essential? by Fr. Dana

  • Jesus Christ’s crucifixion and resurrection were necessary
  • The preaching of repentance and remission of sins in His Name is necessary
  • The Holy Spirit is absolutely essential for this mission

Lectionary:  Acts 2:1-7, 12-21; Psalm 104:24-35; 1 Corinthians 12:3-13; John 7:37-39

Referenced Scriptures:  Luke 24:32-49; John 14:15-18; John 14:25-28

Recording:  https://1drv.ms/u/s!AvYHlhfoSlmRmyRMmumR431YG9uF

God’s map and GPS

28 Sunday May 2017

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Sermon 28 May 2017  (Easter 7)

God’s map and GPS by Fr. Dana

  • The call is not the vision
  • The call is our origin; the vision is our destination
  • The Bible is God’s map, and the Holy Spirit His GPS
  • What is God’s vision for St. Stephen’s, our destiny?

Lectionary:  Acts 1:6-14; Psalm 68:4-11,18-20; 1 Peter 4:12-16; John 17:1-11  (sermon not from lectionary)

Referenced Scriptures:  Habakkuk 2:2; John 16:13; Romans 8:29; Philippians 1:5

Recording:  https://1drv.ms/u/s!AvYHlhfoSlmRmyKvOcRSVM88Cjx7

Write the vision that they may run

22 Monday May 2017

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Sermon 21 May 2017  (Easter 6)

Write the vision that they may run by Fr. Dana

  • All things tend toward decay
  • If you’re not growing/maturing, you’re in the process of dying
  • If you keep doin’ what you been doin’, you’ll keep gettin’ what you been gettin’
  • We aren’t just called; we are anointed to do what Jesus was anointed to do
  • Write the vision and make it plain, that they may run who read it

Lectionary:  Acts 17:22-31; Psalm 66:1-8; 1 Peter 3:18-22; John 14:15-21  (sermon not from lectionary)

Referenced Scriptures:  Matthew 28:19-20a; Isaiah 61:1-3; Luke 4:16-21; Luke 6:40; Habakkuk 2:2

Recording:  https://1drv.ms/u/s!AvYHlhfoSlmRmxsieW5MmCAqUPN1