Sermon, Sunday Next Before Advent, 2024
The Sunday Next Before Advent is coloquially called, “Stir Up Sunday,” from the first words of this day’s collect. “Stir up, we beseech thee, O Lord, the wills of thy faithful people.” In reading the lessons, we note the theme of “in-gathering” for the Kingdom of God is a harvest of those who have previously been dispersed throughout the whole world. Yet in the Kingdom, we are not only the object of the verb “to gather in”, but we are the subject as well. We have been gathered in, and we are called to gather in others as well. This, therefore, is the reason that we are to be stirred…
2024, Christmastide and Epiphanytide Worship and Events at Christ the King
This is a great season at Christ the King. Come join us for worship and feasting! Dec 22 After our Sunday morning worship (12:15 pm): Greening of the Church After our worship for the 4th Sunday in Advent, we break out the decorations and put up the Tree while enjoying lunch, festive music, and seasonal treats. Stop by and lend a hand hanging ornaments! Dec 24, Tuesday, Christmas Eve. 5 pm: Christmas Lessons and Carols. This is a worship service of scripture readings, carols, and special music. You are invited to join us for this special and beautiful service! 11 pm: Christmas Eve Midnight Mass – the first official Holy…
Upcoming Men’s Fellowship Night, 12/13/2024
Calling all gentlemen! Come out for a night of fellowship and encouragement and maybe a scotch and/or a cigar on Friday, December 13th at the vicarage. We will be starting around 6 pm. Bring friends, side dishes, other food and drinks to share, and did I mention to bring friends? Highly recommended to dress warmly as cigars are more of an outside activity.
Page Turners, Women’s book club for December
The ladies will be reading and discussing J.R.R. Tolkien’s Letters from Father Christmas on Dec. 10 at 6:45 pm at Heather White’s house. This is a fun read and copies of the book can be purchased at the links below: Abebooks Amazon Audiobooks.com
Photos from Our Hymn Workshop, 11/15-11/17
We all had a really great time learning about music, being encouraged to sing out, and practicing singing some of our great hymns better. Again – special thanks to our guest instructor, Andrew Dittman, from Chapel of the Cross, in Dallas, Texas! Did you know that the tune from God the Omnipotent is the bass line from Tchaikovsky’s 1812 Overture? Practicing Chanting on Saturday Afternoon Saturday Night Dinner at the Johansens! Good Food! Good Fellowship! Sunday After Church – Great Singing this Weekend!
Sermon, 25th Sunday after Trinity, 2024
For the 25th Sunday after Epiphany, we almost always use the readings and collect from the 6th Sunday after Epiphany. The theme of the Epiphany season is Christ’s manifestation to the Gentiles, and these propers focus not only upon the fact of His manifestation, but also the reasons for His manifestation – “… that he might destroy the works of the devil, and make us the sons of God, and heirs of eternal life” (see 1 John 3). In our readings we are not only reminded of the things that Christ has done for us already, but also that His work in us of purifying and completing our salvation is…
Sermon, 23rd Sunday after Trinity, 2024
This Sunday, we wrapped up the Unification cycle of our Trinity series on the Seven Deadly Sins by revisiting one final time, the sin of covetousness. Covetousness desires what belongs to another person. Christ said to the Pharisees, render unto Cesar the things that are Cesar’s, and render unto God, the things that are God’s. As ancient coins bore the image of the sovereign that minted them, we bear the image of the sovereign that created us. We belong to God. Will we render ourselves unto Him? Or do we withhold ourselves from Him in our self-covetousness? This is the challenge for us today and every day. Propers Manuscript …
Sermon, 21st Sunday After Trinity, 2024
Do you believe in the gospel or do you BE-LIEVE in the Gospel? The difference between a superficial belief and a more deeply rooted faith is closely connected with how much effort we put into our spiritual life in Christ. Unfortunately, many professing believers are stifled in their Christian maturity because of spiritual sloth. We might show up to church on Sunday, but then we ignore Christ for the rest of the week. St. Paul reminds us this morning that we are in a spiritual battle, and if we do not actively prepare for the daily battle, then we risk, at the least, being ineffective for the Kingdom of God,…
Sermon, 15th Sunday after Trinity, 2024
Covetousness is, at its core, a distrust of God through an attempt to provide for ourselves. Yet we cannot make the sun rise or set, we cannot make it rain or shine, we cannot control the vast majority of what happens to us. So how exactly are we going to provide what we need for life? The virtue we need which opposes our greediness is justice – giving to all his due. The just person understands the relative value of things and does not clamor for that which cannot satisfy and which cannot save. God is our hope and strength, a very present help in trouble. God takes care of…
Sermon, 14th after Trinity, 2024
Will we live in the flesh or in the Spirit? This question is posed to us by St. Paul in the epistle lesson this morning. The sins of the flesh may seem attractive to us, but then the gospel lesson illustrates for us that such a life is like having leprosy. How then, are we to live in the Spirit? The virtue we need is Temperance. As followers of Jesus, this isn’t simply a strength of will to avoid sin, but it is a longing for something greater to be found in our relationship with Christ. Propers Manuscript