St. Aidan's Anglican Church, Kansas City - weekly talks

Therefore ... We do not lose heart. Does anybody want to lose heart? Yet, we often experience such loss. Paul came to the boarders of crippling discouragement and hopelessness but without losing heart. He says it's about a new focus, welling up from within, a new creation. He fixed his eyes on the unseen realm of reality. He asked the Lord to open the eyes of his heart to see where we've been seated in Christ. His pull towards the eternal empowered him to endure all manner of mountains before him.

2 Corinthians 4 ...

4 Therefore, having this ministry (3:8 – of the Spirit) by the mercy of God, we do not lose heart. 2 But we have renounced disgraceful, underhanded ways. We refuse to practice cunning or to tamper with God's word, but by the open statement of the truth we would commend ourselves to everyone's conscience in the sight of God. 3 And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. 4 In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God (a ‘seeing’ by faith with the eyes of the heart, the unseen, eternal reality). 5For what we proclaim is not ourselves …

5 For what we proclaim is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, with ourselves as your servants for Jesus' sake. 6 For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

Treasure in Jars of Clay

7 But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power (extraordinary power NRSV) belongs to God and not to us. 8 We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; 9 persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; 10 always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies. 11 For we who live are always being given over to death for Jesus' sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh. 12 So death is at work in us, but life in you.

13 Since we have the same spirit of faith according to what has been written, “I believed, and so I spoke,” (Ps. 116:10) we also believe, and so we also speak, 14 knowing that he who raised the Lord Jesus will raise us also with Jesus and bring us with you into his presence. 15 For it is all for your sake, so that as grace extends to more and more people it may increase thanksgiving, to the glory of God.

16 So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. 17 For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, 18 as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.

Jesus, in his conception, his baptism, his teaching and his commission, reveals the Holy Trinity, the one divine life, co-equally, co-substantially, co-eternally shared within the inner life of God, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Jesus told Phillip that that if you've seen me, you've seen the Father. Also, Jesus referred to the divinity of the Holy Spirit within the unpardonable sin, blasphemy against the Holy Spirit.

Jesus is the one who fully revealed God as Father, his Abba, Father. In his relationship with the Father and his anointing of the Holy Spirit, we see in action the persons of the divine life, as an eternal family.

Family and Fatherhood are not merely human inventions nor cultural development. We do not read anthropomorphic ideas into God but theopomorphic truth into ourselves … We are made in HIS IMAGE AND LIKENESS … not the other way round.

The earthly family is being deconstructed by the father of lies. The father of lies, Satan himself, knows full well where family is derived; Family comes from God, our Father, who created human beings, male and female, to be united together in communion with the divine family, the Holy Trinity.

This is why Paul prays in Ephesians 3:14f

14 For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, 15 from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, 16 that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, 17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, 18 may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, 19 and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.

Historically, since the second Century, Tertullian first coined the word, Trinity, to describe the nature of God.

Today’s Eucharistic Preface reads - For with your co-eternal Son and Holy Spirit, you are one God, one Lord, in Trinity of Persons and in Unity of Being; and we celebrate the one and equal glory of you, O Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.

Let us think of this mystery not as a philosophical construct, something for people to ponder with too much time on their hands, but as our affirmation of faith and a call to mission.

The Creed calls us to affirm this faith … we believe in one God, the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth and in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord; who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, and born of the Virgin Mary and so forth …

The name of the Holy Trinity is a call to mission … not to just any mission but to God’s mission in the world.

As part his apostolic people, we are sending Anita and Georgia off to Zambia this week … Lisa off to Uganda next week and within a month, we're receiving, Trevor and Jana Tychon, the leaders of Connect Africa. This is immersion into the Trinitarian life.

Let’s never forget that Christ revealed the nature of God in what we’ve come to call the Holy Trinity and calls us to HIS continued mission in the world, first by immersing us into the name of the Father, of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, the divine family, a communion of infinite love.

May we be like this humble bush in Exodus 3, set aflame by God’s burning fire of love, the living presence of God who dwells in us, the spirit of adoption, crying Abba, Father.

In the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Jesus, in his conception, his baptism, his teaching and his commission, reveals the Holy Trinity, the one divine life, co-equally, co-substantially, co-eternally shared within the inner life of God, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Jesus told Phillip that that if you've seen me, you've seen the Father. Also, Jesus referred to the divinity of the Holy Spirit within the unpardonable sin, blasphemy against the Holy Spirit.

Jesus is the one who fully revealed God as Father, his Abba, Father. In his relationship with the Father and his anointing of the Holy Spirit, we see in action the persons of the divine life, as an eternal family.

Family and Fatherhood are not merely human inventions nor cultural development. We do not read anthropomorphic ideas into God but theopomorphic truth into ourselves … We are made in HIS IMAGE AND LIKENESS … not the other way round.

The earthly family are being deconstructed by the father of lies. The father of lies, Satan himself, knows full well where family is derived; Family comes from God, our Father, who created human beings, male and female, to be united together in communion with the divine family, the Holy Trinity.

This is why Paul prays in Ephesians 3:14f

14 For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, 15 from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, 16 that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, 17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, 18 may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, 19 and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.

Historically, since the second Century, Tertullian first coined the word, Trinity, to describe the nature of God.

Today’s Eucharistic Preface reads - For with your co-eternal Son and Holy Spirit, you are one God, one Lord, in Trinity of Persons and in Unity of Being; and we celebrate the one and equal glory of you, O Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.

Let us think of this mystery not as a philosophical construct, something for people to ponder with too much time on their hands, but as our affirmation of faith and a call to mission.

The Creed calls us to affirm this faith … we believe in one God, the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth and in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord; who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, and born of the Virgin Mary and so forth …

The name of the Holy Trinity is a call to mission … not to just any mission but to God’s mission in the world.

As part his apostolic people, we are sending Anita and Georgia off to Zambia this week … Lisa off to Uganda next week and within a month, we're receiving, Trevor and Jana Tychon, the leaders of Connect Africa. This is immersion into the Trinitarian life.

Let’s never forget that Christ revealed the nature of God in what we’ve come to call the Holy Trinity and calls us to HIS continued mission in the world, first by immersing us into the name of the Father, of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, the divine family, a communion of infinite love.

May we be like this humble bush in Exodus 3, set aflame by God’s burning fire of love, the living presence of God who dwells in us, the spirit of adoption, crying Abba, Father.

In the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

The Feast of Pentecost, the sending of the Holy Spirit, inaugurates a new creation in the risen Lord Jesus Christ. In Christ, old things have pasted, all things have become new. As the Holy Spirit hovered over the waters of old creation, the waters of baptism become a sacramental entry into the new life of God ... the forgiveness of sins and the infilling of the Holy Spirit, the one who gives the divine life.

The Collect: Almighty God, on this day you opened the way of eternal life to every race and nation by the promised gift of your Holy Spirit: Shed abroad this gift throughout the world by the preaching of the Gospel, that it may reach to the ends of the earth; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

The Eucharist Preface to Pentecost - Through Jesus Christ our Lord: In fulfillment of his true promise, the Holy Spirit came down from heaven, lighting upon the disciples, to teach them and to lead them into all truth; uniting peoples of many tongues in the confession of one faith, and giving to your Church the power to serve you as a royal priesthood, and to preach the Gospel to all nations.

Seventh Sunday of Easter: The Sunday after Ascension Day

O God, the King of glory, you have exalted your only Son Jesus Christ with great triumph to your kingdom in heaven: Do not leave us comfortless, but send us your Holy Spirit to strengthen us, and exalt us to that place where our Savior Christ has gone before; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, in glory everlasting. Amen.

Dean Greer is the National Coordinator for Living Waters, USA. Having been involved in healing ministry for over 25 years, Dean has trained leaders around the world to incorporate the healing programs of Desert Stream Ministries within the local church community. Dean has experienced first-hand how God is able to restore life and bring wholeness to a generation without hope. A native of San Francisco, Dean now lives in Kansas City, MO with his wife Chrystal and their son Jeremiah.

Fr. Michael has known Dean and Chrystal for over twenty-eight years, first as singles who eventually came together in Holy Matrimony. They are visible icons of how healing and restoration takes root in the broken self through participation in the death and resurrection of Christ. A powerful quote from Dean's message is "no creature has the authority to give personal identity. Only the Creator has the right and power to do that."

This is a sure message of Truth, hope and peace, in Christ, for every human being, struggling with all manner of disordered passions. Only Jesus has the authority to name us and give us our identity. We have numerous members who have found their true selves in claiming their identity in Christ rather than creaturely, identities based on 'alternative' anthropologies. Though the image of God is now distorted, in need of restoration, the way forward is through the purity of our origins, original righteousness ... from the beginning, created male and female ... restored within a community without shame.

We welcome all who battle with unwanted sexual addictions, heterosexual and homosexual. And, there are many other non-sexual addictions we recognize as well. "The Glory of God is a human being fully alive; thus, we aim to help each other become fully human, fully alive in Jesus; we strive to support one another in the common struggle Paul calls flesh and Spirit (Galatians 5:16-24; I Cor. 6:9-11). Join with us as we seek to live in purity of heart, of sexuality, in a supportive community without shame.

Now unto him who is able to keep you from falling and to present you faultless, before the presence of his glory, with exceeding joy.

Grace and Peace in Christ, Fr. Michael

Dean Greer is the National Coordinator for Living Waters, USA. Having been involved in healing ministry for over 25 years, Dean has trained leaders around the world to incorporate the healing programs of Desert Stream Ministries within the local church community. Dean has experienced first-hand how God is able to restore life and bring wholeness to a generation without hope. A native of San Francisco, Dean now lives in Kansas City, MO with his wife Chrystal and their son Jeremiah.

Fr. Michael has known Dean and Chrystal for over twenty-eight years, first as singles who eventually came together in Holy Matrimony. They are visible icons of how healing and restoration takes root in the broken self through participation in the death and resurrection of Christ. A powerful quote from Dean's message is "no creature has the authority to give personal identity. Only the Creator has the right and power to do that."

This is a sure message of Truth, hope and peace, in Christ, for every human being, struggling with all manner of disordered passions. Only Jesus has the authority to name us and give us our identity. We have numerous members who have found their true selves in claiming their identity in Christ rather than creaturely, identities based on 'alternative' anthropologies. Though the image of God is now distorted, in need of restoration, the way forward is through the purity of our origins, original righteousness ... from the beginning, created male and female ... restored within a community without shame.

We welcome all who battle with unwanted sexual addictions, heterosexual and homosexual. And, there are many other non-sexual addictions we recognize as well. "The Glory of God is a human being fully alive; thus, we aim to help each other become fully human, fully alive in Jesus; we strive to support one another in the common struggle Paul calls flesh and Spirit (Galatians 5:16-24; I Cor. 6:9-11). Join with us as we seek to live in purity of heart, of sexuality, in a supportive community without shame.

Now unto him who is able to keep you from falling and to present you faultless, before the presence of his glory, with exceeding joy.

Grace and Peace in Christ, Fr. Michael

Dean Greer is the National Coordinator for Living Waters, USA. Having been involved in healing ministry for over 25 years, Dean has trained leaders around the world to incorporate the healing programs of Desert Stream Ministries within the local church community. Dean has experienced first-hand how God is able to restore life and bring wholeness to a generation without hope. A native of San Francisco, Dean now lives in Kansas City, MO with his wife Chrystal and their son Jeremiah.

Fr. Michael has known Dean and Chrystal for over twenty-eight years, first as singles who eventually came together in Holy Matrimony. They are visible icons of how healing and restoration takes root in the broken self through participation in the death and resurrection of Christ. A powerful quote from Dean's message is "no creature has the authority to give personal identity. Only the Creator has the right and power to do that."

This is a sure message of Truth, hope and peace, in Christ, for every human being, struggling with all manner of disordered passions. Only Jesus has the authority to name us and give us our identity. We have numerous members who have found their true selves in claiming their identity in Christ rather than creaturely, identities based on 'alternative' anthropologies. Though the image of God is now distorted, in need of restoration, the way forward is through the purity of our origins, original righteousness ... from the beginning, created male and female ... restored within a community without shame.

We welcome all who battle with unwanted sexual addictions, heterosexual and homosexual. And, there are many other non-sexual addictions we recognize as well. "The Glory of God is a human being fully alive; thus, we aim to help each other become fully human, fully alive in Jesus; we strive to support one another in the common struggle Paul calls flesh and Spirit (Galatians 5:16-24; I Cor. 6:9-11). Join with us as we seek to live in purity of heart, of sexuality, in a supportive community without shame.

Now unto him who is able to keep you from falling and to present you faultless, before the presence of his glory, with exceeding joy.

Grace and Peace in Christ, Fr. Michael

Fifth Sunday of Easter

Almighty God, whom truly to know is everlasting life: Grant us so perfectly to know your Son Jesus Christ to be the way, the truth, and the life, that we may steadfastly follow his steps in the way that leads to eternal life; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Acts 8:26-40

Then an angel of the Lord said to Philip, "Get up and go toward the south to the road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza." (This is a wilderness road.) So he got up and went. Now there was an Ethiopian eunuch, a court official of the Candace, queen of the Ethiopians, in charge of her entire treasury. He had come to Jerusalem to worship and was returning home; seated in his chariot, he was reading the prophet Isaiah. Then the Spirit said to Philip, "Go over to this chariot and join it." So Philip ran up to it and heard him reading the prophet Isaiah. He asked, "Do you understand what you are reading?" He replied, "How can I, unless someone guides me?" And he invited Philip to get in and sit beside him. Now the passage of the scripture that he was reading was this: "Like a sheep he was led to the slaughter, and like a lamb silent before its shearer, so he does not open his mouth. In his humiliation justice was denied him. Who can describe his generation? For his life is taken away from the earth." The eunuch asked Philip, "About whom, may I ask you, does the prophet say this, about himself or about someone else?" Then Philip began to speak, and starting with this scripture, he proclaimed to him the good news about Jesus. As they were going along the road, they came to some water; and the eunuch said, "Look, here is water! What is to prevent me from being baptized?" He commanded the chariot to stop, and both of them, Philip and the eunuch, went down into the water, and Philip baptized him. When they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord snatched Philip away; the eunuch saw him no more, and went on his way rejoicing. But Philip found himself at Azotus, and as he was passing through the region, he proclaimed the good news to all the towns until he came to Caesarea.

The Gospel: John 14:15-21

"If you love me, you will keep my commandments. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, to be with you forever. This is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, because he abides with you, and he will be in you. "I will not leave you orphaned; I am coming to you. In a little while the world will no longer see me, but you will see me; because I live, you also will live. On that day you will know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you. They who have my commandments and keep them are those who love me; and those who love me will be loved by my Father, and I will love them and reveal myself to them."

Preface of Easter:

But chiefly are we bound to praise you for the glorious resurrection of your Son Jesus Christ our Lord; for he is the true Paschal Lamb, who was sacrificed for us, and has taken away the sin of the world. By his death he has destroyed death, and by his rising to life again he has won for us everlasting life.

This homily is for the blessing of the marriage of Eric and Joanna Rainwater. The liturgy of blessing follows the homily.

The Gospel text is from Mark 10

6 “But at the beginning of creation God ‘made them male and female.’ 7 ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, 8 and the two will become one flesh.’ So they are no longer two, but one flesh. 9 Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate.”