Morning Prayer: Tue, 06 Sep – Psalm 63:4; Exodus 17:8-16; 1 Timothy 2:8 ~ a call to prayer

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

Opening Sentence

One thing I have asked of the Lord, this is what I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life; to behold the beauty of the Lord and to seek Him in His temple.

Reading: Psalm 63:4 (NLT)

I will praise you as long as I live, lifting up my hands to you in prayer.

Reading: Exodus 17:8-16 (NLT)

While the people of Israel were still at Rephidim, the warriors of Amalek attacked them. Moses commanded Joshua, “Choose some men to go out and fight the army of Amalek for us. Tomorrow, I will stand at the top of the hill, holding the staff of God in my hand.”

"Victory O Lord!" John Everett Millais, 1871 [Depicts Moses holding up his arms during the Battle of Rephidim, assisted by Hur (left) and Aaron.] — “Victory O Lord!”
John Everett Millais, 1871
[Depicts Moses holding up his arms during the Battle of Rephidim, assisted by Hur (left) and Aaron.]

So Joshua did what Moses had commanded and fought the army of Amalek. Meanwhile, Moses, Aaron, and Hur climbed to the top of a nearby hill. As long as Moses held up the staff in his hand, the Israelites had the advantage. But whenever he dropped his hand, the Amalekites gained the advantage. Moses’ arms soon became so tired he could no longer hold them up. So Aaron and Hur found a stone for him to sit on. Then they stood on each side of Moses, holding up his hands. So his hands held steady until sunset. As a result, Joshua overwhelmed the army of Amalek in battle.

After the victory, the Lord instructed Moses, “Write this down on a scroll as a permanent reminder, and read it aloud to Joshua: I will erase the memory of Amalek from under heaven.” Moses built an altar there and named it Yahweh-Nissi (which means “the Lord is my banner”). He said, “They have raised their fist against the Lord’s throne, so now the Lord will be at war with Amalek generation after generation.”

Reading: 1 Timothy 2:8 (NLT)

In every place of worship, I want men to pray with holy hands lifted up to God, free from anger and controversy.

Prayer

This day is Your gift to me; I take it, Lord, from Your hand and thank You for the wonder of it.

God be with me in this Your day, every day and every way, with me and for me in this Your day; and the love and affection of heaven be toward me.

+ All that I am and all that I do, Lord – I place into Your hands.
+ Everything I work for and hope for, Lord – I place in your hands.
+ The troubles that weary me and the thoughts that disturb me, Lord – I place in Your hands.
+ Each person that I pray for and each person I care for, Lord – I place in Your hands.

Hands, Lord, Your gift to us, we stretch them up to You. Always You Hold them.

Help me to find my happiness in my acceptance of what is Your purpose for me: in friendly eyes, in work well done, in quietness born of trust, and, most of all, in the awareness of Your presence in my spirit.

“If My People with, Hear Our Prayer, O Lord.” – Protestant Reformed Mass Choir

Blessing

May the peace of the Lord Jesus Christ go with you, wherever He may send you. May He guide you through the wilderness, protect you through the storm. May He bring you home rejoicing at the wonders He has shown you. May He bring you home rejoicing once again into our doors.

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

Morning Prayer: 02 October – Romans 16:25-27 ~ all glory to God

Reading through Romans

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

Opening sentence

Praise to You, Lord Jesus Christ, King of endless glory. You have the words of eternal life, and we have believed and have come to know that You are the Holy One of God.
__________

Romans 16:25-27 NLT

Now all glory to God, who is able to make you strong, just as my Good News says. This message about Jesus Christ has revealed his plan for you Gentiles, a plan kept secret from the beginning of time. But now as the prophets foretold and as the eternal God has commanded, this message is made known to all Gentiles everywhere, so that they too might believe and obey him. All glory to the only wise God, through Jesus Christ, forever. Amen.
__________

Reflection: Romans 16:25-27 (John Stott, The Message of Romans: God’s Good News for the World)

Conclusion: The providence of God in the ministry of Paul (Romans 15:14–16:27)

Paul takes the Roman church into his confidence about the salient characteristics of his ministry… giving us insight into the outworking of God’s providence in his life and work.

Paul’s doxology (25-27)

Paul’s doxology is an eloquent and appropriate conclusion to his letter, for he takes up its four central themes, summarizes them and relates them to one another.

First, Paul writes of the power of God.

Romans begins and ends with a reference to the power of God through the gospel. If the gospel is God’s power to save, it is also God’s power to establish… i.e. to nurture new converts and strengthen young churches…. The vision conjured up by the doxology’s opening words is of God’s ability to establish the multi-ethnic church in Rome, of which Paul has been dreaming, and to strengthen its members in truth, holiness and unity.

Second, Paul writes of the gospel of Christ.

God’s secret, hitherto concealed but now revealed, is essentially Jesus Christ himself in his fullness, and in particular Christ for and in the Gentiles, so that Gentiles now have an equal share with Israel in God’s promise…. The mystery also includes good news for Jews as well as Gentiles, namely that one day ‘all Israel will be saved’. And it looks forward to the future glory, when God will bring all things together under one head, Christ. Thus the mystery begins, continues and ends with Christ.

Christ Anglican Church Carefree, AZ — Christ Anglican Church
Carefree, AZ

Third, Paul writes of the evangelization of the nations.

It is important to grasp that Paul is stating three truths about the mystery, which are summed up by the verbs hidden, revealed and made known. It is not just that the mystery was long concealed, but has now been revealed, namely through the life, death, resurrection and exaltation of Jesus. The third fact is that this good news must be, and is already being, made known throughout the world: made known through the prophetic writings by the command of the eternal God, so that all nations might believe and obey him.

This scheme of the making known of the gospel through Scripture, by God’s command, unto obedience of faith, for all the nations, exactly corresponds to the letter’s opening, which refers to the gospel as being, among other things, according to the Scriptures, through the grace and apostleship given to Paul and others, unto obedience of faith, and for all the nations.

Fourth, Paul concludes in praise of God’s wisdom: to the only wise God be glory for ever through Jesus Christ! Amen.

God’s wisdom is seen in Christ himself… above all in his cross which, though foolish to human beings, is the wisdom of God, in God’s decision to save the world not through its own wisdom but through the folly of the gospel, in the extraordinary phenomenon of the emerging multiracial, multicultural church; and in his purpose ultimately to unite everything under Christ.

God’s redeemed people will spend eternity ascribing to him ‘praise and glory and wisdom and thanks and honor and power and strength’… i.e. they will worship him for his power and wisdom displayed in salvation.
__________

“Unto the Lamb” – Diana with Atlanta Chamber Choir

__________

Canticle

Christ, as a light illumine and guide me. Christ, as a shield overshadow me. Christ under me; Christ over me; Christ beside me on my left and my right. This day be within and without me, lowly and meek, yet all-powerful. Be in the heart of each to whom I speak; in the mouth of each who speaks unto me. This day be within and without me, lowly and meek, yet all-powerful. Christ as a light; Christ as a shield; Christ beside me on my left and my right.

Blessing

May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you, wherever He may send you. May He guide you through the wilderness, protect you through the storm. May He bring you home rejoicing at the wonders He has shown you. May He bring you home rejoicing once again into our doors.

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

Morning Prayer: 01 October – Romans 16:21-24 ~ additional messages

Reading through Romans

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

Opening sentence

Praise to You, Lord Jesus Christ, King of endless glory. You have the words of eternal life, and we have believed and have come to know that You are the Holy One of God.
__________

Romans 16:21-24 NLT

“Erastus, Olympus, Rhodion, Sosipater, Quartus and Tertius (Menologion of Basil II)” by Anonymous

Timothy, my fellow worker, sends you his greetings, as do Lucius, Jason, and Sosipater, my fellow Jews.

I, Tertius, the one writing this letter for Paul, send my greetings, too, as one of the Lord’s followers.

Gaius says hello to you. He is my host and also serves as host to the whole church. Erastus, the city treasurer, sends you his greetings, and so does our brother Quartus.
__________

Reflection: Romans 16:21-24 (John Stott, The Message of Romans: God’s Good News for the World)

Conclusion: The providence of God in the ministry of Paul (Romans 15:14–16:27)

Paul takes the Roman church into his confidence about the salient characteristics of his ministry… giving us insight into the outworking of God’s providence in his life and work.

Paul’s messages (21-24)

Paul now passes on messages from eight named people, who are with him in Corinth. He begins with one extremely well-known name, followed by three apparently unknown ones.

His fellow worker, Timothy: if anybody deserved to be called Paul’s ‘fellow-worker’, that person was Timothy. For the last eight years Timothy had been Paul’s constant traveling companion and had undertaken several special missions at Paul’s request. The apostle evidently had a warm affection for his young assistant. Having led him to Christ, he regarded him as his son in the faith. He was now in Corinth, about to set sail for Jerusalem with the offering from the Greek churches.

His fellow countrymen: we cannot for certain identify any of them….

His scribe: to whom Paul has been dictating this letter, writes his own greeting….

The name Erastus in the inscription near the Corinth theater. Photo by Ferrell Jenkins.

His host in Corinth, Gaius: it would be natural to identify him with the Corinthian whom Paul had baptized. Some scholars have further suggested that his full Roman name was Gaius Titius Justus, in which case he had a large house next to the synagogue, into which he had welcomed Paul after the Jews had rejected his gospel. It is then understandable that Paul would again be his house guest, and that the church would also meet in his home.

Two further people: Erastus, who is the city’s director of public works… and our brother Quartus (nothing is known of him). Erastus, on the other hand, seems to have been a responsible local government official. Perhaps he was the aedile, the magistrate in charge of public works, whose name is still clearly legible in a first-century Latin inscription on a marble pavement close to the ruins of old Corinth.
__________

“We Are Called”

__________

Canticle

Blessing

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

Morning Prayer: 30 September – Romans 16:17-20 ~ vigilance, separation, discernment

Reading through Romans Continue reading “Morning Prayer: 30 September – Romans 16:17-20 ~ vigilance, separation, discernment” →

Morning Prayer: 29 September – Romans 16:3-16 ~ greetings

Reading through Romans

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

Opening sentence

Praise to You, Lord Jesus Christ, King of endless glory. You have the words of eternal life, and we have believed and have come to know that You are the Holy One of God.
__________

A reading from Romans: Romans 16:3-16 (NLT)

aquila-and-priscilla 1 — Priscilla and Aquila

Give my greetings to Priscilla and Aquila, my co-workers in the ministry of Christ Jesus. In fact, they once risked their lives for me. I am thankful to them, and so are all the Gentile churches. Also give my greetings to the church that meets in their home.

Greet my dear friend Epenetus. He was the first person from the province of Asia to become a follower of Christ. Give my greetings to Mary, who has worked so hard for your benefit. Greet Andronicus and Junia, my fellow Jews, who were in prison with me. They are highly respected among the apostles and became followers of Christ before I did. Greet Ampliatus, my dear friend in the Lord. Greet Urbanus, our co-worker in Christ, and my dear friend Stachys.

Greet Apelles, a good man whom Christ approves. And give my greetings to the believers from the household of Aristobulus. Greet Herodion, my fellow Jew. Greet the Lord’s people from the household of Narcissus. Give my greetings to Tryphena and Tryphosa, the Lord’s workers, and to dear Persis, who has worked so hard for the Lord. Greet Rufus, whom the Lord picked out to be his very own; and also his dear mother, who has been a mother to me.

Give my greetings to Asyncritus, Phlegon, Hermes, Patrobas, Hermas, and the brothers and sisters who meet with them. Give my greetings to Philologus, Julia, Nereus and his sister, and to Olympas and all the believers who meet with them. Greet each other with a sacred kiss. All the churches of Christ send you their greetings.
__________

Reflection: Romans 16:3-16 (John Stott, The Message of Romans: God’s Good News for the World)

Conclusion: The providence of God in the ministry of Paul (Romans 15:14–16:27)

Paul takes the Roman church into his confidence about the salient characteristics of his ministry… giving us insight into the outworking of God’s providence in his life and work.

His commendation and greetings (Romans 16:1–16)

‘I think’, wrote Chrysostom, ‘that many even of those who have the appearance of being extremely good men, hasten over this part of the epistle as superfluous …Yet’, he went on, ‘the gold founders’ people are careful even about the little fragments …it is possible even from bare names to find a great treasure.’

2. Many greetings (3-16)
Paul sends greetings to twenty -six individuals, twenty-four of whom he names, adding in most cases an appreciative personal reference…. Reflecting on the names and circumstances of the people Paul greets, one is particularly impressed by the unity and diversity of the church to which they belonged.

a. The diversity of the church

The most interesting and instructive aspect of church diversity in Rome is that of gender. Nine out of the twenty-six persons greeted are women…. Paul evidently thinks highly of them all.

The prominent place occupied by women in Paul’s entourage shows that he was not at all the male chauvinist of popular fantasy.

b. The unity of the church

Alongside the Roman church’s diversity in race, rank and sex, it experienced a profound unity which transcended its differences.

The toleration of ethnic division in the Roman house churches would be entirely incompatible with Paul’s sustained argument in chapters 14 –15, and with its climax…. Such an arrangement would contradict the church’s unity in diversity.

Heterogeneity is of the essence of the church, since it is the one and only community in the world in which Christ has broken down all dividing walls.
_____

Paul concludes his list of individual greetings with two universals.

The first is that, although only a few of them have been greeted by name, they must all greet one another with a holy kiss… a visible and tangible gesture, although what form the ‘kiss’ should take will vary according to culture…. Paul’s second universal follows: all the churches of Christ send greetings… writing representitavely.
__________

“One Bread, One Body”