Saint Paul’s Sermons
By Dcn Bryan Dench
Saint Paul’s SermonsOct 03, 2021
The Ascension of the Lord, and Mother's Day Prayers - Very Rev Andrew S. Faust
The Ascension of the Lord Jesus is important as his Resurrection because his Ascension completes the work begun with the Incarnation. Jesus returns to the Father, and in a sense, the Father brings him home restoring the unity of the trinity. We are also praying for our mothers on this day in appreciation for their loving service. "Keep watch, dear Lord, with those who work, or watch, or weep this night, and give your angels charge over those who sleep. Tend the sick, Lord Christ, give rest to the weary, bless the dying, soothe the suffering, pity the afflicted, shield the joyous, and all for your love's sake. Amen"
Cranmer's Vision for the Book of Common Prayer: Unified, Understandable, and Reformed - Rev Dcn Bryan Dench
Archbishop Thomas Cranmer was a visionary walking a difficult path to bring Reformed Christianity to England. Henry VIII if anything remained Roman Catholic while making himself head of the English church, but his appointed Archbishop of Canterbury was solidly and biblically reformed. In developing the prayer book, Cranmer skillfully achieved several goals:
1. Unify all worship and practice into one "common" prayer book for clergy and laity.
2. Put it in English (not Latin).
3. Incorporate solidly reformed doctrine in place of the theology of Rome.
4. Reinforce belief regularly.
The work of this brave man, martyred for his faith, gives us a treasured legacy to this day.
Ask The Father - Rev Father Francois Mayesi
“Not me, not me” - Very Rev Andrew Faust
Joy In Christ Jesus - Rev Dcn Bryan Dench
Just the Facts - The Resurrection of Jesus: Rev Dcn Bryan Dench
The Resurrection of Jesus is the key, pivotal fact upon which our faith and assurance rest. As Paul said, if Jesus isn't raised, our faith is false and foolish, and we have no hope. How reasonable is it to believe in Jesus's resurrection from the dead? It's the only reasonable conclusion to draw from the eyewitness evidenced other undisputed facts. an
The Grace of God, Easter Message - Very Rev Andrew Faust
The Easter message of God's grace challenges us to internalize our faith, to respond to it, and to work on our faith growing closer to the risen Savior. God's grace, God's undeserved favor, is most fully revealed by Jesus's on the cross. The Risen Lord calls on us to live in faith.
The Passion According to Saint Matthew
Love For One Another In the Church - Very Rev Andrew Faust
A Sunday With Four Names - Very Rev Andrew Faust
This Fourth Sunday in Lent is known by four names under various Christian traditions and practice. Rose Sunday, Laetare Sunday, Refreshment Sunday, and Mothering Sunday. Father Andrew comments on each and the significance of them in our traditions and for our lives.
Did Jesus make a deal with the devil? - Rev Dcn Bryan Dench
God’s Call to Turn - Very Rev Andrew Faust
What Kind of Dirt Am I ? - Rev Dcn Bryan Dench
The Last Shall Be First - Reflections on God's Rules - Very Rev Andrew Faust
The Gospel parable of the vineyard owner demonstrates that God's ways are not our ways, that God's will and purpose do not depend on our personal sense of fairness. But this is good because we know for sure that God is good and always does good for those who love him, though we may not see it that way at the moment!
Baptism of Jesus: A Matter of Life and Death - Rev Dcn Bryan Dench
Get Closer to God Every Day - Very Rev Andrew Faust
"Be still and know that I am God," says Psalm 46:10. Daily we need to have a mind for the Lord, to seek Him and come closer to Him.
Silent night, holy night: a good time to give thanks - Very Rev Andrew Faust.
Why God Became A Man, Advent Reflections - Rev Dcn Bryan Dench
During Advent we read the first part of chapter 1 of John's Gospel at every service, reminding us that Jesus was the enteral word of God, divine, with God from the beginning, and that he came to earth in human flesh for us! It's a miracle and hard for us to grasp how it could have happened, but we rejoice that it did. But the big question is why, why did God do that? And the answer is that he did it to redeem us because there was no other way: only the life of a godly human whose obedience merited righteousness, could atone for the sinfulness of mankind.
Renouncing Satan for Advent - Very Rev Andrew Faust
Advent signals a new beginning to the church year, and a new opportunity to refresh and reinvigorate our own walk with Christ Jesus. Our baptism includes the following question, " DOST thou renounce the devil and all his works, the vain pomp and glory of the world, with all covetous desires of the same, and the sinful desires of the flesh, so that thou wilt not follow, nor be led by them?" (BCP page 277). We affirm that we do! And yet we also know that we are at once justified and sinners (per Luther), so Advent invites us to mark the new beginning of the year with assurance and confidence in God's mercy even as we continue to work out our salvation imperfectly.
Shaken AND Stirred - Ready for Advent -- Very Rev Andrew Faust
This is a Sunday on which we are invited to be stirred up with anticipation for the coming season of Advent.
Stewardship - Very Rev Andrew Faust
Forgiveness - Very Rev Andrew Faust
The scriptures call us to forgive as we have been forgiven. Jesus gave a new command that we love one another. These challenges can be hard, but to them we are called.
“The Devil Made Me Do It” - Rev Dcn Bryan Dench
Let The Word of God Transform You - Very Rev Andrew Faust
First Heal the Spirit, Then the Body - Rev Francois Mayesi, Matt 9:1-8
Heart, Soul, and Mind - Very Rev Andrew Faust
Avoid the infections of the devil, to sicken our souls. Renounce him and all his works!
Christianity is not about performance - Rev Dcn Bryan Dench
The “Comfort able” Words - Rev Dcn Bryan Dench
Preparing Our Hearts For Worship - Very Rev Andrew Faust
Our Survival Manual -Rev Dcn Bryan Dench
Jesus Transfigured And Revealed - Very Rev Andrew Faust
In Communion with Christ Every Day - Rev Fr Francois Mayesi
A Tale of Two Sinners - Very Rev Andrew Faust
The Bible records the stories of two infamous sinners, both of whom repented of their sins. One was King David, the man after God's own heart, who nonetheless stumbled severely and became an adulterer and a murder. Scripture tells us the things he did greatly displeased God, and God brought him to repentance. His sins had consequences to his family and to himself, yet God never abandoned him. The second was Saul, who as a young man persecuted the church and presided over the unjust stoning of Saint Stephen, who so courageously spoke to the mob before his death. But Saul, too, was brought to repentance and restoration through direct intervention of Jesus, and he became the one appointed by God to preach the Gospel far and wide.
Why Is There Air?
The Shape of Love In Christ - Very Rev Andrew Faust
Only Two Choices - Rev Dcn Bryan Dench
Sound Advice from Saint Peter - Very Rev Andrew Faust
A Republic Under God’s Providence - Rev Fr Daniel Eddy
Mercy and Joy - Rev Fr Francois Mayesi
Joy Before the Angels of God, Luke 15:10 - Very Rev Andrew Faust
Putting First Things First - The Parable of the Excuse Making Banquet Guests, Luke 14: Rev Bryan Dench
Jesus regularly used parables to teach his followers and hearers lessons about the Kingdom of God. Luke chapter 14 recounts Jesus's experiences at a dinner hosted by a ruler of the Pharisees. First everyone watches him and hope to trip him up, especially when he heals a sick man on the Sabbath. Then he tries in a parable to teach them humility. They don't get it and in fact rest in self assurance as children of Abraham that they will be in the banquet at the final coming of God's kingdom (Isaiah chapter 25). So Jesus tries another story of invited guests to a banquet who say they will come but then all make lame excuses, putting other concerns ahead of their commitment to the host. Likewise, we are all prone to put other things first, ahead of God. God requires us to put him first, even ahead of other good things, and to "seek first the Kingdom of God."
Let the Scriptures Work In Your Life - First Sunday After Trinity: Very Rev Andrew Faust
We should not only read the Bible, but internalize it. It should work in our lives. Lord, give us ears to hear!
Trinity Sunday, Holy Baptism - Very Rev Andrew Faust
Let Not Your Hearts Be Troubled - Very Rev Andrew Faust
"Let not your hearts be troubled," Jesus says to the disciples in John chapter 14. How can he say that to them (and to us) as he is about to suffer and die, shattering their hopes and understanding of what he came to accomplish. He says it because he leaves his peace with us, a peace surpassing all understanding and that never fails. He joins with the Father in sending us the Holy Spirit, "another comforter," to guide us into all truth and to walk by our side until Jesus returns for us.
We've Got Spirit, How 'Bout You? - Rev Dcn Bryan Dench
Everything we do in worship and church ceremony is trinitarian. We baptize in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. We pray in the name of the trinity, confirm in the name of the trinity, marry in the name of the trinity, bury in the name of the trinity. As Saint Augustine taught, all the actions of the Godhead involve all three persons of the trinity. Yet the trinity is unfathomable to our mortal understanding. The third person of the trinity, the Holy Spirit, is active in our lives now, our Comforter, our advocate, the one who gives understanding of the scriptures. The Holy Spirit is personal. He works with the word of God to convict us of sin and our need for Jesus as savior. Jesus taught that it was "better" for us that he return to the Father so that the Holy Spirit would come to comfort us and guide us into all truth. We don't want to neglect the Holy Spirit! We also don't want to be deceived into thinking the Holy Spirit could ever teach anything contrary to the word of God. All claims that "the spirit" had revealed something, or someone has "discerned" something "in the spirit," which is often a cover for attempts to rewrite scripture, must be tested against what the scriptures actually say. "The text cannot mean what it never meant." Gordon D. Fee and Douglas Stewart, How to Read the Bible for All It's Worth: A Guide to Understanding the Bible (Grand Rapids: Academie, 1982), 27.
Doers Not Hearers- Very Rev Andrew Faust
Defender of THE Faith - Very Rev Fr Andrew Faust
The Coronation of King Charles reminds us there is but one true faith offering salvation and a path to right standing before God. That path is through the God Man, our savior, Jesus the Christ.
Why Must You Leave Us, Lord? - Rev Fr Francois Mayesi
In A Little While - Rev Dcn Bryan Dench
In chapter 16 of John's Gospel we have an eyewitness account of Jesus's words to his close disciples on the night before he died. He told them "in a little while" they would not see him, but that "in a little while" they would see him again. "Your hearts will rejoice. No one will take your joy from you," he assures them. And later he assures them that, although "the world" will rejoice and gloat when he is executed, he has overcome the world!! Jn 16:33, 1 Jn 5:5.
First Sunday After Easter - Very Rev Andrew Faust
Pharisees are never satisfied; today's Gospel speaks to Jesus' return to the disciples in the upper room.