The Church of the Incarnation

The Church of the Incarnation A timeless faith for a faithless time. Evangelical, Catholic, and Missional. Come and see. Who is the Church of the Incarnation now? Our pastor is the Rt. Rev.

We are a small congregation of roughly 30 members. Thomas J. Kleppinger. We come from a wide variety of backgrounds -- Moravians, Baptists, Presbyterians, Roman Catholics, Lutherans, and Episcopalians. In the 1970's our church separated from the larger Episcopal Church (USA), striving to remain true to the authority of the Scriptures. We have been in Quakertown for nearly 30 years, taking over the

building of Bethel United Methodist Church (Now Quakertown United Methodist Church) in the 1980's. Service Times:
Sundays: 10:30 a.m. Wednesdays: 7:00 p.m.

THE FOURTEENTH SUNDAY AFTER TRINITY Our preacher on the Lord's Day is Father Deacon Loren.We will have an indoor picnic...
09/05/2026

THE FOURTEENTH SUNDAY AFTER TRINITY

Our preacher on the Lord's Day is Father Deacon Loren.

We will have an indoor picnic for The Post-Service Fellowship.

There is a theology of labor. In its simplicity, labor is good. Adam tended the Garden of Eden, and we can expect there will be work we will do when the Kingdom comes in its fullness. The Lord has appointed man to work with his own hands to eat his own bread.

The meaning of Liturgy in Greek is the work of the people of God. There is nothing we have that we have not received from the Lord, and it is our bounden duty to give thanks for what we have received from His gracious hand, most especially the redemption of the world by the Person and Work of the Lord Jesus Christ, the Means of Grace (Word and Sacraments) and the hope of glory.

Joseph was a carpenter, Paul a tentmaker, and Peter a fisherman. The Incarnate God humbled Himself to assist Joseph as He redeemed the time to begin His ministry at the canonical age of thirty. The Old Testament Temple and the places we gather as the Church are adorned with beauty which is the work of man. What is to the Glory of God, aides us in our devotion as we are taught visibly and by hearing. It is God's desire to dwell with us to be our God and we His people. We look for the city of God coming down from heaven and where God will dwell with us forever.

We give thanks unto the Lord for the skills He has given us to labor for the good of others, and for places of employment.

"Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord." (I Corinthians 15:58)

Hymns: 281 344 449 255

Please join our Lord's Day Liturgy at 10:30 a.m. from your computer, tablet or smartphone on Zoom with the following link.

https://zoom.us/j/82276401025 Enter meeting passcode: Jesus

THE THIRTEENTH SUNDAY AFTER TRINITY "TO ABRAHAM AND HIS SEED WERE THE PROMISES MADE." + GALATIANS 3:16The Apostle Paul ...
08/29/2026

THE THIRTEENTH SUNDAY AFTER TRINITY

"TO ABRAHAM AND HIS SEED WERE THE PROMISES MADE."
+ GALATIANS 3:16

The Apostle Paul says the Lord's work of creation is sufficient for everyone to know God is. (Romans 1:20) However, the creation and this knowledge is corrupted by sin, requiring His Special Revelation to know Him. The Word of God is precise to save us from error in religion. Believing something does not make it so. We have a reasonable Faith, that lead us into all truth.

The Apostle Peter cautions Scripture is of no private interpretation. The Faith of the Church has been delivered by Christ to His Apostles. The rejection of this authority results in the chaos of so many men, so many opinions, for all are not of the mind of Christ. Sola Scriptura is not sufficient apart from the Church. Satan is the great deceiver and everyone does what seems right in his own eyes. Those who read Scripture without prejudice, embrace the Catholic Faith of the Apostles.

The Apostle Paul corrects the misunderstanding of the promises the Lord made to Abraham. They were never to his physical descendants as many seeds, but specifically to one Seed, the Lord Jesus Christ. He is our Prophet, Priest and King, for which Israel was chosen to bring into the world.

Jesus is the Promised Seed, and Abraham rejoiced to see the Day of Christ in the "Isaac Experience." He obediently set out to sacrifice his only son in whom resided all the promises of God, accounting God would raise him from the dead to fulfill His Word. When he told Isaac God would provide the sacrifice, he was trusting what the Lord said to our parents when they sinned, that the Seed of the Woman would crush the head of the serpent.

Faith has always been the key to inheritance, never family lineage. One is not made an inheritor of the promises having Abraham for their physical father, but by becoming his spiritual children by adoption and grace. The relationship is spiritual, never carnal. St. Paul says by faith in Christ, we are made the heirs of the promises of God as the spiritual children of Abraham.

The Apostle Paul makes this distinction when he says, "Not all Israel is Israel." He uses this line to explain that physical birth or ethnic lineage does not define a person's spiritual standing or inclusion into God's covenant promises. The same can be said of the Church. That is why Jesus said to let the wheat and tares grow together until the time of the harvest, when we will be known by our fruits. Not everyone who says, "Lord, Lord, shall enter the Kingdom of Heaven, but he who does the will of the Father in heaven." Here we must be like Christ who came down to do the will of His Father in heaven.

The Law was added because of transgression to know sin until the Seed should come to whom the promises were made. It bring condemnation as the schoolmaster to lead us to Christ for salvation. If we could be saved by our goodness, the death of Christ would not be necessary. There is no law given which could have given life, or righteousness. The Apostle says the Law which came 430 years after the promise of God to Abraham, cannot disannul. Jesus fulfilled the Law in His Person in our behalf.

Referring to Christ as the Seed, began in the Garden with God's first promise of salvation. The Seed of the Woman would crush the head of the serpent, who would bruise His heel in the process. When Jesus referred to His Blessed Mother as Woman, He was not being disrespectful or distant toward her. He was establishing she is that Woman whose Seed brings salvation. Mary is the second Eve. This title mirrors Jesus as the "Second Adam." Mary's obedience to God - Be it unto me according to thy Word - corrects the disobedience of the first Eve. Her choice brings forth the Savior into the world. To keep it absolutely clear, Mary rejoices in God her Savior. She was a pure Virgin by God's work of grace in her. She was without sin when she conceived in her womb the sinless Christ. The doctrines of Mary preserve the doctrines of Christ. Mary and Joseph saw to His Circumcision on the eighth day; His Presentation in the Temple on the fortieth; the keeping of the Passover every year in Jerusalem; the Sabbath prayers; and His earliest understanding of the Scriptures.

The Lord could not have chosen any woman for this purpose. She had to be an Israelite, of the royal House of David; she had to be a Virgin. She had to be sinless so Jesus could be born without sin. He was made in all points as we are, sin being the only exception. He fulfilled all righteousness in His Person to do the Work of offering Himself as both Priest and Victim for our sin. God Himself provided the sacrifice, as Abraham saw and believed. God was in Christ reconciling the world unto Himself.

Jesus is Israel who fulfills God's promises to Abraham. When He completed His Work, Jerusalem was destroyed and the people dispersed. It is by faith in Him, that we are made the spiritual children of Abraham and heirs of the promise, and with him "to look for a city whose builder and maker is God." (Hebrews 11:10). We are passing through this present life as strangers and pilgrims whose citizenship is rightly in heaven. We are on our way to the new Jerusalem coming down from heaven as the Promised Land where we will dwell with God forever. Jesus is our assurance, for -

"TO ABRAHAM AND HIS SEED WERE THE PROMISES MADE."

Hymns: 267 264 260 545

Please join our Lord's Day Liturgy at 10:30 a.m. from your computer, tablet or smartphone on Zoom with the following link.
https://zoom.us/j/82276401025 Enter meeting passcode: Jesus

THE TWELFTH SUNDAY AFTER TRINITY The Gospel for this Sunday is the record of our Lord healing the man born deaf and dum...
08/22/2026

THE TWELFTH SUNDAY AFTER TRINITY

The Gospel for this Sunday is the record of our Lord healing the man born deaf and dumb. Those who witnessed His miracle confessed, "He hath done all things well, He maketh both the deaf to hear and the dumb to speak."

We live in a world of sin, and through our Lord's miracles, the curtain is lifted to give us a glimpse into His coming Kingdom where there will be no sin. It will be Paradise Restored! The lion will lie down with the lamb. There will be no pain and suffering, no tears, and life will be eternal without ending.

Jesus is the Lord of Creation who brought all things into being out of nothing. He sustains His creation moment by moment. By His stripes He heals our infirmities and is the saving health of His people who believe on Him. He assures us there will be no sin in His Kingdom! and no consequence of sin. There will be no pain and suffering, no disease of body, no accidents that cause the loss of limbs or life.

Sin is a culture of death that affects all creation. Life is destroyed in the womb; and euthanasia is the world's answer when it determines there is no quality of life. In this world of sin, our Lord gives us His grace which is sufficient for us. He gives medicine to heal the body of sickness; and medicine to heal the soul in His Holy Sacraments. The Apostle Peter assures us the sufferings of this present life are not worthy to be compared to the glory that shall be revealed in us. This physical life is terminal, but those who are born again from above into the Kingdom, have the life of Christ which begins now and is eternal.

Our preacher is Father Deacon Loren.

Hymns: 280 458 409 487

Please join our Lord's Day Liturgy at 10:30 a.m. from your computer, tablet or smartphone on Zoom with the following link.
https://zoom.us/j/82276401025 Enter meeting passcode: Jesus

THE ELEVENTH SUNDAY AFTER TRINITY "GOD BE MERCIFUL TO ME A SINNER." + SAINT LUKE 1...
08/15/2026

THE ELEVENTH SUNDAY AFTER TRINITY

"GOD BE MERCIFUL TO ME A SINNER."
+ SAINT LUKE 18:13

The were four major parties within Judaism during our Lord's time according to Josephus the historian.

The Pharisees believed in the oral law, the resurrection of the dead, angels, and a divine afterlife; they focused on everyday piety and Torah study.
The Sadducees were made up of the wealthy priestly and aristocratic elite; they rejected the oral law, did not believe in angels, an afterlife or resurrection, and focused strictly on the written Torah and Temple sacrifices.
The Essenes were an ascetic, isolated monastic group (often linked to the Dead Sea Scrolls) who lived separate communal lives awaiting divine intervention.
The Zealots were radical political fighters dedicated to violently overthrowing Roman rule in Judea.

The Apostle Paul had every reason to have confidence in the works of the flesh for righteousness. He was a Roman citizen by birth through his father, and as a Jew by his mother, he was "Circumcised the eighth day, of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of the Hebrews; as touching the law, a Pharisee; Concerning zeal, persecuting the church; touching the righteousness which is in the law, blameless."

Yet in spite of his excellent pedigree, he said, "Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ." (Philippians 3) As a child of Abraham, he was trusting Christ his righteousness before God.

Jesus spoke the Parable of the Pharisee and the Publican to those who were trusting in their own righteousness, and despised others. Self-righteousness is always determined by the subjective standard of right and wrong. Jesus observed (St. Mark 7:7f), the Jewish people laid aside the commandments of God to hold the traditions of men, making the Word of God of none effect. He is not attacking the Holy Tradition of the Apostles. Righteous judgment is by the objective standard of God to realize all have sinned and fallen short of His glory. Only He is good, there is no health in us.

Clinging to the self-righteousness of man-made tradition, the Pharisees despised those who failed their litmus test of morality. When you underestimate your own sin, the sins of others are deemed to be far worse. The Lord will never ask you about the sins of others, you will only give an account for your own.

Two men went up to the Temple to pray. The Pharisee thanked God he was not as other men: extortioners, unjust, adulterers or even as the publican. A publican was despised because he collected taxes for the Romans. St. James (2:10) establishes that if you fail God's law in just one point, you are guilty of all of it. A sinner never has standing to take pride in sins left undone.

The Pharisee reminded God of his goodness. "I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess." These laudable works are not the whole of one's duty before God. Jesus said (St. Matthew 23:23), "Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cu**in, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone."

There are those who believe because Jesus kept the Law, it is not applicable to them. "Free from the Law, O happy condition, I may sin all I want, And still have remission." Our Lord enjoined every one of the Ten Commandments upon us as our moral duty. He lauded the paying of tithes, but included judgment, mercy and faith. The Sabbath is a day for all creation to rest. The Christian is not to forsake the assembling of the Body of Christ. Jesus did not abolish the Law, but fulfilled it in our behalf to clothe us in His righteousness of obedience to stand in the presence of the Holy God.

The work of the publican made him no better or worse than others, provided he was just by charging only the amount required. Many charged more for personal gain. There were merchants who used unjust weights and measures to profit thereby. They were to be honest by using a "good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over."

We are to avoid sin; we are to avoid the occasion of sin; we are to avoid the appearance of sin; as our Christian duty, but this does not give license to judge ourselves better than others and despise them for their sins. Everybody has a personal struggle with particular sin. Christians are not exempt. You are assured that with every temptation, God provides a means of escape to attain holiness without which you cannot see the Lord.

God calls you be holy even as He is holy. He holds Himself to the same standard to which He calls you. He can never be anything but the Holy God. He is without body, parts or passion, and because He cannot change, we are not consumed.

The Publican also prayed. His words were few. He would not so much as lift up his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner. In the presence of the Holy God, he understood who he truly was. Like the angels in heaven, he veiled his eyes in the presence of the Almighty, desiring mercy.

Liturgical worship spares us from the whims of the priest and presents theological concepts that have been tried and found true to which we can readily assent with Amen. It lifts us into the presence of the Holy God, not trusting in our own righteous, but His manifold and great mercies, that we may do down to our homes justified. We fail in what we ought to do. Everyone is capable of doing that which is most repulsive. Instead of despising others, we should say, "There, but for the grace of God, go I." We have boldness to enter the presence of God clothed in the righteousness of Jesus Christ, to obtain mercy and grace to help in time of need. Our only plea before the righteous and holy God is

"GOD BE MERCIFUL TO ME A SINNER."

Hymns: 577 298 394 517

Please join our Lord's Day Liturgy at 10:30 a.m. from your computer, tablet or smartphone on Zoom with the following link.
https://zoom.us/j/82276401025 Enter meeting passcode: Jesus

THE TENTH SUNDAY AFTER TRINITY The Gospel records Jesus weeping over the city of Jerusalem for not knowing the things w...
08/08/2026

THE TENTH SUNDAY AFTER TRINITY

The Gospel records Jesus weeping over the city of Jerusalem for not knowing the things which belong to its peace. He predicted its destruction which the Romans accomplished in 70 A.D when they laid it even with the ground without one stone on top of another. A mosque now occupies the Temple mount.

Previously the ten tribes of Israel had been dispersed into the world, and now Judah would likewise experience diaspora. As the Gospel was preached to the nations, some who are called to faith in Christ were of the Lost Tribes of Jewish ancestry along with Gentiles. In these end times, the Jews are being gathered in.

Present day Judaism is not the same as the Old Testament, rather it is Rabbinical Judaism. Adjustments had to be made by the rabbis to the religion promulgated by God through Moses to account for what is now lacking. They are void of Temple, priest and king. They have no sacrifice for sin, because that which is perfect has come in the Lord Jesus Christ. He offered Himself on Calvary as both Priest and Victim to save us from our sins. The Temple was destroyed because the new covenant is in the blood of Christ. That which is perfect has come.

Jesus Christ is King in the royal house of David, fulfilling the promise the Lord made to him. Christians confess Jesus is Prophet, Priest and King who fulfills the Old Testament types. God is sovereign! telling us the end from the beginning. He is bringing to pass His purpose. The nation of Israel played its part in bringing forth the Messiah into the world. Salvation is of the Jews. Christ is the fulfillment of the promise made to Abraham. It is by faith in Christ that we are made the children of Abraham and heirs of the promise.

The world seeks equality in religion by claiming there are three great monotheistic religions. There is only one. Christianity proclaims the true God as He has revealed Himself as One God existing in the Three Persons of Father, Son and Holy Ghost. This is the God who appeared to Abraham. The world says all reads lead to God. They don't. Jesus Christ, alone, is the Way, the Truth and the Life. Everything else is false and can lead only to death. Our sufficiency is Christ: others rely on their goodness and only God is good.

The destruction of the Temple is the vivid picture that Christ has fulfilled the Old Testament and you reject Him to your peril. Abraham rejoiced to see His day, he saw it and was glad. There is none other Name given among men whereby you must be saved.

Our preacher this Lord's Day is Father-Deacon Loren.

Hymns: 367 398 373 384

Please join our Lord's Day Liturgy at 10:30 a.m. from your computer, tablet or smartphone on Zoom with the following link.
https://zoom.us/j/82276401025 Enter meeting passcode: Jesus

THE NINTH SUNDAY AFTER TRINITY 'IT WAS MEET THAT WE SHOULD MAKE MERRY, AND BE GLAD: FOR THIS THY BROTHER WAS DEAD, AND ...
08/01/2026

THE NINTH SUNDAY AFTER TRINITY

'IT WAS MEET THAT WE SHOULD MAKE MERRY, AND BE GLAD: FOR THIS THY BROTHER WAS DEAD, AND IS ALIVE AGAIN; AND WAS LOST, AND IS FOUND." + SAINT LUKE 15:32

The Parable of the Prodigal Son is not the glorification of the sins of two brothers, but the Everlasting Love of the Father. The younger son wasted his father's substance with riotous living, the elder son was possessed with the sin of jealousy and the spirit of unforgivingness. The father loved them both while yet sinners.

Sin is insidious. The more often you commit a particular sin, your conscience is seared with a hardened moral sense, spiritual insensitivity and a loss of the feeling of guilt. We judge our sin by feelings, not God's objective standard of morality.

Desires can be disastrous, as Eve attests. Indulgence in sin affects us both spiritually and physically. It harms our relationship with God, with others, and ultimately ourselves. Sin appears pleasurable, but it consumes us as its wage is death.

The Prodigal wasted his inheritance on riotous living in a strange land far from home. The Lord allowed him to fall into such a low estate, he was reduced to eating food intended for despised animals. In his extreme hunger, he remembered his father's servants had bread sufficient and to spare, while he was perishing. He determined he'd arise and go to his father. He was not worthy to be his son, but he would better off as his father's hired servant.

Take due notice of our Lord's teaching on repentance. The son first turned form his sin and returned to his father. He rehearsed aforetime what he would say upon arriving to find favor. "Father, I have sinned against heaven, and before thee, and am no more worthy to be called thy son: make me as one of thy hired servants." All of this was true. He rebelled against God and family, forfeiting his sonship on both accounts. He would seek his father's mercy in order to eat and live.

While yet a great way off, his father saw him coming and had compassion. He ran to him and fell on his neck and kissed him. He was more than anxious to receive back his son. Sin rendered him as good as dead, but by returning home he was alive again.

The Prodigal never got to fully express his rehearsed speech. Before he could ask to be a servant, his father restored him to sonship. He said to his servants, "Bring forth the best robe, and put it on him; and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet: and bring hither the fatted calf, and kill it; and let us eat, and be merry: for this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found."

The Lord is doing for us better things than we can either desire or pray for. He answers before we ask. He is more willing to forgive than we are to ask. Psalm 86:5 is clear — God’s very character is forgiving. He actually wants to forgive us. He is “ready to forgive.” The parable is not about the sins of the sons, but the love of the father. The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life. No matter how many steps we take away from God into a far country, we return in one. The Lord's property is always to have mercy and forgive. He restores us to the position we have forfeited by sin.

And they began to be merry. Now enter the elder son. Jesus was speaking to Jewish hearers who presumed to keep the law of God with no need of salvation. They were the biological children of Abraham, but totally missed the point. Abraham believed God and it was counted unto him for righteousness. Jesus says he rejoiced to see His day in the "Isaac experience" where God Himself provided the sacrifice. Abraham believed the promised Christ for salvation, first made to Adam and Even when they sinned.
The promise of God was to him and his Seed, which the Apostle Paul makes clear is the Lord Jesus Christ. He emphatically says the promise is not to seeds, plural, as of many, but to Seed, singular, Jesus Christ. He is Israel. It is by faith in Him that we are made the spiritual children of Abraham by adoption and grace, and heirs according to the promise.

The elder son was most unhappy his father forgave his wayward brother and restored him to sonship. He complained he was not worthy of a party after devouring his father's living with harlots. Absolutely disgusting! and certainly unredeemable. He should have died in his sins for not keeping his first estate as he had. He was not deserving of his father's love which he earned by obedience.

He answered his father, "Lo, these many years do I serve thee, neither transgressed I at any time thy commandment: and yet thou never gavest me a kid, that I might make merry with my friends: but as soon as this thy son was come, which hath devoured thy living with harlots, thou hast killed for him the fatted calf."

The reward is never by our goodness, but the Father's mercy. It is lawful for his father to do what he will with his own. He gave one son his inheritance which he wasted; he gave the other son all the benefits of obedience. "Son, thou art ever with me, and all that I have is thine." By obedience he avoided suffering the consequence of sin. It was meet and right to rejoice that his younger son was dead and is alive again, and this did not diminish anything from the elder brother.

"All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God." One squandered his inheritance with riotous living; the other was jealous and unforgiving. None are good, save God. Every saint has a past; every sinner has a future. Together we say, "Lord, I am not worthy!"

Grace is undeserved. We turn from our foolish ways to find our way home to become a partaker of the Father's blessing. The angels in heaven rejoice at the conversion of every sinner. It is the right thing to do when one passes from death to life. There is nothing we have that we have not received from God's gracious hand. Nor are we diminished when His love and mercy is given to another sinner.

"IT WAS MEET THAT WE SHOULD MAKE MERRY, AND BE GLAD: FOR THIS THY BROTHER WAS DEAD, AND IS ALIVE AGAIN; AND WAS LOST, AND IS FOUND."

Hymns: 286 434 438 553

Please join our Lord's Day Liturgy at 10:30 a.m. from your computer, tablet or smartphone on Zoom with the following link.
https://zoom.us/j/82276401025 Enter meeting passcode: Jesus

THE EIGHTH SUNDAY AFTER TRINITY In the Collect for the Day, we beseech the Lord to put away from us all hurtful things,...
07/25/2026

THE EIGHTH SUNDAY AFTER TRINITY

In the Collect for the Day, we beseech the Lord to put away from us all hurtful things, and to give us those things which are profitable for us. The Gospel gives warning to beware of false prophets. They appear like sheep who are disguised as ravening wolves seeking whom they may devour. Scripture says Satan is able to appear for a season as an angel of light. (He is a fallen angel.) That is how he deceives us. This requires us to be on our guard spiritually, by trying the spirits to ascertain they are from God. False spirits appear to be the real thing. Trust but verify!

Our standard of judgement is the Word of God. No spirit sent from God will contradict Holy Scripture. The Holy Spirit never speaks of Himself, but reveals to us the things of Christ, who is the ultimate and final revelation of God. What is not according to Scripture is false on its face.

We are in the midst of spiritual warfare against wickedness in high places. The enemy is legion and will resort to anything in order to deceive us to depart from the Faith. When our Lord was led into the wilderness to be tempted by Satan, He resisted him three times by appealing to the Word of God for His sword of defense. This is why we must study to know the Scriptures, for they are our weapon of defense in the trials of this life.

Jesus said, "Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them. Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shalt enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven." His will is made known through Holy Scripture that we might know the way in which we shall go.

Father-Deacon Loren will be our preacher.

Hymns: 345 393 189 349

Please join our Lord's Day Liturgy at 10:30 a.m. from your computer, tablet or smartphone on Zoom with the following link.
https://zoom.us/j/82276401025 Enter meeting passcode: Jesus

THE SEVENTH SUNDAY AFTER TRINITY "JESUS SENT HIM AWAY, SAYING, RETURN TO THINE OWN HOUSE, AND SHEW HOW GREAT THINGS GOD...
07/18/2026

THE SEVENTH SUNDAY AFTER TRINITY

"JESUS SENT HIM AWAY, SAYING, RETURN TO THINE OWN HOUSE, AND SHEW HOW GREAT THINGS GOD HATH DONE UNTO THEE. AND HE WENT HIS WAY, AND PUBLISHED THROUGHOUT THE WHOLE CITY HOW GREAT THINGS JESUS HAD DONE UNTO HIM." + SAINT LUKE 8:39

The healing of the mad-man of the Gadarenes possessed of devils by our Lord, has an interesting conclusion. Jesus instructed him to proclaim the great things God had done unto him; and he confessed throughout the city the great things Jesus had done unto Him. He was a Gentile who did not stumble at the Incarnation as he beheld the glory of God in the face of the Lord Jesus Christ.

The Prophets and Apostles gave glory to God for His miracles. After healing a lame man in Lystra, the crowd mistook the Apostle Paul for Mercury because he was the chief speaker, and assumed Barnabas was Jupiter, the supreme god. When the priest of Jupiter brought oxen for sacrifice, the Apostles responded, "Sirs, why do ye these things? We also are men of like passions with you, and preach unto you that ye should turn from these vanities unto the living God, which made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and all things that are therein." (Acts 14:12f) The one true God never shares His glory with another for the great things He has done.

Many who confess Jesus with their lips, deny Him by their works. The Kingdom of Heaven is not attained by saying, "Lord, Lord." but by doing the will of the Father. We must believe in the heart what we profess with the lips.

The law of prayer is the law of belief. Liturgy expresses doctrine. We confess with our lips what we believe in the heart. Jesus quoted the Prophet Isaiah who said (St. Matthew 15), "This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me. But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men."

Christ calls you into the fellowship of His sufferings. We wrestle against spiritual wickedness in high places by earnestly contending for the Faith He once delivered. We try the spirits to resist damnable lies. There can be no compromise or surrender of the Catholic Faith and Order established by the Apostles with Christ's authority.

Jesus entered the Gentile country of the Gadarenes, where He met a man possessed by devils a long time. He wore no clothes, and abode in the tombs. for he could not be bound with fetters and chains. The devastating effects of his spiritual condition, resulted in the loss of his mind and identity, to live in isolation from society alone among the dead. There was no health in him! When our Lord approached him, he fell down and the evil spirits within cried out, "What have I to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of God most high?" They knew God, but glorified Him not.

Sin is rebellion against God. Satan deludes us to find pleasure contrary to God's perfect will. "There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death" (Proverbs 14:12) Satan is the father of lies and the great deceiver. We try the spirits to ascertain they are from God. None can say Jesus is Lord except by the Holy Spirit. (I Corinthians 12:3)

The unclean spirits knew their eternal fate, and besought Jesus not to command them into the deep - the bottomless pit of hell. He sent them into a herd of 2,000 swine, who immediately in their madness ran violently down a steep place into the lake, and were choked. Jesus our great High Priest, portrayed the Day of Atonement before the Gentiles. The swine became the scapegoat taking away the evil from the one whom they possessed, running into the abyss. Jesus created a clean heart within him, made him whole again with a pure spirit.

The holiness of God demands propitiation for sin. Of His tender mercy, He gave His only Son Jesus Christ to suffer death upon the Cross for our redemption; who made there (by his one oblation of himself once offered) a full, perfect, and sufficient sacrifice, oblation, and satisfaction, for the sins of the whole world; and did institute a perpetual memory of that his precious death and sacrifice, until his coming again. Jesus paid a debt He did not owe, because we have a debt we cannot pay. Those who refuse so great salvation, suffer the consequences of their choice.

We are born dead in trespasses and sin, alienated from the Commonwealth of Israel. Holy Baptism washes away sin and unites us to Christ in His Church, the custodian of the Means of Grace: The Word and the Sacraments. We are buried with Christ in His death, and raised to newness of life, being born from above. The grace of the Church enables us in the spiritual journey! "Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and glory, and blessing." (Revelation 5:12). There was no other good enough / To pay the price of sin. / He only could unlock the gate / Of heav’n and let us in. He is called Jesus: Jehovah is salvation.

Jesus said not to fear the destruction of the body, but the destruction of body and soul in hell. He has conquered our last enemy, death, to stand the judgement that follows. He is our victory over the world, the flesh and devil. He makes us more than conquerors by His blood. The confession by the evil spirits that Jesus is the Son of the most high God, was not lost on the man whom the Lord healed.

"JESUS SENT HIM AWAY, SAYING, RETURN TO THINE OWN HOUSE, AND SHEW HOW GREAT THINGS GOD HATH DONE UNTO THEE. AND HE WENT HIS WAY, AND PUBLISHED THROUGHOUT THE WHOLE CITY HOW GREAT THINGS JESUS HAD DONE UNTO HIM.

Hymns: 347 293 435 570
Please join our Lord's Day Liturgy at 10:30 a.m. from your computer, tablet or smartphone on Zoom with the following link.
https://zoom.us/j/82276401025 Enter meeting passcode: Jesus

Address

44 S 8th Street
Quakertown, PA
18951

Opening Hours

10:30am - 12pm

Telephone

+12155383787

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