Twenty-second Sunday after Pentecost
October 12, 2008

Prayer of the Day
Lord of the feast, you have prepared a table before all peoples and poured out your life with abundance. Call us again to your banquet. Strengthen us by what is honorable, just, and pure, and transform us into a people of righteousness and peace, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord.
Isaiah 25:1-9
God's Hand Rests on This Mountain
1-5 God, you are my God. I celebrate you. I praise you.
You've done your share of miracle-wonders,
well-thought-out plans, solid and sure.
Here you've reduced the city to rubble,
the strong city to a pile of stones.
The enemy Big City is a non-city,
never to be a city again.
Superpowers will see it and honor you,
brutal oppressors bow in worshipful reverence.
They'll see that you take care of the poor,
that you take care of poor people in trouble,
Provide a warm, dry place in bad weather,
provide a cool place when it's hot.
Brutal oppressors are like a winter blizzard
and vicious foreigners like high noon in the desert.
But you, shelter from the storm and shade from the sun,
shut the mouths of the big-mouthed bullies.
6-8But here on this mountain, God-of-the-Angel-Armies
will throw a feast for all the people of the world,
A feast of the finest foods, a feast with vintage wines,
a feast of seven courses, a feast lavish with gourmet desserts.
And here on this mountain, God will banish
the pall of doom hanging over all peoples,
The shadow of doom darkening all nations.
Yes, he'll banish death forever.
And God will wipe the tears from every face.
He'll remove every sign of disgrace
From his people, wherever they are.
Yes! God says so!
9-10Also at that time, people will say,
"Look at what's happened! This is our God!
We waited for him and he showed up and saved us!
This God, the one we waited for!
Let's celebrate, sing the joys of his salvation.
God's hand rests on this mountain!"
Exodus 32:1-14
"Make Gods for Us"
1 When the people realized that Moses was taking forever in coming down off the mountain, they rallied around Aaron and said, "Do something. Make gods for us who will lead us. That Moses, the man who got us out of Egypt—who knows what's happened to him?"
2-4 So Aaron told them, "Take off the gold rings from the ears of your wives and sons and daughters and bring them to me." They all did it; they removed the gold rings from their ears and brought them to Aaron. He took the gold from their hands and cast it in the form of a calf, shaping it with an engraving tool.
The people responded with enthusiasm: "These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up from Egypt!"
5 Aaron, taking in the situation, built an altar before the calf.
Aaron then announced, "Tomorrow is a feast day to GOD!"
6 Early the next morning, the people got up and offered Whole-Burnt-Offerings and brought Peace-Offerings. The people sat down to eat and drink and then began to party. It turned into a wild party!
7-8 GOD spoke to Moses, "Go! Get down there! Your people whom you brought up from the land of Egypt have fallen to pieces. In no time at all they've turned away from the way I commanded them: They made a molten calf and worshiped it. They've sacrificed to it and said, 'These are the gods, O Israel, that brought you up from the land of Egypt!'"
9-10 GOD said to Moses, "I look at this people—oh! what a stubborn, hard-headed people! Let me alone now, give my anger free reign to burst into flames and incinerate them. But I'll make a great nation out of you."
11-13 Moses tried to calm his GOD down. He said, "Why, GOD, would you lose your temper with your people? Why, you brought them out of Egypt in a tremendous demonstration of power and strength. Why let the Egyptians say, 'He had it in for them—he brought them out so he could kill them in the mountains, wipe them right off the face of the Earth.' Stop your anger. Think twice about bringing evil against your people! Think of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, your servants to whom you gave your word, telling them 'I will give you many children, as many as the stars in the sky, and I'll give this land to your children as their land forever.'"
14 And GOD did think twice. He decided not to do the evil he had threatened against his people.
Psalm 23
A David Psalm
1-3 GOD, my shepherd! I don't need a thing.
You have bedded me down in lush meadows,
you find me quiet pools to drink from.
True to your word,
you let me catch my breath
and send me in the right direction.
4 Even when the way goes through
Death Valley,
I'm not afraid
when you walk at my side.
Your trusty shepherd's crook
makes me feel secure.
5 You serve me a six-course dinner
right in front of my enemies.
You revive my drooping head;
my cup brims with blessing.
6 Your beauty and love chase after me
every day of my life.
I'm back home in the house of GOD
for the rest of my life.
Psalm 106: 1-6,19-23
1-3 Hallelujah! Thank GOD! And why?
Because he's good, because his love lasts.
But who on earth can do it—
declaim GOD's mighty acts, broadcast all his praises?
You're one happy man when you do what's right,
one happy woman when you form the habit of justice.
4-5 Remember me, GOD, when you enjoy your people;
include me when you save them;
I want to see your chosen succeed,
celebrate with your celebrating nation,
join the Hallelujahs of your pride and joy!
6-12 We've sinned a lot, both we and our parents;
We've fallen short, hurt a lot of people.
After our parents left Egypt,
they took your wonders for granted,
forgot your great and wonderful love.
They were barely beyond the Red Sea
when they defied the High God
—the very place he saved them!
—the place he revealed his amazing power!
He rebuked the Red Sea so that it dried up on the spot
—he paraded them right through!
—no one so much as got wet feet!
He saved them from a life of oppression,
pried them loose from the grip of the enemy.
Then the waters flowed back on their oppressors;
there wasn't a single survivor.
Then they believed his words were true
and broke out in songs of praise.
19-22 They cast in metal a bull calf at Horeb
and worshiped the statue they'd made.
They traded the Glory
for a cheap piece of sculpture—a grass-chewing bull!
They forgot God, their very own Savior,
who turned things around in Egypt,
Who created a world of wonders in the Land of Ham,
who gave that stunning performance at the Red Sea.
23-27 Fed up, God decided to get rid of them—
and except for Moses, his chosen, he would have.
But Moses stood in the gap and deflected God's anger,
prevented it from destroying them utterly.
They went on to reject the Blessed Land,
didn't believe a word of what God promised.
They found fault with the life they had
and turned a deaf ear to GOD's voice.
Exasperated, God swore
that he'd lay them low in the desert,
Scattering their children hither and yon,
strewing them all over the earth.
Philippians 4: 1-9
1 My dear, dear friends! I love you so much. I do want the very best for you. You make me feel such joy, fill me with such pride. Don't waver. Stay on track, steady in God.
Pray About Everything
2I urge Euodia and Syntyche to iron out their differences and make up. God doesn't want his children holding grudges.
3And, oh, yes, Syzygus, since you're right there to help them work things out, do your best with them. These women worked for the Message hand in hand with Clement and me, and with the other veterans—worked as hard as any of us. Remember, their names are also in the Book of Life.
4-5Celebrate God all day, every day. I mean, revel in him! Make it as clear as you can to all you meet that you're on their side, working with them and not against them. Help them see that the Master is about to arrive. He could show up any minute!
6-7Don't fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns. Before you know it, a sense of God's wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. It's wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life.
8-9Summing it all up, friends, I'd say you'll do best by filling your minds and meditating on things true, noble, reputable, authentic, compelling, gracious—the best, not the worst; the beautiful, not the ugly; things to praise, not things to curse. Put into practice what you learned from me, what you heard and saw and realized. Do that, and God, who makes everything work together, will work you into his most excellent harmonies.
Gospel Acclamation
Alleluia. This is the LORD for whom we have waited; let us be glad and rejoice in God’s salvation. Alleluia.
Matthew 22: 1-14
The Story of the Wedding Banquet
1-3 Jesus responded by telling still more stories. "God's kingdom," he said, "is like a king who threw a wedding banquet for his son. He sent out servants to call in all the invited guests. And they wouldn't come!
4"He sent out another round of servants, instructing them to tell the guests, 'Look, everything is on the table, the prime rib is ready for carving. Come to the feast!'
5-7"They only shrugged their shoulders and went off, one to weed his garden, another to work in his shop. The rest, with nothing better to do, beat up on the messengers and then killed them. The king was outraged and sent his soldiers to destroy those thugs and level their city.
8-10"Then he told his servants, 'We have a wedding banquet all prepared but no guests. The ones I invited weren't up to it. Go out into the busiest intersections in town and invite anyone you find to the banquet.' The servants went out on the streets and rounded up everyone they laid eyes on, good and bad, regardless. And so the banquet was on—every place filled.
11-13"When the king entered and looked over the scene, he spotted a man who wasn't properly dressed. He said to him, 'Friend, how dare you come in here looking like that!' The man was speechless. Then the king told his servants, 'Get him out of here—fast. Tie him up and ship him to hell. And make sure he doesn't get back in.'
14"That's what I mean when I say, 'Many get invited; only a few make it.'"

EVANGELISTIC SERMON OUTLINE
DATE WRITTEN FOR: October 12, 2008

Title: Clothed in Holiness

Scripture: Matthew 22: 1-14

Proposition or Theme Sentence: The God who invites us into His feast or party will clothe us in His Holiness.

Purpose: The call for us to take upon His Holiness in covering us.

Introduction: What do you listen for in the parable from Jesus about the wedding banquet? Too often, we look at the fact that the original people invited to come to the wedding feast refused to come and the landowner said to his steward to go into the highways and byways and bring in whomever he finds to the wedding feast. I see another alternative in that there was one person who came to the wedding was not appropriately dressed in wedding attire. From my understanding, the customs of the day was the person who provided the wedding feast provided the wedding attire for the guests who were invited, but somehow this person did not accept the wedding attire he was given and did wore only what he came in. There is a similarity to the garment of holiness that God supplies to the people who have come to Him and have placed their full trust in God. This garment is the work of the Holy Spirit in cleansing His disciples from all sins and being made Holy as He is Holy. Just as the garments provided by the wedding party, God provides His Holiness to us who call upon His name and obey what He has asked us to do for His kingdom. How are you doing in receiving the Holiness of God in every area of your life?

I. Jesus shares another parable about the extent of the Kingdom of God.
A. A person who sent the invitations out to people sent his steward to bring the invitees into the wedding banquet.
B. The steward came back and stated that the people invited refused to come to the wedding banquet.
C. The invitee was angry and sent out the steward to bring in people from every place in the highways and byways.

II. The place became full and the wedding banquet began.
A. The father or master came to the wedding banquet and was disappointed that one guest refused to be dressed in the wedding garments provided to him.
B. The man said to the steward to cast this man who refused to dress in the provided wedding garments to be cast into the utter darkness where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth for their punishment received.
C. Jesus shared that this is what will happen to those invited to the wedding feast who are not dressed with the garment of God’s Holiness provided by God, Himself.

III. The 21st century disciples of Jesus are to receive all of God’s Holiness to live in His holiness for His glory to be seen.
A. Jesus calls us first to accept the invitation He has given to us.
B. Jesus calls us to be cleansed and filled with His Holiness in every area of our lives.
C. Jesus says that the garment is provided by His grace, not by anything we provided for us.

Conclusion: We come to the time to allow God to search our hearts and minds that we will be fully obedient to His call upon our lives. Where necessary, we are to come in repentance where we have sinned against God in refusing His grace, not only of salvation but sanctification.

Invitation: We come to the time to receive God’s grace, mercy, and love as we eat of the body of Jesus and drink His blood in what we call the Holy Eucharist. As we come, we sing from the Sing to the Lord hymn#516 “Cleanse Me.”

Let us pray:

Our Father in heaven,
Reveal who you are.
Set the world right;
Do what's best— as above, so below.
Keep us alive with three square meals.
Keep us forgiven with you and forgiving others.
Keep us safe from ourselves and the Devil.
You're in charge!
You can do anything you want!
You're ablaze in beauty!
Yes. Yes. Yes.
In the Name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit
AMEN!

Receive God’s Blessing:

GOD bless you and keep you,
GOD smile on you and gift you,
GOD look you full in the face
and make you prosper.

All of our praise rises to the One who is strong enough to make you strong, exactly as preached in Jesus Christ, precisely as revealed in the mystery kept secret for so long but now an open book through the prophetic Scriptures. All the nations of the world can now know the truth and be brought into obedient belief, carrying out the orders of God, who got all this started, down to the very last letter.
All our praise is focused through Jesus on this incomparably wise God! Yes!

Romans 15
1-2 Those of us who are strong and able in the faith need to step in and lend a hand to those who falter, and not just do what is most convenient for us. Strength is for service, not status. Each one of us needs to look after the good of the people around us, asking ourselves, "How can I help?"
3-6That's exactly what Jesus did. He didn't make it easy for himself by avoiding people's troubles, but waded right in and helped out. "I took on the troubles of the troubled," is the way Scripture puts it. Even if it was written in Scripture long ago, you can be sure it's written for us. God wants the combination of his steady, constant calling and warm, personal counsel in Scripture to come to characterize us, keeping us alert for whatever he will do next. May our dependably steady and warmly personal God develop maturity in you so that you get along with each other as well as Jesus gets along with us all. Then we'll be a choir—not our voices only, but our very lives singing in harmony in a stunning anthem to the God and Father of our Master Jesus!
7-13So reach out and welcome one another to God's glory. Jesus did it; now you do it! Jesus, staying true to God's purposes, reached out in a special way to the Jewish insiders so that the old ancestral promises would come true for them. As a result, the non-Jewish outsiders have been able to experience mercy and to show appreciation to God. Just think of all the Scriptures that will come true in what we do! For instance:

Then I'll join outsiders in a hymn-sing;
I'll sing to your name!
And this one:
Outsiders and insiders, rejoice together!
And again:
People of all nations, celebrate God!
All colors and races, give hearty praise!
And Isaiah's word:
There's the root of our ancestor Jesse,
breaking through the earth and growing tree tall,
Tall enough for everyone everywhere to see and take hope!
Oh! May the God of green hope fill you up with joy, fill you up with peace, so that your believing lives, filled with the life-giving energy of the Holy Spirit, will brim over with hope!
14-16Personally, I've been completely satisfied with who you are and what you are doing. You seem to me to be well-motivated and well-instructed, quite capable of guiding and advising one another. So, my dear friends, don't take my rather bold and blunt language as criticism. It's not criticism. I'm simply underlining how very much I need your help in carrying out this highly focused assignment God gave me, this priestly and gospel work of serving the spiritual needs of the non-Jewish outsiders so they can be presented as an acceptable offering to God, made whole and holy by God's Holy Spirit.
17-21Looking back over what has been accomplished and what I have observed, I must say I am most pleased—in the context of Jesus, I'd even say proud, but only in that context. I have no interest in giving you a chatty account of my adventures, only the wondrously powerful and transformingly present words and deeds of Christ in me that triggered a believing response among the outsiders. In such ways I have trailblazed a preaching of the Message of Jesus all the way from Jerusalem far into northwestern Greece. This has all been pioneer work, bringing the Message only into those places where Jesus was not yet known and worshiped. My text has been,
Those who were never told of him—
they'll see him!
Those who've never heard of him—
they'll get the message!
22-24And that's why it has taken me so long to finally get around to coming to you. But now that there is no more pioneering work to be done in these parts, and since I have looked forward to seeing you for many years, I'm planning my visit. I'm headed for Spain, and expect to stop off on the way to enjoy a good visit with you, and eventually have you send me off with God's blessing.
25-29First, though, I'm going to Jerusalem to deliver a relief offering to the followers of Jesus there. The Greeks—all the way from the Macedonians in the north to the Achaians in the south—decided they wanted to take up a collection for the poor among the believers in Jerusalem. They were happy to do this, but it was also their duty. Seeing that they got in on all the spiritual gifts that flowed out of the Jerusalem community so generously, it is only right that they do what they can to relieve their poverty. As soon as I have done this—personally handed over this "fruit basket"—I'm off to Spain, with a stopover with you in Rome. My hope is that my visit with you is going to be one of Christ's more extravagant blessings.
30-33I have one request, dear friends: Pray for me. Pray strenuously with and for me—to God the Father, through the power of our Master Jesus, through the love of the Spirit—that I will be delivered from the lions' den of unbelievers in Judea. Pray also that my relief offering to the Jerusalem believers will be accepted in the spirit in which it is given. Then, God willing, I'll be on my way to you with a light and eager heart, looking forward to being refreshed by your company. God's peace be with all of you. Oh, yes!

EVANGELISTIC SERMON OUTLINE
DATE WRITTEN FOR: October 12, 2008

Title: The Common Good

Scripture: Romans 15

Proposition or Theme Sentence: Paul is teaching us that we are called to God’s common Good for all people.

Purpose: The coming to grips with our call to not only live Christ to our communities, but to live Christ to people outside our communities.

Introduction: As we coming close to the end of the Book of Romans with this week’s message and next week’s message, we realize that Paul is excited about being called by God to go to the non-Jewish people with the message of Jesus salvation/redemption. We come to realize that Paul so desires to be with the church in Rome on His way to Spain as new territory with the message of Jesus. Yet, Paul desires to go to Jerusalem with the love offering from Gentile Christians to the famine-stricken Messianic Christians. Oh, Paul does desire that His Jewish brothers and sisters to embrace Jesus as the Jewish Messiah, but he realizes how the non-Jews need the message of hope and redemption through the blood and body of Jesus. Listening to Paul, you can almost here is hope that he will soon be with the Roman Christians for short time than on the way to Spain to tap into areas that have not heard the Message of Jesus before. Oh to have the excitement of Paul to go to people who have not yet embrace the truth of Jesus’ Message. The internal fire of a missionary zeal to live and work and teach and preach among people who have not yet embraced Jesus will so embed our lives for God’s glory to be seen. Wait, How do we look for God’s work in our life? I am gaining this passion of God to reach people who have been traditionally outside the church whether they are people with impairments or jus marginalize within society for whatever reason. This passion, this fire, is able to seek for this in our lives and our churches? Lord Jesus, come upon us and the Global Church of the Nazarene to have the fire of revival for the 21st century.

I. Paul talks about a common good to be accomplished within God’s Kingdom.
A. The Jews to embrace Jesus as the Messiah.
B. The non-Jews to hear of Jesus’ Message and embrace Him as their Lord and Savior.
C. The desire that Paul comes and spends time with the Roman Christians.

II. Paul deepest desire to go to Jerusalem with a love offering for the Messianic Jews.
A. Paul shares of the non-Jewish Christians giving thank offering to the Jewish Christians in need.
B. Paul quest to accomplish this task at the same time as being in Jerusalem for the Feast of Pentecost.
C. The quest of Paul to spend time with the Roman Christians and being sent on his way to Spain with their blessings.

III. Paul’s lessons for the 21st century church whether in America or elsewhere in the world.
A. The giving thanks for the people before us for sacrificing that we would come and live in Christ’s way.
B. The giving of love offerings to people in need no matter who they are or where they live.
C. The call of God to go to people who have not yet heard and embraced the Grace and Love of our Lord and Savior, Jesus.

Conclusion: We come to the time to examine our hearts and minds that to see where we are in God’s desire for us. At times, we need to come and repent of our sins and ask God for His Holy Fire in our lives and churches.

Invitation: As we come in seeking more of God for our lives and churches, we come and eat the body of Jesus and drink His blood through the Holy Eucharist. As we come, we sing from the Sing to the Lord hymn#782 “Sent Forth by God’s Blessing.”

Let us pray:

Our Father in heaven,
Reveal who you are.
Set the world right;
Do what's best— as above, so below.
Keep us alive with three square meals.
Keep us forgiven with you and forgiving others.
Keep us safe from ourselves and the Devil.
You're in charge!
You can do anything you want!
You're ablaze in beauty!
Yes. Yes. Yes.
In the Name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit
AMEN!

Receive God’s Blessing:

GOD bless you and keep you,
GOD smile on you and gift you,
GOD look you full in the face
and make you prosper.

All of our praise rises to the One who is strong enough to make you strong, exactly as preached in Jesus Christ, precisely as revealed in the mystery kept secret for so long but now an open book through the prophetic Scriptures. All the nations of the world can now know the truth and be brought into obedient belief, carrying out the orders of God, who got all this started, down to the very last letter.
All our praise is focused through Jesus on this incomparably wise God! Yes!

Day of Thanksgiving (Canada)
October 13, 2008

Prayer of the Day
Almighty God our Father, your generous goodness comes to us new every day. By the work of your Spirit lead us to acknowledge your goodness, give thanks for your benefits, and serve you in willing obedience, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord.
Deuteronomy 8: 7-18
6-9 So it's paramount that you keep the commandments of GOD, your God, walk down the roads he shows you and reverently respect him. GOD is about to bring you into a good land, a land with brooks and rivers, springs and lakes, streams out of the hills and through the valleys. It's a land of wheat and barley, of vines and figs and pomegranates, of olives, oil, and honey. It's land where you'll never go hungry—always food on the table and a roof over your head. It's a land where you'll get iron out of rocks and mine copper from the hills.
10 After a meal, satisfied, bless GOD, your God, for the good land he has given you.
11-16 Make sure you don't forget GOD, your God, by not keeping his commandments, his rules and regulations that I command you today. Make sure that when you eat and are satisfied, build pleasant houses and settle in, see your herds and flocks flourish and more and more money come in, watch your standard of living going up and up—make sure you don't become so full of yourself and your things that you forget GOD, your God,
the God who delivered you from Egyptian slavery;
the God who led you through that huge and fearsome wilderness, those desolate, arid badlands crawling with fiery snakes and scorpions;
the God who gave you water gushing from hard rock;
the God who gave you manna to eat in the wilderness, something your ancestors had never heard of, in order to give you a taste of the hard life, to test you so that you would be prepared to live well in the days ahead of you.
17-18 If you start thinking to yourselves, "I did all this. And all by myself. I'm rich. It's all mine!"—well, think again. Remember that GOD, your God, gave you the strength to produce all this wealth so as to confirm the covenant that he promised to your ancestors—as it is today.
Psalm 65
A David Psalm
1-2 Silence is praise to you, Zion-dwelling God,
And also obedience.
You hear the prayer in it all.
2-8 We all arrive at your doorstep sooner
or later, loaded with guilt,
Our sins too much for us—
but you get rid of them once and for all.
Blessed are the chosen! Blessed the guest
at home in your place!
We expect our fill of good things
in your house, your heavenly manse.
All your salvation wonders
are on display in your trophy room.
Earth-Tamer, Ocean-Pourer,
Mountain-Maker, Hill-Dresser,
Muzzler of sea storm and wave crash,
of mobs in noisy riot—
Far and wide they'll come to a stop,
they'll stare in awe, in wonder.
Dawn and dusk take turns
calling, "Come and worship."
9-13 Oh, visit the earth,
ask her to join the dance!
Deck her out in spring showers,
fill the God-River with living water.
Paint the wheat fields golden.
Creation was made for this!
Drench the plowed fields,
soak the dirt clods
With rainfall as harrow and rake
bring her to blossom and fruit.
Snow-crown the peaks with splendor,
scatter rose petals down your paths,
All through the wild meadows, rose petals.
Set the hills to dancing,
Dress the canyon walls with live sheep,
a drape of flax across the valleys.
Let them shout, and shout, and shout!
Oh, oh, let them sing!
2 Corinthians 9: 6-15
6-7Remember: A stingy planter gets a stingy crop; a lavish planter gets a lavish crop. I want each of you to take plenty of time to think it over, and make up your own mind what you will give. That will protect you against sob stories and arm-twisting. God loves it when the giver delights in the giving.
8-11God can pour on the blessings in astonishing ways so that you're ready for anything and everything, more than just ready to do what needs to be done. As one psalmist puts it,
He throws caution to the winds,
giving to the needy in reckless abandon.
His right-living, right-giving ways
never run out, never wear out.
This most generous God who gives seed to the farmer that becomes bread for your meals is more than extravagant with you. He gives you something you can then give away, which grows into full-formed lives, robust in God, wealthy in every way, so that you can be generous in every way, producing with us great praise to God.
12-15Carrying out this social relief work involves far more than helping meet the bare needs of poor Christians. It also produces abundant and bountiful thanksgivings to God. This relief offering is a prod to live at your very best, showing your gratitude to God by being openly obedient to the plain meaning of the Message of Christ. You show your gratitude through your generous offerings to your needy brothers and sisters, and really toward everyone. Meanwhile, moved by the extravagance of God in your lives, they'll respond by praying for you in passionate intercession for whatever you need. Thank God for this gift, his gift. No language can praise it enough!
Gospel Acclamation
Alleluia. God is able to provide you with every blessing in abundance, so that by always having enough of everything, you may share abundantly in every good work. Alleluia.
Luke 17: 11-19
11-13It happened that as he made his way toward Jerusalem, he crossed over the border between Samaria and Galilee. As he entered a village, ten men, all lepers, met him. They kept their distance but raised their voices, calling out, "Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!"
14-16Taking a good look at them, he said, "Go, show yourselves to the priests."
They went, and while still on their way, became clean. One of them, when he realized that he was healed, turned around and came back, shouting his gratitude, glorifying God. He kneeled at Jesus' feet, so grateful. He couldn't thank him enough—and he was a Samaritan.
17-19Jesus said, "Were not ten healed? Where are the nine? Can none be found to come back and give glory to God except this outsider?" Then he said to him, "Get up. On your way. Your faith has healed and saved you."

EVANGELISTIC SERMON OUTLINE
DATE WRITTEN FOR: October 13, 2008

Title: Giving Thanks

Scripture: Luke 17: 11-19

Proposition or Theme Sentence: The learning to give thanks to God for what He has given us.

Purpose: The awakening of our minds and hearts to the fact that we should live in the attitude of thanksgiving in whatever circumstances we are in.

Introduction: As the residents and citizens of Canada celebrate thanksgiving today, I pray that they will look at the place they are and give thanks to God for what they have rather than where they may be in life circumstances. I am reminded of the ten lepers that Jesus healed and only one returned to Jesus and thanked Him. We do not know if the other nine were all Jews and gave their thanks at the Temple when they gave their required offerings to the priest for their healing, but we do know that this non-Jew returned to Jesus. I hear a number of people complaining about the state of their economic situation or the state of the government while people outside the church are giving thanks for what they have been given no matter how little it may be. It has been amazing that I have been in homes where there has not been much or been with people who do not even have homes, but live in an attitude of gratitude for God’s blessings upon them. No, their blessings are no material, but they still count their blessings just as the old hymn says:
COUNT YOUR BLESSINGS

Count your blessings
Name them one by one
Count your blessings
See what God has done
Count your blessings
Name them one by one
Count your many blessings
See what God has done
When upon life's billows
You are tempest tossed
When you are discouraged
Thinking all is lost
Count your many blessings
Name them one by one
And it will surprise you
What the Lord has done
Count your blessings
Name them one by one
Count your blessings
See what God has done
Count your blessings
Name them one by one
Count your many blessings
See what God has done
Are you ever burdened
With a load of care
Does the cross seem heavy
You are called to bear
Count your many blessings
Every doubt will fly
And you will be singing
As the days go by
Count your blessings
Name them one by one
Count your blessings
See what God has done
Count your blessings
Name them one by one
Count your many blessings
See what God has done
When you look at others
With their lands and gold
Think that Christ has promised
You His wealth untold
Count your many blessings
Money cannot buy
Your reward in heaven
Nor your home on high
Count your blessings
Name them one by one
Count your blessings
See what God has done
Count your blessings
Name them one by one
Count your many blessings
See what God has done
So, amid the conflict
Whether great or small
Do not be discouraged
God is over all
Count your many blessings
Angels will attend
Help and comfort give you
To your journey's end
Count your blessings
Name them one by one
Count your blessings
See what God has done
Count your blessings
Name them one by one
Count your many blessings
See what God has done
- Words by Johnson Oatman, 1897
How are you giving thanks for what God has done for you, your family, your friends, and your church?

I. Jesus is traveling between the Samaritan Villages and the Jewish villages.
A. Jesus comes upon ten lepers.
B. The ten lepers cry out to Jesus to be healed of their leprosy.
C. Jesus heals them and sends them to The Temple and the priest to give the required thank offering to the priest for their healing.

II. One of the Ten Lepers returns to thank Jesus.
A. At the realization that the Samaritan Leper was healed, he returned to Jesus to thank Him.
B. When Jesus saw the one leper return to give Him thanks, He questioned if there were not ten lepers who were healed wondering where the other nine were.
C. Jesus replies to the One Samaritan Leper who was healed that his faith has healed and saved him.

III. The lessons for us in the 21st century to return to God and give Him thanks for what we have.
A. God is calling us to look at what He has provided for us and thank Him.
B. God is calling us to action in giving thanks for assisting other people in need.
C. God desires us to live in the attitude of gratitude.

Conclusion: We come to the time in our worship service that we allow God to search our hearts and minds to be sure that we are living in a lifestyle of thanksgiving. As we come, we repent of our sins for be ungrateful for what God has done for us where necessary and ask for His attitude of gratitude He will give us from this point forward.

Invitation: As we come in thanksgiving, we come to receive God’s grace, mercy, and thanksgiving as we eat the body of Jesus and drink His blood through the sacrament of the Holy Eucharist. In coming and thanking God, we sing two hymns from the Sing to the Lord hymn#769 “Let All Things Now Living” and hymn#35 “My Tribute.”

Let us pray:

Our Father in heaven,
Reveal who you are.
Set the world right;
Do what's best— as above, so below.
Keep us alive with three square meals.
Keep us forgiven with you and forgiving others.
Keep us safe from ourselves and the Devil.
You're in charge!
You can do anything you want!
You're ablaze in beauty!
Yes. Yes. Yes.
In the Name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit
AMEN!

Receive God’s Blessing:

GOD bless you and keep you,
GOD smile on you and gift you,
GOD look you full in the face
and make you prosper.

All of our praise rises to the One who is strong enough to make you strong, exactly as preached in Jesus Christ, precisely as revealed in the mystery kept secret for so long but now an open book through the prophetic Scriptures. All the nations of the world can now know the truth and be brought into obedient belief, carrying out the orders of God, who got all this started, down to the very last letter.
All our praise is focused through Jesus on this incomparably wise God! Yes!

Luke, Evangelist
October 18, 2008

Prayer of the Day
Almighty God, you inspired your servant Luke to reveal in his gospel the love and healing power of your Son. Give your church the same love and power to heal, and to proclaim your salvation among the nations to the glory of your name, through Jesus Christ, your Son, our healer, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
Isaiah 43: 8-13
8-13Get the blind and deaf out here and ready—
the blind (though there's nothing wrong with their eyes)
and the deaf (though there's nothing wrong with their ears).
Then get the other nations out here and ready.
Let's see what they have to say about this,
how they account for what's happened.
Let them present their expert witnesses
and make their case;
let them try to convince us what they say is true.
"But you are my witnesses." God's Decree.
"You're my handpicked servant
So that you'll come to know and trust me,
understand both that I am and who I am.
Previous to me there was no such thing as a god,
nor will there be after me.
I, yes I, am God.
I'm the only Savior there is.
I spoke, I saved, I told you what existed
long before these upstart gods appeared on the scene.
And you know it, you're my witnesses,
you're the evidence." God's Decree.
"Yes, I am God.
I've always been God
and I always will be God.
No one can take anything from me.
I make; who can unmake it?"
Isaiah 35: 5-8
5-7Blind eyes will be opened,
deaf ears unstopped,
Lame men and women will leap like deer,
the voiceless break into song.
Springs of water will burst out in the wilderness,
streams flow in the desert.
Hot sands will become a cool oasis,
thirsty ground a splashing fountain.
Even lowly jackals will have water to drink,
and barren grasslands flourish richly.
8-10There will be a highway
called the Holy Road.
No one rude or rebellious
is permitted on this road.
It's for God's people exclusively—
impossible to get lost on this road.
Not even fools can get lost on it.
No lions on this road,
no dangerous wild animals—
Nothing and no one dangerous or threatening.
Only the redeemed will walk on it.
The people God has ransomed
will come back on this road.
They'll sing as they make their way home to Zion,
unfading halos of joy encircling their heads,
Welcomed home with gifts of joy and gladness
as all sorrows and sighs scurry into the night.
Psalm 124
A Pilgrim Song of David
1-5 If GOD hadn't been for us —all together now, Israel, sing out!—
If GOD hadn't been for us
when everyone went against us,
We would have been swallowed alive
by their violent anger,
Swept away by the flood of rage,
drowned in the torrent;
We would have lost our lives
in the wild, raging water.
6 Oh, blessed be GOD!
He didn't go off and leave us.
He didn't abandon us defenseless,
helpless as a rabbit in a pack of snarling dogs.
7 We've flown free from their fangs,
free of their traps, free as a bird.
Their grip is broken;
we're free as a bird in flight.
8 GOD's strong name is our help,
the same GOD who made heaven and earth.
2 Timothy 4: 5-11
3-5You're going to find that there will be times when people will have no stomach for solid teaching, but will fill up on spiritual junk food—catchy opinions that tickle their fancy. They'll turn their backs on truth and chase mirages. But you—keep your eye on what you're doing; accept the hard times along with the good; keep the Message alive; do a thorough job as God's servant.
6-8You take over. I'm about to die, my life an offering on God's altar. This is the only race worth running. I've run hard right to the finish, believed all the way. All that's left now is the shouting—God's applause! Depend on it, he's an honest judge. He'll do right not only by me, but by everyone eager for his coming.
9-13Get here as fast as you can. Demas, chasing fads, went off to Thessalonica and left me here. Crescens is in Galatia province, Titus in Dalmatia. Luke is the only one here with me. Bring Mark with you; he'll be my right-hand man since I'm sending Tychicus to Ephesus. Bring the winter coat I left in Troas with Carpus; also the books and parchment notebooks.
Gospel Acclamation
Alleluia. How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of the messenger who announces peace, who brings good news, who announces salvation. Alleluia.
Luke 1: 1-4; Luke 24: 44-53
1-4So many others have tried their hand at putting together a story of the wonderful harvest of Scripture and history that took place among us, using reports handed down by the original eyewitnesses who served this Word with their very lives. Since I have investigated all the reports in close detail, starting from the story's beginning, I decided to write it all out for you, most honorable Theophilus, so you can know beyond the shadow of a doubt the reliability of what you were taught.
You're the Witnesses
44Then he said, "Everything I told you while I was with you comes to this: All the things written about me in the Law of Moses, in the Prophets, and in the Psalms have to be fulfilled."
45-49He went on to open their understanding of the Word of God, showing them how to read their Bibles this way. He said, "You can see now how it is written that the Messiah suffers, rises from the dead on the third day, and then a total life-change through the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed in his name to all nations—starting from here, from Jerusalem! You're the first to hear and see it. You're the witnesses. What comes next is very important: I am sending what my Father promised to you, so stay here in the city until he arrives, until you're equipped with power from on high."
50-51He then led them out of the city over to Bethany. Raising his hands he blessed them, and while blessing them, took his leave, being carried up to heaven.
52-53And they were on their knees, worshiping him. They returned to Jerusalem bursting with joy. They spent all their time in the Temple praising God. Yes.

EVANGELISTIC SERMON OUTLINE
DATE WRITTEN FOR: October 18, 2008

Title: God’s Messenger

Scripture: Luke 1: 1-4; Luke 24: 44-53

Proposition or Theme Sentence: The coming to a heart of thanksgiving for the people that God raised us to write His witness for us.

Purpose: Thanking God for giving Luke the ability to write the story of Jesus for all generations to read and comprehend.

Introduction: We come to this day to reflect upon the writings of the Apostle Luke that shares the story of Jesus and His life, death, resurrection, and ascension as well as the Acts of the Apostles by God’s power in the Holy Spirit. We read the text given to us from the Book of Luke that share who the Apostle Luke is writing this for and why as well as Jesus final words as He was taken back to the Father after His resurrection. Too often, we take stories, oral or written, for granted, but today we come and give thanks for the stories we have been handed down from the pen of an amazing man, the Apostle Luke. We are reminded that he was not the only one to write the story of God down, but today we come and thank God on behalf of Luke. I was reminded how important it is to tell the story of God to others through a specific novel called The Lost Letters of Pergamum. Yes, this is a novel and the Bible is true, but the lessons that we may learn from this novel are great. Some lessons may be:
1. Share our personal story of God with all people.
2. Even if people do not agree with us, we are to listen to them and still share in what we hear them going through.
How do you dialogue with other people who do not necessary agree with your point of view? How do you really listen to people who disagree with your point of view?

I. The writings of Luke.
A. He shares that he is not the only one who has written the Message of Jesus down.
B. He shares that he felt it necessary to write a specific manner of Jesus, the Savior of the world as well as the Jews.
C. He addresses the letter to a person whether this is indeed a person or a group of people.

II. The story of Jesus ascension.
A. After Jesus is resurrected and walk for a while with His followers, He led them to a mountain to give them instructions and be ascended to the Father.
B. Luke shares that Jesus tells His disciples to be His witness to the whole world.
C. Luke writes that Jesus shares that the disciples are to remain in Jerusalem until the Father sends them the Promise as they constantly pray together.

III. Luke 21st century lessons for us.
A. We are called to read the Scriptures.
B. We are called to listen to others concerning His witness.
C. We are called to pray to wait for His leading in our lives and not our own desires to follow.

Conclusion: We come to a time to seek God’s guidance for our lives through His Word and listening to Him. Where necessary, we come and repent of our sins in not reading and listening to His Word for our lives.

Invitation: As we come, we seek God’s grace and leading as we eat the body of Jesus and drink His blood with what we call the Holy Eucharist. In coming, we sing from the Sing to the Lord hymn#779 “We are Called to be God’s People.”

Let us pray:

Our Father in heaven,
Reveal who you are.
Set the world right;
Do what's best— as above, so below.
Keep us alive with three square meals.
Keep us forgiven with you and forgiving others.
Keep us safe from ourselves and the Devil.
You're in charge!
You can do anything you want!
You're ablaze in beauty!
Yes. Yes. Yes.
In the Name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit
AMEN!

Receive God’s Blessing:

GOD bless you and keep you,
GOD smile on you and gift you,
GOD look you full in the face
and make you prosper.

All of our praise rises to the One who is strong enough to make you strong, exactly as preached in Jesus Christ, precisely as revealed in the mystery kept secret for so long but now an open book through the prophetic Scriptures. All the nations of the world can now know the truth and be brought into obedient belief, carrying out the orders of God, who got all this started, down to the very last letter.
All our praise is focused through Jesus on this incomparably wise God! Yes!