ALMIGHTY God, by whose providence thy servant John Baptist was wonderfully born, and sent to prepare the way of thy Son our Saviour by preaching repentance; Make us so to follow his doctrine and holy life, that we may truly repent according to his preaching; and after his example constantly speak the truth, boldly rebuke vice, and patiently suffer for the truth's sake; through the same thy Son Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Isaiah xl. 1 & St. Luke i. 57 & Homily
for he hath visited and redeemed his people
We in the Red River Cohort meet this Feast day to execute the Articles of Incorporation of Saint John Baptist - Anglican, and to celebrate its dedication. Please pray for this outreach ministry.
Thought: In thinking about John Baptist as a prophetical preacher who exposed the errors of his day, and was anything but politically correct, I share this article with you on what many of us consider one of the greatest threats to orthodox Christianity since the heretical movements of the early church... and sadly much of it today comes from within the formal structures of the "Western" church and is bred in seminaries. May we have the clarity of vision and courage of John Baptist to spot the viper and call him by his name.
The Spirit of the Age and the Reality of the Risen Christ http://www.desiringgod.org/library/sermons/98/041298.html
A thought:
This struggle against emerging heresies of post-modern thought of Christianity that reveals itself in many ways reminds me of the mural of Christ Militant in our Internet Chapel of the Centurions, standing upon the adder and the lion, representing the Arian heretical movement that the Church fought against - while Christ holds open the Gospel with the passage: "I am the way the truth and the life" Jn 14:6. Is this mural not also applicable to us today as we face arising heresies within the Church? As the author of the article discusses, the first heresy is that of relativism... sort of "my truth, your truth, a million truths...mentality". Jesus is THE truth, not a truth - he said so - so let us talk about our Lord's truth and endeavor to understand it. Secondly is the teaching that Jesus is just one of many ways to the Father.... again, what did he say, "no man cometh unto the Father except by me " Jn:14:16 - the rest of the verse he holds his hand. Let us work as centurions to follow the image of Christ Militant in the mural, and trample the Lion and Adder under foot (Psalm 91:13) through a ready response to these errors, to help those who are confused and confounded by these heresies. I was reminded again by a dear centurion of one resource that he highly recommends for orthodox thought that crosses denominational lines: First Things. Another I have found helpful is Orthodoxy Today. Equip yourselves so that you might be as John Baptist, a voice crying in the wilderness, and through the types of activities mentioned in Today's Collect, prepare yourself and fight for Christ and the Church.
Happy Feast Day !
Marcus
primus pilus
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