The Lord Of Second Chances

Devotion on the Lord of Second Chances, 19 July 2014 Anno Domini

54 Then took they him, and led him, and brought him into the high priest’s house. And Peter followed afar off. 55 And when they had kindled a fire in the midst of the hall, and were set down together, Peter sat down among them. 56 But a certain maid beheld him as he sat by the fire, and earnestly looked upon him, and said, This man was also with him. 57 And he denied him, saying, Woman, I know him not. 58 And after a little while another saw him, and said, Thou art also of them. And Peter said, Man, I am not. 59 And about the space of one hour after another confidently affirmed, saying, Of a truth this fellow also was with him: for he is a Galilaean. 60 And Peter said, Man, I know not what thou sayest. And immediately, while he yet spake, the cock crew. 61 And the Lord turned, and looked upon Peter. And Peter remembered the word of the Lord, how he had said unto him, Before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice.62 And Peter went out, and wept bitterly. (Luke 22:54-62)

I have often reminded all who will hear me that the Bible is a mirror to our souls. We see in it the absolute righteousness and justice of God on the one hand; and the absolute unworthiness and depravity of our own souls, on the other. If this circumstance were allowed to stand, we would all be doomed to the well-deserved fires of Hell. But our Lord is a God of second chances (and it is by no means by chance that we come to His Throne of Grace). He makes us into new creatures altogether when we are drawn to Him in faith. “Therefore if any man bein Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.” (2 Cor 5:17) I apologize if I burden you too often with the same scriptural quotes, but these are the salient points of grace and mercy to me. If you tire of them, then go out and write your own little devotion.

Do you see your own failure in that of the courageous Peter? He was no wimp, but a strong man of the sea – much like John Newton. But at the very moment of greatest trial, Peter failed miserably. And to make matters worse, the Lord turned and looked Peter squarely in the eyes at the moment of this horrendous failure. Peter went out and wept bitterly in shame and disgrace, hurt and misery. He wept for three long days until the Word came to his longing ears of the resurrection of His Lord. That made repentance possible. Unlike Judas, Peter did not go out and commit self-murder. He waited in sorrow and sadness and contrition. Then came that wonderful morning by the shores of Galilee! Every repentant sinner has his great morning by those blue-lined shores. The Angel of the Garden Tomb had told the women to go and tell the disciples, and to “tell Peter’” of the Lord’s resurrection. “But go your way, tell his disciples and Peter that he goeth before you into Galilee: there shall ye see him, as he said unto you.” (Mark 16:7) Do you wonder at this choice of words? The Lord was aware of Peter’s failure and subsequent misery, so He sends word to Peter that he can be forgiven and restored from his betrayal on the night of the Lord’s trial.

Do not look at me with those pious eyes thinking that you are better than Peter – you are not, and neither am I. Peter was always faithful until parted from the physical presence of the Lord, but afterwards had the Holy Ghost as his Guide and Compass. He never failed of courage again. We all have our “Peter Moments” do we not? We all have our “Jonah Moments” as well. We all – everyone of us – have our “Moments of the Woman Taken in Adultery” for we all are just as surely that Woman as the one that the Lord forgave. We have all been caught red-handed in our sins and can utter not a word in our defense just as the Woman could not.

I am inspired by the lives and writings of many men and women, but I am only inspired by their words and examples insofar as those works point me to Christ. Among my heroes are Robert E. Lee; Bishop J.C. Ryle; Matthew Henry; Charles Pettit McIlvaine (1^st Bishop of Ohio & Chaplain of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point); a lonely Christian in Kenya; a widowed or deserted lady of small children; numerous clergy in our church; a fellow clergyman, businessman and soldier in California; an isolated Christian in Wisconsin; and a loyal staff; but these all have inspired my thoughts by their Christian lives and teachings. I am, as well, inspired by the great hymns of the Church – not because of their simple beauty of expression – but because these are filled with cardinal points of the Light of the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ.

I am often bitterly disappointed at myself, however, in failing to live up to the Standard and Ensign the Lord has raised before my eyes and set before me on the Battle-line of Life. I have even been inspired by those that I once considered villains, but the change the Lord Jesus Christ has wrought in their lives has inspired me to know that God is able to change us – to make us over into new creatures – and to realize that this has been possible for me as well. I share the ground of the Rev. John Newton of England (author of Amazing Grace and hundreds of other great hymns) who wrote for his epitaph: “John Newton, Clerk, once an infidel and libertine, a servant of slaves in Africa, was, by the rich mercy of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, preserved, restored, pardoned, and appointed to preach the faith he had long labored to destroy.” My friend and brother, Mr. Newton also penned this line as well in his declining years: “My memory is nearly gone, but I remember two things: that I am a great sinner, and that Christ is a great Saviour.”

After considering Peter, I look to Jonah. Even JONAH inspires me! Jonah did not desire a second chance, but got one anyway. Jonah had a fine Conception of the Lord. “I knew that thou art a gracious God, and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repentest thee of the evil.” (Jonah 4:2) Jonah was like many modern Christians who possess an excellent knowledge of the Word, yet fail to act upon it. Jonah was a Bible scholar. He had learned the above character of God from Holy Writ: 1) the Grace of God – “The LORD, The LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth” (Ex 34:6), 2) the Mercy of God – “For the LORD is good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all generations.” (Psalms 100:5), 3) God is slow to anger – “The LORD is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy.” (Psalms 103:8), 4) God’s great kindness – “Because thy lovingkindness is better than life, my lips shall praise thee.” (Psalms 63:3),and 5) the Forgiveness of God – “But there is forgiveness with thee, that thou mayest be feared.” (Psalms 130:4) Even in his rebellion, Jonah continued to know and preach the truth of God.

Jonah, once forced to accept a second chance, went to Nineveh – that wicked city – and preached precisely what the Lord told him to preach. How many preachers are doing that today fearing to offend society or the government – never condemning the cardinal sins of our day such as abortion-murder and homosexuality? What did Jonah do at Nineveh? “Arise, go unto Nineveh, that great city, and preach unto it the preaching that I bid thee. So Jonah arose, and went unto Nineveh, according to the word of the LORD. Now Nineveh was an exceeding great city of three days’ journey. And Jonah began to enter into the city a day’s journey, and he cried, and said, Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown.” (Jonah 3:2-4) Now this was not your average, politically-correct message was it? Moreover, these people had a reputation for being mean, but Jonah preached it because the Lord had told him to preach it – against the people, its government and its king. For my timid Baptist friends who believe in the so-called “separation of church and state,” allow me to say that such a devilish doctrine is neither in Holy Scripture nor the US Constitution. Yes, the state should not interfere with religion, but when religion stops interfering with the ungodly rule of despots, we are in great trouble.

Jonah was not ashamed to confess who he was and in whom he believed: “I aman Hebrew; and I fear the LORD, the God of heaven, which hath made the sea and the dry land.” (Jonah 1:9) I wish every clergyman of the AOC was as courageous as Jonah – even in his rebellion.

Jonah, like Paul, paid his own way, even in his attempt to escape God. “But Jonah rose up to flee unto Tarshish from the presence of the LORD, and went down to Joppa; and he found a ship going to Tarshish: so he paid the fare thereof, and went down into it, to go with them unto Tarshish from the presence of the LORD.” (Jonah 1:3)

Jonah did not blame others for his failures. He admitted to the seaman what he had done and who he was – even in the face of certain death. Cranmer, Ridly, Hooker, and Hus come to mind, as well as the Maid of Orlean, Jean d’Arc – all martyrs to the faith once delievered.

Jonah knew how to pray when he got in over his head, and the waters of the Mediterranean Sea were definitely over his head. “Then Jonah prayed unto the LORD his God out of the fish’s belly, And said, I cried by reason of mine affliction unto the LORD, and he heard me; out of the belly of hell cried I, andthou heardest my voice.” (Jonah 2:1-2) Do we know when and how to pray?

Jonah took heed of the Words of the Lord when they came to him the second time. “And the word of the LORD came unto Jonah the second time, saying, Arise, go unto Nineveh, that great city, and preach unto it the preaching that I bid thee. So Jonah arose, and went unto Nineveh, according to the word of the LORD.” (Jonah 3:1-3) You may be smugly thinking, “Silly man!” but at least Jonah obeyed the Lord on the second reminder. How about you and me?

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. AMEN.

In Christ Alone during Trinity,

+Jerry L. Ogles, D.D.
Presiding Bishop,
Anglican Orthodox Communion Worldwide & Chancellor, Faith Theological Seminary

AOC Blog: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/AOCAnglican/

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“Moral cowardice paves the way to slavery”.

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Archbishop Thomas Cranmer – HOLY SCRIPTURE:
“If there were any word of God beside the Scripture, we could never be certain of God’s Word; and if we be uncertain of God’s Word, the devil might bring in among us a new word, a new doctrine, a new faith, a new church, a new god, yea himself to be a god. If the Church and the Christian faith did not stay itself upon the Word of God certain, as upon a sure and strong foundation, no man could know whether he had a right faith, and whether he were in the true Church of Christ, or a synagogue of Satan.”

Sermon Notes on “Fishing for God, or Self,” 20 July 2014 Anno Domini

The Prayer of Collect

Fifth Sunday after Trinity

GRANT, O Lord, we beseech thee, that the course of this world may be so peaceably ordered by thy governance, that thy Church may joyfully serve thee in all godly quietness; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

1 And it came to pass, that, as the people pressed upon him to hear the word of God, he stood by the lake of Gennesaret, 2 And saw two ships standing by the lake: but the fishermen were gone out of them, and were washing their nets. 3 And he entered into one of the ships, which was Simon’s, and prayed him that he would thrust out a little from the land. And he sat down, and taught the people out of the ship. 4 Now when he had left speaking, he said unto Simon, Launch out into the deep, and let down your nets for a draught.5 And Simon answering said unto him, Master, we have toiled all the night, and have taken nothing: nevertheless at thy word I will let down the net. 6 And when they had this done, they inclosed a great multitude of fishes: and their net brake. 7 And they beckoned unto their partners, which were in the other ship, that they should come and help them. And they came, and filled both the ships, so that they began to sink. 8 When Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, Depart from me; for I am a sinful man, O Lord. 9 For he was astonished, and all that were with him, at the draught of the fishes which they had taken: 10 And so was also James, and John, the sons of Zebedee, which were partners with Simon. And Jesus said unto Simon, Fear not; from henceforth thou shalt catch men.11 And when they had brought their ships to land, they forsook all, and followed him.

(Luke 5:1-11)

I have often wished that I were a fly on the wall of history – to stand by the Galilean Sea when Christ preached so often, the same at which He had his final breakfast with His closest disciples, and the Sea Upon which He took His midnight stroll in the midst of devastating storm. This Sea teems with life, so a fitting place for our Lord and Savior to discourse. This body of blue and placid water has several names: Galilee, Gennesaret, Tiberius, or Chinnereth – yet all terms refer to the same Sea. As I have said, it is most often a smooth and placid body of water, but storms can build upon it with swift and unpredictable resolve. In a manner of speaking, the Sea is, in many ways, like the nature of our Lord who was most often gentle in speech to inveterate sinners, but quick to castigate the hypocritical clergy of His day. Like Christ, the Sea teems with life, but it yields its bounty most fully and handsomely to those who follow His counsel. It yields a profitable return to those who listen to His Word, and it may swamp the boat of those who are rebellious or lacking in faith.

The Sea of Galilee, in its unpredictable nature, too, is much like the character of the Apostle Peter. He was obedient to his Lord, but, at times unexpectant, his temper and self-will could flare-up to surprising measure. He drew a sword in the Garden of Gethsemane against a host and only a couple of hours later denied his Lord thrice on the porch of the Sanhedrin. A focus of today’s text dwells, among other important features, on the person of Simon Peter and his questioning obedience to our Lord.

Simon Peter is a man of the sea. He was robust and manly and beset with a stubborn and assertive nature. As is true with many such man, Peter had a tender heart that belied his manly nature. I like Peter very much. Even his name is intended to reveal that his quarrelsome will was finally surrendered to Christ completely. Petros (Peter) is the Greek term for stone, not Rock. Our Lord Jesus Christ was the Rock from which Peter was hewn. He gradually, as a stone chipped away through sanctification, took on the nature of the Rock from which he was cast. We all should be such stones of Christ – having the nature of that same Rock from which we must be cleft. Peter was the kind of hardened and masculine figure that I have known often in the military service – hard on the appearance, but soft and gentle as a lamb inside that hardened outer shell.

Our text opens with beauty and meaning. “And it came to pass, that, as the people pressed upon him to hear the word of God, he stood by the lake of Gennesaret.” Imagine! “Jesus standing by the Sea!” What remarkable beauty in that single thought! His feet are forever on solid foundation, and the Sea represents the world filled with every kind of diverse fish. You and I are in that Sea of Life. We all hear the Words of Christ, but we do not all respond to it by faith. Unlike the multitudes of perishing souls of our day, there was a hunger on the shores of Blue Galilee for the Word of God. In fact, the people “pressed upon Him” to hear that Word. Today they flock to miracle promising evangelists whose heart are empty of compassion and full of greed; but Christ is missing from that forum.

Our lives should be a pulpit for Christ, just as Peter’s boat became that pulpit. “ . . (Jesus) saw two ships standing by the lake: but the fishermen were gone out of them, and were washing their nets. And he entered into one of the ships, which was Simon’s.” What a resounding privilege to have our very souls serve as a pulpit for Christ. There were TWO boats there, but Christ chose the specific boat of Peter. He has chosen you and me in the same way. He knows the seaworthiness of our hull, and the strength of our sail before we, ourselves, know it. Both boats, like many professing Christians today, were in precisely the right place at the right time but Simon’s boat was chosen by Christ. Many sit in the pews Sunday after Sunday, but are not chosen by Christ because of a failure of faith and steadfastness. Others, like Peter, are known to God and a Chosen Vessel. Simon, as well, consented to his Lord’s use of his vessel. All that was Peter’s belonged to Christ. Is this true in your case, my friends?

When we prepare to study the Word, or to even preach it, we must make a separation of our spirits between ourselves and the world. This, Jesus does next. “. . . and prayed him that he would thrust out a little from the land. And he sat down, and taught the people out of the ship.” Next, our Lord “sat down” and taught the people. The people were standing on the shore while the Gospel itself was being pronounced. Notice that we always stand when the Gospel is read in the Church? The Teacher sits as one having authority, the students stand and listen reverently. Peter could have protested his vessel being used by Christ, but he did not. Christ has often called each of us to serve some need in our Church, or in our neighborhoods, but we often protest and fail to supply the need. We must all strive to be like Peter.

After hearing the Word preached, what comes next? ACTION! We act on the Word! “Now when he had left speaking, he said unto Simon, Launch out into the deep, and let down your nets for a draught.” It is very much like Jesus is saying, “Now, Peter, that you have heard the faith-strengthening Word, I need you to DO something!” Perhaps Jesus is whispering this in the ear of the listener of this sermon, and even its deliverer? Peter was cleaning and drying his nets when Jesus came to the shore of Galilee (Genneserat).

Jesus loves Simon Peter just as He loves all who respond to His Beacon Light of Love. But Jesus knows that something needs to grow inside the heart of Peter: his faith needs bolstering. And this is what Christ is about to do. Poor Peter and his fellows have fished all night without Christ and caught NOTHING. Casting off the heavy nets and retrieving them is no easy task, but Peter has labored all night long at this tiring exercise without profit. We, too, labor under the force of our own sails in a dead sea, and achieve nothing, but when the Wind of the Holy Spirit fills our sails to capacity, we then navigate waters never before imagined. Peter seems to think the counsel of Jesus is a bit on the ridiculous side. He even argues, just a bit, that point, but relents: “And Simon answering said unto him, Master, we have toiled all the night, and have taken nothing: nevertheless at thy word I will let down the net.” Now Peter will go a’fishing with Christ as his Sea Captain. I wonder what will be the result. When we surrender our on self-wills (free wills that are in bondage to sin), and accept His perfect will and counsel, what a difference a day makes!

Have you ever followed Christ until your net has broken? What about now as you contemplate this story of the Sea, the Land, and the Savior? Has He not filled our nets to the breaking point? Does your cup runneth over with the gentle mercies and comfort of the Lord? “And when they had this done, they inclosed a great multitude of fishes: and their net brake.” Not before, or after, they had obeyed God, but IMMEDIATELY, their nets broke for the large draft of fish. God may be calling you away to some remote South Pacific Island, or to the hot and humid climate of central Africa to drop down your nets. Or He may be asking you to become a father, or mother, to some orphaned child who needs you. Have you let down your net at His command?

The Lord always rewards our obedience and often in ways we could never have imagined. Can you imagine Peter’s shock at the large draft of fishes after no success at the best hours of fishing – the night?

Our Lord is the Captain of Battles and the Victor of each one. He is not a proponent of defense, but of offense. He orders His streamers forward beyond the Forward Edge of the Battle Field. He needs no defense, He insist that we take that ground misappropriated by the Adversary of our Souls – the Devil! God is never satisfied with maintaining the status quo. We must either be growing in faith or, else, we are dying as that faith atrophies.

Take a lesson from Peter: 1) be in the right place at the right time; 2) offer your vessel as a pulpit for the Lord; 3) obey His Counsel; 4) be prepared to be amazed at the mercy of the Lord; and 5) take upon yourself His nature and become a “chip off the old Rock” – a stone in the Temple of our God! Have you?