Book: Ephesians

Fellow lovers of God: do not forget the Ascension of Christ. Without the Ascension, we have no salvation.

We may not be able to see all which God is doing to redeem our present difficulties, but we can see His Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, standing before us, ready to sustain us, and asking, “Do you believe in the Son of Man?” May we respond like the man born blind, saying, “Lord, I believe.”

The Epiphany has not ended; it shines forth to this day, radiating out from the day of Christ’s Incarnation; it is the very reason we as Gentiles can share in the riches of Christ’s inheritance. This means that we who have received this light have the responsibility to both continually seek its source and reflect it so that others may do the same.

When we live like the rest of the world around us, it is because our idea of ministry is too small, our heaven is too small, and our Christ is too small. Indeed, without the Ascension there is no reason to rejoice at all. But thanks be to God, that is not the case. Let us go forth with great joy, just as the disciples did, for our savior Jesus Christ has ascended into heaven, and he will return in the same way as he departed.

The journey of the Magi following this Star represents the highest calling to which we can devote our lives: a lifetime of being led to Christ, by Christ. In other words, we look to Christ to light our path and direct our steps to Him. It is one thing to see this Star, but we are only wise when we embark on the journey of our lives using it as our guide.

Christians around the world today have much to be concerned about, from a worldly perspective, but the Rev. Galloway encourages us that Christ has won the victory over the world, and so Christians can remain strong in the Gospel.

Joshua commanded the people of Israel, “Choose this day whom you will serve.” In today’s sermon, the Rector reminds us of the urgency of this decision the Christian life today. Do we obey God, or man? Joshua’s words warn us: If we don’t choose now, then by default we will find ourselves looking back after a long series of incremental changes, realizing we renounced the LORD long ago.

We don’t get to “play nice” with sin. When we ignore or keep around “small” sins because it is convenient for us, we forsake the Truth and embrace falsehood. God requires us to embrace his WHOLE commandment – not to keep us down, but so we may truly flourish. Watch this sermon by the Rector to learn more.

Many of us today look around and no longer recognize the world we live in. We see that truth no longer matters, facts no longer matter, and the rule of law is only applied preferentially. Our civilization now runs on the fumes of the faith held by our fathers. Watch as the Bishop-retired discusses how as Christians, we must recognize faith is an action, requiring us to carry on the Faith no matter what, just as our fathers did.