Eleventh Sunday after Trinity, Sunday, August 11, 2013
Fr. Todd Bragg
St. Margaret Anglican Church
Indianapolis, Indiana
"I declare unto you the Gospel which I preached unto you . . . by which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you." (I Corinthians 15:1 ff)
In the epistle from this morning's Mass, we hear a passage from St. Paul's First Letter to the Corinthians. If we look specifically at Verse 2 of this Chapter, we hear St. Paul use the term "saved." In the original sense in which it is being used, the term "saved" means "to hold fast to," or "to retain." This does make sense in the context of what we just heard. St. Paul is urging the young church at Corinth to hold fast to their faith and to retain what he has taught them.
If we look at the various epistles of St. Paul, the constant theme throughout each epistle seems to focus on the fact that St. Paul is merely passing on what has been given to him to begin with. In other words, he has not made up his own beliefs or set of beliefs, he is passing along a belief system that was first given to him. In the Letter to the Romans (1:16-17) we hear the following: "For I am not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, the just shall live by faith."
Also, in Galatians 1:11 we hear the following: "But I certify you, brethren, that the Gospel which was preached of me is not after man. For I neither received it of man, neither was I taught it, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ."
Once again, St. Paul is emphasizing that the Gospel that he is preaching is the Gospel that was given to him by Our Blessed Lord. It is Our Lord Who has bestowed this knowledge upon St. Paul and he is merely passing along what was given to him. We can only be a witness to something that we have seen or heard or experienced. I can only be a witness to something that I myself have witnessed. I can not give the testimony of a witness to something that I did not experience. If I did, it would be second hand or third hand knowledge. As Christians, we are called to witness our faith from the "first-person." In other words, we are called to share our person experience of what God has first shared with us in our lives.
"For thou shalt be His witness unto all men of what thou has seen and heard." (Acts 22:15)
Each one of us, as faithful Christians, are called to follow the example of St. Paul: we are to pass along what was first given to us in regards to the faith. This is why Our Blessed Saviour founded the Church so that we can do our part by preaching the Gospel, sometimes through our words and sometimes through our actions and the way in which we treat others and show love to others.
Please visit the website for St. Margaret Anglican Church:
St. Margaret of Scotland Anglican Church
"I declare unto you the Gospel which I preached unto you . . . by which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you." (I Corinthians 15:1 ff)
In the epistle from this morning's Mass, we hear a passage from St. Paul's First Letter to the Corinthians. If we look specifically at Verse 2 of this Chapter, we hear St. Paul use the term "saved." In the original sense in which it is being used, the term "saved" means "to hold fast to," or "to retain." This does make sense in the context of what we just heard. St. Paul is urging the young church at Corinth to hold fast to their faith and to retain what he has taught them.
If we look at the various epistles of St. Paul, the constant theme throughout each epistle seems to focus on the fact that St. Paul is merely passing on what has been given to him to begin with. In other words, he has not made up his own beliefs or set of beliefs, he is passing along a belief system that was first given to him. In the Letter to the Romans (1:16-17) we hear the following: "For I am not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, the just shall live by faith."
Also, in Galatians 1:11 we hear the following: "But I certify you, brethren, that the Gospel which was preached of me is not after man. For I neither received it of man, neither was I taught it, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ."
Once again, St. Paul is emphasizing that the Gospel that he is preaching is the Gospel that was given to him by Our Blessed Lord. It is Our Lord Who has bestowed this knowledge upon St. Paul and he is merely passing along what was given to him. We can only be a witness to something that we have seen or heard or experienced. I can only be a witness to something that I myself have witnessed. I can not give the testimony of a witness to something that I did not experience. If I did, it would be second hand or third hand knowledge. As Christians, we are called to witness our faith from the "first-person." In other words, we are called to share our person experience of what God has first shared with us in our lives.
"For thou shalt be His witness unto all men of what thou has seen and heard." (Acts 22:15)
Each one of us, as faithful Christians, are called to follow the example of St. Paul: we are to pass along what was first given to us in regards to the faith. This is why Our Blessed Saviour founded the Church so that we can do our part by preaching the Gospel, sometimes through our words and sometimes through our actions and the way in which we treat others and show love to others.
Please visit the website for St. Margaret Anglican Church:
St. Margaret of Scotland Anglican Church
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