AOC Two

  A  NEW  commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another .  35   By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another .   ( John 13:34-35)                 A serious Bible scholar could not help observing a subtle shift in perspective in the Gospels and Epistles of the Apostle John from the three previous Gospels. All that John records of the life of Christ is directly associated with the compelling power of LOVE. In John’s Gospel we find the most powerful and Messianic verse in all the Bible –  For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life .  (John 3:16)  It is for this reason John is referred to as the Apostle of LOVE by most commentators. This does not detract from the love of all the other apostles, it is simply John was the youngest of the twelve and most impressionable with the love and compassion e

  B LESSED  is the nation whose God is the LORD; and the people whom he hath chosen for his own inheritance.  (Psalm 33:12)               I have had good friends and men of strong faith suggest that there are no Christian nations, nor ever has been such upon the face of the earth. I can understand their angst and frustration with the state of the world as we view it today, but I do not believe such a pessimistic view is credible or consistent with biblical truth. Just as there is no perfect Christian, there is no perfect Christian nation, but the character of a nation is defined by the collective character and beliefs of her citizens.                There is little doubt that the United States of America has been blessed to greater measure than any other in the annals of history. No other nation has been so favored by God in both battle and in the gift of Liberty and Justice. The Hand of Providence was overwhelmingly obvious in our founding as a nation and in the conduct of civil affai

  Happy First Sunday in Advent.  What is Advent?  Read the AOC Sunday Report  RIGHT HERE  or read below. We have great sermons from Bishop Roy, as well as Revs Jack and Bryan.  They are really good this week.  If you prefer, Rev Jack's is available on video  RIGHT HERE . There are always a lot of people who desire your prayer, there has not been and never will bean exception.  Please start with Jim, Shamu, Laurie and Lori and work out from there. Day before yesterday was Thanksgiving Day, as  we recall this past Thanksgiving time, we need to remember to be thankful in all things, not necessarily for all things.   Remember when the pilgrims had their first Thanksgiving, over half of them had died due to disease and mishap in the previous year. And yet, they were thankful to their God. What is the “Liturgical Year”? Liturgy based Christian churches who consider themselves catholic, or universal, use a Christian Calendar which has a pre-set annual cycle of liturgical seasons which det

Rev Jack's sermon is available on video  RIGHT HERE ! Sermon  –  Reverend Jack Arnold - Time and Action Church of the Faithful Centurion - Descanso, California Today ’ s sermon brought the Collect, Epistle and Gospel together because, as is always the case, there is a unifying message in the Scripture for this Sunday.    The First Sunday in Advent The Collect.   A LMIGHTY  God, give us grace that we may cast away the works of darkness, and put upon us the armour of light, now in the time of this mortal life, in which thy Son Jesus Christ came to visit us in great humility; that in the last day, when he shall come again in his glorious majesty to judge both the quick and the dead, we may rise to the life immortal, through him who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Ghost, now and ever.  Amen .   ¶ This Collect is to be repeated every day, after the other Collects in Advent, until Christmas Day.   Today’s Collect, like almost all of them, starts out asking God’s Grace, His Hel

Today, the propers for today can be found on Page 90-92:   The First Sunday in Advent The Collect.   A LMIGHTY  God, give us grace that we may cast away the works of darkness, and put upon us the armour of light, now in the time of this mortal life, in which thy Son Jesus Christ came to visit us in great humility; that in the last day, when he shall come again in his glorious majesty to judge both the quick and the dead, we may rise to the life immortal, through him who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Ghost, now and ever. Amen.   ¶ This Collect is to be repeated every day, after the other Collects in Advent, until Christmas Day.   T he Epistle for today comes from Paul’s letter to the Romans, starting at the Eighth Verse of the Thirteenth Chapter.  Paul tells us to be self sufficient, but love and care for one another, do not commit adultery, do not murder, steal or lie.  But more than that, “Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.”  For, if you love your neighbor, you wil

  T HEN  Jesus said unto them,  Yet a little while is the light with you. Walk while ye have the light, lest darkness come upon you: for he that walketh in darkness knoweth not whither he goeth.   36   While ye have light, believe in the light, that ye may be the children of light.  These things spake Jesus, and departed, and did hide himself from them .    (John 12:35-36)   B UT  ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief.  5   Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness .  (1 Thessalonians 5:4-5)   If you find yourself traveling through northeast Tennessee on I-75, you may notice an advertisement to visit the Lost Sea at Sweetwater, Tennessee – America’s largest underground lake. The visible portion of the sea is approximately four acres, but divers have mapped more than 13 acres so far with no end in sight. Glass-bottomed boats are available to ride out upon the waters and witness the la