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I was glad when they said to me, "Let us go to the house of the LORD."
Psalm 122:1
"In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth."
Genesis 1:1
"This is the day the Lord has made. We will rejoice and be glad in it."
Psalms 118:24
"Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, And he shall direct your paths."
Proverbs 3:5
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Rector's Study
"INTO ALL TRUTH"
As I rode my scooter to a lunch appointment today, the sign at a local church caught my eye. It was one of those signs on which you can change the text, sort of like the old movie-theater signs. I don't mean for that to be taken as a criticism. Sometimes folks feel like they have something to share with others that requires a slogan or a quotation. At other times, organizations have variable schedules and need a way of publicly communicating. So, I'll assume that for the purpose of the particular church whose sign I saw, such a thing has been considered useful.
Actually, it wasn't the sign that caught my eye at all. Instead, it was the message written on it.
"The wages of sin is death." Romans 6:23
Bible study 9:30 a.m.
First, I thought having the citation "6:23" printed in such proximity to the time "9:30" caused the message to be visually confusing to someone riding past on a scooter. In a car someone might feel falsely secure enough to give greater attention to what is printed on the many signs along the road. Still, these folks are trying to share a biblical truth, right?
Well, maybe I am hypercritical. I knew at sight that the citation for the partial verse of scripture should have been "Romans 6:23a." That's right, the quotation is only half a verse. Consequently, it is only half, or less, of what the Apostle was attempting to teach.
That got me wondering if the congregation or its leadership, or maybe it was just a severe pastor... Could anyone at the church really think of sin and death as Gospel, that is, "Good News"? Again, I don't want to be excessively judgmental or critical. But consider how verse 23 of the sixth chapter of St. Paul's most grace-filled epistle ends,
"But the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord"
Now that has to be the good news, the "Gospel," in this verse: God's free gift; eternal life; Jesus Christ.
Before his self-sacrifice on the cross, through which "the free gift of God" was extended, our Lord Jesus promised all his disciples that he would send the Holy Spirit, the Comforter. That sending is all-important for those who would wish to communicate the good news of Christ's love.
"When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth." John 16:13a
It is all truth, the whole Gospel with all of its promises and demands, its hopes and its challenges that the One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church is called to communicate. I pray God will grant us grace to attend to the fullness of Truth, guided by the Holy Spirit, attentive to every word of Scripture, devoted with all our hearts and minds to know and share "the faith once for all delivered to the church." Indeed, may he grant this same grace to the church with the sign, to every congregation called "church," and to every person who wears the honored name of Christian.
Yours in Christ,
Fr. Timothy P. Perkins  , SSC
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