Pastor Sullivan's Blog

In the Name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Ghost. Amen. St. Peter writes to “ the pilgrims of the Dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia ” (1:1) to encourage them to live their lives as what they truly are. What are they? They are pilgrims, but perhaps the word ‘refugees’ strikes a more familiar tone in our ears. These refugees haven’t cross a border. They’re not living in a nation not their own. They are Christians, scattered across the provinces in Asia Minor, modern day Turkey. They are “ elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father ,” (1:2) meaning that God has chosen them from eternity for salvation. They are sanctified in the Spirit, that is, they have been given faith to believe the gospel. They have been set apart “ for obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ ,” (1:2) which means they obey, or hear, the gospel. By faith they are sprinkled with the blood of Jesus and cleansed from all their sins. They are God’s...

In the Name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Ghost. Amen. The Spirit leads Jesus into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. It’s hard to imagine anything more audacious than this. God the Son becomes a flesh and blood man, like us in every way except He is without sin, and the devil has no problem setting his sights on Him. The tempter waits until Jesus has fasted forty days. The devil knows the weakness of the flesh, especially when the flesh is hungry. This audacity didn’t end when Jesus sent the devil away, either. This was just the opening skirmish. St. Luke writes “ when the devil had ended every temptation, he departed from Him until an opportune time ” ( Luke 4:13). Defeated for the moment, the devil never sleeps. He tempted Christ throughout the days of humiliation. After the first time Jesus teaches His disciples about His suffering, death, and resurrection, Peter rebukes Jesus. “ Far be it from You, Lord; this shall not happen to you! ” Peter exclaims...

In the Name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Ghost. Amen. The Holy Spirit leads Jesus into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. This was necessary for our salvation because it was by the temptation of the devil that mankind fell into sin. We heard again in the Old Testament lesson, how the devil used a piece of fruit that was “ was good for food ” and “ pleasant to the eyes ” ( Genesis 3:6) to deceive Eve. All mankind fell in Adam’s fall since He was the head of our race. The guilt of Adam’s sin is counted against all of Adam’s descendants. Every man, woman, and child bear this hereditary guilt. Not only that, but our hearts are defective so that no one truly fears God, no one fully loves God, and no one certainly trusts God above all things. The devil’s temptation was about so much more than disobeying God’s command. The devil’s temptation was for Eve, and Adam who was there with her, to make themselves their own gods and make their way. The serpent told the...

Order of Holy Communion - Pg. 15 Hymn # 262 A Mighty Fortress Is Our God Hymn # 446 Rise, My Soul, To Watch and Pray Hymn # 448 Brief Life is Here Our Portion   Introit HE - SHALL - || call upon Me, and I | will | an- | swer | him; * I will deliver him | and | hon- | or | him. - || With long life I will | sat- | is- | fy | him, * And show him | My | sal- | va- | tion. - ( Psalm 91:15–16 ) || He who dwells in the secret place | of | the | Most | High * Shall abide under the shadow of | the | Al- | might- | y. - || I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my | for- | tress; | My | God, * In | Him | I | will | trust.” - || Because you have made the Lord, who | is | my | re- | fuge, * Even the Most High, | your | dwell- | ing | place, - || No evil | shall | be- | fall | you, * Nor shall any plague come | near | your | dwell- | ing. - || You shall tread upon the lion | and | the | co- | bra, The young lion and the serpent you shall tram- | ple | un- | der- | foot....