Preached at
All Saints, King City, Anglican Diocese of Toronto, 21 November, 2021, The
Reign of Christ.
Readings for
this Sunday: 2 Sam 23:1-7; Ps 132:1-13;
Rev 1:4b-8; Jn 18:33-37.
Where is the
Kingdom of Heaven found?
When telling
parables, Jesus often begins them with the phrase, “The Kingdom of Heaven is
like ….”. In these parables, Jesus
tries to use ordinary images and simple stories to describe an alternate
reality, something beyond the world his audience knows, where values, actions,
and results are different from the realities of everyday life. Think of the Kingdom of Heaven as a gospel
reality, what the world would can look like when we as disciples of Jesus put
our faith into action.
Today in the
life of the church is called The Reign of Christ, the last Sunday before the
new ecclesiastical year that always begins with Advent. Our readings and prayers remind us that
Jesus, that wandering and homeless teacher from Galilee, is the Son of God, the Word that was with God before all things, the Alpha and Omega of Revelation
who is outside of time and yet who comes to every generation in our time to live
and walk and comfort us.
Today we
remember who rules the Kingdom of Heaven, and who calls us to be his subjects.
What a
fitting Sunday for our Diocese of Toronto to choose as FaithWorks Sunday. FaithWorks is the charitable work of the
Diocese and its congregations that for twenty five years has supported agencies
that make the Kingdom of Heaven visible and real in our communities. The two words, Faith and Works, together
remind us that our belief put into action brings the Kingdom of Heaven closer
to earth.
Today we will watch a short video that describes FaithWorks from a high up perspective.
Next, a short video that takes us to street level and describes the work of one
particular FaithWorks supported agency, Samaritan House in my own town ofBarrie. I’ve chosen to focus on Samaritan
House because my wife is a board member and through her work its how I’ve come
to understand how FaithWorks funding does God’s work in a community.
Imagine that you and your children experience physical and verbal domestic abuse, so your home is no longer safe. You may have no control over your finances, no income, few life skills, and no resources. Where do you go? Samaritan House’s Executive Director, Kerry Ploughman, explains how her agency helps victims of domestic abuse and violence find their feet in a safe environment so they can rebuild their lives.
How can All
Saints help the work of Samaritan House and other agencies supported by FaithWorks?
This year
the Diocese has challenged us to meet a target goal of $3800 in a campaign that
ends on New Year’s Eve. That number is up from last year, and the
increase is based on 1% of our envelope offerings from last year.
The good
news is that All Saints has already raised $2,551.50 towards this goal, meaning
that we only need to raise $1300 by the end of December to reach our goal. With 73 families that donate to All Saints,
we could reach that target easily if every family gave $20. Of course, we could always give more.
Joy and I
have written our own cheque for FaithWorks and put it in this Sunday’s
offering. I’m challenging each of you
to write a cheque for FaithWorks for whatever you can manage and feel called
to, before the end of this year. We’ll
update the congregation regularly with our progress.
If you’re
reading this message in the King newspaper, you can always join us by sending
your support to All Saints,12935 Keele St, King City, ON, L7B 1G2, or by
calling our parish office at 905-833-5432.
Please
contribute to this year’s FaithWorks campaign, and answer Jesus’ call to help
make the Kingdom of Heaven visible on earth.
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