Vicaring - A sermon resource for all those involved in Christian ministry

• Proper 17 B

First Preached 30/9/09    Trinity 12                Proper 17 B

Deuteronomy 4.1-2,6-9 : James 1.17-27  :  Mark 7.1-8,14-15, 21-23Psalm 15 There is a good crowd here this morning. The Holiday season is over. I hope you managed to get away. Did you have a good time? Good! Because the fun is over! For the next four weeks we shall be reading the epistle of James. I suspect James was not very popular at school. He is the sort of guy who if you invited him round to tea would sniff and say, “I hope this tea is fair trade. Do you know how much an Assam tea picker is paid?”As you will see he does have a thing about the poor, as well as about gossip. And well all the usual list of sins – Pretty much as we heard them listed by Jesus. “Evil intentions fornication, theft, murder, adultery, avarice, wickedness, deceit, licentiousness, envy, slander, pride, folly.He reminds me of the story told about the 1920’s President of the USA Calvin Coolidge. He was famously taciturn and on being asked what that Sunday’s preacher had talked about he replied. “Sin.” When being asked what the preacher had said he replied, “He was against it.”Well James is against Sin. Like all of the N.T. But like all of the NT he is positively against it. I mean it is not just condemning denunciation it is the belief that help is at hand. God gave us birth by the word of truth. 1.18 welcomes with meekness the implanted word that has the power to save your souls. 1.21The Gospel is not simply that God loves you, but that he loves you enough to lay his hand upon your life. Not to lay on you a series of minute demands, but to urge you to a fulfilling goodness.  Or as Bob Geldorf once put it: “Charity is now cool.” The minute prescription of behaviour while Christianity can fall into it is essentially the way of the Pharisees, which so annoyed Jesus. The essence of what James calls the ‘implanted word’. This more often is described in terms of the Holy Spirit, or Christ in you; it is the transformation of the person into a more Christ-like form; Which is much less about being a party pooper and much more about being a person who enriches the lives of those around them.It can be done. The word can transform us. I do not have much to boast of by way of sanctification, but here is one small triumph by way of encouragement.
I loath call centres, particularly those with a sequnce of levels all with multiple options and needing you to type in about 15 milionn digits. By the time I get to where I want  (Which is always a human being I am always in a foul mood and ready to take it out on the poor slob that had the misfortune to take my call. Or so I used to be. Then one day I thought, “This will not do. It is not their fault and this is not Christian.” So I made a solem decision to change my attitude. The next time I rang I resolved to be all sweetness and light and I have stuck to it ever since. Of course the first time I tried everything went wrong. I got the wrong option. I was transfered around the system and I had to listen to about three symphonies length of irritating music. (God has a weird sense of humour). But I perserevred and eventually found the one sane person in the whole system, who sorted out my touble in no time. I thanked him profusely. Then very politely I told him what a dreadful time I had been through. “I am sorry to hear that sir,” he said, “and since you have cause for complaint I am going to credit your acount with £10 from our customer compensation scheme.”
“Those who look into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and persevere, being not hearers who forget but doers who act–they will be blessed in their doing.” 1.25.
James knew a thing or two. He can be preachy, but so could Paul or for that matter Jesus, and the point is vital. What bite does the gospel have on your life? What are you  doing differently because of Jesus.Or let me trail a question for our Parish coinference next month: I have heard a quotation several times since I came to this church, from St Francis. “Go and preach the gospel everywhere. Use words if necessary.” If we were not allowed to use words what would people hear this church saying?Would people detect that ‘implanted word?’

Notes James 1:17-27
1:17 Every generous act of giving, with every perfect gift, is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.

1:18 In fulfillment of his own purpose he gave us birth by the word of truth, so that we would become a kind of first fruits of his creatures.

1:19 You must understand this, my beloved: let everyone be quick to listen, slow to speak, slow to anger;

1:20 for your anger does not produce God’s righteousness.

1:21 Therefore rid yourselves of all sordidness and rank growth of wickedness, and welcome with meekness the implanted word that has the power to save your souls.

1:22 But be doers of the word, and not merely hearers who deceive themselves.

1:23 For if any are hearers of the word and not doers, they are like those who look at themselves in a mirror;

1:24 for they look at themselves and, on going away, immediately forget what they were like.

1:25 But those who look into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and persevere, being not hearers who forget but doers who act–they will be blessed in their doing.

1:26 If any think they are religious, and do not bridle their tongues but deceive their hearts, their religion is worthless.

1:27 Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to care for orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world.

————————

Owing to some probelms with the Greek scripton this iste some accents and breathings have been lost.

Words are layed out to empasise the logic of the argument. Common colurs indicate common ideas.

¹⁷pasa dosi” agaqh;              estin                     anwqenkai; pan dwrhma teleion katabainon    apo; tou` patro” twn fwtwn,
par  w|/ ouk eni parallagh; h] troph” aposkiasma. (tou` patro”)¹⁸boulhqei”                          apekuhsen            hma”
logw/ alhqeia”  ei” to; einai hma”   aparchn
tina twn autou` ktismatwn.

adelfoiv mou                         ¹⁹ [Iste,
agaphtoiv:                                de;
pa” anqrwpo”                           estw tacu” ei” to; akousai,
bradu” ei” to; lalhsai,
bradu” eijorghn: gar²⁰orgh; andro”                            ouk ergazetai.                dikaiosunhn qeou`

²¹dio; apoqemenoi pasan ruparian kai; perisseian kakia”
dexasqe (   ton emfuton logon
en prauthti,     (    ton dunamenon swsai
ta” yuca” umwn. de;
²²Ginesqe poihtai; logou
kai; mh;
monon  akroatai;
paralogizomenoi eautou”.
²³oti ei[ ti” ajkroath” logou estin kai; ouj poihth”,

outo” eoiken andri; katanoounti to; proswpon th” genesew” autou` en esoptrw/:
²⁴ gar katenohsen eauton kai; apelhluqen kai; euqew” epelaqeto opoio” hn.

²⁵oJ de; parakuya” ei” nomon teleion
ton th” eleueria” kai;     parameina”, ouk akroath” epilhsmonh” genomeno” alla; poihth” ergou, outo” estai.      makario”
en th`/ poihsei autou`

²⁶Ei[ ti” dokei`                              qrhsko” einai                    mh; calinagwgwn                       glwssan autou` alla; apatwn  kardian                       autou`, toutou hJ qrhskeia.                              (Estin) mataio”
<sup>27</sup>qrhskeia estin,               auth
kaqara;
kai; amianto”                                         episkeptesqai orfanou” kai; chra”`/                          ;                                      en th qliyei autwn,
para; tw`/ qew`/ patri;                                    aspilon  eauton threin apo; tou` kosmou.

• Uncategorized

First preached:               20^th August 2006  Trinity 10
[Joshua 24.1-2a &14-18] :  Ephesians 6.10-20            : John 6.56-69 (Proper 16 B) I suppose when we see one of the ghastly messes that afflict our planet we sometimes wonder what we can do to help. We may be touched to send a donation and that is a good impulse; but often the problem seems beyond fixing by mere finance. How could you by off morass that is Iraq.  We may then in our more pious moments think, I can at least say a prayer. Many people inside the church and outside would be moved to that, but with a bit of a, ‘Well I suppose it can’t do any harm’ attitude. The New Testament attitude is precisely the opposite. ‘You can say a prayer. You should say a prayer. That is the first thing you can do and it is the most important thing you can do.’Not that it despises charity, or good works, or practical gestures. On the contrary it is full of exhortations in that direction, but it realises that very often at the base of many of our greatest problems there lie deep-rooted spiuritual causes. There is not only human stupidity, though that is part of the story, there  is human pride and vanity human greed and coruption; hatred and vengfulness; sometimes outright human evil and wickedness. But the New Testament belief goes even deeper than this. These human devilments are overlaid by and exacerbated by malign spiritual forces. Evil is more than the absence of good, it is active, forceful and positively destructive. To pray is not simply to send up a shopping list to God, it is to join in struggle against all that corrupts and distorts the beauty of God’s creation and perverts his will for his creatures. The good news of the kingdom which Jesus proclaimed and which is the basic New Testament message is that God’s power is breaking in to free humanity from oppression by these forces. And Christians are his agents, his warriors in the struggle to overcome them within their own person & without in the world:For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Eph 6.12 And Paul suggests that we equip ourselves for this battle. He knew what he was talking about, because he was in gaol guarded by sometimes manacled to Roman soldiers. So he is drawn to the imagery of the armour of God. I do not want to go through it bit by bit; though that is often done and it is profitable, Many Christians use this as an almost daily routine at the start of their Morning Prayer time. Talk of ‘Spiritual warfare’ may deter you. You may think, “I am not that sort of Christian. I am not into spiritual heroics.” Let me reassure you. Paul does not ask for heroics, just steadiness. ¹³ Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Eph 6.13 Most of warfare is not about heroic charges. It is about digging trenches and sitting tight. It is about discomfort more than danger.But let me encourage you to take your prayers more seriously. They do count in the global and cosic srougle of good against evi.Widen your horizons. Pray for the world not just your family. Pray for your church.

For when you pray you are part of that most important prayer of all: Thy Kingdom come; thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.

• Proper 16 B

• Proper 16 B

• Proper 15 B

All Age Service TalkSeven ways to a annoy the devil Reading: Ephesians 4.25-5.2 1.      Tell the truth     4.25           [Visual: Pinocchio]
‘Put off falsehood and speak truthfully to his neighbor,’
Basis of many comedy films e.g. Liar Liar. But putting off falsehood means more than not lying. It is to be trustworthy. ‘ajpoqevmenoi to; yeu`do”’ = ‘Stop being a pseud’. Have no pretence and do not be pretentious. The basis of true character & relationship. A tragic loss in our public life.

2. Watch your temper 4.26-27      [Visual: Temper]
‘²⁶ “In your anger do not sin”: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry,’
We can all lose our rag. But it is none the less a sin; be quick to apologise. It is here Paul warns ‘Do not give the Devil a foothold. The problem is not that when we are angry we say things that we do not mean. Rather it is that when we are angry we mean what we say, but what we say is a travesty of reality. If you brood on that it will fester & grow. On my wedding day my father gave me this advice: ‘Let not the sun go down upon thy wrath.’ It proved good advice, though it did not sound like his usual way of speaking. Only when I came to study the Bible did I discover where the quotation came from. (Eph 4.26 King James Bible)  A quarrel pursued is a quarrel enlarged. Do not let anger become a gateway sin. One small sin that leads on to worse.

3. Be Honest          4.28a                  [Visual: Honesty]
²⁸ He who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with his own hands’
Amazing! What a mixed bag the early Church was. But in the ancient world, if you were poor you starved. What else could you do? “Do anything.” says Paul. Any work however burdensome (The Greek implies hard wearisome Labour) Honesty is important.
The’ ‘I get the pencils from work joke’ (See end notes)

4. Give Charitably 4.28b                 [Visual: Giving]
That he may have something to share with those in need.
In the NT wealth is not a sin. The love of wealth is. Money gives you freedom. Christians are to use their freedom to do good. The early Church was the first ‘Mutual Society’ but our responsibility does not end there. Charity is in the proper sense of the word ‘Love’ those who know the love of God must display it in their lives 5. Watch your tongue 4.29-30      [Visual: Gossip]
²⁹ Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.
The power of words to hurt. Gossip the most destructive force in a church.
But words also have the power to make things seem acceptable. Our society believes in openness. But often discussion serves only to make things seem possible. We tend to think, if you can make a joke of it cannot be so bad after all.
And foul talk is the prelude to foul behaviour. Gordon Ramsey please note.
On the other hand speech can be used to bless, encourage or console.

6. Chuck out the Dross 4.31  [Visual: Dross]
³¹ Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice.
A long list of unattractive characteristics. How do we deal with these. Start with one at a time. It might seem good to start with your worst problem? But being human it might be good to start with the easiest to correct. Success brings hope.      Get rid of what is not helpful.

7. Forgive     4.32           [Visual Forgive]]³² Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.
The Christian basis: As St. John puts it, “We love because he first loved us.” Forgive for you have been forgiven. Your forgiveness covers the faults of others. This has real healing power.
Now we come to the positive side. Christianity is always about more than not doing bad. It is about doing good. ‘Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good’ Rom 12.21
That really is a revolutionary idea!
Notes. Visuals: Sorry but I cannot, at this stage of the sites development, display the visuals projected with this talk. A quick internet search will produce Pinocchio. The bean men which used to be provided with older versions of Word illustrated most of these human emotions. These however now seem to be copyrighted.Beware: Visuals are good, but only if you point to them and interact with them. Otherwise they can be a distraction rather than an aid. ‘I get the pencils from work joke’: A boy had his pencil case stolen at school. His enraged father went to see the head teacher. “What sort of a place are you running where you allow dishonest to flourish and theft to go uncorrected.” He demanded.The head teacher explained how hard it was to sort out this sort of incidents, but trying to calm things down said, “As a gesture of goodwill I will see that the pencils are replaced from school stocks.”The father was not placated. “That is not the point.” He said. “This is a matter of principle. I do not care about the pencils, I get those from work anyway..”

• Proper 14 B

First preached:        10^th August 2003      Trinity 8Ephesians 4.25-5.5  : John 35, 41-51    :        Proper 14 B   Last week I spoke, at some length about the Church as a place where we can all flourish. And about the flourishing of the church as a whole. This week I can be much briefer, because what is listed here is the negative side of this, that behaviour which diminishes our stature as Christians, and moreover blights the life of the church. But first I would like to draw your attention to one line you may almost have passed by.  “He who has been stealing must steal no longer” 4.28However you wrap it up the Ephesian church clearly contained characters whose past life was dubious. This is the openness of the church. The invitation of the gospel is to all and sundry. Indeed it offers a special welcome to those who are morally flawed. What is not said is that having accepted God’s forgiveness they can continue as though that were all right. The gospel which offers free forgiveness is also a call to repentance and re-formation. The grace which washes away our sins is also intended to be the force which enables us to be free of those sins. As that good old hymn Rock of ages outs it:  “Be of sin the double cure, wash me from its guilt and power.”  The transformation Paul asks for here is quite radical. The Thief is to become a philanthropist.The way of Christ, whom we are urged to imitate in verse 5.2 is not simply the negative avoidance of sin (Which is the mistake of much Puritanism) it is the positive pursuit of virtue. So it is not enough to avoid saying what is unwholesome (Literally sapros = what is rotting) 4.29. Speak so that you build up and encourage.It is good to control your temper and tendency to quarrel. It is even better if you acquire the grace and forgiveness to defuse the same faults in others.  4.31&32. For what Christians are called to do is to set aside their old self. 4.22 and put on a new being.  It is the work of the Holy Spirit to build this in us. He wants to do that work, and is grieved 4.30 (What a gentle way of putting it) when we thwart His work. But I think we should draw the logical conclusion. The opposite is also true, when he sees us co-operating with him, showing the nature of Christ, helping others and building them up is he perhaps pleased? I find that possibility very encouraging.

• Proper 14 B

First Preached       6/8/2000                 Trinity 7 Proper 13B

Ephesians 4.1-16                                         Growing in Grace

‘Live a life worthy of the calling you have received. God has called you to into the knowledge of his love, shown in the cross of Christ. But calling also implies that there is a purpose and a role for you. You have a vocation, a part within the purposes of God.  That is the calling with which and to which you were called.

It begins with humility gentleness and patience. This is the nature of the cross. This is how you come to Christ. You cannot come with pride and self importance, or demanding God’s attention. You come patiently knowing you need and waiting upon him.

It begins in humility. It climaxes in the fullness of Christ 4.13.

Perfection is that goal to which we are called. Which forever eludes us, but which we may glimpse from time to time in others. It is the fullness of Christ. We are not therefore talking about self improvement. We are talking about the activity of grace, the work of the Holy Spirit. (4.7 ‘To each one of us grace is given’)

For what is this given? As a treat, or aspiritual high? No! It is given for service in the body of Christ.

The gift of grace, God’s free forgiving love, draws us into the body of Christ. With the grace comes a place in the people of God. And so that we may play a positive role in that community He gives us all some gift some grace that we can give to others.

But he gives certain special gifts:

Gifts of ministry; Apostles, prophets  evangelists pastors and teachers.
There is not time to give a detailed exposition of these roles, but briefly it means –

Gifts of authority and leadership;

Gifts of outreach; gifts of proclamation; gifts of teaching and gifts of caring.

To what end? To build up others for service.

The church exists to help you grow.

So that you can serve God;

so that the Church can grow.

The Church therefore is the place where you can receive grace, where the Spirit can flow.

This  requires proper ministry.

But it also requires unity (Read 4.3) and results in and is expressed in unity. (Read 4.13 )

You are not perfected alone. You need an environment which supports and nurtures perfection.

If I ask: “How much have you grown in grace this last year?” I must also ask “What have you done in that time to help others grow?

If I ask: “How much have you read your Bible, prayed, read other Christian books, attended groups, been to conferences?” I must warn, that can be terribly narcissistic, if it does not also include a desire to share and serve with others.

Have you helped others grow. If it has been a bad year, have you let others help you.

For this is the nature of the Church, The Christian life. Read 4.16

That is the quality of life to which God has called his Church. That is what we have to show to the world to prove the gospel.

That is the qualitative growth on which quantitative growth can be built.

It is founded on the cross of Christ. it is nourished by the Grace of His Sprit. But it requires of us openness to his work and openness to each other so that we may all together: “Reach unity in faith and knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.” 4.13

Christ has an infinity of grace to give. Do we have the humility to receive. Do we have the humility to serve.

• Proper 13 B

First Preached..       3^rd August 2003       Trinity 7  Proper 13 B

Ephesians 4.1-16      : John 6.24-35 

I was reminded of a definition of Love: “Joy in watching another flourish”There is a  great emphasis on flourishing in this passage:We will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ.v15 become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ. v13 Paul wants the church to be a place where Christians can develop their true humanity, their proper nature as children of God. As well as growing in the faith, they are to become Christ-like. True humanity is defined by the life of Jesus. At the same time he wants them to contribute to the growth of the whole.From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work. v16 We can see in the reading a description of the life of a healthy church.

(See end notes.)

1. Empowering leadership. v11 This is the function of the leaders he describes there
   To prepare God’s people for works of service, v12

1. Ministry in which all are involved according to their Gifts.
   But to each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it. v7
   The whole body, ……grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work. v16

1. Functional structures. That is what the leadership in v11 is all about., creating a church in which this can take place. Structures created because they serve the needs of the church, not just because they have always been there. Then, the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work. v16

1. Among the most useful structures for building fellowship and for teaching are small groups.

Paul does not mention small groups he is much more concerned with unity. But he mentions ‘Pastors and teachers’ v11 That is what the small groups are to enable. It is to enable pastoral care and learning, in the plural. More than just leaving it to theMinister who is also supposed to be something of an Apostle, leading and an Evangelist reaching the lost.

1. Evangelism. Evangelists are specifically mentioned v11. It has been estimated that 10%  of any congregation have this gift.

1. Loving relationships. Love is mentioned three times v2, v15, v16 as well as the lovely phrase: Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace v3

This is the Biblical description of an ideal church. It is worth stopping and considering the life of our church in its light. How well is our church designed to help its members grow in their faith. But it also reminds us of our role as Christian disciples. To work together in Love. And also a reminder that we all have something to give to the health of each other “To each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it” v7 We all have something to give.And we are taught how to give it: “Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. ³ Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.”

In that way we shall all flourish. And we shall have a flourishing Church.

——————————————————

Due to problems with handling greek symbols some accents and breathings are missing in the following text (Which is taken from Nestle-Aland Greek-English New Testament,)

The order of the text has been changed and the layout chosen to display the logic of the argument more clearly. Common themes are highlighted in common colours.

oun(egw)                              Parakalw`                      uma” egw; oJ desmio” en kuriw /                               peripathsai axiw”th” klhsew” h” eklhqhte, <sup>2</sup>meta; pash” tapeinofrosunh” kai; prauthto”, meta; makroqumia”, anecomenoi allhlwn en agaph/, <sup>3</sup>threi`n spoudazonte”                 thn enothta tou` pneumato” en tw`/ sundesmw/ th” eirhnh”:  4 {En swma kai; en pneuma, kaqw” kai; eklhqhte en mia`/ elpidi th” klhsew” umwn: ei” kurio”, ma pivsti”, en baptisma,  ei” qeo” kai; pathr pantwn, oJ epi; pantwn kai; dia; pantwn kai; en pasin. de;hJ cari”                           edoqh <sup>7</sup> JEni; ekastw/ hmwnkata; to; mevtron th`” dwrea`” tou` Cristou`.  <sup>8</sup>dio; (os)                       legei:                    anaba” ei” uyo” hj/cmalwvteusen aijcmalwsivan,
e[dwken domata toi” anqrwpoi”. de;tiv                          estin,                             <sup>9</sup>to; ajnevbh  eij mh; oti kai;                                               katebh ei” ta; katwtera »merh th” gh”;  <sup>10</sup>oJ kataba” auto” estin                             kai; oJ anaba;” uperanw pantwn twn ouranwn, ina plhrwsh/ ta; panta. <sup>11</sup>Kai; auto”                                       e[wken (hmin)tou” men apostolou”, tou” de; profhta”, tou” de; euaggelista”, tou” de; poimena” kai; didaskalou”,<sup>12</sup>pro” to; katartismon   twn agivwn eij” e[ron diakoniva”, ei” oikodomhn                 tou` swmato” tou` Cristou`, ¹³mecri oiJ pante”              katanthswmen                         ei” th;n eJnovthta th” pistew” kai; th” epignwvsew” tou` uiou` tou` qeou`, ei” andra teleion, ei” metron hJlikia” tou` plhrwvmato” tou` Cristou`, <sup>14</sup>ina mhketi wmen           nhpioi, kludwnizomenoi kai; periferomenoi panti; anemw/ th” didaskalia”           en th`/ kubeia/ twn anqrwpwn, ejn panourgiva/ pro;” th;n meqodeivan th`” plavnh”,de;<sup>15</sup>alhqeuvonte” en agaph ta; panta               / auxhvswmen                                                 ei” auto;               o” estin hJ kefalhv, Cristo”, ex ou| pan to; swma  (pan to; swma)       poieitai ei” oikodomhneJautou`                              en agaphthn auxhsin tou` swmato”         /.sunarmologoumenon kai; sumbibazomenon dia; pash” afh” th” epicorhgia” kat^  energeian en metrw/ eno” ekastou merou” There is a background to this sermon which is not apparent from this redacted version. The Churches to which it was delivered had been involved in a review of its life using a system called Natural Church Development. See Christian Schwarz ‘Paradigm Shift in the Church’ ISBN 1-889638-05-6 and related publications available from Healthy Church UK http://www.healthychurch.co.uk Schwarz maintains, on the basis of extensive research, that there are eight marks of a healthy Church:            Leadership which empowers others;Ministry that uses people according to their  gifts – no square pegs in round holes; Functional structures that enable the above to operate; Small Groups that provide holistic support for their members. (Teaching & Pastoring) ;Evangelism that engages with people where they are;            Loving relationships;            Passionate spirituality;            Inspiring Worship services The relationship of the first six of these to this passage will be obvious. There is plenty of passionate spirituality in Ephesians, while for the last one see 5.19

• Proper 13 B

First Preached on:       27th July 2003 Trinity 6

Ephesians 3.14-21    :        John 6.1-21       :        Proper 12 (B)

Notes

The Greek Text is laid out and colour coded in a way that it is hoped clarifies the logic of the argument

α β γ δ ε ζ η θ ι

¹⁴Touvtou carinkamptw ta; gonata mou       pro” ton patera, ¹⁵ex ou| pasa patria; en ouranoi” kai; epi; gh” onomazetai,   ¹⁶ ina dw`/ dunamei uJmi`n kata; to; plouto” th” doxh” autou`        krataiwqhnai dia; tou` pneumato” autou`ei” ton esw anqrwpon,  <sup>17</sup>katoikhsai         ton Criston                    dia; th” pistew” en tai” kadiai” umwn, errizwmenoi kai teqemeliwmenoi, en agaph/ <sup>8</sup>ina exiscushte katalabesqai tiv to; plato” kai; mhko” sun pasin toi” agioi” kai; uyo” kai; baqo”,  <sup>19</sup>gnwnai                 te thn uperballousan    th” gnwsew” agaphn tou` Cristou`,  ina plhrwqh`te ei” pan to; plhrwma tou` qeou`. 20Tw`/ de; dunamenw/ uper panta poihsai uJperekperissou` w|n aijtouvmeqa h] noou`men kata; th;n dunamin thn energoumenhn en hmin,  <sup>21</sup>autw`/ hJ doxa                  ejn th`/ ekklhsia/ kai; en Cristw`/  jIhsou` ei” pasa” ta” genea” tou` aw`no” twn aiwnwn, amhn.

• Proper 12 B