Welcome to AnchorCast, a weekly podcast of homilies and sermons from Christ our Anchor Anglican Mission in Nashville, Tennessee.

Let us pray.

Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of our hearts be acceptable in thy sight, O Lord, our Rock and our Redeemer.

Amen.

So, as I often want to do in Advent, I think a lot about John the Baptizer specifically, kind of preparing the way for the Lord.

But then also, you know, the promised second coming of our Lord, which especially for our friends out on the streets and others is very much good news, right?

That the Lord will come and restore all things and forgive all things and make all things new.

And so, I started looking at a T.S.

Eliot poem, which was quite nice, but also not very accessible for public reading.

I didn’t feel up to reading a T.S.

Eliot poem, but in that searching, I found a lovely bit from the book of homilies from the Sermon on Salvation that touches on John the Baptist and the promise that Christ gives him.

So, I thought I would read that section today because I think it’s especially important here at the beginning of Advent to keep on our minds what we have actually been promised.

So, it says, first you shall understand that in our justification by Christ, it is not all one thing, the office of God unto man and the office of man unto God.

Justification is not the office of man, but of God.

For man cannot make himself righteous by his own works, neither in part nor in the whole.

For that were the great arrogancy and presumption of man that Antichrist could set up against God to affirm that a man might by his own works take away and purge his own sins and so justify himself.

But justification is the office of God only and is not a thing which we render unto him, but which we receive of him, not which we give unto him, but which we take of him by his free mercy and by the only merits of his most dearly beloved Son, our only Redeemer, Savior and Justifier, Jesus Christ.

So that the true understanding of this doctrine, we be justified freely by faith without works, or that we be justified by faith in Christ only, is not that this our own act to believe in Christ or this our own faith in Christ, which is within us, doth justify us and deserve our justification unto us.

For that were to count ourselves to be justified by some act or virtue that is within ourselves.

But the true understanding and meaning thereof is that, although we hear God’s word and believe it, although we have faith, hope, charity, repentance, dread, and fear of God within us, and do never so many good works thereunto, yet we must renounce the merit of all our said virtues of faith, hope, charity, and all our other virtues and good deeds, which we either have done, shall do, or can do, as things that be far too weak and insufficient and unperfect to deserve remission of our sins and our justification.

And therefore, we must trust only in God’s mercy, and in that, sacrifice which our High Priest and Savior Jesus Christ, the Son of God, once offered for us upon the cross, to obtain thereby God’s grace and remission, as well of our original sin in baptism, as of all actual sin committed by us after our baptism, if we truly repent and turn unfaintedly to him again.

So that, as Saint John Baptist, although he were never so virtuous and godly a man, yet in this matter of forgiving of sin he did put the people from him, and appointed them unto Christ, saying thus unto them, Behold, yonder is the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sins of the world.

Even so, as great and as godly a virtue as the lively faith is, yet it putteth us from itself, and remitteth or appointeth us unto Christ, for to have only by him remission of our sins or justification.

So that our faith in Christ as it were, saith unto us thus, It is not that I take away your sins, but it is Christ only, and to him only I send you for that purpose, forsaking therein all your good virtues, words, thoughts, and works, and only putting your trust in Christ.

Amen.

Christ Our Anchor is an Anglican mission in East Nashville that meets on Wednesday evenings for prayer and fellowship.

Follow us at ChristOurAnchor.org to learn more about the work God has called us to in East Nashville, and join us on Wednesday evenings at 5 30 as we live into what Jesus has called his church to be.

Everyone is welcome.

Amen.