William C. Turner, Jr. - "Denying the Self for the Sake of Life" (March 3, 1985)

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	(dramatic organ music)	0:03
	(gentle organ music)	2:59
	(dramatic organ music)	14:00
	(gentle organ music)	15:38
-	Good morning, and welcome to this service of worship	18:27
	at Duke University Chapel.	18:31
	On this first Sunday of spring break,	18:34
	we think of many members of our community	18:36
	who cannot be with us today	18:38
	and we wish them safe travels on their vacation time.	18:40
	We're especially grateful today	18:44
	for Dr William Turner being with us as today's preacher.	18:46
	Dr Turner is well known to this community	18:51
	having been here almost consecutively since 1966	18:53
	having received three degrees here	18:59
	and currently serving on the Faculty of the Divinity School.	19:02
	It's a great pleasure for us to have him	19:05
	with us in worship today.	19:08
	And now let us join together in a moment of silence	19:11
	as we prepare ourselves for worship	19:14
	after which we will join together	19:17
	as we stand in reading responsively Psalm 139.	19:19
	(gentle organ music)	19:30
	Please rise.	20:30
	Oh Lord, thou hast searched me and known me.	20:39
-	Thou knowest when I sit down and when I rise up.	20:44
	Thou discernest my thoughts from afar.	20:48
-	Thou searchest out my path and my lying down.	20:52
-	And art acquainted with all my ways.	20:57
-	Even before a word is on my tongue.	21:00
-	Oh Lord, thou knowest it altogether.	21:04
-	Thou dost beset me behind and before.	21:09
-	And layest thy hand upon me.	21:13
-	Such knowledge is too wonderful for me.	21:17
-	It is high, I cannot attain it.	21:20
-	Whither shall I go from thy Spirit?	21:24
-	Or whither shall I flee from thy presence?	21:28
-	If I ascend to heaven, thou art there.	21:32
-	If I make my bed in Sheol, thou art there.	21:36
-	If I take the wings of the morning.	21:40
-	And dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea.	21:44
-	Even there thy hand shall lead me.	21:47
-	And thy right hand shall hold me.	21:51
-	If I say, let only darkness cover me.	21:54
-	And the light about me be night.	21:58
-	Even the darkness is not dark to thee.	22:00
	The night is bright as the day.	22:04
-	For darkness is as light with thee.	22:07
-	How precious to me are thy thoughts, oh God.	22:10
-	How vast is the sum of them.	22:15
-	If I would count them, they are more than the sand.	22:17
-	When I awake, I am still with thee.	22:22
-	Search me, oh God, and know my heart.	22:26
-	Try me and know my thoughts.	22:29
-	And see if there be any wicked way in me.	22:32
-	And lead me in the way everlasting.	22:37
	(gentle organ music)	22:41
	(congregation singing)	23:22
	Let us humbly confess our sins to Almighty God.	26:11
	Most Merciful God, we confess that we have sinned	26:27
	against you in thought, word and deed by what we have done	26:32
	and by what we have left undone.	26:39
	We have not loved you with our whole heart.	26:43
	We have not loved our neighbors as ourselves.	26:46
	We are truly sorry and we humbly repent.	26:50
	For the sake of your Son Jesus Christ, have mercy on us	26:55
	and forgive us that we may delight in your will	27:00
	and walk in your ways to the glory of your name.	27:05
	Amen.	27:10
	Hear the good news.	27:13
	Christ died for us while we were yet sinners.	27:15
	That is God's own proof of His love toward us.	27:20
	In the name of Jesus Christ, you are forgiven.	27:25
-	In the name of Jesus Christ, you are forgiven.	27:30
-	Amen.	27:35
-	Let us pray.	27:45
	Open our hearts and minds, oh God, by the power	27:48
	of your Holy Spirit so that as the word	27:53
	is read and proclaimed, we might hear with joy	27:56
	what you say to us this this day.	28:00
	Amen.	28:03
	The first lesson is taken from Genesis Chapter 17,	28:06
	verses one through 10, 15 through 19.	28:11
	When Abram was 99 years old, the Lord appeared to Abram	28:16
	and said to him, I am God Almighty.	28:21
	Walk before me and be blameless and I will make my covenant	28:24
	between me and you and will multiply you exceedingly.	28:29
	Then Abram fell on his face.	28:33
	And God said to him, behold my covenant is with you	28:36
	and you shall be the father of a multitude of nations.	28:41
	No longer shall your name be Abram	28:46
	but your name shall be Abraham	28:48
	for I have made you the father of a multitude of nations.	28:51
	I will make you exceedingly fruitful	28:56
	and I will make nations of you	28:58
	and kings shall come forth from you	29:01
	and I will establish my covenant between me and you	29:04
	and your descendants after you throughout their generations	29:09
	for an everlasting covenant to be God to you	29:13
	and to your descendants after you.	29:16
	And I will give to you and to your descendants after you,	29:19
	the land of your sojournings, all the land of Canaan,	29:23
	for an everlasting possession and I will be their God.	29:27
	And God said to Abraham, as for you,	29:32
	you shall keep my covenant,	29:36
	you and your descendants after you	29:38
	throughout their generations.	29:41
	This is my covenant which you shall keep between me and you	29:44
	and your descendants after you.	29:50
	Every male among you shall be circumcised.	29:53
	And God said to Abraham, as for Sarai your wife,	29:57
	you shall not call her name Sarai	30:02
	but Sarah shall be her name.	30:05
	I will bless her and, moreover,	30:07
	I will give you a son by her.	30:09
	I will bless her and she shall be a mother of nations,	30:12
	kings of people shall come from her and she shall be.	30:15
	Then Abraham fell on his face and laughed	30:21
	and said to himself, shall a child be born to a man	30:23
	who is a hundred years old?	30:27
	Shall Sarah, who is 90 years old, bear a child?	30:29
	And Abraham said to God,	30:34
	oh that Ishmael might live in thy sight.	30:37
	God said, no, but Sarah your wife shall bear you a son	30:41
	and you shall call his name Isaac.	30:46
	I will establish my covenant with him	30:49
	as an everlasting covenant for his descendants after him.	30:51
	This ends the reading of the first lesson.	30:57
	The second lesson is taken from Romans Chapter Four,	31:01
	verses 16 through 25.	31:06
	That is why it depends on faith	31:09
	in order that the promise may rest on grace	31:12
	and be guaranteed to all his descendants,	31:15
	not only to the adherence of the law	31:19
	but also to those who share the faith of Abraham,	31:22
	for he is the father of us all as it is written.	31:26
	I have made you the father of many nations	31:30
	in the presence of the God in whom he believed	31:34
	who gives life to the dead	31:37
	and calls into existence the things that do not exist.	31:39
	In hope, he believed against hope	31:43
	that he should become the father of many nations	31:47
	as he had been told.	31:50
	So shall your descendants be.	31:52
	He did not weaken in faith when he considered his own body	31:55
	which was as good as dead	31:59
	because he was about a hundred years old	32:00
	or when he considered the barrenness of Sarah's womb.	32:03
	No distrust made him waver concerning the promise of God	32:07
	but he grew strong in his faith as he gave glory to God	32:11
	fully convinced that God was able to do	32:15
	what he had promised.	32:18
	That is why his faith was reckoned to him as righteousness	32:20
	but the words, it was reckoned to him,	32:24
	were written not for his sake alone but for ours also.	32:28
	It will be reckoned to us who believe in him	32:33
	that raised from the dead Jesus our Lord	32:36
	who put to death for our trespasses	32:38
	and raised for our justification.	32:41
	This ends the reading of the second lesson.	32:44
	♪ God is my Shepherd ♪	32:59
	♪ I want for nothing ♪	33:09
	♪ My rest is in the pleasant meadows ♪	33:17
	♪ He leadeth me where quiet waters flow ♪	33:25
	♪ My fainting soul doth He restore ♪	33:39
	♪ And guideth me in the ways of peace ♪	33:47
	♪ To glorify His Name ♪	33:55
	♪ And though in death's dark valley ♪	34:08
	♪ My steps must wander ♪	34:16
	♪ My spirit shall not fear ♪	34:24
	♪ For Thou art by me still ♪	34:32
	♪ Thy rod and staff are with me ♪	34:42
	♪ And they shall comfort me ♪	34:50
-	The gospel is taken from Mark Chapter eight	35:24
	verses 31 through 38.	35:27
	And he began to teach them that the Son of Man	35:31
	must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders	35:34
	and the chief priests and the scribes	35:39
	and be killed and after three days rise again.	35:42
	And he said this plainly.	35:46
	And Peter took him and began to rebuke him	35:49
	but turning and seeing his disciples,	35:53
	he rebuked Peter and said,	35:56
	get behind me Satan for you are not on the side of God	35:58
	but of men.	36:03
	And he called to him the multitude with his disciples	36:05
	and said to them, if any man would come after me,	36:08
	let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.	36:12
	For whoever would save his life will lose it	36:16
	and whoever loses his life for my sake and the Gospels	36:20
	will save it.	36:25
	For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world	36:26
	and forfeit his life.	36:30
	For what can a man give in return for his life?	36:33
	For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words	36:37
	and this adulterous and sinful generation	36:40
	of him will the Son of Man also be ashamed	36:44
	when he comes in the glory of his father	36:48
	with the holy angels.	36:50
-	Let us pray.	37:07
	So draw our hearts close to thee.	37:14
	So guide our minds.	37:18
	So fill our imaginations.	37:22
	So control our wills	37:25
	until we are utterly dying,	37:28
	wholly dedicated to thee,	37:32
	and then use us, oh God, as Thou will	37:36
	and always for Thy sake	37:41
	and for the welfare of thy people.	37:44
	Amen.	37:49
	Despite its irony, it is abidingly true	37:56
	that often the desired ends	38:01
	in life are not achieved	38:05
	through preoccupation with them.	38:09
	In more cases than we would prefer,	38:14
	the route that runs to the designation	38:17
	and the destination that we target and label as ends,	38:21
	is fraught with many winding turns.	38:27
	It carries us over a course that is far different	38:31
	from the one that we would chart for ourselves.	38:35
	We're dragged along the journey that we despise.	38:40
	And the initial motions in our efforts	38:44
	tend to be those that are quite opposite to the ones	38:48
	that would appeal to us the most.	38:52
	But within those who feast on the Word of our Lord,	38:57
	the alarm should not last very long.	39:02
	Indeed, our Master has instructed us	39:06
	that he or she who would save	39:10
	their life will lose it.	39:14
	The corrected confession of messiahship	39:17
	that we find in our text for today, instructs us	39:21
	that we must deny self	39:25
	for the sake of life.	39:29
	The persistence of having to follow the despised	39:34
	or the unattractive route to reach the glorious ends	39:38
	stand before us as a fact that is present	39:43
	in almost every aspect of life wherein the end	39:46
	or the goal is a worthwhile one.	39:51
	The scholar does not produce great works	39:56
	by first giving his or her attention	39:59
	to the royalties from the book.	40:03
	Indeed, in more cases than not,	40:05
	that would be a program for publishing trash.	40:07
	More than a few students every semester earn C grades	40:12
	through their preoccupation with earning As	40:17
	in their efforts not to do it the hard way.	40:21
	The robbers, the thieves, the embezzlers,	40:26
	do not give their first attention to becoming crooks	40:30
	but what they do in the first place is ponder the fortune,	40:36
	the profit, the power of life, without setting themselves	40:40
	to those difficult tasks that are required to achieve	40:45
	those ends or without properly calculating the uncertainty	40:49
	of achieving by legitimate means in our time.	40:54
	With spiritual things as well,	41:00
	the way that we reach the place	41:04
	we desire to be in the spirit	41:07
	is not by the easy route.	41:11
	Indeed, it is not by preoccupation with the ends	41:14
	that are so glorious and inviting.	41:19
	There is a certain discipline, a daily devotion,	41:23
	that is required to be rich in the spirit.	41:29
	The benefits of the Kingdom wherein our Christ reigns	41:33
	do not come cheaply or easily.	41:38
	We may profitably remove the interrogative from the words	41:43
	of the old hymn with which we are familiar	41:47
	and say forthrightly and positively,	41:51
	we shall not be carried to the skies	41:54
	on flowered beds of ease	41:58
	or with equal benefit we may paraphrase	42:02
	the slave song and say that no one gets to heaven	42:05
	by talking about going there.	42:11
	That's not the way it is in the things	42:14
	that make a difference in life.	42:18
	The truth of the seemingly indirect route	42:23
	that takes us to the life that	42:28
	God has promised in the Christ	42:30
	is communicated with unsurpassed clarity and power	42:34
	in the lesson of our text for today	42:38
	that focuses on a discussion between Jesus and his disciples	42:42
	following the feeding miracle	42:48
	recorded in the eighth chapter of the gospel	42:50
	that bears Mark's name.	42:55
	This discussion of Jesus' messiahship	42:58
	is preceded by his disgust with the multitude.	43:02
	They were looking for signs and for wonders.	43:07
	Their total preoccupation was with these miracles.	43:11
	Jesus wanted them to understand	43:16
	that the greatest miracle was in their midst.	43:19
	Indeed, he was all that they needed	43:22
	if they would but open their hearts to him.	43:25
	But the disgust increased when the disciples	43:29
	mistook his statements concerning the leaven	43:33
	of the Pharisees.	43:37
	Thought he was talking about physical bread.	43:39
	Though Mark makes no explicit reference	43:44
	to disgust,	43:50
	it was surely no great source of encouragement for the Lord	43:51
	when, after laying hands upon those unseeing eyes,	43:57
	the man still saw other men	44:03
	but only as trees.	44:06
	Then lo, he comes to his disciples and	44:10
	he speaks to them	44:15
	and finds that they are much like the man	44:17
	with the blinded eyes.	44:21
	For even though their eyes have been touched	44:23
	from being with their Lord and master,	44:27
	they remain only partially open.	44:30
	For, though, the Father had revealed	44:35
	through the confession of Peter,	44:37
	that Jesus was the Christ,	44:40
	their unblinded eyes could not fathom	44:44
	what the detour of suffering had to do	44:48
	with the way the Christ would take to the throne of power.	44:53
	Indeed, the aggressiveness with which Peter spoke	44:59
	and challenged the Lord was such	45:04
	that he literally had to rebuke him and say, get behind me.	45:07
	You're Satan, you don't perceive the things of God.	45:13
	You're not on my side at all	45:18
	if you do not realize that suffering	45:22
	is part of this mission.	45:25
	And if you take suffering away, you have denied me	45:28
	and all for which I have come.	45:33
	Only in losing life for the sake of Christ,	45:38
	can true life be gained.	45:43
	There must be a denial of self	45:47
	for the sake of the life	45:51
	that is offered by the Christ.	45:55
	The first step, in denying self,	46:00
	and taking up the cross	46:05
	is confessing that the Christ of God	46:08
	is none other than the Son of Man who suffers.	46:14
	This was the difficulty that Peter had in that great moment	46:20
	wherein he was used as an oracle of God.	46:26
	In that moment, he uttered words on which the very faith	46:30
	of the church rests.	46:36
	Yet, it is the corrected confession	46:39
	in our text that must be regarded as	46:45
	the stable foundation	46:49
	for followers of the Christ.	46:52
	We can imagine how Peter must have felt	46:56
	in that moment when he was commended by the master	47:01
	for these words of Revelation.	47:07
	Oh, I can imagine how Peter felt	47:10
	to have Jesus say to him,	47:13
	flesh and blood did not reveal those words to you.	47:16
	Those words came by divine inspiration.	47:21
	We have no evidence whatsoever in the Gospels	47:27
	that Peter was in the least bit shy	47:31
	about speaking his piece. He would open his mouth.	47:35
	He would say it even if it killed him.	47:40
	He would say it whether it was right	47:43
	or whether it was wrong.	47:45
	Peter was not shy and because we can be certain	47:47
	that all of the conversation is not communicated,	47:51
	I can imagine that Peter just went on and on and on,	47:54
	talking endlessly in his elated state	47:59
	over the revelation that had come through him.	48:03
	It's very much like many of us.	48:08
	You know how we are when we get a hold	48:11
	of a piece of information that sets us apart from others	48:13
	and we have some knowledge that people around us don't have.	48:17
	We just go on and on and on	48:21
	and we become instant authorities in things	48:23
	that we knew nothing about until we discover	48:27
	that we know just a little bit more than everybody else.	48:30
	You find a crowd of Duke basketball fans,	48:35
	you get 'em around people who don't know	48:40
	any of the football players	48:42
	and they know everybody personally.	48:44
	They just saw him on the campus	48:47
	but they know his middle name and where he comes from	48:49
	and what kind of food he likes. We go on and on and on	48:52
	with our instant authority	48:57
	until someone is there who really knows	49:01
	the truth in the matter	49:06
	and they stop us in our tracks.	49:09
	This is what happened to Peter.	49:14
	When Jesus commended this confession,	49:17
	Peter said, in essence, I've got the secret now.	49:22
	For if we follow the account of Mark,	49:26
	we see that secrecy surrounds this mission.	49:28
	In the beginning stages,	49:33
	the disciples did not know who Jesus was,	49:35
	even when the Devils knew.	49:37
	They knew what the religious leaders did not know	49:40
	and when Peter spoke this confession he said, in essence,	49:43
	oh, I know what's going on now.	49:47
	Master, I know who you are now.	49:50
	I understand why the demons back up	49:53
	when you speak. You are the Christ of power.	49:58
	Peter thought he had the inside track.	50:03
	That he knew even more about the Master's mission	50:06
	than the Master himself knew.	50:09
	For once he spoke a word that he was the Christ	50:13
	and that word was confirmed, this gave the secret,	50:17
	you see there was no Jew worth his salt	50:20
	or worth her salt in ancient Palestine	50:24
	who was not familiar with the meaning of the Messiah.	50:27
	Why the Messiah would sit on the throne	50:30
	of their father David.	50:34
	With his work and with his ministry,	50:36
	a Mount Zion would be elevated to the center of the world,	50:40
	that high mountain from which the knowledge of God	50:43
	would flow and all the nations would flock there	50:47
	to learn the truth of God.	50:51
	And so, with the proverbial cow by the tail,	50:54
	Peter began swinging and swinging	50:58
	for all that he is worth.	51:02
	But look at Jesus,	51:06
	the eternal son of the Father	51:09
	become an obedient servant.	51:12
	He saw tempt.	51:15

-	In this moment of ectasy and revelation.	0:03
	But Peter persisted, he was aggressive about the thing.	0:07
	He said, Master, now that I know who you are,	0:10
	you don't have to be shy about it, you're the Messiah.	0:14
	Quit all this talk about suffering, you only confuse us.	0:17
	You'll only confuse the people	0:22
	by talking of suffering.	0:26
	At that point, Jesus spoke firmly	0:30
	to set the record straight.	0:35
	He said to them, one cannot confess me	0:38
	without confessing my suffering.	0:45
	There is no Christ who reigns	0:49
	without the son of man who suffers.	0:53
	That their minds were fixed on power	0:58
	and reigning in majesty is certain,	1:02
	from the subsequent episode in which the sons of Zebedee	1:05
	request permission to sit on the right hand	1:09
	and on the left when he comes to reign.	1:12
	But Jesus forced them to confront the issue	1:15
	that the ministry of the son of man	1:19
	was in the midst of suffering ones, it had more to do	1:23
	with challenging the devil	1:28
	who presumed to have the right to disturb	1:31
	and torment the minds and bodies	1:35
	of God's children.	1:39
	Discipleship was joining him	1:41
	as he extended cleansing to the leper.	1:46
	Hope to the harlot.	1:50
	Blessings for the blind.	1:54
	Deliverance for the dumb.	1:57
	Being the disciple was following him in the midst	2:01
	of the searing sarcasm,	2:05
	those sacerdotal authorities stood over against him	2:08
	and, ultimately, led him to the tree	2:14
	where he died.	2:18
	The corrected confession held before them	2:20
	the inseparable unity of the Christ who reigns	2:25
	and the son of man who suffers.	2:30
	As Christ, he came to suffer.	2:34
	For he came to identify with a suffering world.	2:39
	With a suffering humanity.	2:43
	He was born in suffering. He lived in suffering.	2:46
	He embraced the sufferers	2:50
	as his very own and when he did it,	2:53
	he got in trouble.	2:59
	This is always the case, whenever one embraces suffering,	3:00
	one gets in trouble.	3:04
	For, you see, Jesus encountered religious leaders	3:06
	who were more concerned with their image	3:09
	than with the needs of the people.	3:13
	They were more concerned to preserve their rules	3:15
	than to see wounded life healed	3:19
	if it meant breaking the Sabbath.	3:22
	They would rather for people to stay hungry in their souls	3:24
	and their stomachs, rather than have feeding miracles	3:29
	that would open their eyes till they saw the truth	3:35
	rather than have them lift up their hearts	3:39
	and find that they did not have to be satisfied	3:43
	with the world as it was around them.	3:47
	When they were satisfied by the son of man,	3:50
	when they were fed in their souls and their spirits,	3:55
	they knew that they did not have to fix their hopes, finally	4:00
	on the good pleasure of those around them	4:06
	who held them in bondage and this was trouble	4:10
	for those religious leaders whose very power	4:15
	was tied up with Roman might.	4:20
	No, Jesus said, my mission	4:23
	is all about suffering	4:27
	and if the suffering cannot be embraced,	4:30
	the confession is in need of correction.	4:35
	Failure to deny self	4:41
	and take up the cross is to lose life.	4:45
	This word sounds so utterly contradicting	4:50
	and lacking in charm,	4:55
	yet, this is the word that flows forth	4:59
	from the lips of our Lord.	5:03
	This word is a necessary consequence	5:06
	of the corrected confession.	5:11
	There was no option for the Christ to sacrifice	5:14
	and to give himself in suffering.	5:19
	And there is, likewise, no option for those	5:22
	who would be his followers in our time.	5:25
	Through his sacrifice, Christ opened the vistas	5:29
	of victory and we, who would be his followers,	5:33
	can know the same true life	5:37
	by following him. The saddest,	5:41
	most miserable people in our world, to be sure,	5:45
	are those who make a career	5:51
	of saving their life.	5:55
	They miss the meaning of denying self	5:59
	and the corrected confession of the Christ.	6:04
	You see, they have not learned that life	6:09
	is not so much a thing to be saved,	6:12
	as an adventure to be embarked upon.	6:17
	What's more, life must be lived fully in every moment.	6:22
	Contact with the world affords	6:28
	enumerable opportunities to gain life	6:32
	by losing it.	6:37
	What is any sadder than to encounter those	6:39
	who, in their determination, that it is too expensive	6:44
	in terms of time, responsibility and money,	6:49
	to bear children, come to the closing days of their lives	6:53
	and have no one to love them,	6:58
	no one to whom they can give their tenderest love.	7:01
	It's a pitiful thing to find people	7:06
	who have come to the end of their journey,	7:10
	they want someone to love but no one is there	7:13
	because they have not taken time	7:17
	along the way to lose just	7:20
	a little of themselves	7:24
	in order to give love.	7:27
	It's pitiful, it's sad beyond measure	7:31
	to encounter people who miss living	7:35
	in order to save so that they can live after they retire,	7:40
	only to discover as the age of retirement draws closer	7:45
	closer that there will be no retirement	7:50
	to enjoy.	7:55
	How sad it is to miss life	7:57
	by saving life.	8:02
	Life cannot be saved by shunning the poor,	8:05
	the destitute, the outcast.	8:11
	This world is too small for that.	8:15
	We may push them far away from us	8:19
	but the sea is only minutes away.	8:21
	Our world is close now.	8:25
	Those who have nothing have determined that	8:28
	since they have nothing, they have nothing to lose.	8:31
	They've made up their minds not to play life	8:35
	by the rules that are set by those	8:38
	who have everything to lose,	8:41
	when they have nothing to lose.	8:45
	This is the world we live in,	8:51
	a world that affords us no escape.	8:55
	For just practical reasons,	9:00
	it makes good sense to live right	9:03
	and to obey Christ	9:06
	in times like these.	9:08
	Though our best energy	9:12
	is spent acquiring material things,	9:15
	these are those things that the thieves	9:19
	can break in to steal.	9:23
	These are those things that the moths	9:25
	can corrupt. As a nation,	9:29
	we cannot truly find life	9:32
	till we learn to deny ourselves.	9:35
	There is a disturbing deceitfulness	9:41
	in the popular language that fills political speech,	9:44
	proclaiming a new redemption for our land.	9:49
	Indeed, the new thrust is sometimes hailed	9:54
	as a new revolution.	9:58
	It is proclaimed as a program	10:01
	that will restore the fortunes of the nation	10:04
	and make her great in the world once again.	10:07
	The desperate effort that consumes the energies	10:12
	of those obsessed with these notions	10:16
	of saving America by keeping her from the throes	10:19
	of military weakness and the self-effacing criticism	10:24
	of those who, by their very words, give evidence	10:29
	that they're not fit to live in this land,	10:32
	and they are not fit to partake of the great dream,	10:37
	is one that is disheartening and dangerous,	10:42
	to say the least.	10:46
	For all of this is done in the heedless arrogance	10:49
	of those who, supposedly, would keep America safe	10:53
	by keeping her from losing her life.	10:58
	And so, though the talk in all of this so-called recovery	11:03
	is of life, the biggest investments, by far,	11:08
	are to the ends of death.	11:14
	By far, disproportionate amounts are spent	11:16
	and budgeted for expanding military capacities.	11:20
	Before it's over, there will be missiles on the land,	11:25
	missiles on the sea, missiles in the sky.	11:28
	No longer will we need to sing twinkle twinkle little star,	11:32
	how I wonder what you are, but we should change that tune	11:36
	before long, I'm afraid to sing,	11:41
	when I see the twinkling star,	11:44
	I wonder if the world's at war.	11:48
	We invest in those things that	11:52
	rob life from us.	11:55
	That take life away.	11:59
	The so-called savings	12:02
	that would improve national life	12:06
	have the decided affect of diminishing life for the poor.	12:10
	For the farmers.	12:15
	For the old, for the helpless.	12:18
	Richness and fullness for national life	12:22
	does not emanate from Dallas.	12:26
	The pattern for rich and full life in the spirit	12:28
	is not given with the lifestyles of the rich	12:32
	and the famous.	12:36
	But healthy life for this nation, as is the case	12:37
	with every nation, must come from inside where people	12:41
	have hopes, where people live and abound	12:46
	in the good things that God has given to humankind	12:50
	and where they see for themselves	12:54
	a day that beckons them	12:57
	with goals	13:01
	that have grandeur and sparkle for them.	13:04
	Life cannot be saved by the slander	13:09
	and the slashing of those very things that promote life.	13:14
	Life is not being saved when a third and fourth generation	13:20
	reach their adulthood without ever being gainfully employed.	13:24
	Life is not being saved when people live on the park benches	13:29
	and have to race the rain for shelter.	13:34
	Life is not being saved	13:37
	when you see generations	13:41
	coming behind	13:45
	their mothers and their fathers with no hope	13:47
	for even earning as much as their mothers and fathers did.	13:52
	When we see generations coming onto the scene	13:58
	with no hope for owning their homes and doing those	14:03
	very things that have given drive and ambition	14:08
	to those who erected our great republic.	14:13
	Such patterns bespeak life lost	14:17
	despite the rhetoric of saving.	14:23
	In the more explicitly religious dimension,	14:27
	we're similarly threatened with loss of life	14:32
	if we follow those flawed notions of salvation,	14:37
	if we follow those compromised statements	14:42
	that we so often hear in popular piety.	14:46
	Their ways and other forms of media are filled	14:50
	with those who invite people to a salvation	14:53
	that is devoid of sacrifice	14:58
	and losing life. Where the cross has been removed,	15:02
	there is no life.	15:06
	Where suffering is taken away, nothing is left	15:09
	but a cheap fix.	15:14
	It's sad, to be sure, to find those	15:17
	who have plenty of salvation without understanding	15:20
	that salvation means losing life,	15:24
	giving something to someone else.	15:28
	There are those who have discovered the truth of this word,	15:33
	and because their traditions do not allow them to stop	15:38
	using the language of salvation, they're ready	15:41
	to confess that they're saved but they're quick	15:46
	to put a modifier on it, to say, I'm saved to serve.	15:49
	This is the only kind of salvation that means anything	15:54
	in the sight of the Lord.	15:58
	True salvation is salvation that causes us	16:01
	to come in touch with the master and the Lord of life	16:06
	and to be saturated with his life	16:11
	that sends us forth into service	16:15
	and in giving ourselves to others.	16:19
	Any other salvation is nothing other than a delusion	16:22
	to disguise the definiteness of the deafening sentence	16:27
	of the master who will say,	16:33
	depart from me, I never knew you.	16:35
	In confessing the Christ and denying self,	16:40
	one finds life.	16:45
	For, what is life, but vitality?	16:48
	What is life, but a vigorous engagement of the world	16:52
	with the powers that have been bestowed upon us	16:58
	by the Lord and the giver of life.	17:01
	When all is said and done, life is less about the things	17:06
	that are had than about the meaningful purposes	17:10
	that keep us in its march.	17:15
	As a thing to hold and to save, life is little more	17:19
	than a vapor, a puff of smoke	17:23
	that appears for a little while	17:26
	and then vanishes away.	17:27
	Just lose a little of self	17:32
	and watch life blossom all around you.	17:37
	An unfolding of the divine will takes place	17:41
	when time is given in meditation upon the scriptures	17:45
	and prayer to the Almighty God.	17:50
	An unfolding of his will takes place that touches one	17:53
	on the inside, when a little bit life is lost.	17:58
	Just give a little of your life.	18:03
	That day on which one denies him or herself,	18:08
	the benefits of food for the sake of fasting	18:12
	may be a day in which the calories are decreased.	18:16
	Many of us need to decrease our calories anyway,	18:19
	but when one gives him or herself in that way,	18:23
	there is a return in blessings	18:28
	that cannot be described to others	18:32
	who do not so know the master.	18:36
	When you give yourself,	18:39
	lose a little of yourself in loving those	18:42
	who have no one to love them	18:46
	and caring for those who feel that there is no care left	18:49
	in this world.	18:53
	There is an abundance that surges from the inside,	18:54
	maybe you've never experienced it but there is way	18:58
	to give yourself in service so that when you go	19:02
	and help another who seems to be pitiful,	19:06
	and sad, and lowly, and lonely,	19:12
	you come back feeling as though you have been lifted	19:17
	and blessed.	19:22
	Now, that's hard to describe and it doesn't make	19:24
	too much sense unless are just foolish enough	19:28
	to believe the words of our Lord.	19:33
	Sacrifice for the victims	19:38
	of they-min,	19:43
	suffering oppression wherever	19:45
	it may appear in the world.	19:48
	Sacrifice the popularity that you must lose	19:51
	in order to stand for what is right	19:57
	when everyone else is indifferent.	20:00
	The promise is, that in the things of the spirit,	20:04
	what appears to be a loss	20:09
	is truly a gain.	20:13
	Give your life unreservedly to the Lord,	20:17
	watch how the spirit fills from within	20:22
	giving gracious gifts, giving abundant life,	20:27
	giving inner nurture that sustains.	20:32
	Sacrifice, give yourself,	20:37
	open your heart,	20:41
	that the joy bells might ring.	20:44
	One soul took the Lord as his word.	20:47
	He tried that method of losing	20:53
	in order to gain	20:59
	and penned words to a song that declare,	21:01
	somebody told me of the joy they had.	21:06
	Somebody told me that in sorrow	21:11
	they could be glad.	21:15
	Somebody told me of the love they shared.	21:17
	I never thought it could be	21:23
	till it happened to me.	21:27
	And this is the challenge.	21:31
	Lose life in order to gain it.	21:35
	Give life for the sake of finding it.	21:40
	Deny self for the sake of life.	21:45
	A good taste of the life, one finds,	21:51
	in following the Christ who suffers	21:55
	in order that he might reign is sufficient	21:59
	even in the valley	22:04
	and the shadow of death.	22:07
	For in the Christ, the valleys are exulted,	22:10
	the mountains are brought low,	22:16
	the crooked places are made straight,	22:20
	the rough place are made plain.	22:23
	But, alas, one who truly	22:28
	denies self	22:32
	for the sake of life,	22:35
	gets a taste of his life	22:38
	that enables one to pass through death	22:42
	without experiencing the death	22:48
	that separates from God.	22:51
	He or she that would come after me,	22:55
	let them deny self.	23:00
	For those who seek to save their life	23:03
	will lose it, but those who lose their life,	23:08
	for the sake of Christ and for the gospel	23:13
	shall find it.	23:18
	Amen.	23:20
	Amen.	23:22
	Thanks be to God.	23:24
-	Let us unite in this historic confession	23:41
	of the Christian faith.	23:44
	I believe in God, the father almighty,	23:47
	maker of heaven and earth	23:50
	and in Jesus Christ his only son, our Lord,	23:52
	who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,	23:56
	born of the Virgin Mary,	23:59
	suffered under Pontius Pilate,	24:02
	was crucified, dead and buried.	24:04
	The third day, he rose from the dead.	24:08
	He ascended into heaven and sitteth at the right hand	24:11
	of God the father almighty.	24:15
	From thence, he shall come to judge the quick and the dead.	24:17
	I believe in the Holy Spirit,	24:21
	the Holy Catholic Church,	24:24
	the communion of saints,	24:26
	the forgiveness of sins,	24:28
	the resurrection of the body	24:31
	and the life everlasting.	24:33
	Amen.	24:35
	(slow organ music)	24:38
	(sings slow hymn)	25:23
	The Lord be with you.	27:00
-	And also with you.	27:02
-	Let us pray.	27:04
	Oh God of yesterday, today and tomorrow,	27:18
	the ceaseless creator,	27:23
	we bow before thee surrounded by the wonder	27:26
	of this springlike day.	27:30
	We have entered thy sanctuary to offer our praise.	27:33
	Now, we enter into prayer to offer our hearts.	27:39
	All around us, the promise of new life sounds clear.	27:44
	Grant that our hardened hearts, huddled in protective shells	27:49
	may become sensitive to thy calling to new life	27:54
	and break forth into new growth.	27:59
	And now, oh God, we wait before thee.	28:04
	We have come knowing the world cannot fulfill	28:08
	our every need.	28:12
	Only thee, alone.	28:14
	Take us as we are, oh gracious Lord,	28:17
	and help us to be honest with ourselves.	28:21
	Grant us the courage to accept the acceptance	28:25
	thou hast offered us through thy son, Jesus Christ.	28:29
	Remember, oh Lord, the entire human family this day.	28:36
	Look down and thy mercy upon all who are in pain,	28:41
	those are ill, those who suffer from debilitating anxieties,	28:47
	those who endure loss or separation from loved ones,	28:54
	uphold them with thy presence.	28:59
	Be with the lonely and the forlorn.	29:03
	Those who suffer the injustices of poverty,	29:06
	oppression, prejudice or lack of basic necessities.	29:10
	Those who find it hard to believe in good will	29:17
	when so much ill will surrounds them.	29:20
	Open the eyes of us all to causes worth giving our lives to.	29:26
	Though we may not see all things clearly,	29:31
	grant us the vision, oh God, to discern the way	29:35
	of the cross in every part of our lives.	29:39
	Having once discovered it,	29:44
	we pray for the commitment to live it.	29:46
	In the name of Jesus Christ, our redeemer and advocate.	29:52
	Amen.	29:57
	And now, let us offer our gifts and ourselves to God.	30:01
	(mid-tempo organ music)	30:08
	(upbeat organ music)	30:41
	♪ I will sing new songs of gladness ♪	30:53
	♪ I will sing Jehovah's praises ♪	30:59
	♪ Upon a ten-string psaltery ♪	31:04
	♪ Every day will I extol thee ♪	31:24
	♪ And will bless Thy Holy Name ♪	31:29
	♪ I will bless Thy Holy Name ♪	31:34
	♪ Great is God and great His mercy ♪	31:53
	♪ Who shall tell of all His greatness ♪	31:58
	♪ Who shall His power declare ♪	32:04
	♪ My song shall be of praise and honor ♪	32:16
	♪ And of Thy glorious acts ♪	32:22
	♪ Thy works are wonderful ♪	32:27
	♪ Past our knowing ♪	32:37
	♪ Yea men shall tell of Thy great kindness ♪	32:43
	♪ And of Thy wondrous might ♪	32:49
	♪ And my voice shall proclaim aloud ♪	32:54
	♪ Thy glory ♪	33:00
	(upbeat organ music)	33:06
	(sings slow hymn)	36:52
	Eternal God, thou hast shown us that it is in giving	37:53
	that we receive, that in dying that we are born	37:58
	to eternal life.	38:03
	So now, we offer until thee our heartfelt thanks and praise	38:05
	for the supreme gift of love which thou hast	38:10
	offered unto us through thou son, Jesus Christ.	38:14
	Seeking to know and to follow the way of the cross.	38:18
	This we pray in the name of Jesus Christ	38:24
	who taught us boldly to say,	38:27
	Our father, who art in heaven	38:30
	hallowed be thy name,	38:33
	they kingdom come, thy will be done	38:35
	on earth as it is in heaven.	38:39
	Give us this day our daily bread	38:41
	and forgive us our trespasses	38:45
	as we forgive those who trespass against us	38:47
	and lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil.	38:51
	For thine is the kingdom, the power and the glory,	38:56
	forever, amen.	39:01
	(upbeat organ music)	39:05
	(sings hymn)	39:32
	And now, go in peace to love and serve God and your neighbor	41:53
	in all that you say and do.	41:57
	And may the grace of the Lord, Jesus Christ, the love of God	42:00
	and the communion of the Holy Spirit	42:04
	be with you all, now and forever.	42:07
	Amen.	42:09
	(upbeat organ music)	42:14

Item Info

Title:

William C. Turner, Jr. - "Denying the Self for the Sake of Life" (March 3, 1985)

Description:

The paradox of the way of the Messiah is that glory is achieved only through the path of suffering. Thus, in order to follow Jesus, and enter into his life, the Christian disciple too must deny his or her life and enter into the way of suffering. (Abstract created by Duke Divinity School staff.)
Sermon start time: (Part 1) 37:07. Sermon end time: (Part 2) 23:27.
Key quotation: “Where the cross has been removed there is no life.”

Permalink:

https://idn.duke.edu/ark:/87924/r4j38kz0p

Date:

March 3, 1985

Speaker:

Turner, William Clair, 1948-

Biblical Book:

Chapter and Verse:

Subject:

Contributor:

Duke University. Chapel

Identifier:

UA.17.01.0003 CS-0253
ref8027_sgt
uachapelsermaud
duke:320519
dcrau001241
ark:/87924/r4j38kz0p
970dc2d7-c88b-4764-ba5f-3f8ecc06cc06

Digital Collection:

Duke Chapel Recordings

Source Collection:

Duke University Chapel recordings

Language:

English

Location:

United States
North Carolina
Durham (N.C.)

Format:

Provenance:

The Duke University Chapel Recordings were transferred to the Duke University Archives beginning in 1970.

Rights:

Limited Re-Use

CC BY-NC 4.0

Rights Note:

This recording may contain 3rd party materials, such as music or readings that are therefore not covered by the Creative Commons license indicated here. For more information see https://library.duke.edu/rubenstein/research/citations-and-permissions.

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