John K. Bergland - "Beneath the Law, but beyond the Laws" (February 15, 1981)

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	(pipe organ music)	0:04
	(pipe organ music)	6:06
	("I Will Greatly Rejoice!" by Knut Nystedt)	11:46
	♪ I will greatly rejoice in the Lord ♪	11:47
	♪ For my soul shall exult in my God ♪	11:50
	♪ For he has clothed me with the garments of salvation ♪	11:55
	♪ He has covered me ♪	12:02
	♪ With the robe of righteousness ♪	12:04
	♪ As a bridegroom decks himself with a garland ♪	12:09
	♪ And as a bride adorns herself with her jewels ♪	12:16
	♪ Herself with her jewels ♪	12:22
	♪ With her jewels ♪	12:25
	♪ For as the earth brings forth her bud ♪	12:32
	♪ And as the garden causes the things ♪	12:37
	♪ And as the garden causes the things ♪	12:40
	♪ That are sown in it to spring forth ♪	12:43
	♪ So the Lord God ♪	12:49
	♪ The Lord will cause righteousness and praise ♪	12:52
	♪ Will cause righteousness and praise to spring forth ♪	12:58
	♪ To spring forth ♪	13:02
	♪ To spring forth ♪	13:04
	♪ To spring forth ♪	13:06
	♪ Before all the nations ♪	13:08
	("Praise, My Soul, the King of Heaven" by Henry F. Lyte)	13:22
	♪ Praise, my soul, the King of heaven ♪	13:55
	♪ To his feet your tribute bring ♪	14:01
	♪ Ransomed, healed, restored, forgiven ♪	14:06
	♪ Evermore his praises sing ♪	14:12
	♪ Alleluia ♪	14:17
	♪ Alleluia ♪	14:20
	♪ Praise the everlasting King ♪	14:23
	♪ Praise him for his grace and favor ♪	14:31
	♪ To his people in distress ♪	14:36
	♪ Praise him, still the same as ever ♪	14:42
	♪ Slow to chide, and swift to bless ♪	14:48
	♪ Alleluia ♪	14:53
	♪ Alleluia ♪	14:56
	♪ Glorious in his faithfulness ♪	14:59
	♪ Fatherlike he tends and spares us ♪	15:07
	♪ Well our feeble frame he knows ♪	15:13
	♪ In his hand he gently bears us ♪	15:18
	♪ Rescues us from all our foes ♪	15:24
	♪ Alleluia ♪	15:29
	♪ Alleluia ♪	15:32
	♪ Widely yet his mercy flows ♪	15:35
	♪ Angels, help us to adore him ♪	16:44
	♪ You behold him face to face ♪	16:49
	♪ Sun and moon, bow down before him ♪	16:55
	♪ Dwellers all in time and space ♪	17:01
	♪ Alleluia ♪	17:07
	♪ Alleluia ♪	17:10
	♪ Praise with us the God of grace ♪	17:13
	♪ Amen ♪	17:22
-	Grace to you and peace from God our Creator,	17:33
	and the Lord Jesus Christ.	17:37
	To be open to God	17:41
	we must be honest with ourselves	17:43
	no matter how painful or distasteful that might be.	17:46
	We have missed the high mark of our calling.	17:51
	Let us confess this to God.	17:55
	Let us pray.	17:57
-	Oh mighty and gracious God,	18:08
	we confess that both as individuals and as a church	18:11
	we have been too much preoccupied with ourselves	18:15
	and too little concerned for the welfare of others.	18:19
	You have taught us to help to bear	18:23
	the burdens of our neighbors in Christ.	18:25
	But often we have failed to support the weak,	18:28
	to help the needy,	18:32
	and to encourage the disheartened.	18:34
	You have commanded us to let our light shine	18:36
	out in the world,	18:39
	but we have failed to bear witness to Christ before others	18:41
	and to care for those who need Your love.	18:45
	For all our disobedience, carelessness and lovelessness,	18:49
	we implore Your forgiveness.	18:54
	Cleanse us from our sin	18:56
	and so strengthen and assist us by Your grace	18:59
	that we may henceforth fulfill the law of Christ	19:03
	for our own salvation and for the sake of Christ.	19:07
	(pipe organ music)	19:13
-	If we confess our sins,	20:12
	Jesus Christ is faithful and just	20:14
	and will forgive our sins	20:17
	and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.	20:19
	Let us give thanks for God is good	20:23
	and God's love is everlasting.	20:26
-	Thanks be to God whose love creates.	20:29
	Thanks be to God whose mercy redeems us.	20:33
	Thanks be to God whose grace leads us into the future.	20:37
-	We welcome you	20:44
	to this university chapel service of worship	20:45
	this beautiful morning.	20:48
	We are glad that you have chosen to come and be with us.	20:50
	We would like to extend a special greeting this morning	20:54
	to all alumni and guests who are here	20:57
	to participate in the Career Choices Conference	21:01
	here on the Duke campus.	21:04
	You will not be able to help but notice	21:08
	the signs of preparation in front of the pews this morning,	21:11
	which signal to us the world premiere performance	21:15
	this afternoon, of "Vespers"	21:19
	composed by Dr. Ian Hamilton in 1980.	21:22
	The performance will be at four o'clock this afternoon	21:27
	here at Duke Chapel.	21:31
	And "Vespers" will be performed	21:33
	by the Duke University Chapel Choir and Chorale	21:35
	under the direction of Mr. Ben Smith.	21:39
	There is no charge for this performance	21:43
	and the public is cordially invited to attend.	21:46
	We are most pleased and honored to have with us this morning	21:52
	as our preacher for today,	21:56
	the Reverend Doctor John Bergland.	21:59
	Presently John is associate dean for external affairs	22:03
	at the Divinity School here at Duke.	22:07
	Prior to that, he has served the Divinity School	22:11
	in the capacity of professor of homiletics.	22:14
	Also has a career as parish ministry	22:19
	for most of 20 years,	22:23
	and is known to us as having been a homiletics instructor	22:25
	and dean of admissions at the United Theological Seminary	22:30
	prior to that.	22:35
	We have come to know Dr. Bergland,	22:38
	as a gifted preacher, a teacher,	22:40
	an able administrator among our community.	22:43
	And we are very pleased that he is here with us	22:48
	to share and proclaim the word and message this morning.	22:51
	His wife and mother are here in the congregation	22:54
	and we lend to them our special greeting and welcome.	22:58
	We look forward to the proclaimed word and message	23:04
	by Dr. Bergland.	23:07
-	Let us pray.	23:16
	Oh Lord and lover of us all,	23:21
	cause the pure light of Your divine knowledge	23:24
	to shine forth in our hearts.	23:27
	And open the eyes of our understanding	23:29
	that we may comprehend the ways of your Gospel,	23:32
	through Jesus Christ our Lord,	23:36
	amen.	23:38
	The Old Testament lesson is from Deuteronomy,	23:41
	chapter 30, verses 15 through 20.	23:44
	"See, I have set before you this day	23:50
	"life and good, death and evil.	23:53
	"If you obey the commandments of your Lord your God	23:58
	"which I command you this day,	24:01
	"by loving the Lord your God,	24:04
	"by walking in his ways,	24:06
	"and by keeping his commandments and his statutes	24:07
	"and his ordinances,	24:10
	"then you shall live and multiply,	24:12
	"and the Lord your God will bless you in the land	24:15
	"which you are entering to take possession of it.	24:17
	"But if your heart turns away,	24:21
	"and you will not hear,	24:24
	"but are drawn away to worship other gods and serve them,	24:25
	"I declare to you this day, that you shall perish;	24:30
	"you shall not live long in the land	24:33
	"which you are going over the Jordan to enter and possess.	24:36
	"I call heaven and earth to witness against you this day,	24:41
	"that I have set before you life and death,	24:44
	"blessing and curse;	24:48
	"therefore choose life,	24:51
	"that you and your descendants may live,	24:54
	"loving the Lord your God,	24:58
	"obeying his voice,	25:00
	"and cleaving to him;	25:01
	"for that means life to you and length of days,	25:04
	"that you may dwell in the land	25:08
	"which the Lord swore to your fathers,	25:10
	"to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob,	25:12
	"to give them."	25:16
	Here ends the reading from the Old Testament.	25:18
	Amen.	25:21
	The epistle lesson is from first Corinthians	25:23
	chapter two, versus six through 13.	25:27
	Yet among the mature we do impart wisdom,	25:33
	although it is not a wisdom of this age	25:37
	or of the rulers of this age,	25:39
	who are doomed to pass away.	25:42
	We impart a secret and hidden wisdom of God,	25:45
	which God decreed before the ages	25:49
	for your glorification.	25:51
	None of the rulers of this age understood this;	25:54
	for if they had,	25:57
	they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.	25:58
	But, as it is written,	26:02
	"What no eye has seen,	26:04
	"nor ear heard,	26:06
	"nor the heart of man conceived,	26:08
	"what God has prepared for those who love him,"	26:11
	God has revealed to us through the Spirit.	26:15
	For the Spirit searches everything,	26:19
	even the depths of God.	26:22
	For what person knows a man's thoughts	26:25
	except the spirit of the man?	26:27
	So also no one comprehends the thoughts of God	26:31
	except the Spirit of God.	26:35
	Now we have received not the spirit of the world,	26:39
	but the Spirit which is from God,	26:42
	that we might understand the gifts bestowed on us by God.	26:45
	And we impart this in words not taught by human wisdom	26:50
	but taught by the Spirit,	26:55
	interpreting spiritual truths	26:57
	to those who possess the Spirit.	26:59
	Here ends the reading from the epistle lesson.	27:03
	("How Lovely Is Thy Dwelling Place" by J. Brahms)	27:12
	♪ How lovely is thy dwelling place ♪	27:21
	♪ O Lord of Hosts ♪	27:30
	♪ O Lord of Hosts ♪	27:38
	♪ Thy dwelling place ♪	27:49
	♪ O Lord of Hosts ♪	27:54
	♪ How lovely is thy dwelling place ♪	28:09
	♪ O Lord of Hosts ♪	28:23
	♪ How lovely is thy dwelling place ♪	28:28
	♪ How lovely is thy dwelling place ♪	28:32
	♪ How lovely is thy dwelling place ♪	28:37
	♪ O Lord of Hosts ♪	28:47
	♪ For my soul ♪	29:01
	♪ It longeth, yea fainteth ♪	29:07
	♪ It longeth, yea fainteth ♪	29:11
	♪ It longeth, yea fainteth ♪	29:15
	♪ It longeth, yea fainteth ♪	29:18
	♪ It longeth, yea fainteth ♪	29:21
	♪ For the courts ♪	29:27
	♪ Of the Lord ♪	29:33
	♪ My soul and body crieth out ♪	29:42
	♪ Yea for the living God ♪	29:51
	♪ My soul and body crieth out ♪	29:59
	♪ Yea for the living God ♪	30:08
	♪ Yea for the living God ♪	30:11
	♪ Yea for the living God ♪	30:13
	♪ How lovely is thy dwelling place ♪	30:34
	♪ O Lord of Hosts ♪	30:43
	♪ O Lord of Hosts ♪	30:50
	♪ Thy dwelling place ♪	31:01
	♪ O Lord of Hosts ♪	31:06
	♪ Blest are they ♪	31:24
	♪ O blest are they ♪	31:33
	♪ That dwell within thy house ♪	31:41
	♪ That dwell within thy house ♪	31:45
	♪ They praise thy name evermore ♪	31:52
	♪ They praise thy name evermore ♪	31:53
	♪ They praise thy name evermore ♪	31:57
	♪ They praise thy name evermore ♪	32:00
	♪ They praise thy name evermore ♪	32:02
	♪ They praise thy name evermore ♪	32:04
	♪ They praise thy name evermore ♪	32:07
	♪ They praise thy name evermore ♪	32:11
	♪ They praise thy name evermore ♪	32:13
	♪ They praise thy name evermore ♪	32:20
	♪ They praise thy name evermore ♪	32:24
	♪ They praise thee ♪	32:27
	♪ They praise thee ♪	32:30
	♪ They praise thee ♪	32:32
	♪ They praise thee ♪	32:35
	♪ They praise thee ♪	32:37
	♪ They praise thee ♪	32:38
	♪ They praise thee ♪	32:40
	♪ They praise thy name evermore ♪	32:42
	♪ How lovely ♪	32:58
	♪ How lovely ♪	33:03
	♪ How lovely ♪	33:08
	♪ How lovely ♪	33:12
	♪ How lovely ♪	33:18
	♪ How lovely ♪	33:23
	♪ How lovely ♪	33:29
	♪ How lovely is thy dwelling place ♪	33:36
-	Will the congregation please stand	34:20
	for the reading of the Gospel.	34:22
	The Gospel lesson is from Matthew, chapter five,	34:29
	verses 20 through 37.	34:33
	"For I tell you,	34:37
	"unless your righteousness	34:38
	"exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees,	34:40
	"you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.	34:43
	"You have heard that it was said to the men of old,	34:47
	"'You shall not kill;	34:50
	"'and whoever kills shall be liable to judgment.'	34:52
	"But I say to you	34:56
	"that every one who is angry with his brother	34:58
	"shall be liable to judgment;	35:01
	"whoever insults his brother	35:03
	"shall be liable to the council,	35:05
	"and whoever says, 'You fool!'	35:07
	"shall be liable to the hell of fire.	35:10
	"So if you are offering your gift at the altar,	35:14
	"and there	35:17
	"remember your brother has something against you,	35:18
	"leave your gift before the altar and go;	35:21
	"first be reconciled to your brother,	35:26
	"and then come and offer your gift.	35:29
	"Make friends quickly with your accuser,	35:33
	"that you are going with him to court,	35:36
	"lest your accuser hand you over to the judge,	35:38
	"and the judge to the guard,	35:41
	"and you be put in prison;	35:43
	"truly, I say to you,	35:46
	"you will never get out	35:48
	"till you have paid the last penny.	35:49
	"You have heard that it was said,	35:53
	"'You shall not commit adultery.'	35:56
	"But I say to you	35:59
	"that every one who looks at a woman lustfully,	36:00
	"has already committed adultery with her in his heart.	36:03
	"If your right eye causes you to sin	36:07
	"pluck it out and throw it away	36:10
	"it is better that you lose one of your members	36:14
	"than your whole body be thrown into hell.	36:17
	"And if your right hand causes you to sin	36:21
	"cut it off and throw it away:	36:24
	"it is better that you lose one of your members	36:27
	"than that your whole body go into hell.	36:30
	"It was also said,	36:35
	"'Whoever divorces his wife,	36:38
	"'let him give her a certificate of divorce.'	36:40
	"But I say to you that every one who divorces his wife,	36:44
	"except on the ground of unchastity,	36:48
	"makes her an adulteress;	36:51
	"and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery.	36:54
	"Again you have heard that it was said to the men of old,	37:00
	"'You shall not swear falsely,	37:04
	"'but shall perform to the Lord what you have sworn.'	37:06
	"But I say to you, do not swear at all,	37:10
	"either by heaven, for it is the throne of God,	37:15
	"or by the earth, for it is his footstool,	37:19
	"or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King.	37:24
	"And do not swear by your head,	37:30
	"for you cannot make one hair white or black.	37:32
	"Let what you say be simply, 'Yes,' or 'No';	37:37
	"anything more than this comes from evil."	37:41
	Here ends the reading from the Gospel lesson.	37:46
	Amen.	37:49
	("Gloria")	37:50
	♪ Glory be to our Creator ♪	37:57
	♪ Praise to our Redeemer Lord ♪	38:05
	♪ Glory be to our Sustainer ♪	38:12
	♪ Ever three and ever one ♪	38:20
	♪ As it was in the beginning ♪	38:27
	♪ World without end ♪	38:34
	♪ Amen ♪	38:38
-	In the name of God, the Father,	38:58
	the Son and the Holy Spirit.	39:00
	Amen.	39:02
	When Cain killed Abel,	39:06
	he lost his right to a home on the earth.	39:09
	Voice of the Lord came to him saying,	39:14
	"Henceforth you will be cut off from the land."	39:17
	And Cain cried out,	39:21
	"The punishment is more than I can bear."	39:24
	I was preaching at Butner Penitentiary.	39:30
	There was a man there	39:34
	who had lost his home in the earth,	39:35
	had killed a brother	39:38
	in premeditated and vicious murder.	39:41
	And that day he prayed,	39:45
	prayed for all of us I believe,	39:48
	"Lord, send us your mercy--	39:53
	"we can't stand your justice."	39:59
	And that's the mood that is in me when I hear	40:05
	words like these in the Gospel lesson	40:08
	for this sixth Sunday of Epiphany:	40:11
	"I tell you, unless your righteousness	40:15
	"exceeds that of the scribes and the Pharisees,	40:18
	"you will never enter the kingdom of heaven."	40:22
	And then he goes on to make it plain,	40:33
	"You've heard it said of old, don't kill.	40:37
	"I say if you look at your brother and call him a fool	40:39
	"you're guilty of it.	40:42
	"Your anger will cut you off from the earth.	40:44
	"You've heard it said of old,	40:48
	"though shalt not commit adultery."	40:50
	And he talks about a lusting eye and a touching hand.	40:52
	"You've heard it said of old,	40:57
	"thou shalt not bear false witness,	41:00
	"and there shall be no deceit of any kind.	41:04
	"Let your yes be yes and your no, no."	41:06
	We look to these precepts of our Lord.	41:12
	A law.	41:15
	A law of life if you will,	41:17
	that you may choose,	41:19
	choose good and live.	41:22
	And immediately some are saying,	41:26
	"But it's impossible."	41:29
	Three interpretations of his "Sermon on the Mount",	41:32
	some saying,	41:35
	it is the perfect demand of God	41:37
	and the perfect demand of God is impossible to keep.	41:40
	But it has you reaching,	41:45
	reaching beyond the laws	41:47
	and beyond your humanity.	41:49
	Others say, that's not it at all.	41:53
	It is an impossible demand	41:59
	and you cannot keep it.	42:01
	It will make you aware	42:05
	that your salvation is dependent only upon the grace,	42:07
	the mercy of God.	42:11
	Still others say,	42:15
	it's an interim ethic.	42:16
	First century Christians	42:19
	expected the soon return of the Lord.	42:20
	They were a little revolutionary group	42:23
	turning the world upside down	42:25
	and they had an ethic, a perfect ethic:	42:27
	not expected to work for the whole of mankind	42:30
	but surely for this interim time,	42:35
	this small group.	42:38
	I believe it is as this:	42:43
	the kingdom of God has come.	42:46
	The very sovereignty of God is in the midst of us,	42:49
	revealed in Jesus Christ.	42:52
	And the perfect law of God	42:56
	for those who would be citizens in this kingdom	42:58
	is set before you.	43:02
	Choose it, in love	43:05
	and with life.	43:09
	"Don't think I've come to abolish the law,"	43:12
	says our Lord.	43:16
	"I've come to complete it."	43:21
	The first problem I confront with the text	43:26
	is my recognition that so few,	43:29
	so few of us (and I included)	43:31
	take the law with the same seriousness	43:35
	that we take the laws of North Carolina.	43:37
	Or a simple law	43:43
	like all vehicles shall be licensed	43:45
	by February the 15th.	43:49
	There's an extension now to midnight tomorrow.	43:52
	It was reported that 270,000 people	43:57
	didn't have licenses yet, yesterday morning.	44:00
	Most of them were over at Northgate Mall.	44:03
	(congregation laughs)	44:06
	And all of them in that long line	44:08
	were indicating	44:11
	the seriousness with which they had to do with it.	44:12
	And the laws of the federal government	44:18
	that say April the 15th is a time you shall file	44:20
	your income tax.	44:26
	I'm already worrying about that one.	44:29
	Or the speed limits on our expressways:	44:35
	fifty-five is what it is.	44:38
	Someone reported not long ago	44:41
	that the average speed on North Carolina highways	44:43
	is 54.9 miles an hour.	44:46
	Just a little bit beneath the law.	44:49
	And I asked some of my friends,	44:53
	"How fast do you drive?"	44:55
	"When?", they said.	44:57
	"If I'm sure no one's there to see,	45:00
	"well, I might get up over 60.	45:03
	"I think it's safe, perhaps, to go at least 60."	45:07
	All of this foolishness simply to point to the fact,	45:12
	that there is a seriousness with which we take these laws.	45:16
	And the casualness	45:21
	with which we take the law	45:24
	that is given by the very sovereignty of God.	45:25
	Hear it.	45:30
	Thou shalt not kill.	45:31
	I say to you,	45:34
	thou shalt not say of thy brother, "Fool."	45:35
	Don't do anything	45:41
	that limits the personal freedom and dignity	45:43
	of another man or another woman.	45:45
	Thou shalt not commit adultery.	45:49
	I pass that quickly on a university campus.	45:53
	Our Lord calls for a higher righteousness.	46:03
	No repeal of law.	46:07
	But that your righteousness shall exceed that	46:10
	of the 613 precepts of the rabbis	46:13
	and that very good law of Moses,	46:18
	given in Ten Commandments.	46:21
	You honor Jesus Christ as Lord.	46:24
	You must be perfect,	46:31
	as he is perfect.	46:32
	Well come along.	46:35
	Live into the text a bit with me today.	46:37
	They found Lubie Geter's body a week ago last Friday.	46:44
	Found it in Atlanta, where 18 children are missing	46:50
	and 15 children	46:56
	between the age of seven and fifteen,	47:00
	most of them boys,	47:02
	have been strangled.	47:04
	Lubie Geter was 15, and black.	47:08
	His mother called him Chuck.	47:12
	On January the 3rd he went off to a shopping center,	47:15
	to sell deodorizers for automobiles.	47:19
	Police believe that he was killed that day.	47:23
	Now we know he was strangled.	47:28
	And some believe there is some poor demented soul	47:32
	who for sexual gratification takes young boys and uses them	47:37
	and then kills them.	47:42
	A black preacher in Atlanta cried out against it.	47:46
	Last week, Joe Lowery	47:50
	cried all the way to Washington	47:54
	and as well to the court of heaven,	47:57
	asked for a federal disaster recognition,	48:01
	"a human tornado,	48:05
	a human volcano's let loose in our midst," he says.	48:06
	And in response to that, the vice president, George Bush	48:10
	indicated that he would take personal charge	48:14
	of federal involvement in the case.	48:18
	What do you think they will do?	48:21
	Add some more money to it	48:25
	so there can be more personnel in the investigation?	48:27
	Already there's a curfew	48:31
	keeping 14-year-olds off the street.	48:33
	The press and all the media	48:37
	are making all of the populace aware of it.	48:38
	What more shall we do?	48:42
	Bring in a medium,	48:45
	someone who is a seer who can perhaps point to the killer.	48:47
	Let them be found.	48:51
	Let the church gather in prayer.	48:54
	What more can we do?	48:58
	Shout the lesson for the Sixth Sunday of Epiphany.	49:03
	Shout it in the cathedral at Duke.	49:07
	Shout it from this pulpit.	49:09
	Thou shalt not kill!	49:12
	Maybe the word of it will echo all the way into Atlanta.	49:15
	Oh, you know the foolishness of that.	49:23
	The emptiness of it.	49:26
	I wish it could be done so quickly.	49:31
	But the roots of it go so deep.	49:35
	Even into the very climate of our culture	49:38
	where personal freedom	49:42
	is set above the rights of others.	49:46
	And if that personal freedom causes drug traffic	49:50
	and many people are wasted,	49:55
	ah, so be it.	49:59
	And sexual freedom.	50:02
	And if there is a kind of permissiveness	50:07
	that pervades our society,	50:09
	that causes an erosion of any reverence for life,	50:13
	climate, brothers and sisters.	50:20
	Would that we would come beneath this law	50:23
	and find in our hearts a willingness to go beyond it	50:28
	so that there would be pervading a righteousness	50:33
	that exceeds that of scribes and Pharisees.	50:37
	I have a friend who tells me, "It's television.	50:43
	"That's the cause of it.	50:48
	"It's the soap operas.	50:51
	"You see it,	50:54
	"there is murder and intrigue,	50:56
	"there is adultery,	50:59
	"there is deception,	51:00
	"there is revenge."	51:03
	"And now it's gone on to prime time.	51:07
	"It's 'Dallas'," he says.	51:09
	"That's what it is.	51:12
	"These television shows	51:15
	"are shaping our culture and wasting us."	51:19
	I think the influence is insidious.	51:25
	But may I offer another point of view?	51:28
	I believe that our art forms reflect the culture	51:33
	as much as they shape it.	51:40
	Lord God have mercy upon us.	51:47
	May I take you back in all the long history of the race,	51:53
	you hardly turn the pages of Genesis	51:57
	until there is a brother-murderer.	51:59
	Blood crying from the ground.	52:03
	In the Greek tragedies there is Antigones:	52:08
	two brothers facing each other, one dying.	52:11
	And finally all of them wasted	52:15
	beneath the vengeance of a tyrant ruler.	52:18
	Remember the tragedies of Shakespeare?	52:24
	They say that his mood was dark when he wrote those four:	52:29
	"Hamlet", "King Lear",	52:33
	"Macbeth" and "The Moor of Venice."	52:37
	"Othello"	52:42
	I looked at it again this past week.	52:45
	And one thing,	52:50
	one thing came through to me,	52:51
	oh to be sure there was Iago,	52:54
	that devil of a man	52:57
	whose whole life was deceit and vengeance.	52:59
	And finally he had discredited the pure and good,	53:05
	Desdemona.	53:08
	The fierce warrior, Othello,	53:11
	knew that she had to die.	53:15
	He believed she was an adulteress.	53:17
	She had to die.	53:20
	And as he told her,	53:24
	"Must I die my lord?"	53:26
	"You must die."	53:27
	You know her words:	53:30
	"Then Lord have mercy!"	53:31
	"Amen, by heaven amen," Othello says	53:36
	even as he smothers her.	53:39
	Ah, through all the long pages of literature	53:44
	there is murder, adultery, deceit.	53:48
	But do you notice there's one thing different?	53:55
	There is a recognition of the court of heaven.	54:01
	Lord God have mercy, by heaven, amen.	54:07
	Or Hamlet,	54:13
	about to kill his uncle.	54:15
	But lo, he found him at prayers	54:18
	and feared he might die in mercy.	54:22
	I suppose it is that the soaps must go on and on.	54:28
	Shakespeare could end his tragedies	54:32
	and be through with all his characters.	54:35
	Or is it	54:39
	that this "Sermon on the Mount"	54:42
	that we call the great instruction	54:44
	has so little place of recognition in our lives?	54:48
	I was hearing a man who took it very seriously speak	54:56
	a church group,	55:01
	wasn't any modeling kind of confession	55:03
	but he was saying	55:06
	after listening to this instruction of the Lord,	55:08
	"I have a nasty temper.	55:13
	"And again and again I give vent to my anger.	55:16
	"I'd a lot rather blame somebody	55:20
	"than be reconciled to them.	55:22
	"And there are some people	55:27
	"that I would be glad to have wasted.	55:29
	"I know that lust continually creeps into my life.	55:40
	"I have a mind like a cesspool sometimes.	55:44
	"And deceit,	55:48
	"well I like to control conversations.	55:50
	"And I don't like to have it too forthright	55:53
	"and too plain."	55:55
	And then he said,	55:59
	"Do I have any right to call myself a Christian?	56:00
	"Do I have any right to consider myself a citizen	56:05
	"in the kingdom of God?	56:08
	"Any right at all to believe myself	56:11
	"in harmony with the might and right of God?"	56:15
	For I might've added for him,	56:18
	"Can I expect approval at the judgment seat of God?"	56:21
	No.	56:30
	No.	56:33
	Unless it is in this	56:36
	that you know you have no right,	56:40
	and therefore know that any righteousness you have at all	56:47
	is claimed through Jesus Christ,	56:49
	and you seek him through mercy,	56:57
	and then beneath the spotlight of divine judgment.	57:00
	You've heard it said of old,	57:09
	thou shalt not kill.	57:12
	Brothers and sisters,	57:15
	we have been our brother's murderer	57:17
	from the beginning.	57:21
	And now,	57:26
	comes the time in this service	57:27
	when we will bring our gifts to the altar.	57:30
	And the 23rd verse says,	57:34
	"If you are offering your gift at the altar,	57:36
	"and there remember your brother	57:39
	"and something against him,	57:42
	"leave your gift there before the altar,	57:45
	"and go first be reconciled to your brother,	57:47
	"then come offer your gift."	57:49
	Yes, we're gathered here today,	57:55
	mankind, approaching the cross	57:57
	where heaven's very best was wasted,	58:02
	killed, crucified.	58:07
	In the book of Genesis,	58:17
	Abel's blood rises to God	58:20
	as an accusing cry.	58:24
	I can't come to the text with any sense of victory.	58:30
	I know the melancholy it leaves.	58:34
	I would have it other.	58:38
	Brothers and sisters,	58:43
	I can only come to the text in confession.	58:46
	And I invite you to come.	58:50
	There is an accusing cry that rises	58:55
	to the judgment seat of God.	58:58
	Your brother's blood cries from the earth.	59:01
	But there is another verse,	59:06
	read it in the book of Hebrews:	59:08
	"Christ's blood	59:11
	"speaks more graciously	59:14
	"than the blood of Abel."	59:17
	Oh Lord Jesus Christ,	59:23
	have mercy upon us.	59:27
	Amen.	59:31
	("God of Love and God of Power" by Gerald H. Kennedy)	59:40
	♪ God of love and God of power ♪	1:00:07
	♪ Grant us in this burning hour ♪	1:00:12
	♪ Grace to ask these gifts of Thee ♪	1:00:17
	♪ Daring hearts and spirits free ♪	1:00:21
	♪ God of love and God of power ♪	1:00:26
	♪ Thou hast called us for this hour ♪	1:00:31
	♪ We are not the first to be ♪	1:00:38
	♪ Banished by our fears from Thee ♪	1:00:42
	♪ Give us courage, let us hear ♪	1:00:47
	♪ Heaven's trumpets ringing clear ♪	1:00:51
	♪ God of love and God of power ♪	1:00:56
	♪ Thou hast called us for this hour ♪	1:01:01
	♪ All our lives belong to Thee ♪	1:01:08
	♪ Thou our final loyalty ♪	1:01:12
	♪ Slaves are we whene'er we share ♪	1:01:17
	♪ That devotion anywhere ♪	1:01:22
	♪ God of love and God of power ♪	1:01:26
	♪ Thou hast called us for this hour ♪	1:01:31
	♪ God of love and God of power ♪	1:01:38
	♪ Make us worthy of this hour ♪	1:01:43
	♪ Offering lives if it's Thy will ♪	1:01:48
	♪ Keeping free our spirits still ♪	1:01:52
	♪ God of love and God of power ♪	1:01:57
	♪ Thou hast called us for this hour ♪	1:02:02
	♪ Amen ♪	1:02:09
-	As the people of God,	1:02:19
	let us affirm what we believe.	1:02:21
-	We believe in God,	1:02:24
	who has created, and is creating;	1:02:26
	who has come in the truly human Jesus,	1:02:29
	to reconcile and make new;	1:02:32
	who works in us, and others, by the Spirit.	1:02:35
	We trust God,	1:02:39
	who calls us to be the church,	1:02:41
	to celebrate life and its fullness,	1:02:43
	to love and serve others,	1:02:46
	to seek justice and resist evil,	1:02:49
	to proclaim Jesus, crucified and risen,	1:02:52
	our judge and our hope.	1:02:56
	In life, in death,	1:02:58
	in life-beyond-death,	1:03:00
	God is with us.	1:03:03
	We are not alone.	1:03:04
	Thanks be to God.	1:03:07
-	The Lord be with you.	1:03:09
-	And with your spirit.	1:03:10
-	Let us pray.	1:03:12
	Oh God, eternal Spirit,	1:03:26
	so high above us that we cannot comprehend You	1:03:30
	and yet so deep within us that we cannot escape You	1:03:35
	make Yourself real to us now.	1:03:39
	In a shaken world we seek stability,	1:03:44
	in a noisy world we seek inner peace,	1:03:48
	in a fearful world we want courage	1:03:52
	and in a world of rising and falling nations	1:03:56
	we crave a vision of your eternal kingdom,	1:04:00
	whose sun never sets.	1:04:04
	Seek us out, everyone,	1:04:07
	in the special circumstances and needs	1:04:10
	that each one faces.	1:04:13
	For it is young and old that we come	1:04:16
	the merry-hearted and the bereaved,	1:04:20
	families who are together here,	1:04:24
	and solitary persons, lonely and far from home.	1:04:26
	Some of us being tempted to be proud of who we are,	1:04:32
	and the world's prizes,	1:04:37
	and some who are laboring under a sense of failure,	1:04:39
	some who are very strong in body	1:04:44
	and others who are striving	1:04:47
	to keep the inward person renewed	1:04:49
	while the outward body is failing.	1:04:52
	Oh God of our help and strength,	1:04:56
	be to us like the sun indeed	1:04:59
	and shine this very morning in our heart and lives.	1:05:01
	While you comfort us, kindle also within us	1:05:08
	sincere penitence and confession.	1:05:13
	Let some word of righteousness	1:05:17
	be spoken to our consciences today.	1:05:19
	Save us from petty excuses,	1:05:24
	from our cheap defenses,	1:05:28
	and our unworthy self-deceits.	1:05:30
	Give us grace to be honest with ourselves	1:05:34
	that we may rightly judge our dealing:	1:05:38
	with the personality You have entrusted to us;	1:05:41
	with the family and friends that surround us;	1:05:45
	with the opportunities that You have put before us;	1:05:48
	and with the stewardship committed to us.	1:05:52
	Oh God we pray for the peace of the world this day,	1:05:57
	for wisdom to seek peace and pursue it,	1:06:02
	for faith and character	1:06:06
	to use in our own unworthy hands	1:06:08
	this might we pray.	1:06:11
	It is with thankful and yet burdened hearts	1:06:16
	that we pray for your church.	1:06:18
	Seek afresh in us to understand her Gospel	1:06:23
	and make real to the ends of the earth	1:06:28
	the salvation that is Jesus Christ, our Lord.	1:06:30
	And now may Your Spirit touch us all	1:06:36
	with some bit of healing wisdom and strength.	1:06:39
	Kindle our faith,	1:06:43
	make sensitive our consciences,	1:06:46
	make in us a tower of strength,	1:06:50
	fortify us in our troubles,	1:06:53
	and send us forth strong in the Lord,	1:06:56
	and in the power of the Lord, Jesus the Christ,	1:07:00
	who taught us to pray,	1:07:04
	saying,	1:07:07
-	Our Father who art in heaven,	1:07:08
	hallowed be thy name.	1:07:11
	Thy kingdom come.	1:07:14
	Thy will be done	1:07:15
	on earth as it is in heaven.	1:07:17
	Give us this day our daily bread,	1:07:19
	and forgive us our trespasses,	1:07:22
	as we forgive those who trespass against us,	1:07:25
	and lead us not into temptation,	1:07:29
	but deliver us from evil.	1:07:31
	For thine is the kingdom,	1:07:33
	and the power,	1:07:35
	and the glory, for ever.	1:07:37
	Amen.	1:07:39
	(pipe organ improvisation)	1:07:45
	("Jubilate Deo" by Giovanni Gabrieli)	1:08:22
	(sings in a foreign language)	1:08:24
	("Doxology" by Thomas Ken)	1:13:55
	♪ Praise God, from whom all blessings flow ♪	1:14:12
	♪ Praise Him, all creatures here below ♪	1:14:18
	♪ Hallelujah ♪	1:14:24
	♪ Hallelujah ♪	1:14:27
	♪ Praise Him above, ye heavenly host ♪	1:14:31
	♪ Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost ♪	1:14:37
	♪ Hallelujah ♪	1:14:43
	♪ Hallelujah ♪	1:14:46
	♪ Hallelujah ♪	1:14:49
	♪ Hallelujah ♪	1:14:52
	♪ Hallelujah ♪	1:14:55
	♪ Amen ♪	1:15:02
-	Oh God, we know that all we have comes from You,	1:15:14
	so know as we share our material wealth with You	1:15:18
	help us also to offer all of our talents	1:15:22
	as agents of Your love in Your world,	1:15:25
	in Christ's name we pray,	1:15:29
	amen.	1:15:31
	("Love Divine, All Loves Excelling" by Charles Wesley)	1:15:33
	♪ Love divine, all loves excelling ♪	1:16:17
	♪ Joy of heaven, to earth come down ♪	1:16:22
	♪ Fix in us thy humble dwelling ♪	1:16:28
	♪ All thy faithful mercies crown ♪	1:16:33
	♪ Jesus, thou art all compassion ♪	1:16:40
	♪ Pure, unbounded love thou art ♪	1:16:45
	♪ Visit us with thy salvation ♪	1:16:51
	♪ Enter every trembling heart ♪	1:16:57
	♪ Breathe, O breathe thy loving Spirit ♪	1:17:06
	♪ Into every troubled breast ♪	1:17:12
	♪ Let us all in thee inherit ♪	1:17:18
	♪ Let us find that second rest ♪	1:17:24
	♪ Take away our bent to sinning ♪	1:17:30
	♪ Alpha and Omega be ♪	1:17:36
	♪ End of faith, as its beginning ♪	1:17:43
	♪ Set our hearts at liberty ♪	1:17:49
	♪ Come, Almighty to deliver ♪	1:17:58
	♪ Let us all thy life receive ♪	1:18:04
	♪ Suddenly return and never ♪	1:18:11
	♪ Nevermore thy temples leave ♪	1:18:17
	♪ Thee we would be always blessing ♪	1:18:23
	♪ Serve thee as thy hosts above ♪	1:18:29
	♪ Pray and praise thee without ceasing ♪	1:18:36
	♪ Glory in thy perfect love ♪	1:18:42
	♪ Finish, then, thy new creation ♪	1:18:51
	♪ Pure and spotless let us be ♪	1:18:58
	♪ Let us see thy great salvation ♪	1:19:04
	♪ Perfectly restored in thee ♪	1:19:10
	♪ Changed from glory into glory ♪	1:19:17
	♪ Till in heaven we take our place ♪	1:19:24
	♪ Till we cast our crowns before thee ♪	1:19:30
	♪ Lost in wonder, love, and praise ♪	1:19:37
	♪ Amen ♪	1:19:47
-	May God's grace, mercy and strength be with you,	1:19:58
	and may we be instruments of	1:20:02
	God's mercy, grace and strength	1:20:04
	to the world in which we live.	1:20:07
	("Sevenfold Amen" by John Stainer)	1:20:12
	♪ Amen ♪	1:20:13
	♪ Amen ♪	1:20:21
	♪ Amen ♪	1:20:28
	♪ Amen ♪	1:20:36
	♪ Amen ♪	1:20:43
	♪ Amen ♪	1:20:55
	♪ Amen ♪	1:21:09
	("Carillon - 24 Pieces en style libre, Op.31" by L. Vierne)	1:21:29

Item Info

Title:

John K. Bergland - "Beneath the Law, but beyond the Laws" (February 15, 1981)

Description:

Sermon start time: 38:58. Sermon end time: 51:47.
The preacher describes how far we all have fallen from the law, a reminder that any righteousness we can claim is only because of Christ. (Abstract created by Duke Divinity School staff.)
Key quotation: "Would that we would come beneath this law and find in our hearts a willingness to go beyond it, so that there would be pervading a righteousness that exceeds that of scribes and Pharisees."

Permalink:

https://idn.duke.edu/ark:/87924/r4s757139

Date:

February 15, 1981

Speaker:

Bergland, John K.

Liturgical Calendar:

Epiphany

Biblical Book:

Chapter and Verse:

Subject:

Contributor:

Duke University. Chapel

Identifier:

UA.17.01.0003 RR-1140
ref7496_yyy
uachapelsermaud
duke:320334
dcrau002017
ark:/87924/r4s757139
8674de0c-4501-4f6f-93ec-739f409ee356

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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