A. John Wilson III - Sermon Untitled (August 29, 1971)
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| (organ drowning out singers) | 0:04 | |
| - | Dearly beloved, because we are imperfect people | 0:53 |
| we need to confess our imperfections | 0:57 | |
| before all mighty God. | 1:00 | |
| Let us pray. | 1:02 | |
| Our heavenly father, who art rich in mercy | 1:05 | |
| toward all those who having missed the way | 1:10 | |
| still turn and seek thy face. | 1:13 | |
| We bow in contrite prayer to confess our guilt. | 1:17 | |
| We are guilty because we failed to do the right as well | 1:21 | |
| as we knew to do it. | 1:24 | |
| And because we failed to avoid evil as well as we knew how | 1:27 | |
| to avoid it. | 1:30 | |
| In thy presence, oh God, our customary disguises | 1:33 | |
| and comfortable pretenses which work so well | 1:38 | |
| with our fellow man do not avail in thy presence. | 1:42 | |
| And under the searching light of thy holiness | 1:47 | |
| we know ourselves for what we are, | 1:49 | |
| imperfect, wayward, who often seek our own wills | 1:53 | |
| in spite of our noble aspirations | 1:58 | |
| and not withstanding our previous high resolutions. | 2:01 | |
| We now admit that the sin of the world is often | 2:07 | |
| very much our own sin and that the greed which shocks us | 2:09 | |
| when we see it in others hides in our own hearts,. | 2:14 | |
| None of us loves justice and mercy enough. | 2:18 | |
| But may we receive the grace of humility | 2:24 | |
| here in thy presence so that we may cease to defeat thy will | 2:27 | |
| for the world by our selfish wills. | 2:32 | |
| And may the vision of what we honestly might be convict us | 2:36 | |
| of what we are so that thy mercy may redeem us | 2:41 | |
| of our sin through Jesus Christ, our Lord, amen. | 2:46 | |
| In the holy scriptures, we read words of assurance | 2:54 | |
| which were intended for people such as ourselves | 2:58 | |
| who are contrite about our sins. | 3:02 | |
| These words are as far as the east is removed from the west. | 3:07 | |
| So far has he removed our transgressions from us. | 3:13 | |
| Therefore be of good cheer. | 3:18 | |
| Our prayer of Thanksgiving will be led by coach Bob Bostons. | 3:23 | |
| - | May we join in the prayer of Thanksgiving. | 3:34 |
| Almighty God, our heavenly father, | 3:37 | |
| we bless and magnify the holy name | 3:40 | |
| for the gift of thy most dearly beloved son, | 3:43 | |
| Jesus Christ, our redeemer, and for all his apostles, | 3:46 | |
| prophets, martyrs, evangelists, teachers, and pastors | 3:51 | |
| whom he has sent abroad into the world | 3:56 | |
| for thy holy church universal. | 3:59 | |
| The ministry of the (indistinct), | 4:02 | |
| the ministry of the ordained. | 4:04 | |
| We do give thee hearty thanks for the privilege | 4:06 | |
| which each one of us has of bearing witness | 4:10 | |
| to the saving grace of our Lord. | 4:12 | |
| We express our gratitude. | 4:15 | |
| We thank thee for the life, | 4:17 | |
| for meaning of health, for friends, for food, for clothing, | 4:19 | |
| for all the purposes of Christ | 4:25 | |
| which give meaning to these earthly goods. | 4:27 | |
| We make our prayer of thanks in Jesus name. | 4:30 | |
| Amen. | 4:34 | |
| - | This morning, there will be two lessons read | 4:43 |
| from the holy scriptures. | 4:45 | |
| First, the Old Testament and then later the New Testament. | 4:48 | |
| They will be read by the Reverend Dr. James T. Cleland, | 4:51 | |
| the dean of the chapel. | 4:55 | |
| - | The Old Testament lesson is taken | 5:05 |
| from the Book of the Psalms. | 5:07 | |
| The first Psalm. | 5:10 | |
| Blessed is the man who walks not | 5:15 | |
| in the council of the wicked, nor stands | 5:16 | |
| in the way of sinners nor sits in the seat of scoffers. | 5:20 | |
| But his delight is in the law of the Lord and on his law | 5:27 | |
| he meditates day and night. | 5:33 | |
| He's like a tree planted | 5:37 | |
| by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season | 5:40 | |
| and its leaf does not wither. | 5:46 | |
| In all that he does, he prospers. | 5:51 | |
| The wicked are not so, but are like chaff | 5:55 | |
| which the wind drives away. | 6:00 | |
| Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment | 6:03 | |
| nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous | 6:08 | |
| for the Lord knows the way of the righteous | 6:14 | |
| but the way of the wicked will perish. | 6:18 | |
| Here endeth the first lesson. | 6:24 | |
| (warm organ music) | 6:29 | |
| (singer vocalizing) | 7:15 | |
| ♪ Thanks to be thee ♪ | 7:23 | |
| ♪ Lord God of hosts ♪ | 7:28 | |
| ♪ Thy broughtest with thee ♪ | 7:38 | |
| ♪ Israel safe through the sea ♪ | 7:49 | |
| (warm organ music) | 8:01 | |
| ♪ Lord, like a shepherd ♪ | 8:44 | |
| ♪ Thou hast led us ♪ | 8:51 | |
| ♪ Thy hand leadeth us ♪ | 8:59 | |
| ♪ Whatever our sins has been (indistinct) ♪ | 9:07 | |
| ♪ Thanks be to thee ♪ | 9:26 | |
| ♪ Lord and God ♪ | 9:40 | |
| ♪ Thy regal hand has led with ye ♪ | 9:51 | |
| ♪ Israel safe through the sea ♪ | 10:02 | |
| (warm organ music) | 10:15 | |
| ♪ Thy has safely led ♪ | 10:34 | |
| ♪ Israel safe through the sea ♪ | 10:47 | |
| The New Testament lesson is taken | 11:45 | |
| from the Gospel according to St. John, | 11:48 | |
| the 13th chapter, verses one to 17. | 11:52 | |
| Reading from the version which is known as | 12:00 | |
| good news for modern man. | 12:02 | |
| It was now the day before the feast of Passover. | 12:08 | |
| Jesus knew that his hour had come | 12:14 | |
| for him to leave this world and go to the father. | 12:16 | |
| He had always loved those who were his own in the world. | 12:23 | |
| And he loved them to the very end. | 12:30 | |
| Jesus and his disciples were at supper. | 12:36 | |
| The devil had already decided that Judas, | 12:40 | |
| the son of Simon Iscariot, would betray Jesus. | 12:44 | |
| Jesus knew that the father had given him complete power. | 12:51 | |
| He knew that he had come from God and was going to God. | 12:58 | |
| So Jesus rose from the table, took off his outer garment, | 13:05 | |
| and tied a towel around his waist. | 13:14 | |
| Then he poured some water into a wash basin | 13:20 | |
| and began to wash the disciples' feet | 13:25 | |
| and dry them with the towel around his waist. | 13:29 | |
| He came to Simon, Peter, who said to him | 13:35 | |
| "Are you going to wash my feet. Lord?" | 13:41 | |
| Jesus answered him, | 13:47 | |
| "You do not know what I am doing, | 13:50 | |
| "but you will know later." | 13:54 | |
| Peter declared, "You will never at any time wash my feet, | 13:58 | |
| "if I do not wash your feet" | 14:09 | |
| Jesus answered, "You will no longer be my disciple." | 14:11 | |
| Simon and Peter answered, | 14:19 | |
| "Lord do not wash only my feet, then. | 14:21 | |
| "Wash my hands and head too. | 14:26 | |
| Jesus said, "Whoever has taken a bath is completely clean | 14:31 | |
| "and does not have to wash himself except for his feet. | 14:38 | |
| "All of you are clean, all except one." | 14:46 | |
| Jesus already knew who was going to betray him. | 14:54 | |
| That is why he said, "All of you except one are clean." | 14:59 | |
| After he had washed their feet | 15:10 | |
| Jesus put his outer garment back on | 15:13 | |
| and returned to his place at the table. | 15:16 | |
| "Do you understand what I have just done to you?" He asked. | 15:21 | |
| "You call me teacher and Lord, | 15:29 | |
| "and it is right that you do so, | 15:36 | |
| "because I am, I am your Lord and teacher | 15:39 | |
| "and I have just washed your feet. | 15:48 | |
| "You then should wash each other's feet. | 15:53 | |
| "I have set an example for you | 15:59 | |
| "so that you will do just what I have done for you. | 16:03 | |
| "I tell you the truth. | 16:11 | |
| "No slave is greater than his master. | 16:14 | |
| "No messenger is greater than the one who sent him. | 16:20 | |
| "Now, you know this truth, | 16:29 | |
| "how happy you will be if you put it into practice." | 16:35 | |
| Here endeth under the second lesson | 16:43 | |
| and may God bless unto us | 16:46 | |
| the reading of his word. | 16:49 | |
| (bright organ music drowning out singers) | 16:53 | |
| - | The Lord be with you. | 17:37 |
| - | And with your spirit. | 17:39 |
| - | Let us pray. | 17:40 |
| Eternal God before whom the morning stars | 17:48 | |
| first sang together and who hold us in thy hands the destiny | 17:52 | |
| of every living thing, we worship thee. | 17:58 | |
| Blessed be the name of Jesus who tasted death for every man. | 18:02 | |
| And blessed be his glorious name | 18:08 | |
| that he is alive forevermore. | 18:10 | |
| Oh God who art the Lord of life, | 18:15 | |
| we pray thee to come close to each one of us | 18:18 | |
| and beyond the power of any spoken human prayer, | 18:22 | |
| meet our secret inner needs | 18:26 | |
| and especially come to those upon whose lips | 18:30 | |
| the song of triumph is very weak, | 18:35 | |
| who see no sunshine breaking | 18:38 | |
| through the clouds of their shadowed lives. | 18:39 | |
| Make their spirits radiant today, | 18:43 | |
| even if they had not expected it. | 18:46 | |
| Surprise them with hope who have not dared to hope, | 18:49 | |
| and bring life to some of us whose spirits are already dead. | 18:54 | |
| Oh thou to whom a thousand years | 19:02 | |
| are but as yesterday when it is passed | 19:04 | |
| and as a watch in the night, | 19:07 | |
| speak to us in this holy hour | 19:10 | |
| and refresh our souls with new hope. | 19:13 | |
| Lift our vision above the disappointments | 19:17 | |
| and the griefs of this life and this material world, | 19:20 | |
| until we can see and live in terms | 19:25 | |
| of thine glorious and eternal kingdom. | 19:28 | |
| We makr our prayer in the name of Jesus | 19:33 | |
| who has taught us when we come together | 19:36 | |
| to pray our father who art in heaven | 19:38 | |
| hallowed be thy name. | 19:43 | |
| Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth | 19:45 | |
| as it is in heaven. | 19:49 | |
| Give us this day, our daily bread | 19:51 | |
| and forgive us our trespasses | 19:54 | |
| as we forgive those who trespass against us and lead us | 19:56 | |
| not into temptation, but deliver us from evil, | 20:00 | |
| for thine is the kingdom | 20:04 | |
| and the power and the glory forever. | 20:06 | |
| Amen. | 20:09 | |
| We are happy that all of you are here | 20:13 | |
| for this football service today. | 20:15 | |
| We are grateful to members of the team | 20:18 | |
| for receiving the offering at the appropriate time. | 20:21 | |
| It is also fitting that we should have some | 20:26 | |
| of the coaches involved in our service | 20:29 | |
| as we do have two of them today in the leadership | 20:31 | |
| of the service. | 20:34 | |
| A former part time coach as the preacher. | 20:36 | |
| It is certainly appropriate | 20:41 | |
| that Jack Wilson should be our preacher for this service. | 20:42 | |
| He is no stranger to this chapel, | 20:46 | |
| having ministered in it for about three years. | 20:47 | |
| Following a distinguished athletic career here at Duke, | 20:51 | |
| he received his divinity training here | 20:55 | |
| and then served on the staff of the chapel, | 20:59 | |
| religious life. | 21:02 | |
| Gave excellent service here | 21:04 | |
| and then file followed that | 21:05 | |
| with a very unusual career at West Point. | 21:07 | |
| And now beginning a new phase of his ministry | 21:12 | |
| at St. Elizabeth Hospital in Washington. | 21:14 | |
| I am not at all sure | 21:18 | |
| that it is a good thing for us to have him | 21:20 | |
| on this particular year as our new head football coach | 21:22 | |
| Mike McGee begins his career as head coach here, | 21:25 | |
| 'cause I remember that when Jack was my associate here | 21:30 | |
| he told me that when he was playing football | 21:33 | |
| Mike McGee gave him the worst punishment | 21:37 | |
| that he ever received from anybody | 21:39 | |
| in the line when he was playing halfback. | 21:42 | |
| And that he always knew | 21:46 | |
| if he could get past Mike during the week in practice | 21:48 | |
| he could handle anything that our opponents would give | 21:50 | |
| to him in the game on Saturday. | 21:52 | |
| I got to thinking about it the other day and it may be | 21:55 | |
| that Jack will try to even the score here today | 21:57 | |
| since he has the pulpit and Mike is in the pew | 22:00 | |
| but life is full of risks and we're taking that risk | 22:04 | |
| and having Jack Wilson as our preacher today. | 22:07 | |
| And Jack, we're very glad to have you | 22:10 | |
| and we'll call on you for the sermon. | 22:12 | |
| - | It's a pleasure for me to be here this morning | 22:26 |
| in which we give particular attention to the presence | 22:32 | |
| and the participation of members of the 1971 Duke team. | 22:34 | |
| It's a pleasure, not only because I once played | 22:40 | |
| and had a great deal to do | 22:44 | |
| with the training of the new head coach. | 22:46 | |
| I taught him the finer arts of how to smash halfbacks. | 22:52 | |
| But also it's a pleasure | 23:02 | |
| because I've had the opportunity to see old friends, | 23:03 | |
| former coaches who had a great deal to do | 23:06 | |
| with my being in the pulpit. | 23:10 | |
| Yesterday I had the chance to observe practice. | 23:18 | |
| The preparation for what many of us | 23:22 | |
| hope will be a successful season. | 23:24 | |
| And yesterday, as I attended practice, I was reminded | 23:28 | |
| of the fact that human beings tend to blot out | 23:32 | |
| the uncomfortable memories | 23:38 | |
| And only remember the good ones. | 23:40 | |
| I would give anything to be able to participate two weeks, | 23:44 | |
| less than two weeks now in Tampa, Florida. | 23:49 | |
| But I had real reservations | 23:52 | |
| about participating yesterday afternoon. | 23:54 | |
| We remember things in the way that we like to remember them. | 23:58 | |
| And time goes on. | 24:05 | |
| And 10 years later, one realizes | 24:07 | |
| that any similarity between what he says | 24:10 | |
| and what really happened might be purely coincidental. | 24:13 | |
| That's particularly true with regard | 24:17 | |
| to past victories and certainly personal accomplishments. | 24:19 | |
| This happens in all phases of life. | 24:25 | |
| You take, for instance | 24:29 | |
| the story of Little Red Riding Hood. | 24:31 | |
| Now everyone knows that story. | 24:34 | |
| But the story that you know is not the way | 24:38 | |
| that it really happened. | 24:40 | |
| You see, that's the product of years of myth. | 24:42 | |
| If you de mythologize the story, | 24:47 | |
| this is the way it really happened. | 24:51 | |
| Little Red Riding Hood was ill. | 24:55 | |
| And her dear old grandmother who lived alone | 25:00 | |
| across the dark forest in a little thatched house | 25:02 | |
| decided to visit her ailing grandchild. | 25:06 | |
| However, granny had heard that there was a big bad wolf | 25:11 | |
| in the forest and she decided to disguise herself | 25:17 | |
| as Little Red Riding Hood, | 25:23 | |
| so that she would look stronger and younger | 25:27 | |
| than she really was | 25:29 | |
| and would scare away the big, bad wolf. | 25:31 | |
| Pretty smart thinking. | 25:34 | |
| But about that time | 25:37 | |
| Little Red Riding Hood began to feel much better. | 25:38 | |
| She wanted to see granny who lived across the dark forest | 25:42 | |
| but having heard that there was a big, bad wolf | 25:46 | |
| she decided to disguise herself as a wolf, | 25:49 | |
| so that the big bad wolf would not bother her, | 25:54 | |
| thinking she was another wolf like himself. | 25:57 | |
| Meanwhile, the big bad wolf had had his eye | 26:02 | |
| on Little Red Riding Hood for a long time | 26:05 | |
| and he finally decided To make his kill. | 26:07 | |
| But in order to throw off suspicion, he disguised himself | 26:12 | |
| as Little Red Riding Hood's grandmother. | 26:17 | |
| So they started out on their respective journeys. | 26:21 | |
| Now all of you lineman try to stay with us. | 26:23 | |
| (congregation chuckles) | 26:27 | |
| The big, bad wolf disguised as grandmother, | 26:31 | |
| the grandmother disguised as Little Red Riding Hood, | 26:35 | |
| and Little Red Riding Hood disguised as a wolf. | 26:38 | |
| Well, the big, bad wolf disguised as grandmother | 26:42 | |
| met Little Red Riding Hood disguised as a wolf in the midst | 26:44 | |
| of the forest glade. | 26:47 | |
| However, the wolf disguised as grandmother was very | 26:50 | |
| surprised to see Little Red Riding Hood in wolf's clothing. | 26:54 | |
| He was very confused, especially when the wolf said, | 26:57 | |
| "Why hello, grandmother. | 27:01 | |
| "I was just coming to see you." | 27:02 | |
| The wolf didn't know what to say. | 27:06 | |
| And in the pause, the grandmother walked up disguised | 27:09 | |
| as Little Red Riding Hood. | 27:12 | |
| Immediately, everyone became suspicious. | 27:15 | |
| Little Red Riding Hood disguised as a wolf knew | 27:22 | |
| that she was Little Red Riding Hood | 27:25 | |
| and thinking that she was protecting the grandmother who was | 27:28 | |
| really the wolf pounced on her grandmother disguised | 27:30 | |
| as Little Red Riding Hood and killed her. | 27:33 | |
| At this the big, bad wolf disguised as grandmother | 27:37 | |
| became so confused because he knew | 27:40 | |
| he was really the wolf, that he turned tail and ran. | 27:43 | |
| Little Red Riding hood thought | 27:49 | |
| that the Big Bad Wolf was really her grandmother, | 27:50 | |
| started chasing after him into the woods. | 27:54 | |
| Well, a nearby hunter seeing a wolf chasing | 27:57 | |
| a little old lady shot and killed the wolf | 28:03 | |
| who was really Little Red Riding Hood. | 28:07 | |
| The big bad wolf was left, still disguised his grandmother. | 28:12 | |
| He fled into the woods where he was attacked | 28:16 | |
| and killed by his fellow wolves | 28:20 | |
| because they thought he was just another little old lady. | 28:23 | |
| That's the revised standard version | 28:29 | |
| of Little Red Riding Hood. | 28:33 | |
| The moral of that story? | 28:38 | |
| It is better to be yourself | 28:42 | |
| than to pretend you are someone else. | 28:45 | |
| It is better to be yourself | 28:51 | |
| than to pretend you are someone else. | 28:53 | |
| Being myself. | 28:59 | |
| That seems to be the watch word of today's generation. | 29:03 | |
| The question of how to live my life. | 29:10 | |
| None of us had anything to do | 29:16 | |
| with the place or the circumstances of our birth | 29:17 | |
| and very few of us will have anything to say | 29:23 | |
| about the place and the circumstances of our death, | 29:24 | |
| but we have a lot to say about life in between. | 29:29 | |
| To be myself. | 29:37 | |
| To find my potential, to find my creativity, to do my thing, | 29:40 | |
| to get it together. | 29:50 | |
| For some of us, our thing | 29:54 | |
| at some point in life is athletics. | 29:56 | |
| For some of us that becomes our thing | 30:01 | |
| for the rest of our life. | 30:03 | |
| For others, we shed that and take on new things. | 30:06 | |
| It is a burden of life to decide what to do with it. | 30:15 | |
| Sometimes it's such a burden that we avoid the question. | 30:23 | |
| That's one form of mental illness. | 30:29 | |
| I happen to be working now training in a mental hospital | 30:34 | |
| and the mentally ill people are people just like you, | 30:42 | |
| only more so, only more so. | 30:47 | |
| Life becomes for some people too much of a burden | 30:55 | |
| and so they create their own world, a world of delusion | 31:01 | |
| that perhaps they can handle. | 31:05 | |
| And so we search For the most meaningful, | 31:10 | |
| the most rewarding way to get ourselves together | 31:14 | |
| and make it. | 31:18 | |
| We only go around one time. | 31:21 | |
| And as one advertisement says, | 31:27 | |
| we wanna live it with all the gusto That we can find. | 31:29 | |
| Life is complex and it is complex | 31:36 | |
| because we are complex. | 31:40 | |
| Each of us has all kinds of needs | 31:45 | |
| and desires and hopes, and very often our needs conflict | 31:49 | |
| with one another. | 31:54 | |
| And so my point is that any intelligent person certainly | 31:59 | |
| will want to look at every angle and every pattern of life. | 32:04 | |
| And in doing that naturally, at some point, we will want to | 32:14 | |
| at least consider What Jesus of Nazareth | 32:20 | |
| had to say about life. | 32:26 | |
| And so in the next few moments, | 32:32 | |
| I want us to turn our attention to the scripture lesson | 32:35 | |
| that was read for the morning. | 32:41 | |
| For in it, we begin to see what Jesus had to say about life. | 32:45 | |
| The pattern, the secret, the key, the way. | 32:51 | |
| These words, knowing that he was come from God | 32:58 | |
| and that he went to God, | 33:06 | |
| Jesus arose and took a towel and a basin. | 33:09 | |
| And he began to wash their feet. | 33:17 | |
| The washing of feet was a common service that was provided | 33:29 | |
| in nearly every household of any means. | 33:32 | |
| It was done by servants as a courtesy | 33:37 | |
| because the people's feet would get dusty and dirty. | 33:41 | |
| And this was done as a way of making them | 33:49 | |
| feel more comfortable, but it was always done by servants. | 33:50 | |
| And surely the disciples were astonished | 33:56 | |
| to find their leader | 33:58 | |
| kneeling there, washing their feet. | 34:02 | |
| But the point is he was doing much more | 34:06 | |
| than just making their feet feel comfortable. | 34:08 | |
| He was saying something to them. | 34:13 | |
| He was non-verbally communicating. | 34:18 | |
| He was giving them a message | 34:23 | |
| about how to live their one life. | 34:25 | |
| This is the way you live life. | 34:31 | |
| You get personally involved with | 34:36 | |
| and give yourself to other human beings. | 34:40 | |
| "You do as I have done to you." | 34:50 | |
| Now, the disciples had a very difficult time | 34:59 | |
| handling this action. | 35:01 | |
| And the reason is because when we remember that so much | 35:08 | |
| of the peace of life, the purpose, the direction of life | 35:11 | |
| that getting it together comes to us | 35:15 | |
| when we begin to find out who we really are, | 35:19 | |
| and when we can accept that. | 35:24 | |
| That which is beneath the images that we carry around | 35:31 | |
| when we can begin to shed the masks and be ourselves. | 35:33 | |
| The emotions, the feelings, the desires, the needs. | 35:43 | |
| That's the person I'm talking about. | 35:49 | |
| That part of us that perhaps we would only share | 35:53 | |
| with someone whom we trusted very much. | 35:57 | |
| That part of us that is so personal, | 36:03 | |
| so deep that if it were to be exposed | 36:06 | |
| we would feel awkward and embarrassed. | 36:10 | |
| That's the part of us that I'm talking about. | 36:16 | |
| And it is that part of the disciples | 36:21 | |
| that Christ was able to get to, to reach. | 36:22 | |
| All that Peter could say was, | 36:33 | |
| "Lord are you going to wash my feet?" | 36:35 | |
| Yes, Peter, it's pretty obvious. | 36:44 | |
| That's what he's going to do. | 36:47 | |
| But that was all that he could say. | 36:50 | |
| Then he tried to get out of it. | 36:56 | |
| Now I think that helps us to understand the impact. | 37:02 | |
| And it has something to say to us. | 37:06 | |
| It says that down in the deepest recesses | 37:11 | |
| of every man's heart he desires to be loved. | 37:13 | |
| Not superficially, not because of what he can produce, | 37:23 | |
| but concretely. | 37:30 | |
| His weaknesses his needs. | 37:34 | |
| Perhaps because of what he cannot produce. | 37:39 | |
| He desires to be loved in that way | 37:46 | |
| and he desires to love someone else in that way. | 37:51 | |
| And so what Jesus was saying with his basin of water | 37:59 | |
| is Peter, James, Matthew, and the rest of you, | 38:04 | |
| I love that which is really you, that part of you | 38:07 | |
| that makes you feel awkward. | 38:15 | |
| If you will accept that and trust that I can love you | 38:20 | |
| in that way, you will be set free. | 38:26 | |
| You will be able to take great risks. | 38:33 | |
| You will be able to make changes in your life. | 38:37 | |
| You will be able to do good in the world. | 38:41 | |
| By becoming personally involved with | 38:50 | |
| and giving yourself to other human beings. | 38:54 | |
| God's love can come to us in many different ways | 39:07 | |
| but it always is a love | 39:14 | |
| which pierces through and loves us for who we are. | 39:15 | |
| And we usually experience the reality | 39:23 | |
| of his love through other persons, just as the disciples | 39:26 | |
| experienced it through the actual physical presence | 39:37 | |
| And touching of Jesus himself. | 39:41 | |
| And once we experience and accept the fact | 39:51 | |
| that we really are loved for who we are, we become awkward. | 39:58 | |
| But then we move out to embrace the world around us, | 40:06 | |
| to love others for who they are, to embrace them | 40:17 | |
| with concrete acts, specific action of love and healing. | 40:28 | |
| And so what I'm coming around to say is that | 40:42 | |
| with all the dichotomies of life | 40:44 | |
| and all of the unanswered questions | 40:47 | |
| and all of the confusion, | 40:49 | |
| somewhere, somehow a decision Is made. | 40:51 | |
| A decision to somehow live the most creative life possible. | 40:58 | |
| One life to live. | 41:06 | |
| One time around. | 41:09 | |
| One shot. | 41:14 | |
| And we thrust ourselves into life | 41:20 | |
| and try to put it together. | 41:25 | |
| So many people live waiting to live. | 41:31 | |
| When do we begin to get hold of life? | 41:37 | |
| Is it In two weeks in Tampa, Florida at 8:00? | 41:46 | |
| Is it at the end of this season? | 41:55 | |
| Is it the end of this academic year? | 41:59 | |
| Is it after I graduate? | 42:02 | |
| Is it after I am married? | 42:06 | |
| Is it after I have children? | 42:08 | |
| Is it after I've been on the job for 10 years? | 42:11 | |
| Is it after I retire? | 42:15 | |
| When do I begin to live? | 42:17 | |
| Many of us live waiting to live, but not so for the man | 42:26 | |
| who knows what it is to have had his feet washed. | 42:33 | |
| That's what the Christian gospel Is all about. | 42:44 | |
| He says, yes, yes to God | 42:54 | |
| and this means he says yes to life. | 42:58 | |
| He commits himself, his whole being to this pattern of life | 43:03 | |
| and is very specific in how he fulfills his call. | 43:14 | |
| Whether in athletics or anywhere else, this pattern of life | 43:25 | |
| is more than just a philosophy, a set of principles. | 43:41 | |
| It is a person. | 43:50 | |
| It is Christ himself. | 43:55 | |
| You see to tell me how to act and to tell me how to think | 43:58 | |
| in a complicated existence is well and good | 44:03 | |
| and I appreciate it, but it is not sufficient. | 44:07 | |
| It's like the coach keeping me | 44:16 | |
| in the locker room and drawing it up on the board | 44:20 | |
| but not going with me out there to try it out. | 44:27 | |
| Not showing me how. | 44:33 | |
| I need someone to show me and the message | 44:41 | |
| of the Christian gospel is that Christ | 44:48 | |
| shows us how to do it. | 44:56 | |
| I have one life to live. | 45:03 | |
| How do I live it? | 45:08 | |
| There are many answers. | 45:13 | |
| One of the answers comes with two words, follow me. | 45:18 | |
| I am the way, I am the truth. | 45:33 | |
| I am the life. | 45:40 | |
| And by this, Jesus meant that fulfilled | 45:48 | |
| and meaning full life will come | 45:56 | |
| when we get personally involved with | 46:01 | |
| and give ourselves to others. | 46:07 | |
| Follow me. | 46:20 | |
| Do as I have done to you. | 46:25 | |
| Let us pray. | 46:37 | |
| Almighty God, our father, we search for life. | 46:47 | |
| We search to know ourselves and to be ourselves. | 46:58 | |
| We search to reach our potential. | 47:09 | |
| Oh God, we search For a meaningful and fulfilled life. | 47:17 | |
| Help us to find it | 47:29 | |
| through Jesus Christ, our Lord. | 47:38 | |
| Amen. | 47:45 | |
| (warm organ music) | 47:49 | |
| (organ drowning out singers) | 48:28 | |
| (solemn organ music) | 50:57 | |
| (bright organ music) | 54:06 | |
| ♪ Sing ye a joyful song unto the lord ♪ | 54:19 | |
| ♪ Who hath done marvelous, marvelous things ♪ | 54:26 | |
| (bright organ music) | 54:32 | |
| ♪ Praise the lord all the Earth ♪ | 54:35 | |
| ♪ Sing praises, shout and be joyful ♪ | 54:39 | |
| ♪ Let the sea roar and all that is therein ♪ | 54:57 | |
| ♪ The round world and all they that dwell there ♪ | 55:04 | |
| ♪ Lift your voices, floods and tempests ♪ | 55:13 | |
| ♪ Mountains, clap your hands for joy ♪ | 55:20 | |
| ♪ Let the fields laugh and sing with waving corn ♪ | 55:41 | |
| ♪ And let all the trees of the forest be joyful ♪ | 55:47 | |
| (bright organ music) | 56:24 | |
| (organ drowning out singers) | 56:50 | |
| - | Almighty God, because | 57:52 |
| of what has been done for us through Jesus. | 57:55 | |
| We bring ourselves to attention here | 57:59 | |
| at this alter to dedicate this money and dedicate our lives | 58:02 | |
| to the service of Jesus Christ in his name. | 58:08 | |
| Now may the peace of God, which passes all understanding | 58:16 | |
| keep your hearts and minds and the knowledge | 58:21 | |
| and love of God and of his son. Jesus Christ, our Lord. | 58:23 | |
| Amen. | 58:28 | |
| (church bells tolling) | 58:31 | |
| (bold organ music drowning out singers) | 58:45 |