Nancy Ferree-Clark - "Reaping What You Sow, and Then Some" (July 9, 1989)

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	(peaceful organ music)	0:00
-	Good morning.	2:49
	Welcome to Duke Chapel.	2:50
	Our preacher today is the Reverend Nancy Ferree-Clark.	2:52
	Her husband, Doctor Thomas B. Clark,	2:57
	is our organist this morning.	2:59
	We're glad to have Donna Sparks	3:03
	and the Summer Choir back with us this Sunday,	3:05
	and we're glad to have you here.	3:09
	Our lector for the service today is the President	3:12
	of the Duke Ministerial Course of Study School,	3:16
	which is meeting, the Course of Study School	3:20
	is meeting this month here at Duke,	3:23
	to train pastors for ministry	3:27
	in the United Methodist Church.	3:29
	And now let us continue our worship.	3:32
	(peaceful choir music)	3:41
	♪ Praise ye the Lord of hosts ♪	3:42
	♪ Sing His salvation ♪	3:46
	♪ Bless His name show forth His praise ♪	3:50
	♪ In this holy house ♪	3:56
	♪ Earth shall be Christ's ♪	4:00
	♪ Holy hands shall be joyful ♪	4:04
	♪ Christ redeemed through the Earth ♪	4:09
	♪ All mankind shall sing ♪	4:12
	♪ Hallelujah ♪	4:16
	(peaceful organ music)	4:24
	(harmonious organ and choral music)	5:12
	(peaceful organ music)	6:55
	(harmonious organ and choral music)	7:42
-	When we gather to praise God,	8:37
	we remember that we are God's people	8:39
	who have preferred our wills to God's will.	8:42
	Therefore let us begin by confessing	8:45
	our sin to God and one another.	8:48
	Be seated.	8:51
	Almighty and most merciful God,	9:02
	who knowest the thoughts of our hearts,	9:06
	we confess that we have sinned against thee,	9:09
	and done evil in thy sight.	9:13
	We have transgressed thy holy laws.	9:15
	We have neglected thy word and ordinances.	9:19
	Forgive us, oh Lord, we beseech thee,	9:22
	and give us grace and power to put away all hurtful things.	9:26
	That being delivered from the bondage of sin,	9:31
	we may bring forth fruit worthy of repentance,	9:35
	and henceforth may ever walk in thy holy ways,	9:38
	through Jesus Christ our Lord, Amen.	9:43
	If we confess our sins, God is faithful and just,	9:55
	and will forgive our sins and cleanse us	9:58
	from all unrighteousness.	10:01
	Thanks be to God.	10:04
	Hear the Good News!	10:05
	Christ died for us while we were yet sinners.	10:06
	This is God's own proof of His love toward us.	10:10
	In the name of Jesus Christ, you are forgiven.	10:13
Congregation	In the name of Jesus Christ,	10:17
	you are forgiven.	10:20
Stanley	Let us pray.	10:29
Congregation	Open our hearts and minds, oh God,	10:32
	by the power of your Holy Spirit,	10:35
	so that as the Word is read and proclaimed,	10:38
	we might hear with joy what you say to us this day.	10:42
	Amen.	10:47
-	The first lesson is taken from the First Book of Kings:	10:50
	Now Naboth the Jezreelite had a vineyard	10:55
	in Jezreel beside the place of Ahab, King of Samaria.	10:58
	And after this, Ahab said to Naboth,	11:04
	"Give me your vineyard, that I may have it	11:06
	"for a vegetable garden because it is near my house.	11:09
	"And I will have you a better vineyard for it.	11:13
	"Or if it seems good to you,	11:16
	"I will give you it's value in money."	11:18
	But Naboth said to Ahab,	11:21
	"God forbid that I should give you	11:24
	"the inheritance of my ancestors."	11:27
	Then the word of God came to Elijah the Tishbite,	11:30
	saying "Arise, go down to meet Ahab, King of Israel,	11:33
	"who is in Samaria.	11:37
	"Behold, he is in the vineyard of Naboth,	11:40
	"where he has gone to take possession.	11:43
	"And you shall say to Ahab: Thus says the Lord.	11:46
	"Have you killed and also taken possession?	11:50
	"And you shall say to Ahab: Thus says the Lord,	11:54
	"in the place where the dogs licked up the blood of Naboth	11:58
	"shall dogs lick up your own blood."	12:02
	Ahab said to Elijah, "Have you found me, oh my enemy?"	12:05
	Elijah answered, "I have found you,	12:10
	"because you have sold yourself	12:13
	"to do what is evil in the sight of God.	12:15
	"Behold I will bring evil upon you.	12:18
	"I will utterly sweep you away	12:21
	"and you will cut off from Ahab every male,	12:23
	"bond or free, in Israel."	12:26
	This ends the reading of the first lesson.	12:29
Rev. Willimon	Please stand for the Psalm.	12:37
	We will read responsively Psalm 5,	12:42
	between men and women.	12:47
-	[Male Congregants] Give ear to my words, oh God.	12:51
	Give heed to my groaning.	12:54
	Hearken to the sound of my cry,	12:57
	my ruler and my God,	12:59
	for to you do I pray.	13:02
-	[Women Congregants] Oh, God,	13:06
	do you hear my voice.	13:07
	In the morning I prepare sacrifice for you.	13:09
	For you are not a God who delights in wickedness;	13:13
	evil may not sojourn with you.	13:17
-	[Male Congregants] You destroy those who speak lies;	13:21
	God abhors those who are bloodthirsty and deceitful.	13:24
-	[Women Congregants] But alas redeem	13:29
	through the abundance of your steadfast love,	13:31
	I will worship towards your holy temple.	13:34
	Lead me here.	13:37
-	[Male Congregants] Lead me, oh God,	13:39
	in your righteousness because of my enemies;	13:41
	make your way straight before me.	13:45
	(peaceful organ music)	13:49
	♪ Glory be ♪	13:57
	♪ To our Creator ♪	14:00
	♪ Praise to ♪	14:04
	♪ Our holy Redeemer ♪	14:08
	♪ Glory be ♪	14:12
	♪ To our Sustainer ♪	14:15
	♪ Ever be ♪	14:20
	♪ And ever was ♪	14:23
	♪ As it was ♪	14:27
	♪ In the beginning ♪	14:30
	♪ Forever now ♪	14:37
	♪ It shall be ♪	14:40
-	The second lesson is taken	14:53
	from Paul's Letter to the Galatians:	14:55
	Do not be deceived, God is not mocked.	14:58
	For whatever one sows, one will also reap.	15:02
	For whoever sows to their own flesh,	15:07
	will from their flesh reap corruption.	15:09
	But whoever sows to the Spirit	15:12
	will from the Spirit reap eternal life.	15:15
	And let us not grow weary in well doing.	15:18
	For in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart.	15:21
	So then as we have opportunity,	15:25
	let us do good to all people,	15:28
	and especially to those who are of the Household of Faith.	15:31
	See with what large letters I am writing	15:35
	to you with my own hand.	15:38
	It is those who want to make a good showing in the flesh	15:41
	that would compel you to be circumcised.	15:44
	And only in order that they may not be persecuted	15:47
	for the cross of Christ.	15:50
	For even those that receive circumcision	15:52
	do not themselves keep the law,	15:54
	but they desire to have you circumcised	15:57
	that they may glory in your flesh.	15:59
	But far be it from me to glory,	16:02
	except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ,	16:05
	by which the world has been crucified to me,	16:08
	and I to the world.	16:12
	For neither circumcision counts for anything,	16:14
	nor uncircumcision, but a new creation.	16:16
	Peace and mercy be upon all who walk by this rule,	16:20
	upon the Israel of God.	16:24
	Henceforth let no one trouble me,	16:27
	for I bear on my body the marks of Jesus.	16:30
	The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit,	16:34
	my friends, amen.	16:38
	This ends the reading of the second lesson.	16:41
-	You have heard it said that just about everybody	16:54
	has a cross to bear.	16:56
	That is probably a true statement.	17:00
	Except for the fact that some people seem	17:03
	to have more than one.	17:04
	Take King Ahab, for instance:	17:07
	Powerful monarch of the ninth century of Israel,	17:11
	and essential figure in today's Old Testament lesson.	17:14
	On the one hand, you could say that Prophet Elijah	17:19
	was his cross to bear.	17:21
	Elijah, the great Prophet of wind and earthquake and fire.	17:23
	One of Yahweh's most zealous advocates.	17:29
	If, generally speaking, a Prophet to a King	17:33
	was like ants at a picnic, then Elijah was like a swarm	17:36
	of bees around Ahab.	17:40
	So lively were their disputes,	17:41
	over everything from politics to religion to the weather.	17:44
	On the other hand, there was Jezebel, Ahab's wife,	17:49
	who came from foreign stock.	17:54
	Daughter of the King of the Sidonians and Priest of Baal.	17:56
	Now, as anyone who as ever lived abroad soon learns,	18:01
	the minute you cross the border to leave,	18:04
	somehow you start singing, there's no place like home.	18:07
	And Jezebel was no exception.	18:11
	She was so convinced of the way they did things	18:14
	back in the old country, that she was forever	18:16
	trying to pawn it off on the Israelites.	18:19
	Especially her religion;	18:22
	when the Israelites had a perfectly good one of their own.	18:24
	Unfortunately for Ahab, the two of them,	18:28
	Elijah and Jezebel, sometimes got to working	18:32
	on him at the same time!	18:35
	One from one side and one from the other.	18:36
	And a case in point was Neboth's vineyard.	18:39
	It was a sordid affair, which our Old Testament lectionary	18:43
	reading could tell only in part,	18:47
	perhaps to spare our delicate ears the gory details.	18:49
	But it is exactly those details that tell the true story,	18:54
	my friends, you see, the problem was,	18:58
	Naboth, Ahab's neighbor, had a vineyard	19:02
	that Ahab wanted so badly, he could taste it.	19:05
	And whereas, for most of us, wanting something that badly	19:09
	means we're destined either to spend our lives pining away	19:13
	for it or making elaborate plans for obtaining it	19:16
	somewhere down the road, you know, like a dream house,	19:19
	or a trip on the Orient Express.	19:22
	But Ahab was a king, and royalty doesn't have to wait,	19:25
	especially royalty related to Jezebel,	19:29
	who had been raised in a family where royalty	19:32
	always got what they wanted, by hook or by crook.	19:35
	So, Ahab made his offer to Naboth.	19:40
	"Give me your vineyard, that I may have it	19:43
	"for a vegetable garden, and I will give you	19:45
	"a better vineyard for it.	19:48
	"Or if it seems good to you,	19:50
	"I will give you its value in money."	19:52
	But Naboth, knowing his own identity too well,	19:55
	refused to sell or to swap,	19:59
	explaining to Ahab that the Lord forbid	20:02
	that he should give the inheritance	20:04
	of his father's and mother's away.	20:05
	The land being cherished as a gift from God.	20:08
	What a shock to Ahab.	20:13
	Unaccustomed to such rebuffs, he went into a terrible sulk.	20:15
	He'd laid down his head and turned away his face,	20:19
	and would eat no food.	20:23
	It was just the kind of opening that Jezebel	20:26
	was always on the lookout for.	20:28
	Was he a king or a cup of custard?	20:31
	And so she proceeded to take charge.	20:34
	"Arrive and eat bread, and let your heart be cheerful!	20:37
	"I will give you the vineyard of Naboth, the Jezreelite."	20:39
	So, Jezebel contracted with a couple of hit men,	20:43
	to trump up some false charges against Naboth,	20:48
	accusing him of blasphemy against God and the King,	20:51
	so that he got stoned to death.	20:54
	And Ahab got the vineyard.	20:57
	Needless to say, he also got a visit from Elijah.	20:59
	Down through the years they had been meeting like this,	21:04
	Ahab and Elijah, usually in secluded places,	21:07
	always at critical moments.	21:12
	I can see them now:	21:14
	Ahab, arriving incognito with dark glasses and a good suit.	21:16
	Elijah with a 10-day growth of beard.	21:21
	Ahab greeted him in his usual informal way,	21:24
	as a royal pain in the neck.	21:28
	"Have you found me, oh my enemy?"	21:30
	Then Elijah gave it to him with both barrels,	21:33
	"I have found you because you have sold yourself	21:35
	"to do what is evil in the sight of the Lord.	21:38
	"Behold, I will bring evil upon you!	21:41
	"I will utterly sweep you away!"	21:43
	As if that weren't enough, Elijah promised	21:47
	that whatever was left, the dogs would take care of.	21:49
	As for Jezebel, she would end up the same way,	21:55
	not only because of Naboth,	21:57
	but because all of her imported witch doctors	22:00
	and totem poles which she loved more than life itself.	22:02
	Ahab, at least, showed some remorse after all this.	22:08
	So he rents his clothes, and went about dejectedly	22:11
	in his sack cloth.	22:14
	As a result, he was allowed to die honorably in battle,	22:16
	leaving only the little pools of blood	22:20
	for the dogs to lap up, but Jezebel, on the other hand,	22:22
	continued unrepentant to the end.	22:26
	When the time finally came,	22:29
	two eunuchs through here out of the window,	22:31
	with her painted eyes and fashionable adornments,	22:33
	at King Gehoo's request.	22:36
	And with the dogs got through with her,	22:39
	well, just like Elijah had promised,	22:41
	all that was left for the undertaker was the skull,	22:44
	and the feet, and the palm of her hand.	22:47
	Saint Paul himself couldn't have dreamt of a more impressive	22:52
	example of his forewarning to the Galicians.	22:55
	God is not mocked.	22:58
	For whatever a person sows, that will he or she also reap.	23:00
	Besides being the most important choice you'll ever make	23:07
	in your life, it is also unequivocal:	23:10
	The one who sows to his own flesh, Paul writes,	23:13
	will from the flesh reap corruption.	23:17
	But the one who sows to the Spirit,	23:20
	will from the Spirit reap eternal life.	23:22
	He minces no words as he lays out the options	23:26
	before the Galicians, much as Moses	23:28
	challenges the Israelites, "I have set before you life	23:31
	"and death, blessing and curse.	23:34
	"Therefore choose life,	23:37
	"that you and your descendants may live.	23:40
	"To sow in the field of the flesh	23:43
	"is to pursue to path of self fulfillment,"	23:45
	according to Saint Paul.	23:48
	Answering only to the call of self and one's own interest,	23:49
	we are assured by both Moses and Saint Paul,	23:54
	that the life so lived finally turns in on itself,	23:57
	and leads to death.	24:01
	By contrast, to sow our seed in the domain of the Spirit	24:03
	is to pursue the path of self abandonment.	24:07
	Refusing to yield to the call of self	24:10
	but answering instead to the call of obedience.	24:12
	It is the Spirit who summons to reach outward	24:16
	beyond ourselves in love and concern for our neighbor,	24:19
	indeed to transcend ourselves.	24:23
	To grow in the Spirit is therefor really to choose life.	24:26
	Now, theologically speaking, I think most of us understand	24:31
	those words and can affirm their importance	24:34
	for the Christian, but the devilish thing for most of us	24:37
	is trying to actually live by what we say we believe.	24:41
	Making a clear choice and sticking by it	24:46
	in this world of ours isn't always that easy.	24:49
	Especially when it comes to religion.	24:53
	Clear, uncompromising convictions seem	24:55
	out of step with secular culture.	24:58
	And so, Ahab is one who didn't seem to have an easy time	25:01
	taking a clear stand on religion, even with his own wife,	25:05
	has our sympathies.	25:09
	Wasn't he, after all, a victim of circumstances	25:11
	to a great extent?	25:14
	His marriage to Jezebel was political, in the first place.	25:16
	Granted, she was from a different religious background,	25:20
	which did spell trouble from the beginning.	25:23
	But there would be great material advantages	25:26
	to come from this marriage.	25:28
	What about the increased trade	25:29
	between Israel and its neighbors?	25:31
	Ahab could build great cities throughout Samaria	25:33
	and even an ivory house for himself.	25:36
	Besides, he didn't completely abandon the faith	25:41
	of his father's and mother's.	25:44
	He gave each of his children names	25:46
	which bore a relation to the divine name of Yahweh,	25:49
	not Baal; we all know the significance of names.	25:52
	Why should he suffer for his wife's idolatry	25:57
	when he was only mildly unfaithful to God?	25:59
	After all, she was the one who ordered the death of Naboth.	26:02
	Not Ahab.	26:06
	As if this line of reasoning were not popular enough	26:09
	in the ninth century B.C., the idea of accountability	26:12
	for one's action or inaction, has become even more difficult	26:16
	to sell in our own century, as in the case	26:20
	of Colonel North: We can always claim,	26:24
	our superiors ordered us to do it,	26:27
	and still come out smelling like a rose.	26:29
	If you play your cards right, you can even get rich	26:32
	from notoriety, as the judge noted	26:35
	in Colonel North's sentencing this week.	26:38
	While very few of us will ever deal with the level	26:41
	of international complexities which Colonel North	26:43
	was immersed in, most of us do face daily choices	26:46
	which implicate us as either sowers in the flesh	26:50
	or in the Spirit.	26:53
	What are the consequences of our actions?	26:56
	And how do they affect our neighbor?	26:58
	We have to ask ourselves.	27:01
	That may seem simple enough to determine	27:03
	in our one-on-one relationships.	27:06
	If I steal from you, I sow in the flesh.	27:08
	If I feed you when you're hungry, then I sow in the Spirit.	27:12
	But this becomes a much more complex task	27:16
	when we attempt to sort out our responsibilities	27:19
	on a societal level.	27:22
	Indeed, we must ask ourselves how	27:24
	to sort through these questions	27:27
	as we face injustices at least as glaring	27:29
	as those Elijah railed against in King Ahab's day.	27:32
	As I walk down the aisle, shopping for groceries,	27:37
	for instance, I'm confronted with a system	27:39
	that allows farm workers to spray carcinogenic chemicals	27:42
	on table grapes for the sake of appearance,	27:46
	at wages which will not even afford	27:49
	the workers decent shelter.	27:51
	The grapes are beautiful,	27:54
	but what about the living conditions	27:56
	of the workers who pick them?	27:57
	And their families?	27:59
	If I buy those table grapes, am I accountable to God	28:02
	for knowingly standing on the side of injustice?	28:05
	Further back in the same grocery store	28:10
	I ponder the choice to buy disposable diapers,	28:13
	or other non-biodegradable products.	28:16
	With the forecast that we are running out	28:19
	of landfill space fast, even in our fair city of Durham,	28:21
	am I accountable to God for consuming less?	28:27
	And for doing that in a more responsible manner?	28:30
	While the City of Durham has not resorted,	28:34
	at least not yet, to dumping our garbage	28:36
	on somebody else's back door step,	28:39
	we read harrowing accounts of people who do.	28:41
	Take the case of the freighter Pelicano.	28:45
	It sailed around the world for two years	28:48
	looking for a port that would accept its cargo.	28:51
	Permission was repeatedly denied, and for good reason.	28:54
	The Pelicano was carrying 14,000 tons	28:58
	of toxic incinerator ash from Philadelphia, loaded in 1986.	29:02
	Not until last October did the Pelicano	29:09
	brazenly dump 4,000 pounds of that cargo	29:12
	off a Haitian beach before slipping back out to sea.	29:15
	A month later while in Singapore, the Captain announced	29:20
	that he had unloaded the remainder of the ash	29:23
	in a country that would remain unnamed.	29:26
	The long voyage of the Pelicano is a stark symbol	29:29
	of the environmental exploitation	29:32
	of poor countries by the rich.	29:34
	Who bears the responsibility for cleaning up this mess?	29:38
	And for finding ways to avoid adding	29:42
	to the mountain of waste that threaten	29:44
	to strangle us all alive?	29:46
	Similar questions are asked about divestment	29:50
	in South Africa: How can any university invest	29:52
	in the regime where a powerful minority	29:55
	dehumanizes the majority by the most brutal	29:58
	and violent means, students chant.	30:01
	As long as a single penny of our money is invested there,	30:05
	are we not more than innocent bystanders?	30:09
	In an ever-changing and forever expanding world,	30:13
	it can be very difficult figuring out	30:16
	just what kinds of seeds we are sowing.	30:19
	For Ahab that may have been clearer,	30:23
	at least as we see things in hindsight.	30:25
	But the part of experience that is consistent with Ahab's,	30:28
	is that we are all ultimately responsible to God	30:32
	for the lives we lead, and that hiding behind ignorance,	30:35
	a chain of command, or simply the fact	30:39
	that someone else actually committed the deed in question,	30:42
	isn't good enough.	30:46
	Our God is a God of justice,	30:48
	who calls us to live in right relationship	30:50
	with God and with one another,	30:53
	and holds us accountable to do so.	30:55
	Anyone who violates those relationships,	30:58
	or even looks on passively, as another commits	31:01
	those violations is a sower in the flesh.	31:04
	That one will reap what he or she sows, and then some.	31:08
	After all this, there is still Good News,	31:14
	that God is a merciful God who constantly reissues	31:18
	the invitation for us to repent,	31:21
	and to join hands around the Communion table	31:23
	to be nourished by a holy meal.	31:26
	Joining hands that is,	31:30
	not only with our best friend or our favorite tennis partner	31:32
	but with an embittered farm worker,	31:36
	a poverty-stricken black person for Suwato,	31:39
	or an angry child of any color who wants to inherit more	31:42
	than a pollution-ridden, garbage-infested planet.	31:47
	We are all members of God's new creation,	31:51
	of equal value and equally accountable to God.	31:55
	And by the blood of Jesus Christ, we are equally redeemed.	31:59
	Let us sow seeds in the Spirit together.	32:03
	Thanks be to God!	32:07
	(peaceful organ music)	32:15
	(harmonious organ and choral music)	33:03
-	As we come to the Lord's table,	36:26
	we are bidden by our Lord to make peace with one another.	36:28
	Therefore, let us offer one another signs of love and peace.	36:31
	(congregation murmuring)	36:40
	As a forgiven and peaceful people,	37:08
	let us offer ourselves and our gifts to God	37:12
	in thanksgiving, for all that God has offered to us.	37:15
	Be seated.	37:20
	(peaceful organ music)	37:37
	(harmonious organ and choral music)	38:16
	(peaceful organ music)	40:42
	(vibrant organ music)	41:00
	(harmonious organ and choral music)	41:51
	The Lord be with you.	43:03
Congregation	And also with you.	43:05
Rev. Willimon	Lift up your hearts.	43:07
Congregation	We lift them to the Lord.	43:09
Rev. Willimon	Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.	43:10
Congregation	It is right to give our thanks and praise.	43:13
-	We give thanks, Father.	43:17
	Because you were God even before time began.	43:19
	You have seen every sun rise and every day begin.	43:24
	You gave first form to our home, this earth,	43:28
	launched it into your universe, shaped its hills,	43:32
	filled its seas; when space was ready,	43:35
	you brought forth life out of the waters;	43:38
	made us in your image.	43:41
	Yet we were not content with such a paradise.	43:43
	We rebelled, putting our wills before yours.	43:46
	Even then we found you boundless in love.	43:49
	Time after time, you reached out your hand	43:52
	to touch our lives with living kindness.	43:55
	You led us from captivity to life in the land you promised,	43:59
	and made covenant to take us to be your people,	44:02
	to love and to cherish.	44:05
	And therefore we join with those who have lived,	44:08
	and those now living in this faith,	44:12
	from sunrise to sunset, from south to north,	44:14
	as with one voice in a song of unending praise.	44:18
Congregation	Holy, holy, holy Lord,	44:24
	God of power and might, heaven and earth	44:27
	are full of your glory.	44:29
	Hosanna in the highest.	44:31
	Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.	44:33
	Hosanna in the highest.	44:36
-	Full indeed are heaven and earth of your glory,	44:39
	holy Lord God, when time was ready, you the creator	44:41
	of all that is, sent Christ to be a creature like us.	44:45
	Instead of a servant, you sent your own son,	44:49
	that he might be a servant of all.	44:52
	Christ alone, he who is closest to your heart,	44:54
	he made you known to us, walking among us.	44:57
	Jesus the Christ performed great signs to reveal his glory.	45:00
	He spoke as one having authority	45:04
	that we might trust your love and obey your law.	45:06
	When his hour had come, he drank the cup of suffering	45:10
	and accepted the baptism of death.	45:14
	Having triumphed over death, he left our sight	45:17
	that his spirit might fill our hearts	45:20
	as we await the completion of all things in him.	45:22
	From the night in which he gave himself up for us,	45:25
	the Lord Jesus took bread in his hands,	45:28
	lifting his eyes to heaven, he gave you thanks,	45:30
	broke the bread, gave it to his Disciples and said,	45:34
	"Take, eat; this is my body given for you."	45:37
	When supper was finished, he took the cup,	45:41
	again he offered thanks to you, gave the cup	45:44
	to his Disciples and said, "Drink from this,	45:46
	"all of you; this is the cup of the new covenant	45:48
	"of my blood poured out for you and many	45:51
	"for the forgiveness of sins."	45:53
	When we eat this bread and drink this cup,	45:55
	we know anew the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ,	45:57
	and look to that day when we shall feast	46:00
	in his eternal Kingdom.	46:03
	Therefore we join in this memorial,	46:06
	made by your priestly people, bound by earth and time	46:10
	to the heavenly and timeless,	46:13
	offering for us of Christ himself, our great high priest.	46:15
Congregation	Dying Christ destroyed our death.	46:20
	Rising Christ restored our life.	46:23
	Christ will come in glory.	46:26
-	Send, we pray, your Holy Spirit on us.	46:28
	Gathered here out of love for you.	46:31
	And on this offering, may your Spirit make real	46:32
	the signs that through breaking bread and drinking wine	46:36
	together we may know Christ present among us.	46:38
	Through your son, Jesus Christ,	46:43
	with your Holy Spirit, in your holy church,	46:44
	all your people and all your works	46:47
	glorify and honor you, Father,	46:49
	now and forever, amen.	46:52
Congregation	Our Father, who art in heaven,	46:57
	hallowed be thy name.	47:00
	Thy kingdom come, thy will be done,	47:02
	on earth as it is in heaven.	47:06
	Give us this day our daily bread,	47:08
	and forgive us our trespasses	47:11
	as we forgive those who trespass against us.	47:13
	And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil.	47:16
	For thine is the kingdom, and the power,	47:21
	and the glory forever,	47:23
	amen.	47:27
-	When we break the bread, is it not a means	47:30
	of sharing in the body of Christ?	47:32
	When we give thanks over the cup,	47:35
	is it not yet a means of sharing in the blood of Christ.	47:37
	Many though we are,	47:45
	become one, for it is one loaf of which we all partake.	47:47
	(peaceful organ music)	48:10
	(harmonious organ and choral music)	48:44
	(peaceful organ music)	51:44
	(harmonious choral music)	52:35
	(peaceful organ music)	54:43
	(uplifting organ music)	55:11
	(harmonious organ and choral music)	55:38
	Let us pray.	56:55
	We give you thanks, almighty God,	56:58
	that you have refreshed us through your healing power	57:01
	of this gift of life.	57:04
	And we pray that in your mercy you would strengthen us	57:06
	through this gift in faith toward you,	57:09
	and in fervent love toward one another.	57:11
	Pour out upon us the spirit of your love, oh Lord,	57:14
	and unite the wills of those whom you have fed	57:17
	with one heavenly food.	57:20
	For we give you thanks for these holy mysteries,	57:23
	which bring to us here on earth	57:26
	a share in the life to come.	57:29
	God, our Father, you give us a share,	57:32
	in the one bread and the one cup,	57:35
	and make us one with Christ.	57:38
	So, as we go forward, help us to bring your salvation	57:40
	and joy to all the world.	57:43
	This we humbly ask, through Christ	57:47
	our ever-reigning Lord, amen.	57:51
	Go in peace to serve God and your neighbor	57:56
	in all that you do.	57:59
Congregation	We have strength in Christ's name.	58:01
-	The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God,	58:03
	and the communion of the Holy Spirit	58:05
	be with you all now and forever, amen.	58:07
Congregation	Thanks be to God!	58:10
	(peaceful organ music)	58:13
	(harmonious organ and choral music)	58:54
	(peaceful organ music)	1:02:31
	(vibrant organ music)	1:02:49

Item Info

Title:

Nancy Ferree-Clark - "Reaping What You Sow, and Then Some" (July 9, 1989)

Description:

Sermon start time: (Part 1) 16:54. Sermon end time: (Part 1) 32:10.
The preacher urges listeners to reach beyond themselves through obedience to God. She also considers the less obvious impacts of our choices in an increasingly interconnected world. (Abstract created by Duke Divinity School staff.)
Key quotation: Most of us do face daily choices which implicate us as sowers of the flesh or sowers of the spirit.

Permalink:

https://idn.duke.edu/ark:/87924/r47m04f4v

Date:

July 9, 1989

Speaker:

Ferree-Clark, Nancy

Liturgical Calendar:

Ordinary Time

Biblical Book:

Chapter and Verse:

Subject:

Contributor:

Duke University. Chapel

Identifier:

UA.17.01.0003 VHS-0139
ref8643_paw
uachapelsermaud
duke:321410
dcrmv001135
ark:/87924/r47m04f4v
86b9e4de-3873-4b0b-a285-e7b7e190b7bd

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

Unknown Rights-Holder

Rights Note:

This material is made available for research, scholarship, and private study. Copyright in this material has not been transferred to Duke University. For reuses of this material beyond those permitted by fair use or otherwise allowed under the Copyright Act, please see our page on copyright and citations: https://library.duke.edu/rubenstein/research/citations-and-permissions.

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