William H. Willimon - "One Tough Master?" (November 18, 1990)
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Transcript
Transcripts may contain inaccuracies.
(uplifting organ music) | 0:02 | |
- | Good morning and welcome to Duke Chapel | 3:21 |
on this 24th Sunday after Pentecost. | 3:23 | |
We particularly welcome this Sunday our medical | 3:25 | |
school alumni who are having their reunion weekend | 3:29 | |
here with us. | 3:33 | |
Now let us stand for the greeting. | 3:35 | |
The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with you. | 3:40 | |
Congregation | And also with you. | 3:43 |
- | The risen Christ is with us. | 3:45 |
Congregation | Praise the Lord. | 3:46 |
(organ) | 3:49 | |
♪ Lift high the cross, the love of Christ proclaim ♪ | 4:49 | |
♪ till all the world adore his sacred name. ♪ | 4:57 | |
♪ Come, Christians follow this triumphant sign. ♪ | 5:09 | |
♪ The hosts of God in unity combine. ♪ | 5:17 | |
♪ Lift high the cross, the love of Christ proclaim, ♪ | 5:28 | |
♪ 'till all the world adore His sacred name. ♪ | 5:37 | |
♪ Each newborn servant of the Crucified ♪ | 5:48 | |
♪ bear on their brow the seal of Him who died. ♪ | 5:56 | |
♪ Lift high the cross, the love of Christ proclaim ♪ | 6:06 | |
♪ till all the world adore his sacred name. ♪ | 6:15 | |
♪ O Lord, once lifted on the glorious tree, ♪ | 6:25 | |
♪ As thou hast promised, draw the world to thee. ♪ | 6:34 | |
♪ Lift high the cross, the love of Christ proclaim ♪ | 6:45 | |
♪ till all the world adore his sacred name. ♪ | 6:54 | |
♪ So shall our song of triumph ever be: ♪ | 7:05 | |
♪ praise to the Crucified for victory. ♪ | 7:13 | |
♪ Lift high the cross, the love of Christ proclaim ♪ | 7:24 | |
♪ till all the world adore his sacred name. ♪ | 7:33 | |
- | Sovereign God, to whom belongs all we have | 7:51 |
and all that we are, we pray for insight and will | 7:54 | |
to use wisely all that you have entrusted to us. | 7:59 | |
May we be worthy of others' trust, generous to those | 8:03 | |
who are in need and full of encouragement for our sisters | 8:07 | |
and brothers in the faith. | 8:11 | |
Inspire us to such selfless service that we may | 8:14 | |
be worthy of your commendation, | 8:17 | |
"Well done, good and faithful servant." | 8:19 | |
Amen. | 8:22 | |
- | Let us pray. | 8:34 |
Congregation | Open our hearts and minds, O God, | 8:37 |
by the power of your holy spirit | 8:40 | |
so that this word is read and proclaimed | 8:43 | |
we might hear with joy which I say to us this day. | 8:46 | |
- | The first reading is taken from | 8:52 |
the book of Zephaniah. | 8:55 | |
Be silent before the Lord God! | 8:57 | |
For the day of the Lord is at hand; | 9:00 | |
the Lord has prepared a sacrifice, | 9:04 | |
he has consecrated his guests. | 9:07 | |
At that time I will search Jerusalem with lamps, | 9:10 | |
and I will punish the people who rest | 9:15 | |
complacently on their dregs, those who say in their hearts, | 9:18 | |
"The Lord will not do good, nor will he do harm." | 9:23 | |
Their wealth shall be plundered, | 9:29 | |
and their houses laid waste. Though they build houses, | 9:32 | |
they shall not inhabit them; though they plant vineyards, | 9:37 | |
they shall not drink wine from them. | 9:42 | |
The great day of the Lord is near, near and hastening fast; | 9:46 | |
the sound of the day of the Lord is bitter, | 9:53 | |
the warrior cries aloud there. | 9:56 | |
That day will be a day of wrath, | 10:00 | |
a day of distress and anguish, | 10:03 | |
a day of ruin and devastation, | 10:07 | |
a day of darkness and gloom, | 10:11 | |
a day of clouds and thick darkness, | 10:14 | |
a day of trumpet blast and battle cry against | 10:17 | |
the fortified cities and against the lofty battlements. | 10:21 | |
I will bring such distress upon the people | 10:27 | |
that they shall walk like the blind; | 10:30 | |
because they have sinned against the Lord, | 10:33 | |
their blood shall be poured out like dust, | 10:36 | |
and their flesh like dung. | 10:39 | |
Neither their silver nor their gold will be able | 10:42 | |
to save them on the day of the Lord's wrath; | 10:46 | |
in the fire of his passion the whole earth | 10:50 | |
shall be consumed; for a full, a terrible end | 10:53 | |
he will make of all the inhabitants of the earth. | 10:58 | |
This is the Word of the Lord. | 11:03 | |
Congregation | Thanks be to God. | 11:06 |
- | Please stand as we join in singing responsively | 11:13 |
Psalm 76, found on page 797 in your hymnal. | 11:15 | |
(organ) | 11:22 | |
♪ In Judah God is known, whose name is great in Israel. ♪ | 11:28 | |
♪ Whose abode has been established in Salem, ♪ | 11:36 | |
♪ whose dwelling place is in Zion. ♪ | 11:41 | |
♪ There he broke the flashing arrows, the shield, ♪ | 11:45 | |
♪ the sword, and the weapons of war. ♪ | 11:50 | |
♪ You are glorious, more majestic ♪ | 11:56 | |
♪ than the everlasting mountains. ♪ | 12:00 | |
♪ The stouthearted were stripped of their spoil; ♪ | 12:03 | |
♪ they sank into sleep; ♪ | 12:08 | |
♪ all the soldiers were unable to use their hands. ♪ | 12:11 | |
♪ At your rebuke, O God of Jacob, ♪ | 12:17 | |
♪ both rider and horse lay stunned. ♪ | 12:22 | |
♪ You indeed are to be feared! ♪ | 12:27 | |
♪ Who can stand before you when once your anger is roused? ♪ | 12:31 | |
♪ From the heavens you uttered judgment; ♪ | 12:38 | |
♪ the earth feared and was still ♪ | 12:42 | |
♪ when God arose to establish judgment, ♪ | 12:46 | |
♪ to save all the oppressed of the earth. ♪ | 12:50 | |
♪ Surely human wrath shall praise you, ♪ | 12:55 | |
♪ when last bit of your wrath you bind around you. ♪ | 12:59 | |
♪ Make vows to the Lord your God, and keep them; ♪ | 13:06 | |
♪ Let us serve God where he lives ♪ | 13:11 | |
♪ to the One to be feared. ♪ | 13:13 | |
♪ Who gives us the Spirit among us, ♪ | 13:18 | |
♪ And makes the rulers of the earth afraid ♪ | 13:23 | |
♪ All glory be to you Oh God, and to Jesus Christ our Savior ♪ | 13:28 | |
♪ As Your Holy Spirit will set us free. ♪ | 13:35 | |
♪ As it was since time began ♪ | 13:42 | |
♪ Is now and to be forevermore. ♪ | 13:45 | |
- | This reading is taken from | 14:04 |
Paul's first letter to the Thessalonians. | 14:06 | |
Now concerning the times and the seasons, | 14:10 | |
brothers and sisters, you do not need | 14:13 | |
to have anything written to you. | 14:16 | |
For you yourselves know very well that | 14:19 | |
the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. | 14:22 | |
When they say, "There is peace and security," | 14:27 | |
then sudden destruction will come upon them, | 14:31 | |
as labor pains come upon a pregnant woman, | 14:35 | |
and there will be no escape! | 14:38 | |
But you, beloved, are not in the darkness, | 14:42 | |
for that day to surprise you like a thief; | 14:45 | |
for you are all children of light and children of the day; | 14:49 | |
we are not of the night or of darkness. | 14:55 | |
So then let us not fall asleep as others do, | 14:59 | |
but let us keep awake and be sober; | 15:04 | |
for those who sleep, sleep at night, | 15:08 | |
and those who are drunk, get drunk at night. | 15:12 | |
But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, | 15:16 | |
and put on the breastplate of faith and love, | 15:20 | |
and for a helmet the hope of salvation. | 15:25 | |
For God has destined us not for wrath but | 15:30 | |
for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, | 15:33 | |
who died for us, so that whether we are awake | 15:38 | |
or asleep we may live with him. | 15:42 | |
Therefore encourage one another and build up each other, | 15:46 | |
as indeed you are doing. | 15:51 | |
This is the word of the Lord. | 15:55 | |
Congregation | Praise to God. | 15:57 |
(choir singing foreign language) | 16:11 | |
- | You will note that all of our scripture lessons thus far, | 19:04 |
including the Mozart anthem we have just heard, | 19:08 | |
speak of the judgment of God, | 19:13 | |
and today's assigned Gospel also speaks of divine judgment, | 19:16 | |
but in a particular way. | 19:22 | |
Hear the gospel. | 19:25 | |
For it will be as when a man going on a journey, | 19:31 | |
called his servants and entrusted to them his property. | 19:34 | |
To one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, | 19:37 | |
each according to his ability. Then he went away. | 19:42 | |
He who had received the five talents went at once | 19:47 | |
and traded them, and made five talents more. | 19:49 | |
So also the who with two talents made two talents more. | 19:53 | |
But he who had received one talent went and | 19:56 | |
dug the ground and hid his master's money. | 19:59 | |
Now after a long time the master of these servants | 20:03 | |
came and settled accounts. | 20:06 | |
And when he who had received the five talents came forward, | 20:09 | |
bringing five talents more, saying, | 20:12 | |
'Master, you delivered to me five talents; here, | 20:15 | |
I have made five talents more.' | 20:17 | |
The master said to him, | 20:20 | |
'Well done, good and faithful servant. | 20:22 | |
You've been faithful over a little; | 20:24 | |
I will set you over much. | 20:26 | |
Enter into the joy of your master.' | 20:29 | |
And he also who had the two talents came forward, saying, | 20:33 | |
'Master, you delivered to me two talents; here, | 20:36 | |
I have made two talents more.' | 20:39 | |
His master said to him, | 20:42 | |
'Well done, good and faithful servant. | 20:43 | |
You have been faithful over a little; | 20:45 | |
I will set you over much. | 20:47 | |
Enter into the joy of your master.' | 20:49 | |
He also who had received one talent came forward, saying, | 20:53 | |
'Master, I knew you were a hard man, | 20:58 | |
reaping where you did not sow, gathering where | 21:03 | |
you did not winnow, so I was afraid, | 21:05 | |
and I went and hid your talent in the ground. | 21:10 | |
Here, you have what is yours.' | 21:12 | |
The master answered him, 'You wicked and | 21:17 | |
slothful servant! You knew that I reap where I haven't | 21:20 | |
sown and gathered where I have not winnowed! | 21:23 | |
Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, | 21:25 | |
and at my coming I should have received | 21:27 | |
what was my own with interest. | 21:30 | |
Take the talent from him and give it | 21:33 | |
to him who has the ten talents. | 21:35 | |
This is the Word of the Lord. | 21:39 | |
Congregation | Thanks be to God. | 21:42 |
Well you know with whom we identify in this story. | 21:45 | |
We're always on the side of the little, one-talent man. | 21:50 | |
Maybe it's because few of us | 21:54 | |
are overly endowed with talents, | 21:56 | |
and maybe it's because we always like stories about | 22:00 | |
the little guy who makes good. | 22:03 | |
We love the story of the woman who went | 22:04 | |
head-to-head with the IRS and won! | 22:08 | |
Or the student who took on | 22:12 | |
the mighty University administration and triumphed. | 22:14 | |
We like stories about the little guy. | 22:19 | |
Toward the end of his time with us, | 22:24 | |
Jesus told us this story, | 22:27 | |
the parable of the talents. | 22:30 | |
And I think context is important. | 22:34 | |
It is told toward the end of his life, | 22:36 | |
just before Jesus launched out on a journey to Jerusalem. | 22:38 | |
Just before Jesus left us. | 22:44 | |
A man is getting ready to go on a journey, and he's rich. | 22:49 | |
'Cause when he calls his servants to him and he | 22:56 | |
distributes his money, he gives them a lot of money. | 22:58 | |
A talent is the largest unit of monetary measurement | 23:02 | |
in the ancient near East. We're talking about 75 pounds | 23:07 | |
of pure silver, a great fortune. | 23:11 | |
He gives one five of these talents, | 23:17 | |
another he gives two talents. | 23:19 | |
Couple-a hundred pounds of silver. | 23:23 | |
The third servant gets only one talent, | 23:27 | |
but I remind you a talent is a lot of money. | 23:29 | |
It's about 15 years of wages | 23:32 | |
he gives to this servant at one time. | 23:36 | |
And then the master leaves town. | 23:42 | |
Which probably increases our sympathy for the servants, | 23:46 | |
for we find out now that not only is he rich, | 23:50 | |
but he's an absentee landlord. | 23:52 | |
He's living somewhere up in the northeast, | 23:55 | |
while people slave for him in the coal mines of | 23:57 | |
Appalachia, or the textile mills of North Carolina. | 24:00 | |
Just when these servants could use his advice on investment, | 24:06 | |
he leaves town, goes on a cruise. | 24:09 | |
Servants one and two go out and | 24:13 | |
wheel and deal with the masters money. | 24:16 | |
But servant number three, | 24:20 | |
the one with just the one talent does the cautious thing, | 24:21 | |
the right thing. | 24:24 | |
He's got only one talent, not two, not five. | 24:26 | |
Still it's a lot of money, so he goes out and digs | 24:30 | |
a hole in the ground and buries the talent. | 24:33 | |
Stands guard over it, keeps it safe and sound. | 24:38 | |
He doesn't risk his master's money like servants | 24:42 | |
one and two, he buries it. | 24:44 | |
And I remind you there were no banks in that day, | 24:47 | |
burying was the only intelligent way to truly | 24:49 | |
protect your property. | 24:52 | |
In fact the rabbis ruled if somebody gives you some money | 24:53 | |
and you go bury it in the earth and then | 24:56 | |
somehow it's stolen, you're not liable. | 24:58 | |
You did what was responsible and prudent and wise. | 25:01 | |
You buried the money. | 25:03 | |
By burying the money, the servant is assured of a positive | 25:09 | |
judgment from his master, and a positive judgment from us, | 25:12 | |
because he's acted wisely and prudently and carefully, | 25:16 | |
the same way that you or I would have acted. | 25:19 | |
What is more, this servant appears to have had a course | 25:26 | |
in business ethics, because he of all the servants | 25:28 | |
appears to be the only one who understands what great trust | 25:32 | |
has been given over to him as steward of his master's money. | 25:36 | |
It's not his money after all. He's got no right to gamble | 25:40 | |
with his master's money in wild speculation. | 25:45 | |
And what is more, usury, or the obtaining of | 25:48 | |
interest from money, was still frowned upon in Israel. | 25:52 | |
So he has done the right thing, | 25:57 | |
he has done the prudent thing, the biblical thing. | 25:58 | |
He buries the money. | 26:02 | |
Well eventually the master returns, | 26:06 | |
and he wants to know how things have gone in his absence. | 26:07 | |
Servants one and two report great things have been done | 26:11 | |
by them. They took the master's money, they invested it, | 26:15 | |
they got great results. | 26:19 | |
The master is thrilled. | 26:22 | |
So thrilled he lets them keep all money, | 26:23 | |
"Enter into the joy of your master." | 26:28 | |
Well servant number three also has great results. | 26:33 | |
"Here master. Here's the talent that you gave me. | 26:37 | |
Here is your talent back all safe and sound. | 26:40 | |
I didn't waste any of it. I didn't risk any of it. | 26:46 | |
I didn't blow any of it on crackpot business deals, | 26:49 | |
or loan any of it to my cronies. | 26:52 | |
Besides, I knew that you were a hard man. | 26:56 | |
The type of master who loves to | 27:03 | |
squeeze blood out of a turnip. | 27:06 | |
Who expects to reap where you didn't even sow, | 27:09 | |
to gather where you have not scattered. | 27:12 | |
I knew you were a hard man, | 27:16 | |
and here's your talent all safe and sound." | 27:17 | |
And the master says, | 27:24 | |
"You wicked, slothful servant! | 27:27 | |
Blood out of a turnip, my eye! | 27:31 | |
If I were all that hard-hearted, | 27:33 | |
then one would at least expected you would've put | 27:36 | |
this talent in an insured CD at at FDIC bank, | 27:39 | |
and then I would have at least gotten a measly 6%. | 27:43 | |
Take what he has and scrape that dirt off of it, | 27:49 | |
and give it to the one who's got ten talents." | 27:52 | |
And right there is where we do not like this story. | 27:58 | |
Because here the little guy has gotten clobbered | 28:02 | |
for doing what was right, what was prudent, | 28:06 | |
for doing what we would have done. | 28:12 | |
We do not like this story. | 28:16 | |
It is a story of how the rich get richer, | 28:19 | |
and the poor get shafted. | 28:21 | |
And if you know anything about Jesus, | 28:24 | |
you know that he told much more palatable stories. | 28:26 | |
Like they were passing the collection plate in the chapel | 28:30 | |
on a Sunday morning, and all the rich | 28:34 | |
were putting in bundles of bills and checks | 28:36 | |
and American Express cards, | 28:39 | |
and there was this one little poor widow, | 28:41 | |
and she put in just a little coin, | 28:43 | |
but it was all she had, and Jesus said, | 28:45 | |
"She gave more than all the rest." | 28:47 | |
We love that little story about the little guy. | 28:51 | |
We love stories about the little guy who gets to go forward | 28:58 | |
and the big guy who get clobbered. | 29:01 | |
And we don't like this story that ends | 29:05 | |
with this little man, this little man, | 29:09 | |
clutching his one little talent, | 29:11 | |
shaking, trembling, saying, | 29:14 | |
"Master, I knew that you were rough. | 29:15 | |
I knew that you are a tough man, | 29:18 | |
sowing where you did not reap, | 29:19 | |
gathering where you did not scatter, | 29:21 | |
and so I did the cautious, prudent, the careful thing." | 29:22 | |
And aren't those great Christian virtues: | 29:27 | |
caution, prudence, carefulness? | 29:29 | |
"You wicked little wretch. | 29:33 | |
Take what he's got, give it to the others." | 29:36 | |
By the way, if I should ever be so dumb as to give you $100, | 29:42 | |
would you note I do not want you to invest it? | 29:47 | |
I want you to go bury it in the ground. | 29:50 | |
I would rather get back my principal with no interest | 29:53 | |
rather than risk not getting back any interest or principal. | 29:56 | |
And so what do you think of this master? | 30:04 | |
That's the question that Matthew means to leave | 30:08 | |
in our minds when we finish this story, | 30:10 | |
"What do you think of this master? | 30:13 | |
Who is this master?" | 30:15 | |
About all we know about him in the beginning | 30:17 | |
of the story is that he is rich. | 30:19 | |
That he went away, that he finally came back, | 30:23 | |
and that he risked a fabulous amount of money | 30:25 | |
on three servants. | 30:28 | |
And then gave all the money back to two servants | 30:32 | |
while taking it away from the third. | 30:34 | |
Our first inclination is to agree with the third | 30:38 | |
servant's assessment of the master. | 30:41 | |
"Master, I knew you were a hard man, | 30:43 | |
reaping where you did not sow, | 30:46 | |
gathering where you did not scatter. | 30:47 | |
You're a hard man, you're tough." | 30:48 | |
But come to think of that, that's only the | 30:54 | |
third servant's opinion of the master. | 30:56 | |
The master does not deny or confirm | 30:58 | |
the servant's opinion of his business methods. | 31:02 | |
Which leaves the matter for us to decide. | 31:07 | |
What do you think of this master? | 31:12 | |
When the story begins we're really not | 31:20 | |
inclined to think bad of this master. | 31:22 | |
He doesn't' seem like a hard-hearted business person, | 31:26 | |
in fact, we're inclined to think just the opposite. | 31:31 | |
I mean, how many hard-hearted business people do you know | 31:35 | |
who would drop 15 years of wages on one of their employees, | 31:38 | |
and with no strings attached, and then leave town? | 31:42 | |
So as the story opens, you might say | 31:48 | |
that this master is anything but hard-hearted. | 31:50 | |
In fact you might say that he is soft-headed, | 31:54 | |
lavishing nearly a thousand pounds of sterling silver | 31:57 | |
on three servants, placing no restrictions | 32:01 | |
on what they are to do with it, then leaving town. | 32:04 | |
And when he returns for the accounting, for the judgment, | 32:09 | |
oh that's when you expect the gavel to come down. | 32:12 | |
That's when you expect the judgment. | 32:14 | |
When this allegedly hard-hearted business man | 32:17 | |
is gonna let his servants really have it! | 32:20 | |
Which is exactly what he does for servants one and two, | 32:24 | |
but not as they expected. He lets them have it. | 32:26 | |
He lets them have all of it! | 32:29 | |
He gives them all of the money! | 32:31 | |
Not just the interest they have made but the principal too! | 32:33 | |
"Enter into the joy of your master." | 32:39 | |
Now I ask you, | 32:44 | |
does that sound hard-hearted to you? | 32:47 | |
No, it's only when that third servant comes in, | 32:52 | |
our man, the little guy, when he stands up | 32:55 | |
to render account, that we are told, | 32:59 | |
and told by him, I remind you, | 33:01 | |
"Master, I knew that you were a hard-hearted man. | 33:03 | |
I knew that you were tough, reaping where you haven't even | 33:05 | |
sown, and here's your talent, mister tough guy, | 33:08 | |
all safe and sound, and would you tell me | 33:12 | |
what a good little boy I've been?" | 33:14 | |
Did the servant say, "Reaping where you did not sow?" | 33:19 | |
What did he think that master was doing | 33:25 | |
when he threw nearly a thousand pounds of silver at them? | 33:28 | |
He was busy sowing. | 33:34 | |
Is the master unjustified to expect, | 33:39 | |
some harvest for such sowing? | 33:43 | |
What do you think of this master? | 33:50 | |
The dean was going away on sabbatical | 33:57 | |
and he called the department chairs together. | 33:59 | |
And to one he gave five departments, and to another | 34:03 | |
two departments, and to another one department. | 34:06 | |
And then the dean went off to study flora in Honolulu. | 34:09 | |
(laughter) | 34:13 | |
The one who received five departments got busy, | 34:14 | |
wheeled and dealed and established five more departments. | 34:18 | |
And this was the old fashioned way, | 34:21 | |
not by dividing like psychology, but new departments. | 34:23 | |
And so the one that received two departments | 34:29 | |
established two more, but the one who | 34:31 | |
received one department sat in his office | 34:35 | |
and attempted to maintain the status quo. | 34:37 | |
After a long time, the dean returned | 34:42 | |
in a Hawaiian shirt, and he called all three | 34:47 | |
before the academic council. | 34:50 | |
The chair who had received five departments | 34:53 | |
presented five new ones. | 34:55 | |
"Well done, good chair," the dean said. | 34:57 | |
"I'll make you an assistant dean. | 35:00 | |
Enter into the joy of Allen building." | 35:03 | |
(laughter) | 35:06 | |
And he said the same to the one | 35:07 | |
who had made two departments. | 35:08 | |
The one who'd received only one department said, | 35:12 | |
"Oh Dean, Dean I knew that you were a tough dean. | 35:14 | |
I knew that you were hard. I didn't take any chances. | 35:19 | |
I didn't hire anybody, I didn't establish any new courses, | 35:25 | |
I didn't take sides with the NAS! | 35:27 | |
I just kept office hours and I filled out reports." | 35:30 | |
"You wicked, slothful chair! | 35:36 | |
You heard what I did when I was out at Stanford, | 35:41 | |
how I took names, knocked heads. | 35:43 | |
You should have added to the faculty load. | 35:46 | |
You should have set up new courses, | 35:48 | |
you should have taken out ads in the Chronicle, | 35:49 | |
found new majors so that when I returned, | 35:52 | |
Newsweek would rank us above Princeton. | 35:54 | |
(laughter) | 35:57 | |
Hard Dean, my eye. I mean, for heaven's sake, this is Duke! | 35:58 | |
You've got tenure for heaven's sake, | 36:03 | |
I mean what could I do to you if I wanted to? | 36:05 | |
Lord, deliver me from these academic bean counters | 36:09 | |
and give me some people who want to wheel and deal. | 36:12 | |
Take that department from him and give it to somebody | 36:14 | |
who knows how to put this little college on the map!" | 36:17 | |
"I knew you to be a hard man." | 36:23 | |
Really now? | 36:28 | |
Does he know the master? | 36:30 | |
Who is this master? | 36:34 | |
Is he a hard-hearted, tough miser of a master, | 36:38 | |
who expects to reap where he hasn't even sown? | 36:43 | |
Or is he an extravagant, | 36:48 | |
reckless, wheeler-dealer, | 36:53 | |
whose faith in his servants is exceeded | 36:56 | |
only by his wild generosity? | 36:59 | |
I remind you how this story started. | 37:05 | |
He gave them all that he had, every cent. | 37:08 | |
Is it reckless for him to expect them | 37:15 | |
to be as reckless as he? | 37:17 | |
And when they come back to render account, | 37:21 | |
you think that maybe if he's pleased he'll let 'em | 37:24 | |
keep a little of the interest they've earned, | 37:27 | |
but no he tells 'em, "Keep it all! | 37:29 | |
Keep the interest. Keep the principal. Keep it all!" | 37:33 | |
It's enough to make you ask, "Who is this master?" | 37:38 | |
The great Richard Niebuhr said, | 37:44 | |
"Conversion occurs | 37:48 | |
in that moment in your life when you realize that | 37:51 | |
the God whom you once avoided as your enemy, | 37:53 | |
is in truth your best friend." | 38:00 | |
Jesus had some funny ideas about business. | 38:08 | |
The sower went out to sow and he carefully placed each | 38:13 | |
seed in the ground, he plowed all the furl... | 38:16 | |
No, no! | 38:18 | |
Jesus said a sower went out to sow and he began | 38:19 | |
slinging seed in every direction. | 38:21 | |
Just throwing seed. | 38:24 | |
Well, some fell on rocks, and some was gobbled up by birds, | 38:25 | |
but some fell on good ground and yielded much. | 38:29 | |
You get that kind of result when you do that kind of sowing. | 38:34 | |
"Master, I knew you to be a tough man, who expected to | 38:40 | |
harvest where you haven't even sown." | 38:43 | |
No. | 38:48 | |
"Master we knew you to be a reckless man, who expected | 38:52 | |
to harvest in exactly the same way that you sowed." | 38:57 | |
And moving from sloppy agriculture to | 39:05 | |
outrageous shepherding, Jesus says, "The Good Shepherd, | 39:10 | |
the good shepherd will lay down his life for a sheep." | 39:14 | |
You show me a shepherd who will lay down his life for | 39:21 | |
a $9.95 plus postage sheep, I show you a dumb shepherd. | 39:25 | |
Or else, | 39:32 | |
an unbelievably extravagant shepherd. | 39:35 | |
Who is this master? | 39:44 | |
And what would your life be like | 39:48 | |
as his servant? | 39:51 | |
(organ music) | 40:01 | |
♪ What does the Lord require for praise and offering? ♪ | 40:29 | |
♪ What sacrifice, desire or tribute did you bring? ♪ | 40:37 | |
♪ Do justly; Love mercy; Walk humbly with your God. ♪ | 40:46 | |
♪ Rulers of men, give ear! Should you not justice show? ♪ | 40:58 | |
♪ Will God your pleading hear, while crime and cruelty grow? ♪ | 41:06 | |
♪ Do justly; Love mercy; Walk humbly with your God. ♪ | 41:15 | |
♪ All who gain wealth by trade, for whom the worker toils, ♪ | 41:27 | |
♪ Think not win God's aid, if greed your commerce soils. ♪ | 41:36 | |
♪Do justly; Love mercy; Walk humbly with your God. ♪ | 41:44 | |
♪ How shall our life fulfill God's law so hard and high? ♪ | 41:57 | |
♪ Let Christ endue our will with grace to fortify. ♪ | 42:06 | |
♪ Then justly, in mercy we'll humbly walk with God. ♪ | 42:14 | |
- | The Lord be with you. | 42:33 |
Congregation | And also with you. | 42:34 |
- | Let us pray. | 42:36 |
O, Eternal God, | 42:49 | |
even as we hear your cry to do justly and love mercy, | 42:51 | |
we acknowledge that we are too often afraid to step out, | 42:57 | |
and to risk anything of value in our lives. | 43:01 | |
We confess that we have hidden our talents | 43:05 | |
and protected ourselves, | 43:07 | |
we have placed our trust in silver and gold, | 43:09 | |
rather than your saving love. | 43:12 | |
Help us to be faithful in our use of | 43:15 | |
whatever you entrust to us. | 43:17 | |
Lord in your mercy, | 43:21 | |
Congregation | Hear our prayer. | 43:22 |
- | God of all, you surround us with wealth | 43:26 |
more bountiful than we can comprehend. | 43:28 | |
Air to breathe, water to drink, food to eat, | 43:32 | |
and all that is needful for human life. | 43:36 | |
We pray for those who know little of your bounty, | 43:39 | |
for whom mere existence is a constant struggle. | 43:43 | |
We acknowledge that their burdens | 43:47 | |
should be our burdens as well. | 43:48 | |
Lord in your mercy, | 43:51 | |
Congregation | Hear our prayer. | 43:53 |
- | O creating God, | 43:55 |
You are present in every part of human experience. | 43:57 | |
We hold before You the infant cuddled in a parent's arms, | 44:02 | |
young women and men struggling to make life decisions, | 44:06 | |
families seeking to resolve painful conflicts, | 44:10 | |
the sick and the infirmed battling with | 44:14 | |
weakness and incapacity, | 44:16 | |
the dying soon to experience your new creation, | 44:18 | |
Lord in your mercy, | 44:22 | |
Congregation | Hear our prayer. | 44:24 |
O redeeming God, | 44:26 | |
we pray for those lands where brother and sister | 44:28 | |
fight sister and brother, | 44:31 | |
divided by arbitrary borders, ideology or religion. | 44:33 | |
We pray for those lands where extremes of wealth | 44:38 | |
and poverty are bitterly divisive. | 44:40 | |
We pray for all government officials and military personnel | 44:44 | |
involved in the Persian Gulf conflict as they prepare | 44:48 | |
for war, that a non-violent resolution may be found. | 44:51 | |
We pray for innocent victims everywhere who fall prey | 44:56 | |
to senseless violence, especially for the people of | 44:59 | |
El Salvador as they observe the anniversary of the | 45:02 | |
murder of six Jesuit priests, their housekeeper and | 45:05 | |
her daughter one year ago. | 45:08 | |
Lord in your mercy, | 45:11 | |
Congregation | Hear our prayer. | 45:12 |
- | O sustaining God, | 45:15 |
we pray for all who have grown bitter or | 45:17 | |
weary in the journey of life, | 45:19 | |
for those who weep and for those who can no longer weep, | 45:21 | |
for those who feel the anguish and for those who have | 45:25 | |
lost the capacity to feel. | 45:28 | |
For those who live within prisons, on death row, | 45:31 | |
in mental institutions, homeless shelters, shelters for | 45:34 | |
battered women, runaway youth on the streets of our cities. | 45:38 | |
Lord in your mercy, | 45:43 | |
Congregation | Hear our prayer. | 45:45 |
- | O living Lord, we pray for the whole human family. | 45:47 |
You alone can give victory over the violence | 45:51 | |
of the world, and of our hearts. | 45:53 | |
Save us O Lord, give us the will and the power to share | 45:57 | |
in your victory, for it is in Your Holy name we pray, | 46:01 | |
Amen. | 46:05 | |
As a forgiven and reconciled people, | 46:09 | |
let us offer our gifts and ourselves unto God. | 46:12 | |
(somber organ music) | 46:20 | |
(choir singing in foreign language) | 48:51 | |
♪ Praise God for whom all blessings flow, ♪ | 51:34 | |
♪ Praise God all creatures here below, ♪ | 51:41 | |
♪ Allelulia, alleluia, ♪ | 51:47 | |
♪ Praise God above, ye heav'nly hosts ♪ | 51:55 | |
♪ Praise Father, Son and Holy Ghost, ♪ | 52:01 | |
♪ Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia, alleluia, alleluia. ♪ | 52:07 | |
- | We give you thanks O God for revealing | 52:32 |
Your power in the creation of the universe, | 52:34 | |
for the victory of light over the darkness | 52:37 | |
and truth over error, | 52:40 | |
for the advancement of Your reign of justice and peace, | 52:41 | |
of holiness and love, and for the revelation of | 52:45 | |
Your kingdom in our midst by your son, Jesus Christ, | 52:48 | |
who came on earth to accomplish your will, | 52:51 | |
in return we offer you our souls and bodies | 52:54 | |
to be a living sacrifice, | 52:57 | |
send us out in the power of your Holy Spirit, | 52:59 | |
to live and to work to your praise and glory, | 53:02 | |
this we pray in the name of Jesus Christ, | 53:05 | |
who taught us to pray with confidence, | 53:08 | |
Congregation | Our Father, who art in heaven, | 53:10 |
hallowed be thy name. | 53:13 | |
Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, | 53:15 | |
on earth as it is in heaven. | 53:18 | |
Give us this day our daily bread, | 53:21 | |
and forgive us our trespasses, | 53:23 | |
as we forgive those who trespass against us. | 53:25 | |
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. | 53:28 | |
For thine is the kingdom, the power and the glory, | 53:32 | |
forever and ever. Amen | 53:36 | |
And now go forth in peace, | 53:41 | |
encouraging and building up one another. | 53:43 | |
Strengthen the fainthearted, lift up the weak, | 53:46 | |
be patient with the anxious, | 53:49 | |
and rejoice in all circumstances. | 53:52 | |
The one who calls you is faithful. | 53:55 | |
The God of Peace shall make you whole. | 53:57 | |
♪ Amen ♪ | 54:03 | |
(organ) | 54:24 | |
♪ O holy city, seen of John ♪ | 54:56 | |
♪ Where Christ, the Lamb, doth reign, ♪ | 55:01 | |
♪ Within whose foursquare walls shall come ♪ | 55:06 | |
♪ No night, nor need, nor pain, ♪ | 55:12 | |
♪ And where the tears are wiped from eyes ♪ | 55:18 | |
♪ That shall not weep again! ♪ | 55:23 | |
♪ Hark, how from men whose lives are held ♪ | 55:30 | |
♪ More cheap than merchandise; ♪ | 55:35 | |
♪ From women struggling sore for bread, ♪ | 55:41 | |
♪ From little children's cries, ♪ | 55:46 | |
♪ There swells the sobbing human plaint ♪ | 55:53 | |
♪ That bids thy walls arise! ♪ | 55:58 | |
♪ O shame to us who rest content ♪ | 56:05 | |
♪ While lust and greed for gain ♪ | 56:11 | |
♪ In street and shop and tenement ♪ | 56:17 | |
♪ Wring gold from human pain, ♪ | 56:22 | |
♪ And bitter lips in blind despair cry, ♪ | 56:28 | |
♪ "Christ hath died in vain!" ♪ | 56:34 | |
♪ Give us, O God, the strength to build ♪ | 56:41 | |
♪ The city that hath stood ♪ | 56:47 | |
♪ Too long a dream, whose laws are love, ♪ | 56:52 | |
♪ Whose ways are brotherhood, ♪ | 56:58 | |
♪ And where the sun that shineth is ♪ | 57:04 | |
♪ God's grace for human good. ♪ | 57:10 | |
♪ Already in the mind of God ♪ | 57:17 | |
♪ That city riseth fair; ♪ | 57:23 | |
♪ Lo, how it's splendor challenges ♪ | 57:28 | |
♪ The souls that greatly dare, ♪ | 57:34 | |
♪ Yeah, bids us seize the whole of life ♪ | 57:40 | |
♪ And build its glory there. ♪ | 57:46 | |
(organ music) | 57:57 |