Debra K. Brazzel - Sermon Untitled (May 2, 1993)
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Transcript
Transcripts may contain inaccuracies.
(choral music) | 0:00 | |
(silence) | 2:54 | |
(hushed coughing and footsteps) | 2:57 | |
- | Good morning. | 3:26 |
I'd like to welcome you | 3:27 | |
to Duke Chapel on this fourth Sunday of Easter. | 3:27 | |
Our guest choir today is the | 3:30 | |
University Chorale from UNC at Greensboro. | 3:32 | |
We're grateful for them | 3:36 | |
to providing the music in this service | 3:38 | |
and for their very special contribution | 3:40 | |
to our service of worship today. | 3:42 | |
I'd like to call your attention | 3:45 | |
to a couple of announcements in your bulletin. | 3:46 | |
First, a new endowment has been established | 3:49 | |
to honor Brenda Brodie, Duke's First Lady, | 3:52 | |
and a long-term member of the congregation at Duke Chapel. | 3:55 | |
The details of that endowment are listed in your bulletin. | 3:59 | |
We'd also like to invite you to join in singing | 4:03 | |
with the Duke Chapel summer choir. | 4:06 | |
There are no auditions required and attendance is flexible. | 4:08 | |
It's a wonderful opportunity | 4:12 | |
for those of you who've wanted to sing | 4:13 | |
but can't make the contribution | 4:15 | |
for the ongoing commitment | 4:17 | |
to be a part of our regular choir. | 4:19 | |
So, we hope you will consider that this summer. | 4:21 | |
Now, let us continue our worship together | 4:24 | |
as we stand for the greeting. | 4:26 | |
Christ is risen. | 4:36 | |
Congregation | The Lord is risen indeed. | 4:38 |
Minister | Glory and honor, dominion and power | 4:40 |
be to God forever and ever. | 4:43 | |
Congregation | Christ is risen, amen. | 4:47 |
(organ plays) | 4:51 | |
(all sing "Come Christians, Join To Sing") | 5:28 | |
♪ Come, Christians, join to sing, ♪ | 5:30 | |
♪ Alleluia! Amen! ♪ | 5:34 | |
♪ Loud praise to Christ our King. ♪ | 5:39 | |
♪ Alleluia! Amen! ♪ | 5:43 | |
♪ Let all, with heart and voice ♪ | 5:48 | |
♪ Before his throne rejoice. ♪ | 5:53 | |
♪ Praise is his gracious choice. ♪ | 5:58 | |
♪ Alleluia! Amen! ♪ | 6:03 | |
♪ Come, lift your hearts on high. ♪ | 6:10 | |
♪ Alleluia! Amen! ♪ | 6:15 | |
♪ Let praises fill the sky. ♪ | 6:20 | |
♪ Alleluia! Amen! ♪ | 6:24 | |
♪ He is our guide and friend. ♪ | 6:29 | |
♪ To us he'll condescend. ♪ | 6:34 | |
♪ His love shall never end. ♪ | 6:38 | |
♪ Alleluia! Amen! ♪ | 6:43 | |
(organ interlude) | 6:49 | |
♪ Praise yet the Lord again. ♪ | 7:05 | |
♪ Alleluia! Amen! ♪ | 7:09 | |
♪ Life shall not end the strain. ♪ | 7:14 | |
♪ Alleluia! Amen! ♪ | 7:19 | |
♪ On heaven's blissful shore ♪ | 7:24 | |
♪ His goodness we'll adore, ♪ | 7:28 | |
♪ Singing forevermore. ♪ | 7:34 | |
♪ Alleluia! Amen! ♪ | 7:39 | |
- | Let us pray. | 7:49 |
Oh gracious Lord, you have formed us in our mother's womb | 7:53 | |
to be Your children and to live worshipful lives. | 7:58 | |
Please accept our songs and prayers, | 8:03 | |
our preaching and our gifts | 8:06 | |
as genuine praise and worship for You whom we adore. | 8:10 | |
Transform us into worshipful people by what we do this hour. | 8:16 | |
In the name of the blessed Trinity, amen. | 8:22 | |
You may be seated. | 8:26 | |
- | Let us pray together the prayer for illumination. | 8:34 |
All | Oh living God, bring us forth | 8:39 |
from death to life so that, | 8:41 | |
as the old scriptures are read and the word is proclaimed, | 8:45 | |
we may be brought to a sure and living faith | 8:48 | |
in your lordship, amen. | 8:52 | |
- | This reading is taken from the second chapter of Acts, | 8:56 |
starting with its 42nd verse. | 8:59 | |
"They devoted themselves | 9:03 | |
"to the Apostles' teaching and fellowship, | 9:05 | |
"to the breaking of bread and the prayers. | 9:07 | |
"Awe came upon everyone | 9:11 | |
"because many wonders and signs were done by the Apostles. | 9:13 | |
"All who believed were together | 9:18 | |
"and had all things in common. | 9:21 | |
"They would sell their possessions and goods | 9:24 | |
"and distribute the proceeds to all as any had need. | 9:26 | |
"Day by day, as they spent much time together in the temple, | 9:32 | |
"they broke bread at home and ate their food | 9:36 | |
"with glad and generous hearts, | 9:40 | |
"praising God and having the good will of the people. | 9:42 | |
"And day by day, the Lord added to their number | 9:46 | |
"those who were to be saved." | 9:50 | |
This is the word of the Lord. | 9:53 | |
Congregation | Thanks be to God. | 9:55 |
- | Would you please stand for the Psalter reading | 10:14 |
found on page 754 in the back of your hymn book. | 10:16 | |
"The Lord is my shepherd. | 10:26 | |
"I shall not want. | 10:27 | |
Congregation | "The Lord makes me lie down | 10:30 |
"in green pastures. | 10:31 | |
- | "Leads me beside still waters, restores my soul. | 10:33 |
Congregation | "He leads me in right paths | 10:38 |
"for the sake of the Lord's name. | 10:40 | |
- | "Even though I walk through the darkest valley, | 10:43 |
"I fear no evil. | 10:45 | |
Congregation | "For You are with me. | 10:48 |
"Your rod and your staff, they comfort me. | 10:50 | |
- | "You prepare a table before me | 10:53 |
"in the presence of my enemies. | 10:55 | |
Congregation | "You anoint my head with oil. | 10:58 |
"My cup overflows. | 11:00 | |
- | "Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me | 11:02 |
"all the days of my life. | 11:05 | |
Congregation | "And I shall dwell | 11:08 |
"in the house of the Lord for all time. | 11:09 | |
(organ plays) | 11:13 | |
(all sing) | 11:22 | |
- | This reading is from the first letter of Peter, | 12:15 |
Chapter 2, beginning with the 19th verse. | 12:18 | |
"For it is a credit to you if, | 12:23 | |
"being aware of God, | 12:25 | |
"you endure pain while suffering unjustly. | 12:27 | |
"If you endure when you are beaten for doing wrong, | 12:31 | |
"what credit is that? | 12:34 | |
"But if you endure when you do right and suffer for it, | 12:38 | |
"you have God's approval, | 12:42 | |
"for to this you have been called, | 12:44 | |
"because Christ also suffered for you, | 12:46 | |
"leaving you an example | 12:49 | |
"so that you should follow in his steps. | 12:51 | |
"He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth. | 12:54 | |
"When he was abused, he did not return abuse. | 13:00 | |
"When he suffered, he did not threaten. | 13:04 | |
"But he entrusted Himself to the one who judges justly. | 13:08 | |
"He himself bore our sins in his body on the cross, | 13:12 | |
"so that, free from sins, we might live for righteousness. | 13:17 | |
"By his wounds, you have been healed. | 13:22 | |
"For you were going astray like sheep, | 13:26 | |
"but now you have returned to the shepherd | 13:28 | |
"and guardian of your souls." | 13:31 | |
This is the word of the Lord. | 13:34 | |
[Congregation]- Thanks be to God. | 13:36 | |
(organ plays) | 13:46 | |
(choir sings) | 13:57 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 13:59 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 14:02 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 14:05 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 14:09 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 14:12 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 14:16 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 14:20 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 14:24 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 14:28 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 14:32 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 14:35 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 14:40 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 14:44 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 14:49 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 14:53 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 14:57 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 15:01 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 15:05 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 15:09 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 15:13 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 15:18 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 15:23 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 15:27 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 15:31 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 15:35 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 15:40 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 15:44 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 15:48 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 15:54 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 15:58 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 16:02 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 16:07 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 16:12 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 16:17 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 16:26 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 16:31 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 16:37 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 16:43 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 16:47 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 16:52 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 16:56 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 17:01 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 17:05 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 17:10 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 17:14 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 17:17 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 17:21 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 17:25 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 17:29 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 17:33 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 17:37 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 17:40 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 17:42 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 17:45 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 17:48 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 17:51 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 17:55 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 17:59 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 18:03 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 18:08 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 18:14 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 18:26 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 18:37 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 18:47 | |
♪ Alleluia. ♪ | 19:01 | |
- | This reading is taken | 19:31 |
from the Gospel according to Saint John, | 19:32 | |
the 10th chapter, starting with the 1st verse. | 19:35 | |
"'Very truly I tell you, | 19:40 | |
"'anyone who does not enter the sheep fold by the gate, | 19:42 | |
"'but climbs in by another way, | 19:46 | |
"'is a thief and a bandit. | 19:48 | |
"'The one who enters by the gate | 19:51 | |
"'is the shepherd of the sheep. | 19:52 | |
"'The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, | 19:55 | |
"'and the sheep hear his voice. | 19:57 | |
"'He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. | 20:00 | |
"'When he has brought out all of his own, | 20:05 | |
"'he goes ahead of them, | 20:07 | |
"'and the sheep follow him because they know his voice. | 20:08 | |
"'They will not follow a stranger, | 20:13 | |
"'but they will run from him, | 20:15 | |
"'because they do not know the voice of strangers.' | 20:17 | |
"Jesus used this figure of speech with them, | 20:21 | |
"but they did not understand what he was saying to them. | 20:23 | |
"So again, Jesus said to them, | 20:27 | |
"'Very truly I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep. | 20:30 | |
"'All who came before me are thieves and bandits. | 20:34 | |
"'But the sheep did not listen to them. | 20:38 | |
"'I am the gate. | 20:40 | |
"'Whoever enters by me will be saved | 20:42 | |
"'and will come in and go out | 20:44 | |
"'and will find pasture. | 20:47 | |
"'The Thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. | 20:50 | |
"'I came that they may have life, | 20:54 | |
"'and have it abundantly.'" | 20:56 | |
This is the word of the Lord. | 20:59 | |
Congregation | Thanks be to God. | 21:01 |
- | "After Jesus' death and resurrection, | 21:15 |
"he appeared to the disciples and spent 40 days with them, | 21:18 | |
"speaking about the kingdom of God, | 21:22 | |
"promising they would be baptized with the Holy Spirit. | 21:25 | |
"Shortly after Jesus ascended into Heaven, | 21:29 | |
"the Holy Spirit descended upon the believers, | 21:32 | |
"about 120 in all, | 21:35 | |
"touching each one with a tongue as of fire. | 21:38 | |
"They were endowed with power | 21:43 | |
"and the ability to speak unknown languages. | 21:44 | |
"Those who saw them, Jews from every land, | 21:48 | |
"heard them speaking about God's power and God's deeds, | 21:52 | |
"each in their own language, and they were amazed. | 21:55 | |
"Some wondered what it meant, | 22:00 | |
"while others thought they must be drunk. | 22:03 | |
"Peter, standing with the 11 apostles, | 22:07 | |
"witnessed to the crowd that had gathered | 22:10 | |
"about all they had experienced through Jesus. | 22:12 | |
"He told them that Jesus | 22:16 | |
"was the Messiah they had waited for, | 22:18 | |
"who, though being put to death, | 22:21 | |
"had risen again from the dead, | 22:22 | |
"that they had seen the resurrected Lord | 22:25 | |
"and received the gift of his power through the Holy Spirit. | 22:28 | |
"And after hearing him that day, | 22:32 | |
"about 3,000 people were saved, | 22:35 | |
repenting of their sins, | 22:40 | |
"and being baptized with water and the Spirit." | 22:42 | |
3,000 people saved. | 22:47 | |
The body of believers grew, in one afternoon, | 22:50 | |
from 120 to 3,120. | 22:54 | |
An amazing accomplishment. | 22:59 | |
Yet, in this age of televangelism, | 23:01 | |
perhaps we've lost our ability to be amazed. | 23:04 | |
After all, TV evangelists claim to save this many | 23:09 | |
and more on a regular basis. | 23:12 | |
Billy Graham revivals have been known to pack in | 23:15 | |
over 100,000 people, | 23:18 | |
so what is 3,000 compared to that? | 23:20 | |
Besides, what does it mean to be saved? | 23:24 | |
We've all known people who've | 23:26 | |
had a mountaintop religious experience | 23:28 | |
but soon lost their enthusiasm for religion. | 23:31 | |
Contemporary religious life is plagued | 23:35 | |
by momentary enthusiasm and superficiality. | 23:38 | |
In fact, in contemporary parlance, | 23:43 | |
enthusiastic, which literally means, "filled with God," | 23:46 | |
is a virtual synonym for a short-term high | 23:50 | |
that doesn't translate into long-term commitment. | 23:55 | |
We've grown suspicious of people | 23:59 | |
who get drunk every Friday and get saved every Sunday. | 24:01 | |
We've grown jaded about religious experience. | 24:06 | |
So when Luke says 3,000 people were saved, | 24:09 | |
we aren't as impressed as earlier readers might have been. | 24:13 | |
But lest we dwell on the mountaintop experience too long, | 24:17 | |
Luke quickly moves us back to everyday life, | 24:22 | |
to the, "So what? | 24:25 | |
"What difference does it make that they were saved?" | 24:28 | |
This is where our scripture text from Acts begins today. | 24:33 | |
Listen to Luke's answer | 24:38 | |
to that ever-important question, "So what?" | 24:40 | |
"They devoted themselves | 24:45 | |
"to the apostles' teaching and fellowship, | 24:46 | |
"to the breaking of bread and the prayers." | 24:50 | |
In one brief sentence, | 24:54 | |
Luke lays out the basic outline | 24:56 | |
of the practices of the early Christian church. | 24:59 | |
"They devoted themselves | 25:03 | |
"to the apostles' teaching and fellowship, | 25:04 | |
"to the breaking of bread and the prayers." | 25:07 | |
Luke doesn't dwell upon the mystical experiences | 25:12 | |
of these first believers, | 25:15 | |
but immediately shifts to a description | 25:17 | |
of the embodiment of the Pentecostal spirit | 25:19 | |
in the community of believers. | 25:23 | |
What difference did it make in how they lived? | 25:25 | |
First of all, | 25:30 | |
Luke tells us that they devoted themselves | 25:31 | |
to the apostles' teaching. | 25:33 | |
They immediately set about the task of learning | 25:35 | |
what it means to be a believer in Jesus as the Christ. | 25:38 | |
We may be certain that they heard | 25:43 | |
many details about Jesus' life and teachings, | 25:45 | |
his death and resurrection, | 25:49 | |
his reappearances to the apostles, | 25:51 | |
and his instruction to those who were eyewitnesses. | 25:54 | |
We may be certain that they studied the Hebrew scriptures | 25:58 | |
to understand them anew in the light | 26:02 | |
of the coming of the Messiah. | 26:04 | |
They learned from the apostles what it meant | 26:07 | |
to be a believer in Jesus Christ, | 26:09 | |
what it meant to live as a Christian in the world. | 26:12 | |
You and I don't have the benefit of oral, direct, | 26:17 | |
firsthand conversation | 26:20 | |
with those who were witnesses to Christ, | 26:22 | |
but we have the next best thing. | 26:25 | |
We are inheritors of the written record | 26:28 | |
of the life and teachings of Jesus, the apostles, | 26:31 | |
and the prophets before them. | 26:35 | |
One of the most important practices for us, as the Church, | 26:37 | |
and especially for those new in the faith, | 26:42 | |
is to devote ourselves | 26:44 | |
to the study of the apostles' teaching, | 26:46 | |
and the living word of God contained | 26:49 | |
in the Old and New Testaments. | 26:51 | |
When we study the word, | 26:54 | |
we open ourselves to God's living presence among us. | 26:55 | |
Recently, a friend of mine had a baby | 27:01 | |
about three and a half months early. | 27:04 | |
She told me one night | 27:08 | |
that she was at the end of her strength, | 27:09 | |
totally consumed by anxiety and fear. | 27:12 | |
She prayed for courage and strength, | 27:17 | |
and for some sign from God that would give her peace | 27:19 | |
and help her accept whatever was to come. | 27:24 | |
She told me she felt compelled to open her Bible. | 27:28 | |
She said, | 27:31 | |
"You know, I really don't believe | 27:32 | |
"in that kind of mystical thing, | 27:34 | |
"but when I opened my Bible, | 27:36 | |
"the first thing I saw was | 27:38 | |
"that verse from Philippians that said, | 27:40 | |
"'I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me,' | 27:43 | |
"And I knew it was gonna be okay, | 27:50 | |
"that I could handle whatever would happen." | 27:52 | |
Whenever we devote ourselves to learn from the scriptures, | 27:57 | |
we open ourselves to receive whatever it is | 28:02 | |
that God would give us, | 28:05 | |
whether a word of comfort, a call to repentance, | 28:07 | |
the assurance of forgiveness, | 28:12 | |
a challenge to greater faithfulness, | 28:15 | |
a nudge toward a decision. | 28:18 | |
God meets us in the scriptures at the point of our need, | 28:22 | |
comforting us, moving us, | 28:27 | |
shaping us as beloved children, | 28:30 | |
as disciples of Christ. | 28:33 | |
It is important for us to study the scriptures on our own, | 28:36 | |
that God might speak to each one of us, | 28:39 | |
but it is also important that we devote ourselves | 28:42 | |
to the scriptures together, | 28:45 | |
as a community of faith, | 28:47 | |
for it is the collective memories and traditions | 28:49 | |
that come to us through scripture | 28:52 | |
which constitute and shape us as a community of faith. | 28:55 | |
Through scripture we're held accountable | 29:00 | |
to a particular belief and a particular behavior, | 29:02 | |
and without it we are at risk of losing | 29:06 | |
our identity as the body of Christ in the world. | 29:09 | |
Like the early believers, | 29:14 | |
we study scripture to learn what it means to be the Church, | 29:16 | |
and thus we are united through scripture | 29:21 | |
with those first Christians who devoted themselves | 29:23 | |
to the apostles' teaching. | 29:27 | |
Another manifestation of the Pentecost spirit | 29:30 | |
in that early Church was the fellowship they shared. | 29:33 | |
Luke goes on, in our text, to describe that, | 29:37 | |
"All who believed were together | 29:40 | |
"and had all things in common. | 29:43 | |
"They would sell their possessions and goods | 29:46 | |
"and distribute the proceeds to all who had need." | 29:48 | |
The fellowship Luke described | 29:53 | |
involved a complete transformation | 29:54 | |
of their social and material arrangements. | 29:56 | |
If you'll remember, early in the story, | 30:00 | |
Luke told us that the crowd gathered | 30:03 | |
at the Pentecost gathering, | 30:05 | |
when the 3,000 were saved, | 30:06 | |
contained people from every nation on Earth. | 30:09 | |
To unify so diverse an assembly of people | 30:13 | |
with a common faith | 30:17 | |
and a common commitment was truly amazing. | 30:18 | |
The recent "60 Minutes" report on race relations at Duke, | 30:24 | |
though one-sided, admittedly, | 30:28 | |
did highlight the problems we've had | 30:30 | |
in achieving multi-cultural understanding | 30:32 | |
even in our enlightened age. | 30:35 | |
We know how difficult it can be to find common ground | 30:38 | |
among diverse people. | 30:43 | |
But the early Christian community didn't settle | 30:45 | |
for a few areas of common ground. | 30:47 | |
They had all things in common, | 30:51 | |
giving to any as they had need. | 30:53 | |
This radical understanding of social and material fellowship | 30:57 | |
is particularly challenging for us, | 31:01 | |
since we live in a world that values individualism | 31:04 | |
and material accumulation above all else. | 31:08 | |
We cling to our separateness and our possessions so tightly | 31:12 | |
for fear that if we let them go, | 31:16 | |
we will be in some way diminished. | 31:18 | |
But something dramatic happened to these early believers, | 31:23 | |
something that lead them | 31:26 | |
beyond the conventional relationships based on the | 31:28 | |
"I'll scratch your back if you scratch mine" philosophy, | 31:31 | |
to a radical fellowship of sacrificial giving. | 31:35 | |
Because they experienced the awesome gift | 31:39 | |
of Christ self-giving, | 31:42 | |
they were empowered to be self-giving to one another. | 31:44 | |
We too are called to be a fellowship | 31:49 | |
of radical self-giving people. | 31:53 | |
Too often we participate in worship as strangers, | 31:56 | |
having no concern for one another, | 32:00 | |
rather than as brothers and sisters unified in Christ. | 32:03 | |
Providing opportunities for radical fellowship | 32:08 | |
is a particular challenge for us at Duke Chapel | 32:11 | |
because this is such a transient community. | 32:14 | |
Worship in Duke Chapel is truly a blessed experience, | 32:18 | |
but it's not a substitute for intimate Christian fellowship. | 32:22 | |
That's the reason we encourage those of you | 32:27 | |
who consider the chapel your primary place of worship | 32:30 | |
to affiliate with the congregation here, | 32:34 | |
to join the choir, the mission committee, | 32:36 | |
the altar guild, the young adult fellowship, | 32:38 | |
a Bible study, to usher. | 32:41 | |
It's the reason that we encourage the young adults, | 32:44 | |
the students who come to chapel to worship here, | 32:47 | |
to also be a part of religious life groups. | 32:50 | |
All of us need to be members of a close, | 32:54 | |
intimate Christian fellowship | 32:57 | |
where we are cared for and challenged to grow | 33:00 | |
as people of faith, | 33:03 | |
where we can share in one another's pain and joy, | 33:05 | |
need and resources. | 33:09 | |
With our culture's emphasis on individualism, | 33:12 | |
we're at great risk of privatizing faith, | 33:15 | |
but the Holy Spirit was not given to individuals alone. | 33:19 | |
It was poured out on the gathered community of believers | 33:23 | |
who were then led into an even closer, more intimate, | 33:27 | |
radical fellowship as the early Christian Church. | 33:31 | |
Whenever we are given a spiritual gift, | 33:36 | |
it is always to call us into greater service to one another. | 33:39 | |
And I would argue that we cannot be the Church alone, | 33:45 | |
and that we cannot be Christians alone, | 33:49 | |
for to be Christian is to be called into sacrificial living, | 33:52 | |
and that allows must be embodied in community. | 33:56 | |
So like the early Church, | 34:02 | |
we are called to share in radical Christian fellowship. | 34:04 | |
One of the ways they strengthened their fellowship | 34:10 | |
was in the breaking of bread. | 34:12 | |
Now, Luke doesn't tell us whether they understood this | 34:15 | |
as a sacramental act or not, | 34:17 | |
but he does say they broke bread at home | 34:20 | |
and they ate their food with glad and generous hearts. | 34:22 | |
Something happens when you break bread with another person, | 34:26 | |
even a stranger. | 34:30 | |
Barriers are lowered and defenses are dropped. | 34:32 | |
You leave with a greater sense | 34:35 | |
of familiarity and acceptance. | 34:36 | |
Think about the people you choose to break bread with. | 34:40 | |
Who do you invite into your home to share a meal with you? | 34:44 | |
Usually the people we dine with are | 34:49 | |
those we feel most comfortable with, | 34:51 | |
those with whom we can be ourselves. | 34:54 | |
In breaking bread together, | 34:57 | |
the first believers became brothers and sisters in Christ. | 34:58 | |
Racial, social, economic, | 35:04 | |
and gender barriers were overcome, | 35:06 | |
and a sense of equality and mutual love were established. | 35:08 | |
At a soup kitchen in Washington, D.C., | 35:14 | |
some Duke students shared a meal | 35:17 | |
with several homeless men and woman over Spring break. | 35:19 | |
After the meal, they commented, | 35:23 | |
"You know, they're not that different from us." | 35:25 | |
And in Honduras, | 35:30 | |
students shared many meals with the villagers | 35:32 | |
while they served there over their Spring break, | 35:34 | |
and they were amazed at how festive | 35:38 | |
and joyous a meal of beans and tortillas could be. | 35:39 | |
Those communities taught them something | 35:44 | |
about what it means to be in fellowship. | 35:46 | |
Christ calls us to break bread with one another, | 35:50 | |
remembering that as he was broken for us, | 35:54 | |
so he also calls us to be broken for one another. | 35:58 | |
He calls us to a shared table fellowship, | 36:02 | |
where all feast with glad hearts | 36:05 | |
at the banquet of God's love. | 36:08 | |
The last characteristic that Luke said was embodied | 36:13 | |
in the early Christian community | 36:16 | |
was a devotion to prayer. | 36:18 | |
He goes on to say | 36:20 | |
that they spent much time together in the temple, | 36:21 | |
and we can assume that even with the newness | 36:24 | |
of the Christian experience, | 36:27 | |
they continued to honor the Jewish traditions, | 36:29 | |
they continued to be devout Jewish people. | 36:31 | |
But we can also assume that they prayed together | 36:36 | |
as a community of believers in Christ, | 36:38 | |
and that their fellowship was strengthened | 36:41 | |
through the experience of prayer. | 36:44 | |
Like scripture, fellowship, and breaking bread, | 36:46 | |
prayer is essential to an embodied Christian faith. | 36:50 | |
In prayer, the community of faith is linked | 36:54 | |
through the Holy Spirit with Christ and with one another. | 36:57 | |
It is a mystical reality | 37:01 | |
that whenever two or three are gathered in Christ's name, | 37:04 | |
Christ is also there in the midst of them. | 37:07 | |
All of us should pray alone | 37:13 | |
to strengthen our relationship with Christ, | 37:14 | |
but there is special power, special strength, | 37:17 | |
whenever we join our hearts, our wills, | 37:21 | |
and our voices in prayer with other common believers. | 37:24 | |
First of all, through prayer God works within us, | 37:29 | |
to change us, to move us to greater service and love, | 37:33 | |
to unify us. | 37:37 | |
Through prayer, we also unite our wills and our hopes | 37:39 | |
as we petition to God for a common purpose, | 37:44 | |
for peace in the community, | 37:47 | |
for the healing of one of our members. | 37:49 | |
And through prayer, | 37:53 | |
our hearts become one with Christ's heart, | 37:54 | |
as we share one another's burdens and joys. | 37:58 | |
I have two very dear friends | 38:03 | |
who had different outcomes from prayer. | 38:05 | |
Anne's sister was told by her doctors | 38:09 | |
that she had incurable cancer, | 38:12 | |
but Anne's church prayed for her sister's recovery, | 38:15 | |
and she's now in her fifth year of being cancer-free. | 38:18 | |
Coincidence or miracle? | 38:22 | |
I believe it was an answer to prayer. | 38:25 | |
My other friend, Mary, also had cancer. | 38:29 | |
Her cancer would have been curable | 38:33 | |
had it been caught and properly diagnosed | 38:34 | |
when it showed up three years previously on her mammogram. | 38:37 | |
But because it was not caught and not diagnosed, | 38:41 | |
the cancer had spread. | 38:45 | |
Mary's church also prayed for her recovery, | 38:47 | |
but Mary died a few months ago. | 38:51 | |
But instead of dying with anger and bitterness, | 38:54 | |
as was her right, | 38:57 | |
she died with great peace, even joy. | 38:59 | |
Was that unrealistic or grace? | 39:04 | |
I believe it was an answer to prayer. | 39:09 | |
We don't know why some prayers are answered as we want | 39:14 | |
and others are not, | 39:17 | |
but we do know that prayer changes things, mainly us. | 39:19 | |
The community of faith is sustained through prayer, | 39:25 | |
and it is one of the Spirit's abiding gifts to us. | 39:29 | |
It is a gift we should partake of often. | 39:33 | |
3,000 people were saved. | 39:38 | |
So what difference did it make? | 39:42 | |
They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching, | 39:45 | |
the fellowship, the breaking of bread, and the prayers, | 39:48 | |
with glad and generous hearts, praising God, | 39:54 | |
and every day, others were added to their numbers. | 39:58 | |
They embodied the Pentecost spirit, | 40:03 | |
and they became the Church, | 40:07 | |
the visible body of Christ in the world. | 40:09 | |
Occasionally we too are privileged to share | 40:14 | |
one of those mountaintop religious experiences | 40:17 | |
when we know without a doubt that we've been touched | 40:20 | |
by the Spirit of God, | 40:23 | |
but whether or not we've had a Pentecost experience, | 40:26 | |
Luke reminds us that the embodied Spirit calls us | 40:30 | |
into the community of faith, | 40:34 | |
where our life as Christian brothers | 40:36 | |
and sisters is nurtured and sustained. | 40:38 | |
Like the early Church, | 40:43 | |
let us devote ourselves | 40:45 | |
to the apostles' teaching and scripture, | 40:46 | |
to fellowship, to the breaking of bread, and to the prayers, | 40:50 | |
for these are the things that are necessary for us, | 40:56 | |
as they were for them, to become the faithful, | 40:59 | |
embodied Church of Christ in the world. | 41:03 | |
Let us devote ourselves to all these things | 41:07 | |
with glad and generous hearts, | 41:10 | |
praising God, knowing God is with us. | 41:12 | |
Thanks be to God. | 41:18 | |
(organ plays) | 41:24 | |
(all sing "I'll Praise My Maker While I've Breath) | 42:04 | |
♪ I'll praise my Maker while I've breath; ♪ | 42:07 | |
♪ And when my voice is lost in death, ♪ | 42:14 | |
♪ Praise shall employ my nobler powers. ♪ | 42:20 | |
♪ My days of praise shall ne'er be past, ♪ | 42:29 | |
♪ While life, and thought, and being last, ♪ | 42:36 | |
♪ Or immortality endures. ♪ | 42:43 | |
♪ Happy are they whose hopes rely ♪ | 42:54 | |
♪ On Israel's God, who made the sky ♪ | 43:00 | |
♪ And earth and seas, with all their train; ♪ | 43:07 | |
♪ Whose truth for ever stands secure, ♪ | 43:16 | |
♪ Who saves th'oppressed and feeds the poor, ♪ | 43:22 | |
♪ For none shall find God's promise vain. ♪ | 43:29 | |
♪ The Lord pours eyesight on the blind; ♪ | 43:39 | |
♪ The Lord supports the fainting mind ♪ | 43:46 | |
♪ And sends the laboring conscience peace. ♪ | 43:53 | |
♪ God helps the stranger in distress, ♪ | 44:01 | |
♪ The widow and the fatherless, ♪ | 44:08 | |
♪ And grants the prisoner sweet release. ♪ | 44:15 | |
♪ I'll praise my God who lends me breath; ♪ | 44:26 | |
♪ And when my voice is lost in death, ♪ | 44:32 | |
♪ Praise shall employ my nobler powers. ♪ | 44:40 | |
♪ My days of praise shall ne'er be past, ♪ | 44:48 | |
♪ While life, and thought, and being last, ♪ | 44:55 | |
♪ Or immortality endures. ♪ | 45:02 | |
Minister | The Lord be with you. | 45:22 |
Congregation | And also with you. | 45:23 |
- | Let us pray. | 45:25 |
Oh, gracious God, | 45:36 | |
we have not loved you | 45:38 | |
with our whole heart, soul, mind or strength. | 45:40 | |
We have not loved our neighbors or our enemies. | 45:45 | |
We have not loved our friends or family with your love. | 45:50 | |
We have not loved ourselves. | 45:55 | |
Forgive us and transform us. | 45:59 | |
Breathe on us your peace and heal us from our sin. | 46:03 | |
Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer. | 46:10 | |
Jesus, we come here to seek your face, | 46:16 | |
to hear your voice speak good news to us, | 46:20 | |
to come near enough to you that we can touch your side, | 46:25 | |
to feel the wounds of your hands and feet. | 46:29 | |
We have come here to feast on you, | 46:35 | |
to experience your sustaining grace | 46:38 | |
as we eat the bread and drink the wine which are you. | 46:40 | |
We have come to wash your feet with precious oil | 46:46 | |
and dry them with our hair, | 46:50 | |
to carry your cross, to find a home for you, | 46:53 | |
to offer you our bread to eat, | 46:58 | |
to welcome you at our table. | 47:01 | |
We have come here to this sanctuary | 47:06 | |
to be friends with you again. | 47:08 | |
Oh, Lord, befriend us. | 47:11 | |
Lord, in your mercy-- | 47:14 | |
- | [Minister And Congregation] Hear our prayer. | 47:16 |
- | We pray for all our government leaders, | 47:21 |
for the Clintons and Gores, | 47:24 | |
for all those in Washington and in our state House. | 47:27 | |
Keep them true to their professed faith, | 47:32 | |
that they would lead us in ways | 47:35 | |
of compassion and self-sacrifice, | 47:37 | |
lead us in the ways of your peace. | 47:41 | |
Draw all those in power to the poor, | 47:46 | |
to the widows and orphans, to those in prison, | 47:50 | |
to those who, this very hour, | 47:55 | |
are searching for food and shelter. | 47:57 | |
Teach each one in power of their own poverty, | 48:01 | |
sin, and need for you. | 48:06 | |
Give each one in authority over us the desire | 48:11 | |
to be humble disciples of Christ. | 48:14 | |
Lord, in your mercy-- | 48:18 | |
- | [Minister And Congregation] Hear our prayer. | 48:20 |
- | We pray for all those seniors | 48:25 |
and graduate students leaving Duke this month. | 48:27 | |
Remind them of their high calling to live as saints | 48:31 | |
and those who imitate Christ. | 48:35 | |
Draw them to places of greatest need, | 48:39 | |
where they can discover you on the faces of the poor, | 48:42 | |
where they can help build your kingdom | 48:47 | |
with hope and healing, light, truth, beauty, | 48:49 | |
and the gospel of your love. | 48:55 | |
Draw them into places of genuine fellowship and worship. | 48:59 | |
Draw them into deep intimacy with you | 49:04 | |
and the saints who have gone before us. | 49:07 | |
Enable them to sell their possessions | 49:12 | |
and give to anyone who has need. | 49:15 | |
Oh, Holy Spirit, | 49:20 | |
you have gifted each one of us | 49:21 | |
for the building of your Church. | 49:23 | |
Give us vocations which spring from our spiritual gifts. | 49:25 | |
We pray for all the parents of seniors, | 49:32 | |
that they could set their children free to follow you, | 49:34 | |
trusting you and the Church with their sons and daughters. | 49:39 | |
I pray for all those who teach here at Duke and everywhere, | 49:45 | |
that you would keep them true to their baptism, | 49:49 | |
joining their students in this precious pilgrimage of faith, | 49:52 | |
and modeling for their students lives of humbles service, | 49:58 | |
genuine fellowship and love, | 50:02 | |
radical devotion to your ways. | 50:05 | |
Keep their teaching in service to the church. | 50:09 | |
Lord, in your mercy-- | 50:13 | |
- | [Minister And Congregation] Hear our prayer. | 50:15 |
Minister | Draw us all to Bosnia and Somalia, | 50:20 |
to the West Bank and North Ireland, | 50:25 | |
to Lumberton and Honduras, Miami and Washington, | 50:29 | |
to the neighborhoods of Durham | 50:34 | |
where there is the greatest violence and hunger, | 50:35 | |
to the apartments filled with abuse or illness, | 50:40 | |
so we might be your resurrected body in the world, | 50:44 | |
and those who suffer might draw us to your cross. | 50:48 | |
Lord, in your mercy-- | 50:54 | |
- | [Minister And Congregation] Hear our prayer. | 50:56 |
- | We always pray in hope and faith, | 51:01 |
and we pray this prayer in the name of the blessed Trinity, | 51:06 | |
World without end, amen. | 51:11 | |
God has enabled us to live this abundant life | 51:18 | |
as thankful people. | 51:22 | |
From our abundance and from our poverty, | 51:24 | |
let us offer the Lord our gifts. | 51:28 | |
(organ plays and choir sings) | 51:54 | |
(organ plays) | 54:44 | |
(all sing) | 55:33 | |
- | Oh Lord, we give you thanks | 56:33 |
for the privilege of loving you and serving you. | 56:34 | |
Guide us in the use of these gifts, | 56:38 | |
that we might build your kingdom with faith and compassion. | 56:41 | |
For everything in our lives which is true and good | 56:47 | |
and which reminds us of you, | 56:51 | |
we give you thanks. | 56:52 | |
Make of us thankful people, | 56:55 | |
with the prayer your Son taught us always on our lips, | 56:57 | |
as we say-- | 57:02 | |
- | [Minister And Congregation] Our father who art in Heaven, | 57:04 |
hallowed be thy name. | 57:07 | |
They kingdom come, | 57:09 | |
thy will be done on Earth as it is in Heaven. | 57:11 | |
Give us this day our daily bread, | 57:15 | |
and forgive us our trespasses, | 57:18 | |
as we forgive those who trespass against us. | 57:21 | |
And lead us not into temptation, | 57:25 | |
but deliver us from evil, | 57:27 | |
for thine is the kingdom and the power | 57:30 | |
and the glory forever, amen. | 57:33 | |
Minister | Please remain standing | 57:38 |
and let us sing together our closing hymn, | 57:39 | |
"Christ Is Made The Sure Foundation." | 57:41 | |
(organ plays) | 57:46 | |
(all sing "Christ Is Made The Sure Foundation) | 58:28 | |
♪ Christ is made the sure foundation, ♪ | 58:30 | |
♪ Christ the head and cornerstone, ♪ | 58:37 | |
♪ Chosen of the Lord and precious, ♪ | 58:45 | |
♪ Binding all the church in one. ♪ | 58:51 | |
♪ Holy Zion's help forever, ♪ | 58:59 | |
♪ And her confidence alone. ♪ | 59:06 | |
♪ To this temple, where we call thee, ♪ | 59:15 | |
♪ Come, O Lord of Hosts, today. ♪ | 59:23 | |
♪ With thy faithful loving-kindness ♪ | 59:30 | |
♪ Hear thy people as they pray, ♪ | 59:37 | |
♪ And thy fullest benediction ♪ | 59:44 | |
♪ Shed within its walls alway. ♪ | 59:51 | |
♪ Here vouchsafe to all thy servants ♪ | 1:00:00 | |
♪ What they ask of thee to gain, ♪ | 1:00:08 | |
♪ What they gain from thee forever ♪ | 1:00:15 | |
♪ With the blessed to retain, ♪ | 1:00:22 | |
♪ And hereafter in thy glory ♪ | 1:00:29 | |
♪ Evermore with thee to reign. ♪ | 1:00:37 | |
♪ Laud and honor to the Father, ♪ | 1:00:46 | |
♪ Laud and honor to the Son, ♪ | 1:00:53 | |
♪ Laud and honor to the Spirit, ♪ | 1:01:01 | |
♪ Ever three and ever one; ♪ | 1:01:08 | |
♪ One in might ♪ | 1:01:16 |