William R. Bouknight - "The Level Ground Beneath the Cross" (June 11, 1995)

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-	Good morning and welcome to Duke Chapel	0:21
	on this Trinity Sunday.	0:24
	This morning, I would like to extend a hearty welcome	0:28
	to the Duke Chapel pulpit,	0:33
	Reverend Doctor William R. Bouknight.	0:36
	Dr. Bouknight is a senior minister at	0:41
	Christ United Methodist Church	0:44
	in Memphis, Tennessee.	0:47
	We also extend special welcome to our guest choir,	0:51
	Harmony Atlanta International Youth Chorus	0:55
	at Emory University,	0:59
	under the directorship of Miss Elizabeth Kimble.	1:02
	I, on behalf of black campus ministry	1:08
	and the Guyana mission team,	1:11
	would like to extend special thanks	1:13
	for your prayers and support	1:16
	for the Guyana team who was in Guyana	1:18
	for two weeks on mission outreach.	1:21
	We were able to reach out	1:24
	and to participate as members of	1:27
	the church universal, and God blessed,	1:30
	and for this we give special thanks.	1:32
	Please note that beginning today	1:36
	at five o'clock and following every Sunday,	1:40
	the Duke Chapel service will be aired on Cable 8	1:44
	at 5:00 p.m. in the afternoon,	1:49
	with a week delay in the broadcast.	1:51
	Let us stand.	2:02
	Christ is risen.	2:12
	Amen.	2:13
Congregation	The Lord is risen indeed.	2:15
-	Glory and honor, dominion and power	2:17
	be to God for ever and ever.	2:22
-	Christ is risen.	2:25
	Amen.	2:27
Rev. Kirton	Let's sing together	2:28
	to the glory of God, hymn 64.	2:29
	(organ music)	2:35
-	♪ Holy, holy, holy ♪	3:13
	♪ Lord God almighty ♪	3:18
	♪ Early in the morning ♪	3:23
	♪ Our song shall rise to Thee. ♪	3:27
	♪ Holy, holy, holy ♪	3:33
	♪ Merciful and mighty ♪	3:38
	♪ God in three persons ♪	3:43
	♪ Blessed Trinity ♪	3:48
	♪ Holy, holy, holy ♪	3:54
	♪ All the saints adore Thee ♪	4:00
	♪ Casting down their golden crowns ♪	4:05
	♪ Around the glassy sea ♪	4:09
	♪ Cherubim and seraphim ♪	4:15
	♪ Falling down before Him ♪	4:19
	♪ Who wert and art and ♪	4:24
	♪ Evermore shall be. ♪	4:29
	♪ Holy, holy, holy ♪	4:36
	♪ Though the darkness hide Thee ♪	4:42
	♪ Though the eye of sinful man ♪	4:47
	♪ Thy glory may not see ♪	4:51
	♪ Only Thou art holy ♪	4:58
	♪ There is none beside Thee ♪	5:03
	♪ Perfect in power, ♪	5:08
	♪ in love, and purity. ♪	5:12
	♪ Holy, holy, holy ♪	5:36
	♪ Lord God almighty ♪	5:41
	♪ All Thy works shall praise Thy name ♪	5:47
	♪ In earth and sky and sea ♪	5:51
	♪ Holy, holy, holy ♪	5:58
	♪ Merciful and mighty ♪	6:03
	♪ God in three persons, ♪	6:09
	♪ Blessed Trinity. ♪	6:15
-	Let us pray.	6:31
	Almighty and everlasting God,	6:36
	You have given to Your servants grace,	6:40
	by the confession of a true faith,	6:43
	to acknowledge the glory of the eternal Trinity,	6:46
	and in the power of Your divine majesty,	6:51
	to worship the unity.	6:55
	Keep us steadfast in this faith and worship,	6:58
	and bring us at last to see You	7:03
	in Your one and eternal glory.	7:06
	Oh Father who with the Son and Holy Spirit reigns,	7:09
	one God forever.	7:13
	Amen.	7:16
-	Let us pray together the prayer for illumination.	7:37
	Open our hearts and minds, oh God,	7:42
	by the power of Your Holy Spirit.	7:46
	So that, as the Word is read and proclaimed,	7:49
	we may hear your message with joy this day.	7:54
	Amen.	7:58
	The first lesson is from Proverbs 8,	8:01
	chapter 8, verses 1 through 4,	8:04
	and 22 through 31.	8:08
	"Does not wisdom call,	8:13
	and does not understanding raise her voice?	8:16
	On the heights, beside the way,	8:20
	at the crossroads she takes her stand.	8:23
	Beside the gates in front of the town,	8:28
	at the entrance of the portals,	8:31
	she cries out,	8:33
	"To you, O people, I call,	8:35
	and my cry is to all that live.	8:39
	The Lord created me at the beginning of His work.	8:43
	The first of His acts of long ago,	8:47
	ages ago, I was set up at the first,	8:51
	before the beginning of the Earth.	8:55
	When there were no depths,	8:59
	I was brought forth.	9:00
	When there were no springs abounding with water,	9:03
	before the mountains had been shaped,	9:07
	before the hills,	9:10
	I was brought forth.	9:12
	When He had not yet made earth and fields,	9:15
	or the world's first bits of soil.	9:19
	When He established the Heavens,	9:23
	I was there.	9:25
	When He drew a circle on the face of the deep,	9:27
	when He made firm the skies above,	9:30
	when He established the fountains of the deep,	9:34
	when He assigned to the sea its limits,	9:37
	so that the waters might not transgress His command.	9:40
	When He marked out the foundations of the Earth,	9:45
	then I was beside Him,	9:48
	like a master worker.	9:50
	And I was daily His delight,	9:53
	rejoicing before Him always,	9:56
	rejoicing in His inhabited world,	9:59
	and delighting in the human race."	10:02
	This is the Word of the Lord.	10:06
	Thanks be to God.	10:09
-	Our Psalter for this morning comes from Psalm 8,	10:23
	page 743 and 44.	10:27
	And we'll read it responsively.	10:31
	O Lord, our Lord,	10:43
Congregation	How majestic is your name	10:46
	in all the Earth.	10:48
-	Your glory is chanted above the Heavens	10:50
	by the mouths of babes and infants.	10:53
	(congregation responding)	10:56
	When I look at Your Heavens,	11:03
	the Works of your finger,	11:05
	(congregation responding)	11:08
	What are human beings,	11:12
	that You are mindful of them?	11:14
	(congregation responding)	11:17
	Yet You have made them a little less than God.	11:19
	(congregation responding)	11:24
	You have given them dominion over	11:28
	the Works of Your hands.	11:30
	(congregation responding)	11:32
	All sheep and oxen.	11:35
	(congregation responding)	11:37
	The birds of the air and the fish of the sea.	11:40
	(congregation responding)	11:43
	O Lord, our Lord.	11:47
-	How majestic is Your name in all the earth.	11:49
	(organ music)	11:54
	(congregation singing)	12:35
	(Children's choir singing in foreign language)	13:17
Ms. Close	The gospel lesson	16:10
	is from the book of John,	16:11
	chapter 16, verses 12 through 15.	16:13
	"I still have many things to say to you,	16:19
	but you cannot bear them now.	16:23
	When the spirit of truth comes,	16:26
	he will guide you into all the truth,	16:28
	for he will not speak on his own,	16:31
	but will speak whatever he hears,	16:34
	and he will declare to you the things that are to come.	16:37
	He will glorify me,	16:41
	because he will take what is mine,	16:43
	and declare it to you.	16:46
	All that the Father has is mine.	16:49
	For this reason I said	16:53
	that he will take what is mine	16:55
	and declare it to you."	16:57
	This is the Word of the Lord.	17:00
	Thanks be to God.	17:02
	The epistle lesson is from the book of Romans,	17:06
	chapter 3, verses 9 through 18,	17:10
	and 21 through 25.	17:15
	"What then?	17:19
	Are we any better off?	17:21
	No, not at all,	17:23
	for we have already charged that all,	17:26
	both Jews and Greeks,	17:29
	are under the power of sin,	17:32
	as it is written:	17:34
	There is no one who is righteous,	17:36
	not even one.	17:38
	There is no one who has understanding.	17:41
	There is no one who seeks God.	17:44
	All have turned aside.	17:48
	Together, they have become worthless.	17:51
	There is no one who shows kindness,	17:54
	there is not even one.	17:58
	Their throats are opened graves.	18:01
	They use their tongues to deceive.	18:04
	The venom of vipers is under their lips.	18:07
	Their mouths are full of cursing and bitterness.	18:11
	Their feet are swift to shed blood.	18:15
	Ruin and misery are in their paths,	18:18
	and the way of peace, they have not known.	18:22
	There is no fear of God before their eyes.	18:26
	But now, apart from law,	18:31
	the righteousness of God	18:35
	has been disclosed,	18:37
	and is attested by the law and the prophets.	18:39
	The righteousness of God	18:42
	through faith in Jesus Christ,	18:44
	for all who believe.	18:47
	For there is no distinction,	18:50
	since all have sinned	18:52
	and fall short of the glory of God.	18:54
	They are now justified by His grace as a gift,	18:58
	through the redemption that is in Jesus Christ,	19:03
	whom God put forward as a sacrifice of atonement	19:06
	by His blood, effective through faith.	19:10
	He did this to show his righteousness,	19:14
	because in his divine forbearance,	19:18
	he had passed over the sins previously committed."	19:20
	This is the Word of the Lord.	19:25
	Thanks be to God.	19:28
-	Please allow me a word of personal privilege.	19:38
	What a great honor it is to be able to declare	19:42
	the gospel here in this holy place.	19:45
	As an undergraduate in the 1960s,	19:48
	my spiritual development was anchored here,	19:52
	in worship in the chapel.	19:56
	The beautiful choral music,	19:59
	combined with the architecture of this place,	20:01
	taught me volumes about the grandeur of God.	20:05
	Even when one had been out late on a Saturday night,	20:10
	it was impossible to sleep through a sermon	20:15
	by that incomparable Scotsman, James T. Cleland.	20:18
	Here, in the fall of 1961,	20:24
	I brought to this place a freshly received	20:29
	call to ordain ministry,	20:33
	and here, God confirmed that call.	20:36
	And then on one dismal Friday afternoon,	20:40
	as I was working on a paper	20:45
	somewhere in the depths of the Duke library,	20:47
	I came up for air and a Coke.	20:51
	The librarian, a grown man, was weeping,	20:55
	and I asked what was wrong.	20:58
	And he told me that the president	21:01
	of the United States had been assassinated.	21:03
	Hundreds of us, dazed by grief and disbelief,	21:07
	began wandering toward this place.	21:13
	There was no other place to go.	21:16
	And so we spent that afternoon here,	21:19
	weeping, worshiping,	21:22
	grieving, praying.	21:26
	Thank God for Duke Chapel.	21:30
	And I would say a word of appreciation too,	21:33
	for the distinguished dean of the chapel,	21:35
	Will Willimon, for he is my friend	21:38
	and fellow South Carolinian.	21:41
	You are so fortunate to have him here.	21:46
	His impact on Christendom,	21:49
	through his books and sermons,	21:52
	exceeds that of any other South Carolinian	21:54
	of this century,	21:58
	and I'm proud to call him my friend,	22:00
	and I'm so indebted to him for this invitation.	22:01
	Please join with me in prayer.	22:07
	Take my lips and speak through them.	22:12
	Take our thoughts and think through them.	22:15
	Take our hearts and set them on fire with love for you.	22:18
	Unless you speak, nothing of significance	22:22
	will be spoken.	22:25
	Give us your Word, Lord Jesus.	22:27
	Amen.	22:31
	I like the story of the old baptist preacher,	22:35
	who was much beloved by his congregation,	22:39
	there was just one problem.	22:42
	Almost every Sunday, he preached on the same subject.	22:45
	Baptism by immersion.	22:49
	And most of the people	22:53
	agreed with him about the doctrine,	22:54
	they just got tired of hearing it week after week.	22:56
	But the deacons did not want to hurt his feelings,	23:00
	so they came up with a plan,	23:04
	and they deputized two of the deacons	23:07
	to put the plan into action.	23:09
	They went to the pastor and said,	23:11
	"Preacher, it's known throughout the community	23:13
	that you are a master in the pulpit.	23:16
	There is none better.	23:18
	And in fact, some of us deacons	23:20
	were discussing it recently,	23:21
	and several of us alleged as how we believe	23:23
	that you could be handed a verse of scripture	23:27
	moments before time to step into the pulpit,	23:29
	and without any preparation whatsoever,	23:32
	you could step up and deliver a masterful sermon.	23:35
	Well, there were some of the other deacons	23:39
	who doubted that you could do that,	23:40
	and one word led to another,	23:42
	and before you know it,	23:44
	we have committed you to do that this Sunday.	23:45
	And we just hope you'll back us up.	23:49
	Because we're convinced you can do it."	23:52
	Well, what pastor could	23:54
	turn down a challenge like that,	23:55
	so he agreed to do it.	23:57
	And then the deacons went to work,	23:59
	trying to select a verse from the Bible	24:01
	that has no relation whatever to baptism by immersion.	24:03
	And after much study,	24:09
	they selected the very first verse in the Bible.	24:10
	"In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth."	24:13
	They said, surely this has no connection with baptism.	24:17
	The following Sunday, moments before sermon time,	24:21
	a deacon handed a piece of paper to the pastor,	24:24
	with that verse written on it.	24:27
	He stepped into the pulpit,	24:29
	read the verse aloud three times,	24:31
	and then he said,	24:34
	"Brothers and sisters,	24:35
	if my memory of geography serves me correctly,	24:37
	the earth which the Lord created	24:41
	is made out of one fourth land,	24:43
	and three fourths water,	24:45
	and the mention of water brings me to the subject	24:47
	that's really on my heart today,	24:50
	baptism by immersion."	24:52
	What a one-track mind.	24:56
	Sort of like Saint Paul.	24:58
	No matter what Saint Paul started out	25:01
	talking or writing about,	25:03
	pretty quickly, it led right back	25:05
	to the heart of the matter for him,	25:08
	which was the cross.	25:09
	Paul said, "I determine to know nothing	25:12
	but Christ and Him crucified."	25:15
	I share that obsession	25:18
	and one-track mind with Saint Paul.	25:21
	My main purpose as a minister of the gospel	25:24
	is to reach as many people within my lifetime as possible	25:27
	with the good news of Jesus Christ.	25:31
	To invite them to claim Him	25:34
	by faith as savior and Lord,	25:36
	so that they can experience abundant life on this earth,	25:38
	and eternal life hereafter.	25:41
	And therefore, I find myself coming back	25:44
	again and again to the heart of the matter.	25:46
	The good news of salvation,	25:49
	which revolves around a cross.	25:51
	The scripture that was just read to you	25:56
	from Paul's great letter to the Romans	25:58
	reminds us of the democracy	26:00
	or equality of opportunity in the gospel.	26:04
	Another way of saying that is,	26:08
	the ground beneath the cross is level.	26:10
	No one is good enough to be saved without a savior,	26:15
	and no one is so bad	26:19
	as to be beyond the reach of the savior's love.	26:21
	Another way of saying this is,	26:24
	my chances of going to Hell without a savior	26:27
	are exactly the same	26:30
	as that of the worst drug dealer in New York City.	26:32
	But if, by chance, I claim Jesus as Lord by faith,	26:36
	my chances of going to Heaven	26:41
	are as good as those of Billy Graham and the Pope.	26:43
	The ground is level beneath the cross.	26:47
	There are two fundamental truths	26:51
	that I find in Saint Paul's words,	26:52
	that I wish to declare to you.	26:55
	The first is this.	26:58
	All of us are equally sinners.	27:00
	I did not say all of us sin equally.	27:04
	All of us are equally sinners.	27:06
	Sin is partly systemic,	27:10
	affecting all of creation.	27:12
	The Bible tracks this all the way back	27:15
	to the original rebellion of Adam and Eve.	27:17
	There is an essential brokenness in us	27:21
	and in our creation.	27:24
	The most obvious symptoms are violence,	27:26
	war, hate, selfishness.	27:31
	Witness what is going on in Bosnia.	27:35
	On an individual basis,	27:39
	sin refers to our tendency to rebel against God.	27:41
	Our tendency to use people	27:46
	rather than loving them.	27:48
	To exploit the creation,	27:50
	rather than being custodians of it.	27:52
	Notice in verse nine,	27:55
	Paul wrote:	27:59
	All persons, both Jews and non-Jews,	28:00
	or Jews and Greeks,	28:03
	are under the power of sin.	28:05
	And the Greek word,	28:07
	which we translate here	28:08
	"under the power of,"	28:10
	is the same word used to describe	28:12
	the authority of a Roman centurion,	28:15
	or company commander,	28:17
	over the 100 troops in his command.	28:19
	They are under his operational authority.	28:22
	So Saint Paul is saying	28:26
	you are under the power of sin	28:28
	in your natural condition.	28:29
	That is, you come into the world	28:31
	with a bent toward evil,	28:34
	a bias toward disobedience,	28:36
	a propensity toward selfishness,	28:39
	a tendency to rebel.	28:42
	Like automobiles with their front ends out of line,	28:44
	you're tilted toward the ditches of sin.	28:48
	A few years ago, Charles Colson,	28:52
	president of Prison Fellowship,	28:55
	was invited to speak at Harvard, on the subject:	28:56
	why good people do bad things.	29:01
	And Mr. Colson refused to go,	29:05
	unless they changed the topic.	29:07
	You see, the topic presupposed that	29:11
	people are basically good,	29:13
	and for some weird reason,	29:15
	occasionally they do bad things.	29:16
	Mr. Colson did not agree.	29:18
	Because that's not the Biblical view.	29:21
	There are many secular humanists who believe	29:24
	that everybody would be beautiful	29:27
	if he just happened to be in a loving home,	29:29
	or given a good diet, and educated.	29:33
	And yet, even a well-fed,	29:38
	loved, educated pagan,	29:42
	is still a pagan,	29:44
	with a bent toward evil,	29:47
	and a bias toward disobedience.	29:49
	Notice that the word "sin" in verse nine is singular.	29:53
	It usually is in the Bible,	29:57
	rather than plural.	29:59
	Sin is a spiritual disease,	30:01
	which causes all the symptoms	30:05
	we refer to as sins in the plural.	30:07
	Lying, cheating, stealing, racism, greed,	30:09
	and all the rest.	30:13
	Does the disease of sin infect us all?	30:15
	Look at verse ten,	30:18
	where Paul writes:	30:20
	None is righteous,	30:21
	no, not one.	30:22
	And then again in verse 23, Paul writes:	30:23
	All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.	30:28
	I was sitting in a Burger King restaurant	30:34
	some time ago, having lunch.	30:36
	And over in the corner,	30:39
	the manager was giving a training session	30:40
	to some new employees.	30:43
	He did not think any of the customers	30:45
	could overhear him, but I could.	30:46
	He made some interesting statements.	30:49
	And among them, he said this:	30:52
	"McDonald's used to have real good french fries,	30:54
	but then they started messing up,	30:58
	and now their fries are no better than ours."	31:00
	(congregation chuckling)	31:03
	Now, that's one line you'll never hear in their commercials.	31:05
	(congregation chuckling)	31:08
	But I like the honesty of that restaurant manager,	31:10
	he was saying,	31:12
	all of the fast food restaurants,	31:14
	including our own,	31:16
	have done their share of,	31:17
	as he put it, messing up.	31:19
	And Saint Paul would urge us	31:21
	to be that honest about ourselves,	31:23
	acknowledging that all have sinned	31:25
	and fall short of the glory of God.	31:27
	Notice in verses 10 through 18,	31:30
	Paul notes the four organs associated with speech:	31:32
	throat, tongue, lips, and mouth.	31:36
	And he says all are infected by sin.	31:39
	And then he goes on to charge	31:43
	that the eyes and the feet are also servants of sin.	31:44
	We may not have killed anybody,	31:50
	but all of us have hated,	31:53
	or at least deeply resented other people, at times.	31:55
	One of the things I believe that fascinates America	31:59
	with the O.J. Simpson trial,	32:03
	is the fact that O.J. Simpson, for many years,	32:06
	had an excellent reputation,	32:09
	the kind of reputation we would like to have,	32:11
	in most respects.	32:13
	And so as we contemplate his guilt or innocence,	32:16
	it's very hard for us not to ask of ourselves,	32:19
	am I capable of such a dastardly deed?	32:21
	And if we are brave enough	32:26
	to look into our hearts of darkness,	32:28
	with honesty,	32:32
	we have to admit that there have been times	32:34
	when we were almost angry enough,	32:36
	almost jealous enough,	32:38
	almost frustrated enough	32:40
	to kill somebody.	32:43
	We may not have committed adultery,	32:45
	but none of us is unfamiliar with lust.	32:47
	We tend to choose up sides based on race and class.	32:51
	Frankly, given a choice on the one hand,	32:56
	between helping poor, sick people in America	32:58
	get medical treatment.	33:04
	And on the other hand,	33:05
	getting a tax break,	33:06
	many of us would choose the tax break for ourselves,	33:08
	especially if our responses could be kept anonymous.	33:10
	Some of us try very hard to keep the third commandment,	33:15
	which says: Do not profane God's name.	33:18
	But it's strange to me	33:22
	that we don't see any moral contradiction	33:23
	in paying the price of a movie ticket,	33:25
	to a movie in which we know a Hollywood actor	33:29
	is going to profane God's holy name.	33:31
	Do we not become a sponsor of that,	33:34
	when we know it's going to happen?	33:37
	Many of us would take offense	33:40
	if someone called us thieves.	33:42
	And yet, often we see no moral problem	33:46
	in charging our national debts to our grandchildren	33:49
	without their permission.	33:52
	And because of envy and jealousy,	33:55
	have you ever noticed that we don't fully rejoice,	33:57
	even when good things happen	34:01
	to our friends and relatives?	34:03
	There's something sinister within us that won't applaud.	34:06
	The ground is level beneath the cross.	34:11
	All of us are equally sinners.	34:14
	And then we come to	34:17
	that second great democratic truth	34:18
	that's found here.	34:20
	And it is this:	34:23
	We are loved equally by God,	34:24
	through Jesus Christ.	34:27
	There is this wonderful sentence	34:29
	that runs from verse 23 through 25.	34:31
	Paul had this fondness for long sentences.	34:34
	He was like the man who said,	34:39
	"I know how to spell Mississippi,	34:40
	I just don't know when to stop."	34:42
	Paul's sentences were that way,	34:44
	just on and on,	34:46
	and yet, this great sentence beginning in verse 23,	34:48
	it includes the whole of the gospel.	34:52
	Listen to it again.	34:55
	"Since all have sinned	34:56
	and fall short of the glory of God,	34:58
	they are justified by His grace as a gift,	35:00
	through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus,	35:05
	whom God put forward as an expiation by His blood	35:07
	to be received by faith."	35:12
	End of quote.	35:15
	Notice, first, that Paul said salvation is a gift.	35:16
	Salvation, what do we mean by that?	35:19
	You have to define everything these days.	35:21
	Salvation means right relationship with God,	35:23
	self, and neighbor.	35:26
	It means reordering my values and priorities	35:27
	according to the will of God.	35:31
	It means the assurance of being forgiven	35:32
	and spending eternity with God.	35:34
	That is salvation.	35:37
	Salvation is a gift.	35:38
	Have you noticed that we middle class folks	35:41
	have a hard time receiving gifts?	35:43
	We like to give them.	35:46
	We don't mind trading favors at all.	35:49
	I'll do something for you,	35:51
	and you'll do something for me.	35:52
	But it's so hard for us to just reach out	35:54
	and receive it and say thanks.	35:56
	And yet, Paul says if you don't receive salvation that way,	36:00
	you can't have it.	36:03
	For there is no other way.	36:05
	In verse 25, notice the reference	36:08
	to the blood of Jesus.	36:10
	We don't like to talk about that these days.	36:13
	In fact, in certain theological circles,	36:15
	it's politically incorrect	36:18
	to talk about the shed blood of Jesus.	36:20
	So many people wish that God had found	36:25
	a more antiseptic way to save humanity.	36:27
	The way he chose was so messy, so gory.	36:31
	Having to do with the blood of Jesus.	36:36
	But let me give you the bottom line of the gospel.	36:40
	The precious blood of God's son, Jesus Christ,	36:43
	trickled down an old, splintery cross,	36:49
	and seeped into the sands of the middle east.	36:51
	And if there had been any other way	36:56
	to save humanity apart from that shed blood,	36:57
	God would have done it.	37:00
	But there was no other way.	37:02
	A great, broken moral law	37:08
	stood between a holy God	37:12
	and his beloved children,	37:14
	and through that shed blood of Jesus,	37:16
	the place of judgment was transformed	37:19
	into the place of mercy.	37:22
	No, I can't describe to you	37:24
	all the details of that divine transaction,	37:25
	but I know this for sure.	37:29
	I have been saved.	37:32
	And am being transformed	37:34
	by the shed blood of Christ.	37:37
	Many years ago,	37:41
	during the worst part of the Great Depression,	37:42
	a woman walked into an office	37:45
	of a life insurance company one day,	37:47
	deeply distraught.	37:50
	She did not understand how life insurance worked.	37:51
	She said to the clerk,	37:56
	"I can no longer afford to pay the premiums	37:58
	for my husband's policy.	38:01
	He died six months ago,	38:02
	and I just can't afford to keep up the policy."	38:04
	The amazed clerk pulled the proper file	38:08
	and called the manager in.	38:11
	And the manager explained to this lady	38:13
	that she would soon receive a check	38:16
	for 200,000 dollars from the company.	38:18
	She thought she was in poverty,	38:22
	but indeed, she was a wealthy person.	38:25
	There is a kind of spiritual wealth	38:29
	that is worth so much more than even the national debt.	38:32
	All the spiritual riches of the Lord Jesus Christ,	38:36
	His forgiveness, His salvation, His peace,	38:39
	His joy, His power,	38:42
	all of them are available to us who believe in him.	38:44
	He paid the premiums on Calvary's cross,	38:48
	and we are the beneficiaries,	38:51
	if we simply endorse the offer through faith.	38:53
	Lots of people think	38:58
	that Heaven will be a hall of fame	39:00
	for distinguished saints,	39:04
	with their moral batting averages	39:06
	posted all around the wall.	39:08
	Oh, Heaven won't be like that.	39:09
	Heaven will just be a vast reunion	39:12
	of saved sinners whose only boast	39:15
	will be in the Lord Jesus, who got them there.	39:18
	The ground is level beneath the cross.	39:23
	The great, old retired bishop,	39:27
	Ed Pendergrass from Florida,	39:29
	often tells about the time	39:32
	that he was converted as a young adult in Jacksonville,	39:34
	and soon thereafter, there was a great, city-wide revival,	39:39
	sponsored by the local counsel of churches.	39:42
	It was an outdoor revival.	39:46
	They cordoned off several blocks of the city,	39:48
	and had great services every night.	39:52
	This was in the worst section of Jacksonville,	39:54
	where all the flop houses and bars were.	39:57
	Ed Pendergrass was invited as a young layman	40:01
	to share his testimony	40:04
	in one of those services,	40:06
	and he did.	40:07
	At the conclusion of the service,	40:09
	the invitation was given	40:10
	for those who would receive Christ as Lord.	40:12
	Many people came down, and among them	40:15
	was a woman who appeared to be in her mid 30s,	40:17
	though it was hard to tell	40:22
	because of all the heavy makeup she wore.	40:23
	But lots of people recognized her,	40:26
	for she was the madam	40:29
	in the most notorious house of prostitution in Jacksonville.	40:30
	And Ed was selected as the person	40:37
	to be her counselor at the end of the service.	40:39
	And he talked with her	40:42
	about starting the Christian life,	40:43
	reading the scripture, prayer,	40:44
	and he said, "Now it's essential	40:47
	that we find you a local church,	40:48
	where you can experience the family of faith."	40:51
	And he said, "I'll help you."	40:54
	But that turned out	40:56
	to be a more difficult task than he thought.	40:57
	He went to his own pastor,	41:00
	and was flatly turned down.	41:01
	The pastor said,	41:04
	"Ed, I appreciate what you're trying to do,	41:07
	but frankly, she would not fit in here,	41:09
	and I think she would	41:12
	make some of our people nervous."	41:13
	And so, Ed looked for another church,	41:17
	that had more of the heart of Christ than did his own,	41:20
	and he found one.	41:23
	And these people welcomed her with open arms,	41:25
	and accepting hearts,	41:28
	and in that warm and supportive fellowship,	41:30
	she grew strong as a disciple of Jesus Christ.	41:32
	Before that woman died,	41:36
	she had won 56 other young women	41:39
	from the brothels into the Kingdom.	41:43
	Now hear me closely.	41:47
	That madam was as precious to the heart of God	41:49
	as was the pastor of the largest church in Jacksonville.	41:53
	The misguided drug dealer on the streets of New York	41:59
	is as dear to the heart of God as is Billy Graham.	42:03
	Those convicted murderers on death row,	42:07
	are as dear to the heart of God	42:11
	as is the council of bishops.	42:13
	The ground is level beneath the cross.	42:15
	Long ago, an old gospel hymn	42:20
	which declares that message,	42:22
	found a place in my heart and it has remained there.	42:24
	Some of the words are these:	42:29
	There's room at the cross for you,	42:31
	there's room at the cross for you.	42:35
	Though millions have come,	42:37
	there's still room for one.	42:39
	There's room at the cross for you.	42:44
	Now I'm gonna ask all of us to bow our heads	42:49
	and close our eyes.	42:51
	And in a few moments,	42:53
	a soloist is going to sing that beloved song,	42:54
	and as she sings,	42:58
	I invite us all to transact	42:59
	high and holy business with God.	43:01
	I invite you to whisper to God	43:04
	something that sounds like this:	43:07
	Lord, here I am, at the foot of the cross.	43:10
	I'm not good enough to stay away,	43:15
	but thanks to your love,	43:18
	I'm not too bad to come.	43:19
	I want to trust you as savior,	43:22
	and follow you as Lord.	43:25
	Amen.	43:28
	(organ music)	43:39
-	♪ The cross upon which Jesus died ♪	43:59
	♪ Is a shelter in which we can hide. ♪	44:09
	♪ And its grace so free ♪	44:19
	♪ Is sufficient for me ♪	44:24
	♪ And deep is its fountain ♪	44:29
	♪ As wide as the sea. ♪	44:36
	♪ There's room at the cross for you ♪	44:42
	♪ There's room at the cross for you ♪	44:53
	♪ Though millions have come, ♪	45:04
	♪ There's still room for one ♪	45:09
	♪ Yes, there's room at the cross for you. ♪	45:15
	♪ The hand of my Savior is strong ♪	46:00
	♪ And the love of my Savior is long ♪	46:11
	♪ Through sunshine or rain ♪	46:20
	♪ Through loss or in gain, ♪	46:26
	♪ The blood flows from Calvary ♪	46:31
	♪ to cleanse every stain. ♪	46:37
	♪ There's room at the cross for you ♪	46:44
	♪ There's room at the cross for you ♪	46:54
	♪ Though millions have come, ♪	47:04
	♪ There's still room for one ♪	47:12
	♪ Yes, there's room at the cross for you. ♪	47:21
-	Let us unite our hearts in prayer.	48:05
	Almighty God,	48:15
	You who continue to reveal Yourself to Your church,	48:19
	even through Your cross,	48:26
	draw us closer to Yourself	48:31
	at this hour.	48:35
	We come today praying for Your church universal.	48:41
	We pray, oh gracious God,	48:47
	that the Holy Catholic Church	48:51
	would be filled with all truth,	48:55
	in all truth,	48:59
	and with peace.	49:02
	Where Your church is corrupt, dear God,	49:06
	purify her.	49:09
	Where it is in error,	49:13
	direct it.	49:16
	Where in anything that is amiss,	49:20
	reform it.	49:24
	Where it is right,	49:27
	strengthen it.	49:28
	Where it is in want,	49:31
	provide for it.	49:32
	Where it's divided,	49:35
	reunite it.	49:39
	Lord, in Your mercy.	49:42
Congregation	Hear our prayer.	49:45
-	We pray for the mission of Your church.	49:47
	Ever living God, who will that all should come	49:51
	to You through Your Son, Jesus Christ.	49:56
	Inspire our witness to Him,	50:01
	that all may know the power of His forgiveness,	50:06
	and the hope of His resurrection.	50:10
	We pray for the mission of the church in Honduras,	50:15
	in Guyana,	50:21
	Barbados,	50:25
	Uganda,	50:29
	here in the United States,	50:32
	in Durham,	50:36
	and especially here at Duke Chapel,	50:39
	remember these congregations.	50:44
	Lord, in Your mercy.	50:49
Congregation	Hear our prayer.	50:52
Rev. Kirton	We pray for the oppressed.	50:55
	Look with pity, oh Heavenly Father,	50:59
	upon the people of the world,	51:02
	who live with injustice, terror,	51:05
	disease, death as constant companions.	51:10
	Have mercy upon us.	51:18
	Lift up our brothers and sisters in Bosnia,	51:22
	Haiti,	51:27
	the District of Colombia,	51:30
	and here in Durham.	51:33
	Help us to eliminate our cruelty	51:37
	to these, our neighbors.	51:41
	Strengthen those who spend their lives	51:45
	establishing equal protection of the law,	51:49
	and equal opportunities for all.	51:53
	And grant that every one of us	51:57
	may enjoy a fair portion of the richness	51:59
	of this, Your world.	52:03
	Lord, in Your mercy.	52:06
Congregation	Hear our prayer.	52:09
Rev. Kirton	For those who suffer	52:11
	and in trouble, we pray.	52:12
	Oh, merciful God,	52:15
	who has taught us in Your Holy Word	52:18
	that You do not will that any of us	52:21
	should be afflicted, or be grieved as Your children.	52:27
	Look with pity upon the sorrows of Your servants.	52:34
	For those who are in beds of sickness,	52:39
	grant Your healing touch.	52:42
	For those who mourn, Your comfort.	52:45
	For those who are lonely, Your companionship.	52:49
	Nourish the souls of all Your children	52:55
	with patience, comfort, and a sense of goodness.	52:57
	Lift up Your countenance upon them,	53:03
	and grant us Your peace,	53:07
	Lord in Your mercy.	53:09
Congregation	Hear our prayer.	53:12
Rev. Kirton	Oh Lord, our God,	53:13
	accept these, our fervent prayers,	53:16
	in the multitude of Your mercy,	53:19
	look with compassion upon us,	53:22
	and all who turn to You for help,	53:25
	for You are gracious,	53:28
	oh lover of our souls,	53:30
	and we will give You glory	53:32
	through the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit,	53:35
	now and forevermore.	53:39
	Amen.	53:42
	Through Christ, let us continually offer to God	53:50
	the sacrifice of praise,	53:54
	that is the fruits of our lips,	53:57
	that acknowledge God's name.	53:59
	Let us worship God in our offering.	54:02
	(organ music)	54:09
	(drum playing)	55:26
	(Children's choir singing in foreign language)	55:36
	(organ music)	57:52
-	God of all blessing,	59:39
	source of all life,	59:42
	giver of all grace,	59:47
	we thank You for the gift of life.	59:52
	For breath,	59:58
	for sustained life,	1:00:00
	for food of the Earth,	1:00:04
	that nurtures our lives.	1:00:07
	For the love of family, friends and community.	1:00:10
	For the gift of Your church,	1:00:18
	through Your Son, Jesus Christ.	1:00:21
	We give You thanks, dear Lord,	1:00:26
	for these and all blessings,	1:00:30
	we worship Your holy name,	1:00:34
	and praise You as eternal Father,	1:00:38
	Jesus Christ, Your only begotten Son,	1:00:42
	all through the power of Your blessed Holy Spirit,	1:00:48
	we ask these things with thanksgiving,	1:00:52
	through Jesus, who taught us when we pray to say:	1:00:55
	Our Father,	1:01:00
	who art in Heaven,	1:01:02
	hallowed be Thy name.	1:01:04
	Thy kingdom come,	1:01:07
	Thy will be done	1:01:09
	on Earth as it is in Heaven.	1:01:11
	Give us this day our daily bread,	1:01:14
	and forgive us our trespasses	1:01:18
	as we forgive those who trespass against us.	1:01:21
	And lead us not into temptation,	1:01:25
	but deliver us from evil.	1:01:28
	For Thine is the kingdom,	1:01:31
	the power, and the glory forever.	1:01:32
	Amen.	1:01:36
	(organ music)	1:01:39
	(Congregation singing)	1:02:24
-	And now, unto God,	1:06:23
	who is able to keep us from falling,	1:06:25
	the only wise God,	1:06:29
	fill us with the power of the cross,	1:06:33
	to live in union with	1:06:37
	Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,	1:06:39
	now and forever.	1:06:43
	Amen.	1:06:46
	(Children's choir singing "Shalom Chaverim")	1:06:52
	(organ music)	1:07:47

Item Info

Title:

William R. Bouknight - "The Level Ground Beneath the Cross" (June 11, 1995)

Description:

Sermon start time: 19:38. Sermon end time: 43:29.
Paul's words from Romans remind us of two great truths: First, we are all equally sinners, and second, we are all equally loved by God. These truths point toward the democracy of the cross––at the cross, we are all on level ground. (Abstract created by Duke Divinity School staff.)
Key quotation: “All the spiritual riches of the Lord Jesus Christ, his forgiveness, his salvation, his peace, his joy, his power, all of them are available to us who believe in him. He paid the premiums on Calvary’s cross, and we are the beneficiaries, if we simply endorse the offer through faith.”

Permalink:

https://idn.duke.edu/ark:/87924/r4p55dx99

Date:

June 11, 1995

Speaker:

Bouknight, William R.

Liturgical Calendar:

Trinity Sunday

Biblical Book:

Chapter and Verse:

Subject:

Contributor:

Duke University. Chapel

Identifier:

UA.17.01.0003 VHS-0428
ref9590_8o4
uachapelsermaud
duke:321756
dcrmv001406
ark:/87924/r4p55dx99
c122d883-0a0f-4f8f-a755-dab743d73a76

Digital Collection:

Duke Chapel Recordings

Source Collection:

Duke University Chapel recordings

Language:

English

Location:

United States
North Carolina
Durham (N.C.)

Format:

Provenance:

The Duke University Chapel Recordings were transferred to the Duke University Archives beginning in 1970.

Rights:

Limited Re-Use

CC BY-NC 4.0

Rights Note:

This recording may contain 3rd party materials, such as music or readings that are therefore not covered by the Creative Commons license indicated here. For more information see https://library.duke.edu/rubenstein/research/citations-and-permissions.

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