WEBVTT

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<v ->Duke University Chapel Service of Worship</v>

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August 24th 1980.

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(solemn music)

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<v ->From out of my heart I praise thee</v>

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this morning with my song.

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Give thee thanks both here today

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and all my whole life long.

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Please rise.

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(organ music)

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Let us together confess our sins.

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Please be seated.

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Oh lord holy and righteous God,

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we acknowledge before you that we do not fear you

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and that we do not love you above all things.

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We do not delight in prayer

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nor take pleasure in your word.

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We do not really love our neighbor.

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We lack the confidence that should accompany

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our Christian profession.

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Our hearts are divided,

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crossed by doubts and guilty desires.

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We accuse ourselves before you oh God.

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We implore you, whose nature and whose name is love,

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to forgive us, and in forgiving, to heal us

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so that in our lives something will finally be changed.

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Amen.

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Be of good cheer.

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Our God is a just God.

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Our God is a loving God.

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Our God is a forgiving God.

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Let us give thanks for God is good,

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and God's love is everlasting.

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Thanks be to God, whose love has made us.

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Thanks be to God, whose mercy forgives us.

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Thanks be to God whose promise secures us, amen.

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Good morning.

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On behalf of the Duke University ministerial community

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I welcome each of you to the chapel.

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And I pray that your worship experience this morning

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will prove uplifting,

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will prove enlightening,

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and inspirational.

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I have one announcement to make.

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You are cordially invited

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to an informal recital

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by Donna Sparks playing the flute

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and Janet Yarborough playing the tuba

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with Patricia Davis and David Wheeden, pianist.

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At a concert this afternoon August 24th at three PM

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in the rehearsal hall of the Mary Duke Biddle Music Building

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on the East Campus of Duke University.

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Works by Honegger, Hindemith, Van Auld, Block and Cling

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will be performed, and there will be a reception

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immediately following.

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We welcome to Duke Chapel today

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the Reverend James W Firee,

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a native of Randleman North Carolina.

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Reverend Firee received his bachelor of arts degree

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from Livingston College,

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and his master of divinity degree from Hood Seminary

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in Salisbury North Carolina.

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He served as district superintendent of

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the eastern district of the North Carolina

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Virginia Conference of the United Methodist Church

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from 1965 until 1968.

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And from 1969 through 1974,

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he served as associate program director

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of the Conference Council on Ministries

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of the Western North Carolina Conference.

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Reverend Firee is presently serving

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as district superintendent of the Gastonia District,

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Western North Carolina Conference

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of the United Methodist Church.

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Reverend Firee is married to Mrs Nancy Moore Firee

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and they are the parents of two children,

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James and Jaffe, and Jaffe I believe is

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a matriculating freshman today

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over at North Carolina Central, our prayers are with her.

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We look forward to the message that Reverend Firee

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will bring to us this morning.

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Let us pray.

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Prepare our hearts oh lord

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to accept your word.

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Silence in us any voice but your own.

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That hearing, we may also obey your will,

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through Jesus Christ our lord, amen.

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The Old Testament lesson

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is taken from the book of Isaiah,

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chapter 22, verses 15 through 23.

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Thus says the lord, lord God of hosts,

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come, go to this steward to Shebna

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who is over at the household, and say to him

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what have you to do here?

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And whom have you here that you have

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hewn here a tomb for yourself?

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You who hew a tomb on the height

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and carve a habitation for yourself in the rock.

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Behold the lord will hurl you away violently

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oh you strong man.

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He will seize firm hold on you and whirl you round and round

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and throw you like a ball into a wide land

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and there you shall die.

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And there shall be your splendid chariots.

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You shame of your master's house.

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I will thrust you from your office

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and you will be cast down from your station.

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In that day I will call my servant Eliakim,

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son of Hilkiah

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and I will clothe him with your robe

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and will bind your girdle on him

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and will commit your authority to his head.

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And he shall be a father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem

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and to the house of Judah.

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And I will place on his shoulder

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the key of the house of David.

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He shall open and none shall shut.

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And he shall shut and none shall open.

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And I will fasten him like a peg in a sure place.

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And he will become a throne of honor to his father's house.

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Here ends the reading from the Old Testament, amen.

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Please rise for the reading of the gospel.

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The gospel lesson

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is taken from the book of Matthew

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chapter 16,

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verses 13 through 28.

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Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi

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he asked his disciples

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who do men say that the Son of Man is?

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And they said, some say John the Baptist.

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Others say Elijah, and others Jeremiah,

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all one of the prophets.

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He said to them,

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but who do you say that I am?

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Simon Peter replied, you are the Christ,

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the son of the living God!

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And Jesus answered him, blessed are you Simon bar Jonah

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for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you

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but my father who is in heaven.

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And I tell you, you are Peter.

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And on this rock I will build my church

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and the powers of death shall not prevail against it.

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I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven

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and whatever you bind on Earth

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shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on Earth

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shall be loosed in heaven.

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Then Jesus strictly charged the disciples

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to tell no one that he was the Christ.

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From that time, Jesus began to show his disciples

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that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things

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from the elders and chief priest and scribes,

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and be killed.

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And on the third day be raised.

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And Peter took him and began to rebuke him saying

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God forbid lord!

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This shall never happen to you!

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But he turned and said to Peter, get behind me Satan!

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You are a hindrance to me!

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For you are not on the side of God but of men.

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Then Jesus told his disciples,

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if any man would come after me,

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let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.

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For whoever would save his life will lose it.

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And whoever loses his life for my sake will find it!

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For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world

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and forfeits his life!

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Or what shall a man give in return for his life?

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For the Son of Man is to come with his angels

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and the glory of his father and then he will repay

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every man for what he has done.

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Truly I say to you, there are some standing here

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who will not taste death before they see

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the Son of Man coming in his kingdom,

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amen.

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(organ playing)

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<v ->For our message today,</v>

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I read a few days ago a statement

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from one of the upper room magazines.

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There were a few pointy questions and statements

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that I'd like to share with you

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in the beginning of this message today.

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Have you ever felt trapped between two worlds?

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Have you ever wished you could hide in the past?

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Perhaps escape to the future

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or just change things simply by pretending?

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It's a game that most of us have played

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at one time or another.

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The pressure of daily realities

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tempts us to play many games that have bad endings.

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My brothers and sisters, Jesus talked about

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a dimension of truth

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and reality that can save us.

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Save us from hiding in the past.

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Save us from running to the future.

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And save us from having to pretend about who we are.

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Our worship leader this morning

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read the New Testament scripture.

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I'm sure that we heard

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and heard well.

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Jesus saying to his own disciples who have gathered

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on that occasion, if anyone wishes to be a follower of mine,

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he must leave self behind.

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He must take up his cross and come with me.

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Whoever cares for his own safety is lost,

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but if a man will let himself be lost for my sake,

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he'll find his true self.

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What will a man gain by winning the whole world

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at the cost of his true self?

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Or what can he give that will buy that true self back?

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I want to

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propose

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two or three questions that I want you

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to ponder, to think about.

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First of all, what is the purpose of life?

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What purpose does God have from our life?

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What purpose has each day as it comes?

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And what are the long range goals of my existence?

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Since the beginning of human history,

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philosophers, theologians,

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as well as every individual who reflects on life at all

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has asked the question, what is the meaning of life?

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James, one of the apostles writes that

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life is like a vapor, that it is for a little while

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then it vanishes away.

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Let me hasten to say that life is given,

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none of us choose it.

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And let me say that it's up to each of us to decide

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if this gift is an unfortunate accident

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or a glorious blessing

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with many possibilities and opportunities.

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Does life actually have a goal?

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Does life actually have meaning and purpose?

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Is there some real meaning in life?

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Is there some central meaning?

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Are there some experiences that pulls all of life together?

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Let me begin by saying

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that life has its beginning in a pre-rational state.

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You see the ability to reason,

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to learn to choose wisely develop slowly.

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Most people accept the major values and goals

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taught by their society without any real

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examination of them.

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That is, many of us accept things as they are.

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Very seldom do we start to examine where we are going,

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what we are doing.

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Along with having to read the Bible in the upper room

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and all the mail that comes into one's office every day.

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I find time sometimes to read some of the simple cartoons.

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I read one the other day

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about a man and a woman who were traveling

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on a beautiful interstate highway.

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And they had been going for hours

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enjoying the beautiful scenery of a highway.

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The cartoon showed that they had stopped

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and they were reading the map.

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And the wife saying to her husband,

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I knew we were going in the wrong direction,

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but we were making such good time.

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It was Socrates who said the unexamined life

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is not worth living.

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That one has to stop sometimes

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to see if you're going in the right direction.

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How many persons

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in our nation challenge the belief that success,

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pleasure, prosperity, financial gain

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are the real goals of life?

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On a number of occasions, Jesus indicated

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that one has to lose life in order to find it.

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Jesus did not say that

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a specific goal such as happiness,

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00:38:51.805 --> 00:38:56.805
peace of mind or financial prosperity is the end of life.

271
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He defines the goal of life as a process of becoming.

272
00:39:01.432 --> 00:39:03.630
It's a way of life to be lived,

273
00:39:03.630 --> 00:39:05.960
a way of life to be lived with God,

274
00:39:05.960 --> 00:39:10.960
because God gives meaning and purpose to our existence.

275
00:39:11.560 --> 00:39:14.757
Now let us

276
00:39:14.757 --> 00:39:19.650
consider some of the meanings of this style of life.

277
00:39:20.720 --> 00:39:25.720
First it requires one to use his freedom of choice.

278
00:39:26.200 --> 00:39:28.410
You see, one has to choose to become

279
00:39:28.410 --> 00:39:30.110
a follower of Jesus Christ.

280
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It does not automatically happen.

281
00:39:34.540 --> 00:39:39.540
No amount of going to church, no amount of service

282
00:39:39.710 --> 00:39:44.422
or giving will make one a follower of Jesus Christ

283
00:39:44.422 --> 00:39:47.480
unless at some point one decides that Christ

284
00:39:47.480 --> 00:39:50.885
is the lord of his life!

285
00:39:50.885 --> 00:39:55.258
That in him he sees the value by which he wishes to live.

286
00:39:55.258 --> 00:39:57.630
Somewhere along the line one has to have

287
00:39:57.630 --> 00:40:02.015
a personal encounter with Christ.

288
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One develops his freedom as he uses choice.

289
00:40:07.690 --> 00:40:10.570
If one only accepts,

290
00:40:10.570 --> 00:40:15.570
if one only conforms, he has no freedom.

291
00:40:15.600 --> 00:40:17.940
In the statement about losing life, therefore,

292
00:40:17.940 --> 00:40:20.320
Jesus is saying to us,

293
00:40:20.320 --> 00:40:23.250
to choose the fashion in which you will live.

294
00:40:23.250 --> 00:40:27.330
If anyone would come after me, he says,

295
00:40:27.330 --> 00:40:31.890
let him be willing to deny himself and take up his cross

296
00:40:31.890 --> 00:40:36.890
and follow me, he has to make the choice.

297
00:40:36.890 --> 00:40:39.520
The second factor in the statement is

298
00:40:39.520 --> 00:40:43.820
that choosing involves a willingness to struggle and suffer.

299
00:40:43.820 --> 00:40:48.110
There is a risk in following Jesus Christ.

300
00:40:48.110 --> 00:40:53.110
And Jesus did not call his disciples to ease and plenty,

301
00:40:53.530 --> 00:40:56.540
to bank accounts and having a good time.

302
00:40:56.540 --> 00:41:01.330
He stated that one must take up his cross.

303
00:41:01.330 --> 00:41:04.140
They were not to choose the way of least resistance

304
00:41:04.140 --> 00:41:07.928
but the way of struggle and effort.

305
00:41:07.928 --> 00:41:11.080
The easy style of life is to conform,

306
00:41:11.080 --> 00:41:16.080
to do as everyone else does, right or wrong.

307
00:41:16.080 --> 00:41:18.860
It's much harder to stand up and to be counted,

308
00:41:18.860 --> 00:41:21.740
especially for that which runs counter

309
00:41:21.740 --> 00:41:25.530
to the prevailing values of the day.

310
00:41:25.530 --> 00:41:29.322
And yet only through struggle and effort

311
00:41:29.322 --> 00:41:34.313
any significant achievements are accomplished.

312
00:41:35.270 --> 00:41:40.270
One develops his ability through hard work.

313
00:41:40.580 --> 00:41:43.888
In 1960

314
00:41:43.888 --> 00:41:47.470
the general board of education of the Methodist church then

315
00:41:47.470 --> 00:41:50.170
published a little book entitled

316
00:41:50.170 --> 00:41:52.800
The Foundation for Christian Teachings

317
00:41:52.800 --> 00:41:55.795
In the Methodist Church.

318
00:41:55.795 --> 00:42:00.795
In one place, the author made this statement.

319
00:42:00.795 --> 00:42:03.257
"Human life was not intended primarily

320
00:42:03.257 --> 00:42:07.737
"for ease and comfort but for growth and greatness.

321
00:42:07.737 --> 00:42:12.327
"We find God in the midst of life's deepest struggles

322
00:42:12.327 --> 00:42:15.937
"and aspirations, seeking to give newness

323
00:42:15.937 --> 00:42:18.668
"of life and spirit.

324
00:42:18.668 --> 00:42:22.076
"The Christian not only asks why,

325
00:42:22.076 --> 00:42:25.237
"in the presence of loss and suffering,

326
00:42:25.237 --> 00:42:29.447
"or when death comes, or when illness comes, but how?

327
00:42:29.447 --> 00:42:32.807
"How can I best show forth my faith in God?

328
00:42:32.807 --> 00:42:37.687
"In the midst of life's demanding experiences."

329
00:42:37.687 --> 00:42:41.486
If I had to sum up,

330
00:42:41.486 --> 00:42:43.950
with one word what I believe Jesus was saying

331
00:42:43.950 --> 00:42:48.950
is the goal of life, I would call it creative.

332
00:42:48.970 --> 00:42:53.970
You see one is creative when he chooses to assert himself

333
00:42:54.320 --> 00:42:58.370
over against those elements in his environment

334
00:42:58.370 --> 00:43:00.950
that would conquer him

335
00:43:00.950 --> 00:43:05.151
and force him to conform.

336
00:43:05.151 --> 00:43:08.570
Those elements are both inside and outside of us.

337
00:43:08.570 --> 00:43:12.050
One is creative when he can affirm that I know

338
00:43:12.050 --> 00:43:14.848
in whom I believe.

339
00:43:14.848 --> 00:43:16.900
And I'm persuaded that he's able to keep

340
00:43:16.900 --> 00:43:21.746
all that I've committed unto him until that day.

341
00:43:22.800 --> 00:43:25.871
What a person is,

342
00:43:25.871 --> 00:43:30.687
he achieves through the cause that he makes his own.

343
00:43:32.270 --> 00:43:35.585
The great figures of the Christian faith

344
00:43:35.585 --> 00:43:38.120
have been those who have found in the gospel

345
00:43:38.120 --> 00:43:43.113
the good news or cause in which to lose themselves.

346
00:43:44.030 --> 00:43:46.610
And yet in the very process of losing themselves,

347
00:43:46.610 --> 00:43:48.685
they've found life.

348
00:43:48.685 --> 00:43:50.780
They've developed what was unique in their lives,

349
00:43:50.780 --> 00:43:54.120
they found happiness and joy, peace of mind.

350
00:43:54.120 --> 00:43:57.290
If one is willing to lose his life,

351
00:43:57.290 --> 00:44:01.451
he'll find what life is all about.

352
00:44:01.451 --> 00:44:05.560
The apostle Paul was heard saying,

353
00:44:05.560 --> 00:44:07.720
I count everything lost for the joy

354
00:44:07.720 --> 00:44:12.720
for the sake of knowing Christ Jesus my lord.

355
00:44:13.210 --> 00:44:18.210
Jesus stated whoever cares for his own safety is lost.

356
00:44:19.900 --> 00:44:23.180
This seems to be contrary to all that we are taught

357
00:44:23.180 --> 00:44:28.180
about self-preservation about saving our own lives.

358
00:44:28.750 --> 00:44:33.353
However it is an essential principle of creativity.

359
00:44:33.353 --> 00:44:35.940
If a person constantly says others may not like me

360
00:44:35.940 --> 00:44:39.070
if I speak the truth, or if I follow Christian principles,

361
00:44:39.070 --> 00:44:41.510
if I stand up for what is right and just

362
00:44:41.510 --> 00:44:45.352
and peace in the world.

363
00:44:45.352 --> 00:44:50.235
He hems in the truth to protect his own safety.

364
00:44:51.660 --> 00:44:55.642
When Jesus pointed out

365
00:44:55.642 --> 00:44:59.590
that life must be invested

366
00:44:59.590 --> 00:45:04.460
to be found, to have eternal meaning and joy,

367
00:45:04.460 --> 00:45:06.460
he did not mean that it could be given

368
00:45:06.460 --> 00:45:09.080
to just any concern or interest,

369
00:45:09.080 --> 00:45:14.080
any organization or institution.

370
00:45:14.210 --> 00:45:15.910
The point in his statement is this.

371
00:45:15.910 --> 00:45:20.910
If any man will let himself be lost for my sake,

372
00:45:21.483 --> 00:45:24.398
he'll find his true self.

373
00:45:24.398 --> 00:45:27.370
The emphasis is on myself.

374
00:45:27.370 --> 00:45:31.821
If our losing then, is to have Christian content,

375
00:45:31.821 --> 00:45:34.090
if it's to have meaning, if it's to have

376
00:45:34.090 --> 00:45:38.140
everlasting meaning,

377
00:45:38.140 --> 00:45:39.900
it must consist of three principles

378
00:45:39.900 --> 00:45:44.900
that I want to mention to you very briefly.

379
00:45:45.230 --> 00:45:47.740
First then we will relate our lives to God

380
00:45:47.740 --> 00:45:51.100
who is the creator, the redeemer,

381
00:45:51.100 --> 00:45:54.220
the sustainer of the universe.

382
00:45:54.220 --> 00:45:57.570
Then we must participate in regular periods of both

383
00:45:57.570 --> 00:46:00.583
public and private worship.

384
00:46:00.583 --> 00:46:03.160
As we enter into fellowship with him,

385
00:46:03.160 --> 00:46:07.980
we discover that his highest revealing of himself

386
00:46:07.980 --> 00:46:12.048
was in the life and teaching of Jesus Christ.

387
00:46:12.048 --> 00:46:17.048
That God actually made himself known through Jesus.

388
00:46:18.010 --> 00:46:21.700
Jesus said that God is like a shepherd that

389
00:46:21.700 --> 00:46:24.778
when a little sheep is lost,

390
00:46:24.778 --> 00:46:29.208
that he seeks to find that one.

391
00:46:29.208 --> 00:46:33.210
Not only did he reveal truth in Jesus Christ,

392
00:46:33.210 --> 00:46:35.770
but also power by which individuals

393
00:46:35.770 --> 00:46:38.966
can be transformed, changed.

394
00:46:38.966 --> 00:46:41.580
And as Paul says, it's a power through which

395
00:46:41.580 --> 00:46:44.770
persons can become new creatures in Christ,

396
00:46:44.770 --> 00:46:48.480
where the old passes out and where there is a new life,

397
00:46:48.480 --> 00:46:53.385
new commitment, new joy, new inspiration.

398
00:46:53.385 --> 00:46:55.900
When there is new life in him,

399
00:46:55.900 --> 00:46:58.270
we can affirm that I can do all things

400
00:46:58.270 --> 00:47:02.521
in Christ who strengthens me.

401
00:47:02.521 --> 00:47:05.283
When your life

402
00:47:05.283 --> 00:47:08.486
is dominated by the power of Christ,

403
00:47:08.486 --> 00:47:13.137
you will discover a second factor of love.

404
00:47:13.137 --> 00:47:17.214
And this love is not selfish

405
00:47:17.214 --> 00:47:20.800
or seeking to gain the world.

406
00:47:20.800 --> 00:47:24.028
It's that kind of love

407
00:47:24.028 --> 00:47:29.028
that Paul talked about that is patient and kind.

408
00:47:29.080 --> 00:47:32.000
That kind of love that has good manners,

409
00:47:32.000 --> 00:47:36.753
that kind of love that says good morning, may I help you?

410
00:47:36.753 --> 00:47:41.430
That kind of love.

411
00:47:41.430 --> 00:47:46.352
I read another cartoon

412
00:47:46.352 --> 00:47:51.352
about Charlie Brown and Lucy.

413
00:47:51.830 --> 00:47:56.780
Lucy said to Charlie Brown one morning,

414
00:47:56.780 --> 00:48:01.771
she said Charlie when I grow up I want to study people.

415
00:48:01.771 --> 00:48:06.587
I want to study, I want to know about people.

416
00:48:06.587 --> 00:48:08.780
And Charlie said, that's good Lucy

417
00:48:08.780 --> 00:48:11.570
that you love people, you want to know about them

418
00:48:11.570 --> 00:48:14.580
because you want to help them, that's good!

419
00:48:14.580 --> 00:48:17.790
And she said no Charlie, I don't love people.

420
00:48:17.790 --> 00:48:19.800
And I don't plan to help anybody.

421
00:48:19.800 --> 00:48:24.800
I'm just nosy and that's the reason I want to study people.

422
00:48:24.890 --> 00:48:29.890
I'm talking about love that's patient and kind,

423
00:48:30.460 --> 00:48:34.910
love, an approach to life whereby one recognizes

424
00:48:34.910 --> 00:48:38.047
all persons as children of God.

425
00:48:38.047 --> 00:48:40.908
And thus having infinite worth.

426
00:48:40.908 --> 00:48:43.870
This love called Christian love allows each person

427
00:48:43.870 --> 00:48:47.980
to develop what is unique in his own life.

428
00:48:47.980 --> 00:48:52.970
So often, we expect others to speak our language

429
00:48:53.840 --> 00:48:58.840
to accept our lifestyle, to respond the way we respond.

430
00:48:59.500 --> 00:49:04.097
Christian love means that we do not dominate others

431
00:49:04.097 --> 00:49:09.097
and we do not allow them to dominate us.

432
00:49:09.480 --> 00:49:14.435
It simply means that we don't allow other people to use us!

433
00:49:16.470 --> 00:49:19.978
To be possessed by Christian love,

434
00:49:19.978 --> 00:49:22.770
one is willing to allow each person to be

435
00:49:22.770 --> 00:49:27.400
the center of uniqueness, to make his own choice,

436
00:49:27.400 --> 00:49:32.400
have his own freedom, his own ideas.

437
00:49:32.690 --> 00:49:37.680
When Jesus said pray for an enemy,

438
00:49:37.680 --> 00:49:39.740
it was because this is the way

439
00:49:39.740 --> 00:49:43.107
we can learn to live together

440
00:49:43.107 --> 00:49:46.406
without violence to one another.

441
00:49:46.406 --> 00:49:48.690
Christian love means that

442
00:49:48.690 --> 00:49:53.666
fellowship becomes more important than having things.

443
00:49:55.300 --> 00:49:58.670
Jesus always placed persons first,

444
00:49:58.670 --> 00:50:02.640
they came before laws and institutions.

445
00:50:02.640 --> 00:50:06.125
This is not true always today.

446
00:50:06.125 --> 00:50:09.820
In most instances, the machine or the organization

447
00:50:09.820 --> 00:50:12.250
is more important than persons.

448
00:50:12.250 --> 00:50:15.780
Jesus said if any man would come after me,

449
00:50:15.780 --> 00:50:18.500
if any man would come after me, not laws,

450
00:50:18.500 --> 00:50:23.280
not organizations, not institutions.

451
00:50:24.300 --> 00:50:28.091
A third factor

452
00:50:28.091 --> 00:50:30.997
is service to others.

453
00:50:30.997 --> 00:50:34.038
As we lose ourselves

454
00:50:34.038 --> 00:50:36.832
in service to others,

455
00:50:36.832 --> 00:50:40.430
we actually find that which makes our own lives

456
00:50:40.430 --> 00:50:43.270
have meaning and purpose.

457
00:50:43.270 --> 00:50:46.000
As we give ourselves to God in Christ,

458
00:50:46.000 --> 00:50:50.833
we develop what is unique in ourselves.

459
00:50:50.833 --> 00:50:55.360
Jesus said one day

460
00:50:55.360 --> 00:51:00.216
to a crowd that had gathered around him,

461
00:51:00.216 --> 00:51:05.200
he said if you are kind to such little one in my name

462
00:51:07.040 --> 00:51:11.720
you not only please God, but you serve me.

463
00:51:11.720 --> 00:51:16.720
Service, Christian service is a matter of being kind

464
00:51:16.790 --> 00:51:19.440
to some little one.

465
00:51:19.440 --> 00:51:21.857
The more we serve others, the more we serve God

466
00:51:21.857 --> 00:51:25.510
and the more we develop our own lives.

467
00:51:25.510 --> 00:51:29.270
Service is not a matter of some great act or deed

468
00:51:29.270 --> 00:51:31.840
that makes the headlines.

469
00:51:31.840 --> 00:51:35.280
Service consists of small deeds from the heart

470
00:51:35.280 --> 00:51:40.091
day by day week after week and year after year.

471
00:51:40.091 --> 00:51:44.390
Service is a matter of not being a priest or a Levite.

472
00:51:44.390 --> 00:51:49.160
But service is a matter of being a good Samaritan.

473
00:51:49.160 --> 00:51:51.335
I'm sure

474
00:51:51.335 --> 00:51:53.470
that this is the type of action Jesus meant

475
00:51:53.470 --> 00:51:58.470
when he said whoever cares for his own safety is lost.

476
00:51:58.990 --> 00:52:01.243
But if a man will let himself be lost for my sake,

477
00:52:01.243 --> 00:52:04.600
he will find his true self.

478
00:52:04.600 --> 00:52:07.180
What will a man gain by winning the whole world

479
00:52:07.180 --> 00:52:10.615
at the cost of his true self?

480
00:52:10.615 --> 00:52:11.950
Yes,

481
00:52:11.950 --> 00:52:14.280
what is the meaning of life?

482
00:52:14.280 --> 00:52:17.936
Does life actually have a purpose?

483
00:52:17.936 --> 00:52:20.460
And my brothers and sisters,

484
00:52:20.460 --> 00:52:24.655
as we face the realities of today,

485
00:52:24.655 --> 00:52:28.706
Jesus gives us that dimension of truth.

486
00:52:28.706 --> 00:52:32.363
If you would follow me he says.

487
00:52:32.363 --> 00:52:37.130
That's no pretending, that's actually following him.

488
00:52:37.130 --> 00:52:40.510
You'll find life, you'll find purpose and meaning

489
00:52:40.510 --> 00:52:44.390
to all of your life that brings joy and inspiration.

490
00:52:44.390 --> 00:52:48.705
As you seek to live day by day.

491
00:52:48.705 --> 00:52:50.477
In the name of the father and the son

492
00:52:50.477 --> 00:52:54.020
and the holy spirit amen.

493
00:53:01.089 --> 00:53:03.589
(organ music)

494
00:55:56.060 --> 00:56:00.403
<v ->Let us remain standing while we affirm what we believe.</v>

495
00:56:01.830 --> 00:56:06.623
We believe in God who has created and is creating,

496
00:56:07.540 --> 00:56:10.310
who has come in the truly human Jesus

497
00:56:10.310 --> 00:56:13.053
to reconcile and make new,

498
00:56:13.940 --> 00:56:16.933
who works in us and others by the spirit.

499
00:56:18.040 --> 00:56:23.040
We trust God who calls us to be the church,

500
00:56:23.050 --> 00:56:26.390
to celebrate life and its fullness,

501
00:56:26.390 --> 00:56:31.390
to love and serve others, to seek justice and resist evil,

502
00:56:32.750 --> 00:56:37.020
to proclaim Jesus crucified and risen,

503
00:56:37.020 --> 00:56:39.123
our judge and our hope.

504
00:56:40.010 --> 00:56:44.630
In life, in death, in life beyond death,

505
00:56:44.630 --> 00:56:49.360
God is with us, we are not alone.

506
00:56:49.360 --> 00:56:51.780
Thanks be to God.

507
00:56:51.780 --> 00:56:53.173
The lord be with you.

508
00:56:54.348 --> 00:56:57.253
(crowd murmuring)
Let us pray and be seated.

509
00:57:06.870 --> 00:57:11.320
Almighty God
(baby cooing)

510
00:57:13.380 --> 00:57:18.230
Thou who art the wisdom of the ages,

511
00:57:18.230 --> 00:57:20.633
the strength of the moment,

512
00:57:23.280 --> 00:57:26.963
the source of salvation always.

513
00:57:29.760 --> 00:57:32.320
Thou with whom we journey the night

514
00:57:32.320 --> 00:57:36.307
to meet the dawn of a new day, we pray this prayer.

515
00:57:39.900 --> 00:57:41.943
For a world in turmoil,

516
00:57:43.710 --> 00:57:46.393
a nation rife with strife,

517
00:57:47.890 --> 00:57:51.220
communities and families with war with each other,

518
00:57:51.220 --> 00:57:53.133
we pray for peace.

519
00:57:56.705 --> 00:58:00.420
For a world, a nation, communities and families

520
00:58:01.640 --> 00:58:06.640
divided ideologically, divided politically, economically,

521
00:58:06.890 --> 00:58:09.093
racially and every other way,

522
00:58:10.210 --> 00:58:12.663
we pray for unity.

523
00:58:15.330 --> 00:58:17.163
For the hungry in Africa,

524
00:58:18.210 --> 00:58:20.573
for the hungry in America.

525
00:58:21.820 --> 00:58:25.503
For the hungry in Asia and throughout the world,

526
00:58:27.640 --> 00:58:30.810
we pray for a fair share

527
00:58:32.210 --> 00:58:34.513
of Earth's abundant supply.

528
00:58:37.630 --> 00:58:41.123
For the downtrodden and captive, the oppressed,

529
00:58:42.240 --> 00:58:46.153
we pray for uplifting and release.

530
00:58:48.900 --> 00:58:53.900
Amid economic hard times, we pray for the prosperity that

531
00:58:54.290 --> 00:58:56.403
only love can bring.

532
00:59:00.580 --> 00:59:05.580
For those who harbor feelings of inadequacy and loneliness,

533
00:59:08.700 --> 00:59:12.123
we pray dear God for wholeness and comfort.

534
00:59:15.810 --> 00:59:19.090
For those whose bodies and minds are filled

535
00:59:19.090 --> 00:59:23.753
and wracked with pain, we pray for healing!

536
00:59:27.810 --> 00:59:32.810
For the trials and challenges of daily living,

537
00:59:34.830 --> 00:59:39.003
we pray for strength and the will to endure.

538
00:59:42.400 --> 00:59:45.503
For the faithless we pray for faith.

539
00:59:48.490 --> 00:59:50.183
And for us all,

540
00:59:51.950 --> 00:59:54.223
we pray for mercy.

541
00:59:55.330 --> 00:59:59.113
God have mercy upon our souls.

542
01:00:01.500 --> 01:00:05.623
As we pray the prayer that Christ Jesus taught us to pray,

543
01:00:06.870 --> 01:00:11.870
our father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name

544
01:00:13.010 --> 01:00:17.320
thy kingdom come, thy will be done

545
01:00:17.320 --> 01:00:19.623
on Earth as it is in heaven.

546
01:00:20.510 --> 01:00:23.700
Give us this day our daily bread,

547
01:00:23.700 --> 01:00:27.960
and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those

548
01:00:27.960 --> 01:00:32.960
who trespass against us and lead us not into temptation

549
01:00:33.840 --> 01:00:38.750
but deliver us from evil for thine is the kingdom

550
01:00:38.750 --> 01:00:42.210
and the power and the glory

551
01:00:42.210 --> 01:00:43.463
forever, amen.

552
01:01:05.300 --> 01:01:07.800
(organ music)

553
01:08:24.950 --> 01:08:29.463
Oh great God giver of all life and all things,

554
01:08:30.660 --> 01:08:33.250
we bring these gifts to the altar

555
01:08:34.930 --> 01:08:38.483
as tokens of our thanksgiving,

556
01:08:39.790 --> 01:08:41.460
as an expression

557
01:08:43.230 --> 01:08:47.463
in honor of the many blessings bestowed upon us.

558
01:08:48.680 --> 01:08:49.723
Use them,

559
01:08:51.730 --> 01:08:52.733
bless them,

560
01:08:54.430 --> 01:08:56.020
consecrate them

561
01:08:56.960 --> 01:08:58.703
oh lord of hosts, amen.

562
01:09:03.360 --> 01:09:05.860
(organ music)

563
01:11:42.710 --> 01:11:45.453
And now my Christian friends,

564
01:11:46.880 --> 01:11:49.700
may the grace of God and the sweet communion

565
01:11:49.700 --> 01:11:53.210
of the holy spirit rest, rule,

566
01:11:53.210 --> 01:11:57.560
and abide with you all henceforth now

567
01:11:57.560 --> 01:11:59.093
and forevermore,

568
01:12:01.080 --> 01:12:01.913
amen.

569
01:12:06.780 --> 01:12:09.363
(organ music)