Dennis M. Campbell - "The Paradox of Kingship" (November 25, 1984)

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-	There are certain people, often poor,	0:05
	and unable to support themselves,	0:08
	to whom the queen	0:10
	provides grace and favor	0:13
	and free living for life.	0:16
	There is about monarchy, you see,	0:19
	inherent the idea of grace	0:22
	and favor.	0:25
	It is part of the job, if you will,	0:27
	of monarchy, the king or queen,	0:30
	to give grace and favor.	0:32
	And so it is in the great hymn,	0:35
	praise my soul, the King of heaven,	0:37
	where God is lifted up as King.	0:41
	One of the stanzas begins,	0:46
	praise him for his grace	0:50
	and favor.	0:54
	It is the nature of God and Jesus Christ	0:56
	to be gracious unto us.	1:00
	This, of course, is the paradox of kingship.	1:03
	The paradox of the Kingship of Christ	1:07
	is that precisely in the reign,	1:11
	comes also the service and love	1:16
	and of course with Christ, the passion and crucifixion.	1:20
	This text about Christ is King and judge,	1:23
	Matthew places just before the passion narratives,	1:28
	leading to the crucifixion and death of Christ.	1:32
	Christ the King becomes one who gives himself	1:37
	for those who need him	1:43
	in love and service.	1:47
	Thus, there is a paradox of Kingship.	1:50
	A paradox of death turns to victory.	1:54
	We don't know what the future will be.	1:59
	Here, on the last Sunday of the Christian year,	2:03
	the festival of Christ the King,	2:05
	we ponder the future and don't know it	2:07
	and it's probably a good thing that we don't.	2:10
	Oh, but then we do.	2:15
	Because this is the festival of Christ the King	2:18
	and we know that as Christians	2:21
	that the future is in the hands of God	2:23
	and the truth of the very creation,	2:27
	the whole world, the truth is that	2:31
	Christ's resurrection has given us	2:35
	the sign of truth and victory for God.	2:40
	So this text of judgment surprises us	2:46
	with its grace and favor.	2:51
	And causes us, in response,	2:56
	to do acts of love and service	2:59
	to all persons everywhere,	3:03
	without calculation	3:07
	or prior thinking.	3:10
	That's the good news of the festival of Christ the King.	3:14
	Amen.	3:20
-	Let us stand, as we affirm our faith together.	3:30
	I believe in God, the Father Almighty,	3:40
	maker of heaven and earth,	3:43
	and of all things visible and invisible.	3:45
	And in one Lord Jesus Christ,	3:49
	the Only Begotten Son of God,	3:51
	begotten of the Father before all worlds.	3:53
	God of God, Light of Light,	3:56
	very God of very God,	4:00
	begotten, not made,	4:02
	being of one substance with the Father,	4:04
	through whom all things were made.	4:07
	Who, for us men and for our salvation	4:09
	came down from heaven,	4:12
	and was crucified --	4:14
	(congregation continues speaking in unison)	4:16
	under Pontius Pilate,	4:22
	he suffered and was buried,	4:24
	and the third day he rose again	4:26
	according to the Scriptures.	4:28
	And ascended into heaven	4:30
	and seated on the right hand of the Father.	4:32
	And he shall come again with glory	4:35
	to judge both quick and the dead	4:37
	whose kingdom shall have no end.	4:40
	And I believe in the Holy Ghost,	4:43
	the Lord, the giver of life,	4:45
	who proceeded from the Father and the Son,	4:47
	who with the Father and the Son together	4:50
	is worshiped and glorified,	4:53
	who spake by the prophets.	4:55
	And I believe in one, holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church.	4:57
	I acknowledge one Baptism for the remission of sins	5:01
	and I look for the resurrection of the dead	5:05
	and the life of the world to come. Amen.	5:08
	(uplifting organ music)	5:14
	(chorus singing)	6:36
-	The Lord be with you.	8:44
-	And also with you.	8:45
-	Let us pray.	8:47
	Eternal God,	8:59
	architect and ruler of the universe,	9:02
	the instigator of life's paradoxes.	9:06
	We bow in prayer before thee,	9:10
	seeking a fresh awareness of thy reality	9:14
	and thy life-giving presence.	9:17
	In so doing, we offer these prayers for others	9:21
	that in our remembering of their needs,	9:25
	we may be reminded of our own neediness.	9:27
	While we stand and utter dependency upon thee,	9:31
	alongside and amongst the least of these.	9:34
	Let us pray for those who suffer in our world.	9:39
	For the masses of starving people	9:44
	in Ethiopia and Chad and Mozambique or any other nation	9:46
	that whatever language they may speak,	9:52
	their cries of anguish will be heard.	9:54
	For homeless people everywhere.	9:59
	For those who dwell in the streets of our nation's cities.	10:02
	For the thousands of refugees who roam the earth,	10:06
	searching for home.	10:09
	For runaway children who feel home	10:12
	is a hindrance to growth, more than a help.	10:15
	That they each may find a place of rest and understanding.	10:19
	For those who are bereaved over the loss of a loved one,	10:26
	over news of a debilitating illness,	10:31
	over memories of happier days gone by,	10:34
	that thy healing presence	10:38
	may restore them to fullness of life.	10:40
	Let us pray for those	10:45
	caught in the struggles of discernment.	10:46
	For those contemplating life changing decisions,	10:50
	grant them wisdom	10:54
	and a true sense of thy presence in their lives.	10:55
	For those who see to know thee,	10:59
	yet struggle to believe,	11:01
	grant them the courage necessary to take the leap of faith.	11:03
	For leaders of all nations,	11:09
	that they may understand and respond to the needs	11:11
	of all the world's people	11:15
	and lead us in the pathway of peace.	11:17
	Let us pray for all who feel unloved or unwanted.	11:21
	For those who seek to injure themselves or others.	11:27
	For those who indulge in material excesses,	11:33
	attempting to fill an interior void.	11:36
	For those who live within institutions,	11:40
	surrounded by people,	11:43
	yet lonely in unspeakable proportion.	11:46
	Heal these thy children, O God	11:49
	with an appreciation of the unique worth	11:53
	which thou hast bestowed upon them.	11:56
	These and the many unspoken concerns of this congregation,	12:01
	we lift unto thee, forgiving God,	12:04
	trusting in thy goodness,	12:09
	confident in thy power to heal,	12:11
	grateful that thou art love for all eternity.	12:14
	In the name of Jesus Christ, we pray. Amen.	12:20
	And now, let us offer our gifts	12:29
	and ourselves to God.	12:31
	(lively organ music)	13:00
	(chorus singing in a foreign language)	13:34
-	Gracious God and King,	20:48
	for the in-breaking of your Kingdom,	20:51
	for the sign of your rein among us,	20:53
	we give thanks.	20:55
	For the joy and exuberance of this time of worship,	20:57
	for the opportunity to give of ourselves and our gifts,	21:02
	to minister with you to the suffering of the world,	21:06
	we give thanks.	21:10
	Our Father, who art in Heaven,	21:12
	hallowed be thy name.	21:15
	Thy Kingdom come,	21:17
	thy will be done	21:18
	on earth as it is in Heaven.	21:20
	Give us this day our daily bread,	21:23
	and forgive us our trespasses	21:26
	as we forgive those who trespass against us	21:28
	and lead us not into temptation,	21:32
	but deliver us from evil.	21:34
	For thine is the Kingdom and the power and the glory,	21:36
	forever.	21:40
	Amen.	21:41
	(upbeat organ music)	21:44
	(chorus joins in singing)	22:13
-	Now may the grace of our Lord and Savior,	24:50
	Jesus Christ,	24:53
	the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit,	24:54
	go forth with you.	24:57
	(chorus singing)	25:03
	(upbeat organ music)	26:17

	(choir sings majestic music)	0:04
	♪ Alleluia ♪	0:47
	♪ Alleluia ♪	0:49
	♪ Alleluia ♪	0:51
	♪ Alleluia ♪	0:56
	♪ Alleluia ♪	0:59
	♪ Alleluia ♪	1:02
	♪ Alleluia ♪	1:04
	♪ Alleluia ♪	1:09
	♪ Alleluia ♪	1:16
	♪ Alleluia ♪	1:22
	(pipe organ playing regal music)	1:38
	(choir sings accompanied by pipe organ)	1:53
	(choir sings a variation of "A Mighty Fortress is Our God")	5:18
	♪ All creatures of our God and King ♪	6:14
	♪ Lift up your voice and with us sing, ♪	6:19
	♪ Alleluia ♪	6:23
	♪ Alleluia ♪	6:25
	♪ Now praise the Father, praise the Son ♪	6:28
	♪ Now praise the Spirit, three in one ♪	6:32
	♪ Oh praise him, oh praise him ♪	6:36
	♪ Alleluia ♪	6:40
	♪ Alleluia ♪	6:42
	♪ Alleluia ♪	6:44
	(group shuffling pages)	6:53
	(choir sings an upbeat song)	7:10
	(many footsteps walking)	9:01
	(pipe organ playing music)	9:06
	(footsteps walking)	9:44
	(congregation murmuring while pipe pipe organ plays music)	9:47
-	Welcome to all of you who worship with us	10:12
	this festival of Christ the King.	10:14
	You have been listening to the music of the	10:19
	Bralton High School Vocal Ensemble,	10:23
	Mr. Craig McBroom, director.	10:26
	We are delighted to have this group with us	10:29
	once again, leading us in our music in the chapel today.	10:31
	Our preacher for this hour of worship	10:37
	is Dean Dennis M. Campbell,	10:41
	Dean of the very fine Divinity School here at Duke.	10:45
	Dean Campbell is a	10:50
	widely renowned thinker and writer,	10:54
	scholar, and a good friend.	10:57
	And it is our pleasure to welcome him	11:00
	to our pulpit once again.	11:03
	He and his family are frequent worshipers here in the chapel	11:06
	and we appreciate his ministry	11:09
	and his lively leadership at the Divinity School.	11:12
	Whatever you're in store for today in the sermon,	11:16
	it will not be dull,	11:19
	because he is not.	11:21
	Let us continue our worship as we prepare ourselves	11:24
	for worship.	11:28
	(congregation murmuring)	11:29
	(pipe organ playing reverent music)	11:37
	(congregation sings with pipe organ)	12:17
-	When we gather to praise God,	14:24
	we remember that we are God's people	14:26
	and yet we are people who have preferred our wills	14:28
	to God's will.	14:32
	Therefore, let us confess our sin	14:34
	before God and one another.	14:38
	(congregation murmurs)	14:40
	Eternal and ever merciful God,	14:54
	(congregation joins officiant in prayer) we confess	14:57
	that often we have failed to be an obedient church.	14:59
	We have not done your will.	15:03
	We have broken your law.	15:06
	We have rebelled against your love.	15:08
	We have not loved our neighbors.	15:11
	We have not heard the cry of the needy.	15:14
	Forgive us, we pray.	15:17
	Free us for joyful obedience through Jesus Christ,	15:20
	our Lord, amen.	15:24
	Hear the good news.	15:29
	Christ died for us while we were yet sinners.	15:31
	That is God's own proof of his love toward us.	15:35
	In the name of Jesus Christ, you are forgiven.	15:40
-	In the name of Jesus Christ, we are forgiven.	15:44
	(pipe organ playing music)	15:50
	(congregation singing with pipe organ)	16:00
-	Let us pray together the prayer of illumination.	16:55
	Open our hearts and minds, (congregation joins officiant)	16:59
	oh God, by the power of your Holy Spirit,	17:01
	so that as the word is read and proclaimed,	17:06
	we might hear with joy what you say to us this day.	17:10
	Amen.	17:15
	(congregation murmurs)	17:15
	The first lesson comes to us	17:16
	from the prophetic Book of Ezekiel,	17:18
	the 34th chapter, verses 11 through 17, and 23 through 24.	17:21
	"For thus says the Lord God:	17:30
	"behold I, I myself will search for my sheep	17:33
	"and will seek them out.	17:38
	"As a shepherd seeks out his flock	17:40
	"when some of his sheep have been scattered abroad,	17:42
	"so will I seek out my sheep,	17:46
	"and I will rescue them from all places	17:49
	"where they have been scattered	17:52
	"on a day of clouds and thick darkness.	17:54
	"And I will bring them out from the peoples	17:58
	"and gather them from the countries,	18:01
	"and will bring them into their own land.	18:04
	"And I will feed them on the mountains of Israel,	18:07
	"by the fountains,	18:10
	"and in all the inhabited places of the country.	18:12
	"I will feed them with good pasture,	18:16
	"and upon the mountain heights of Israel	18:19
	"shall be their pasture there.	18:23
	"They shall lie down in good grazing land,	18:25
	"and on fat pasture they shall feed	18:29
	"on the mountains of Israel.	18:31
	"I myself will be the shepherd of my sheep,	18:34
	"and I will make them lie down,	18:38
	"says the Lord God.	18:40
	"I will seek the lost, and I will bring back the strayed,	18:42
	"and I will bind up the crippled,	18:47
	"and I will strengthen the weak,	18:49
	"and the fat and the strong I will watch over.	18:52
	"I will feed them in justice.	18:55
	"As for you, my flock, thus says the Lord God:	18:59
	"Behold, I judge between sheep and sheep,	19:03
	"rams and he-goats.	19:07
	"And I will set up over them one shepherd,	19:10
	"my servant David,	19:13
	"and he shall feed them:	19:15
	"he shall feed them and be their shepherd.	19:17
	"And I, the Lord, will be their God,	19:22
	"and my servant David shall be prince among them.	19:26
	"I the Lord have spoken."	19:30
	This is the reading of the first lesson.	19:33
	Praise be to God.	19:36
	(pipe organ playing music)	19:41
	♪ The earth is the Lord's for he made it ♪	19:52
	♪ Oh, come let us adore him ♪	19:57
	♪ Come, let us sing to the Lord ♪	20:04
	♪ Let us shout for joy to the rock of our salvation ♪	20:08
	♪ Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving ♪	20:14
	♪ And raise a loud shout to him with psalm ♪	20:19
	♪ The earth is the Lord's for he made it ♪	20:25
	♪ Oh, come let us adore him ♪	20:29
	♪ For the Lord is a great God ♪	20:37
	♪ And a great King above all gods ♪	20:41
	♪ In his hands are the caverns of the earth ♪	20:46
	♪ And the heights of the hills are his also ♪	20:50
	♪ The earth is the Lord's for he made it ♪	20:57
	♪ Oh, come let us adore him ♪	21:01
	♪ The sea is his, for he made it ♪	21:09
	♪ And his hands have molded the dry land ♪	21:13
	♪ Come, let us bow down, and bend the knee ♪	21:19
	♪ And kneel before the Lord our Maker ♪	21:24
	♪ The earth is the Lord's for he made it ♪	21:30
	♪ Oh, come let us adore him ♪	21:34
	♪ For he is our God ♪	21:42
	♪ And we are the people of his pasture ♪	21:45
	♪ And the sheep of his hand ♪	21:48
	♪ Oh, that today you would hearken to his voice ♪	21:52
	♪ The earth is the Lord's for he made it ♪	21:59
	♪ Oh, come let us adore him ♪	22:04
	(congregation murmurs)	22:14
-	The second reading comes from	22:22
	Paul's first letter to the church in Corinth.	22:23
	The text is 1st Corinthians, chapter 15,	22:26
	verses 20 through 28.	22:30
	"But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead,	22:33
	"the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.	22:37
	"For as by a man came death,	22:42
	"by a Man has come also the resurrection of the dead.	22:44
	"For as in Adam all die,	22:50
	"so also in Christ shall all be made alive.	22:53
	"But each in his own order:	22:57
	"Christ the firstfruits, then at his coming,	23:00
	"those who belong to Christ.	23:03
	"Then comes the end,	23:07
	"when he delivers the kingdom to God the Father,	23:09
	"after destroying every rule and every authority and power.	23:12
	"For he must reign until he has put all his enemies	23:17
	"under his feet.	23:21
	"The last enemy to be destroyed is death.	23:23
	"For God has put all things in subjection under his feet.	23:27
	"But when it says	23:32
	"all things are put in subjection under him,	23:34
	"it is plain	23:37
	"that he is excepted who put all things under him.	23:38
	"When all things are subjected to him,	23:43
	"then the Son himself will also be subjected to him	23:45
	"who put all things under him,	23:51
	"that God may be everything to everyone."	23:53
	Thus ends the second lesson.	23:58
	(congregation murmurs)	24:01
	(footsteps walking)	24:07
	(pipe organ, drums, and chimes play)	24:24
	(choir sings triumphant music accompanied by instruments)	24:27
-	The gospel lesson for this festival day of Christ the King	26:27
	comes from Saint Matthew in the 25th chapter,	26:35
	verses 31 through 46.	26:39
	"When the Son of Man comes in his glory,	26:45
	"and all the angels with him,	26:49
	"then he will sit on his glorious throne.	26:52
	"Before him will be gathered all the nations,	26:56
	"and he will separate them from one another,	27:00
	"as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.	27:03
	"And he will place the sheep at his right hand,	27:08
	"but the goats at his left.	27:12
	"Then the King shall say to those at his right hand,	27:16
	"Come, O blessed of my Father,	27:19
	"inherit the kingdom prepared for you	27:22
	"from the foundation of the world:	27:25
	"for I was hungry and you gave me food;	27:29
	"I was thirsty and you gave me drink;	27:34
	"I was a stranger and you welcomed me;	27:39
	"I was naked and you clothed me;	27:43
	"I was sick and you visited me;	27:45
	"I was in prison and you came to me.	27:49
	"Then the righteous will answer him,	27:54
	"Lord, when did we see thee hungry and feed thee,	27:57
	"or thirsty and give thee drink?	28:02
	"And when did we see thee a stranger and welcome thee,	28:06
	"or naked and clothe thee?	28:10
	"And when did we see thee sick, or in prison,	28:13
	"and visit thee?	28:17
	"And the King will answer them,	28:19
	"Truly, I say to you,	28:22
	"as you did it to one of the least of these my brethren,	28:24
	"you did it to me.	28:28
	"Then he will say to those at his left hand,	28:31
	"depart from me, you cursed,	28:34
	"into the eternal fire prepared	28:37
	"for the devil and his angels:	28:40
	"for I was hungry and you gave me no food;	28:42
	"and I was thirsty and you gave me no drink;	28:47
	"and I was a stranger and you did not welcome me,	28:52
	"naked and you did not clothe me,	28:57
	"sick and in prison and you did not visit me.	29:00
	"Then they also will answer,	29:07
	"Lord, when did we see thee hungry or thirsty or a stranger	29:09
	"or naked or sick or in prison,	29:14
	"and did not minister to thee?	29:18
	"Then he will answer them,	29:22
	"Truly, I say to you, as you did it not	29:24
	"to one of the least of these,	29:29
	"you did it not to me.	29:31
	"And they will go away into eternal punishment,	29:35
	"but the righteous into eternal life."	29:40
	Thus endeth the reading from the holy gospel.	29:47
	May God's blessing be unto us,	29:51
	that we may rightly hear and understand	29:54
	this holy word.	29:58
	Let us pray.	30:00
	Come, Holy Spirit,	30:04
	heavenly dove,	30:05
	with all thy quickening powers.	30:08
	Kindle a flame of sacred love	30:11
	in these cold hearts of ours.	30:16
	Amen.	30:22
	I welcome you to this great service of worship	30:26
	and the last Sunday of the Christian year.	30:31
	This is the last Sunday in the season of Pentecost.	30:36
	And it is also the Sunday known to the Christian church	30:41
	as the festival of Christ the King.	30:46
	Now, it may not,	30:50
	indeed, it probably has not occurred to you	30:52
	that this is the last Sunday of the year.	30:55
	But for the Christian church,	31:00
	there is a calendar other than that of the civil calendar,	31:04
	the Julian calendar,	31:09
	by which we live in our secular life.	31:11
	There is the calendar of the Christian church.	31:16
	The church year, which begins at Advent,	31:19
	and next Sunday is the first Sunday of Advent.	31:24
	And in the Christian calendar we in the church	31:29
	rehearse the saving life, death, and resurrection	31:33
	of Christ, our Lord.	31:38
	The elements of that Christian year include anticipation,	31:40
	birth, life,	31:45
	passion,	31:48
	death, resurrection,	31:49
	the birth of the church,	31:52
	and the life of the church in this world.	31:54
	And the celebration of that Christian year	31:59
	ends today, with the celebration and recognition	32:02
	of the coming of Christ in his glory,	32:09
	when, according to the scriptures,	32:13
	Christ will be enthroned	32:16
	and will reign in the end times	32:19
	over all things.	32:23
	So it is that this festival of Christ the King	32:25
	celebrates the end times, and thus the end	32:29
	of the Christian year.	32:35
	And it causes us to pause and ponder anew	32:38
	what the future will hold.	32:42
	Men and women have always been fascinated with eternity.	32:48
	The question, where will you spend eternity,	32:54
	jumps out at us from this gospel lesson,	32:57
	which is the lesson for Christ the King.	33:00
	Couple of years ago,	33:04
	I was up at Princeton Theological Seminary	33:06
	to give some lectures,	33:09
	and in the foyer as you go into the refectory there,	33:10
	there is a large bulletin board	33:15
	on which students and anyone may post notices.	33:16
	There was a sign tacked up in large letters,	33:20
	blue on white,	33:24
	"Where will you spend eternity?"	33:26
	Now at Princeton Seminary there is a required course	33:30
	in Greek that all first year students must pass	33:34
	before they can move on in their training.	33:38
	And some first year student had penciled in under the sign,	33:41
	"Where will you spend eternity:	33:45
	"Right now, it looks like Greek 101."	33:48
	(congregation laughs)	33:52
	We are always fascinated with this question of eternity,	33:54
	and that's what today is about,	33:59
	and that's what this text is about,	34:00
	for here is this last judgment	34:03
	parable that Jesus tells,	34:06
	and that Matthew puts	34:08
	just before the beginning of the Passion.	34:10
	Here is the picture of Christ in his glory enthroned	34:14
	with all the angels,	34:19
	and coming before him are all of the nations of the world	34:21
	to be judged, the scripture tells us,	34:25
	as a shepherd separating sheep from goats.	34:28
	It's a difficult text.	34:34
	It's not one I would have gladly chosen to preach on,	34:35
	but it's one, the study of which has been profitable to me.	34:40
	And it's one which deserves our careful attention.	34:45
	And it includes a number of ideas	34:49
	appropriate to us on this great festival of Christ the King.	34:52
	The first is that for the Christian church,	34:58
	there is the understanding theologically,	35:01
	which jumps out at us in this text,	35:04
	that Christ has universal significance.	35:07
	In the Eastern Church, Eastern Christianity,	35:12
	one of the favorite icons	35:16
	is that of Christ Pantocrator.	35:18
	King of everything, if you will.	35:23
	Ruler of all.	35:26
	Christ enthroned with crown and scepter,	35:29
	and that's one of the images for this day.	35:32
	It reminds us, of course,	35:36
	that Christianity has a world vision,	35:37
	a sense of the wholeness of this world,	35:41
	and the affirmation that the entirety of this world	35:44
	and all of the created order	35:48
	was made by God	35:51
	and is under God's dominion.	35:53
	And so all the world is related to Christ.	35:57
	This is, of course, a Christian theological statement,	36:01
	and does not imply the imposition of Christ on the world.	36:05
	It is a vision that all of the world is in fact,	36:10
	from its beginning,	36:15
	under the rule of Christ.	36:18
	Now of course,	36:22
	the question that comes from this understanding	36:25
	and from this text,	36:28
	and that has been one	36:31
	that's puzzled us through the centuries:	36:32
	what, then, does it take to inherit eternal life?	36:35
	I have a friend who's the pastor of a church	36:41
	where there is a very wealthy elderly man	36:44
	who's pondering his last days.	36:48
	And asking this question.	36:51
	And in response to it, at one point he asked my friend,	36:54
	"Do you suppose if I leave my entire estate,	36:58
	and it's a substantial one,	37:02
	to the church, I'll go directly to heaven?"	37:04
	My friend thought a minute.	37:09
	He obviously was well trained as a theologian	37:11
	and so didn't answer quickly,	37:14
	but also as an effective pastor,	37:17
	knew the church could use the money,	37:19
	and he quickly answered,	37:21
	"It's worth a try."	37:22
	(congregation laughs)	37:24
	What will it take?	37:30
	What's the criteria of judgment?	37:32
	What's the criterion of judgment?	37:36
	And then we see that Jesus answers that question	37:40
	in this passage as reported by Matthew.	37:43
	The answer is love and service to all.	37:47
	Not triumphalism.	37:52
	This is not the notion of Christ imposed on the world.	37:54
	It is not the notion of subjection.	37:59
	Not that kind of rule.	38:03
	Now we see that the concern for end times	38:06
	is tied up with Christ's whole program	38:12
	of love and service to all.	38:16
	You know this question of end times,	38:22
	of eternity, of apocalypticism,	38:25
	or eschatology,	38:29
	often becomes popularized in ways that are unhappy.	38:32
	Sometimes it implies horrors.	38:39
	And sometimes it implies quietism.	38:44
	We all perhaps remember that this question even	38:48
	showed its head in the presidential debates this year,	38:52
	of all places.	38:56
	What does a vision of end times mean?	38:59
	Well, it does not mean horrors or quietism.	39:03
	We see instead that it means love and service.	39:09
	Christ's kingdom is both now and not yet.	39:15
	In Genesis there is that wonderful story of Abraham	39:23
	sitting at the door of his tent under the oaks of Mamre	39:27
	on a hot day, and from afar off he see three men coming.	39:31
	He doesn't know them, they're strangers to them,	39:36
	but as they approach, Abram stands and says,	39:39
	"Come on.	39:42
	"It's hot.	39:44
	"You need to be refreshed and have some hospitality."	39:45
	And he calls one his servants and sends him out	39:49
	to slaughter a calf.	39:52
	And he asks his wife Sarah to take three portions	39:54
	of the finest grain and make it into cakes.	39:58
	And those three men are treated in a splendid manner.	40:03
	The best eastern hospitality.	40:08
	Later, they come to tell him	40:13
	the good news that he and his wife Sarah	40:18
	are to have a son.	40:22
	In fact, we later learn that they are angels of the Lord,	40:24
	bringing the news of the Lord	40:29
	of a great event which is to come,	40:32
	the birth a son to Abraham,	40:35
	and the whole future of Israel.	40:38
	He didn't know who they were,	40:43
	but he treated them with hospitality.	40:46
	And of course, Isaac, the son,	40:50
	is foretold.	40:55
	This idea of hospitality to strangers,	40:58
	to the unloved, the unwanted, the outcast, the oppressed,	41:03
	is deep within western consciousness.	41:10
	The Grimm Brothers' fairy tales has that marvelous	41:13
	story of the shriveled up and ugly dwarf	41:17
	who comes into a town and needs help,	41:21
	both shelter and food,	41:25
	and he goes to the mayor and is turned away.	41:27
	The mayor is above this.	41:30
	He goes to the church and is turned away.	41:32
	He is too odd.	41:35
	And he finally ends up at a very modest dwelling	41:37
	in a little cottage at the edge of town,	41:40
	and a very old couple,	41:43
	who are very poor take him in.	41:45
	And later, as you perhaps know the story,	41:48
	when the town is destroyed in terrible earthquake and fire,	41:51
	that couple is spared because, in fact,	41:56
	that dwarf was an angel.	42:00
	William Blake, the great English poet, in his poem	42:04
	"Holy Thursday" observes,	42:08
	"Then cherish pity,	42:11
	lest you drive an angel from your door."	42:13
	And the New Testament Book of Hebrews:	42:19
	"Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers,	42:22
	for thereby	42:27
	some have entertained angels unawares."	42:29
	Angels unawares.	42:35
	You see, out of our text today,	42:38
	what the people said to Christ.	42:40
	"When did we see thee?"	42:44
	It's a surprise, if you will.	42:46
	Unawares.	42:49
	This is love and service without calculation.	42:51
	That's the point.	42:56
	No calculation.	42:57
	One standard of love for all.	43:00
	Everywhere.	43:04
	Without regard to status or wealth or fame.	43:06
	Those are not the matters taken unto account in judgment.	43:11
	It's easy, isn't it, to be nice to those who are important	43:17
	or rich, or impressive.	43:22
	Oh, but the point here is	43:26
	to be kind to the stranger,	43:30
	to the oppressed, to the marginal persons.	43:32
	For we never know.	43:37
	We don't have to be great, you see, to do heroic acts.	43:38
	The simple and the simplest.	43:43
	And, as our text makes clear,	43:47
	it does not even have to be done in the name of Christ.	43:50
	There is an important openness in this text.	43:55
	An openness noted by the commentators on it.	44:00
	Mercy to the oppressed is not calculated,	44:05
	and it does not even have to be done	44:10
	clearly in the name of Christ,	44:13
	but in fact, it is received by Christ.	44:17
	"When you did it to the least,	44:22
	"you did it to me."	44:24
	Saint Francis of Assisi tells the story of his own youth,	44:26
	when he was well born and rich,	44:31
	and comfortable and high-spirited.	44:36
	He was out riding one day on a horse,	44:38
	and he came across a leper who in his deformity	44:41
	and ugliness repulsed Francis.	44:45
	But suddenly Francis was struck by compassion.	44:48
	And he got off the horse and put his arms around the leper.	44:52
	And later Francis tells us that in his mind's eye	44:58
	that leper's face turned to the face of Christ.	45:02
	"When you have done it to one of the least of these."	45:07
	Without calculation.	45:11
	Oh, then you see the great thing about this text	45:14
	is the surprise.	45:18
	We all love a surprise.	45:19
	And here is the great surprise of Jesus.	45:21
	Oh, we did not know.	45:24
	And that's just the point.	45:26
	There is here a divine reversal of values.	45:28
	Christ the King brings surprises.	45:32
	The pious and the religious may be surprised.	45:37
	Those who unknowingly have done	45:43
	acts and deeds of love and service	45:46
	may also be surprised.	45:49
	Hospitality to strangers.	45:52
	Suddenly the stranger turns out to be someone else.	45:56
	That little trick, that surprise,	46:00
	fascinates us,	46:04
	doesn't it?	46:06
	And isn't it a kind of trick or surprise, then,	46:08
	that in attention to this text,	46:12
	real attention to this text,	46:16
	suddenly the word of judgment	46:18
	turns out to be a word of good news	46:23
	and grace.	46:28
	Suddenly the word of judgment	46:30
	turns out to be good news and grace.	46:33
	There's a tendency in this text to moralize.	46:38
	I might've stopped the sermon a little bit ago,	46:41
	maybe you with I had,	46:44
	and simply have moralized this.	46:45
	You'd better be good, because there's going to be judgment.	46:51
	But the element of surprise enters in.	46:57
	If I had, I wouldn't have been an adequate interpreter	47:00
	of the text.	47:03
	Because in fact, there is good news here,	47:04
	that in Christ the King,	47:09
	all are welcomed who love and serve.	47:13
	It is not then finally what we do,	47:19
	but it is Christ's grace which precedes.	47:23
	Few years ago, we were at Hampton Court	47:30
	in England outside of London.	47:33
	And we noticed some apartments,	47:36
	lovely old buildings adjacent--	47:38

Item Info

Title:

Dennis M. Campbell - "The Paradox of Kingship" (November 25, 1984)

Description:

Sermon start time: (Part 1): 00:05. Sermon end time: (Part 2) 47:42.
Christ the King Sunday, which is the last Sunday in the Christian calendar, raises questions of the end times and the final judgment. Yet, the passage from Matthew 25 regarding the sheep and the goats presents a paradox in Christ's kingly judgment, namely, that it is characterized by service and love. (Abstract created by Duke Divinity School staff.)
Key quotation: “The paradox of the Kingship of Christ is that precisely in the reign comes also the service and love.”

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https://idn.duke.edu/ark:/87924/r43r0q75t

Date:

November 25, 1984

Speaker:

Campbell, Dennis M.

Liturgical Calendar:

Christ the King Sunday

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Chapter and Verse:

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Contributor:

Duke University. Chapel

Identifier:

UA.17.01.0003 CS-0238
ref7997_f87
uachapelsermaud
duke:320431
dcrau001226
ark:/87924/r43r0q75t
0212e5fe-d222-42d4-805f-8a67c2517265

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Dennis M. Campbell - "The Paradox of Kingship" (November 25, 1984)

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