Robert T. Young - "For God so Loved the World" (January 25, 1981)

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	(high pitched beeping)	0:03
	(soft organ music)	0:13
	(humming)	6:20
	(chattering)	6:22
	♪ I will greatly rejoice in the Lord ♪	6:28
	♪ For my soul shall exalt in my God ♪	6:33
	♪ For he has clothed me ♪	6:38
	♪ With the garments of salvation ♪	6:40
	♪ He has covered me ♪	6:45
	♪ With the robe of righteousness ♪	6:48
	♪ As a bridegroom, as a bridegroom ♪	6:53
	♪ Decks himself in the robe, decks himself in the robe ♪	6:56
	♪ As a bride adorns herself with her jewels ♪	7:00
	♪ Adorns herself with her jewels ♪	7:06
	♪ With her jewels ♪	7:11
	♪ For as the earth springs forth its sprouts ♪	7:18
	♪ And as a garden causes what is sown ♪	7:23
	♪ And as a garden causes what is sown to spring up ♪	7:27
	♪ To spring up ♪	7:32
	♪ So the Lord God, the Lord God, the Lord ♪	7:36
	♪ Will cause righteousness and praise ♪	7:41
	♪ Will cause righteousness and praise ♪	7:45
	♪ To spring forth ♪	7:49
	♪ To spring forth ♪	7:52
	♪ To spring forth ♪	7:54
	♪ Before all our nations ♪	7:57
	(soft organ music)	8:11
	(muffled choir singing)	8:34
-	Be seated.	12:09
	We have been unwilling to be faithful.	12:16
	We have failed to take seriously	12:20
	our responsibility to other persons,	12:22
	and we ignore the tragedy of human separation.	12:25
	Hear then, oh God, our prayer for forgiveness.	12:30
	Oh God, we depart from what has gone	12:36
	for better or for worse.	12:39
	We strike upon the hopeful opportunities	12:42
	of the days yet to come.	12:45
	However, let us not forget our mistakes of the past.	12:47
	Deliver us, Lord, from the arrogance of prejudice,	12:52
	the delusion of pride,	12:56
	the extravagance of greed,	12:59
	the pity of uninvolvement.	13:02
	Turn not away from us, oh Lord,	13:04
	in the presence of our iniquities.	13:07
	Forgive us, renew us, inspire us,	13:10
	that we may evolve maturely beyond	13:15
	our crooked paths of yesterday.	13:17
	This we pray through Jesus Christ our Lord.	13:21
	Amen.	13:25
	May Almighty God,	13:46
	who caused light to shine out of darkness,	13:48
	shine in our hearts,	13:51
	cleansing us from all our sins	13:53
	and restoring us to the light	13:56
	of the knowledge of God's glory	13:59
	in the face of Jesus Christ our Lord.	14:01
	Amen.	14:05
	Let us give thanks for God is good	14:08
	and God's love is everlasting.	14:10
	Thanks be to God	14:14
	whose love has made us.	14:16
	Thanks be to God	14:17
	whose mercy forgives us.	14:20
	Thanks be to God	14:22
	whose promise secures us.	14:24
	Amen.	14:27
	We welcome you this morning	14:29
	to the university service of worship	14:30
	here at Duke University Chapel.	14:33
	It is a day of national rejoicing	14:36
	as we welcome home	14:38
	our American hostages from Iran.	14:40
	And we surely join in prayer and thought	14:44
	with these 52 Americans as they return home,	14:46
	and with their families,	14:51
	as somehow they begin now to begin now to,	14:53
	begin to face the future and what lies ahead.	14:56
	Our prayers, our love and thoughts	15:00
	surround them in this reentry time.	15:03
	You will note in the bulletin that	15:07
	the American Cross Bloodmobile	15:09
	will be here tomorrow on campus.	15:12
	We invite you to come and participate.	15:15
	It will be in the chapel basement area,	15:18
	Monday and Tuesday.	15:20
	Please come by if you can be a possible donor	15:23
	to this worthy cause.	15:26
	You will also note that we are receiving	15:29
	applications for Student Preacher Sunday	15:32
	to be March the 1st of this year.	15:35
	We invite any student, undergraduate or graduate,	15:39
	to consider applying for this opportunity	15:43
	to preach in Duke Chapel.	15:46
	You are welcome to submit an application.	15:48
	We will schedule an interview for you	15:51
	and we look forward to meeting with some of you	15:53
	for this very special occasion.	15:56
-	Let us pray.	16:14
	Oh Lord our God,	16:17
	you have given your Word	16:19
	to be a lamp unto our feet	16:21
	and a light unto our path.	16:24
	Grant us grace to receive your truth	16:27
	in faith and love.	16:29
	That by it, we may be prepared	16:32
	unto every good word and work,	16:34
	to the glory of your name.	16:37
	Through Jesus Christ our Lord, amen.	16:40
	The Old Testament lesson is from Isaiah chapter nine,	16:46
	verses two through seven.	16:50
	The people who walked in darkness	16:54
	have seen a great light.	16:56
	Those who dwelled in a land of deep darkness	16:59
	on them has light shined.	17:02
	Thou hast multiplied the nation.	17:06
	Thou hast increased its joy.	17:08
	They rejoice before thee as with joy at the harvest.	17:11
	As men rejoice when they divide the spoil.	17:15
	For the yoke of his burden	17:20
	and the rod for his shoulder,	17:22
	the rod of his oppressor,	17:24
	thou hast broken as in the day of Midian.	17:26
	For every boot of the trampling warrior in battle tumult,	17:31
	and every garment rolled in blood	17:35
	will be burned as fuel for the fire.	17:38
	For unto us a child is born.	17:42
	To us, a Son is given.	17:46
	And the government will be upon his shoulder.	17:49
	And his name will be called Wonderful Counselor,	17:52
	Mighty God, Everlasting Father,	17:57
	Prince of Peace.	18:01
	Of the increase of his government and of peace,	18:04
	there will be no end.	18:07
	Upon the throne of David	18:09
	and over his kingdom to establish it.	18:11
	To uphold it with justice and with righteousness.	18:15
	From this time forth and forevermore.	18:20
	The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this.	18:24
	Here ends the reading from the Old Testament.	18:28
	Amen.	18:31
	(soft organ music)	18:42
	(muffled choir singing)	18:46
-	Will the congregation please rise	20:20
	for the reading of the New Testament?	20:22
	The Gospel is from John chapter three,	20:28
	verses 16 through 21.	20:31
	For God so loved the world	20:35
	that he gave his only Son,	20:38
	that whoever believes in him	20:40
	should not perish,	20:43
	but should have eternal life.	20:45
	For God sent the Son into the world,	20:48
	not to condemn the world,	20:50
	but that the world might be saved through him.	20:53
	He who believes in him is not condemned.	20:57
	He who does not believe is condemned already	21:02
	because he has not believed	21:07
	that the light has come into the world.	21:09
	And men love darkness rather than light	21:12
	because their deeds were evil.	21:17
	For everyone who does evil, hates the light,	21:19
	and does not come to the light.	21:23
	Lest his deeds should be exposed.	21:26
	But he who does what is true comes to the light.	21:29
	That it may be clearly seen	21:33
	that his deeds have been wrought in God.	21:36
	Here ends the reading from the Gospel lesson.	21:40
	Amen.	21:43
	(soft organ music)	21:45
	(muffled choir singing)	21:51
-	In the name of the Lord our God,	22:42
	who creates us,	22:47
	who through Jesus Christ redeems us,	22:51
	and who through the power and presence	22:56
	of the Holy Spirit sustains us.	22:58
	Amen.	23:04
	In the Old Testament and the New Testament,	23:08
	in our Holy Bible,	23:14
	in our holy Scriptures and what we Christians	23:18
	call the written Word of God,	23:22
	there are many beautiful, power-filled,	23:25
	unforgettable passages.	23:31
	Passages that I would call,	23:33
	"passages that preach."	23:36
	You can recall them.	23:40
	1 Corinthians 13.	23:43
	The 23rd Psalm.	23:46
	Isaiah 6:1 through 8.	23:50
	Mark 16, where the words,	23:53
	"He is not here, he has risen" are found.	23:56
	Luke chapter 15.	24:01
	John chapter one, verses one through 14.	24:05
	The eighth chapter of the book of Romans.	24:10
	Revelation 21 and 22.	24:13
	Passages that preach.	24:16
	But perhaps the best known, the best remembered,	24:19
	the most often repeated passage	24:22
	in all of Scripture is John 3:16.	24:24
	But as I look at that this morning	24:27
	and ask you to look at it with me,	24:29
	I want us always to keep John 3:16	24:31
	and John 3:17 together.	24:34
	For one feeling I have is that when	24:39
	we think of John 3:16 only,	24:41
	we miss what may be an even greater message,	24:43
	which is found in John 3:17.	24:46
	"For God so loved the world	24:48
	"that he gave his only Son.	24:53
	"That whoever believes in him should not perish,	24:57
	"but have eternal life.	24:59
	"For God sent the Son into the world,	25:01
	"not to condemn the world,	25:06
	"but that the world through him,	25:11
	"might be saved."	25:14
	So for the next few times that I preach,	25:20
	I want to look at some of these passages that preach.	25:24
	These passages that we all know.	25:28
	That have well known, ready made, memorable	25:31
	messages in them.	25:35
	Passages that you could preach about,	25:37
	I have an idea, just as well as I could.	25:39
	Because I feel that now is the time	25:43
	for us within the Christian church	25:46
	to get back to the basics,	25:48
	to see what are our roots,	25:49
	to see what is the faith,	25:51
	what are the passages,	25:53
	what are the words that have made us	25:54
	and that shape us and our lives in Christ.	25:57
	It's like Emil Brunner,	26:03
	the great late Swiss theologian wrote	26:04
	at the beginning of World War II,	26:08
	when he and his people, his country,	26:11
	were threatened,	26:14
	and they knew not what lay ahead.	26:15
	They're drops from everyone	26:21
	of the great words of the Bible.	26:24
	A particularly clear light	26:27
	upon the events of time.	26:30
	We, he wrote in the early 1940s,	26:35
	"we can understand what the issues are today	26:38
	"only when we place ourselves at the highest height.	26:41
	"We can recognize what God requires of us today	26:46
	"only when we reflect upon	26:50
	"the deepest foundations of our faith."	26:51
	He who wants to build a solid house	26:55
	must lay his foundation deep.	26:57
	Superficial things of which there are indeed enough	27:01
	will not really be of service to us today.	27:05
	We want to build our house upon rock,	27:09
	upon God's own Word,	27:11
	upon Jesus Christ and everything that can make	27:13
	God's Word great to us,	27:16
	and that can make Jesus Christ	27:18
	the center of our thinking and our willing.	27:20
	That and that alone is now truly relevant to the times.	27:25
	So for the sermons I preach the next few times,	27:30
	I want to concentrate on those passages	27:33
	that can make God's Word great	27:35
	and can make Jesus Christ	27:38
	the center of our thinking and our willing.	27:41
	Today, John 3:16 through 21.	27:46
	And here we see in just a few words	27:51
	the fullness of God's divine mind	27:54
	and God's divine plan.	27:57
	John wants us to know very simply	28:01
	that God is love.	28:04
	And the first result of God being love	28:09
	is that God sends his Son.	28:11
	And the second result of God's being love	28:16
	is that God is going to save	28:19
	the whole world.	28:22
	John 3:16 or John 3:16 and 17	28:28
	is everybody's text.	28:32
	This is everybody's favorite passage, or one of them.	28:34
	This is the verse everybody knows and remembers.	28:38
	This is the Gospel in miniature,	28:41
	as Martin Luther once said.	28:43
	All of the Bible's message in just a few lines.	28:45
	The entire Word, if you will,	28:50
	in just a few words.	28:52
	And here, John is summarizing Jesus' message.	28:56
	Here John is also summarizing his own message	29:00
	that he writes in the Gospel.	29:04
	If you read carefully the entire Gospel of John	29:07
	all the way through,	29:10
	there's certain words and phrases	29:11
	that occur over and over.	29:13
	Words and phrases that obviously are John's favorite	29:14
	very special words.	29:18
	And so here, in just six verses,	29:21
	John uses his most important	29:24
	and his choice words several times.	29:26
	He uses them to pull all together here	29:30
	in just a few lines.	29:33
	Surely to emphasize for us	29:36
	that this really is at the heart and soul	29:38
	of the message that God and Jesus and he,	29:41
	John, have to give to the world.	29:45
	For then and for now.	29:48
	Words like "love."	29:50
	"Agape."	29:54
	Which occurs 37 times in the Gospel of John.	29:55
	Words like "the world", (speaking foreign language).	30:00
	Words like "the only son."	30:06
	Words like "believes."	30:11
	Words that come from John like "eternal life"	30:17
	or "be saved."	30:22
	Surely this is the gospel in miniature,	30:27
	this is God's word of home, of assurance, of love,	30:29
	of salvation, of new life for all persons	30:32
	given in just a few lines and what a passage,	30:36
	what a message, what beauty, what a word.	30:41
	Thank God for this incomparable word so rich,	30:45
	so rare,	30:49
	indeed, so unforgettable.	30:51
	These words, if we notice, are put in the context of	30:55
	John's gospel just after the story of Nicodemus.	30:58
	Nicodemus, the ruler of the Jews,	31:02
	the one who came from the Pharisees,	31:05
	who came to Jesus by night, marveling at all the things	31:06
	that Jesus did and exclaiming that surely Jesus was	31:10
	a teacher come from God for no one can do these things	31:14
	that you do, he said to Jesus,	31:18
	unless that one is from God.	31:20
	Jesus then tells Nicodemus that mysterious word	31:24
	that one must be born again in order to enter	31:28
	into the kingdom of God.	31:32
	Nicodemus, as most of us would, would naturally responds	31:34
	and wants to know how can one be born again,	31:39
	can one possibly enter a second time	31:42
	into one's mother's womb and be born again?	31:45
	And Jesus replies, "unless one is born of water	31:51
	"and the Spirit, one cannot enter the kingdom of God."	31:56
	And then he goes on in just a few words to explain	32:02
	to Nicodemus what he means about	32:05
	being born of water and the Spirit and being born anew	32:07
	and he finishes his words to Nicodemus with these words:	32:12
	"as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness,	32:15
	"so must the Son of man be lifted up,	32:18
	"that whoever believes in him,	32:22
	"may have eternal life."	32:25
	Now, those are Jesus' words.	32:32
	I think that John then comes on here	32:36
	with his own words because what Jesus has	32:38
	just told Nicodemus is so important	32:40
	that John wants to be sure that all,	32:44
	all persons hear,	32:48
	and see and understand,	32:50
	and comprehend and believe	32:52
	and thus have eternal life.	32:58
	For these words in this passage this morning	33:02
	are the words of eternal life, my friends.	33:05
	These are the words that show us the way and the truth	33:08
	and the life.	33:11
	These are the words,	33:14
	this is the one who will draw all persons unto himself,	33:17
	Jesus.	33:21
	Jesus who said "so must the Son of man be lifted up	33:23
	"and as the Son of man is lifted up,	33:27
	"he will draw all persons unto him."	33:29
	John.	33:34
	For you see,	33:37
	God loved the world so very much	33:40
	that he gave his only Son that whoever believes in him	33:46
	should not perish but have eternal life.	33:51
	For God sent the Son into the world	33:55
	not to condemn the world but that the world	33:58
	through him might be saved.	34:02
	First of all, for God so loved the world,	34:07
	that's what it says.	34:11
	We need to remind ourselves again in this day and time	34:14
	that God does love the world.	34:17
	Surely as the Psalmist wrote, the earth is the Lord's,	34:21
	the world and all who dwell therein,	34:25
	the world, the earth is the Lord's.	34:27
	The way John puts it, for God so loved the world,	34:32
	(speaking foreign language),	34:34
	from which we get the word cosmos,	34:37
	for God so loved everything,	34:41
	the whole universe,	34:45
	the entire cosmos,	34:47
	all that there is surrounding us,	34:52
	all that we have and own and use,	34:55
	all that feeds us, nourishes us, sustains us,	34:58
	all that keeps us going, all animate and inanimate things,	35:01
	there is nothing outside the love of God.	35:07
	For God so loved the world,	35:12
	that is the cosmos.	35:15
	And we need to remind ourselves of that	35:20
	and learn or maybe perhaps learn again how to love	35:21
	and respect and care for the world which God has made	35:25
	and has given us to enjoy.	35:28
	Perhaps the old Genesis concept	35:31
	that we have been created by God to have,	35:35
	you remember the words there?	35:37
	To have dominion over the created order	35:40
	will just not work any longer, my friends.	35:42
	Perhaps even John knew this and John was trying	35:47
	to tell the people in that day	35:49
	and is trying to tell us here,	35:50
	if God so loved the world enough to give the Son,	35:53
	to send the Son and to save the world,	35:57
	then surely we should love the world enough	36:00
	to care for it	36:03
	and to treat it caringly	36:07
	and lovingly	36:11
	and respectfully.	36:13
	There are some frightening words coming to us today	36:17
	by demographers, people who are studying what we are doing	36:20
	with earth's natural resources.	36:25
	Demographers are telling us	36:30
	that we must learn to love the earth.	36:33
	We must learn to be more caring	36:38
	and more careful with the world than we have been	36:41
	for the past 50 years and than we are now.	36:45
	Or the world as we know it,	36:49
	will just absolutely be no more.	36:52
	I was just reading that if we continue consumption	36:57
	at the current rate in the world,	37:01
	many of the natural resources that we have	37:06
	will soon be gone.	37:09
	Aluminum will last 100 years,	37:10
	2081.	37:15
	Copper will last 36 years.	37:18
	Led, 26 years.	37:23
	Natural gas, 38 years.	37:27
	Zinc, 23 years.	37:31
	Tin, 17 years.	37:34
	Petroleum,	37:37
	31 years.	37:40
	Or, at the present rate that we are consuming	37:42
	the natural resources, all of the petroleum that	37:47
	demographers estimate that will be at our disposal	37:51
	will be gone by the year 2012.	37:55
	No wonder God loved and loves the world.	38:02
	God knows that the world must be loved and respected	38:08
	and cared for, replenished wherever possible,	38:11
	God loved the world so much that he gave his only Son.	38:15
	That's how much God loves the world, the cosmos.	38:21
	But somehow rather in our thinking about God	38:27
	and about the world, we think that God is far off somewhere	38:29
	and that the world, the earth, is here and is separated	38:32
	from God, we think that God is way out there somewhere	38:34
	and the world, the earth, is here, not so.	38:37
	Not the God in whom we Christians believe,	38:42
	for God is incarnate, God is in the midst of it all	38:44
	right here in the world.	38:47
	And some poetic lines of	38:51
	G. A. Studdert Kennedy say it beautifully.	38:54
	He says, "how far above the things of earth	38:57
	"is Jesus Christ at God's right hand?	39:01
	"How far away is God?	39:04
	"As far as meaning is from speech,	39:09
	"as beauty from a rose,	39:13
	"as far as music is from sound,	39:16
	"as poetry from prose,	39:19
	"as far as art from cleverness,	39:22
	"as painting is from paints,	39:24
	"as far as signs from sacraments,	39:27
	"as Pharisees from Saints,	39:30
	"as far as love from friendship is,	39:33
	"as reason is from truth,	39:36
	"as far as laughter is from joy,	39:38
	"and early years from youth.	39:41
	"As far as love from shining eyes,	39:43
	"as passion from a kiss,	39:46
	"so far is God from God's green earth,	39:48
	"so far that world from this.	39:52
	"No wonder that God loved the world so much,	39:56
	"for God is as close to the world,	39:58
	"as beauty is close to a rose,	40:00
	"as music is to sound,	40:03
	"as painting is to paint,	40:04
	"as close as signs are to sacraments."	40:06
	No wonder God loved the world that much.	40:13
	But God's loving the world in the second place, I believe.	40:20
	God's loving the world, the cosmos,	40:27
	I believe.	40:33
	Never saved a soul,	40:39
	it never made anyone whole,	40:43
	it never brought anyone into the kingdom of heaven,	40:48
	it never gave anyone eternal life.	40:55
	So,	41:02
	for God so loved the world then	41:04
	must mean that,	41:09
	must mean more than,	41:11
	that God loves the world as the world.	41:13
	And it does.	41:19
	It must.	41:22
	Surely it does.	41:24
	For God so loved the world, yes,	41:27
	sure, absolutely, unequivocally,	41:30
	but how about saying,	41:35
	for God so loved not the world	41:38
	but God so loved all the people of the world?	41:41
	Don't tell me just that God loves the world.	41:48
	Don't tell me just that God	41:54
	loves the world enough to send the Son,	41:56
	for the world is things and elements	41:59
	and creatures and rocks and skies and trees	42:03
	and hills and deserts and stumps and mud and glass	42:08
	and caves and valleys and hills and storms in the night	42:11
	and hail in the rain and fire that burns	42:15
	and wind that destroys.	42:18
	No, please, please, don't tell me just that God loves	42:21
	the world as the world because that really never saved	42:24
	anybody's soul,	42:28
	and it never made anybody whole.	42:31
	So, please, will you tell me that when John says	42:37
	for God so loved the world that what he really meant was	42:42
	for God so loved all the peoples of the world,	42:45
	so much so that God sent his Son that each child	42:52
	who belonged to God might have eternal life.	42:57
	There are times in my life and I'm sure there are times	43:02
	in your life when it is important for us to know	43:06
	that God loves and cares about the world and it is,	43:08
	we must believe that.	43:11
	And we must love the world	43:13
	but there are other times when I really couldn't care less	43:16
	whether God loves the world, what I really want to know	43:20
	is that God loves me.	43:24
	There is a part of me that says	43:29
	yes, it is important to know,	43:31
	that God loves the world.	43:35
	There is another part of me that says, I don't give a damn	43:39
	whether or not God loves the world,	43:44
	what I really want to know deep in my heart and soul	43:47
	is that God loves me	43:50
	and that God loves every brother and sister of mine	43:52
	who lives and walks on the face of this earth,	43:56
	red and yellow, black and white,	43:58
	all are precious in his sight.	44:01
	Jesus, God,	44:05
	loves all the children of the world.	44:07
	Surely it is as Saint Augustine once wrote centuries ago,	44:15
	"God loves each of us,	44:20
	"as if there was only one to love."	44:23
	Each of us surely needs to know and believe that	44:30
	our beginning and our ending are in God, are with God,	44:33
	are in the presence of God, are in the love of God.	44:38
	There's another passage in John where John says,	44:42
	behold the Lamb of God in the first chapter of John	44:45
	where he says, behold the Lamb of God who takes away	44:48
	the sin of the world, that's beautiful, that's powerful,	44:51
	that's important, that's rich, that's filled with meaning	44:54
	but don't tell me to behold the Lamb of God	44:57
	who takes away the sin of the world	45:00
	when what I really need is to be told	45:02
	behold the Lamb of God who takes away your sin,	45:04
	and my sin.	45:08
	For God so loved the world, no.	45:14
	For God so loved me,	45:19
	yes.	45:24
	And then in John 3:17, for God sent the Son into the world	45:28
	not to condemn the world but that the world through him	45:31
	might be saved.	45:36
	Would you let me rephrase that?	45:40
	For God sent the son,	45:42
	not to condemn us	45:45
	but that through the son,	45:49
	we might be saved.	45:52
	Not to condemn us,	45:57
	no more condemnation.	45:59
	My friend, if God in Christ is not going to condemn us,	46:03
	who are we to condemn ourselves or,	46:07
	who are we to condemn one another?	46:09
	No more condemnation, not to condemn us.	46:12
	Absolutely beautiful word,	46:17
	that we need today.	46:20
	I know of so many pulpits from which the word,	46:24
	the heavy word of condemnation flows forth	46:28
	Sunday after Sunday after Sunday.	46:31
	But my friends, I, this morning, stand here to tell you	46:36
	I don't know of any child of God this day	46:39
	who needs to be made to feel any more guilty	46:43
	about living the kind of life that he or she is living.	46:46
	I don't know of any child of God upon the face	46:49
	of this earth who needs to be condemned in any way	46:53
	any more whatsoever.	46:56
	Not to condemn us.	47:01
	God sent the Son into the world	47:05
	not to tell us how bad,	47:09
	or evil or wrong or guilty we are,	47:12
	not to condemn us,	47:17
	but to save us.	47:20
	And the Greek word for save here is not	47:25
	"come down that sawdust trail,	47:29
	"and get your heart right with God"	47:31
	or,	47:33
	"fall on your knees and get your soul right with God,"	47:34
	it's not many of the things that we often think	47:37
	being saved today really means.	47:39
	What that Greek word means is to be put in,	47:42
	means is to be put in right relation,	47:44
	it is,	47:47
	it means to be made whole again.	47:47
	So, God sent the Son into the world	47:54
	not to condemn you or me,	47:59
	or any other person	48:01
	but that through that same Son each one of us,	48:05
	every one of us,	48:08
	might be made whole.	48:11
	The year I was in Scotland,	48:18
	I had the privilege of working with a man called	48:20
	the Reverend Willy Wright.	48:22
	He was 71 years old at the time I was there,	48:25
	the year I worked with him.	48:29
	He had been at this same church where he was at that time.	48:31
	He had been at this same church for 35 years.	48:34
	There was no man, there was no person,	48:38
	any more beloved in that community of Rutherglen, Scotland	48:40
	than Willy Wright.	48:45
	He married people, he baptized people, he buried people.	48:51
	He visited those who were sick and those who were shut in,	48:56
	he held the hands of those who were dying,	48:59
	and he stood beside the beds of those who were bereaved	49:01
	and grieving.	49:04
	I have known days on which he had as many as	49:08
	three funerals in one day.	49:11
	One Sunday morning, after we had had a particularly	49:17
	heavy week in that	49:21
	steel mill village congregation.	49:23
	Willy Wright stood before his people,	49:28
	and he said,	49:33
	"my dear friends,	49:35
	"the longer I live with you	49:39
	"and the more I share your struggles and your heartaches	49:42
	"and the hard times and the difficulties that you have,	49:47
	"the more I live life with you,	49:51
	"the less I want to speak	49:56
	a word of condemnation of you	49:58
	"and the more I want to speak a word of love	50:02
	"and compassion for you."	50:07
	Will you stand, please?	50:17
	(chattering)	50:21
	In the old days, they used to line hymns	50:27
	and someone would sing a line	50:29
	and then the congregation would respond.	50:31
	I'd like to line this passage of Scripture	50:35
	and ask you to repeat these words after me, if you will.	50:38
	With full voice and with all the feeling that you have,	50:43
	will you respond?	50:49
	For God so loved the world.	50:52
-	For God so loved the world.	50:54
-	That he gave his only Son.	50:58
-	That he gave his only Son.	51:00
-	That whoever believes in him.	51:02
-	That whoever believes in him.	51:05
-	Should not perish.	51:08
-	Should not perish.	51:10
-	But have eternal life.	51:11
-	But have eternal life.	51:13
-	For God sent the Son into the world.	51:16
-	For God sent the Son into the world.	51:18
-	Not to condemn the world.	51:21
-	Not to condemn the world.	51:23
-	But that the world through him might be saved.	51:25
-	But that the world through him might be saved.	51:28
-	And now will you repeat these words with me?	51:32
	For God so loved the people of the world.	51:38
-	For God so loved the people of the world.	51:42
-	That he gave his only Son.	51:46
-	That he gave his only Son.	51:49
-	That whoever believes in him.	51:51
-	That whoever believes in him.	51:53
-	Should not perish but have eternal life.	51:56
-	Should not perish but have eternal life.	51:59
-	For God sent the Son to us.	52:02
-	For God sent the Son to us.	52:05
-	Not to condemn us.	52:08
-	Not to condemn us.	52:11
-	But that through the Son.	52:13
-	But that through the Son.	52:16
-	We all might be made whole.	52:18
-	We all might be made whole.	52:22
-	And that is the gospel truth.	52:25
	Amen.	52:29
	(soft organ music)	52:36
	(muffled choir singing)	52:47
-	Let us affirm what we believe.	54:48
	We believe in God who has created and is creating,	54:51
	who has come in the truly human Jesus to reconcile	54:56
	and make new, who works in us and others by the Spirit.	55:01
	We trust God who calls us to be the church,	55:07
	to celebrate life and its fullness,	55:11
	to love and serve others,	55:14
	to seek justice and resist evil,	55:17
	to proclaim Jesus crucified and risen,	55:20
	our judge and our hope in life, in death,	55:24
	in life beyond death, God is with us,	55:29
	we are not alone.	55:33
	Thanks be to God.	55:36
	The Lord be with you.	55:38
-	And in your spirit.	55:40
-	Let us pray.	55:42
	O Eternal God, you have sent your only Son,	55:56
	Jesus the Christ, to liberate us from the plight of sin	56:01
	and to deliver us from the finality of death.	56:07
	You have clothed him in flesh and invested in him	56:12
	the keys to what is a greater kingdom.	56:17
	Jesus came and lived among us,	56:20
	he identified with us,	56:24
	Jesus gave us love,	56:28
	compassion,	56:31
	joy,	56:33
	peace,	56:35
	and hope.	56:36
	But due to our failure to grasp the spiritual thrust	56:38
	of his message of truth.	56:42
	O God, we have become rich in power and yet poor in spirit.	56:46
	We find ourselves rejoicing in bigotry	56:53
	and yet fail to mourn social injustices.	56:57
	We are deep in pride and yet shallow in humility.	57:02
	We find ourselves inflicting cruelty in our relationships	57:08
	and we stand deficient in mercy.	57:13
	We glutton after iniquity	57:17
	and yet we starve after righteousness.	57:20
	We choose to refine ourselves with false appearances	57:24
	yet remain impure in our hearts.	57:30
	We admit that we are crafty peacemakers	57:35
	around conference tables and yet we are	57:38
	blundering peace breakers in the name of Christian love.	57:41
	We remain complacent in unrighteousness	57:48
	and yet we are unwilling to suffer in the cause	57:51
	of spiritual justice.	57:55
	Lord, on this day, forgive us of our shallow piety	57:59
	and our cushion self-righteousness.	58:03
	Rather, give us compassion, mercy, and forgiveness	58:07
	through Jesus Christ, our Lord,	58:14
	who came and lived among us,	58:17
	who taught us to pray, saying, our Father who art in heaven,	58:20
	hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom come,	58:27
	thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.	58:31
	Give us this day our daily bread	58:36
	and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those	58:39
	who trespass against us and lead us not into temptation	58:42
	but deliver us from evil for thine is the kingdom	58:46
	and the power and the glory forever.	58:52
	Amen.	58:56
	(soft organ music)	59:10
	♪ Behold a star ♪	59:14
	♪ From Jacob shining ♪	59:17
	♪ And a scepter from Israel rising ♪	59:21
	♪ And a scepter from Israel rising ♪	59:27
	♪ Behold a star from Jacob shining ♪	59:34
	♪ Behold a star from Jacob shining ♪	59:41
	♪ And a scepter from Israel rising ♪	59:47
	♪ And a scepter from Israel rising ♪	59:54
	♪ Behold a star from Jacob's shining ♪	59:59
	♪ Behold a star from Jacob's shining ♪	1:00:03
	♪ Behold a star ♪	1:00:08
	♪ Behold a star from Jacob's shining ♪	1:00:12
	♪ Behold a star from Jacob's shining ♪	1:00:19
	♪ From Jacob's shining ♪	1:00:30
	♪ From Jacob's shining ♪	1:00:37
	(soft organ music)	1:00:44
	♪ To reign in glory ♪	1:00:59
	♪ Over the nations ♪	1:01:05
	♪ To reign in glory ♪	1:01:12
	♪ Over the nations ♪	1:01:19
	♪ To reign in glory ♪	1:01:25
	♪ In glory over the nations ♪	1:01:30
	♪ Over the nations ♪	1:01:39
	♪ In glory ♪	1:01:44
	♪ In glory ♪	1:01:46
	♪ Over the nations ♪	1:01:50
	♪ To reign in glory ♪	1:02:00
	♪ Over the nations ♪	1:02:05
	♪ To reign in glory ♪	1:02:11
	♪ Glory ♪	1:02:18
	♪ Glory ♪	1:02:24
	♪ In glory ♪	1:02:29
	♪ Over the nations ♪	1:02:33
	♪ Behold the star ♪	1:02:47
	♪ Behold the star ♪	1:02:51
	♪ Of Jacob's shining ♪	1:02:55
	♪ Behold the star ♪	1:02:59
	♪ Behold the star ♪	1:03:02
	♪ Behold the star ♪	1:03:06
	♪ Of Jacob's shining ♪	1:03:10
	♪ Behold the star ♪	1:03:15
	♪ Of Jacob's shining ♪	1:03:17
	♪ Behold the star ♪	1:03:23
	♪ The star ♪	1:03:28
	♪ Behold the star ♪	1:03:31
	♪ Of Jacob's shining ♪	1:03:36
	♪ Like some bright ♪	1:03:53
	♪ Morning star is he ♪	1:03:59
	♪ The promise ♪	1:04:11
	♪ Of the coming day ♪	1:04:16
	♪ Beyond the night ♪	1:04:27
	♪ Of sorrow ♪	1:04:34
	♪ Break forth ♪	1:04:44
	♪ O Light ♪	1:04:51
	♪ We, our joyful hearts ♪	1:04:57
	♪ Uplifting with thanksgiving ♪	1:05:04
	♪ Hail the brightness ♪	1:05:17
	♪ Of Thy rising ♪	1:05:23
	(soft organ music)	1:05:35
	(soft organ music)	1:06:14
	(muffled choir singing)	1:06:35
	♪ Hallelujah ♪	1:06:46
	♪ Hallelujah ♪	1:06:48
	(muffled choir singing)	1:06:52
	♪ Hallelujah ♪	1:07:03
	♪ Hallelujah ♪	1:07:06
	♪ Hallelujah ♪	1:07:09
	♪ Hallelujah ♪	1:07:12
	♪ Hallelujah ♪	1:07:14
	(muffled choir singing)	1:07:22
-	Eternal God, giver of every good and perfect gift,	1:07:34
	we ask that you seek above all to give yourself to us	1:07:38
	and grant now with these token gifts of our hands	1:07:42
	that we may more fully give ourselves to you	1:07:45
	in joyous obedience and service	1:07:50
	through Jesus Christ, our Lord, amen.	1:07:53
	(soft organ music)	1:07:58
	(muffled choir singing)	1:08:48
	The Lord bless you and keep you.	1:11:52
	The Lord's face shine upon you	1:11:54
	and be gracious to you.	1:11:57
	The Lord's countenance be upon you	1:12:00
	and give you peace.	1:12:02
	♪ Amen ♪	1:12:06
	♪ Amen ♪	1:12:13
	♪ Amen ♪	1:12:24
	♪ Amen ♪	1:12:31
	♪ Amen ♪	1:12:39
	♪ Amen ♪	1:12:52
	♪ Amen ♪	1:13:04
	(soft organ music)	1:13:25
	(chattering)	1:17:43

Item Info

Title:

Robert T. Young - "For God so Loved the World" (January 25, 1981)

Description:

Sermon start time: 22:42. Sermon end time: 52:33.
Young analyzes John 3:16 in depth to express that the message of the Gospel is based in the idea of Love and sacrifice by Christ. (Abstract created by Duke Divinity School staff.)
Key quotation: "This is the Gospel in miniature - all of the Bible's message in a few lines, the entire Word in a few words."

Permalink:

https://idn.duke.edu/ark:/87924/r4cz32k6m

Date:

January 25, 1981

Speaker:

Young, Robert T., 1935-2009

Biblical Book:

John

Chapter and Verse:

John 3:16-21

Subject:

Contributor:

Duke University. Chapel

Identifier:

UA.17.01.0003 RR-1136
ref7488_94p
uachapelsermaud
duke:321229
dcrau002013
ark:/87924/r4cz32k6m
46b373e2-993c-4ada-a185-96ed34691b21

Digital Collection:

Duke Chapel Recordings

Source Collection:

Duke University Chapel recordings, 1954-2005

Related Resources:

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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

Educational Use Permitted

Rights Note:

This material is made available for educational and non-commercial use. This recording may contain 3rd party materials, such as music or readings that are therefore not covered by the license indicated here. Copyright in this material has not been transferred to Duke University. For other reuses of this material beyond those permitted by fair use or otherwise allowed under the Copyright Act, please see our page on copyright and citations https://library.duke.edu/rubenstein/research/citations-and-permissions.

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Robert T. Young - "For God so Loved the World" (January 25, 1981)

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1. Robert T. Young - "For God so Loved the World" (January 25, 1981)

Duke University Archives

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Robert T. Young - "For God so Loved the World" (January 25, 1981)

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Duke University Archives

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