Thomas G. Long - "Jesus' Final Exam" (November 9, 1986)

Download
- Rights
- Limited Re-Use
  CC BY-NC 4.0
  More Rights Info
- Files (1)
- MP4
- Please be patient with media downloads. They are often large files.
Share

Embed Code
<iframe src='https://idn.duke.edu/ark:/87924/r45q4s218?embed=true' height='500px' width='100%' frameborder='0' marginwidth='0' marginheight='0' scrolling='no' loading='lazy' allowfullscreen></iframe>
Permalink

https://idn.duke.edu/ark:/87924/r45q4s218
Skip to Item Info

Loading the media player...

Files for this Item

Transcript

Transcripts may contain inaccuracies.

-	If everyone seating in the pews	0:00
	would sort of scrunch to the center	0:01
	so we can get more people in the pews	0:05
	that would be a great help, that's great.	0:08
	Students love to do this, so doing it very well.	0:12
	We hope that some of you who are standing	0:18
	will be able to get seating.	0:19
	We're delighted to have all of you here	0:24
	particularly you parents for this parents weekend.	0:26
	We're enriched by your presence.	0:30
	I remind our university community	0:33
	of the faith and technology conference	0:36
	that is sponsored by the chapel next weekend	0:39
	to explore issues of technology in the Christian faith.	0:42
	Again this Sunday for the second Sunday	0:46
	we welcome those who are worshiping with us	0:48
	on the closed circuit television system	0:51
	in the Duke hospitals, and we're glad that you're with us.	0:53
	Appreciate the response we had	0:56
	to this experimental project last week.	0:58
	The assigned gospel lesson for this Sunday	1:03
	is so bizarre we have had to bring in	1:05
	a preacher from Princeton to preach on it.	1:07
	(crowd laughs)	1:10
	He is Dr. Thomas Long, one of the premier homileticians	1:11
	in the United States, and we're glad to welcome	1:16
	him back to the chapel and he is our	1:18
	first Clyde and Lynell Boyles preacher.	1:22
	The Boyles of Peducah Kentucky have established a fund	1:26
	in memory of Mr. Boyles parents.	1:29
	He is our first Boyles preacher	1:33
	and we are delighted for him to inaugurate this series.	1:35
	And now let us continue in our worship	1:40
	as we fill this great church with the praise of God.	1:43
	♪ Beautiful savior ♪	1:52
	♪ Lord of the nations ♪	1:58
	♪ Son of God and son of man ♪	2:06
	♪ Glory and honor ♪	2:19
	♪ Praise adoration ♪	2:26
	♪ Now and forever Lord be thine ♪	2:32
	♪ Now and forever Lord be thine ♪	2:43
	("Ode to Joy" by Beethoven)	3:05
	♪ Joyful joyful we adore thee ♪	3:44
	♪ God of glory, Lord of love ♪	3:47
	♪ Hearts unfold like flowers before thee ♪	3:51
	♪ Opening to the sun above ♪	3:56
	♪ Melt the clouds of sin and sadness ♪	4:01
	♪ Drive the dark of doubt away ♪	4:05
	♪ Giver of immortal gladness ♪	4:10
	♪ Fill us with the light of day ♪	4:15
	♪ All Thy works with joy surround thee ♪	4:23
	♪ Earth and heaven reflect thy rays ♪	4:27
	♪ Stars and angels sing around Thee ♪	4:31
	♪ Center of unbroken praise ♪	4:36
	♪ Field and forest, vale and mountain ♪	4:41
	♪ Flowery meadow flashing sea, ♪	4:46
	♪ Singing bird and flowing fountain ♪	4:50
	♪ Call us to rejoice in thee ♪	4:55
	♪ Thou art giving and forgiving ♪	5:03
	♪ Ever blessing, ever blessed ♪	5:07
	♪ Wellspring of the joy of living ♪	5:11
	♪ Ocean depth of happy rest ♪	5:16
	♪ Thou our Father, Christ our Brother ♪	5:21
	♪ All who live in love are Thine ♪	5:26
	♪ Teach us how to love each other ♪	5:31
	♪ Lift us to the joy divine ♪	5:35
	(dramatic organ music)	5:42
	♪ Mortals, join the happy chorus ♪	7:36
	♪ Which the morning stars began ♪	7:41
	♪ Father love is reigning over us ♪	7:46
	♪ Brother love binds man to man ♪	7:51
	♪ Ever singing, march we onward ♪	7:56
	♪ Victors in the midst of strife ♪	8:00
	♪ Joyful music leads us sunward ♪	8:05
	♪ In the triumph song of life ♪	8:09
-	When we gather to praise God,	8:19
	we remember that we are God's people	8:22
	but we are people who have preferred	8:24
	our wills to God's will, therefore with one voice	8:26
	let us confess our sin before God	8:29
	and one another, be seated.	8:33
	Let us pray, oh almighty God,	8:46
	give us grace to approach thee at this time	8:50
	with penitent and believing hearts.	8:54
	We confess that we have sinned against thee	8:57
	and are not worthy to be called thy children.	8:59
	Yet do thou and mercy keep us as thine own,	9:03
	grant us true repentance and forgive us all our sins.	9:07
	Through Jesus Christ our Lord, amen.	9:12
	Hear the good news, Christ died for us	9:18
	while we were yet sinners, that is God's	9:21
	own proof of his love toward us.	9:24
	In the name of Jesus Christ, you are forgiven.	9:27
Congregation	In the name	9:31
	of Jesus Christ you are forgiven.	9:33
-	Amen.	9:36
-	Let us pray, open our hearts and minds oh God,	9:44
	by the power of your holy spirit.	9:49
	So that as the word is read and proclaimed,	9:52
	we might hear with joy what you say to us this day, amen.	9:55
	The first lesson is taken from Zechariah.	10:03
	In the fourth year of King Darius,	10:08
	the word of the Lord came to Zechariah	10:11
	in the fourth day of the ninth month which is Chislev.	10:13
	And the people of Bethel had sent Sharezer	10:18
	and Regemmelech and them in to entreat	10:21
	the favor of the Lord and to ask the priest	10:25
	of the house of the Lord of Hosts and the Prophets,	10:27
	should I mourn and fast in the fifth month	10:30
	as I have done so for many years?	10:33
	And the word of the Lord of Hosts came to me.	10:37
	To say to all the people of the land and the priests:	10:40
	when you have fasted and mourned in the fifth month	10:44
	and in the seventh for these 70 years,	10:47
	was it for me that you fasted?	10:50
	And when you eat and when you drink,	10:53
	do you not eat for yourselves and drink for yourselves?	10:55
	When Jerusalem was inhabited and in prosperity	10:59
	with her cities roundabout her in the south	11:02
	and the lowlands were inhabited,	11:04
	were not these the words which the Lord proclaimed	11:07
	by the former prophets, and the word of the Lord	11:10
	came to Zechariah saying thus says the Lord of Hosts.	11:14
	Render true judgments, show kindness	11:19
	and mercy each to his brother.	11:22
	Do not oppress the widow, the fatherless,	11:25
	the sojourner, or the poor, and let none of you	11:27
	devise evil against his brother in your heart.	11:31
	This ends the reading of the first lesson.	11:35
	(inspiring organ music)	11:40
	♪ Sing a new song to the Lord ♪	11:53
	♪ Sing a new song, sing a new song ♪	11:57
	♪ Sing a new song to the Lord ♪	12:01
	♪ Sing a new song to the Lord ♪	12:06
	♪ The Lord has done marvelous things ♪	12:10
	♪ From his right hand and holy arm salvation comes ♪	12:14
	♪ Sing a new song to the Lord ♪	12:23
	♪ Sing a new song, sing a new song ♪	12:27
	♪ Sing a new song to the Lord ♪	12:31
	♪ The Lord has made known the victory ♪	12:36
	♪ God's justice has come to all ♪	12:41
	♪ Oh Israel, shout your praise ♪	12:44
	♪ Remember God's love and power ♪	12:49
	♪ Sing a new song to the Lord ♪	12:53
	♪ Sing a new song, sing a new song ♪	12:57
	♪ Sing a new song to the Lord ♪	13:01
	♪ Sing to the Lord in joy ♪	13:06
	♪ Bring joy through songs of praise ♪	13:10
	♪ Bring joy through the praise of the Lord ♪	13:15
	♪ Sing a new song to the Lord ♪	13:23
	♪ Sing a new song, sing a new song ♪	13:28
	♪ Sing a new song to the Lord ♪	13:32
	(inspiring organ music)	13:39
	(organ music drowning out singing)	13:51
-	The second lesson is taken from Paul's	14:51
	second letter to the Thessalonians.	14:53
	But we are bound to give thanks to God always,	14:58
	for you brethren beloved by the Lord	15:01
	because God chose you from the beginning	15:04
	to be saved through sanctification	15:06
	by the Spirit and belief in the truth.	15:09
	To this he called you through our Gospel	15:13
	so that you may obtain from the glory	15:16
	of God a Lord Jesus Christ.	15:18
	So then brethren, stand firm and hold	15:22
	to the traditions which you were taught by us,	15:24
	either by word of mouth or by letter.	15:27
	Now may our lord Jesus Christ himself	15:31
	and God our father who loved us	15:35
	and gave us eternal comfort and good hope through grace,	15:37
	comfort your hearts and establish them	15:41
	in every good work and word.	15:44
	Finally brethren, pray for us	15:47
	that the word of the Lord may speed on	15:50
	and triumph as it did among you.	15:53
	And that we may be delivered from wicked	15:56
	and evil men, for not all have faith.	15:58
	But the Lord is faithful, he will	16:03
	strengthen you and guard you from evil.	16:05
	We have confidence in the Lord	16:08
	about you that you are doing	16:10
	and will do the things which we command.	16:13
	May the Lord direct your hearts	16:16
	to the love of God and to the steadfastness of Christ.	16:19
	This ends the reading of the second lesson.	16:23
	♪ Salvation ♪	16:37
	♪ Is created ♪	16:50
	♪ Salvation ♪	17:06
	♪ Is created ♪	17:17
	♪ Salvation is created ♪	17:34
	♪ Is created ♪	17:48
	♪ Through the Lord God ♪	17:58
	♪ The Lord God ♪	18:19
	♪ The Lord God ♪	18:33
	♪ Hallelujah ♪	18:56
	♪ Hallelujah ♪	19:06
	♪ Hallelujah ♪	19:24
	♪ Hallelujah ♪	19:34
	♪ Hallelujah ♪	19:51
	♪ Hallelujah ♪	20:05
	♪ Hallelujah ♪	20:18
	♪ Hallelujah ♪	20:54
-	This is the second time that I	21:39
	have had the privilege of standing in this pulpit.	21:41
	The first time I did, as soon as I got up here	21:45
	I felt a surge of excitement go through my body.	21:48
	Well, it doesn't get any easier	21:53
	or different the second time.	21:54
	I wanna thank Will Willimon, the Duke Chapel community,	21:57
	and the Boyles family for providing	22:02
	not only the honor of the invitation	22:05
	to be here, but the thrill of the moment.	22:07
	The Gospel lesson which the lectionary	22:13
	appoints for this day comes from the 20th chapter	22:15
	of the Gospel of Luke, beginning to read at the 27th verse.	22:19
	Let us hear the good news.	22:24
	There came to Jesus some Sadducees,	22:31
	those who say there is no resurrection.	22:34
	And they asked him a question,	22:38
	saying teacher, Moses wrote for us	22:41
	that if a man's brother dies, having a wife	22:43
	but no children, the man must take the wife	22:48
	and raise up children for his brother.	22:51
	Now there were seven brothers.	22:55
	The first took a wife and died without children.	22:58
	And the second, and the third took her	23:02
	and likewise all seven left no children and died.	23:06
	Afterward the woman also died.	23:11
	In the resurrection therefore, whose wife	23:15
	will the woman be, for all seven had her as a wife?	23:18
	And Jesus said to them, the children of this age	23:23
	marry and are given in marriage	23:28
	but those who are accounted worthy	23:30
	to attain to that age and to the resurrection	23:32
	from the dead neither marry nor are given in marriage.	23:36
	For they cannot die anymore, because they are equal	23:40
	to angels and are children of God	23:44
	being children of the resurrection.	23:46
	But that the dead are raised even Moses showed	23:50
	in the passage about the bush	23:53
	where he calls the Lord the God of Abraham	23:55
	and the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob.	23:58
	Now he's not the God of the dead	24:00
	but of the living, for all live to him.	24:02
	And some of the scribes answered	24:06
	teacher, you have spoken well.	24:09
	For they no longer dared to ask him any questions, amen.	24:13
	Those of you who are here this morning	24:24
	who are students, I am not sure	24:26
	that you are going to agree with me	24:29
	about this one but I think I'm right.	24:31
	I think I'm right when I say that the most difficult part	24:34
	of any examination, test, or quiz	24:38
	is not the student's part but the teacher's part.	24:42
	Now I'm not referring here to the drudgery	24:47
	of grading examinations, I'm referring	24:49
	to the far more difficult art	24:52
	of asking just the right questions.	24:54
	However hard it may be for students	24:58
	to find the correct answers to the quiz,	25:01
	it is at least as difficult for those	25:04
	of us who teach to choose just the appropriate questions.	25:06
	The questions that we write on tests can be tricky	25:12
	when we intended for them to be straightforward.	25:15
	They can be vague when we wanted the models of clarity.	25:18
	They can be trivial and easy as pie when we were	25:22
	really trying to develop challenges for the students.	25:25
	I know that students are openly concerned and terrified	25:29
	that on an exam they're going to give dumb responses.	25:33
	Well we teachers are secretly terrified	25:37
	we're going to ask dumb questions.	25:39
	I heard for example about a geology professor	25:43
	at another university who was writing a question	25:45
	for his final exam in basic geology.	25:48
	Now I know that he had in mind that the students	25:52
	would respond to this question by naming	25:54
	certain minerals and geologic rock formations,	25:56
	because the question that he asked was	26:00
	name three things that occur on the Earth	26:03
	which do not occur on the moon.	26:07
	(crowd laughs)	26:09
	One of the students, knowing a silly question	26:15
	when she saw it, responded roller skates,	26:19
	Bruce Springsteen, and the Republican Party.	26:22
	(crowd laughs)	26:25
	I rest my case, the most difficult part	26:31
	of an examination is asking the right questions.	26:34
	And there is a sense in which this business	26:37
	about asking the right questions is true	26:39
	in a broader and deeper and more serious sense.	26:41
	Because to ask a question is to reveal, to disclose	26:46
	something important about ourselves.	26:50
	No question is morally or intellectually neutral.	26:53
	Because the one who asks the question discloses	27:00
	already in the question an agenda about the answer.	27:03
	Any important question, teacher to student,	27:08
	spouse to spouse, roommate to roommate,	27:11
	police to suspect, attorney to witness,	27:14
	friend to friend, any question	27:17
	already contains in the question	27:21
	a notion about what is important and what is not.	27:23
	What is true, what is false, the biases,	27:26
	the angles of vision, the assumptions of the questioner.	27:29
	In the question	27:32
	is the assumptive world of the questioner.	27:34
	You may remember several years ago	27:40
	a book called Between Parent and Child,	27:42
	written by a man named Haim Ginott.	27:44
	Ginott opens that book by telling us	27:48
	about a conversation that a father has	27:50
	with his son in their New York apartment.	27:52
	The son suddenly, out of the blue, asks his father	27:56
	how many abandoned children are there in Harlem?	28:00
	The father is surprised, but pleased	28:05
	at his son's sociological curiosity.	28:08
	And so he gives him a dissertation.	28:11
	All he knows about abandoned children in Harlem.	28:13
	When he is finished, his son looks up at him and says,	28:17
	how many abandoned children are there in New York?	28:22
	The father adds a little bit more data	28:27
	and then the son says, and how many	28:30
	abandoned children are there in the United States?	28:33
	Finally the light comes on in the father's mind	28:37
	and he knows the question which is really being asked.	28:40
	And he sits close to his son and assures him	28:45
	that he is loved and that he is not a child	28:49
	who will be abandoned.	28:55
	In every question there is contained	28:59
	the assumptive world of the questioner.	29:03
	That's true about the text that we just read	29:08
	in the Gospel of Luke, in this story	29:11
	some religious leaders, Sadducees as a matter of fact,	29:14
	who by the way doctrinally do not believe	29:17
	in the resurrection, asked Jesus a question.	29:20
	As a matter of fact, this question	29:25
	is the third in a series of questions	29:27
	which are asked to Jesus, and one of the ways	29:29
	to view the 20th chapter of Luke	29:31
	is to consider it as Jesus' final rabbinical exam.	29:34
	Each question is more difficult than the previous one.	29:39
	This question goes like this.	29:45
	Suppose there was a woman who married a man	29:48
	who had six brothers, but unfortunately	29:51
	the man died before the couple	29:55
	were able to have any children.	29:57
	Now the Bible, the law of Moses, is clear	30:00
	about this kind of circumstance.	30:03
	What is supposed to happen is that	30:05
	one of the brothers is supposed to step forward	30:07
	and take the widow as his wife and have children	30:10
	so that his brother's lineage can be continued.	30:14
	So brother number one steps forward but alas,	30:18
	he dies too.	30:22
	So brother number two steps forward but he dies,	30:25
	and three, and four, and five, and six, all die.	30:28
	Then the woman herself dies.	30:34
	Seven weddings, eight funerals, and no children.	30:37
	Now here comes the question and you can almost see their	30:43
	lips moistening with excitement as they begin to ask it.	30:46
	In the so-called age of the resurrection,	30:50
	whose wife will she be	30:55
	since she was married to all seven?	31:00
	Now you can probably sniff out	31:04
	that this is a trick question, and it is.	31:05
	But it is also a multiple choice question.	31:08
	Jesus has two choices, a or b.	31:10
	Choice a is to specify one of the brothers.	31:13
	Why, in the age of the resurrection,	31:16
	she will be the wife of the first man that she married.	31:19
	Or she will be the wife of the last man that she married.	31:22
	Or she will be the wife of one of the brothers in between.	31:24
	It doesn't make any difference which one he chooses,	31:27
	this is an indefensible choice.	31:29
	That leaves b.	31:34
	This is the one toward which the questioners	31:37
	are attempting to seduce Jesus.	31:40
	Well, goes choice b, I guess you've got me there.	31:45
	She can't be the wife of one of the brothers	31:50
	in the age of the resurrection	31:51
	and she can't be the wife of all the brothers	31:52
	in the age of the resurrection	31:54
	and reductio ad absurdum I guess	31:55
	there is no resurrection.	32:00
	A or b?	32:04
	Jesus chooses	32:09
	c.	32:14
	But c isn't on the test, that's right,	32:16
	he doesn't answer the question,	32:17
	he challenges it in the question	32:19
	is the assumptive world of the questioner,	32:22
	and the world which is being born	32:25
	in Jesus collides with that world.	32:27
	Now what is this assumptive world in the question?	32:33
	Well, to begin with, the question assumes	32:36
	that in the age of the resurrection if there is one,	32:39
	the woman is going to be somebody's property.	32:42
	Husbands in the first century had something	32:47
	like property rights toward their wives.	32:49
	She's owned by seven men, now in the age	32:52
	of the resurrection, to whom will she belong?	32:56
	As one commentator put it, this might as well be	33:00
	a question about a cow owned by seven brothers.	33:02
	And in the resurrection whose cow will she be?	33:05
	In this age, said Jesus, people marry	33:11
	and are given in marriage, but I tell you	33:14
	in the age to come,	33:16
	she will be equal with the angels.	33:20
	She will be a daughter of God.	33:24
	As Rachel Wahlberg put it in her book	33:31
	Jesus According to a Woman, if only this woman	33:33
	could have heard Jesus' response.	33:36
	She would have known that in the age to come	33:39
	she who had been defined by this man and that man	33:42
	and the other man, would be no longer defined	33:46
	by anybody else, but only by her status as a child of God.	33:48
	A world overturns an assumption.	33:56
	That assumption about the woman in the question	34:01
	is part of a larger assumption being made	34:04
	by the questioners and that assumption	34:07
	is that the future of God, if there is to be a future of God	34:09
	is merely the present extended infinitely into the future.	34:13
	She's somebody's wife in this age,	34:19
	she's gotta be somebody's wife in the age to come.	34:21
	The age to come is really just more of the same.	34:23
	Oh no, said Jesus,	34:30
	a new world colliding with the old.	34:34
	In this world there is death,	34:38
	in the world to come there is life.	34:40
	In this world people are owned,	34:44
	in the world to come they're children of a living God.	34:46
	Jesus' future is a radically and revolutionary new age.	34:53
	And that's important especially for religious people	35:00
	to remember because it is easy to assume	35:03
	that God's future only contains the possibilities	35:07
	which we define by our questions in the present.	35:11
	God cannot or will not do anything new.	35:14
	In the church that I go to in Princeton New Jersey,	35:21
	several years ago we established a hunger committee.	35:24
	At the first meeting of our committee,	35:29
	we were focusing on hunger in Africa.	35:31
	But soon in our discussion, we realized	35:34
	we could not focus on Africa alone	35:37
	because we had hunger in our own backyard.	35:39
	Especially in the town of Trenton just down the road.	35:43
	So we asked ourselves the question	35:47
	what can we do about the hunger situation in Trenton?	35:50
	Now notice that in a question	35:55
	is the moral assumptive world of the questioner.	35:57
	What can we do about hunger in Trenton?	36:02
	We had a and b, a nothing,	36:10
	b creative and intelligent	36:15
	committed, affluent people like we are	36:18
	can do something about hunger in Trenton.	36:21
	We chose b,	36:25
	we established a program	36:29
	to combat hunger in Trenton and the most dramatic	36:30
	and challenging part of that was a once a month	36:33
	hunger offering we would take	36:36
	during the worship service on Sunday.	36:38
	While the congregation was singing a hymn,	36:41
	all who wished to make a hunger offering	36:44
	would come up to the front	36:46
	and put their offerings in a basket.	36:48
	We were astounded at the amount of money which came in.	36:51
	Thousands upon thousands of dollars,	36:54
	more than we ever imagined.	36:57
	We funneled that money into Trenton	37:01
	and then some harsh mathematics began to take their toll.	37:02
	As we fed the hungry in Trenton, the lines only got longer.	37:07
	Not only that, we discovered that some of the money	37:14
	that we had earnestly funneled into Trenton	37:16
	was being wasted and misused and some	37:19
	discouragement began to settle in.	37:23
	We began to wonder if maybe instead of b,	37:26
	our only choice was a.	37:30
	Two weeks ago, something dramatic happened.	37:36
	It was time for the hunger offering.	37:42
	And a discouraged but dutiful congregation	37:45
	was bringing its offerings to the basket.	37:48
	There was a woman about the third pew back	37:52
	that none of us recognized, a visitor that day.	37:55
	She was rather shabbily dressed.	37:57
	But as the congregation streamed forward	38:00
	she too got out of her pew and moved forward.	38:03
	She had no purse, she had nothing in her hand.	38:07
	She had no offering to put in the basket.	38:11
	And some of us wondered if maybe she were going	38:14
	to take something from the basket.	38:16
	But when she got to the front,	38:22
	she gave her gift.	38:27
	She paused before the basket, folded her hands,	38:32
	and prayed.	38:38
	She was a visible reminder to all of us	38:42
	that the answer to our question was not a or b	38:47
	but c.	38:55
	We're not going to solve the problem of hunger in Trenton.	38:58
	We do what we can as signs and wonders	39:03
	of the age to come.	39:08
	And when we have done what we can,	39:11
	we pray like mad for it to come.	39:14
	On the other side of all of our questions,	39:22
	what can we do about hunger, what can we do about peace,	39:26
	whose wife is she in the resurrection,	39:32
	why do innocent people suffer,	39:36
	why do little children die, on the other side	39:39
	of all of our questions there are not	39:42
	answers but the living God	39:46
	who brings in an age	39:52
	more gracious and wonderful and hopeful	39:53
	than we could ever have imagined.	39:58
	Charles and Yvonne de Gaulle were the parents,	40:04
	this is not widely known, they were	40:08
	the parents of a Downs Syndrome child.	40:10
	They knew that her days were limited	40:16
	and so no matter what was going on	40:18
	in the affairs of state, Charles de Gaulle	40:20
	would carve out some time every day	40:22
	for he and Yvonne to spend some time with this child.	40:24
	When they would put her to bed at night in her crib,	40:30
	Yvonne would turn to Charles often and say	40:33
	why is she not like the others?	40:36
	I have prayed that she could be like the others,	40:38
	Charles I wish that she were like the others.	40:40
	When the little girl was still an infant she died.	40:46
	There was a quiet graveside service.	40:48
	The priest read some scripture, prayed some prayers	40:51
	and pronounced a benediction.	40:55
	And when the service was over everybody moved away	40:58
	from the graveside except Yvonne.	41:00
	She could not leave the grave.	41:03
	Charles went back to her and touched her	41:07
	on her elbow and said come, Yvonne.	41:09
	Did you not hear the words of the priest?	41:16
	She is now like the others.	41:20
	In this age,	41:26
	but in the age to come.	41:31
	We are all children of the living God.	41:34
	In the name of God the creator,	41:42
	sustainer in spirit, amen.	41:45
	(inspirational organ music)	41:54
	(organ music drowning out singing)	42:44
-	Let us unite in this historic	45:09
	confession of the Christian faith.	45:11
	I believe in God, the father almighty,	45:14
	maker of heaven and earth, and in Jesus Christ	45:17
	his only son our Lord, who was conceived	45:21
	by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary,	45:25
	suffered under Pontius Pilate,	45:28
	was crucified dead and buried.	45:30
	The third day he rose from the dead.	45:34
	He ascended into heaven and sitteth	45:37
	at the right hand of God the father almighty.	45:39
	From thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead.	45:43
	I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Holy Catholic Church,	45:47
	the communion of Saints, the forgiveness of sins,	45:51
	the resurrection of the body and the life everlasting, amen.	45:55
	The Lord be with you.	46:01
Congregation	And also with you.	46:04
-	Let us pray, be seated.	46:05
	Lord God, you have called us together on this day.	46:25
	We have sung your praise, we have heard your word	46:30
	ably read and honestly preached,	46:35
	and now we are ready to pray.	46:38
	The world you have given us oh God is so full	46:42
	of mystery and wonder, the heavens beyond our reach.	46:45
	The experience of love too deep for words.	46:52
	A world of such complexity and marvel	46:56
	yet also a world of much pain.	47:00
	Of ample opportunity for the experience of the tragic	47:04
	and firsthands dealing with sorrow.	47:08
	Therefore we pray, we pray for all	47:13
	who have come here this morning	47:17
	with more questions than answers.	47:20
	How can we have faith when being tested	47:23
	by some time of trial in our lives?	47:27
	May we find strength to believe to hope and to endure.	47:33
	We pray for peace in this world.	47:40
	Why do we kill and maim, torture and oppress	47:43
	those whom you declare to be our brothers and sisters?	47:47
	Create good will among the nations.	47:51
	We pray for people who are hungry	47:55
	or ill-housed or ill-clothed.	47:59
	Why do some of us have so much	48:03
	while some have so little?	48:06
	Increase in us and in all who prosper	48:09
	concern for the disinherited.	48:13
	We pray for the sick, and those who suffer pain	48:18
	or struggle or confusion of the mind.	48:22
	Particularly those in Duke Hospital.	48:26
	We wonder how can this life at once so sweet and good	48:29
	be also a time of illness, suffering, and death.	48:34
	Show us thy mighty love.	48:41
	We pray for our families, particularly this parents weekend.	48:45
	For loving parents and grateful children.	48:52
	How can we pursue self-interest and merely personal gain	48:55
	when the self-giving love of our parents	49:00
	has shown us that great love entails great sacrifice?	49:03
	Make us children whose lives prove	49:09
	the value of our parents' gifts.	49:12
	We pray for this university, for those who teach	49:17
	and those who learn on this campus.	49:21
	How could we take for granted our freedom to think	49:24
	and to explore the gifts of intellectual	49:27
	pursuit and artistic excellence?	49:30
	Help us to unite to our quest for erudition	49:34
	the wisdom to be gained from our religion.	49:39
	Hear our prayers, almighty and loving God.	49:44
	In the name of Jesus Christ who prays with us and for us.	49:48
	To whom we praise forever, amen.	49:55
	Each Sunday, all of the offering received	50:02
	in this chapel goes to help the needs	50:05
	of those close to home and far away.	50:07
	The Duke Campus ministry has designated	50:10
	that this Sunday, the offering shall go	50:12
	for the blanket appeal of church world service	50:15
	and we invite you to give generously.	50:20
	(inspiring organ music)	50:28
	♪ Let all the people rejoice ♪	51:38
	♪ Rejoice for the Father and Son ♪	51:48
	♪ Let all the people rejoice ♪	52:04
	♪ Rejoice, rejoice, rejoice ♪	52:10
	♪ Let all the people rejoice ♪	52:15
	♪ Rejoice, rejoice, rejoice ♪	52:21
	♪ Rejoice, rejoice ♪	52:27
	♪ And all the people rejoice ♪	52:36
	♪ Rejoice, rejoice ♪	52:41
	♪ Rejoice and sing ♪	52:47
	♪ God save the king ♪	52:54
	♪ Long live the king ♪	52:57
	♪ God save the king ♪	52:59
	♪ May he live forever ♪	53:02
	♪ Hallelujah, hallelujah ♪	53:07
	♪ Hallelujah, hallelujah ♪	53:09
	♪ Hallelujah ♪	53:13
	♪ Amen ♪	53:19
	♪ Amen, hallelujah, amen ♪	53:22
	(inspiring organ music)	53:25
	♪ God save the king ♪	53:37
	♪ Long live the king ♪	53:39
	♪ May he live forever ♪	53:41
	♪ Amen, hallelujah ♪	53:47
	♪ Hallelujah, amen ♪	53:49
	♪ Hallelujah ♪	53:52
	♪ May he live forever ♪	53:59
	♪ Forever, forever ♪	54:05
	♪ Amen amen hallelujah amen ♪	54:08
	♪ Amen ♪	54:11
	♪ Hallelujah, hallelujah, amen ♪	54:13
	♪ Amen, amen ♪	54:25
	♪ Amen, amen ♪	54:29
	♪ Hallelujah, hallelujah, amen ♪	54:32
	♪ Long live the king ♪	54:43
	♪ God save the king ♪	54:45
	♪ Long live the king ♪	54:48
	♪ May the king live ♪	54:50
	♪ May the king live forever ♪	54:53
	♪ Forever, forever, amen, hallelujah ♪	54:59
	♪ Amen, amen ♪	55:04
	♪ Amen, amen ♪	55:08
	♪ Hallelujah amen ♪	55:14
	♪ Hallelujah amen ♪	55:26
	♪ Hallelujah ♪	55:33
	(inspirational organ music)	55:47
	(stately organ music)	56:12
	(organ music drowning out singing)	56:40
	♪ Amen ♪	57:39
-	Gracious God, we thank you for	57:46
	all the blessings of this life.	57:48
	For the blessings of parents and families and friends.	57:50
	For opportunities to question	57:55
	and to grow and to learn in your grace.	57:56
	We acknowledge all of this is a gift from you.	57:59
	Receive these, our gifts, for your work	58:02
	in the world as we pray:	58:03
-	(Congregation) Our Father, who art in Heaven,	58:04
	hallowed be they name.	58:11
	Thy kingdom come, thy will be done	58:14
	on Earth as it is in heaven.	58:17
	Give us this day our daily bread	58:19
	and forgive us our trespasses	58:21
	as we forgive those who trespass against us.	58:24
	And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil.	58:28
	For thine is the kingdom and the power	58:32
	and the glory forever, amen.	58:35
	(inspirational organ music)	58:40
	(organ music drowning out singing)	59:23
-	And now a blessing particularly upon our parents,	1:03:06
	those of you who have blessed us	1:03:10
	with your most precious possession, your children.	1:03:11
	We bless you for being here today and pray God's blessing	1:03:14
	upon you as you return to your homes.	1:03:18
	And to all of you, the blessing of God	1:03:20
	the Father, Son, and the Holy Spirit	1:03:23
	be with you now and always.	1:03:26
	♪ Amen, amen ♪	1:03:32
	(inspiring organ music)	1:03:52

Item Info

Title:

Thomas G. Long - "Jesus' Final Exam" (November 9, 1986)

Description:

Every question contains within it the assumptive world of the one who asks the question. Behind the Saduccees question to Jesus lay the assumption that the future of God would be just like the present, in which people are owned like property. But Jesus challenges this worldview and instead replies that, in the age to come, no one will be owned, but we will all be children of God. (Abstract created by Duke Divinity School staff.)
Sermon start time: (Part 1) 24:24. Sermon end time: (Part 1) 41:50.
Key quotation: “On the other side of all of our questions, there are not answers, but the living God who brings in an age more gracious and wonderful and hopeful than we could ever have imagined.”

Permalink:

https://idn.duke.edu/ark:/87924/r45q4s218

Date:

November 9, 1986

Speaker:

Long, Thomas G., 1946-

Biblical Book:

Chapter and Verse:

Subject:

Contributor:

Duke University. Chapel

Identifier:

UA.17.01.0003 VHS-0006
ref8246_4v4
uachapelsermaud
duke:321683
dcrmv001007
ark:/87924/r45q4s218
ff68afca-51e4-4f84-96f2-d414d6d75b1b

Digital Collection:

Duke Chapel Recordings

Source Collection:

Duke University Chapel recordings, 1954-2005

Related Resources:

See below

Language:

English

Location:

United States
North Carolina
Durham (N.C.)

Format:

Provenance:

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

Rights:

Limited Re-Use

CC BY-NC 4.0

Rights Note:

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

Sponsor:

Sponsor this Digital Collection

Thomas G. Long - "Jesus' Final Exam" (November 9, 1986)

Transcript

Item Info

Duke University Archives

More Info & Options