Nancy Ferree-Clark - "Rich Toward God" (August 6, 1989)

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	(organ music)	0:00
-	Grace and peace to you in the name	0:57
	of the Lord Jesus Christ.	0:58
	We welcome each of you to this service	1:00
	of the celebration of the Lord's Supper,	1:02
	here at the chapel on this 12th Sunday after Pentecost.	1:04
	Recognizing that we have many visitors	1:08
	who may be on the Duke campus for the first time,	1:10
	we wish you a pleasant stay and we offer you	1:13
	our assistance here at the chapel	1:15
	in any way that we may be helpful.	1:17
	We also extend greetings to those of you	1:19
	in our radio and television audiences.	1:21
	I would like to thank Dr. Paula Gilbert,	1:24
	assistant dean for planning and special projects	1:26
	at Duke Divinity School,	1:29
	for serving as our presiding minister this morning.	1:31
	And Miss Robin Kramer, Duke Chapel Hostess,	1:33
	who is our lector today.	1:36
	I also appreciate the assistance of our Communion servers	1:39
	whose names are printed in the bulletins.	1:42
	Please note the remaining announcements	1:45
	as they are printed in your bulletins.	1:46
	And now let us continue our worship.	1:48
	♪ Praising our Lord of lords ♪	1:56
	♪ Singing in salvation ♪	2:00
	♪ Bless his name shall follow His praise ♪	2:05
	♪ In his holy house ♪	2:09
	♪ We shall be glad for we can now be joyful ♪	2:13
	♪ Christ redeems to the end of the world ♪	2:23
	♪ Shall sing allelujah ♪	2:27
	(organ music)	2:34
	♪ O for a thousand tongues to sing ♪	2:58
	♪ My great Redeemer's praise ♪	3:03
	♪ The glories of my God and King ♪	3:09
	♪ The triumphs of His grace ♪	3:15
	♪ My gracious Master and my God ♪	3:23
	♪ Assist me to proclaim ♪	3:28
	♪ To spread through all the earth abroad ♪	3:34
	♪ The honors of Your name ♪	3:40
	♪ Jesus, the name that charms our fears ♪	3:48
	♪ That bids our sorrows cease ♪	3:54
	♪ 'Tis music in the sinner's ears ♪	4:00
	♪ 'Tis life and health and peace ♪	4:06
	♪ He breaks the power of canceled sin ♪	4:14
	♪ He sets the prisoner free ♪	4:20
	♪ His blood can make the foulest clean ♪	4:25
	♪ His blood availed for me ♪	4:31
	♪ He speaks, and listening to His voice ♪	4:39
	♪ New life the dead receive ♪	4:45
	♪ The mournful, broken hearts rejoice ♪	4:51
	♪ The humble poor believe ♪	4:57
	♪ Hear Him, ye deaf, His praise, ye dumb ♪	5:27
	♪ Your loosened tongues employ ♪	5:33
	♪ Ye blind, behold your Savior come ♪	5:40
	♪ And leap, ye lame, for joy ♪	5:46
-	When we gather to praise God,	6:00
	we remember that we are a people	6:02
	who have preferred our wills to the Lord's.	6:04
	Acknowledging our sinfulness, let us make our confession	6:08
	before almighty God using number 726	6:12
	in the back of your hymnal.	6:17
	Let us pray.	6:25
-	[Paula And Congregation] Almighty and most merciful God,	6:27
	who knowest the thoughts of our hearts,	6:30
	we confess that we have sinned against Thee	6:33
	and done evil in Thy sight.	6:36
	We have transgressed Thy holy laws.	6:39
	We have neglected Thy word and ordinances.	6:42
	Forgive us O Lord, we beseech Thee.	6:46
	And give us grace and power to put away	6:49
	all hurtful things, that being delivered	6:52
	from the bondage of sin, we may bring forth fruit	6:55
	worthy of repentance and henceforth may ever walk	6:59
	in Thy holy ways, through Jesus Christ our Lord, amen.	7:04
-	If we confess our sins, God is faithful and just	7:20
	and will forgive our sins and cleanse us	7:24
	from all unrighteousness.	7:27
-	[Paula And Congregation] Thanks be to God.	7:30
-	Let us pray.	7:43
-	[Robin And Congregation] Open our hearts and minds, O God,	7:46
	by the power of Your Holy Spirit so that as the word	7:49
	is read and proclaimed, we might hear with joy	7:54
	what You say to us today, amen.	7:58
-	The Epistle is taken from Paul's letter to Colossians.	8:05
	If then you have been raised with Christ,	8:14
	seek the things that are above, where Christ is,	8:17
	seated at the right hand of God.	8:22
	Set your minds on things that are above,	8:26
	not on things that are on earth.	8:30
	For you have died and your life is hid with Christ in God.	8:34
	When Christ, who is our life, appears,	8:41
	then you also will appear with Christ in glory.	8:45
	Put to death, therefore, what is earthly in you.	8:51
	Fornication, impurity, passion, evil desire,	8:54
	and covetousness which is idolatry.	9:01
	On account of these the wrath of God is coming.	9:05
	In these you once walked when you lived in them.	9:10
	But now, put them all away,	9:15
	anger, wrath, malice, slander and foul talk from your mouth.	9:18
	Do not lie to one another.	9:26
	Seeing that you have put off the old nature	9:28
	with its practices and have put on the new nature	9:31
	which is being renewed in knowledge after the image	9:36
	of its creator.	9:39
	Here, there cannot be Greek and Jew,	9:42
	those who are under the law and those who are not.	9:46
	Barbarian, Scythian, slave or free.	9:50
	But Christ is all and in all.	9:55
	This is the Word of the Lord.	10:01
-	Will you please stand and join me	10:11
	in reading responsibly Psalm 28.	10:13
-	[Paula And Congregation] To You O God, I call.	10:23
	My rock, be not deaf to me.	10:26
	Lest, if You be silent to me,	10:28
	I become like those who go down to the pit.	10:31
	Hear the voice of my supplication as I cry to You for help.	10:35
	As I lift up my hands toward Your most holy sanctuary.	10:41
	Take me not off with the wicked,	10:46
	with those who are workers of evil,	10:48
	who speak peace with their neighbors	10:51
	while mischief is in their hearts.	10:53
	Requite them according to their work	10:57
	and according to the evil of their deeds.	11:00
	Requite them according to the work of their hands,	11:02
	render them their due reward.	11:06
	Because they do not regard the works of God	11:09
	or the work of God's hands, God will break them down	11:13
	and build them up no more.	11:17
	Blessed be the Lord who has heard the voice	11:20
	of my supplications.	11:23
	God is my strength and my shield,	11:25
	the one in whom my heart trusts,	11:28
	so I am helped and my heart exalts.	11:31
	And with my song I give thanks to God.	11:34
	God is the strength of the people,	11:39
	the saving refuge of God's anointed.	11:41
	O, save your people and bless your heritage.	11:45
	Be their shepherd and carry them forever.	11:49
	(organ music)	11:53
	♪ Glory be to God in Heaven ♪	12:02
	(choir singing drowned out by organ)	12:09
	♪ Glory be to Christ our Savior ♪	12:17
	(choir singing drowned out by organ)	12:25
-	A reading from the Gospel according to Saint Luke.	13:09
	One of the multitude said to Jesus,	13:14
	teacher, bid my brother divide the inheritance with me.	13:18
	But Jesus replied, "Who made me a judge	13:23
	"or divider over you?"	13:27
	And He said to them, "Take heed and beware all covetousness.	13:30
	"For one's life does not consist	13:36
	"in the abundance of possessions."	13:38
	And Jesus told him a parable saying,	13:41
	"The land of a rich man brought forth plentifully,	13:44
	"and he thought to himself, what shall I do?	13:48
	"For I have nowhere to store my crops.	13:51
	"And he said, 'I will do this.	13:55
	"I will pull down my barns and build larger ones.	13:57
	"And there I will store all my grain and my goods.	14:01
	"And I will say to myself, 'self, you have ample goods	14:05
	"laid up for many years, take your ease.	14:09
	"Eat, drink, be merry.'"	14:12
	But God said to him, "Fool, this night your life	14:16
	"is required of you and the things you have prepared,	14:20
	"whose will they be?"	14:24
	So are those who lay up treasure for themselves	14:27
	and are not rich toward God.	14:31
	This is the word of the Lord.	14:35
	A recent cartoon in the North Carolina Independent	14:42
	showed a series of tombstones displaying	14:46
	a variety of epitaphs.	14:50
	They included the following.	14:53
	Amassed a most impressive CD collection.	14:56
	I plan to win the lottery in my next life.	15:00
	Would you mind reading my screenplay?	15:05
	Never voted for a winner in a major election.	15:09
	Bought The Satanic Verses, A Brief History of Time	15:13
	and the Andy Warhol Diaries but never got around	15:17
	to reading them.	15:20
	Lived slow, died young, sure wish I'd lived fast.	15:22
	This cartoon captures for me, much of the dilemma	15:29
	posed by today's gospel.	15:31
	In light of our own mortality, who do we claim to be?	15:34
	An epitaph, especially a cartoon about one	15:39
	has a nice way of sneaking up on us to make a similar point.	15:43
	It prods our sense of humor to laugh	15:47
	at someone else's folly, while at the same time,	15:49
	posing a very serious question for ourselves.	15:53
	How shall we be identified in the life to come?	15:56
	Today's parable of a rich fool tells of a man	16:02
	who failed to think about this question	16:06
	and in the end, confused who he was with what he had.	16:08
	Blessed by the fruits of sun and wind and rain	16:15
	and soil, he was a rich farmer who became even richer.	16:18
	His problem was not accumulating wealth,	16:21
	but rather figuring out what to do	16:24
	with all that he had.	16:26
	What shall I do, for I have nowhere to store my crops?	16:28
	He thought to himself.	16:31
	And so, the idea of building bigger barns	16:33
	to replace the old ones occurred to him	16:35
	as the only logical solution.	16:38
	There he would store all of his grains and his goods,	16:41
	tossing his cares to the wind to live a life of ease.	16:44
	Now I'll have to admit that that kind	16:49
	of a lifestyle has its appeal.	16:51
	To quote my boss, Will Willimon,	16:54
	from the looks of things, being rich wouldn't be that bad.	16:57
	(congregation laughs)	17:00
	And so we sympathize with the farmer and his dilemma.	17:02
	He was undoubtedly frugal, prudent and a good manager.	17:05
	Certainly not the type to be involved in graft	17:09
	or manipulation of the market.	17:12
	What he needed to make was a sound economic decision.	17:14
	So what's there to criticize	17:18
	about hard earned success anyway?	17:19
	Wouldn't the whole community be better off	17:22
	with a few more people like him around?	17:24
	The problem for this farmer though,	17:27
	was that he didn't know how to simply thank God	17:29
	for his blessings and enjoy them with his friends.	17:31
	Instead he was so anxious and obsessed	17:35
	about his possessions and what to do with them	17:37
	that he lived only for himself.	17:39
	He talked to himself.	17:42
	He congratulated himself	17:44
	and he planned only for himself, talking neither to God	17:46
	nor to other people.	17:50
	And in Jesus' words, he was a fool.	17:51
	His possessions were the center of his life.	17:54
	He treated them as absolute and ultimate	17:57
	only to find out too late that they were temporary.	18:00
	As Jesus put it so starkly,	18:04
	"The things you have prepared, whose will they be?"	18:07
	The folly of covetousness has plagued the human race	18:12
	as least as far back as Jacob and Esau.	18:16
	It was a violation of the law of Moses	18:20
	and the teaching of the prophets	18:22
	and seemed to be a widespread practice in the early church.	18:23
	It exists in many forms.	18:27
	Sometimes as the desire to possess what belongs	18:29
	to another and at other times to accumulate	18:32
	when one already has enough to meet one's needs.	18:36
	Other people can be obsessed with a craving to hoard	18:40
	as a guard against insecurity.	18:43
	You've heard of people who are practically addicted	18:46
	to expensive shopping binges	18:48
	or at the other extreme, who become so tight-fisted	18:51
	they can't spend a penny without wincing	18:54
	over its departure.	18:56
	Such a craving as a sort of guarantee	18:58
	against insecurity is clearly an act of disregard	19:01
	for those in need, but it also puts goods	19:05
	in the place of God.	19:09
	Luke calls such an attempt to be rich for oneself	19:11
	as not being rich toward God.	19:15
	Paul calls it worshiping and serving the creature	19:18
	rather than the creator.	19:21
	And both Colossians and Ephesians	19:23
	label covetousness as idolatry.	19:25
	Understood in this light, possessions actually symbolize	19:29
	our response to what we perceive as ultimate.	19:33
	That is, they can reveal our idols.	19:37
	Do our possessions enslave us?	19:41
	Enabling us to claim power over our sisters and brothers	19:44
	while we grasp life itself as a possession?	19:47
	Or does faith in God who calls us out of such compulsive	19:51
	self grasping into a life of freedom	19:55
	enable us to use things without being owned by things?	19:58
	In a world fraught with anxiety it seems that possessions	20:04
	are the first place to resort to	20:07
	for a sense of identity when everything seems up for grabs.	20:08
	We can hold them, we can accumulate them.	20:13
	We can defend them.	20:16
	We can admire them.	20:17
	How easily they come to represent our security	20:20
	taking the place of God.	20:23
	And if the security given by things	20:25
	is all I have as a God,	20:27
	then I have no choice but to cling to them.	20:29
	I'm too frightened to imagine living any other way.	20:31
	It also seems that the more I have,	20:36
	the harder I cling.	20:38
	For if possessions form the very basis of my worth	20:41
	and identity then it must mean that the more I have	20:44
	the more I am.	20:48
	And living in a world of limited resources,	20:51
	that means that I have to view all of you as competitors.	20:54
	This may be part of the reason why covetousness	21:00
	is a special hazard to those of us who actually have	21:03
	adequate means to live on, but we're reluctant	21:06
	to part with them.	21:09
	A study by the Washington D.C. based group	21:11
	Independent Sector, released last year	21:14
	indicated that the poorest people in America	21:17
	actually give away the highest percentage	21:20
	of their income.	21:21
	Their findings include the following.	21:24
	People with an income less than $10,000 per year	21:26
	give away an average of 2.8%.	21:30
	People earning up to 30,000 give away up to 2.5%.	21:34
	Those earning up to 50,000 give away 2%.	21:39
	Those earning up to 75,000 1.5%.	21:43
	Only in the next bracket, those earning up to 100,000	21:48
	per year, does the chart begin to climb back up to 1.7%,	21:51
	and it continues up to 2.1 among families	21:56
	with incomes over $100,000 per year.	21:59
	But even they do not give away as high a percentage	22:02
	of their income as the poorest Americans.	22:06
	Now I'm not trying to suggest that poor people	22:09
	are necessarily morally superior	22:11
	to those with higher incomes.	22:14
	I'm just raising a question for all of us.	22:16
	Why is it that we cling so dearly to the things we possess?	22:19
	In today's epistle, Saint Paul reminds us	22:25
	in his letter to the Colossians that indeed	22:28
	all of life is a gift from God	22:30
	and that our identities as Christians	22:32
	is found in our baptism, not in the world.	22:35
	If we have died and risen again with Christ	22:39
	by virtue of our baptism, our identity	22:42
	lies hidden with Christ in God, according to Paul.	22:45
	So closely are we now identified with Christ	22:50
	that it's impossible to think of our existence	22:53
	apart from Him.	22:56
	Through this union with Christ,	22:58
	our lives are completely reoriented.	22:59
	The object of our deepest desires	23:02
	is now directed toward things that are above	23:04
	and away from things that are on Earth.	23:07
	It's not as if we've become oblivious to the world	23:11
	and its realities, where we live in some sort	23:14
	of mystical trance.	23:16
	Rather, our world is transformed by the risen Lord	23:19
	so that He determines what is ultimate	23:22
	and not our own likes and dislikes.	23:24
	What emerges is a new creation,	23:28
	not only for the individual who experiences that change,	23:30
	but within the entire social order	23:34
	when Christ is all and in all.	23:37
	Its transforming impact is to remove	23:40
	all those distinctions of rank	23:43
	while at the same time empowering us to love	23:45
	every member of the creation for his or her uniqueness.	23:48
	As Paul writes to the Galatians,	23:52
	for as many of you as were baptized into Christ	23:54
	have put on Christ, there is neither Jew nor Greek,	23:57
	slave nor free, male nor female.	24:01
	For you are all one in Christ.	24:05
	We don't have to look very hard for evidence	24:09
	that we are far from attaining this oneness in Christ.	24:11
	The banality of consumer competition,	24:15
	better known as keeping up with the Joneses,	24:17
	is only the easiest form of idolatry to parody	24:20
	that says our identity does not always rest in God.	24:24
	Today, on the 44th anniversary of the explosion	24:29
	of the first atomic bomb over Hiroshima,	24:32
	we humbly recognize this most ominous form of idolatry	24:35
	which threatens to destroy us, the nuclear arms race.	24:40
	In between are all the clashes between the haves	24:44
	and the have-nots.	24:47
	Whether the have is specified as money, power, beauty,	24:48
	brains, personality, religion, a specific gender	24:53
	or ethnic identity, the tune is the same.	24:58
	Our identities seem to rest often in what we have	25:02
	before they rest in God.	25:06
	Now when I think of what this means for our time,	25:10
	I see the image of a clenched fist as symbolic for us.	25:13
	A fist seizes what it can, closes tightly around it	25:18
	and threatens anyone who would open it.	25:22
	It's intimidating, alienating, even frightening.	25:25
	It stands for separation, not reconciliation.	25:29
	In contrast to this image stands the image	25:33
	of the risen Christ with his hands extended	25:36
	warmly inviting all to come to him unafraid.	25:39
	If you've never noticed the wood carving of Christ	25:45
	above the altar in our Memorial Chapel,	25:48
	which portrays such an image, I encourage you to do so.	25:50
	It stands as a sign to each of us	25:53
	to loosen our grip on this broken world.	25:56
	Our value has never resided in what we can seize	26:00
	or lord over one another, but rather, in what has been given	26:03
	to us freely by grace through the life,	26:07
	death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.	26:11
	And every time we celebrate a baptism,	26:14
	be that of a screeching infant	26:16
	or the Archbishop of Canterbury,	26:19
	we acknowledge the mystery of that gift	26:21
	as one that we can never truly deserve	26:23
	and that we don't have to, in order to receive it.	26:26
	It may be worth noting that this parable occurs in Luke	26:31
	in the context of several sayings about fears and anxieties.	26:34
	Just prior to this passage Jesus promised the disciples	26:39
	they had nothing to fear when facing antagonistic rulers	26:42
	and authorities, for the Holy Spirit	26:45
	would teach them what to say.	26:48
	In the section just following this parable,	26:51
	Jesus discusses anxiety with His disciples	26:53
	saying to them, do not be anxious about your life,	26:56
	what you shall eat, nor about your body,	27:00
	what you shall put on.	27:03
	Consider the ravens.	27:05
	They neither sew nor reap, they have neither storehouse	27:07
	nor barn, yet God feeds them.	27:12
	Of how much more value are you than they?	27:16
	Because our worth comes not from what we can grasp	27:21
	or control, but from the gift God has given us,	27:25
	we are freed from fear and anxiety,	27:29
	able to share with our neighbor.	27:32
	Now we can loosen those clenched fist	27:35
	and join hands around the communion table,	27:38
	where we stand equally naked and equally loved	27:41
	before our maker.	27:44
	Able to call one another brother and sister	27:47
	as we rejoice in our common identity.	27:49
	For all of our differences we are still,	27:53
	first and foremost, children of God	27:56
	redeemed by the blood of Jesus Christ.	27:59
	Thanks be to God.	28:02
	(organ music)	28:08
	♪ Deck thyself, my soul, with gladness ♪	29:14
	♪ Leave the gloomy haunts of sadness ♪	29:22
	♪ Come into the daylight's splendor ♪	29:30
	♪ There with joy thy praises render ♪	29:39
	♪ Unto Christ, whose grace unbounded ♪	29:47
	♪ Hath this wondrous banquet founded ♪	29:55
	♪ High o'er all the Heavens He reigneth ♪	30:04
	♪ Yet to dwell with thee He deigneth ♪	30:12
	♪ Sun, who all my life dost brighten ♪	30:22
	♪ Light, who dost my soul enlighten ♪	30:31
	♪ Joy, the best that any knoweth ♪	30:39
	♪ Fount, whence all my being floweth ♪	30:47
	♪ At Thy feet I cry, my Maker ♪	30:55
	♪ Let me be a fit partaker ♪	31:04
	♪ Of this blessed food from Heaven ♪	31:13
	♪ For our good, Thy glory, given ♪	31:21
	♪ Jesus, bread of life, I pray Thee ♪	31:33
	♪ Let me gladly here obey Thee ♪	31:41
	♪ Never to my hurt invited ♪	31:49
	♪ Be Thy love with love requited ♪	31:57
	♪ From this banquet let me measure ♪	32:06
	♪ Lord, how vast and deep its treasure ♪	32:14
	♪ Through the gifts Thou here dost give me ♪	32:23
	♪ As Thy guest in Heaven receive me ♪	32:31
-	The Lord be with you.	32:48
Congregation	And also be with you.	32:50
-	Let us pray.	32:52
	God of all beginnings and God of all endings,	33:09
	we give thanks to You for the beauty of this day	33:13
	and for this gathering of Your people.	33:16
	From the particularities of our lives	33:20
	and our individual histories, we come together	33:22
	as Your children, claiming the privilege of worshiping You	33:26
	and glorifying Your holy name.	33:30
	And as heirs of the risen Christ,	33:33
	we give thanks for the gift of Your Son.	33:36
	For His life, death and resurrection	33:40
	by which we come to know ourselves.	33:42
	Jesus Christ who prepares the banquet feast	33:45
	and invites all to partake.	33:49
	This morning gracious Lord,	33:52
	we pray for the whole human family.	33:54
	Hanging on a cross You gave hope to a thief at your side.	33:57
	And You prayed for those who condemned You	34:02
	to that violent death.	34:04
	We too live amid violence in both blatant and subtle forms.	34:06
	And violence so pervasive that none of us is free	34:11
	from its taint.	34:15
	Mighty God You alone can give victory over the violence	34:17
	of the world and the violence of our hearts.	34:21
	Give us, by Your grace, the will and the power	34:24
	to share Your victory.	34:29
	Living Lord, we pray for ourselves and our society	34:33
	entombed in material possessions	34:37
	and oppressed with ever-changing fears.	34:39
	Many of us simply hope that things will get no worse,	34:43
	while others merely mark the passing of days.	34:47
	Release us we pray from this living death.	34:51
	Cause us to know through this meal of bread and wine	34:55
	the power only You can give.	34:58
	To help us live life joyfully, courageously, and faithfully.	35:01
	Holy Lord, You know what it is to suffer pain	35:08
	and degradation and rejection and to die an outcast.	35:11
	We pray for all who suffer.	35:16
	For all who know sickness in body, mind, or spirit.	35:18
	For all who believe themselves alone,	35:22
	for all who languish in prison,	35:24
	for all who live lives of quiet desperation.	35:27
	May all of these know You as one who shares their agony	35:31
	and enables them to share in Your triumph.	35:35
	Loving Lord, hear our prayers for Your church.	35:39
	May the power of our baptism propel Your people	35:43
	all around the globe to proclaim the good news.	35:47
	And may all those who are fed by Your word	35:51
	and this holy meal be strengthened in love	35:54
	toward one another and the whole world	35:57
	that You might be served as the one true living Lord	36:01
	of Heaven and earth.	36:05
	Grant this through Christ our Lord, amen.	36:08
	Christ invites to His table	36:15
	all those who love Him and who desire	36:18
	to live in peace with one another.	36:20
	Therefore let us stand and offer one another	36:23
	signs and words of Christ's peace.	36:26
	As a forgiven and reconciled people,	36:56
	let us offer ourselves and our gifts to God.	36:59
	(organ music)	37:06
	(choir singing in foreign language)	38:23
	(organ music)	39:29
	♪ Praise God from whom all blessings flow ♪	42:37
	♪ Praise God all creatures here below ♪	42:44
	♪ Hallelujah ♪	42:50
	♪ Hallelujah ♪	42:54
	♪ Praise God above the heavenly hosts ♪	42:58
	♪ Praise Father, Son and Holy Ghost ♪	43:05
	♪ Hallelujah ♪	43:12
	♪ Hallelujah ♪	43:15
	♪ Hallelujah ♪	43:19
	♪ Hallelujah ♪	43:23
	♪ Hallelujah ♪	43:27
Nancy	The Lord be with you.	43:49
Congregation	And also with you.	43:50
Nancy	Lift up your hearts.	43:52
Congregation	We lift them up unto the Lord.	43:53
-	Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.	43:55
Congregation	It is right to give thanks and praise.	43:58
-	We give thanks Father because You were God	44:02
	even before time began.	44:04
	You have seen every sun rise, every day begin	44:07
	since You first gave form to our home, this earth.	44:10
	You launched it into Your universe,	44:14
	shaped its hills and filled its seas.	44:16
	When space was ready, You brought life out of the waters	44:20
	and in time, made us in Your image, male and female.	44:23
	Yet we were not content with such a paradise.	44:28
	We rebelled, putting our wills before Yours.	44:31
	Even then we found You boundless in love.	44:34
	Time after time You reached out Your hand	44:38
	to touch our lives with loving kindness.	44:40
	You led us from captivity to life	44:44
	in the land that You promised.	44:47
	You made covenant to take us to be Your people,	44:49
	to love and to cherish and we took You as God and ruler,	44:52
	promising to forsake all others.	44:56
	You put your words on the lips of women and men.	44:59
	They spoke Your words of law,	45:02
	gave themselves in a struggle for justice	45:04
	and taught us to sing Your glory.	45:07
	We join with those who have lived and those now living	45:09
	in faith as with one voice in the song of unending praise.	45:12
-	[Nancy And Congregation] Holy, holy, holy Lord,	45:18
	God of power and light.	45:20
	Heaven and earth are full of Your glory.	45:22
	Hosanna in the highest.	45:25
	Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.	45:27
	Hosanna in the highest.	45:30
-	Full indeed are Heaven and earth	45:32
	of Your glory, holy Lord God.	45:34
	When time was ready, You the creator of all that is	45:38
	sent Christ to be a creature like us.	45:42
	Instead of a servant you sent Your Son	45:45
	that He might be a servant of all.	45:47
	Christ alone, He who is closest to Your heart,	45:50
	He made You known to us.	45:53
	Walking among us, Jesus the Christ	45:56
	performed great signs to reveal His glory.	45:58
	He spoke as one having authority	46:02
	that we might trust your love and obey your law.	46:04
	When His hour had come He drank the cup of suffering	46:08
	and accepted the baptism of death.	46:12
	Like a lamb, He was led away from the living,	46:15
	but as Your Son He was raised from the grave.	46:17
	Having triumphed over death, He left our sight	46:21
	that His spirit might fill our hearts	46:24
	as we await the completion of all things in Him.	46:26
	On the night in which He gave himself up for us,	46:31
	the Lord Jesus took bread in His hands,	46:33
	lifting His eyes to Heaven He gave You thanks,	46:36
	broke the bread, gave it to His disciples	46:39
	and said, take, eat, this is my body	46:42
	which is given for you.	46:45
	When supper was finished He took the cup.	46:48
	Again, He offered thanks to You,	46:50
	gave the cup to His disciples and said,	46:52
	"Drink from this all of you, this is the cup	46:55
	"of the new covenant in my blood, poured out for you	46:57
	"and for many for the forgiveness of sin."	47:01
	When we eat this bread and drink this cup	47:05
	we know anew the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ,	47:08
	and look to the day when we shall feast	47:11
	in His eternal kingdom.	47:13
	With hearts raised in joy we know a new life,	47:15
	Christ's life among us.	47:19
	His death because of us, His resurrection for us,	47:20
	and His ascension to glory.	47:24
	Join this memorial made by your priestly people,	47:26
	bound by earth and time to the heavenly	47:29
	and timeless offering for us of Christ Himself,	47:31
	our great high priest.	47:35
-	[Nancy And Congregation] Dying Christ destroyed our death,	47:37
	rising Christ restored our life.	47:40
	Christ will come in glory.	47:43
-	Send, we pray, Your Holy Spirit on us gathered here	47:46
	out of love for You and on this offering.	47:49
	May Your spirit make real the signs	47:52
	that through breaking bread and drinking wine together	47:54
	we may know Christ present among us.	47:58
	By the spirit make us one with the goodness of Christ	48:01
	as You made Him one with our sinfulness,	48:04
	that we may be one with each other	48:07
	and one in service to all You have created.	48:09
	Through your Son Jesus Christ with the Holy Spirit	48:12
	in Your holy Church, all Your people and all Your works	48:15
	glorify and honor You Father now and forever, amen.	48:18
-	[Nancy And Congregation] Our father, who art in Heaven	48:24
	hallowed be Thy name.	48:27
	Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done	48:29
	on earth as it is in Heaven.	48:31
	Give us this day, our daily bread,	48:34
	and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those	48:36
	who trespass against us.	48:39
	And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil	48:41
	for Thine is the kingdom, the power	48:46
	and the glory forever amen.	48:48
	(footsteps tapping floor)	49:06
	(organ music)	49:24
	(choir singing drowned out by organ)	50:43
	(choir singing in foreign language)	55:22
	(organ music)	57:03
	♪ Let all mortal flesh keep silence ♪	58:13
	♪ And with fear and trembling stand ♪	58:20
	♪ Ponder nothing earthly minded ♪	58:28
	♪ For with blessing in His hand ♪	58:36
	♪ Christ our God to earth descendeth ♪	58:44
	♪ Our full homage to demand ♪	58:56
	♪ King of kings, yet born of Mary ♪	59:08
	♪ As of old on earth He stood ♪	59:17
	♪ Lord of lords, in human vesture ♪	59:24
	♪ In the body and the blood ♪	59:33
	♪ He will give to all the faithful ♪	59:41
	♪ His own self for heavenly food ♪	59:52
	♪ Rank on rank the host of Heaven ♪	1:00:04
	♪ Spreads its vanguard on the way ♪	1:00:13
	♪ As the Light of light descendeth ♪	1:00:21
	♪ From the realms of endless day ♪	1:00:29
	♪ That the powers of Hell may vanish ♪	1:00:37
	♪ As the darkness clears away ♪	1:00:49
	♪ At His feet the six-winged seraph ♪	1:01:03
	♪ Cherubim, with sleepless eye ♪	1:01:12
	♪ Veil their faces to the Presence ♪	1:01:20
	♪ As with ceaseless voice they cry ♪	1:01:29
	♪ Alleluia ♪	1:01:37
	♪ Alleluia ♪	1:01:41
	♪ Alleluia, Lord most high ♪	1:01:49
	(footsteps tapping on floor)	1:02:38
-	Thank you Ann, dear.	1:03:00
	(footsteps tapping on floor)	1:03:05
	We give You thanks almighty God	1:03:12
	that You have refreshed us through the healing power	1:03:14
	of this gift of life.	1:03:17
	And we pray that in Your mercy you would strengthen us	1:03:19
	through this gift in faith toward You	1:03:22
	and in fervent love toward one another.	1:03:26
	For the sake of Jesus Christ our Lord, amen.	1:03:29
	Go in peace to serve God and your neighbor	1:03:34
	in all that you do.	1:03:37
Congregation	We are sent in Christ's name.	1:03:39
-	The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God	1:03:41
	and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all.	1:03:44
	♪ Amen, amen, amen ♪	1:03:54
	♪ Amen ♪	1:04:08
	♪ Amen ♪	1:04:16
	(organ music)	1:04:43
	♪ Guide me, O Thou great Jehovah ♪	1:05:22
	♪ Pilgrim through this barren land ♪	1:05:27
	♪ I am weak, but Thou art mighty ♪	1:05:33
	♪ Hold me with Thy powerful hand ♪	1:05:38
	♪ Bread of Heaven, bread of Heaven ♪	1:05:44
	♪ Feed me 'til I want no more ♪	1:05:49
	♪ Feed me 'til I want no more ♪	1:05:55
	♪ Open now the crystal fountain ♪	1:06:03
	♪ Whence the healing stream doth flow ♪	1:06:09
	♪ Let the fire and cloudy pillar ♪	1:06:14
	♪ Lead me all my journey through ♪	1:06:20
	♪ Strong Deliverer, strong Deliverer ♪	1:06:25
	♪ Be Thou still my strength and shield ♪	1:06:31
	♪ Be Thou still my strength and shield ♪	1:06:37
	♪ When I tread the verge of Jordan ♪	1:06:46
	♪ Bid my anxious fears subside ♪	1:06:52
	♪ Death of death and hell's destruction ♪	1:06:58
	♪ Land me safe on Canaan's side ♪	1:07:04
	♪ Songs of praises, songs of praises ♪	1:07:10
	♪ I will ever give to Thee ♪	1:07:16
	♪ I will ever give to Thee ♪	1:07:22
	(lively organ music)	1:07:52

Item Info

Title:

Nancy Ferree-Clark - "Rich Toward God" (August 6, 1989)

Description:

Sermon start time: (Part 1) 14:42. Sermon end time: (Part 1) 28:05.
The preacher calls on the congregation to think about why we all cling so dearly to our possessions and what that indicates about our beliefs. She then calls on the congregation to center God in their lives and stand at the alter with their brothers and sisters in the Lord. (Abstract created by Duke Divinity School staff.)
Key quotation: Understood in this light, possessions actually symbolize our response to what we perceive as ultimate. That is, they can reveal our idols.

Permalink:

https://idn.duke.edu/ark:/87924/r4513v98b

Date:

August 6, 1989

Speaker:

Ferree-Clark, Nancy

Liturgical Calendar:

Ordinary Time

Biblical Book:

Luke

Chapter and Verse:

Luke 12:13-21

Subject:

Contributor:

Duke University. Chapel

Identifier:

UA.17.01.0003 VHS-0143
ref8655_4y9
uachapelsermaud
duke:321738
dcrmv001139
ark:/87924/r4513v98b
97e2f012-7326-4afe-8a9d-f02e125ccff7

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

Unknown Rights-Holder

Rights Note:

This material is made available for research, scholarship, and private study. Copyright in this material has not been transferred to Duke University. For 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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Nancy Ferree-Clark - "Rich Toward God" (August 6, 1989)

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1. Nancy Ferree-Clark - "Rich Toward God" (August 6, 1989)

Duke University Archives

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Nancy Ferree-Clark - "Rich Toward God" (August 6, 1989)

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Duke University Archives

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