William E. Smith - "Must We Be Born Again?" (May 26, 1991)

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	(solemn music)	0:01
	(regal music)	1:34
-	Good morning.	5:07
	Welcome to this service of holy communion	5:09
	here at Duke University Chapel on this Trinity Sunday.	5:10
	In the upper right-hand corner of your bulletin,	5:14
	you'll notice a symbol for the Trinity, the fleur-de-lis,	5:16
	which is prominent throughout our building.	5:20
	I invite you to take advantage of this opportunity	5:22
	to be aware of the visual imagery which the chapel employs	5:24
	to tell the Christian story throughout the year.	5:28
	As our guest preacher this morning,	5:31
	we welcome the Reverend Dr. William E. Smith,	5:33
	Professor of the Practice of Christian Ministry	5:36
	at Duke Divinity School.	5:38
	Dr. Smith is a United Methodist pastor	5:40
	who has served churches in Massachusetts, Maryland, and Ohio	5:42
	and who has taught at Boston and American universities	5:47
	in addition to Duke.	5:49
	He also has served on the faculty	5:51
	of Wesley Theological Seminary	5:53
	where he was vice president for four years.	5:55
	Our lector is Dr. James Jacobs,	5:59
	Assistant Professor of Anesthesiology	6:01
	and Biomedical Engineering	6:03
	and treasurer of the congregation at Duke Chapel.	6:05
	We also welcome the Summer Chapel Choir back to the chapel	6:08
	for its first Sunday of this new season.	6:12
	Interested singers are reminded that no audition is required	6:14
	and rehearsals begin each Sunday morning at 9:25.	6:18
	You are invited to an organ recital	6:23
	this afternoon at five o'clock p.m. given by Dr. James Good	6:24
	of Southeastern Baptist Seminary here at the chapel.	6:28
	Please note the remaining announcements	6:32
	as they are printed in your bulletins,	6:34
	and now please stand for the greeting.	6:36
	In the name of the Father	6:44
	and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.	6:45
Congregation	Amen.	6:49
	(elegant music)	6:51
	♪ Holy, Holy, Holy ♪	7:19
	♪ Lord God Almighty ♪	7:23
	♪ Early in the morning ♪	7:28
	♪ Our song shall rise to thee ♪	7:32
	♪ Holy, Holy, Holy ♪	7:38
	♪ Merciful and mighty ♪	7:43
	♪ God in three persons ♪	7:47
	♪ Blessed Trinity ♪	7:52
	♪ Holy, Holy, Holy ♪	7:58
	♪ All the saints adore thee ♪	8:03
	♪ Casting down their golden crowns ♪	8:08
	♪ Around the glassy sea ♪	8:12
	♪ Cherubim and seraphim ♪	8:18
	♪ Falling down before thee ♪	8:23
	♪ Who wert and art ♪	8:27
	♪ And evermore shalt be ♪	8:31
	♪ Holy, Holy, Holy ♪	8:39
	♪ Though the darkness hide thee ♪	8:44
	♪ Though the eye of sinful man ♪	8:49
	♪ Thy glory may not see ♪	8:53
	♪ Only thou art holy ♪	8:58
	♪ There is none beside thee ♪	9:03
	♪ Perfect in power ♪	9:08
	♪ In love and purity ♪	9:13
	♪ Holy, Holy, Holy ♪	9:20
	♪ Lord God Almighty ♪	9:25
	♪ All Thy works shall praise thy name ♪	9:30
	♪ In earth and sky and sea ♪	9:34
	♪ Holy, Holy, Holy ♪	9:40
	♪ Merciful and mighty ♪	9:45
	♪ God in three persons ♪	9:50
	♪ Blessed Trinity ♪	9:55
-	Lead us by your spirit, O God, that we may become	10:06
	in every way your sons and daughters.	10:10
	We stand in awe before your majesty	10:13
	and bow in fear before your power.	10:16
	Yet we also are assured by your promises	10:19
	and lifted up by your strength.	10:22
	Meet us now in the midst of our earthly concerns	10:25
	to point us toward the eternal	10:28
	as we feast at your heavenly table, Amen.	10:30
-	Let us pray together.	10:46
Congregation	Open our hearts and minds, O God,	10:49
	by the power of your Holy Spirit	10:52
	so that as the Word is read and proclaimed,	10:56
	we might hear with joy what you say to us this day.	10:59
	Amen.	11:05
	The first reading is taken from the book of Isaiah.	11:09
	"In the year that King Uzziah died,	11:14
	"I saw the Lord,	11:18
	"sitting on a throne, high and lofty,	11:19
	"and the hem of his robe filled the temple.	11:23
	"Seraphs were in attendance above him.	11:28
	"Each had six wings.	11:31
	"With two they covered their faces,	11:33
	"and with two they covered their feet,	11:36
	"and with two they flew.	11:39
	"And one called to another and said,	11:42
	"'Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts;	11:44
	"'the whole earth is full of his glory.'	11:47
	"The pivots on the thresholds shook	11:52
	"at the voices of those who called,	11:55
	"and the house filled with smoke.	11:57
	"And I said, 'Woe is me.	12:00
	"'I am lost,	12:03
	"'for I am a man of unclean lips,	12:05
	"'and I live among a people of unclean lips.	12:07
	"'Yet my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts.'	12:12
	"Then one of the seraphs flew to me,	12:17
	"holding a live coal	12:20
	"that had been taken from the altar with a pair of tongs.	12:22
	"The seraph touched my mouth with it and said,	12:26
	"'Now that this has touched your lips,	12:30
	"'your guilt has departed and your sin is blotted out.'	12:33
	"Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying,	12:38
	"'Whom shall I send and who will go for us?'	12:41
	"And I said, 'Here am I, send me.'"	12:46
	This is the Word of the Lord.	12:51
All	Thanks be to God.	12:54
-	The Psalm is number 29 found on page 761.	13:03
	Please stand as we join in singing responsively.	13:07
	(stately music)	13:12
	♪ Ascribe to the Lord, O heavenly beings ♪	13:21
	♪ Ascribe to the Lord glory and strength ♪	13:26
	♪ Ascribe to the Lord the glory of his name ♪	13:32
	♪ Worship the Lord in holy splendor ♪	13:38
	♪ The voice of the Lord is upon the waters ♪	13:44
	♪ The God of glory thunders ♪	13:49
	♪ The Lord, upon many waters ♪	13:52
	4 The voice of the Lord is powerful	13:56
	♪ The voice of the Lord is full of majesty ♪	14:01
	♪ The voice of the Lord breaks the cedars ♪	14:08
	♪ The Lord breaks the cedars of Lebanon ♪	14:13
	♪ The Lord makes Lebanon to skip like a calf ♪	14:19
	♪ And Sirion like a young wild ox ♪	14:24
	♪ The voice of the Lord flashes forth flames of fire ♪	14:29
	♪ The voice of the Lord shakes the wilderness ♪	14:35
	♪ The Lord shakes the wilderness of Kadesh ♪	14:40
	♪ The voice of the Lord makes the oaks to whirl ♪	14:46
	♪ And strips the forest bare ♪	14:50
	♪ And in his temple all cry glory ♪	14:54
	♪ The Lord sits enthroned over the flood ♪	15:00
	♪ The Lord sits enthroned as ruler forever ♪	15:05
	♪ May the Lord give strength to his people ♪	15:11
	♪ May the Lord bless his people with peace ♪	15:16
	♪ All glory be to you, O God ♪	15:23
	♪ And to Jesus Christ our Savior ♪	15:26
	♪ And to the Holy Spirit, blessed Trinity ♪	15:31
	♪ As it was since time began ♪	15:38
	♪ Is now and shall be forever more ♪	15:42
-	This reading is from the gospel according to St. John.	16:02
	"Now there was a Pharisee named Nicodemus,	16:07
	"a leader of the Jews.	16:11
	"He came to Jesus by night and said to him,	16:13
	"'Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher	16:17
	"'who has come from God,	16:21
	"'for no one can do these signs that you do	16:23
	"'apart from the presence of God.'	16:28
	"Jesus answered him, 'Very truly, I tell you,	16:31
	"'no one can see the kingdom of God	16:35
	"'without being born from above.'	16:38
	"Nicodemus said to him,	16:43
	"'How can anyone be born after having grown old?	16:44
	"'Can one enter a second time	16:49
	"'into the mother's womb and be born?'	16:51
	"Jesus answered, 'Very truly, I tell you,	16:55
	"'no one can enter the kingdom of God	16:58
	"'without being born of water and Spirit.	17:01
	"'What is born of the flesh is flesh,	17:05
	"'and what is born of the Spirit is spirit.	17:09
	"'Do not be astonished that I said to you	17:13
	"'you must be born from above.	17:15
	"'The wind blows where it chooses	17:18
	"'and you hear the sound of it,	17:20
	"'but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes.	17:22
	"'So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.'	17:27
	"Nicodemus said to him, 'How can these things be?'	17:33
	"Jesus answered him, 'Are you a teacher of Israel,	17:37
	"'and yet you do not understand these things?	17:41
	"'Very truly, I tell you,	17:45
	"'we speak of what we know and testify to what we have seen.	17:46
	"'Yet you do not receive our testimony.	17:52
	"'If I have told you about earthly things	17:56
	"'and you do not believe,	17:58
	"'how can you believe if I tell you about heavenly things?	18:01
	"'No one has ascended into heaven	18:05
	"'except the one who descended from heaven, the Son of Man.	18:07
	"'And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness,	18:11
	"'so must the Son of Man be lifted up,	18:16
	"'that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.	18:18
	"'For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son,	18:23
	"'so that everyone who believes in him	18:29
	"'may not perish but may have eternal life.	18:31
	"'Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world	18:36
	"'to condemn the world,	18:40
	"'but in order that the world might be saved through him.'"	18:42
	This is the Word of the Lord.	18:48
Congregation	Thanks be to God.	18:51
-	It's a joy to be here this morning	18:57
	and share this service of worship with you	18:59
	on Trinity Sunday.	19:02
	I'm especially pleased to be here	19:05
	when the choir is making its debut.	19:06
	I'd like to debut with you if you would accept me.	19:10
	I understand no tryout is needed. (laughs)	19:13
	Then I'm in. (laughs)	19:18
	And I'm delighted to see all of you on this holiday weekend.	19:21
	Nicodemus is a strange and mysterious man.	19:28
	Outwardly his identity is clear.	19:34
	Distinguished teacher, religious leader,	19:38
	member of the powerful Sanhedrin,	19:42
	the Supreme Court of Judaism,	19:45
	coming to Jesus by night.	19:48
	Why not in the daylight?	19:52
	Why not on the temple steps?	19:53
	The time, the clandestine setting simply add to the mystery.	19:56
	What is Nicodemus up to?	20:04
	That is not so clear.	20:07
	He begins the encounter with an ingratiating remark.	20:09
	"Rabbi, we know that you're a teacher come from God	20:13
	"for no one could do the things you do	20:16
	"unless God were with him."	20:18
	Now that's quite a concession	20:22
	coming from a PhD gradate of the University of Jerusalem.	20:24
	Jesus responds with talk about new birth.	20:30
	The ancient fathers had a saying,	20:35
	a proselyte just converted is like a child just born.	20:37
	Nicodemus is mystified.	20:44
	How can one be born when he is old?	20:47
	Jesus uses the metaphor of wind.	20:52
	The wind is unpredictable,	20:56
	bringing cool, refreshing breezes	20:57
	or hot, sultry blasts which send the temperatures soaring.	21:00
	We never know whence it comes and where it goes.	21:05
	And so it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.	21:10
	Nicodemus seems even more confused,	21:14
	and the encounter ends with a stalemate.	21:18
	Now this is quite in contrast	21:23
	with an encounter with Christ in the next chapter of John	21:25
	beside a Samaritan well.	21:30
	They talk about water and refreshment for the soul,	21:33
	and here a woman receives	21:37
	Jesus' word with great joy	21:40
	and is brought into the kingdom immediately.	21:42
	But new birth, the new birth of which Jesus speaks	21:47
	is very much in the air these days.	21:52
	Recently I was invited to have lunch with a faculty member	21:56
	of a leading conservative theological seminary.	21:59
	We were both visiting the same community at holiday time,	22:04
	and our relatives thought it would be nice	22:09
	if we could get together.	22:11
	Well, we had hardly gotten seated	22:14
	and put our napkins in place	22:16
	when he turned to me and said,	22:18
	"How is it with your soul?"	22:20
	Now that came as quite a shock.	22:25
	It's almost like asking	22:28
	and what kind of deodorant do you use?	22:30
	But it is clear that he was not interested	22:35
	in intellectual banter.	22:37
	He went for the jugular.	22:39
	And if he seemed a bit abrupt,	22:42
	even possibly a bit impolite,	22:46
	one has to understand where he was coming from.	22:48
	Now here's a man who was trained,	22:53
	indeed with a graduate degree, in electrical engineering,	22:56
	had a very good job, he had a home and a family,	23:01
	he had all of the signs of stability.	23:04
	And then in the mid-30s	23:09
	in the context of a very charismatic congregation,	23:12
	he experienced new birth,	23:15
	and he promised the Lord that he would give himself	23:20
	in Christian service.	23:23
	And so he went to a seminary and then on to graduate school,	23:26
	and now he is on the faculty	23:29
	of this very influential seminary as Professor of Missions.	23:32
	Here is no fly-by-night Christian.	23:37
	He is for real.	23:40
	How should we respond to a growing number of people like him	23:43
	who speak of being born again	23:48
	or from above as the New Revised Standard version	23:52
	correctly translates it?	23:55
	How do we respond?	23:58
	In a recent Gallup poll,	24:01
	people were asked have you ever had a religious experience	24:03
	that is a particularly powerful insight or awakening	24:07
	that changed the direction of your life?	24:12
	34%, that is a little more than one in three,	24:16
	answered yes.	24:21
	I watched the telecast of a Billy Graham crusade	24:25
	in the Long Island Stadium recently.	24:29
	As hundreds of people poured into the aisles	24:32
	in response to his invitation	24:36
	that came at the end of a sermon on this very text,	24:38
	a very good sermon	24:42
	though not necessarily high-pitched or emotional.	24:43
	But when he gave the invitation,	24:48
	people flooded down the aisles	24:51
	so eager were they for the new birth.	24:54
	Now let's he honest.	24:59
	Many of us are uncomfortable with such displays of emotion.	25:01
	We're embarrassed when some zealous soul	25:07
	holds up a sign in the end zone	25:10
	in a nationally televised football game,	25:13
	and every time the ball goes over the goalpost,	25:15
	the sign goes up reading John 3:16.	25:18
	We all know that verse from Sunday School.	25:24
	"God so loved the world that God gave his only Son	25:26
	"that whoever believes will have eternal life."	25:31
	"This," said Luther, "is the whole Gospel in miniature."	25:35
	New birth, you better believe it.	25:41
	Nicodemus, being well-educated,	25:46
	having wealth and status and power	25:50
	do not make you a child of God.	25:53
	You need to experience the cleansing waters of baptism,	25:56
	the renewing, empowering presence of the Spirit	26:01
	if your life would be made whole.	26:06
	Now it needs to be said	26:10
	that this experience is more easily talked about	26:12
	if one has had it	26:17
	than it is explained in theory.	26:19
	"Lord, I know I've been changed," says the old spiritual.	26:24
	"Lord, I know I've been changed.	26:27
	"The angels in heaven done signed my name."	26:30
	I listened to a golf pro the other day	26:35
	at a meeting of the Fellowship for Christian Athletes.	26:39
	This was a breakfast meeting	26:45
	in connection with a major PGA Tour	26:47
	attended by several 100 young people	26:51
	from high schools all across that large city.	26:55
	And the golf pro talked to them	27:00
	in very simple and plain but very moving language	27:02
	about his experience of the Spirit.	27:07
	He met and married a devout Christian.	27:12
	She deeply influenced his life,	27:18
	and on the very first Sunday of their married life,	27:20
	they went to church	27:23
	and when the minister gave the invitation,	27:24
	he went forward and from that moment	27:27
	he said his life had never been the same.	27:29
	In that same meeting,	27:34
	a member of the varsity team of a university golf team	27:37
	got up and gave essentially the same testimony.	27:44
	Everyone listened attentively as he spoke	27:49
	of the power of the Spirit in his life.	27:53
	And I was struck that this may well be	27:58
	the most powerful way to communicate the Gospel.	28:03
	People whose lives have been changed witnessing to others.	28:07
	A letter arrived just this week	28:12
	from a member of a church that I served in Columbus, Ohio	28:14
	telling of her experience on the Emmaus Walk,	28:18
	a very intensive weekend spiritual retreat	28:22
	in which she said she met again the risen Christ.	28:26
	One could give many examples such as this	28:32
	in which people's lives have been changed	28:36
	either suddenly or progressively	28:39
	as the Holy Spirit has touched their lives.	28:42
	Now I submit, dear friends,	28:47
	and this is the thesis of my sermon this morning.	28:50
	I submit that it is time for us in the mainline tradition	28:55
	to reclaim our belief	29:00
	in the transforming power of the Holy Spirit	29:02
	rather than leaving it to fringe groups	29:06
	or so-called Pentecostals or Evangelicals.	29:09
	The new birth of which Christ speaks	29:13
	is open to all,	29:16
	anytime, anywhere,	29:18
	but especially in the company of the committed.	29:21
	And that is precisely why we have Trinity Sunday	29:25
	following on the heels of Pentecost,	29:30
	to remind us	29:33
	of the personal presence	29:35
	of an imminent God,	29:37
	a God revealed not only in the mystery of creation,	29:40
	not only in the history of a chosen people,	29:45
	not only through prophets, martyrs, and saints,	29:49
	and supremely and uniquely	29:54
	in the life and death of Jesus Christ	29:56
	and in his resurrection,	29:59
	but also through one who is God with us	30:02
	for guidance, for comfort, and for strength.	30:08
	And this is good news	30:13
	for those burdened by guilt	30:15
	who feel that they cannot please God.	30:18
	This is good news	30:23
	for those who are going through tough times	30:24
	and feel that God has let them down.	30:28
	This is good news	30:30
	for those who have lost hope	30:33
	and dread what the future may bring.	30:35
	"Draw us in the Spirit's tether,	30:39
	"for when humbly in thy name	30:42
	"two or three are met together,	30:44
	"thou art in the midst of them.	30:47
	"Hallelujah, Hallelujah.	30:50
	"Touch we now thy garment's hem."	30:53
	How do we respond to the gift of the Holy Spirit?	30:57
	For some, it's a very personal experience	31:02
	with no outward show of emotion.	31:06
	John Wesley sitting quietly in a Moravian prayer meeting	31:09
	in London one evening in May	31:13
	said that he felt his heart strangely warmed.	31:15
	No one in that meeting knew what was happening in his life.	31:21
	But he said, "I felt I was forgiven by Christ,	31:26
	"that he'd taken away my sins	31:31
	"and delivered me from the fear of sin and death."	31:34
	Other people raise their hands and moved to the beat	31:41
	of powerful, pulsating music.	31:46
	Others speak in tongues as at Pentecost.	31:49
	And still others testify publicly	31:54
	to what God has done for them.	31:56
	Again, we mainliners tend to be a bit wary	31:58
	of too much emotion.	32:03
	We prefer order to ardor.	32:06
	We like predictability.	32:11
	We like to keep things under control.	32:13
	But, dear friends, emotion is back even for us.	32:17
	You have only to examine the New United Methodist Hymnal	32:20
	and look under the themes of the power of the Holy Spirit,	32:26
	the sanctifying and perfecting grace,	32:31
	to discover this is so.	32:34
	We've discovered in our worship	32:38
	at the Divinity School Chapel a delightful freedom,	32:40
	especially when we worship in the Black tradition.	32:44
	We had a wonderful service a few weeks ago	32:50
	in which Dr. William Turner	32:53
	preached with the eloquence and power	32:55
	that he possesses,	32:59
	accompanied by loud shouts of encouragements and loud Amen.	33:01
	The message was followed	33:07
	by the sacrament of Holy Communion as it will be here,	33:09
	and there was a marvelous sense of unity,	33:14
	the unity in Christ.	33:17
	And when we came to the end of the sacrament,	33:20
	there was a moment of silence.	33:22
	And then someone began singing,	33:26
	"There's a sweet, sweet spirit in this place,	33:30
	"and I know that it's the Spirit of the Lord."	33:35
	It was a transcendent moment.	33:40
	There is no right or wrong way	33:44
	to celebrate the Spirit's presence.	33:47
	Those sects which threaten be born or be damned	33:50
	or insist that if you've not jumped	33:55
	through the same spiritual hoops as they,	33:57
	you're not accepted by God,	34:01
	are wide of the mark.	34:02
	The Spirit moves where it will,	34:05
	and wherever there is genuine repentance	34:09
	and a desire to give oneself	34:14
	in obedience and service to God,	34:16
	new life appears.	34:20
	Now one final note.	34:24
	If our experience of the Holy Spirit has been genuine,	34:25
	it will make us more sensitive to the needs of others.	34:31
	We cannot keep God's love to ourself.	34:35
	Which is to say,	34:40
	once we have met God in a life-changing encounter,	34:42
	once, in the words of Isaiah,	34:46
	"mine eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts,"	34:49
	there is no way we can avoid the call that followed,	34:52
	"Whom shall I send and who shall go for us?"	34:57
	That's, especially in our broken and bleeding world	35:03
	with pictures of violence and poverty and hunger	35:07
	and debilitating disease	35:11
	flashed on our TV screens every night,	35:13
	that question, who will go for us,	35:16
	is a very haunting one indeed.	35:18
	George Hartwell used to be a successful mortgage banker	35:23
	in Grand Rapids, Michigan.	35:28
	Today, he's a pastor who presides over a storefront church	35:31
	and a social center	35:36
	ministering to the needs of street people	35:38
	in the toughest district of that city.	35:40
	What happened?	35:45
	After graduating from college, he joined his father	35:47
	at the helm of the Hartwell Mortgage Corporation	35:50
	writing millions of dollars	35:53
	every year in mortgages.	35:57
	He was active in his church,	36:00
	in the social life of the community.	36:03
	He had a lovely wife and family.	36:05
	He lived in a spacious home.	36:06
	Who could ask for anything more?	36:08
	And then he went on a mission trip to Haiti.	36:13
	And one day he was accompanied	36:17
	by a representative of Church World Service	36:19
	into the countryside,	36:22
	and there he saw people living in wretched conditions.	36:25
	He saw poverty and deprivation and hopelessness	36:30
	as he'd never seen before.	36:34
	And they placed in his arms	36:38
	a three-year-old child,	36:41
	and as he looked at that little girl,	36:45
	so helpless,	36:49
	with distended stomach, with glazed eyes,	36:51
	with arms no bigger in diameter than his own finger,	36:54
	he said,	37:00
	"I experienced the presence of Christ.	37:02
	"I'm convinced I looked into the eyes of the living God.	37:07
	"You cannot do that without being changed."	37:12
	"The poor," he says,	37:17
	"know so much more than most of us	37:19
	"about the providence of God."	37:25
	Must we be born again?	37:30
	Indeed so.	37:34
	Again, again, and again.	37:37
	Thanks be to God, Amen.	37:43
-	You're invited to join in singing the prayer response	37:55
	found on page 485 in your hymnal.	37:57
	The Lord be with you.	38:02
Congregation	And also with you.	38:04
	♪ In peace let us pray to the Lord ♪	38:08
	♪ Lord have mercy ♪	38:12
	Gracious God, behold us and hear us now,	38:18
	your erring children who turn to you in prayer.	38:23
	Gifted with sight, we miss your glory which surrounds us.	38:27
	Gifted with imagination, we plod along	38:31
	afraid to dream or to hope for miracles.	38:33
	Gifted with the power of love,	38:37
	we fail to reach out to sisters and brothers in distress.	38:39
	Forgive us our misuse of life, O God,	38:44
	and help us find the courage to open ourselves	38:47
	to your healing presence.	38:50
	♪ Let us pray to the Lord ♪	38:52
	♪ Lord have mercy ♪	38:55
	God of all, you surround us with wealth	39:01
	more bountiful than we can comprehend,	39:03
	air to breathe, water to drink, food to eat,	39:06
	and all that is needful for human life.	39:10
	We pray for those who know little of your bounty,	39:13
	for whom mere existence is a constant struggle,	39:16
	especially for the hundreds of thousands of people	39:20
	in the Horn of Africa	39:23
	whose lives are endangered by hunger and malnutrition	39:25
	and for the Kurdish refugees still seeking to find a home.	39:28
	♪ Let us pray to the Lord ♪	39:33
	♪ Lord have mercy ♪	39:35
	O creating God, you are present	39:41
	in every part of human experience.	39:44
	You hold before you the newborn infant	39:47
	cuddled in a parent's arms,	39:48
	young men and women struggling to make life decisions,	39:51
	families seeking to resolve painful conflicts,	39:55
	the sick and the infirm	39:59
	battling with sickness and incapacity,	40:01
	and the dying soon to experience your new creation.	40:04
	♪ Let us pray to the Lord ♪	40:09
	♪ Lord have mercy ♪	40:11
	O redeeming God, we pray for those lands	40:17
	where brother and sister fight sister and brother,	40:20
	divided by arbitrary borders, ideology, or religion.	40:23
	We pray for those lands	40:28
	where extremes of wealth and poverty are bitterly divisive.	40:29
	We pray for innocent victims everywhere	40:34
	who fall prey to senseless violence	40:36
	and for those who mourn their loss,	40:39
	especially the people of India	40:42
	after the assassination of their prime minister.	40:44
	♪ Let us pray to the Lord ♪	40:47
	♪ Lord have mercy ♪	40:50
	O sustaining God, we pray for all	40:55
	who have grown bitter or weary in the race of life,	40:58
	for those who weep and for those who can no longer weep,	41:02
	for those who live within prisons, on death row,	41:06
	in mental institutions, in homeless shelters,	41:10
	shelters for battered women,	41:14
	and for runaway youth on the streets of our cities.	41:16
	♪ Let us pray to the Lord ♪	41:20
	♪ Lord have mercy ♪	41:22
	O living Lord, you told us	41:28
	truly, truly, unless one is born anew,	41:29
	one cannot see the kingdom of God.	41:32
	Teach us how to see through your eyes,	41:35
	to walk through your shoes,	41:37
	to feel through your senses,	41:39
	to love through your heart.	41:42
	O giver of life, help us to be born to new life	41:44
	that we may answer your call, hear am I, send me,	41:48
	for it is in your holy name we pray, Amen.	41:52
	Christ invites to his table all who love him	41:59
	and who desire to live in peace with one another.	42:02
	Therefore let us stand as we offer one another	42:05
	signs of peace and reconciliation.	42:07
	(congregation chatters)	42:12
	As a forgiven and renewed people,	42:26
	let us offer our gifts and ourselves to God.	42:28
	(solemn music)	42:33
	(singing in foreign language)	43:44
	(stately music)	48:25
	♪ Praise God from whom all blessings flow ♪	48:44
	♪ Praise him, all creatures here below ♪	48:51
	♪ Hallelujah ♪	48:57
	♪ Hallelujah ♪	49:00
	♪ Praise God above, ye heavenly host ♪	49:05
	♪ Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost ♪	49:11
	♪ Hallelujah ♪	49:18
	♪ Hallelujah ♪	49:21
	♪ Hallelujah ♪	49:25
	♪ Hallelujah ♪	49:28
	♪ Hallelujah ♪	49:32
-	Please join with me in praying the great thanksgiving	49:43
	found on page 17 in your hymnals.	49:46
	The Lord be with you.	49:53
Congregation	And also with you.	49:54
-	Lift up to your hearts.	49:56
Congregation	We lift them up to the Lord.	49:58
-	Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.	50:00
Congregation	It is right to give our thanks and praise.	50:03
-	It is right and a good and joyful thing	50:06
	always and everywhere to give thanks to you,	50:09
	God Almighty, creator of heaven and earth.	50:12
	You formed us in your image	50:15
	and breathed into us the breath of life.	50:17
	When we turned away and our love failed,	50:20
	your love remained steadfast.	50:23
	You delivered us from captivity,	50:25
	made covenant to be our sovereign God,	50:27
	and spoke to us through your prophets.	50:30
	And so with your people on earth	50:32
	and all the company of heaven,	50:34
	we praise your name and join their unending hymn.	50:36
	(regal music)	50:40
	♪ Holy, Holy, Holy Lord ♪	50:49
	♪ God of power and might ♪	50:54
	♪ Heaven and earth are full of your glory ♪	50:59
	♪ Hosanna in the highest ♪	51:03
	♪ Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord ♪	51:08
	♪ Hosanna in the highest ♪	51:15
-	Holy are you and blessed is your Son Jesus Christ.	51:25
	Your Spirit anointed him to preach good news to the poor,	51:30
	to proclaim release to the captives	51:33
	and recovering of sight to the blind,	51:35
	to set at liberty those who are oppressed,	51:38
	and to announce that the time had come	51:41
	when you would save your people.	51:43
	He healed the sick, fed the hungry, and ate with sinners.	51:45
	By the baptism of his suffering, death, and resurrection,	51:50
	you gave birth to your church,	51:53
	delivered us from slavery to sin and death,	51:55
	and made with us a new covenant by water and the Spirit.	51:57
	When the Lord Jesus ascended,	52:01
	he promised to be with us always	52:03
	in the power of your Word and Holy Spirit.	52:05
	On the night in which he gave himself up for us,	52:09
	he took bread, gave thanks to you, broke the bread,	52:11
	gave it to his disciples, and said,	52:15
	"Take, eat, this is my body which is given for you.	52:18
	"Do this in remembrance of me."	52:22
	When the supper was over, he took the cup,	52:25
	gave thanks to you, gave it to his disciples, and said,	52:28
	"Drink from this, all of you.	52:31
	"This is my blood of the new covenant,	52:34
	"poured out for you and for many	52:36
	"for the forgiveness of sins.	52:38
	"Do this as often as you drink it in remembrance of me."	52:40
	And so in remembrance of these	52:45
	your mighty acts in Jesus Christ,	52:47
	we offer ourselves in praise and thanksgiving	52:49
	as a holy and living sacrifice	52:52
	in union with Christ's offering for us	52:55
	as we proclaim the mystery of faith.	52:57
	(solemn music)	53:00
	♪ Christ has died ♪	53:09
	♪ Christ is risen ♪	53:12
	♪ Christ will come again ♪	53:14
-	Pour out your Holy Spirit on us gathered here	53:21
	and on these gifts of bread and wine.	53:24
	Make them be for us the body and blood of Christ	53:26
	that we may be for the world the body of Christ,	53:29
	redeemed by this blood.	53:32
	By your Spirit, make us one with Christ,	53:34
	one with each other, and one in ministry to all the world	53:36
	until Christ comes in final victory	53:40
	and we feast at his heavenly banquet.	53:43
	Through your Son Jesus Christ,	53:45
	with the Holy Spirit in your holy church,	53:47
	all honor and glory is yours, Almighty Father,	53:49
	now and forever.	53:53
	(solemn music)	53:54
	♪ Amen ♪	54:03
	♪ Amen ♪	54:06
	♪ Amen ♪	54:08
-	And now we are bold to pray	54:16
	the prayer that Jesus has taught us.	54:17
	Our Father,	54:19
All	Who art in heaven,	54:20
	hallowed by thy name.	54:22
	Thy kingdom come.	54:23
	Thy will be done	54:25
	on Earth as it is in heaven.	54:26
	Give us this day our daily bread	54:28
	and forgive us our trespasses	54:31
	as we forgive those who trespass against us	54:33
	and lead us not into temptation.	54:36
	Deliver us from evil	54:39
	for thine is the kingdom,	54:40
	the power, and the glory forever, Amen.	54:42
-	The gifts of God for the people of God.	54:55
	(dignified music)	55:19
	♪ We all believe in one true God ♪	56:44
	♪ Father, Son, and Holy Ghost ♪	56:50
	♪ Ever-present help in need ♪	56:57
	♪ Praised by all the heav'nly host ♪	57:03
	♪ By whose mighty power alone ♪	57:10
	♪ All is made and wrought and done ♪	57:16
	♪ We all believe in Jesus Christ ♪	57:25
	♪ Son of God and Mary's son ♪	57:32
	♪ Who descended from his throne ♪	57:39
	♪ And for us salvation won ♪	57:45
	♪ By whose cross and death are we ♪	57:52
	♪ Rescued from all misery ♪	57:59
	♪ We all confess the Holy Ghost ♪	58:09
	♪ Who from both fore'er proceeds ♪	58:15
	♪ Who upholds and comforts us ♪	58:22
	♪ In all our trials, fears, and needs ♪	58:29
	♪ Blest and Holy Trinity ♪	58:36
	♪ Praise forever be to thee ♪	58:42
	(dignified music)	58:55
	♪ God loved the world ♪	59:33
	♪ So that he gave ♪	59:38
	♪ His only Son the lost to save ♪	59:43
	♪ That all who would in him believe ♪	59:51
	♪ Should everlasting life receive ♪	59:59
	♪ Christ Jesus is the ground of faith ♪	1:00:09
	♪ Who was made flesh and suffered death ♪	1:00:18
	♪ All who confide in Christ alone ♪	1:00:27
	♪ Are built on this chief cornerstone ♪	1:00:35
	♪ God would not have the sinner die ♪	1:00:45
	♪ His Son with saving grace is nigh ♪	1:00:54
	♪ His Spirit in the Word doth teach ♪	1:01:03
	♪ How man the blessed goal may reach ♪	1:01:11
	♪ If you are sick ♪	1:01:21
	♪ If death is near ♪	1:01:26
	♪ This truth your troubled heart can cheer ♪	1:01:30
	♪ Christ Jesus saves your soul from death ♪	1:01:39
	♪ That is the firmest ground of our faith ♪	1:01:48
	♪ Glory to God the Father, Son ♪	1:01:57
	♪ And Holy Spirit, three in one ♪	1:02:07
	♪ To you, O blessed Trinity ♪	1:02:15
	♪ Be praise now and eternally ♪	1:02:24
	(regal music)	1:02:42
	♪ Holy Spirit, come confirm us ♪	1:03:06
	♪ In the truth that Christ makes known ♪	1:03:12
	♪ We have faith and understanding ♪	1:03:17
	♪ Through your helping gifts alone ♪	1:03:23
	♪ Holy Spirit, come console us ♪	1:03:31
	♪ Come as advocate to plead ♪	1:03:37
	♪ Loving Spirit from the Father ♪	1:03:43
	♪ Grant in Christ the help we need ♪	1:03:50
-	Please stand for the benediction.	1:04:04
	Go forth in peace.	1:04:12
	The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ	1:04:14
	and the love of God	1:04:16
	and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all.	1:04:18
	♪ Hallelujah ♪	1:04:28
	♪ Amen ♪	1:04:31
	♪ Amen ♪	1:04:33
	(solemn music)	1:04:40
	♪ Holy God, we praise thy name ♪	1:05:08
	♪ Lord of all, we bow before thee ♪	1:05:15
	♪ All on earth thy scepter claim ♪	1:05:22
	♪ All in heaven above adore thee ♪	1:05:29
	♪ Infinite thy vast domain ♪	1:05:36
	♪ Everlasting is thy reign ♪	1:05:43
	♪ Hark the loud celestial hymn ♪	1:05:52
	♪ Angel choirs above are raising ♪	1:05:59
	♪ Cherubim and seraphim ♪	1:06:06
	♪ In unceasing chorus praising ♪	1:06:13
	♪ Fill the heavens with sweet accord ♪	1:06:20
	♪ Holy, Holy, Holy Lord ♪	1:06:27
	♪ Lo the apostolic train ♪	1:06:37
	♪ Joins the sacred name to hallow ♪	1:06:44
	♪ Prophets swell the glad refrain ♪	1:06:51
	♪ And the white-robed martyrs follow ♪	1:06:58
	♪ And from morn to set of sun ♪	1:07:05
	♪ Through the church the song goes on ♪	1:07:12
	♪ Holy Father, Holy Son ♪	1:07:21
	♪ Holy Spirit, three we name you ♪	1:07:28
	♪ While in essence only one ♪	1:07:36
	♪ Undivided God we claim you ♪	1:07:43
	♪ And adoring bend the knee ♪	1:07:50
	♪ While we own the mystery ♪	1:07:57
	♪ Thou art king of glory, Christ ♪	1:08:07
	♪ Son of God, yet born of Mary ♪	1:08:14
	♪ For us sinners sacrificed ♪	1:08:21
	♪ And to death a tributary ♪	1:08:28
	(lively music)	1:08:54

Item Info

Title:

William E. Smith - "Must We Be Born Again?" (May 26, 1991)

Description:

Sermon start time: 18:57. Sermon end time: 37:47.
Like Nicodeums, main line protestant churches need to hear Jesus' exhortation to receive the new birth offered in the gift of the Holy Spirit. Once we have been touched by God's love in this way, we can't keep it to ourselves but must express it in love to others. (Abstract created by Duke Divinity School staff.)
Key quotation: “I submit that it is time for us in the mainline tradition to reclaim our belief in the transforming power of the Holy Spirit.”

Permalink:

https://idn.duke.edu/ark:/87924/r4dn40b3s

Date:

May 26, 1991

Speaker:

Smith, William E.

Liturgical Calendar:

Trinity Sunday

Biblical Book:

Isaiah

Chapter and Verse:

Isaiah 6:1-8

Subject:

Contributor:

Duke University. Chapel

Identifier:

UA.17.01.0003 VHS-0233
ref8946_cz2
uachapelsermaud
duke:321673
dcrmv001223
ark:/87924/r4dn40b3s
40df055e-5c2a-41f5-a8c9-7ce0457c1e0e

Digital Collection:

Duke Chapel Recordings

Source Collection:

Duke University Chapel recordings, 1954-2005

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:

No Re-Use

In Copyright

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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William E. Smith - "Must We Be Born Again?" (May 26, 1991)

Transcript

Item Info

Duke University Archives

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