Joseph R. Jeter, Jr. - "When the Secret Is Out" (January 2, 1994)
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Transcript
Transcripts may contain inaccuracies.
("We Three Kings" by the First Baptist Church Bell Ringers) | 0:00 | |
- | Good morning and welcome to this service of worship here | 3:59 |
on the second Sunday after Christmas | 4:02 | |
in Duke University Chapel. | 4:03 | |
We have been led to worship | 4:06 | |
by our guest musicians. | 4:09 | |
They are The Bell Ringers | 4:12 | |
of the First Baptist Church | 4:13 | |
of Henderson, North Carolina | 4:14 | |
and are always welcomed guests here in the chapel | 4:16 | |
under the direction of Mr. Philip Young. | 4:20 | |
Our guest preacher today, | 4:23 | |
it's his first visit here to the chapel, | 4:24 | |
is Dr. Joseph Jeter | 4:26 | |
from Texas Christian University | 4:28 | |
Brite Divinity School. | 4:29 | |
A distinguished homiletician, | 4:31 | |
we're glad to have him with us this morning. | 4:33 | |
And now let us stand for the greeting. | 4:35 | |
The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with you. | 4:41 | |
Congregation | And also with you. | 4:45 |
- | The splendor of Christ shines upon us. | 4:47 |
Congregation | Praise the Lord. | 4:49 |
("We Three Kings" by pipe organist) | 4:55 | |
♪ We three kings of Orient are ♪ | 5:40 | |
♪ Bearing gifts we traverse afar ♪ | 5:45 | |
♪ Field and fountain, moor and mountain ♪ | 5:51 | |
♪ Following yonder star ♪ | 5:56 | |
♪ O star of wonder, star of night ♪ | 6:02 | |
♪ Star with royal beauty bright ♪ | 6:10 | |
♪ Westward leading, still proceeding ♪ | 6:15 | |
♪ Guide us to thy perfect Light ♪ | 6:21 | |
♪ Born a king on Bethlehem's plain ♪ | 6:29 | |
♪ Gold I bring to crown Him again ♪ | 6:34 | |
♪ King forever, ceasing never ♪ | 6:40 | |
♪ Over us all to reign ♪ | 6:46 | |
♪ O star of wonder, star of night ♪ | 6:51 | |
♪ Star with royal beauty bright ♪ | 6:59 | |
♪ Westward leading, still proceeding ♪ | 7:05 | |
♪ Guide us to thy perfect Light ♪ | 7:10 | |
♪ Frankincense to offer have I ♪ | 7:18 | |
♪ Incense owns a Deity nigh ♪ | 7:23 | |
♪ Prayer and praising all men raising ♪ | 7:28 | |
♪ Worship Him, God on high ♪ | 7:34 | |
♪ O star of wonder, star of night ♪ | 7:40 | |
♪ Star with royal beauty bright ♪ | 7:48 | |
♪ Westward leading, still proceeding ♪ | 7:53 | |
♪ Guide us to thy perfect Light ♪ | 7:58 | |
♪ Myrrh is mine: Its bitter perfume ♪ | 8:06 | |
♪ Breaths a life of gathering gloom ♪ | 8:12 | |
♪ Sorrowing, sighing, bleeding dying ♪ | 8:18 | |
♪ Sealed in the stone-cold tomb ♪ | 8:25 | |
♪ O star of wonder, star of night ♪ | 8:34 | |
♪ Star with royal beauty bright ♪ | 8:43 | |
♪ Westward leading, still proceeding ♪ | 8:48 | |
♪ Guide us to thy perfect Light ♪ | 8:54 | |
♪ Glorious now behold Him arise ♪ | 9:02 | |
♪ King and God and Sacrifice ♪ | 9:07 | |
♪ Alleluia, alleluia ♪ | 9:13 | |
♪ Sounds through the earth and skies ♪ | 9:19 | |
♪ O star of wonder, star of night ♪ | 9:26 | |
♪ Star with royal beauty bright ♪ | 9:33 | |
♪ Westward leading, still proceeding ♪ | 9:39 | |
♪ Guide us to thy perfect Light ♪ | 9:44 | |
- | Everlasting God. | 9:55 |
The radiance of faithful souls. | 9:57 | |
You brought all the nations to your light | 10:00 | |
and kings to the brightness of your rising. | 10:03 | |
Filled the world with your glory. | 10:07 | |
Showed yourself to all the nations. | 10:09 | |
Through Him who is true light | 10:12 | |
and bright and morning star | 10:15 | |
Jesus Christ your son | 10:18 | |
our Lord. | 10:20 | |
Amen. | 10:21 | |
Seated. | 10:23 | |
- | Let us pray together | 10:33 |
the Prayer for illumination. | 10:34 | |
(congregation in unison) | 10:37 | |
Open our hearts | ||
and minds of God. | 10:38 | |
By the power of your Holy Spirit. | 10:40 | |
So that as the word is read and proclaimed. | 10:43 | |
we may hear with joy what you say to us this day. | 10:47 | |
Amen. | 10:51 | |
This reading is taken from the prophecy of Isaiah | 10:53 | |
the first six verses of chapter 60. | 10:56 | |
Arise, shine, for your light has come. | 10:59 | |
And the glory of the Lord has risen upon you. | 11:03 | |
For darkness shall cover the Earth | 11:06 | |
and thick darkness the peoples; | 11:08 | |
but the Lord will arise upon you | 11:10 | |
and his glory will appear over you. | 11:13 | |
Nations shall come to your light | 11:16 | |
and kings to the brightness of your dawn. | 11:18 | |
Lift up your eyes and look around. | 11:21 | |
They all gather together. | 11:23 | |
They come to you | 11:25 | |
your sons shall come from far away | 11:27 | |
and your daughters shall be carried on their nurses' arms. | 11:29 | |
Then you shall see and be radiant. | 11:33 | |
Your heart shall thrill and rejoice. | 11:35 | |
Because of the abundance of the sea shall be brought to you | 11:38 | |
the wealth of the nations shall come to you. | 11:42 | |
A multitude of camels shall cover you. | 11:45 | |
The young camels of Midian and Ephah. | 11:47 | |
All those from Sheba shall come. | 11:50 | |
They shall bring gold and frankincense | 11:53 | |
and shall proclaim the praise of the Lord. | 11:55 | |
This is the word of the Lord. | 11:58 | |
(in unison with congregation) | 12:01 | |
Thanks be to God. | ||
- | Today's psalm is psalm 72 | 12:06 |
the first 14 verses. | 12:08 | |
Let us stand and read responsively. | 12:10 | |
Give the king your justice oh God. | 12:19 | |
Congregation | And your righteousness to the royal son. | 12:22 |
- | May he judge your people with righteousness | 12:25 |
Congregation | And your poor with justice | 12:28 |
- | Let the mountains bear prosperity for the people, | 12:30 |
and the hills, in righteousness. | 12:32 | |
Congregation | May he defend the cause of the poor | 12:35 |
of the people. | 12:37 | |
give deliverance to the needy, | 12:39 | |
and to crush their oppressor. | 12:40 | |
- | May he live while the sun endures, | 12:42 |
and as long as the moon, throughout all generations. | 12:44 | |
Congregation | May he be like rain that falls | 12:48 |
on the mown grass | 12:51 | |
like showers that water the earth. | 12:52 | |
- | In his days may righteousness flourish, | 12:55 |
peace abound, till the moon be no more. | 12:58 | |
Congregation | May he have dominion from sea to sea | 13:01 |
and from the River to the ends of the earth. | 13:05 | |
- | May his foes bow down before him, | 13:08 |
and his enemies lick the dust. | 13:10 | |
May the kings of Tarshish and of the isles | 13:12 | |
render him tribute. | 13:15 | |
May the kings of Sheba and Seba | 13:16 | |
bring gifts. | 13:18 | |
Congregation | May all kings fall down before him | 13:20 |
all nations serve him. | 13:23 | |
- | For he delivers the needy when they call | 13:25 |
the poor and those who has no helper. | 13:28 | |
Congregation | He has pity on the weak and the needy, | 13:31 |
- | and saves the lives of the needy. | 13:34 |
Congregation | From oppression and violence | 13:37 |
he redeems their life | 13:39 | |
and precious is their blood in his sight. | 13:41 | |
(congregation singing) | 13:53 | |
- | This reading is taken from the | 14:49 |
second chapter of the gospel according to Saint Matthew | 14:50 | |
beginning with the first verse. | 14:54 | |
In the time of King Herod | 14:56 | |
after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea | 14:58 | |
wise men from the east came to Jerusalem asking: | 15:02 | |
Where is the child who has been born king of the Jews? | 15:04 | |
For we observed his star | 15:08 | |
at its rising | 15:09 | |
and have come to pay him homage. | 15:10 | |
When King Herod heard this he was frightened | 15:13 | |
and all Jerusalem with him. | 15:15 | |
And calling together all the chief priests | 15:17 | |
and scribes of the people, | 15:19 | |
he inquired of them where the Messiah was to be born. | 15:21 | |
They told him, | 15:24 | |
In Bethlehem of Judea; | 15:25 | |
for so it has been written by the prophet | 15:27 | |
And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, | 15:30 | |
are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; | 15:33 | |
for from you shall come a ruler | 15:36 | |
who is to shepherd my people Israel. | 15:37 | |
Then Herod secretly called for the wise men | 15:40 | |
and learned from them | 15:43 | |
the exact time when the star had appeared. | 15:44 | |
Then he sent them to Bethlehem, saying: | 15:47 | |
Go and search diligently for the child, | 15:49 | |
and when you have found him, | 15:51 | |
bring me word so that I may also go and pay him homage. | 15:53 | |
When they had heard the king, they set out; | 15:57 | |
and there, ahead of them, | 16:00 | |
went the star that they had seen at its rising, | 16:01 | |
until it stopped over the place where the child was. | 16:04 | |
When they saw that the star had stopped, | 16:07 | |
they were overwhelmed with joy. | 16:09 | |
On entering the house, | 16:12 | |
they saw the child with Mary his mother; | 16:13 | |
and they knelt down and paid him homage. | 16:16 | |
Then, opening their treasure chests, | 16:18 | |
they offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. | 16:21 | |
And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, | 16:25 | |
they left for their own country by another road. | 16:29 | |
This was the word of the Lord. | 16:33 | |
- | [Minister And Congregation] Thank you God. | 16:36 |
(unknown song by the Bell Ringers) | 16:44 | |
- | The epistle lesson this morning | 19:52 |
is from the letter to the Ephesians | 19:53 | |
in the third chapter | 19:55 | |
verses one through 12. | 19:56 | |
This is the reason that I Paul | 19:59 | |
am a prisoner for Christ Jesus | 20:02 | |
for the sake of you gentiles. | 20:03 | |
For surely you have already heard | 20:06 | |
of the commission of God's grace | 20:08 | |
that was given me for you. | 20:10 | |
And how the mystery was made known to me by revelation | 20:12 | |
as I wrote above in a few words. | 20:15 | |
A reading of which will enable you | 20:18 | |
to perceive my understanding of the mystery of Christ. | 20:20 | |
In former generations | 20:25 | |
this mystery was not made known to humankind | 20:26 | |
as it has now been revealed to his holy apostles | 20:29 | |
and prophets by the spirit. | 20:33 | |
That is the gentiles have become fellow heirs. | 20:36 | |
Members of the same body. | 20:40 | |
And sharers in the promise of Christ Jesus | 20:42 | |
through the gospel. | 20:45 | |
Of this gospel | 20:47 | |
I have become a servant according to the gift of God's grace | 20:48 | |
that was given me by the working of his power. | 20:51 | |
Although I am the very least of the saints | 20:55 | |
this grace was given to me | 20:59 | |
to bring to the gentiles | 21:01 | |
the news of the boundless riches of Christ. | 21:03 | |
And to make everyone see | 21:06 | |
what is the plan of the mystery hidden for ages. | 21:08 | |
Hidden in God who created all things. | 21:14 | |
So that through the church | 21:18 | |
the wisdom of God | 21:19 | |
in its rich variety might be made known | 21:20 | |
to the rulers and the authorities in the heavenly places. | 21:23 | |
This was in accordance with the eternal purpose | 21:28 | |
that he has carried out in Christ Jesus our Lord. | 21:31 | |
In whom we have access to God | 21:34 | |
in boldness and confidence | 21:36 | |
through faith in Him. | 21:40 | |
This is the word of the Lord. | 21:43 | |
Congregation | Thanks be to God. | 21:45 |
- | Sisters and brothers | 21:48 |
I greet you in the name of Christ. | 21:49 | |
And I give thanks for the opportunity | 21:52 | |
to be in worship with you today. | 21:54 | |
It is a long way from Texas to Duke Chapel. | 21:58 | |
The speaker of the Texas House of Representatives | 22:04 | |
was invited to speak at a major university last year. | 22:07 | |
And he began his remarks by saying, | 22:12 | |
"The invitation to speak here | 22:15 | |
"fills me with a great deal of humidity." | 22:18 | |
(congregation laughing) | 22:22 | |
Fills me too. | 22:27 | |
And I'm grateful | 22:30 | |
for the privilege of this pulpit this morning. | 22:32 | |
This is not my first trip to North Carolina. | 22:35 | |
My first trip came in 1964. | 22:39 | |
And that's 30 years ago. | 22:45 | |
I was at a college church conference | 22:48 | |
at a beautiful place called Montreat. | 22:50 | |
One day at lunch | 22:54 | |
I was eating with a young man who was a stranger to me. | 22:57 | |
When suddenly he said to me, | 23:01 | |
"Would you like to see God?" | 23:05 | |
I thought about that a minute and, | 23:09 | |
"Yeah. | 23:14 | |
"Yeah I would." | 23:15 | |
And he said, "Good. | 23:19 | |
"Come by my room tonight after the session. | 23:22 | |
"I have this stuff that will do it for us." | 23:26 | |
(congregation laughing) | 23:30 | |
Would you have gone? | 23:35 | |
I didn't go that night. | 23:41 | |
Not because I was afraid of frying my brains. | 23:44 | |
I didn't know any better. | 23:47 | |
I had never heard of LSD in 1964. | 23:49 | |
And I didn't go | 23:55 | |
not because I was afraid that | 23:56 | |
we were not meant to see God and live. | 23:58 | |
That in the presence of God | 24:01 | |
we would melt like those people in Raiders of the Lost Ark. | 24:02 | |
And I didn't go for the other side of that reason; | 24:09 | |
because I was afraid | 24:12 | |
maybe the experience wouldn't measure up. | 24:13 | |
What if you saw God and it was no big deal? | 24:15 | |
No I didn't go | 24:22 | |
because I was 21 years old | 24:26 | |
and I thought to myself, | 24:30 | |
"If I see God tonight | 24:32 | |
"what's the point in tomorrow? | 24:37 | |
"Why go on? | 24:41 | |
"Why go to school? | 24:44 | |
"Why try to learn anything? | 24:45 | |
"Why try to make a difference?" | 24:46 | |
I didn't go. | 24:52 | |
Did I miss my chance? | 24:55 | |
So you see the theological enterprise | 24:59 | |
simply tries to put a frame | 25:02 | |
around the ineffable mystery and silence of God. | 25:05 | |
And I had someone tell me | 25:11 | |
they could take me right to the heart of the mystery. | 25:12 | |
Would you have gone? | 25:16 | |
What I learned from this | 25:21 | |
is that the mystery of God | 25:24 | |
is a very scary thing. | 25:27 | |
And our text, our epistle text for this morning, | 25:31 | |
as strange as it is | 25:35 | |
speaks to us about that very thing. | 25:38 | |
The letter to the Ephesians | 25:42 | |
is unlike any other letter attributed to Paul | 25:44 | |
in the New Testament. | 25:47 | |
There's none of the intimacy | 25:48 | |
none of the passion of the other letters. | 25:49 | |
"You are my light in my life. | 25:52 | |
"I thank God so every time I think about you." | 25:54 | |
No, none of that. | 25:57 | |
None of that here. | 25:58 | |
This letter | 26:03 | |
whether it was written by Paul | 26:05 | |
or for the love of Paul by a follower | 26:07 | |
comes to us in Barth's words | 26:11 | |
as a letter from a stranger. | 26:14 | |
A letter from a stranger. | 26:21 | |
Not just a stranger | 26:25 | |
but a stranger whose veiled in mystery. | 26:26 | |
And here we sit this morning | 26:30 | |
at the very threshold of a new year | 26:33 | |
that is veiled in mystery to us. | 26:35 | |
Granted we're a little dulled and slowed | 26:38 | |
by too much food and football. | 26:41 | |
But still anxious about the possibilities | 26:44 | |
that are up ahead | 26:47 | |
and to top it all off | 26:48 | |
we're gathered this morning | 26:50 | |
as virtual strangers. | 26:53 | |
I know very few of you | 26:56 | |
and most of you do not know me. | 26:58 | |
And I understand we have many holiday visitors among us. | 27:01 | |
And so here we are | 27:09 | |
sharing for these few minutes | 27:10 | |
and possibly never again. | 27:12 | |
And what we share | 27:17 | |
is that we have chosen to come to church this morning | 27:19 | |
to look for word from the Lord. | 27:23 | |
So what word does the apostle bring? | 27:28 | |
The mystery of God's salvation | 27:32 | |
hidden for ages | 27:35 | |
has been revealed to me | 27:37 | |
so that I can preach it to you. | 27:40 | |
Now that's where this text gets interesting. | 27:45 | |
God's plan of salvation was a mystery. | 27:48 | |
A mystery for thousands of years | 27:52 | |
and then finally at the perfect time | 27:55 | |
it was revealed in Jesus Christ | 27:57 | |
and God's plan, | 28:00 | |
God's secret then became an open book. | 28:01 | |
Do you see how troublesome that is? | 28:06 | |
Having a secret | 28:11 | |
is a two-headed problem. | 28:13 | |
It's a problem in front and a problem in back. | 28:16 | |
It's awful to have a secret that you can't tell. | 28:19 | |
What's the point in having a secret | 28:25 | |
if you can't say to someone, | 28:27 | |
"Now don't tell this to anyone but..." | 28:29 | |
It's awful to have a secret you can't tell. | 28:34 | |
It's like the preacher | 28:37 | |
who couldn't get up a sermon for Sunday morning | 28:38 | |
and so he called in sick | 28:41 | |
and went out to play golf. | 28:42 | |
And hit a hole in one. | 28:46 | |
(congregation laughing) | 28:48 | |
Is this text the first century equivalent to that? | 28:54 | |
Does the apostle say, | 28:59 | |
"I have a secret | 29:00 | |
"I can't stand it | 29:02 | |
"it's a secret I have to tell you." | 29:03 | |
The other side's a problem too. | 29:07 | |
Because once a secret is out | 29:10 | |
it loses, like salt, it's savor. | 29:13 | |
Once the secret has been told | 29:17 | |
and everybody knows it | 29:19 | |
it becomes flat and lifeless. | 29:23 | |
"Have you heard about--" | 29:25 | |
"Oh, I've heard, I've heard." | 29:26 | |
The early Christians knew that. | 29:30 | |
And so some of them decided | 29:32 | |
well, we'll keep this secret about Jesus Christ | 29:34 | |
and we'll just dole it out to a few people at a time. | 29:37 | |
We'll just give it to a few folk | 29:41 | |
who can learn the secret passport, | 29:43 | |
the secret password. | 29:45 | |
We called them gnostics. | 29:49 | |
They weren't bad people. | 29:50 | |
They just wanted to keep the secret | 29:52 | |
fresh and vital and alive | 29:54 | |
but the letter to the Ephesians | 29:57 | |
and our history, our tradition, | 29:58 | |
says that they were wrong. | 30:00 | |
I once heard Fred Craddock preach a sermon | 30:05 | |
in which he reminded us that when the disciples | 30:07 | |
went out as sort of an advance party for Jesus | 30:10 | |
and they went out saying, | 30:12 | |
"The messiah is coming! | 30:14 | |
"The messiah is coming!" | 30:15 | |
And the people began running | 30:16 | |
and they got all excited. | 30:18 | |
"The messiah is coming!" | 30:19 | |
And then one day | 30:23 | |
a group was walking down the road | 30:25 | |
and the disciples were saying, | 30:27 | |
"Come come, the messiah is here. | 30:28 | |
"And it's Jesus." | 30:34 | |
And they could hardly get a crowd. | 30:38 | |
The messiah is here? | 30:41 | |
And it's he? (chuckling) | 30:46 | |
What time's the Cowboy game start anyway? | 30:51 | |
Lots of things are more interesting in anticipation | 30:57 | |
than they are in reality. | 31:00 | |
And here the apostle throws modesty to the wind | 31:02 | |
and he says, | 31:04 | |
"The secret's been revealed to me | 31:05 | |
"and I tell it to you." | 31:07 | |
But the one thing about that is; | 31:09 | |
how about us Paul? | 31:11 | |
It's been 2000 years man. | 31:14 | |
Sure it was an exciting secret | 31:19 | |
when you first preached it. | 31:21 | |
But how about us Paul? | 31:25 | |
We have at TCU a little in-house bulletin | 31:31 | |
that's creatively titled The TCU Bulletin. | 31:34 | |
{congregation chuckling) | 31:38 | |
And not long ago | 31:41 | |
there was a notice that said: | 31:42 | |
Geology graduate student Debra Malek | 31:43 | |
has just received notice that her paper, | 31:47 | |
her geology paper entitled | 31:51 | |
Hypabyssal Alkalic Intrusions in Terlingua, Texas | 31:53 | |
has been accepted for publication. | 31:58 | |
Now that caught my attention | 32:01 | |
because of the Terlingua, Texas. | 32:03 | |
You see I've been to Terlingua. | 32:05 | |
It's a ghost town down in the Big Bend country | 32:08 | |
best known for occasional chili cook offs | 32:11 | |
where they whip up a concoction | 32:15 | |
that's said to make a Louisiana man cry. | 32:17 | |
(congregation laughing) | 32:21 | |
Of hypabyssal alkalic intrusions I knew nothing. | 32:24 | |
But Ms. Malek knows. | 32:31 | |
She has a precise understanding of what she means. | 32:34 | |
I remember some interesting rock formations. | 32:40 | |
But here's the difference | 32:44 | |
between her language world and mine. | 32:45 | |
She knows precisely | 32:50 | |
what she means | 32:52 | |
when she makes a statement. | 32:54 | |
And I almost never do. | 32:57 | |
Her language is what we call steno language, | 33:01 | |
reporter language, | 33:03 | |
the language of the stop sign. | 33:05 | |
When you see a stop sign on the street | 33:07 | |
what did it mean yesterday? | 33:09 | |
It meant stop. | 33:12 | |
What does it mean today? | 33:14 | |
It means stop. | 33:15 | |
What will it mean tomorrow? | 33:16 | |
It will mean stop. | 33:19 | |
The language I work with most of the time | 33:23 | |
is tensive language, | 33:25 | |
confessional language, | 33:27 | |
the language of the Cross. | 33:29 | |
I see a Cross and it means... | 33:32 | |
it means more than I can say. | 33:39 | |
Ms. Malek has no doubts. | 33:44 | |
She knows what hypabyssal alkalic intrusions are. | 33:48 | |
But when I look at the words | 33:53 | |
I see hyp meaning under like hypodermic. | 33:56 | |
I see abyss meaning bottomless. | 34:00 | |
And I see some soda ash, | 34:04 | |
a layer of soda ash underneath | 34:06 | |
that which is bottomless. | 34:09 | |
And I'm still working on that. | 34:12 | |
It's still a mystery to me. | 34:17 | |
Here we stand with one foot in the new year | 34:20 | |
and the word comes to us from Paul; | 34:23 | |
God's plan for salvation has been revealed | 34:25 | |
and it's Jesus. | 34:28 | |
And I suspect that most of us have | 34:31 | |
at one time or another | 34:33 | |
made that confession | 34:34 | |
and if pressed | 34:36 | |
we would say that we believe in it. | 34:37 | |
But it's still a mystery. | 34:43 | |
How God saves us through Jesus | 34:46 | |
is still a mystery. | 34:49 | |
Paul's experience is not enough. | 34:52 | |
1993's experience is not enough. | 34:55 | |
We have to confront again and again | 35:00 | |
the language of our faith. | 35:02 | |
We have to ask questions. | 35:04 | |
We have to listen. | 35:06 | |
We have to analyze our own experience and feelings. | 35:07 | |
We have to share our joys and concerns | 35:11 | |
in the faith community | 35:14 | |
because this is a mystery. | 35:15 | |
This is not a secret | 35:17 | |
that's interesting only the first time. | 35:19 | |
You see Ms. Malek has figured out | 35:23 | |
hypabyssal alkalic intrusions | 35:25 | |
and that's done | 35:27 | |
and if she's to keep her edge | 35:29 | |
she must move on to other secrets | 35:30 | |
because that secret | 35:32 | |
was only interesting for her the first time. | 35:33 | |
But God's secret has to be uncovered anew | 35:37 | |
within every person who hears it. | 35:41 | |
And this leads me to the second factor | 35:46 | |
that makes the text compelling. | 35:48 | |
The apostle writes: | 35:52 | |
The mystery was made known to me by revelation | 35:53 | |
which was not made known in other generations. | 35:56 | |
That is how the gentiles are fellow heirs, | 35:59 | |
members of the same body, | 36:03 | |
and partakers of Jesus Christ through the gospel. | 36:05 | |
And while at first reading | 36:10 | |
we might think that what Paul is doing here | 36:12 | |
is bragging about the secret that was given to him. | 36:14 | |
In reality he's talking about the secret that's given to us. | 36:17 | |
Gentiles. | 36:24 | |
Foreigners. | 36:26 | |
Outlanders. | 36:29 | |
Fellow heirs of the gospel. | 36:31 | |
Interpreted and entrusted | 36:34 | |
with the secret of God in Jesus Christ. | 36:36 | |
A secret that is so great | 36:38 | |
that every time it comes out | 36:40 | |
the world becomes new. | 36:44 | |
It was the fourth Sunday in Advent | 36:48 | |
in Hispaniola | 36:52 | |
in the year 1511. | 36:55 | |
Less than 20 years after the arrival of Columbus | 36:58 | |
and already some 90% of the indigenous population | 37:02 | |
had perished at the hands of the Spaniards. | 37:06 | |
A little priest | 37:11 | |
named Antonio de Montesinos | 37:14 | |
stood up on that fourth Sunday in Advent | 37:18 | |
and preached a sermon entitled: | 37:20 | |
The Rock Hard Wilderness of the Spanish Heart. | 37:22 | |
And he said to the people, | 37:27 | |
"The voice of Christ declares that you are in mortal sin. | 37:28 | |
"And will live and die by it | 37:32 | |
"because of the cruelty and tyranny | 37:35 | |
"that you practice upon these innocent people." | 37:37 | |
As you can imagine the Spaniards were outraged. | 37:42 | |
Montesinos was hauled before the governor | 37:45 | |
and the Father Superior of the Dominicans | 37:48 | |
and told that he would preach again the next Sunday | 37:50 | |
and would retract everything that he had said. | 37:53 | |
Well it was Christmas Sunday. | 37:57 | |
And everybody who was anybody in New Spain | 38:01 | |
was in church. | 38:04 | |
Father Montesinos mounted the pulpit | 38:07 | |
and he began his sermon. | 38:10 | |
"What I said before | 38:14 | |
"I say again." | 38:17 | |
And he gave it to them with the other barrel. | 38:21 | |
He told them the secret once again | 38:24 | |
just to make sure that they got it. | 38:26 | |
Well this is the last that we ever hear | 38:30 | |
of father Antonio de Montesinos. | 38:32 | |
But it's not the last of the secret. | 38:36 | |
Because there was a young man in church | 38:39 | |
on that Christmas Sunday in 1511 | 38:41 | |
named Bartolomé de las Casas. | 38:43 | |
He heard Montesino's sermon | 38:46 | |
and was so moved that he became a priest. | 38:48 | |
The first bishop of the Americas | 38:51 | |
and became known as the defender of the Indians. | 38:53 | |
And thus from the very beginning | 38:55 | |
of European colonization | 38:57 | |
oppression has been there | 38:59 | |
but so has God's secret. | 39:01 | |
Jesus came for all people. | 39:04 | |
The Spaniards of 1511 knew that. | 39:10 | |
But it had been so encrusted | 39:13 | |
with the greed of their own hearts | 39:15 | |
that they couldn't hear it. | 39:18 | |
Until a little priest and one young man | 39:21 | |
voiced the secret in their midst | 39:24 | |
and they were greatly disturbed | 39:26 | |
as if they had never heard it before | 39:28 | |
and the world became new in 15 and 12. | 39:30 | |
My mother died last month | 39:38 | |
after a long and difficult battle | 39:41 | |
with Alzheimer's and assorted other infirmities. | 39:43 | |
If you've been there | 39:48 | |
you know how difficult it is | 39:49 | |
to watch the mind of someone you love | 39:51 | |
retreat from you day by day. | 39:55 | |
Last year after five years of caring for mother at home | 39:59 | |
Dad could no longer maintain the constant care | 40:02 | |
that she required | 40:05 | |
and mother moved to live in a nursing home. | 40:06 | |
Thanksgiving was coming | 40:10 | |
and Dad asked me apologetically, | 40:13 | |
"Do you think Mama could come home for Thanksgiving?" | 40:14 | |
I was skeptical about it. | 40:20 | |
I talked to the doctor. | 40:22 | |
The doctor told me that Alzheimer's patients | 40:24 | |
frequently do not do well | 40:27 | |
outside their familiar environment. | 40:28 | |
But I decided, let's do it. | 40:33 | |
Dad took over her best dress | 40:36 | |
and with the help of the staff | 40:38 | |
got her dressed and her hair fixed. | 40:40 | |
Before she came over to our house | 40:43 | |
they walked around the nursing home | 40:45 | |
and everybody said to her how pretty she looked. | 40:46 | |
While Dad was bringing Mom | 40:51 | |
I went toward Dallas to pick up my Uncle Jack, | 40:53 | |
Mother's older brother, | 40:55 | |
who also suffers from Alzheimer's. | 40:58 | |
I brought them in. | 41:02 | |
I knew that it was the last time | 41:03 | |
that they would see each other in this world. | 41:05 | |
But I was very afraid | 41:08 | |
that they would not recognize each other. | 41:10 | |
When I walked in with Jack | 41:13 | |
and they saw each other | 41:15 | |
they began walking toward each other | 41:17 | |
and fell into each other's arms. | 41:19 | |
And after a long while | 41:23 | |
Jack looked down at her and said, | 41:25 | |
"Oh we had some times didn't we kid?" | 41:29 | |
And my mother looked up | 41:35 | |
and in a moment of perfect clarity she said, | 41:36 | |
"We sure did." | 41:41 | |
They had some times. | 41:46 | |
And I, who have made my life telling that secret | 41:49 | |
which has so often become tattered and worn | 41:53 | |
in my own poor understanding | 41:57 | |
saw it afresh in that moment of incredible grace | 42:01 | |
in front of the fireplace. | 42:04 | |
The world became new. | 42:08 | |
You see God's plan of salvation | 42:12 | |
is found for us in Jesus. | 42:15 | |
And that is good news of love | 42:19 | |
and justice | 42:22 | |
and mercy and peace. | 42:25 | |
And this good news is for all people. | 42:27 | |
Not just the powerful. | 42:31 | |
Not just the mentally sharp. | 42:34 | |
But all people. | 42:37 | |
Far as the curse is found. | 42:39 | |
The curse of heretical exclusiveness | 42:43 | |
in first century Ephesus. | 42:46 | |
The curse of systemic oppression in Hispaniola in 1511. | 42:49 | |
The curse of Alzheimer's in Fort Worth in 1993. | 42:56 | |
May the secret of God's love for us | 43:02 | |
be heard this year. | 43:05 | |
In Bosnia. | 43:08 | |
In Palestine. | 43:11 | |
In South Africa, in Sri Lanka, in Ireland, in Durham. | 43:13 | |
Wherever, whenever, however | 43:20 | |
this message comes to us in 1994 | 43:23 | |
my prayer is that we will be open to it | 43:27 | |
that we will open our eyes and our hearts to the secret | 43:32 | |
and watch the years and miles between | 43:37 | |
Paul | 43:40 | |
and Antonio | 43:41 | |
and Helen | 43:43 | |
melt away. | 43:46 | |
That we and all those who have come before | 43:48 | |
and all who will come after | 43:52 | |
may be strangers no longer. | 43:54 | |
But fellow heirs, | 43:58 | |
members of the same body | 44:01 | |
and sharers of the promise in Christ Jesus | 44:04 | |
through the gospel. | 44:07 | |
All power and honor and glory be to God forever. | 44:10 | |
Amen. | 44:15 | |
(pipe organ music) | 44:23 | |
(congregation singing) | 44:24 | |
- | The Lord be with you. | 46:47 |
Congregation | And also with you. | 46:49 |
- | Let us pray, be seated. | 46:50 |
Gracious God. | 47:02 | |
How full are our hearts | 47:06 | |
now that the gracious mystery | 47:08 | |
kept secret for the ages | 47:11 | |
has dawned upon us. | 47:14 | |
In the Babe of Bethlehem | 47:17 | |
the hopes and fears of all the years | 47:19 | |
are called up into your loving purposes | 47:23 | |
and made manifest for us. | 47:27 | |
The brightness of your star enlightens our darkness. | 47:32 | |
We pray for the press of darkness. | 47:38 | |
We pray for victims of war and civil strife. | 47:42 | |
The peoples of Angola and Somalia, | 47:47 | |
Northern Ireland, | 47:50 | |
Sri Lanka, | 47:53 | |
Bosnia, | 47:54 | |
Herzegovina. | 47:55 | |
We pray for those who have suffered | 48:00 | |
due to the criminal acts of others. | 48:03 | |
We pray for victims of crime. | 48:06 | |
We pray for those who have spent the holidays alone. | 48:11 | |
We pray for those for whom the holidays have been | 48:19 | |
a painful reminder of the death of somebody that they love. | 48:23 | |
O Lord we pray for all those | 48:31 | |
who during this time of year are cold | 48:35 | |
or homeless, | 48:39 | |
unemployed | 48:42 | |
or just lonely. | 48:45 | |
We pray for all those | 48:49 | |
who are sick or infirm | 48:52 | |
particularly those in Duke Hospital. | 48:54 | |
And we pray for all youth | 49:00 | |
faced with challenges and temptations. | 49:04 | |
We pray for our young people. | 49:08 | |
O light to our darkness send your light | 49:13 | |
to all in darkness. | 49:17 | |
Send your light to all who walk | 49:20 | |
in the valley of the shadow of death. | 49:22 | |
Be for us that mystery | 49:27 | |
which is at the very heart of everything. | 49:30 | |
A mystery deeper than our puny explanations. | 49:35 | |
A mystery more wonderful than our flat understanding. | 49:40 | |
The great glorious joyful mystery | 49:47 | |
of God with us. | 49:52 | |
Amen. | 49:57 | |
Let us now offer ourselves and our gifts to God. | 50:00 | |
("O Come, All Ye Faithful" by The Bell Ringers) | 50:33 | |
("The First Noel" by The Bell Ringers) | 51:25 | |
("Away in a Manger" by The Bell Ringers) | 52:19 | |
("Joy to the World" by The Bell Ringers) | 53:34 | |
("Silent Night" by The Bell Ringers) | 54:09 | |
(pipe organ music) | 56:06 | |
(congregation singing) | 56:43 | |
- | Gracious God. | 57:39 |
We thank you for all of your gifts. | 57:39 | |
Especially do we thank you | 57:43 | |
for the gift of your son Jesus | 57:44 | |
Our savior, our way, our light. | 57:47 | |
The gift of your son | 57:52 | |
reminds us how dependent on our lives | 57:53 | |
upon your beneficence | 57:56 | |
for all the things that make our lives | 57:58 | |
rich and good and worth living. | 58:00 | |
For all these gifts we give thanks | 58:03 | |
returning but a portion of your generosity | 58:05 | |
back to you for your work in the world. | 58:10 | |
And now we pray | 58:14 | |
as our Lord and Savior has taught us. | 58:15 | |
(reciting with congregation) | 58:18 | |
Our Father, who art in heaven, | ||
hallowed be thy Name, | 58:21 | |
thy kingdom come, | 58:23 | |
thy will be done, | 58:24 | |
on earth as it is in heaven. | 58:26 | |
Give us this day our daily bread. | 58:28 | |
And forgive us our trespasses, | 58:31 | |
as we forgive those | 58:34 | |
who trespass against us. | 58:35 | |
And lead us not into temptation, | 58:38 | |
but deliver us from evil. | 58:40 | |
For thine is the kingdom, | 58:42 | |
and the power, and the glory, | 58:44 | |
forever. | 58:46 | |
Amen. | 58:48 | |
("The First Noel" by the pipe organist) | 58:51 | |
♪ The First Noel, the Angels did say ♪ | 59:41 | |
♪ Was to certain poor shepherds in fields as they lay ♪ | 59:49 | |
♪ In fields where they lay keeping their sheep ♪ | 59:58 | |
♪ On a cold winter's night that was so deep ♪ | 1:00:06 | |
♪ Noel, Noel, ♪ | 1:00:15 | |
♪ Noel, Noel ♪ | 1:00:19 | |
♪ Born is the King of Israel ♪ | 1:00:24 | |
♪ They looked up and saw a star ♪ | 1:00:35 | |
♪ Shining in the East beyond them far ♪ | 1:00:42 | |
♪ And to the earth it gave great light ♪ | 1:00:51 | |
♪ And so it continued both day and night ♪ | 1:01:00 | |
♪ Noel, Noel ♪ | 1:01:08 | |
♪ Noel, Noel ♪ | 1:01:12 | |
♪ Born is the King of Israel ♪ | 1:01:17 | |
♪ And by the light of that same star ♪ | 1:01:28 | |
♪ Three wise men came from country far ♪ | 1:01:36 | |
♪ To seek for a king was their intent ♪ | 1:01:45 | |
♪ And to follow the star wherever it went ♪ | 1:01:54 | |
♪ Noel, Noel ♪ | 1:02:03 | |
♪ Noel, Noel ♪ | 1:02:07 | |
♪ Born is the King of Israel ♪ | 1:02:12 | |
♪ This star drew nigh to the northwest ♪ | 1:02:24 | |
♪ O'er Bethlehem it took its rest ♪ | 1:02:32 | |
♪ And there it did both stop and stay ♪ | 1:02:41 | |
♪ Right over the place where Jesus lay ♪ | 1:02:50 | |
♪ Noel, Noel ♪ | 1:02:59 | |
♪ Noel, Noel ♪ | 1:03:03 | |
♪ Born is the King of Israel ♪ | 1:03:09 | |
♪ Then entered in those wise men three ♪ | 1:03:20 | |
♪ Full reverently upon their knee ♪ | 1:03:29 | |
♪ And offered there in his presence ♪ | 1:03:38 | |
♪ Their gold, and myrrh, and frankincense. ♪ | 1:03:48 | |
♪ Noel, Noel ♪ | 1:03:57 | |
♪ Noel, Noel ♪ | 1:04:01 | |
♪ Born is the King of Israel ♪ | 1:04:07 | |
- | Now by the grace of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ | 1:04:21 |
and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit | 1:04:25 | |
be with you now and always. | 1:04:27 | |
Amen. | 1:04:30 | |
(pipe organ music) | 1:04:37 |
Item Info
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