Thor Hall - "Another Year" (December 31, 1967)
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Transcript
Transcripts may contain inaccuracies.
- | Forgive, | 0:04 |
correct | 0:06 | |
and heal us. | 0:07 | |
Oh God who son, our Lord Jesus Christ | 0:12 | |
didst come as at this time to renew the hopes of sinful men | 0:14 | |
and did humble himself to be made like us | 0:21 | |
in our weakness and need | 0:25 | |
that we might be exalted into true sonship. | 0:28 | |
Let the same mind be in us, | 0:32 | |
which was also in him. | 0:36 | |
Help us to follow the example of his humility | 0:39 | |
that we may forgive others as thou has forgiven us. | 0:45 | |
Help us to cast away every doubt and fear | 0:53 | |
and to face the uncertain future | 0:57 | |
in the peace which comes from trust in thee, | 1:00 | |
and unto thee oh God, | 1:06 | |
be glory forever | 1:10 | |
and ever, | 1:14 | |
amen. | 1:16 | |
And hear these words of assurance. | 1:19 | |
Our sins are forgiven for his sake | 1:25 | |
therefore, we're of good courage. | 1:33 | |
(choral music) | 2:10 | |
Let us hear the word of God | 5:17 | |
as is contained in the scriptures of the New Testament | 5:19 | |
in the gospel, according to St. Luke, | 5:23 | |
the 13th chapter, | 5:27 | |
verses one to nine. | 5:30 | |
"There were some present at that very time | 5:37 | |
who told Jesus of the Galileans | 5:41 | |
whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. | 5:45 | |
And he answered them, | 5:53 | |
"Do you think that these Galileans | 5:56 | |
were worse sinners than all the other Galileans | 5:58 | |
because they suffered thus? | 6:04 | |
I tell you, no! | 6:08 | |
But unless you repent, you will all likewise perish. | 6:12 | |
Or those 18 | 6:19 | |
upon whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them, | 6:21 | |
do you think that they were worse offenders | 6:27 | |
than all the others who dwelt in Jerusalem? | 6:30 | |
I tell you, no! | 6:35 | |
But unless you repent, | 6:40 | |
you will all likewise perish." | 6:43 | |
And he told this parable, | 6:48 | |
"A man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard, | 6:51 | |
and he came seeking fruit on it and found none. | 6:56 | |
And he said to the vinedresser, | 7:02 | |
behold, these three years I have come seeking fruit | 7:05 | |
on this fig tree, | 7:09 | |
and I find none, cut it down. | 7:11 | |
Why should it use up the ground? | 7:18 | |
And the vinedresser answered him, | 7:23 | |
let it alone sir, | 7:26 | |
this year also | 7:29 | |
till I dig about it | 7:32 | |
and put on manure. | 7:34 | |
And if it bears fruit next year, | 7:37 | |
well and good, | 7:41 | |
but if not, | 7:45 | |
you can cut it down." | 7:48 | |
Amen. | 7:55 | |
And may God bless unto us | 7:57 | |
the reading of his holy word. | 7:59 | |
(choral music) | 8:06 | |
The Lord be with you. | 8:43 | |
Let us pray. | 8:46 | |
Let us offer unto God, our unison prayer of thanksgiving. | 8:55 | |
Oh God, our help in ages past, | 9:01 | |
we give thee thanks that thou art our hope | 9:04 | |
for years to come. | 9:07 | |
We bless thee for thy presence | 9:09 | |
as we enter this new year. | 9:12 | |
We are grateful to thee for shielding us, | 9:14 | |
rescuing us, | 9:18 | |
leading and loving us | 9:19 | |
through all the days of the past. | 9:21 | |
We thank thee for bringing us to this good hour. | 9:24 | |
We express to thee our gratitude for new opportunities | 9:28 | |
and another chance, | 9:33 | |
for the challenge of a fresh inspiration, | 9:35 | |
for friends, | 9:38 | |
for food, | 9:40 | |
for truth, | 9:41 | |
for books, | 9:43 | |
for teachers | 9:44 | |
and for thy grace to make us whole | 9:45 | |
through Jesus Christ, our Lord, | 9:49 | |
amen. | 9:52 | |
And now let us offer unto God our petitions for others | 9:54 | |
and for ourselves. | 9:59 | |
Hear us oh God, we beseech thee | 10:03 | |
as we bring the whole world of men | 10:05 | |
into the fellowship of our prayers. | 10:07 | |
Build up thy church in strength | 10:12 | |
that the good tidings of great joy, | 10:15 | |
which shall lead to all peoples | 10:17 | |
may be spread far and wide. | 10:20 | |
We pray for all nations | 10:24 | |
that in the coming year | 10:27 | |
they may be drawn into closer bonds | 10:28 | |
of mutual honor and service. | 10:31 | |
Let men everywhere hear thy voice and know thy will, | 10:36 | |
that they may turn from all selfish aims and warlike deeds | 10:41 | |
and lay the government upon his shoulder | 10:47 | |
who is the prince of peace. | 10:50 | |
We pray for our beloved land | 10:55 | |
that thy favor may rest and abide upon it | 10:59 | |
and for the president | 11:04 | |
and all in authority over us we beseech thee | 11:06 | |
that thou will direct their councils | 11:10 | |
and endeavors to the good government of the people | 11:12 | |
and the advancement of the peace and unity of the world. | 11:17 | |
Bless we pray thee this university, | 11:22 | |
this congregation, | 11:26 | |
its homes and families and all its work. | 11:29 | |
Fill our homes with thy presence | 11:34 | |
and our hearts with thy love. | 11:36 | |
Watch over our loved ones who are absent from us, | 11:41 | |
make their memories of this chapel, | 11:46 | |
a joy and a safeguard to them | 11:49 | |
and keep them steadfast in their fidelity to thee. | 11:53 | |
Remember in thy mercy those who end the year | 12:00 | |
under any shadow of affliction, | 12:03 | |
the lonely, | 12:07 | |
the disappointed, | 12:09 | |
the sick, | 12:12 | |
the mourners, | 12:14 | |
and those who strength faileth, | 12:16 | |
give them comfort and peace | 12:22 | |
in Jesus Christ, their savior. | 12:25 | |
Lord of all worlds | 12:30 | |
before whom stand the living and the departed, | 12:32 | |
we remember before thee with thanksgiving | 12:36 | |
those who have passed within the veil | 12:38 | |
especially those dear to us, | 12:42 | |
whom in the year now ending | 12:46 | |
thou hast called home to their rest. | 12:47 | |
Grant that even here | 12:52 | |
we may have true communion of spirit with them | 12:53 | |
and help us so to live by faith in thy blessed son | 12:58 | |
that we at the last may be gathered with them | 13:03 | |
beyond the changes and chances of this splitting world | 13:07 | |
into the kingdom of thy glory. | 13:12 | |
Oh God, who amidst life changes abideth ever the same | 13:19 | |
eternal love, | 13:24 | |
eternal truth, | 13:26 | |
eternal life. | 13:28 | |
Enable us to know the greatness | 13:31 | |
of the trust committed to our keeping in this life | 13:33 | |
and grant that learning are right the lessons of the past, | 13:38 | |
we may now walk in wisdom, | 13:43 | |
love thee unto death | 13:46 | |
and finally awaken to serve thee with a perfect heart | 13:49 | |
in the joy of life eternal | 13:53 | |
through Jesus Christ, our Lord | 13:57 | |
who liveth and reigneth | 14:00 | |
and is worshiped and glorified with thee | 14:02 | |
and the Holy Spirit. | 14:05 | |
World without end. | 14:09 | |
Amen. | 14:12 | |
And now as our savior Christ has taught us, | 14:14 | |
we humbly pray together saying, | 14:17 | |
"Our father who art in heaven, | 14:21 | |
hallowed be thy name, | 14:24 | |
thy kingdom come, | 14:27 | |
thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. | 14:29 | |
Give us this day our daily bread | 14:33 | |
and forgive us our trespasses | 14:36 | |
as we forgive those who trespass against us | 14:39 | |
and lead us not into temptation | 14:43 | |
but deliver us from evil. | 14:45 | |
For thine is the kingdom | 14:48 | |
and the power | 14:50 | |
and the glory forever. | 14:51 | |
Amen. | 14:55 | |
- | The little window on my watch says 31, | 15:22 |
calendar on my desk says December, | 15:30 | |
and the income tax return will say 1967. | 15:36 | |
Tomorrow, the window will say one. | 15:41 | |
And the calendar will say January. | 15:46 | |
And the business people in Allen Building | 15:50 | |
will start drawing on my 1968 taxes. | 15:52 | |
So what's so special about the transition | 15:57 | |
from today to tomorrow? | 15:59 | |
The sun will set tonight at 5:11 | 16:02 | |
and rise again in the morning at 7:25. | 16:08 | |
It'll find me at the same address | 16:13 | |
as the same person | 16:17 | |
with the same characteristics, | 16:19 | |
the same responsibilities | 16:21 | |
and the same relationships | 16:22 | |
that I leave as I go to sleep tonight. | 16:25 | |
The zero hour of tomorrow | 16:29 | |
will not by itself change any of that. | 16:31 | |
Of course not. | 16:35 | |
And yet most of us feel that New Year's Eve | 16:39 | |
marks a special kind of time. | 16:42 | |
Takes us by the hand, as it wear and guides us | 16:46 | |
to some high spot where we can stand double-faced | 16:50 | |
like Jonah's and look in two directions at once, | 16:56 | |
backwards and forwards, | 17:03 | |
with memory and resolution, | 17:07 | |
ending one period of time and beginning another. | 17:10 | |
From this point we can look back at least one year | 17:15 | |
and before us we can project the shape | 17:22 | |
perhaps of another year. | 17:24 | |
Now, if we were really wise or fully aware, | 17:30 | |
we might see this moment as a possible watershed | 17:35 | |
between our total past and our whole future. | 17:39 | |
That is perhaps the most appropriate way | 17:45 | |
to mark any transition, | 17:47 | |
any moment, | 17:51 | |
but it is terribly demanding, | 17:54 | |
too demanding for most of us | 17:57 | |
when it brings up questions of ultimate importance | 18:01 | |
concerning our beginnings and our end, | 18:04 | |
our origin and our destiny, | 18:08 | |
religious questions. | 18:10 | |
Questions about meaning and purpose and aim. | 18:13 | |
Most of us aren't ready to face those questions too often. | 18:18 | |
A year | 18:23 | |
is just about all we are ready to take. | 18:26 | |
I suppose we could take this Jonah's look of ours | 18:34 | |
in a great many different ways. | 18:37 | |
We could simply be reporters of course, | 18:40 | |
calling to memory the 10 biggest news stories of the year, | 18:43 | |
personal items, | 18:48 | |
events on campus | 18:51 | |
or statewide national and international events. | 18:54 | |
In fact this is always a favorite game at this time of year | 18:57 | |
in newspapers and on the radio and on television. | 19:01 | |
And as reporters, | 19:06 | |
we don't really stay with the year past, of course, | 19:07 | |
we even suggest what we can expect in the year ahead | 19:11 | |
on the basis of trends we have observed in the past. | 19:16 | |
It's a straightforward | 19:20 | |
although rather superficial way to look at things. | 19:22 | |
But most of us do go beyond the perspective of the reporter. | 19:27 | |
There is a poetic look we may take actually | 19:34 | |
coloring the events of the past year | 19:38 | |
in whatever area of our involvements, | 19:40 | |
whether personal or family, | 19:44 | |
university or society, | 19:45 | |
according to how they affect us. | 19:47 | |
We sort of weigh everything after having sorted them out | 19:49 | |
and we come up smiling or frowning or both | 19:53 | |
according to how the year was. | 19:57 | |
And in direction of the future the poet in us | 20:01 | |
expresses all of our hopes and dreams, | 20:04 | |
all the anticipations of our fears and anxieties. | 20:08 | |
We all want this respect, | 20:13 | |
there is a poet in every one of us, | 20:15 | |
but we look at things still another way. | 20:21 | |
We are not only responsive persons, | 20:24 | |
we are responsible people. | 20:28 | |
Things haven't just happened to us this past year, | 20:32 | |
we have participated in happenings, | 20:35 | |
we have contributed to the year. | 20:39 | |
We have ourselves made the year | 20:43 | |
to a very large extent what it was. | 20:46 | |
And we are ethically involved in the shape of it. | 20:49 | |
We know that. | 20:54 | |
And so we look back with a certain guilt | 20:56 | |
or at least an apology, | 21:00 | |
and we look forward with good intentions | 21:02 | |
and New Year's Resolutions. | 21:07 | |
Well, now is this all that new year is about? | 21:11 | |
Or is there a look backwards | 21:18 | |
and forwards of a different sort? | 21:21 | |
The religious perspective, | 21:25 | |
the Christian point of view, | 21:27 | |
of course there is. | 21:29 | |
And there's a good example of it | 21:32 | |
in the passage from the Gospel of Luke | 21:34 | |
that we heard read a minute ago. | 21:36 | |
It's a tricky story, | 21:39 | |
but it can be very meaningful. | 21:42 | |
It was a time of retrospection as well as preview. | 21:45 | |
Jesus had just finished the speech | 21:49 | |
on the understanding of time. | 21:52 | |
According to Luke's report it said something like this. | 21:54 | |
When you see a cloud coming up in the west, | 21:57 | |
at once you say it's going to rain and it does | 22:00 | |
except of course when the weatherman (indistinct). | 22:03 | |
And when you feel the south wind blowing, | 22:06 | |
you say it's going to get hot and it does. | 22:09 | |
Impostors, you can look at the earth | 22:13 | |
and the sky and tell what it means, | 22:15 | |
why then don't you know | 22:19 | |
the meaning of this present time? | 22:21 | |
Immediately after that speech, | 22:25 | |
there were some people around Jesus | 22:26 | |
who wanted to prove their own depth. | 22:28 | |
Had he not heard the story | 22:30 | |
they said while everybody was buzzing about it | 22:32 | |
how a group of Galileans | 22:35 | |
had presented themselves in the temple | 22:37 | |
to offer their sacrifices to God? | 22:39 | |
And even during worship, Pilate had them all killed. | 22:43 | |
Well, also Jesus, | 22:48 | |
how about those 18 people at Siloam | 22:49 | |
who were killed on the spot | 22:52 | |
when the tower collapsed and fell on them? | 22:55 | |
Oh, it's very clear they said, | 22:58 | |
there can be absolutely no doubt about it. | 23:01 | |
They must have been sinners beyond comparison. | 23:05 | |
Things like that just don't happen to righteous folk. | 23:09 | |
Jesus' answer was crisp and clear, | 23:15 | |
"What terrible nonsense," he said. | 23:20 | |
"Things like that can happen to anybody. | 23:23 | |
If you are hail and hearty now, | 23:27 | |
don't take that to be a sign of clean living | 23:30 | |
and congratulate yourselves on a just reward." | 23:32 | |
"What do you mean?" they said. | 23:36 | |
One simple lesson, | 23:38 | |
you are the ones who are on trial. | 23:41 | |
You'd better wake up and show some signs of righteousness | 23:45 | |
because you are liable to die yourselves. | 23:48 | |
Well, that was his message or at least part of it. | 23:56 | |
He did expand it somewhat | 23:59 | |
by telling a parable to go with it. | 24:01 | |
And to me, that parable is really the key | 24:03 | |
to the whole conversation. | 24:07 | |
Listen to it again. | 24:10 | |
"Man had a fig tree growing in his vineyard. | 24:11 | |
He went looking for figs on it, but found not. | 24:15 | |
So he said to his gardener, | 24:19 | |
"Look for three years, | 24:21 | |
I have been coming here looking for figs on this tree | 24:22 | |
and I haven't found any, cut it down. | 24:25 | |
Why should it go on using up the soil?" | 24:28 | |
But the gardener answered, | 24:33 | |
"Leave it alone, sir, just this one year. | 24:35 | |
I'll dig a trench around it | 24:39 | |
and fill it up with fertilizer. | 24:40 | |
And then if the tree bears figs next year, | 24:43 | |
so much the better, | 24:46 | |
if not, then you'll have it cut down." | 24:48 | |
As this gardener that intrigues me. | 24:53 | |
And it's because I think I see the gospel in him. | 24:58 | |
Without that figure, the parable would've been sheer law. | 25:03 | |
This tree is supposed to have figs on it. | 25:08 | |
I see none | 25:09 | |
and I've seen none for several seasons, cut it down. | 25:11 | |
But the gospel says fair enough, | 25:15 | |
but give me another chance with it. | 25:19 | |
Perhaps some careful digging and some rich fertilizer | 25:22 | |
will give it conditions to thrive. | 25:25 | |
If not, | 25:28 | |
it's dead | 25:30 | |
and you can take it away next year. | 25:33 | |
If you recognize I'm sure that I have cut out the | 25:39 | |
tricky subject here. | 25:42 | |
Martin Luther once said something to the effect | 25:45 | |
that he who understands how to distinguish properly | 25:47 | |
between law and gospel is indeed a theologian. | 25:50 | |
In the light of that, I should perhaps stay away from it. | 25:55 | |
But then again, how can you go wrong | 25:59 | |
when you take your lead from the message of Jesus? | 26:03 | |
So let's try. | 26:08 | |
The first thing that becomes clear | 26:11 | |
it seems to me in the message of Jesus | 26:13 | |
is that the relationship between God and us, | 26:14 | |
isn't a puny little bargain | 26:19 | |
in which God, on his side sets forth 10 rules | 26:21 | |
and says, "If you do these ten things | 26:25 | |
or at least try to do them to the best of your ability, | 26:27 | |
then I will look with favor on you | 26:30 | |
and send good things your way, | 26:32 | |
if not, watch out." | 26:34 | |
No, no that's much too cheap of you, | 26:38 | |
of our standing with God. | 26:43 | |
According to that | 26:46 | |
we could actually read the meaning of events | 26:47 | |
the way the buzzing bystanders in the story did. | 26:50 | |
Success equals clean living, | 26:53 | |
suffering equals sin. | 26:58 | |
Jesus obviously takes one look at this proposition | 27:04 | |
and proceeds quickly to tear it apart. | 27:08 | |
God to him | 27:12 | |
is not that kind of an arbitrary entity, | 27:16 | |
an impersonal force, which changes its character | 27:20 | |
according to who we are and what we do | 27:25 | |
and who determines the events of our life and history | 27:28 | |
in response to our qualities, good or bad. | 27:33 | |
In fact in Jesus' view of it, it's sheer paganism | 27:37 | |
because it reduces God | 27:41 | |
to a reflection of man and history | 27:44 | |
to a set of moral equations. | 27:48 | |
No, God has a character all of his own, | 27:52 | |
a personality which expresses itself freely, | 27:58 | |
graciously, | 28:03 | |
absolutely to all men, regardless. | 28:06 | |
Men may run away from him. | 28:11 | |
He goes after them. | 28:13 | |
We may hate him, | 28:16 | |
that doesn't alter his love. | 28:19 | |
We may love him, | 28:22 | |
that doesn't change his commands. | 28:25 | |
He is God Sovereign, | 28:28 | |
constant. | 28:32 | |
The great I am who I am. | 28:34 | |
And history, is the realm of his free action. | 28:38 | |
That's against the background | 28:45 | |
of that lofty theology that Jesus develops. | 28:46 | |
Secondly, his concept of law. | 28:50 | |
For history, isn't only the realm of God's free action, | 28:52 | |
it's also the realm of man's free action. | 28:56 | |
God is not determined by us, | 29:01 | |
but neither does he determine us. | 29:05 | |
Instead, he confronts us in our freedom | 29:08 | |
with various expressions of his will and purpose | 29:13 | |
for us and for the whole world | 29:16 | |
in order that we might live within it | 29:18 | |
and contribute to it | 29:21 | |
and find our peace in obedience. | 29:23 | |
The law then, in Jesus explication of it, | 29:27 | |
it's not just a set of rules and prescription | 29:32 | |
for what we are to do or not to do, | 29:34 | |
it's an all inclusive principle, | 29:37 | |
a center of orientation, | 29:41 | |
a demand which touches our life | 29:44 | |
from its core to its father's reach. | 29:47 | |
A core for complete response | 29:52 | |
and ultimate commitment | 29:56 | |
of the whole man to full obedience to God. | 29:58 | |
That's why Jesus made those radical statements | 30:03 | |
in the Sermon on the Mount. | 30:06 | |
You've heard that men were told in the past, | 30:08 | |
do not murder, anyone who commits murder | 30:10 | |
will be brought before the judge. | 30:13 | |
But now I tell you, | 30:14 | |
whoever is angry with his brother | 30:17 | |
will be brought before the judge, | 30:19 | |
whoever calls his brother, "You good for nothing," | 30:21 | |
will be brought before the council | 30:24 | |
and whoever calls his brother a worthless fool | 30:26 | |
will be in danger of going to the fire of hell. | 30:30 | |
Or this one, | 30:33 | |
you've heard that it was said love your friends, | 30:35 | |
hate your enemies. | 30:37 | |
But now I tell you, love your enemies | 30:39 | |
and pray for those who mistreat you | 30:42 | |
so that you will become the sons of our Father in heaven. | 30:44 | |
For he makes his son to shine | 30:48 | |
on bad and good people alike, | 30:50 | |
gives reign to those who do right and those who do wrong. | 30:53 | |
If you speak only to your friends, | 30:57 | |
have you done anything out of the ordinary? | 30:59 | |
Even pagans do the that. | 31:01 | |
You must be perfect | 31:04 | |
just as your father in heaven is perfect. | 31:07 | |
That's the law in Jesus' understanding of it. | 31:14 | |
And it's more radical than ever before. | 31:19 | |
If these are the kinds of things, God expects of us, | 31:24 | |
there certainly isn't much ground for thinking | 31:29 | |
that earthly success is a sign of clean living, is they? | 31:31 | |
There's much more relevance | 31:37 | |
to the image of the fruitless fig tree. | 31:37 | |
God must surely wonder | 31:42 | |
why we should continue to take our up space | 31:45 | |
when there is no more to show for it than we have. | 31:49 | |
But it's here that the third feature in Jesus theology | 31:53 | |
comes into the picture, | 31:57 | |
the gospel, | 32:01 | |
and it says, "Not that the will of God is changed | 32:03 | |
or that the law of God is dissolved." | 32:08 | |
It says rather that, "As God's will is affirmed, | 32:12 | |
we are also given what we need to fulfill it." | 32:18 | |
Not automatically, of course, | 32:23 | |
the grace of God doesn't just impose itself on us | 32:25 | |
and change our nature and character just like that. | 32:28 | |
But we are given another chance | 32:33 | |
and we are offered the proper conditions to grow | 32:36 | |
and to mature and to bear fruit. | 32:40 | |
I must say that I'm really inclined | 32:45 | |
to allegorize at this point you see, | 32:47 | |
the gardener is such a beautiful picture of Christ | 32:49 | |
and the ditch, if you think of it | 32:56 | |
with fertilizer is a good description of the church | 32:59 | |
and the gospel and the sacraments | 33:03 | |
and the power of the Holy Spirit and all that. | 33:05 | |
But I shall resist the temptation to allegory. | 33:09 | |
The piece of solid Pauline theology | 33:12 | |
is perhaps a more respectable way to say it. | 33:15 | |
Listen, there is now no condemnation | 33:19 | |
for those who live in union with Christ Jesus | 33:24 | |
for the new principle of the spirit, | 33:28 | |
which brings us life in union with Christ Jesus | 33:32 | |
has set me free | 33:36 | |
from the old vicious circle of sin and death. | 33:38 | |
What the law could not do because human nature was weak, | 33:43 | |
God did in order that we who live according to the spirit | 33:49 | |
and not according to human nature | 33:57 | |
might fully obey the righteous demands of the law. | 34:00 | |
For those who live as their human nature tells them to live | 34:05 | |
have their minds controlled by what human nature wants. | 34:07 | |
Those who live as the spirit tells them to live, | 34:11 | |
have their minds controlled by what the spirit wants. | 34:14 | |
Now that is the gospel, | 34:21 | |
the good news for a day like this. | 34:23 | |
It meets us in full view of the law | 34:27 | |
of the radical demands of God | 34:31 | |
and says to us, | 34:35 | |
you shall have what it takes, | 34:37 | |
it is there provided. | 34:41 | |
Well then, how can we apply this double message, | 34:48 | |
this Christian point of view to ourselves | 34:52 | |
as we look back on one year and prepare to enter another? | 34:56 | |
For one thing, | 35:02 | |
we ought to understand | 35:05 | |
that there is no direct correspondence | 35:06 | |
between the happenstances of the year | 35:08 | |
and the divine evaluation of our life. | 35:12 | |
God doesn't tie himself into our history that way | 35:17 | |
as a reflex reaction | 35:22 | |
conditioned by what we do | 35:25 | |
or what we are. | 35:28 | |
For those of us who had a good year then, | 35:31 | |
there is no ground for pride or self-congratulation. | 35:35 | |
Our satisfaction or our self-righteousness | 35:42 | |
doesn't have the slightest justification. | 35:48 | |
If the year was good, | 35:51 | |
it's because God is good. | 35:55 | |
And he spreads his goodness freely, | 35:59 | |
abundantly, | 36:03 | |
according to his own boundless mercy. | 36:05 | |
Correspondingly for those of us who had a bad year, | 36:11 | |
there is no reason for despair. | 36:17 | |
Not all misfortune is punishment for sin. | 36:21 | |
Not all suffering is divine judgment. | 36:27 | |
If the year was bad, | 36:32 | |
God is still good | 36:36 | |
and he's on our side when we suffer. | 36:41 | |
There is no direct correspondence | 36:45 | |
between the happenstances of the year | 36:47 | |
and the divine evaluation of our life. | 36:51 | |
But then further, we ought also to recognize that | 36:57 | |
there is no correspondence | 37:02 | |
between the quality of our life | 37:04 | |
and the purpose and will of God for us. | 37:07 | |
That's the full weights of the law of God over us today. | 37:12 | |
There are ultimate demands on us | 37:21 | |
in our individual life, | 37:25 | |
in our personal relationships, | 37:28 | |
in the family circle, | 37:32 | |
in the structures of society, | 37:35 | |
in the relations of nations. | 37:39 | |
And in all the increasing complexities | 37:43 | |
of our life together, | 37:46 | |
God is involved. | 37:48 | |
His will is over us. | 37:56 | |
From this perspective, we ought to look back | 38:04 | |
and confess our disobedience | 38:08 | |
and our rebelliousness, | 38:10 | |
corporate and individual. | 38:12 | |
God, what a mess we have made of things. | 38:16 | |
How terribly far we have gone | 38:22 | |
from the order of life structured | 38:26 | |
after the creator's design? | 38:28 | |
For a long road we have to travel | 38:32 | |
to bring all things back together | 38:36 | |
in obedience to the will of God, | 38:38 | |
but that is God's purpose for us. | 38:42 | |
And that is our task for every new tomorrow. | 38:47 | |
That's the law of God. | 38:50 | |
Finally, there is also a gospel for us. | 38:56 | |
We ought to realize that there is a correspondence | 39:01 | |
between what God demands of us | 39:05 | |
and what he provides for us in the gospel. | 39:09 | |
We are not simply left with a task | 39:14 | |
and with the horrible awareness of its impossible bigness | 39:19 | |
nor are we simply given another year, | 39:24 | |
a blank check on the future, | 39:26 | |
another chance and a challenge to go and make a difference. | 39:29 | |
We are given something more | 39:34 | |
in the Christ who came to share our manhood. | 39:37 | |
We have been given | 39:44 | |
the new way, | 39:47 | |
the new truth, | 39:51 | |
the new life | 39:54 | |
which will take hold within us | 39:58 | |
and will work its transformance on us | 40:04 | |
and will bring its fruits through us. | 40:08 | |
God gives what his law commands. | 40:13 | |
They're there the proper conditions for our growth. | 40:22 | |
That is the gospel for today. | 40:26 | |
That is something to face the new year with. | 40:33 | |
And as we respond to it, | 40:38 | |
the new year will come to show a new pattern, | 40:41 | |
a pattern of obedience, | 40:46 | |
God's own Design. | 40:49 | |
Be it so. | 40:55 | |
And now let us pray. | 41:00 | |
Oh God, | 41:10 | |
who comes | 41:14 | |
to see, | 41:17 | |
to evaluate, | 41:20 | |
to demand. | 41:23 | |
Come also to give | 41:27 | |
that we may grow, | 41:33 | |
mature, | 41:39 | |
and bear fruit. | 41:43 | |
Through Christ our Lord, we pray, | 41:46 | |
amen. | 41:50 | |
- | Brethren if this were a Scottish service, | 42:02 |
this would now be the time for the intimations. | 42:06 | |
And there are two intimations. | 42:10 | |
First is Dr. Hall leaves us this Saturday | 42:13 | |
for a month service with the Air Force chaplains | 42:17 | |
in England, Germany and Turkey. | 42:21 | |
And I know that you would wish me to wish him on our behalf, | 42:26 | |
God's speed. | 42:31 | |
The second intimation is that we have no ushers | 42:34 | |
and therefore we can take up no offering. | 42:38 | |
But you realize that I would not preside over a service | 42:42 | |
where there is no offering. | 42:45 | |
And therefore the offering will be taken | 42:48 | |
as you leave the church. | 42:51 | |
The chapel monitor has two plates | 42:52 | |
at the rear of the church. | 42:56 | |
(instrumental choral music) | 43:13 | |
Let us offer unto God, our prayer of dedication. | 46:48 | |
Let us pray. | 46:52 | |
Well, God, in whom we live and move and have our being, | 46:56 | |
here at the close of another year, | 47:01 | |
we offer and present unto thee ourselves, | 47:05 | |
our souls and bodies, | 47:10 | |
our thoughts and our desires, | 47:14 | |
our works and our deeds | 47:17 | |
to be a reasonable, | 47:20 | |
holy and living sacrifice unto thee | 47:23 | |
through Jesus Christ, our Lord. | 47:28 | |
Amen. | 47:33 | |
(instrumental music) | 47:42 | |
(choral music) | 48:15 | |
Now unto God's gracious mercy and protection | 50:32 | |
do we commit you. | 50:37 | |
The Lord bless you | 50:40 | |
and keep you. | 50:43 | |
The Lord make his face to shine upon you | 50:45 | |
and be gracious unto you. | 50:50 | |
The Lord lift up his countenance upon you | 50:53 | |
and give you peace | 50:57 | |
this day and forever more. | 51:00 | |
Amen. | 51:06 | |
(instrumental music) | 51:26 |
Item Info
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