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"Freedom Is _____________________________" Sherry Lohman - July 4, 2010 Galations 5:1, 13-18 Luke 10:1-11 How many of you celebrate the 4th? (Family gatherings, picnics, Jazz fest/ fireworks?) I'm wondering, "What is freedom, for you?" For many of us, the simple pleasure of an extra day off of work might fit the bill. What else? Lowell, your last child is off to college this fall. You and Ann will be empty nesters. Some of you may have Monday off, what will you do with that free day? Will it be a time for leisure, or will you use it to catch up on housework, washing the car, or yard work? Our independence and freedom is so engrained in us, that we might not give it much thought. By the amendment to our constitution, we are free to worship as we please. But what if we couldn't? We enjoy a number of freedoms that we may take for granted. We have the right to bear arms, freedom to speak and we can travel nearly anywhere in the world if we so desire./ We have the right and privilege to elect and choose our leaders./ We pride ourselves as a nation, bound together, under God....but of course, there are other nations, created and loved by the same God. We are not elite. The Apostle, Paul, had something to say to the Galatians about freedom, and interestingly enough, while he wasn't referring to political or national freedom, what he had to say might stand as a good measure against them. Paul refers to freedom from the law, (law handed down from Moses), sidestepping it by the single, great commandment of loving neighbor as yourself. In other words, he says, there is no law in loving. It is the Spirit of love that works (did hear that word.... "works") with us to serve others. In that single commandment, we are released from the binding of law. That may sound contrary to how we think of freedom. But can you imagine what our nation-our world-would look like if we abided by that one commandment of love. Of course, there's a catch, right?! It goes back to that word, "work." The Spirit can work within us, but we're responsible for keeping our hearts and minds open; for watching and listening. And there's another part. Our freedom is, essentially, wrapped up in our relationships, in our love with others. We become involved in the lives of others. That has its ups and downs./ It would be easier, and safer, no doubt, to live a solitary life. You get to choose the house, the furniture, what you eat, what you watch on t.v., where you go on vacation. We may equate that with freedom.....but put it to the test. Think about life without relationships. Paul seems to be saying, that freedom comes at a price; a price we cannot afford to relinquish. Our relationships require compromise and giving of one's self. We can't just look out for our own needs./ Paul says, freedom, the kind of freedom through which we, as Christians (spiritual beings) know and desire is not the self indulgent freedom. No. The spiritual freedom (what we will come to understand, once we have experienced it....freedom in a new and different way than what we typically understand freedom to be), arrives, not in choosing to do whatever we please, but in loving and serving others. Freedom, in the spirit, comes in our work, our responsibility, compromise, and our involvement/relationships, with others. And this, Paul tells us, is what changes lives.... our lives, and the lives of those we become intertwined with. We love/serve because God first loved us. You might say, loving is a part of our genetic makeup; it's how God created us; love instilled within us. It is a part of our being. There is no freedom, then, for us, but to love. Imagine that. There is no freedom, but to love. This doesn't mean that we can't take time for ourselves. We need that, too. Paul's not talking about that. He's talking about the general path of your life, and how, living in the Spirit, will move you to fulfillment and freedom for yourself, but only in with work, responsibility and yes, compromise, with others. We're connected, interdependent on God and on one another. Let's relate this to what Luke's gospel had to say. This was the second mission of Jesus, when he appointed 70 others, sending them on ahead of him in pairs to every town and place where he intended to go. He said to them, "The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers (work) are few...." What do we make of that? What is the harvest, anyhow? What are they going for? Then he tells them, "by the way, I'm sending you out like lambs into the midst of wolves. Good luck with that.--- And don't take anything with you; no purse, bag, money, food, and certainly no weapons." / In other words, you're going to be dependent on those who welcome you./ They will be serving you, but you have a part, too. Your part, is curing the sick, there. You see the opportunity for interdependency?// But cure the sick...how do we do that? Is it possible? Would God ask us to do things we're incapable of doing?// Perhaps the way we think of curing/healing is similar to the ways we tend to think of freedom. Maybe curing the sick means something different, through the eyes of God. Maybe, like freedom, it is a spiritual healing. And actually, the prescription is written out for us, right here in front of us, in the scripture. Did you hear it? Jesus tells us, "Whatever house you enter, first say, 'Peace to this house!'" Peace. That's the elixir in God's kingdom, and the potential for us, here on earth. "Peace to this house!" Peace is the holy ground shared in kingdom living....workable through give and take relationships. Peace is where the healing takes place. Doesn't this make complete sense?! Peace is the harvest. That's a part of our mission; peace for others, and peace for ourselves....that's where true freedom lies. It's not all about us. There's a lot of work to be done. Peace doesn't just happen. We aren't responsible for saving the thousands of children who died of starvation or disease last night while we were sleeping. But we do have a part. And when we excel at it, (which means, we're responsible, and we work at it), and after a hard day or month or year, when we close our eyes, and fall into bed at night, exhausted, but oh so content and free as we reflect on the day and about just how good it felt to be able to live the way God intended; full of meaning and purpose, and yes, work, too. That's freedom; spiritual freedom. This is holy ground. The kingdom of God has come near. May you experience God's peace and freedom, intimately. Amen. |