+Porter Taylor

Proper 8C-------Grace Asheville 6/26/22

Thanks to your rector Milly for inviting me----

I still remember putting my hands on her head some 9 years ago and saying “It’s a great day for the Church”

It’s good to be here---I grew up about a mile from Grace Church and went to school at Ira B. Jones (although it was Grace School back then)

Today we hear the word God gives to us:

For freedom Christ has set us free.

Stand firm, therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.

Sounds easy enough, doesn’t it?

Having just celebrated Juneteenth, hopefully, we are more than aware of the evils of slavery.

But Paul is speaking of a different kind of slavery---it’s the slavery of our habits and our vision.

It’s the slavery of our confusion about who we are---our forgetfulness of being God’s beloved.

It’s the slavery of what he calls the “works of the flesh”:

Jealousy, anger, dissensions, factions, enmities, strife

We embody the works of the flesh because we forget who we are.

The works of the flesh are when our way of seeing the world is too small

As a result we see others through small and inflexible labels of who is right and who is wrong

Which limits our sight And keep us from being instruments of God’s grace.

The flesh is a self-centered way of living

and, therefore, it makes us immune to repentance and conversion.

And we get stuck.

St Paul names the problem as the “ desires of the flesh”---but what he means is our vision is too small

The lens through which we see the world and process the world is too narrow—

As if we know everything there is to know about a person

by who they voted for---or whether they recycle or whether they are vaccinated

Or on and on and on.

Or we think we have mapped the world—we know who is holy and who is not

Who is right and who is wrong.

That labeling leads to the behavior on Paul’s list---strife, jealousy, anger, quarrels, dissensions, factions

The world of the flesh---blocks us from remembering that God is in control not us

It keeps us from walking in the Way of Jesus—

-and instead we are stuck in our nearsighted vision of the world.

And therefore we are not free----Not free to see beyond our labels

And not free enough to have the courage to cross the divides

So the freedom we are offered comes from a new way of seeing and therefore a new way of being.

Freedom comes when we remember who we are---and why we are here

Freedom comes when we let go of the fears and the false ways of thinking and the unchristian ways of behaving

And we remember no one gets to heaven by themselves

And as we learn in revelation—heaven is a celestial city---where we sing in harmony

Republicans and Democrats----Liber and Conservative----All races---All sexual orientation—All

We realize all the law is summed up in “You shall love your neighbor as yourself”

Because when we love and in turn are loved—we are no longer slaves to our fears

Love drives away fear and opens us to live the life God has given us to live

And then we are free to live the life God’s gives---

Let’s be clear---we cannot wait to be free until all the sins and prejudices and divisions are gone

Freedom comes when we realize that this is the only moment we have to be alive

And we realize that however confusing the times are---God is still in Charge

And God’s promises are still true----regardless of the current state of the world.

I thought about this, I thought of a poster that Mother Teresa had on her wall in Calcutta—it reads:

People are often unreasonable, illogical and self centered;
Forgive them anyway.

If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives;
Be kind anyway.

If you are successful, you will win some false friends and some true enemies;
Succeed anyway.

If you are honest and frank, people may cheat you;
Be honest and frank anyway.

What you spend years building, someone could destroy overnight;
Build anyway.

If you find serenity and happiness, they may be jealous;
Be happy anyway.

The good you do today, people will often forget tomorrow;
Do good anyway.

Give the world the best you have, and it may never be enough;
Give the world the best you've got anyway.

You see, in the final analysis, it is between you and your God;
It was never between you and them anyway.

This is what freedom looks like—

-we live the life God calls us to live regardless of the world around us

Because this is the only life we have to live.

We find freedom when we put first things first---we are to love God and walk in God’s Way

If those around us become narrow minded and prejudiced---

does it help us to become narrowminded and prejudiced towards them?

Freedom comes from remembering why we are here on earth

And therefore ,we know what is worth caring about and what is not

Freedom is about remembering our true calling

So that we do not become servants to false ways of living

which is what Paul calls the fruits of the flesh,

enmity, strife, jealousy, anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions,

These bind us—these keep us from being free—

they limit us to a half life
Contrast them with the fruits of the spirit

Love joy peace patience kindness goodness faithfulness gentleness self-control

These give us true freedom because we are not consumed with ourselves

As a grateful recovering alcoholic---I found freedom when I got sober

My true calling was not to be entrapped by alcohol.

Instead---it was sobriety that set me free---I could go anywhere and be with anyone

It was sobriety that gave me portions of Love joy peace patience kindness goodness

faithfulness gentleness self control

Then We then ask ourselves “How shall we spend our lives?

Are we embracing the fruits of the Spirit and letting go of the desires of the Flesh?

And if so---do we experience the freedom that comes from

knowing all we are called to do is the next act that Jesus gives us to do?

As I thought about this, a sort of outrageous example came to mind---

It’s from a novel titled The Horse’s Mouth by Joyce Cary

It’s the story of a painter---Gully Jimson---who paints huge outrageous paintings on old buildings

Even as he knows they buildings are destined to be torn down

Gully knows what matters is that he is true to his gift of painting

And then to let the rest go

He gains freedom from focusing on the gift---

He doesn’t care if his paintings are bought

He doesn’t care if he becomes famous

He doesn’t care if he is rich or poor

His calling in life is to paint—to make something beautiful

And then what happens will happen---because he is free from the results

Remember Mother Teresa’s words?

If you are successful, you will win some false friends and some true enemies;
Succeed anyway….

What you spend years building, someone could destroy overnight;
Build anyway.

If you find serenity and happiness, they may be jealous;
Be happy anyway.

You see, in the final analysis, it is between you and your God;
It was never between you and them anyway

The freedom we are invited to embrace is to know our calling in life—

And do the next thing.

Paint the next picture even if you don’t have canvas

Even if it might get torn down.

Gully Jimson knows he doesn’t have time to feel vicitimized

This is the one life he has to live and this is the one moment he has to offer his gift to this world

It’s not that he does nothing—it’s that he does the next thing he was born to do.

At the end of the novel, Gully is dying and a nun is caring for him

And she starts to weep for him

Gully says to her----“I have been priviledge to know some of the noblest walls in England….

I have to thank God for the walls. They have been good to me. God and love without the help of anything on earth.”

Give the world the best you have, and it may never be enough;
Give the world the best you've got anyway.

You see, in the final analysis, it is between you and your God;
It was never between you and them anyway.

It is not the finished painting that matters—it’s the freedom of painting

It’s the freedom of being alive in this moment and changing the world by being who you are regardless of the actions around you.

For freedom Christ has set us free---

Let us exercise our freedom for God’s glory and for the sake of our own souls and the sake of this world.