This Sunday is the Fourth Sunday after Pentecost and just after the 4th of July. My hope and prayer is, it’s been a safe and blessed one for all.
Over this summer holiday much has been said about freedom and the urgency to maintain that freedom. At the UCC General Synod recently, much was said about the urgency of creating opportunities for all God’s children everywhere to experience freedom from political and religious tyranny. As such, much of the business of the General Synod was debating 19 witness resolutions that reflect I John 4:11, “Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought to also love one another.” This scripture speaks to the urgency of using UCC “3 Great Loves: ‘A love of Children,’ ‘A love of Neighbor,’ and ‘A love of Creation;’” in making “A Just World for ALL,” a reality.
As I pondered how all of these affects Covenant, 2 things came to mind.
(1) While the message of God’s unconditional love, forgiveness and acceptance never changes, the ways we convey that message must continually be updated. In the UCC we say that with this statement, “Our faith is 2000 years old; but our thinking is not.”
(2) We must renew the urgency of our Covenant Vision of taking that message of hope and freedom to our community by “Offering Hope + Showing Faithfulness + Sharing Joy.” Resolutions are important statements of witness for the wider church; but the local church must use practical ways to make this a reality. Perhaps William Faulkner summed it up best saying, “We must be free not because we claim freedom, but because we practice it.” Practicing freedom helps others experience freedom.
The assigned scripture text for this week tells us how to practice freedom. So, join us at Covenant this Sunday after we’ve celebrated our nation’s independence and freedom. I will be preaching on “The Urgency of the Vision: Offering Hope + Showing Faithfulness + Sharing Joy” using Galatians 6:1-10.
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