NOTE FROM PASTOR J R FOR SUNDAY JULY 3, 2022
This Sunday is both the Fourth Sunday after Pentecost as well as the Fourth of July Weekend. There will be lots of gatherings, partying and fireworks in honor of Freedom and individual rights. As a nation we are proud of our country’s freedom from the tyranny of a foreign Sovereign. As individuals we cherish freedom and our individual rights as citizens of America. However, we should not confuse freedom as citizens of American with freedom as citizens of God’s Realm. As Followers of the Way (Christian), we need to realize that real freedom is experienced when we help others to become free as well.
The assigned text for this week from Galatians 6 speaks to this point this way, “Bear one another’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ. … So then, whenever we have an opportunity, let us work for the good of all, especially for those of the family of faith. (v. 2 & 10) It seems inconceivable to the Apostle Paul, the writer of this passage, that freedom is all about you as an individual. Real freedom in Christ is always tied to freedom for all.
Blogger Brenda Hoffman shares this insight: “All now of earth are of this amazing life/transition tapestry. Each (one) has a different thread that woven together creates a loving whole. Once you start believing that your thread is stronger or better or that they cannot possibly be part of your tapestry, you weaken the whole. For there are no accidents of earth at this time – and never have been.” She is absolutely right!
Celebrating a freedom that is just for you is not true freedom that God gives. Any freedom we have is to be lived out in COMMUNION with God and in COMMUNITY with others. Let’s keep that in mind this Fourth of July Weekend.
Join us in worship IN-PERSON, by Zoom or Facebook Livestream this Sunday. My sermon will be “FREEDOM FOR YOU AND ME,” based on “Galatians 6:1-10.”
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