A New Devotion - Don’t Be Foolish

 Here's a new devotion that I wrote. You can find a recording of this devotion at the bottom of the page.

Galatians 3:1-5

You foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you? It was before your eyes that Jesus Christ was publicly exhibited as crucified! The only thing I want to learn from you is this: Did you receive the Spirit by doing the works of the law or by believing what you heard? Are you so foolish? Having started with the Spirit, are you now ending with the flesh? Did you experience so much for nothing? — if it really was for nothing. Well then, does God supply you with the Spirit and work miracles among you by your doing the works of the law, or by your believing what you heard?

Don’t Be Foolish

Paul said that the Galatians had become foolish. You see, in the past, he’d told them all about grace, you know, how it was a gift of God given through the Holy Spirit, something in which a person could trust but never earn. And because they’d accepted this message, Paul reminded those Galatians that they’d felt a new sense of peace and hope, something they’d never experienced in the past. Now that’s what had happened when he shared with them the truth of the Gospel. 

But for some reason, they’d turned from that message of grace. And instead of just claiming this incredible gift, they started working in new rules and commands which they felt they needed to follow. Of course, I’m sure they had several reasons for doing it. For example, since it involved their future, maybe they felt that they needed something more concrete than just trust. Or maybe they thought that incorporating obedience into their faith would give them more control. Or maybe their decision was motivated by something else. We just don’t know. But for Paul, the reason was not relevant. You see, it didn’t matter why they did what they did. For him, they were turning from the truth to follow a lie and abandoning the Spirit for the sake of the flesh. And because of that, they were being foolish.

And you know, as modern Christians continue to construct their own systems to determine salvation and apply those rules and laws to themselves and to others, I think we need to hear these words of Paul and to make the decision that we’re not going to be foolish either.

Looking into the lectionary — Galatians 4:4-7

SUBSCRIBE \ ABOUT \ DONATE \ CONTACT Galatians 4:4-7 — December 27, 2020 4th Sunday of Advent The year 2020 has been a chaotic one by any measure!  And as we have grappled with formidable crises posed by a global pandemic and by racial and political reckonings, something important has slipped through the cracks: 545 children separated from their parents at our southern borderhave not been reunited. During 2017-2018, refugees from Central America, falsely caricatured and stigmatized as lawless criminals, faced a new punitive measure designed to discourage immigration as the U.S. government began separating young children from their parents. The Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) stated clerk, J. Herbert Nelson, rightly and roundly condemned this heartless policy. And now the parents of 545 of those children cannot be found, for any number of reasons. Some have been deported back to their countries of origin or are in hiding out of fear for their lives that led them to seek refuge here in the first place. In some cases, officials on the ground do not have full names and addresses of the parents — or they have the wrong names and addresses. Whatever the reason, the outcome is that 545 children have been orphaned and largely forgotten. One can only imagine what Christmas must have been like for them — or for the parents without access to their children or assurance of their welfare. The trauma of separation, dislocation and stigmatization will haunt them for the rest of their lives.   This is worth bearing in mind as we come before Paul’s letter to the Galatians on the 1st Sunday of Christmas, for it is addressed to an early church all too familiar with such trauma. Conquest, stigmatization and dislocation were means by which the Roman Empire often managed its colonies, and Galatians speaks powerfully to a shamed and conquered people. In her brilliant new book on this epistle, “Galatians Re-Imagined: Reading with the Eyes of the Vanquished,” Brigitte Kahl contends that the “other gospel” Paul confronts in this letter (Galatians 1:6-7) is not Jewish-Christian perversion of the gospel by “works righteousness” (as traditionally supposed), but rather Caesar’s gospel — Caesar’s law-and-order religion that subjugated and stigmatized conquered peoples, especially the Galatians or Gauls, who were among the historic enemies of Rome. Roman law-and-order religion enforced a social hierarchy with the Romans on top and “barbarians” (like the Galatians/Gauls) near the bottom. Indeed, Kahl demonstrates that inscriptions of domination were everywhere and practically part of the air that people breathed — in statuary, legal practices, the imperial cult and even Rome’s savage entertainment industry, which featured staged games in which gladiators (slaves or captives) fought to the death with other gladiators, wild animals or condemned criminals. All such things served as daily reminders of who was in charge and were part of what Paul refers to, and objects to, pointedly as an “other gospel.”  Amidst this culture of conquest and domination, Paul makes a remarkable baptismal affirmation: “there is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus” (Galatians 3:28). This affirmation was radical and revolutionary, overturning entrenched hierarchies of power and privilege, which was evidently Paul’s intent. As Kahl puts it, for Paul, the empire’s model of “divide and rule” was washed away in the waters of baptism. In Paul’s view, if we have caught a glimpse of God’s character in the crucified and risen Christ, then we are compelled to create communities that manifest the new creation in which all such distinctions are overcome and transformed. This means radical movement of self to other in which we become the mystical body of Christ in baptism. The opposition of “us versus them” is drowned, washed away in baptism. Indeed, embodiment of this reality constitutes the church’s public witness in the world. Thus in the lectionary text from Galatians 4:4-7, when Paul speaks of those who were “born under the law, in order to redeem those who were under the law,” he is speaking of redemption and liberation of Galatians/Gauls subject to Rome as a shamed and conquered people, so that they might be freed from enslavement and “receive adoption as children.” Indeed, Paul concludes, you are no longer enslaved “but a child, and if a child then also an heir, through God.” These words of inclusion bear witness to a reality the church embodies as the beachhead of new creation — a community in which we are restored in the image of God and become one with others rather than set against others.   On the 1st Sunday of Christmas, Paul’s words to the Galatians convey profoundly good news for people around the globe who find themselves enslaved by insular politics, poverty, racialized stereotypes and other forms of subjugation.The immigrant children and their parents mentioned above are surely among them – people separated from each other due to xenophobic disparagement – as are others in our midst: black and brown children whose lives are diminished byracist policies that impoverish their neighborhoods and schools, and “Dreamers,” children of immigrants who have grown up in the U.S. but are now threatened with deportation. And to the extent that any of us are enslaved to a colonial “us vs. them,” mindset, Paul’s words are directed to us too, reminding us of the promise we received at baptism — the promise that all the polarities and enmities that divide the human family have been washed away as we are baptized into the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ (Galatians 2:19-20). All are adopted, named and claimed as children of God’s covenant with the earth and, as such, called to live in mutuality and solidarity with one another — so that thefears of others are our own fears, their diminishments are our diminishments, their forsakenness is our forsakenness, their children are our children. God is at work in the midst of such solidarity, bringing justice, reconciliation, reparation and homecoming — resurrection life! This week: Who would you identify as stigmatized persons in your community? How does the life of your congregation intersect with theirs?  How is the “us vs. them” mentality manifest in your community? What would it mean for you and for the life of your congregation to think of baptism as a sacrament that washes away this kind of thinking? What might it mean to be the mystical body of Christ in relation to the marginalized in your church or community? What does Paul’s notion of our “adoption” as God’s own children mean to you?   Are there immigrant families in your community? What would it mean for you to live in solidarity with them? What might that look like? How has the plight of 545 children separated from their parents weighed on your mind and heart and life of faith? The least of these: The congregation who loved a stranger Pretty much every Wednesday, James T. Burns calls his friends at Second Presbyterian Church in Portsmouth, Ohio, from jail. Here's their story. Read the full article by Leslie Scanlon Outlook blog Expecting during the unexpected Book review Unto Us a Child Is Born Outlook feature RV life, RV ministry  ‌  ‌  ‌  ‌

The Presbyterian Outlook | 1 N. 5th St., Suite 500, Richmond, VA 23219

Cove's Celebration Service - Sunday, August 20, 2017

Below is the service I led at Cove Presbyterian Church on August 20, 2017. During the summer of 2017, I preached a series of sermons entitled "Living by the Spirit." Although God has called us and filled us with the Spirit, often our lives don’t actually reflect his presence. Of course, that doesn’t stop us from talking about it and claiming to understand how to get it and even judging whether or not others have got it. This we do often and well. What we’re not so good at doing is living it, in other words, living by the Holy Spirit. And that’s what we’re going to talk about this summer, how we might demonstrate the presence of God through our lives. Using Galatians 5:22-26, we’ll consider the following topics:
✙ Those who live by the Spirit...
✙ Those who live by the Spirit demonstrate love.
✙ Those who live by the Spirit feel joy.
✙ Those who live by the Spirit work for peace.
✙ Those who live by the Spirit have patience.
✙ Those who live by the Spirit show kindness.
✙ Those who live by the Spirit practice generosity.
✙ Those who live by the Spirit understand faithfulness.
✙ Those who live by the Spirit exhibit gentleness.
✙ Those who live by the Spirit have self-control.

As with all our services, worship is intended to be a free expression of our love for God and the joy we feel when we accept that love. Of course, there are many ways for us to express that love and joy. So that we can experience a greater sense of freedom and flexibility in our praise, the session decided to move away from a rigid order of worship, with the different elements printed in a very formal way, and to utilize the screen and the worship leader to guide us through the service. Below you’ll find some material that you may need to participate fully in our praise and reverence for God.
We started the service with the announcements. As the Bible entered, we sang "This is the Day that the Lord Has Made.”

Instrumental and vocal music are important to our worship. Songs give us the chance to praise God and to help focus our attention on the theme of the service. During the service, we have the opportunity to sing songs that reflect different musical styles. Since God has called into his church as individuals with a variety of tastes, this offers us the chance to display our sensitivity for our fellow worshipers and to grow in our knowledge of how we might praise God. Our first song was “Give of Your Best to the Master.”

Our prayers represent our communication with God. Of course, as Paul wrote, the Holy Spirit “...intercedes for us with groans too deep for words”; therefore, God already knows our needs. Still it’s important that we put them into words, as well as the regret we feel for our sins and our thanks for all God has done for us.

During the Our Congregational Prayer, we confessed our sins and hear the assurance that we're forgiven.  We also lifted our concerns and needs to God.  We closed this prayer with The Lord’s Prayer. As we collected the offering, Enid and Janice played “Faith Of Our Fathers.” 

God’s word is at the core of the worship service. It’s often reflected in the songs we sing and the prayers we pray. But it’s most clearly present when we read a passage from the Bible, and it’s applied to our daily living in the sermon.

This morning, the messages in this series, Living by the Spirit, are based on Galatians 5:16-26:

Live by the Spirit, I say, and do not gratify the desires of the flesh. For what the flesh desires is opposed to the Spirit, and what the Spirit desires is opposed to the flesh; for these are opposed to each other, to prevent you from doing what you want. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not subject to the law. Now the works of the flesh are obvious: fornication, impurity, licentiousness, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, anger, quarrels, dissensions, factions, envy, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these. I am warning you, as I warned you before: those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. By contrast, the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against such things. And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live by the Spirit, let us also be guided by the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, competing against one another, envying one another.

The focus of the message was on self-control and the title of the sermon was “When the Brownie Knows Our Names.”

Our service ended with the congregation singing "Spirit Song."

Below is the podcast of the service.

Sunday's Sermon - When the Brownie Knows Our Names

During the summer of 2017, I preached a series of sermons entitled "Living by the Spirit." Although God has called us and filled us with the Spirit, often our lives don’t actually reflect his presence. Of course, that doesn’t stop us from talking about it and claiming to understand how to get it and even judging whether or not others have got it. This we do often and well. What we’re not so good at doing is living it, in other words, living by the Holy Spirit. And that’s what we’re going to talk about this summer, how we might demonstrate the presence of God through our lives. Using Galatians 5:22-26, we’ll consider the following topics:
✙ Those who live by the Spirit...
✙ Those who live by the Spirit demonstrate love.
✙ Those who live by the Spirit feel joy.
✙ Those who live by the Spirit work for peace.
✙ Those who live by the Spirit have patience.
✙ Those who live by the Spirit show kindness.
✙ Those who live by the Spirit practice generosity.
✙ Those who live by the Spirit understand faithfulness.
✙ Those who live by the Spirit exhibit gentleness.
✙ Those who live by the Spirit have self-control.

Below is a copy of the last message in this series sermon, "Those who live by the Spirit have self-control."

Well, this is it. And even though I feel like singing “The Way We Were,” I won’t do it. And I say that in spite of the fact that right now, “Memories light the corners of my mind, misty water-colored memories of the way we were.” You see, today we end a journey we started way back on June 11, you know, when the world was a simpler place, back when few people outside of the ACC knew much about Charlottesville and few comic book fans associated Wonder Woman with World War One and we all assumed nothing else could go wrong with the air conditioning: good times, good times. But that was then and this is now, and this morning we’re putting a bow on our series dealing with living by the Holy Spirit.

And what a series it’s been. Over the last nine weeks, we’ve looked at what living by the Spirit isn’t. And then we’ve discussed love and joy, peace and patience, kindness and generosity, faithfulness and gentleness. And this morning, well, we’re looking at the one fruit that might actually be the most challenging of all, and right now I’m talking about self-discipline. You see, this is the one trait that all Christians are supposed to have, but that may also be the toughest to show on anything like a consistent basis, at least it is for me. Man, it’s hard to be self-disciplined.

But of course, it’s even harder when the stuff we find most tempting seems to know our name. Let me give you an example. As most of y’all know, on Tuesday, we had a bereavement dinner after the service remembering Paul Welch. And to that dinner, one of the ladies brought these little brownies with a pecan or maybe a walnut on the top. Now, I’ve got to tell you, along with snick-a-doodles and pizzelles and gingerbread, I love brownies. In fact, whenever I see a brownie, not only do I begin to feel a deep hunger inside, but it brings back some of the very best memories of childhood. Anyway, for the dinner someone brought these wonderful brownies, and I know they were wonderful, because I ate one.

And that would have been fine, but for some reason, after everything had been cleaned up and put away, there was one brownie left that the ladies put in the refrigerator, I guess so the deacons could put it out today in the parlor. And so there it was, sitting on the second shelf. And as the week went by, I discovered something strange happening. You see, this wasn’t just any brownie. In fact, I think you could call it mystical, because not only had it somehow developed the power of speech, it knew my name. You see, on Wednesday and Thursday, every time I got a cup of coffee I could hear the brownie speaking to me. And it would say stuff like, “Ed, aren’t you hungry for me” and “Wouldn’t I taste great with that cup of coffee” and “Don’t worry, I don’t have any calories,” you know, stuff like that. Well that’s what happen on Wednesday and Thursday. And on Friday, I could hear the brownie speaking all the way in my office. And then on Saturday, not only could I hear it, somehow it had gotten into my subconscious and I was being drawn, of course against my will, to that little chocolate square on the styrofoam plate. I’ll tell you, just like the sirens drew sailors to the rocks, that brownie was drawing me to the refrigerator. And you know, by yesterday evening, about seven o’clock, both the brownie and its song was so sweet, my resolve, my strength, my inner desire to be disciplined, man, that was melting away. Now that’s what happened to me. But don’t sit there all snug. I think few people could resist a brownie that knows their name.

But of course, if we’re honest with ourselves, self-discipline or the lack thereof isn’t just about food. There’s all kinds of stuff that we allow to draw us away from what we know is right and best and even Christian. And I think our only hope of not drifting away is what Paul considered the ninth fruit of the Holy Spirit. And since, right along with love and kindness and faith, he considered it something all Christians must show, we’re going to talk about self-discipline this morning, specifically what self-discipline is and how self-discipline can be developed and finally, why self-discipline is so important. And like we’ve done nine times before, we’re going to use the Bible to do it. Now that’s what we’re going to focus on during the rest of our time together.

And I’ll tell you, when you’re considering what self-discipline is, I think you have to also spend a little time looking at what it isn’t. And you know, when you’re talking about what self-disciple is all about, I think you really have to go to the Greek word that Paul used in Galatians: ἐγκράτεια. You see, that word literally means “having dominion over self.” And even though all the words Paul used in his list of fruits were offered in Greek because it was in this language that he wrote the letter, with this particular word, the Greek is really important, and I’ll tell you why. “Having dominion over self” or having self-discipline,” well it was considered a virtue by the Greeks, not the Jews. In the whole Greek translation of the Old Testament, this particular word is almost never used, because Jews emphasized obeying God, not disciplining self.

But that wasn’t the case for the Greeks. Self-discipline was considered necessary to live a virtuous life. That’s what they thought. And evidentially, so did Paul. And for him, self-discipline demanded self-control. In other words, a disciplined person was able to control some of his inner drives and impulses. And I think this is something we can see when he talked to the Corinthians about marriage and specifically about why a Christian might need to get married and when he wrote about how living the Christian life was actually like a foot race. For example, this is what he wrote about marriage: “The husband should give to his wife her conjugal rights, and likewise the wife to her husband. For the wife does not have authority over her own body, but the husband does; likewise the husband does not have authority over his own body, but the wife does. Do not deprive one another except perhaps by agreement for a set time, to devote yourselves to prayer, and then come together again, so that Satan may not tempt you because of your lack of self-control. This I say by way of concession, not of command. I wish that all were as I myself am. But each has a particular gift from God, one having one kind and another a different kind. To the unmarried and the widows I say that it is well for them to remain unmarried as I am. But if they are not practicing self-control, they should marry. For it is better to marry than to be aflame with passion.” [1 Corinthians 7:3-9] You see, for Paul, self-control involved harnessing the natural feelings that people have for one another. And later in the same letter, he wrote, “Do you not know that in a race the runners all compete, but only one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may win it. Athletes exercise self-control in all things; they do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable one. So I do not run aimlessly, nor do I box as though beating the air; but I punish my body and enslave it, so that after proclaiming to others I myself should not be disqualified.” [1 Corinthians 9:24-27] In other words, being a successful Christian is just like being a successful athlete. They both take dedication and effort and even sacrifice, but not just for the sake of sacrifice. Rather what is done is done for the sake of winning the race. Therefore, on one hand self-discipline is all about self-control.

On the other hand though, it has nothing to do with what we consider self-indulgence. And I think Paul defined what he had in mind with this kind of life-style when he wrote to the Philippians, “For many live as enemies of the cross of Christ; I have often told you of them, and now I tell you even with tears. Their end is destruction; their god is the belly; and their glory is in their shame; their minds are set on earthly things. But our citizenship is in heaven, and it is from there that we are expecting a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.” [Philippians 3:18-20] And remember, for Paul, the opposite of living by the Spirit was satisfying the desires of the flesh. He wrote, “Now the works of the flesh are obvious: fornication, impurity, licentiousness, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, anger, quarrels, dissensions, factions, envy, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these.” [Galatians 5:19-21] Now maybe it’s just me, but this seems to be a pretty self-indulgent, self-centered, self-satisfying way to live. You see, it would seem that Paul believed Christians should be self-controlled and not self-indulgent. And that’s what self-discipline is all about.

And how does self-discipline develop? For Paul there seems to be two things Christians need to do. First, to develop self-discipline, we really need to trust God. I mean, I think that’s why he called it a fruit of the Spirit, in other words, something the Holy Spirit works within us. But beyond that, I think it’s important that self-discipline appeared last in Paul’s list. You see, by occupying this final position, self-discipline assumes a place of strategic importance. In fact, you might say that self-discipline is the summation of the previous eight qualities that the Spirit produces. In other words, the work of the Spirit reaches its consummation in self-control. And this virtue enables us to realize every other aspect of spiritual fruit. And so, our ability to control ourselves starts as a gift from God. But second, it’s a gift that needs to be claimed and used in order to do us any good. I mean, it’s like getting a membership to the community center for your birthday, you know so you can get in better shape. That membership ain’t worth a hill of beans if you never go. You see, although God may give us the ability to become “athletic” Christians, we’re still going to have to decide to do the training ourselves. And this is something Paul knew. For example, just listen to what he wrote to Timothy: “If you put these instructions before the brothers and sisters, you will be a good servant of Christ Jesus, nourished on the words of the faith and of the sound teaching that you have followed. Have nothing to do with profane myths and old wives’ tales. Train yourself in godliness, for, while physical training is of some value, godliness is valuable in every way, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come. The saying is sure and worthy of full acceptance. For to this end we toil and struggle, because we have our hope set on the living God, who is the Savior of all people, especially of those who believe.” [1 Timothy 4:6-10] Of course, training ourselves in godliness is probably going to involve doing things like attending worship and studying the Bible and avoiding criticizing others and assuming that we already know everything worth knowing. You see, we need to trust God and use the tools and opportunities he’s given us; that’s how self-discipline develops.

And why is it important, well, I think that comes down to two benefits. I mean, first, it strengthens our faith, and I’m talking about our faith in God. In other words, the more we focus on getting some control over ourselves and the more we trust God and use what he’s given, the closer we’ll come to him. And you know, I think we can see this link between faith and self-discipline in Peter’s second letter: “For this very reason, you must make every effort to support your faith with goodness, and goodness with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with endurance, and endurance with godliness, and godliness with mutual affection, and mutual affection with love. For if these things are yours and are increasing among you, they keep you from being ineffective and unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.” [2 Peter 1:5-8]. You see, self-discipline strengthens our faith in God. But that’s not the only reason it’s important. Second, people who have control over some of their less than beneficial impulses really help others, particularly other believers. Paul wrote this to Titus: “For a [church leader], as God’s steward, must be blameless; he must not be arrogant or quick-tempered or addicted to wine or violent or greedy for gain; but he must be hospitable, a lover of goodness, prudent, upright, devout, and self-controlled. He must have a firm grasp of the word that is trustworthy in accordance with the teaching, so that he may be able both to preach with sound doctrine and to refute those who contradict it.” [Titus 1:7-9] I’ll tell you, in the church, a leader who can’t discipline him or herself isn’t much of a leader, at lest not for Paul. You see, self-disciplined Christians help both themselves and others, and that’s why it’s important.

Now, I have a question for one of the deacons who set-up the snacks in the parlor this morning. Did you move any brownies upstairs? You see, I already know you didn’t. I just couldn’t resist anymore and so I gave into to the dark chocolate side. I failed in my attempt to be self-disciplined. But as it comes to our spiritual lives, we can be a little better than that. I mean, we can choose self-control over self-indulgence. And we can trust God and use what’s he’s given us. And when we do, we’ll help both ourselves and others. And I’ll tell you, we can do it, even though the brownie may actually know our names.