Called to Freedom

Our passage from Galatians this week includes one of those well-known texts that many of us were required to memorize at some point in Sunday school or youth group. Yes, the fruit of the Spirit is incredibly important; it is the culminating point of this passage. Yet, be careful not to skip to the end and miss how Paul gets us there. The goal is not to check everything off Paul’s list and count ourselves righteous. Rather, the fruit of the Spirit is more like a compass, helping us discern when we are and are not living into the freedom for which Christ sets us free.

To that end, worship is not just an opportunity to learn about the fruit of the Spirit but to practice it together! What are ways you can incorporate a spiritual discipline into worship this week? Perhaps you take extra time with the reading of scripture and do group lectio divina. Or maybe invite the congregation to meditate and journal around a reflection question after the sermon. You might even consider selecting an image that demonstrates a key point in the scripture and do a visio divina practice during the sermon.

Consider how other liturgy pieces inform, illustrate, and inspire the congregation’s engagement with this text and its depiction of freedom. For instance, George Matheson’s hymn. “Make Me a Captive Lord,” explores freedom as something we find only when bound to Christ, challenging modern ideas of freedom as the ability to do whatever we please (read more here). The prayer of confession opens opportunities to pray for all the ways we lack freedom because we have turned away from God’s abundant life; the prayers of the people may be a time to notice and recognize the consequences in our world when people pursue autonomy as opposed to freedom in Christ. The passing of the peace is also a time when we reach out and recognize our connectedness with one another and that we are all involved in making and sharing peace as a community. So, give the passing of the peace a little extra time this Sunday. Invite people to converse a little bit more. Or pass the peace at the beginning of the service and pass the love at the end before sending everyone out into the world to love others. Whatever you choose to do, consider and discern how your congregation can exercise the fruit of the Spirit together so they can recognize and exercise the fruit of the Spirit in the world.