Sermon Tone Analysis

PRAYER

One of the greatest all time cries of freedom was yelled out by Mel Gibson, playing William Wallace, with his thick Scotish accent, unwilling to bow to the British.

When someone mentions freedom and how it is portrayed, that usually comes to mind!

OR

You know the Disney movie where the main character is kind of down and out or has family or friends that tell them they will never amount to anything.

But then they realize that they shouldn’t listen to anyone else, they should just follow their dreams no matter where they lead.

Where they run into obstacles but they find happiness by following their heart!

And everything turn out!!

You know that Disney movie?

Where freedom to do whatever your heart tells you to is the absolute, and that anyone or thing that tries to tell you there are limitations and maybe even dangers to that kind of freedom are villains.

Here is the problem and it is a real problem.....

it is under the assumption that our heart, our will is trustworthy!!

It glorifies an autonomy that requires no input from others and definitely no input from a divine being.

In fact it is the great celebration of emancipation from any sort of God that might tell me there are area I should not be free to go.

In we read words that are extremely foreign to us.

And they are foreign not only because we are separated by thousands of years, language, culture, geography, but I think the biggest barrier to use understanding these words it that the concept of finding joy and freedom in something that was given to us, that we did not have say in.

The idea that we would rejoice and find our hope and freedom in the words of God for our lives is confusing in an age that equates freedom with control.

In fact the idea of joining a group of people for a purpose larger than ourselves may seem to many as bondage; the group over the individual is so outdated.

I should be in the control to steer my own life.

Toward a calling created and implemented by me.

And do not dare try to pry my freedom my hands.

Freedom is not being in control

in fact that is bondage/ and tiring.

Freedom is relinquishing control to the right thing!

This week our dog escapes numerous amounts of tie from our back yard.

When he does that we re all scared for him, because he is stupid.

One afternoon, my dad and I went into a canoe to check out Turtle Bay, just around the corner from the camp.

In our front yard, we have also had continuous visits from a large bear.

Now in his mind ,when he escapes from the backyard, all he is thinking is “freedom.”

But as we were making our way back, a storm came up.....the wind became intense and I started freaking out.

No barriers must be better than barriers

Freedom in the current understanding would mean that I was free to get myself out.

That my dad handed me an oar and said follow your heart!

Dream big son and get us back.

Or my dad could have said I got this, and I could have said, not on my watch, you will not take my freedom!!

My claim to being in charge of my life would have been detrimental at that point.

With my limited wisdom I could have main it very difficult to get us home.

Now in reality I was a cowering 6 years old in the front of the canoe, and my dad said, just sit.

You can lay down if you want, I will get us out of here.

In other words, this is not on you this is on me.

I will get us home.

My

It was my submission at that point which gave me freedom.

In the end if I had fought my dad on who was in charge, we would have still made it, it just would have taken longer, and we both woud have been more tired.

There is a kind of freedom that only comes from relieving ourselves of complete autonomy.

The modern idea of freedom has more to do with self-assertion, the promotion of self.

That we are truly free if we are able to do whatever we want.

Of releasing our control.

But what if what we want is in conflict with something else we want!

Is that freedom or bondage!

And freedom comes with more choice and the more choice we have the freer and happier we are.

Further many believe that we choose our own values without any level of challenge and any government or institution that challenges ones beliefs is impinging on their freedom and is therefore bigoted or authoritarian.

and any government or institution that challenges ones beliefs is impinging on their freedom and is therefore bigoted or authoritarian.

The fewer boundaries we have on us the freer we feel.

But is that true!?

And I would argue that there are times and ways that a call for unfettered freedom in our lives brings chaos and burden not happiness; not just for ourselves bur for others.

I. Freedom is more complex than we think

An undending choice

a.

Not easily understood

What does it mean to be free?

Provwerbs 28:26

Does is just mean getting whatever I want whenever I want it.

And if so how does that play out with others.

With family, friends, church?

And if it does is that a good thing?

our heart follows after our treasure----our heart goes where our gut goes..

I mean if I go to get gelato I want to try a whole bunch of flavours before I make a decision and with every new flavour my mind changes.

I thought I had just tried the BEST one, and then I try another one and all of a sudden my heart is changes/ my mind is made up....again!!

Is that really how I want to make important decisions for my life.

Or should there be something informing my freedom.

b.

Can be paralyzing

Several years back Barry Swartz gave a talk on Ted Talks in which he pointed out that,...

the western world bases it happiness on freedom and that the bases of freedom is choice.

The more choice the greater our freedom

This he says is so deeply embedded in the water supply that no on would think to question it.

Schwartz talks about going to buy jeans and having 1000 choices!

button fly, zipper, skinny, relaxed, distressed, (like we need that in our jeans too!!)

What kind do you want they asked at the store and he said, I want the kind that used to be the only kind.

He said he left with the best fitting pair of jeans he had ever purchased, but he was less satisfied than ever, because he figured with 1000 options their must have been a better choice.

In my week, and you will agree I’m sure… I have plenty of choice..

I can choose 20 ways to communicate with you.

Facebook messenger, imessage, text, we have something called glip in the office that we use to communicate internally, email, phone call (introverts are like what is a phone call!! sounds horrible)

(later)

it is not freeing!

It is paralizing.

I find freedom when?

NOT when i’m trying to write a sermon and messages keep popping up, OR having things come to mind and stopping everything I’m doing to communicate a thought before it disappeared.

Then I have the joy of remembering how I communicated with that person in the past.

Was that a text and email, a messenger?

What was it ?

iTunes gives us less satisfaction because it gives us so much choice!

there must be a better song.

There are two effects that come about from the amount of choice in our lives and the belief that it beings freedom and happiness:

a. paralysis rather than liberation

b. less satisfied with our choices

itunes, always a better somng

Netflix always a better movie

we always ask what if I had made a different decision?