Finding Freedom in Simplicity

Intro series… Guides desert mothers and fathers.

Ever had a treasure chest?

Me - kept under bed, stored coin collection, later pocket knives.

Averie - key, don’t know brought or found, her little heart loved it. Noticed that holding this treasure made other things more difficult. Picking up another toy, fork, turn page. Eventually either decided the cost of this treasure wasn’t worth it or found something else she treasured more.

If only it was that easy as adults. The older we get the more we tend to grab, and the harder it feels to release. Afraid if we don’t grasp firmly it will be taken, won’t have enough.

Problem: the things we grab eventually grab us.

Martin Luther - “Whatever you heart clings to and confides in, that is really your god and your functional savior.”

More simply, our possessions (money and material things) become the places we look to for our safety, security, and sense of significance.

Problem: the things we grab eventually grab us. We become enslaved to their pursuit.

There is a solution to the slavery of materialism. This morning as we go into the desert with Jesus, we go to embrace something that is inconvenient, disruptive, and very un-American - the practice of simplicity. We will see that Simplicity trains us to forsake lesser loves in order to gain greater freedom.

Pray

Pray for vision and what seeking first the kingdom means in this season

Pray for the sick, those who are facing the end of life, those who love them and carry the burden.

Pray for those who are missing bc of illness, travel, busyness, or personal drought.

Pray for those who we know who are far from God.

Pray we would be open to the seduction and lies of materialism, and that we would forsake those things that promise immediate fulfillment for those which are lasting.

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Not all examples of desert mothers/fathers good…

Some harmful - took to extreme

Others downright weird

One monk through himself into a thorn bush to stop lusting

But they all modeled a universal principle - they rejected the pull of materialism. They made an intentional choice to let go of earthly trinkets to gain eternal treasures. One such was…

St. Syncletica of Alexandria…

If Anthony was the pioneer of the desert fathers, Syncletica was the pioneer for women.

Born in 4th century in Alexandria to aristocratic family.

Parents eager to marry her to nobleman, but she forsook marriage and the social climbing and material comforts it entailed.

When her parents died she gave everything away to the poor. While she was incredibly beautiful, she made a full break with her old life by cutting off all her hair and moved into a tomb on the outskirts of town.

She became a model and teacher of simplicity. To her, holding onto worldly luxuries was simply a bad investment when compared to spiritual depth: "We who have set out on this journey must keep our eyes on the goal... Like a merchant, we should exchange earthly things for heavenly ones. Do not be distracted by the glitter of the world, for it is a snare that prevents us from reaching our destination."

Jesus made similar warning about the dangers of mammon - an Aramaic word for money and possessions. He said they had a unique power to gain mastery over us. OT theologian Walter Brueggemann: “The way of mammon is the way of commodity that is the way of endless desire, endless productivity, and endless restlessness without any Sabbath. Jesus taught his disciples that they could not have it both ways.”

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We often treat our money and our "stuff" as if they are spiritually neutral—as if what we buy only affects our bank accounts and our closets. But Jesus - and people like Syncletica - knew better. They knew that Mammon is never neutral. It always costs something.

When we chase the glitter of the world, we often don't realize that our "lesser loves" are tethered to a system of exhaustion and exploitation.

The Cost of the "Glow"

Consider the beauty industry. We spend over $100 billion a year chasing a certain look, a certain sense of significance. We want that "shimmer" on our skin. But that shimmer often comes from mica, a mineral where 25% of the global supply is dug out of illegal mines by children as young as five. They risk their lives in dark, collapsing tunnels for less than $3.00 a day so we can have a specific shade of highlighter.

When we use products driven by palm oil, we are participating in the deforestation of Southeast Asia, trading ancient forests for products where 95% of it will end up in a landfill. Our pursuit of beauty is making ugly the world for someone else.

The Weight of the "Threads"

Or look at the clothes on our backs. We live in a world of "Fast Fashion" where we can buy a T-shirt for the price of a latte. But there is no such thing as a "cheap" shirt; someone, somewhere, is paying the difference.

The Human Cost: Of the 60 million people who clothe the world, less than 2% earn a living wage.

The Environmental Cost: To make that one "disposable" cotton T-shirt, it takes 2,700 liters of water—that is what the average person drinks in two and a half years.

We are insulated in the West. We don't see the dry wells in India or the forced labor in cotton fields. We just see a bargain. One of the inconvenient things we must ask: Is my heart tethered to a system that devalues the very people God loves?

Choosing simplicity - even self-denial - is the way we reject lesser loves in order to gain greater freedom.

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If these industries are this costly to the earth and the poor, imagine the cost to the soul that is obsessed with them. Jesus shows us that the cost isn't just external; it’s internal and with far-reaching consequences. They ultimately determine where we store our treasures, where we set our vision, and who we serve as master.

“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” (Matthew 6:19–21, NIV)

The first choice is about where we will store our treasures - on earth or in Heaven. It is the choice between what is fleeting and temporal vs. what is lasting and eternal.

The simple truth is that earthly treasures are prone to insecurity. They wear out, they break, they are vulnerable to theft. Ultimately, they promise things they can’t ultimately deliver on, and the gods of materialism lead us to pursue things that lead to futility.

Two guys in 30s as Hawley party… wanted to retire by 50 and travel playing golf. Futility! What happens to a soul designed for the Infinite when it tries to satisfy itself with a 4-inch hole in the grass?

For Jesus the issue isn’t in having things. Possessions in general aren’t evil. Saving for the future is commended. Enjoying God’s material blessings when they come to us is reason to give thanks.

What he forbids for his followers is selfish accumulation. Greed - the gluttony of unchecked consumerism. Bc all of these things create in us a hardness of heart that becomes blind to the needs around us. He forbids us from anything that tethers our hearts to earth.

Because the big truth here is that your heart will ALWAYS follow your treasure, whether up or down. He’s reminding us that our affections aren't static; they move toward what we invest in. If we invest all our energy into "lesser loves"—the latest gadgets, the perfect image, the growing bank account—our hearts become tethered to things that cannot love us back.

Simplicity isn't about being miserable; it’s about unburdening. It is the intentional choice to stop carrying things that cannot sustain our souls. To forsake lesser loves to gain greater freedom.

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“The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are healthy, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eyes are unhealthy, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness!” (Matthew 6:22–23, NIV)

The next choice we’re forced to make is between two kinds of conditions - walking in light vs. darkness.

To have a good or healthy eye was actually a common Jewish idiom for generosity. A person with a "healthy eye" sees the needs of others and acts without hesitation. They don't calculate how little they can give but how much they can bless. If your eye is healthy, your whole body is "full of light." Your internal life isn't cluttered by the anxiety of "keeping" or "protecting." You are transparent and free.

The unhealthy eye - or evil eye - was an idiom for stinginess, greed, or envy. An unhealthy eye is one that is "clouded" by self-interest. It looks at a neighbor’s success with envy and looks at its own possessions with a white-knuckled grip. Jesus warns that if your eye is "bad," your whole body is "full of darkness." Stinginess creates an internal gloom. The more a person hoards, the more "blind" they become to the spiritual reality that everything they have is a gift from God.

The shift Jesus poses is to move from self-preservation to self-offering. If you view your resources through the lens of stinginess (the unhealthy eye), you will always live in the "darkness" of fear—fear that you won't have enough or fear that others will take what is yours.

But if you fix your gaze on God’s character (the healthy eye), you realize that you don’t need to hoard. A life of simplicity means you aren't constantly wondering if you're missing out on a "lesser love" because you are captivated by a "Greater Beauty" - and you gain greater freedom.

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“No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.” (Matthew 6:24, NIV)

The final choice Jesus says we must make is between two masters - God or mammon.

We like to think we can "multi-task" devotion. We want God on Sundays and Mammon on Mondays. But Jesus is blunt: you will eventually devote yourself to one and despise the other.

Money and possessions make for terrible masters. They are lesser loves that eventually become tyrants that are never satisfied. The more you give them, the more they demand.

True freedom, Jesus says, isn't the absence of a master; it’s being served by—and serving—the right one. It is a modern myth that we can be free agents. The great modern prophet - and terrible singer - Bob Dylan proclaims:

You may be an ambassador to England or France You may like to gamble, you might like to dance You may be the heavyweight champion of the world You might be a socialite with a long string of pearls

But you're gonna have to serve somebody, yes indeed You're gonna have to serve somebody Well, it may be the Devil or it may be the Lord But you're gonna have to serve somebody

Simplicity helps us to deny the "lesser love" of self-interest and material gain, not to become slaves but to escape the sweatshop. We forsake the "clutter" of the world not because the world is inherently evil, but because we’ve found something better. We deny ourselves the "lesser" to make room for the "greater."

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One of the beautiful things about St. Syncletica was how realistic she was. She didn't pretend that self-denial was easy or instantly rewarding. She used the metaphor of starting a fire to describe the initial struggle of choosing self-denial:

"In the beginning, there is a great deal of struggle and effort for those who are advancing towards God and afterwards, inexpressible joy. It is like those who wish to light a fire; at first they are choked by the smoke and cry, and by this means obtain what they seek... so we must kindle the divine fire in ourselves through tears and effort."

We don't go into the smoke because we like to cry; we go through the smoke because we want the fire. In simplicity we deny the lesser love of 'more' because we want the greater freedom of 'enough.'

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Ultimately, what Jesus wants for us is to not have our hearts tethered to things that will ultimately let us down or lead us down wrong paths. Whatever you treasure is where your heart will ultimately land.

What would it look like to reject lesser loves in your life - the things our culture says are essential if you want to be happy - in order to gain a greater freedom? Looking back at the words of Jesus, choosing simplicity is

to gain what can’t be lost (heavenly treasure)

to have clarity on what truly matters (a healthy eye)

and to be loved by someone who can love you back (the better Master)

Simplicity trains us to forsake lesser loves in order to gain greater freedom.

Jesus and St. Syncletica make it clear that this isn’t something that just happens. We must train ourselves toward this kind of lifestyle. When it makes sense I like to try and offer some practical ways to put the message into practice. These are not “rules” we must follow; they are workouts for our soul to break the muscle-memory of consumerism.

Commit to no unnecessary purchases for the remained of Lent. This is just an act of resistance to the spirit of consumerism. Forego until Easter.

Practice gratitude. This is one of the best tools God gives us to dethrone the god of mammon. Materialism tells us we don’t have enough; thankfulness reminds us how blessed we really are.

7 X 30. For 30 days limit yourself to seven things. Seven articles of clothing - not counting underwear and socks. Seven foods. Tacos are not one thing, they are several things. This intentional act can help you see that you really don’t need all the things the god of mammon tells you you do.

Communion

Invite people to stand.

Invite Communion/ministry team forward.

Every Sunday we close our time by receiving Communion together. This symbolic meal reminds us of Jesus’ sacrifice. In it we testify that Christ has died, Christ has risen, and Christ will come again. Jesus said it is his body and blood, true food and true drink. It is a grace given to us for our spiritual nourishment. It is the meal of our new identity in Christ.

Some traditions call this meal the Eucharist because the opening words of the traditional prayer begin with eucharisteo - we give you thanks. When we come to this symbolic meal, we offer God our thanks for the saving acts he has done for us in Jesus the Messiah.

We think Jesus invites everyone to this table. If it’s your first time, or you’re not even sure yet where you stand with Jesus, we think he would welcome you here. If you would like to participate, after I pray step into the nearest aisle. Someone at the front will take a piece of bread dipped in wine and offer it to you as the body and blood of Jesus. If you prefer not to have wine, close your hands together and that will be the sign for them to give you a sealed container with grape juice and a wafer.

What is the Spirit doing this morning?…

As we come to the table this morning, let’s give thanks together with all God’s people in the words of Psalm 136. We will do this as a call and response. You’re only part is to repeat “His love endures forever”.

Psalm 136 NIV

Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good. His love endures forever. Give thanks to the God of gods. His love endures forever. Give thanks to the Lord of lords: His love endures forever. to him who alone does great wonders, His love endures forever. He remembered us in our low estate His love endures forever. and freed us from our enemies. His love endures forever. He gives food to every creature. His love endures forever. Give thanks to the God of heaven. His love endures forever.

Thank him for our new identity in Christ that we can begin to live from now, made possible through his death and resurrection. By the blood of his cross he has washed and renewed us. Through his victorious resurrection he has guaranteed us eternal life. Through his ascension and the outpouring of the Spirit he has made us one with you.

We remember Him who for us and for our salvation, on the night that he was betrayed...

Lord, we pray that in your goodness and mercy your Holy Spirit may descend upon us, and upon these gifts, sanctifying them and showing them to be holy gifts for your holy people, the bread of life and the cup of salvation, the Body and Blood of your Son Jesus Christ.

Grant that all who share this bread and cup may become one body and one spirit, a living sacrifice in Christ, to the praise of your Name.

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Come Holy Spirit and overshadow these elements. Let them be for us your body and blood so that we can participate in your redemptive work for us. May we find mercy, healing and salvation through the finished work of the cross. Amen.

Invite the worship team to receive Communion first.