Reset Values

Focus Statement

Let me start by asking you this question:

What does it mean to live by God’s Spirit and not our own,

to live according to God’s values and not those of the world?

Point of Relation

I am sure most, if not all, have heard of the Disney film Mulan.

It’s about a young teen named Mulan who was of age to be married.

IN FACT, it was her DUTY to be married…which would bring honor to her family.

Sadly, marriage was not meant to be...

As the Huns were about to raid China and the emperor drafted all adult men into the military.

Even more tragic, Mulan’s father only had her…Mulan…and no adult men.

He was the only man in the family…and so he had to be the one to go to war...

Which would surely kill him as he was old and weak.

Of course, Mulan knew this and, knowing her father’s past career in the military, she knew he would choose to go and bring honor to the Hua family,

But he would also never return home again.

So, instead, Mulan chose to do something deceptive…to protect her father.

She went in his place…she cut her hair, girdled her chest to flatten it, and dressed as a man.

That night she stole off into the night with her father’s sword, horse and supplies...

The sword had these words etched into it:

Courageous, Honest, True.

Words that would haunt her…but also words she would live by despite her deception.

I remember one scene in the live-action version of the story where Mulan and the soldiers are undergoing training.

The exercise I am recalling was where they had to carry a bar with two buckets with water hanging on each end.

They had to shoulder that weight and carry the buckets up to the top of this huge mountain.

They try this for days…none being able to get up.

Mulan kept trying…never considering cutting corners or giving up.

Another soldier, on the other hand…he lost focus of his military values…the same values on Mulan’s sword...

Courageous, Honest, True

This soldier, when he thought no one was looking...

dumped some water out of his buckets to lighten the load.

He wanted to be seen by everyone as strong…and he wanted to pass the test so bad...

That he cheated when he thought nobody was looking.

As such…this soldier was being dishonest and not living up to the values of his group.

This, sadly, cost him expulsion from the military and he dishonored his entire family.

Overtime, Mulan had to face her own deception...

And, keeping her values in focus, had to choose to be Courageous, Honest, and True when it came time to reveal her true identity and gender.

Things to Consider

We may aspire to live by good values

but they are not always the values of the Holy Spirit.

For example, we may care more about scoring points against someone

than maintaining a relationship with them,

or we may “do good” for recognition rather than from love or a desire to help.

Sometimes we can justify our actions

but we were not following godly values in doing them.

What Scripture Says

Background:

The churches of Galatia struggled with whether or not Gentile Christians were required to get circumcised to become part of the family of faith.

Paul emphasizes that everyone is brought to faith through Jesus Christ

and to force circumcision on Gentile Christians, or for them to seek it, is to try to justify themselves under the law,

rather than relying on Jesus’ grace through faith.

Galatians 5:24-25 underpins the rest of this passage.

In coming to faith, we die to ourselves (our own values, ways, desires, justification), just as Jesus died for us.

And just as Jesus was raised for us,

when we come to faith we come alive in a new way, by the Holy Spirit,

we are no longer to guided by our own values or ways, but by those of the Holy Spirit.

What does it mean to be guided by the Spirit?

It is one thing to recognize that we only live by the grace of the Holy Spirit.

It is another to allow the Spirit to guide and shape our lives.

How do we see Jesus putting this into practice?

[Pause and let people answer]

Perhaps: The way he constantly sought time away to pray...

The way he put others first over himself...

The way he chose God’s will over his own in the Garden...

Fruits of the Spirit are listed in Galatians 5:22,

but this list of values can seem abstract on its own.

So, in Galatians 6:1-10

Paul offers a description of what living with the fruits of Spirit looks like,

or living “guided by the Spirit.”

He gives practical applications.

For example: Gentleness is not just a character trait of the Christian.

It is how a person living by the spirit confronts and restores an offender. (6:1)

Verse 8 contrasts living according to “your own flesh” and “according to “the Spirit.”

Are there times when, like the Gentile Christians of Galatia wanting to be circumcised,

we think we are “sowing to the Spirit”

but we are really sowing to the flesh?

(Paul preaches against the division caused by this debate

and paints a picture of unity and serving one another in the family of faith.)

What this means for you

In terms of your own life, what this Means for us.Where in your life do you see yourself here?

What are some of your values that may not necessarily be God’s values? All of us need to have our values reset from time to time.

What this means for us

Let’s look at one of the values in our passage, perseverance (found in verse 9)...

How have we as a congregation struggled with that particular fruit of the spirit?

Sure we have endured through a pandemic...

But how did we struggle with perseverance prior to the pandemic...

How do we continue to struggle with that value on this end of it all.

If we were to all live guided by the Spirit, how would our relationships with one another and the world change?

if we did a reset of our values,

We might wake up one day to see that...

No one holds status inside or outside the church…That all are seen as equal and equity is given to those who need it.

We might see past our own partisan political worldviews, and treat people as beloved citizens of heaven.

We might see a community where hatred, homelessness, and hunger cease to exist because political and personal -priorities changed.

Is this a future you believe in? [Pause]

Is this a future you can persevere toward? [Pause]

Amen! Let’s begin that work together. Amen.