From our service on September 5, 2021, a sermon by Pastor Eric Stetson. Watch video below.
Many of us have heard the famous Shaker song, “Simple Gifts.” It begins,
’Tis the gift to be simple, ’tis the gift to be free
’Tis the gift to come down where we ought to be …
And so on, about the importance and joy of turning away from worldly pride and living the simple life.
In the Gospel, Jesus said, “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; life does not consist in an abundance of possessions.” [Luke 12:15]. This was the preface to an extended soliloquy we heard in our Scripture reading today, on the topic of simple living and relinquishing our anxious grasping for more and more stuff [vss. 16-34]. Jesus made it clear that if we wish to live according to his faith, we should live for God and our fellow man, rather than the things of this world.