Sermon by Rev. Michael Nailor

I wonder if something like this has ever happened to you. A group of my friends went out to dinner after church last Sunday. Carol’s order, meatloaf, did not show up when the others at the table were served. She had her soup and her salad, but no meatloaf. The waiter was apologetic and he said he would check. Minutes passed, others ate, and still no meatloaf for Carol.

When the waiter returned, he told her that the kitchen would quickly prepare her another plate. She told him, “Please just forget the meatloaf. Charge me for the soup and the salad and we’ll call it a day.” And you’d think that was the end of the story.

But Carol returned to her home, sat down at her computer, and opened Facebook. Do you know what the first post on her Facebook feed was? An advertisement for recipes for meatloaf. Meatloaf. What? How? What kind of magic is this? The very thing that we talk about or we search for pops up on our phones or on our computers at a different time entirely. Clearly unasked for and probably unwanted.

As computers and phones take over more and more of our interaction with others, this sort of predictive marketing, you could call it a form of artificial intelligence that meets our needs even before we know we have those needs, is with us. And to use biblical language, abides with us all day long, sometimes all night long, on our bedside tables, in our pockets.

Can you imagine what our ancestors even from 50 years ago would say if they knew that we had constant contact with all the available information in the world and were being guided by the phones in our pockets to make personal, financial, and political choices every moment of our lives.

Some of you, as old as I am, and there not so many out there, can remember the marvel of Dick Tracy talking to his two way wrist TV in the early 60s. How wonderful. And while it helped Dick Tracy solve crimes, I’d suggest that these constant guests in our pockets are not as benign.

The algorithms that our digital devices use have a huge influence over the media that we are fed. They tailor or curate our online experiences by learning from the messages we send. the people we interact with. And clearly in the case of Meatloaf, from the words that we say out loud, the more that we do online, the more information that they have on us and our interests. The spirits in our digital devices live with us 247 with the intent of selling us products or convincing us of political views. At times they even present to us misinformation and fake news. As artificial intelligence improves, it gets harder and harder to distinguish between the truth online
and subtly presented falsehoods.

Now, don’t get me wrong, the digital spirits do give us something in return for their access to our lives. I use mine all the time. a bargain that is worthy, however, of our thoughtful consideration. My Amazon account learns what I like and makes it very simple for me to find books that I might be interested in. So, the bargain is this. Our digital spirits provide us with convenience in return for information about our
personal preferences.

I’m fairly certain that these digital spirits are not returning to the bottle of the genie anytime soon. They are, I’m sure, with us forever. Now, Jesus in today’s gospel describes a different bargain. He’s talking with his disciples. Last week he said, “I go to prepare a place for you for us that eventually he will return and take us to be with him. But in the meantime, in exchange for his absence so that we humans aren’t left as orphans without guidance, we’re given the spirit of truth. this new companion, the spirit of truth. Well, the world does not believe it because the world neither sees nor recognizes the truth.

But this spirit abides with us, is in us, and will be with us forever. When I thought about this passage and read about it in John’s gospel in the past, I thought, “Oh, right. Sure. That’s the Holy Spirit. I got it. I know what you’re talking about, Jesus.” But this week, I saw a little different emphasis in those words. This is the spirit of truth that is always around us. Not unlike the phones in our pockets, we need only to
charge it up and turn it on to determine the truth in any situation.

And imagine what it would be like to have something to consult in any situation or decision that is guaranteed to bring us the truth. Should I spend time worshiping God? How should I treat other humans? Should I spend time working to protect marginalized folks in our society? Should I work to care for God’s
creation?

Well, thank God and thank Siri. We don’t need a device to answer those questions because as Jesus said, the spirit of truth is in us. Now, please look again at the beginning and the end of the gospel reading for today. How does the truth get inside of us? There’s an invisible link in Jesus’s mind between this spirit dwelling in us and our
decisions to live in love and obedience.

It’s a sort of a chicken and egg situation. Does the spirit of truth dwell in us and we therefore live in love and obedience to God or do we live in love and obedience and then the spirit dwells in us? Whichever we way that we decide, the key is that we have an obligation to live life in the way
that the spirit of truth directs.

And how do we know if we’re living in the direction of the spirit of truth? Well, Galatians 5 gives us a good starting point. I remember having to memorize these nine character traits as a child, but I had no clue about how to apply them to my life. They’re called the fruit of the spirit. Remember those? Perhaps you had to memorize them, too.

The fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace. I see some people mouthing along with me. That’s good. Patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. How much of each of these qualities are present in our lives today? That’s a good measure of if we’re living in the spirit of truth.

Or more importantly, do we see one or two of these areas, these fruits that are lacking in the way that we treat God or we treat one another? These fruits of the spirit look not only outward but also to the inward words that the spirit speaks to our deepest selves. We need the spirit of truth around to tell us daily that we are a beloved
child of God.

We need to be reminded again and again that we are worthy. Our spirit of truth needs to be telling us that we are precious in the sight of God. We get bombarded by just the opposite messages from the spirit of the world. At times we even tell lies to ourselves that question our worth to God and to the world. Wouldn’t it be great to have abiding in us for all time the quiet confidence that we are created sustained and loved by God.

As I was looking around this week for resources on how to live in accord with a constant spirit of truth in our life, I encountered some ancient advice found in a Buddhist’s monk’s code. Ready? Here’s the fancy language. In due season I will speak. In truth I will speak gently. I will speak to one’s profit. I will speak with kindly intent. I will speak. And if I cannot speak in that way, I will not speak. Now, that’s a little complicated, but it boils down to a couple of simple thoughts. In our conflicts, in our relationships, especially when they get messy and complicated. And for our own emotional health, follow the spirit of truth by asking.

Number one is what I’m about to say true? Number two, even if it is true, is what I’m about to say kind? That’s a good measure. Number three, even if it’s true and kind, is what I’m about to say necessary or helpful or purposeful to another to for another to
hear?

And finally, even if it’s true and kind and necessary, it may not be the right moment to say it, is it timely? Beloved, we find ourselves in a very complicated time in the life of this parish. We searched together last Sunday with our bishop for pathways out of some issues that have hurt many of us and broken our bonds of trust and love.

Also, we’re in the midst of a of meeting the three finalists for our new dean, who we hope will be a strong voice for truth in our midst. In these times, we could do worse than accept the bargain that Jesus offers us. The spirit of truth is able to abide with us and live within us to guard against the influences that would move us away from Jesus. We know that those attractions and pulls exist out there. Let’s focus on listening to the spirit
of truth.

Paul offers us this direction in Galatians. If we live by the spirit, let’s follow the spirit.

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