Sermon 8.30.26 I Will Always Love You
- standrewcin
- 4 hours ago
- 6 min read
“Let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.”
This statement is one of the most famous examples of polysyndeton in the Bible,
(a word which sounds elegant and high-minded; like your preacher has spent too much time in post-graduate education)
It really just means that Jesus said “and” a whole bunch of times in a row.
And, and, and…
But, that’s not what I came to preach about today.
Two significant things happened this week:
The first is that Dolly Parton, Great American songwriter and incredible philanthropist, died this week at the age of 80.
And half that age, but not half as important (in my life) is that My wife Melanie’s birthday is today.
And so, as we think of Jesus’ challenge to deny ourselves, and to take up our cross, and to follow Him, I’m moved to preach to you this morning: I Will Always Love You.
Dolly Parton wrote the song “I will always love you,” in 1973 as a -well- love song (I guess that’s pretty obvious).
But, it wasn’t a romantic love song.
Hidden behind her simple and straightforward lyrics, the “you” in the song, was not a romantic partner.
It was actually her show business partner Porter Wagoner, who had given a 21 year old Dolly her big break in Nashville.
Seven years later, Dolly was ready to move on, and as a parting gift she penned the words, “If I should stay, I would only be in your way, So I’ll go but I know I’ll think of you every step of the way. Bitter sweet memories, that’s all I’m taking with me, good-bye please don’t cry, we both know that I’m not what you need. I hope live treats you kind, and I hope that you have all that you ever dreamed of, and I wish you joy and happiness, but above all this, I wish you love. And I will always love you.”
From small beginnings in rural Tennessee, this moment marked the beginning of a rhinestone studded career that lasted almost 60 years.
Now, I have to confess, out of all of the hundreds or maybe even thousands of preachers that will mention or talk at length about Dolly Parton this weekend, I would not put myself among her cadre of fans.
I have never put on one of her albums and just listened to it all the way through.
I am one of those who enjoyed the kitschy phenomenon of Dolly, if someone would perform one of her songs at karaoke, or on a juke box, or at a drag show.
What I admired about her, though, was how she made a big life out of her small beginnings,
And she didn’t just make that big life in a small way, in a way that sought only wealth and stardom.
She lived it in a transcendent and honest and transformative way.
One way that we know this is by how the news of her death was received.
Dolly is one of the only people, of whom I can think, whose passing has been met with tributes from across the dividing walls of our world.
No double talk, no hedging, no vilification on one side, and praise on the other.
Just pure sorrow at her passing, and gratefulness for her witness;
From rural, working folks to corporate board rooms, who work 9 to 5 trying to make a living,
Or as the covid meme put it, “when you have to work from home, but you’re also a parent: Working 9-9:10, 9:45-10, 10:20-10:35, 12-2, 2:15-2:16, 3:30-3:37, 4:28-4:39, 5:05-5:12, 7:39-8, and 9:53-10:24.”
Gay men and black women and conservative folks and liberal folks.
The English Royal family paid tribute to her by posting a video of the King’s Band of Coldstream Guards playing 9-5 in front of Buckingham Palace.
Even the president wrote a tribute and it didn’t have any self-aggrandizing or underhanded compliments.
The reason that Dolly had such an impact, I think, is because she never pretended to be anything other than what she was.
She was unapologetically southern,
She was unparalleled in her generosity of spirit and with her wealth,
Like her songwriting, she was honest, straightforward, with emotional clarity, and uncompromising openness.
And, she was bold in her convictions that everyone mattered, everyone deserved to be loved, deserved a chance in life, everyone belonged, everyone was beautiful in their own unique way.
She was not just a pioneer in women’s music, but in bridging the racial divide.
She’s one of the few white artists who has ever given more to black music than she’s taken.
She once told the story of how Whitney Houston’s version of “I Will Always Love You,” came to be.
She told an interviewer that, when Kevin Costner had asked for the song for the movie “the Bodyguard,” she just said “sure” and “sent it over.”
She said she was driving at the time, when she first heard Whitney SANG it, and that she had to pull of the road to keep from crashing, because it was one of the most singular experiences of her life.
Like that burning bush that was not consumed, that “I am who I am,” the love of God pouring into the world and proclaiming an end to captivity, Dolly was who she was, and she let everyone be who they were, and she called it beloved.
I guess, if I had to sum it all up, what I would say is this:
When Dolly penned the song, “I will always love you,” the “you” was a single person, and a single, monogamous kind of love,
But as time went on, that “you” became plural, it referred to me and to you, to the little child struggling with identity in a closet, to the children across racial and economic divides (like my boys), who received free books from her literacy library,
to a bodyguard in a romantic movie, to the people who have gotten lost in the hate that they have for people who are “other,” to people across the globe who want to put boots on and line dance like an American.
“You” became everyone,
And we see that what made Dolly great was that she lived a Romans 12 life.
Let love be genuine; hate what is evil, hold fast to what is good; love one another with mutual affection; outdo one another in showing honor. Do not lag in zeal, be ardent in spirit, serve the Lord. Rejoice in hope, be patient in suffering, persevere in prayer. Contribute to the needs of the saints; extend hospitality to strangers.
Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them. Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. Live in harmony with one another; do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly; do not claim to be wiser than you are. Do not repay anyone evil for evil, but take thought for what is noble in the sight of all. If it is possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all. Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave room for the wrath of God; for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” No, “if your enemies are hungry, feed them; if they are thirsty, give them something to drink; for by doing this you will heap burning coals on their heads.” Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
She wasn’t celebrated, because she dodged the difficult divides,
She met them with clarity and compassion.
She turned her face toward that heavenly Jerusalem and refused to let anyone turn her away from her goal of making “you” everyone.
And isn’t that what Jesus calls us into?
Isn’t that what our saints do best? To show us a glimpse of the Love that God has for us and to proclaim it boldly and with moral clarity and with dignity for all, whom we encounter in this life.
Isn’t that what it means to find life?
To know the suffering of God’s people and to come down as God proposes to do with Moses in Exodus 3 and to help in God’s plan to deliver us all from whatever evil holds us down?
Life abundant for everyone?
All of us will lose our life someday, and the question that Jesus puts before us, a question that Dolly’s life echoes;
“Will you profit only your own life, or will you profit the life of the world as you bear your own cross?”
Make no mistake, though Dolly may not have been vilified this week, the life that she lived and the stances that she took for human dignity were a cross to bear.
And like her savior, she bore her cross singing “I will always love you,” and made the world a better place, and she brought the Kingdom of Heaven just a little bit closer to earth.
Her life, her savior’s life, and your life can be a life of polysyndeton;
And, and, and…
Instead of if, but, or, maybe.
In the end, I guess this sermon was about an elegant, high-minded Word.
Amen.
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