Joy Is Not the Opposite of Justice

We're taught that changing the world costs everything: burning out, giving until it hurts, treating joy as a distraction from the work that actually matters. But what if that's backwards? Drawing on two one-paragraph parables from the Gospels, Octavia Butler's Earthseed novels, and — unexpectedly — Buffy the Vampire Slayer, this sermon unpacks how "sacrifice" gets weaponized to keep unjust systems running, then offers a different model: total investment in a world worth building, where pleasure, beauty, and community aren't rewards for hard work but part of how the work actually gets done. No prior scripture knowledge required, just a willingness to rethink what it means to give yourself to something bigger without losing yourself in the process.