"Render Unto God"

Matthew 22:15-22

Then the Pharisees went and plotted to entrap him in what he said. So they sent their disciples to him, along with the Herodians, saying, “Teacher, we know that you are sincere, and teach the way of God in accordance with truth, and show deference to no one, for you do not regard people with partiality. Tell us, then, what you think. Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar or not?” But Jesus, aware of their malice, said, “Why are you putting me to the test, you hypocrites? Show me the coin used for the tax.” And they brought him a denarius. Then he said to them, “Whose head is this and whose title?” They answered, “Caesar’s.” Then he said to them, “Give therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s and to God the things that are God’s.” When they heard this, they were amazed, and they left him and went away.

__________

I remember reading an article about IRS workers receiving death threats in the mail one year. We're talking about civil servants who have no control over how much you pay or why; they only need to process your payments. So, I sent in my quarterly payment with a note with some kind words, not thinking much about it. A few months later, I got a letter from the IRS, and my first thought was, "Darn, did I not pay the right amount?" but it was a kind note in return from a department chair thanking me for the kind note I sent months before.

Nobody likes to pay taxes, and as a clergy person, I can testify that there's a whole other layer of complexity that I can never wrap my head around, which makes my desire to pay taxes even less palatable. However, the truth is that we live in a complex world with systems that do not always feel just or equitable, yet we hear in the reading from Matthew Jesus encouraging folks to render unto the emperor what is the emperor's and to God what is God's.

What does that mean in our cultural climate that values "I" over "Us," and what does it mean (let alone look like) for us to render unto God the things that are God's? 

There are people in the reading from Matthew hoping to trap Jesus by asking, "Is it lawful to pay taxes to the emperor?" Saying "no" would be an act of treason. It would be an act of treason against Caesar and the Roman empire. Saying "yes" would imply that the people were to submit themselves solely to the global powers and principalities that be. But Jesus doesn't fall into their trap. Instead, Jesus turned and answered them in a way that challenged those in the crowd and us today to think about what it means to be people who claim to be the hands and feet of God in the world. 

Asking the crowd for a coin, Jesus showed it to them and asked whose image was on the currency. When they replied that it was a picture of the emperor, Jesus told them, "Give therefore to the emperor the things that are the emperor's and to God the things that are God's." This is remarkable because Jesus gives a subversive answer without actually being subversive. Perhaps more importantly, it reframes life in such a way that declares we are not the center of the universe, and perhaps our love of money is not as life-giving as we think it is. 

Citizenship in the Kin-dom of God:

We are called to live as citizens in the kin-dom of God, not Caesar. I say the kin-dom of God because the vision Jesus casts for our lives does not fall within the earthly definition of the kingdom, which is always seeking more land, resources, and influence. We are called to live as citizens in the kin-dom of God and exercise our citizenship in such a way that welcomes and cares for all who enter.

Our citizenship in God's kin-dom is not static; it is not something that, once earned, expects nothing of us in return. It feels like a poignant reminder as we look and see how we've extended or not extended the calling as people in the kin-dom of God. We cannot seem to agree on aid (foreign or domestic) for people who have nothing; we cannot see the worth of human life or mourn the loss of the life of children without being labeled as a sympathizer of one group or another, and while we argue as to whether our church buildings need repair, we wonder why people aren't coming to church. 

We might need to look at whether Caesar has crept into the practice of our faith and, if so, reaffirm our commitment to live as people who God claims. 

Integrating Faith & Daily Living:

What's important to remember is that being a citizen in the kin-dom of God means that we must learn to hold multiple things (sometimes contradictory things) together. We can be residents of New York State citizens in the United States of America, all while cultivating a rich understanding of those who live in different places and working towards the betterment and securing the well-being of all people and God's creation. 

I believe Jesus would have us begin by assessing how we integrate faith into our daily lives. It's a challenge to expand our view of the world through the lens of our living God, who made the ultimate sacrifice regardless of what would have been the "profitable" choice. It's a challenge to assess how we live and whether our faith will empower us, not so that we can live as subjects to Caesar and systems that place value on worth, but as people who live with the good news written boldly and proudly on our hearts. 

Stewardship of Resources:

I remember taking a train as a seminary student from New York to Princeton, and on the way back, a homeless person walked up the middle aisle of the train car asking for money. To be honest, it's not my practice to give money in that manner, but I did. As they walked past, I could hear some other passengers speaking down on the individuals, saying, "Why don't they get a real job instead of bothering us every day." 

As a student, I didn't have much in the way of resources, but I felt called that particular day to be a steward of what I had, and even if I only gave this homeless person $5, I hope I offered them a sense of compassion and love as well. We cannot know every person's circumstances, but we know what is on our hearts. We have control; we have agency over how we treat our fellow neighbors. 

We give Caesar what is Caesar's because there are things outside of our control that those resources go to support (i.e., the roads we drive on, the schools where children learn, etc.), and we give to God what is God's, which is our whole selves because if we are to walk this journey of life and faith, we cannot do so without acknowledging that it is God who gives us breath, not our capital, our talents, or anything else. 

Giving to God the things that are God’s goes way beyond the exercise of putting an offering into the offering place on Sunday morning. May we turn from Caesar’s grasp to serve our living God, who calls us into a relationship that inspires us so that we may remember that we belong to a God who created all things, sustains all things, and rules over the heavens and the earth. A God who calls us into a relationship with God, with one another, and creation, and relationships that take us outside the bubbles we try to hide inside and out into the broader kin-dom of creation.