Jacek Malczewski, The Tribute Money
On Sunday, October 22nd, we talked about stewardship, and some of the ways that we come up short. I had trouble picking out a title for this sermon. "Render unto Caesar" was my working title, but that didn't fit with where the message was going.
Isaiah 45:1-7; Matthew 22:15-22
Sermon
Good morning. I had trouble picking out a title for this
sermon. “Render unto Caesar” was my working title, because, honestly, I still
hear the King James Version in the back of my head: “Render therefore unto
Caesar.” But something about that title rang hollow for me. It sounded a little
too much like every other sermon
that’s been preached on this story. It had too many echoes of the past for my
ears.
One of the commentaries I read suggested, “It’s a trap!”
Now for those of you who weren’t born between 1965 and 1983, that’s a quote
from The Return of the Jedi; I
probably saw that at least three times, in the theater, in 1983. Parents who
were forced to take their kids to see Jedi
are also familiar with that line. And it would be an appropriate title, because
Matthew tells us that the Pharisees were trying to entrap Jesus. The other
title that leapt to mind was “Strange Bedfellows,” because the Pharisees are
joined by the Herodians in their attempt to entrap Jesus.
The Pharisees and the Herodians shouldn’t have any business
working together on anything. The Pharisees were a sect within Judaism who
believed that worship and Jewish life had become corrupted by the influence of
the Roman Empire. The Pharisees wanted to purify the religious practices of the
Jewish people. The Herodians were the descendants of King Herod and those who
supported the kings from Herod’s line. Even though Herod and his descendants
had the title “king,” the Roman Emperor was really in charge. The Herodians
were allowed to keep some measure of power, but only as long as all the taxes
flowed back to Rome.
So, in essence, the Pharisees believed that Judaism had
been corrupted by the Herodians, who facilitated Roman rule. Under no
circumstances should the Pharisees collaborate with the Herodians. The
Pharisees, as they are portrayed in the Gospel of Matthew, are all about
righteousness under the Law of Moses. The Herodians are all about maintaining
what little power they wield. And yet, the Pharisees and the Herodians are
conspiring to entrap Jesus. They have a common enemy in Jesus, who is truly
righteous.
The Herodians and the Pharisees ask Jesus whether it’s
lawful to pay taxes to Rome. This is the trap. The people of Judea hate these
taxes. If Jesus says the taxes are unlawful and the people shouldn’t pay them,
then he’s taking a public position against the Roman Empire; the Roman
authorities can use this against him. If Jesus says that the people have to pay
the tax, then Jesus will lose standing with the crowds of people who come to
hear him speak. That’s the real goal for the Herodians and Pharisees, to
discredit Jesus.[1]
It’s worth noting that this exchange takes place in the temple.
Jacques Joseph Tissot, The Tribute Money
When the Herodians and the Pharisees challenge Jesus on the
question of paying taxes to Rome, Jesus asks them to produce the coin that is
used to pay the tax. This coin was probably a denarius, a Roman coin that bore
the image of the emperor—in this case, Tiberius. That coin would have carried
an inscription that identified Tiberius as the son of Augustus Caesar, who was
worshiped as a God; it would have said something like, “Tiberius Caesar, son of
god.” The person who pulled that coin out of his purse would have been guilty
of idolatry, because he brought an image of a false god into the temple.[2] Jesus is calling out the
hypocrisy of his adversaries. He is also calling out their divided loyalties.
Last Sunday I said that I think idolatry is one of our
biggest problems in our society; it’s even a problem here in church. I’m not
talking about the images of George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, or even Andrew
Jackson, that we see in our wallets. No. One of the idols that we unwittingly
worship in church is our past. We are in love with the way things used to be,
and for the record, that’s every church, not just this congregation.
“That’s the way we’ve always done it!”
It doesn’t matter what “it” is. Someone wants to keep doing
“it” the same way. And “it” is often more than one thing. “It” is always some
part of the status quo, and “it” will always be defended—even if “it” has
become a problem.
Here at Rehoboth, “it” is stewardship and budgeting. It’s
my understanding that many members of this congregation don’t make pledges for
their annual offerings. Case in point: the budget for 2017 is $165,582.30, yet
our pledged donations for this year amount to only $37,430!
Now don’t be fooled by those numbers; we’re not $130,000 in
the red. Many folks simply make their weekly or monthly offerings, even if they
haven’t made a pledge to do so. That’s the way we’ve always done things around
here.
In other congregations, the budget for the next year is
made only after all of the pledges have come in. The budget is based on the
amount of money that the members commit to give. Perhaps a small amount is
added to the budget for unpledged donations, but the pledges make up the bulk
of the congregation’s income. Then, if there is a big gap between pledges and
projected expenses, the Session can make an appeal to the congregation for
additional donations.
I don’t know why the members of this congregation are
reluctant to make pledges. Perhaps folks don’t want to make a promise that they
might not be able to keep. I understand that. Or maybe you know that you’re
going to have a big expense next year—a new car, a new roof on your house, or
some other project—and you’re afraid to make a big commitment. I understand
that, too. And besides, there were always enough people in the pews and enough
money in the collection plates to cover the all of the expenses of Rehoboth
Church.
Sort of.
The truth is, this congregation has run deficits of $10,000
or more every year for something like ten or twelve years, and perhaps longer
than that. In the past, one member would simply write a check to cover whatever
the shortfall was. That member passed away a few years ago. Now, without the
generosity of that one member, we are faced with the need for change. The good
news is that the congregation has a significant endowment. But if we don’t
change the way we approach stewardship and budgeting, that endowment will be
depleted.
Now for some congregations, the endowment becomes an idol.
Such congregations will claim that the need to hang on to the money, to save it
for a rainy day—even though it’s pouring down rain and the roof is leaking!
Here at Rehoboth, the endowments are not idols. The Session
has had to draw those down a little bit to cover the shortfalls. Instead of
being an idol, I see the endowments here at Rehoboth as a bit of financial
grace. We have the resources to keep functioning while we go through this time
of transition.
Like the Pharisees and the Herodians, we all have divided
loyalties: we owe money to the bank for our homes and our cars; we owe taxes on
our salaries and our properties; we owe money for our student loans or for our
children’s college tuition; we owe money on our credit cards. All of these
things limit the levels to which we support Rehoboth Church.
This morning’s Gospel lesson is about righteousness. It is
a reminder that everything in the world belongs to God. David Lose, a scholar
and a Lutheran pastor, says about this story:
I think Jesus invites
us—actually, demands of us—that we be thinking regularly and relentlessly about
how all of our decisions—what we buy, who we vote for, how we spend our time—should
be shaped by the confession that, indeed, the whole world is God's and
everything in it—including us![3]
That is the grace in
this story. Jesus calls us to a place of self-examination; Jesus calls us to
put all of our practices under the microscope.
Over the last year, I’ve talked a lot about the need for
change. Most of my sermons have dealt with the ways in which the church
responds to the broader community. I have encouraged you to get outside of
these walls and be the Church. At the same time, I feel that we must also make
internal changes.
In the next few weeks, you’re going hear a lot about this
year’s stewardship campaign. This will be an opportunity to make internal
changes; this will be an opportunity for each of us to examine the relationship
that we have with Rehoboth Church. I urge you to prayerfully consider all of
the ways in which you can support the mission of this congregation. I urge you
to prayerfully consider how you can use your talents, your time, and your
treasure for the glory of God and in support of Rehoboth Church. After you have
considered what you may give, please communicate your decisions—let us know the
ways in which you can support our mission. Let us know how much you plan to
give. The process of self-examination is vitally important; it is as important
as the talents, time, and treasure that you give to God, through this
congregation. The inventory of the talents, time, and treasures will help us
all to understand how we live into Christ’s call to be the Church. Thanks be to
God. Amen.
Benediction
Now, beloved, as you depart from this place, remember that
we are called to be the Church, the body of Christ in the world today. We are called to go forth and be instruments of God’s love and peace and
love and reconciliation. Do not return evil for evil to any person, but know
that we are all loved by God, and that we are called to reflect that love to
everyone we meet. Go forth and be the salt of the earth and the light of the
world. In the name of Jesus Christ, our Lord, let all God’s children say, Amen!
[1]
Erick J. Thompson, “Commentary on Matthew 22:15-22,” retrieved from: http://www.workingpreacher.org/preaching.aspx?commentary_id=3450
[2]
David Lose, “God, Caesar, and the Power of a Good Question,” retrieved from: http://www.workingpreacher.org/craft.aspx?post=1589
[3]
Lose.
No comments:
Post a Comment