Sunday, October 16, 2005
Sunday Notes--10/16/2005
Today I delivered the sermon for both services. Here is the Gospel text I based it on:
Sermon Text
Today’s Gospel lesson is one on which I have thought a lot over the last couple of years. I have seen many instances of it’s not being observed, and thought a lot about how it should be observed. I am very excited to be able to talk about it today.
To review part of the Gospel lesson for today—
[Jesus said,]
19 “Show me the coin used for paying the tax.” They brought him a denarius,
20 and he asked them, “Whose portrait is on this? And whose inscription?”
21 “Caesar’s,” they replied. Then he said to them, “Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s.”
Jesus was answering a specific question that was trying to put him in the position of preaching defiance of the government of Rome. But like everything that Jesus said, the meaning goes far beyond “pay your taxes.” This meaning has importance for us especially in today’s world. We will explore that meaning this morning, but first, let us pray.
“Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s.” There are two important extensions from this, do NOT give to God that which is Caesar’s, and do NOT give to Caesar that which is God’s. Or in other words, keep politics out of religion and religion out of politics.
Caesar represents the government at all levels. It provides rules for day-to-day living. These rules or laws tell us how to interact with each other peaceably and what to do if we don’t
God includes the churches and their membership. He provides the moral standards by which we judge and guide our lives. The Bible gives us the principles by which we are to live our lives, what we can do with knowledge and what laws are just.
The main difference is that the rules of God are absolute, the rules of Caesar are compromises.
Today we are engaged in two religious wars, one is against radical, militant Islam. The second war is with atheism. This second one is almost never recognized as a religious war—the goal of the atheists is to wipe out all traces of Christianity from public life. In one case it is religion trying to control politics and in the other politics trying to control religion.
The war with militant, radical Islam is a religious war. The Jihadists have clearly and publically stated that their goal is to replace all societies with that of Sharia Law, law contained in the Koran. Sharia is totally incompatible with free societies as we know them. The ultimate authority in Sharia law, both religious and civil, is not the government, but a group of religious leaders. Iran today is an example of this, and Afghanistan before the over throw of the Taliban was another. This is the most obvious example of giving to God (or in this case, Allah) that which is Caesar’s.
An example closer to home is the attempts by religious groups in Texas to force the statements in biology textbooks that the Creation story must be considered an alternative to the theory of evolution Unlike voluntary prayer it is forcing the schools to make a religious statement. To some believers this is a desirable state of affairs. Like the radical Islamists, they want their vision to control everything. This is the giving of that which is Caesar’s to God.
From the other side of the issue, there is a huge cross on Mount Soledad in the City of San Diego, and there is a legal battle going on to have it removed. Just recently the City of Los Angelos had a cross removed from the City Seal. Both of these events were supposedly on the grounds that their presence promotes religion. These crosses do not promote religion; they are simply reminders that the two cities were founded by missionaries. There was the removal of the Ten Commandments from a courthouse in Alabama. Again this was a historical monument, since all of our law comes ultimately from the Ten Commandments.
There are daily articles about school systems banning any symbols or even words that might have even a distant religious meaning, if they are from Judaism or Christianity—it is OK if it is muslim or buddhist, or any non-Judeo-Christian belief. A coach recently resigned because he was told he could not hold voluntary pray before football games. In all of these examples, we see a persecution of God and religious belief by secular forces. It is a forceable giving of that which is God’s to Caesar, in the sense that religious expression is being destroyed by political action.
Jesus did not try to directly overthrow the Romans or the Scribes and Pharisees or to deal with them politically. Yet, it has become very common for church leadership to become involved in politics as church leaders and not as individuals. The politicians meet with the church leaders because they see them as speaking for their parishioners. This activity takes the membership of the church in total, which is a thing of God’s, and places it in the service of politicians and activists looking for support for a cause, regardless of the members’ beliefs or desires. This is giving to Caesar that which is God’s.
What is the role of God and religion with respect to Caesar?
Various forms of this question are often brought up at the men’s breakfast. The answer we arrive at is that scripture is meant to apply to us as individuals not our political institutions. If we are good individuals, then the political institutions that represent all of us will be good as well. We want our political institutions to reflect our morality, but that is not achieved by direct religious interference.
First and foremost, we must pray for God to help provide guidance and solutions. I can attest to the power of prayer at an individual level from my own life. The power of collective prayer is even greater. When we pray for God’s help to solve a problem or overcome an evil, the prayer will be answered, if we have faith that God will answer it. In my experience, God’s answer is not what I expect, but is always better than I would have imagined. If we pray for a particular solution, we may be disappointed, since God may see that particular solution as not the best. It is up to us to ask for help then trust that God will provide that help. When the help comes we must also be open to seeing it as the help we asked for.
I will also say the role of God and religion is the guidance of the people individually to express themselves collectively in a moral way. If we are to have free will, we must be free to understand and accept God’s message for ourselves. We may use our churches and their leadership for guidance. The church may state that its doctrines consider some event or set of events to be wrong or evil. They may state that their belief does not support given legalities. They may condemn behavior, but they do not have the right to propose specific remedies or endorse particular candidates in the name of the organization, because the remedies and candidates are political not religious. The rules of God are absolute, the rules of Caesar are compromises.
If we, as members of a church, have a common belief in the immorality of a practice, it is our right to voluntarily abstain from that practice. It does not give us the right to enforce that abstinence on others of different belief. We may campaign as individuals or members of a secular, political organization to create changes in law. That we are motivated by religious doctrine does not destroy the validity of our efforts. All of us have a base of belief that provides our moral stance. In the world of politics, all such stances are equal, as long as they do not violate a common moral base, e.g., do not kill, steal, or lie.
If we want the world to be a better place, we must do it by living our beliefs and providing an example for the rest of the world. In so doing we can convince others to join us. Again, Jesus did not try to directly overthrow the Romans or the Scribes and Pharisees. He simply lived what he believed, and by his example brought about a complete transformation in the relationship of people to God that eventually provided the moral code we have today.
By rendering unto God our lives and devotion to his word and to the example of Jesus, we may then render correctly unto Caesar our desire to improve the world as individual people.
Let us pray:
May God grant us the courage and the patience to live and follow his word in the world and work for its expression in all we do. Amen.
Matthew 22: 15-22
15 Then the Pharisees went out and laid plans to trap him in his words.
16 They sent their disciples to him along with the Herodians. “Teacher,” they said, “we know you are a man of integrity and that you teach the way of God in accordance with the truth. You aren’t swayed by men, because you pay no attention to who they are.
17 Tell us then, what is your opinion? Is is righ to pay taxes to Caesar or not?”
18 But Jesus, knowing their evil intent, said, “You hypocrites, why are you trying to trap me?
19 Show me the coin used for paying the tax.” They brought him a denarius,
20 and he asked them, “Whose portrait is on this? And whose inscription?”
21 “Caesar’s,” they replied. Then he said to them, “Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s.”
22 When they heard this, they were amazed. So they left him and went away.
Sermon Text
Today’s Gospel lesson is one on which I have thought a lot over the last couple of years. I have seen many instances of it’s not being observed, and thought a lot about how it should be observed. I am very excited to be able to talk about it today.
To review part of the Gospel lesson for today—
[Jesus said,]
19 “Show me the coin used for paying the tax.” They brought him a denarius,
20 and he asked them, “Whose portrait is on this? And whose inscription?”
21 “Caesar’s,” they replied. Then he said to them, “Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s.”
Jesus was answering a specific question that was trying to put him in the position of preaching defiance of the government of Rome. But like everything that Jesus said, the meaning goes far beyond “pay your taxes.” This meaning has importance for us especially in today’s world. We will explore that meaning this morning, but first, let us pray.
“Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s.” There are two important extensions from this, do NOT give to God that which is Caesar’s, and do NOT give to Caesar that which is God’s. Or in other words, keep politics out of religion and religion out of politics.
Caesar represents the government at all levels. It provides rules for day-to-day living. These rules or laws tell us how to interact with each other peaceably and what to do if we don’t
God includes the churches and their membership. He provides the moral standards by which we judge and guide our lives. The Bible gives us the principles by which we are to live our lives, what we can do with knowledge and what laws are just.
The main difference is that the rules of God are absolute, the rules of Caesar are compromises.
Today we are engaged in two religious wars, one is against radical, militant Islam. The second war is with atheism. This second one is almost never recognized as a religious war—the goal of the atheists is to wipe out all traces of Christianity from public life. In one case it is religion trying to control politics and in the other politics trying to control religion.
The war with militant, radical Islam is a religious war. The Jihadists have clearly and publically stated that their goal is to replace all societies with that of Sharia Law, law contained in the Koran. Sharia is totally incompatible with free societies as we know them. The ultimate authority in Sharia law, both religious and civil, is not the government, but a group of religious leaders. Iran today is an example of this, and Afghanistan before the over throw of the Taliban was another. This is the most obvious example of giving to God (or in this case, Allah) that which is Caesar’s.
An example closer to home is the attempts by religious groups in Texas to force the statements in biology textbooks that the Creation story must be considered an alternative to the theory of evolution Unlike voluntary prayer it is forcing the schools to make a religious statement. To some believers this is a desirable state of affairs. Like the radical Islamists, they want their vision to control everything. This is the giving of that which is Caesar’s to God.
From the other side of the issue, there is a huge cross on Mount Soledad in the City of San Diego, and there is a legal battle going on to have it removed. Just recently the City of Los Angelos had a cross removed from the City Seal. Both of these events were supposedly on the grounds that their presence promotes religion. These crosses do not promote religion; they are simply reminders that the two cities were founded by missionaries. There was the removal of the Ten Commandments from a courthouse in Alabama. Again this was a historical monument, since all of our law comes ultimately from the Ten Commandments.
There are daily articles about school systems banning any symbols or even words that might have even a distant religious meaning, if they are from Judaism or Christianity—it is OK if it is muslim or buddhist, or any non-Judeo-Christian belief. A coach recently resigned because he was told he could not hold voluntary pray before football games. In all of these examples, we see a persecution of God and religious belief by secular forces. It is a forceable giving of that which is God’s to Caesar, in the sense that religious expression is being destroyed by political action.
Jesus did not try to directly overthrow the Romans or the Scribes and Pharisees or to deal with them politically. Yet, it has become very common for church leadership to become involved in politics as church leaders and not as individuals. The politicians meet with the church leaders because they see them as speaking for their parishioners. This activity takes the membership of the church in total, which is a thing of God’s, and places it in the service of politicians and activists looking for support for a cause, regardless of the members’ beliefs or desires. This is giving to Caesar that which is God’s.
What is the role of God and religion with respect to Caesar?
Various forms of this question are often brought up at the men’s breakfast. The answer we arrive at is that scripture is meant to apply to us as individuals not our political institutions. If we are good individuals, then the political institutions that represent all of us will be good as well. We want our political institutions to reflect our morality, but that is not achieved by direct religious interference.
First and foremost, we must pray for God to help provide guidance and solutions. I can attest to the power of prayer at an individual level from my own life. The power of collective prayer is even greater. When we pray for God’s help to solve a problem or overcome an evil, the prayer will be answered, if we have faith that God will answer it. In my experience, God’s answer is not what I expect, but is always better than I would have imagined. If we pray for a particular solution, we may be disappointed, since God may see that particular solution as not the best. It is up to us to ask for help then trust that God will provide that help. When the help comes we must also be open to seeing it as the help we asked for.
I will also say the role of God and religion is the guidance of the people individually to express themselves collectively in a moral way. If we are to have free will, we must be free to understand and accept God’s message for ourselves. We may use our churches and their leadership for guidance. The church may state that its doctrines consider some event or set of events to be wrong or evil. They may state that their belief does not support given legalities. They may condemn behavior, but they do not have the right to propose specific remedies or endorse particular candidates in the name of the organization, because the remedies and candidates are political not religious. The rules of God are absolute, the rules of Caesar are compromises.
If we, as members of a church, have a common belief in the immorality of a practice, it is our right to voluntarily abstain from that practice. It does not give us the right to enforce that abstinence on others of different belief. We may campaign as individuals or members of a secular, political organization to create changes in law. That we are motivated by religious doctrine does not destroy the validity of our efforts. All of us have a base of belief that provides our moral stance. In the world of politics, all such stances are equal, as long as they do not violate a common moral base, e.g., do not kill, steal, or lie.
If we want the world to be a better place, we must do it by living our beliefs and providing an example for the rest of the world. In so doing we can convince others to join us. Again, Jesus did not try to directly overthrow the Romans or the Scribes and Pharisees. He simply lived what he believed, and by his example brought about a complete transformation in the relationship of people to God that eventually provided the moral code we have today.
By rendering unto God our lives and devotion to his word and to the example of Jesus, we may then render correctly unto Caesar our desire to improve the world as individual people.
Let us pray:
May God grant us the courage and the patience to live and follow his word in the world and work for its expression in all we do. Amen.
// posted by Bill @ 5:37 PM 
