Pentecost 21A2023
Matthew 22:15-22
Today, the Pharisees and Herodians, with syrupy sweetness, say to Jesus: We know you are sincere and teach the way of God in accordance with the truth. Is it lawful to pay taxes to the emperor, or not?
With these words, the Pharisees and Herodians set a trap for Jesus. These two groups are unlikely allies: the Pharisees, experts in Jewish law, and the Herodians, a political party aligning with the Roman Empire. They ask: Is it lawful to pay taxes to the emperor, or not? But in reality, they are asking: To whom are you loyal, Jesus?
In a tense moment, Jesus is set up to choose a side: God or the emperor. If he chooses God—as he must—the Herodians will name him a traitor of the empire, an anti-imperial revolutionary, and his choice will be a sure way to hasten his death. If he chooses the emperor—as he must—the Pharisees will name him a fraud and call out his disingenuous teaching—for Jesus preaches loyalty to God alone. Who is Jesus to choose?
The gospel writer Matthew tells us Jesus is “aware of their malice.” So he cleverly responds with a “both/and” by saying: Give to the emperor the things that are the emperor’s and to God the things that are God’s. His response is clever because Jesus, apparently, chooses neither God nor the emperor. And Jesus, apparently, disses neither God nor the emperor. Jesus does not give them a right answer. Instead, Jesus invites those who listen to him to determine for themselves what things are the emperor’s and what things are God’s—to them.
So do we get to determine. In what situations and under what circumstances are we loyal to God? What of our lives belongs to God? Could there be something in our lives that does not belong to God?
I know those questions sound big and philosophical and lofty, but they are real and true and particular. Can I really say that some part of my life is off-limits to God? That my loyalty to God is simply impractical on some fronts? Sure, I’m loyal to God when it comes to salvation and questions of ultimate meaning, but loyalty to God when facing financial decisions or business decisions or all the pragmatic decisions in life just isn’t practical, we might quite reasonably say.
I too struggle with this in real and true and particular ways. Now over ten years ago, I had a conversation with Pastor Mary Louise Frenchman, the mission developer of Native American Urban Ministry which is hosted by Grace Lutheran Church in downtown Phoenix. Because she and I crossed paths nearly every day, I had noticed that she let people in her congregation, Native American Urban Ministry or NAUM, borrow her car. You understand, most of the people who are part of NAUM are living in poverty, a good portion of the congregation experiencing homelessness. So, most people walk or take the bus to come to worship. But when folks had medical appointments or job interviews or other important meetings, she would sometimes let people borrow her car. I would see her hand her keys to people, and I would wonder: Is that a good idea? Isn’t she worried someone will steal her car or get in an accident? It bothered me, so I asked her about it one day. And she said to me: “I figure, God gave me the car so that I could share it with others. It’s really God’s car, and I’m just the steward of it.” To Pastor Mary Louise, her car, the one given to her by God, was not off-limits to God and God’s purpose. How she used her car was a matter of faith.
Today, Jesus says: Give to the emperor the things that are the emperor’s and to God the things that are God’s. A few words that radically reorient us for Jesus implies, perhaps without the Pharisees and Herodians noticing, that everything is God’s, that there is no matter under heaven that is off-limits to God and God’s purpose.
As you know, we are now in the midst of our annual stewardship appeal, the time during the year when we consider how we will use our financial resources to support the mission of God here at Esperanza. We all know the stewardship appeal is a tough needle to thread. In US culture, though or perhaps because we prioritize financial gain over any other goal, we struggle to talk openly about how we use our financial resources. We don’t want to guilt anyone for not giving enough because that’s not kind or generous or productive. We also don’t want to let each other off the hook, mostly because we have a mission plan—what we used to call a budget—to fund and pass come January’s congregational meeting. In the stewardship appeal, we are asking something truly difficult of each other: that we all let go of control of how our money is used here at Esperanza and leave its use up to God and how God moves us as a community to do God’s work with our hands. But more than that, what each year’s stewardship appeal challenges us, fundamentally, to consider is: What has God got to do with my finances? Sometimes, we are annoyed by church leaders who ask for our money. I have heard many stories throughout the years of people hurt by and angry with pastors who “just want my money.” Just as with any institution, the leaders of the church can be corrupt or misguided or simply indelicate. Regardless, God does have something to do with our finances! How we use our money is a matter of faith.
Here in the US circa 2023, we do not have an emperor, but there are institutions and leaders, brands and even ideologies that fight for our loyalty. We probably all have divided loyalties. We might be loyal to a sports team or to an author, musician, or celebrity whose work we laud regardless of what they say or do. We might be loyal to a political party or particular politician. We might be loyal to an ideology or identity or way of life, so much that regardless of the consequences, we will not question the wisdom of this or that way of thinking or being. Of course, we have divided loyalties. Of course, there are aspects of our lives we are going to be unable to consider as matters of faith, the way I struggled with how Pastor Mary Louise stewarded her car.
The good news is that God’s loyalties are not divided in any such way. When God made the covenant with Sarai and Abram in Genesis, when God reaffirmed the covenant time and again as God walked with the judges, kings, and prophets, when God became flesh and lived among us, when God sent the Spirit on Pentecost and then poured it out on us in baptism, God made clear that God’s loyalties are not divided. God is loyal to the covenant, to the promises God has made us. We are God’s people, and God is our God. No matter what we do. Regardless of where our loyalty lies. Jesus invites us to give back to God what is God’s because we ourselves are and always will be God’s people. Thanks be to God! Amen.