Matthew 22:15-22
I think we all have a
sense of who the Pharisees are. They are the canon lawyers of the faith; they
know all the traditions, all the interpretations of scripture, and can be
counted on to provide rulings for new situations. If cell phones were introduced
into their world, they would be able to tell us how and when they should be
used, and when to leave them home. The Pharisees have a reputation of wanting
to preserve the present social order by caring more about the letter of the law
than the spirit of the law.
The Herodians were a
political or religious party that supported King Herod Antipas, who reigned
because of his allegiance to Rome. To not support Rome would immediately bring
the might of the Roman army upon the Jewish people, so it was expedient that
they support Herod. Most of the people hated the Romans, however, and therefore
they also hated the Herodians. The Herodians saw no conflict between the purity
of the Jewish faith and the idol worship of Rome.
It is strange that
these two groups so opposed to each other have united in the effort to get rid
of Jesus. Yet, here they are, asking Jesus about the imperial tax. This tax
supports the Roman presence in Jerusalem. It’s like paying the jailer to keep
you in jail.
The Pharisees and the
Herodians ask Jesus the question, “Is it lawful to pay taxes to the emperor?”
It’s a trap, of course. If Jesus says he supports paying the tax, then he
favors the Herodians. If he says the tax is unlawful, then there is risk of
all-out war, because the people will stop paying the tax, and Rome will not
like that at all.
Jesus wisely
sidesteps the trap. He asks to see a coin and asks whose image is on the coin.
Of course, the image is that of Tiberius, the current emperor. Then Jesus
answers the question by saying, “Give to the emperor that which is the emperor’s,
and give to God that which is God’s.” This answer throws the question right
back at the Pharisees and the Herodians, who walk away, stumped once again by
Jesus.
What was Jesus really
saying? Was he saying that it was right to pay taxes? Or was he saying to give
everything to God? We still don’t know. Except, we do know that everything we
have comes from God. There is a Native American saying: “We do not inherit the
earth from our ancestors. We are borrowing it from our children.” We do not own
anything. It all belongs to God, who allows us to use it.
Astronaut Chris
Hadfield has been on TV recently promoting his book An Astronaut’s Guide to Life on Earth. While on the International
Space Station, he took about 45,000 photos of the earth. He has edited them
down to fit in a fabulous new book. Seeing the earth from outer space changed
his perspective on life on earth, he says. His photos stand as a reminder of both the magnificence
and fragility of life on our planet. Hadfield says, “To have the world on one side,
like this huge kaleidoscope, and then the bottomlessness of the Universe right
there beside you, [makes you realize] you’re not on the world looking at it.
You’re in the Universe with the world.” It’s all about our perspective. The earth is
the Lord’s, and God shares it with us.
Since Jesus was
talking about money, and this is pledge season, let’s talk about money. We are
tempted to believe that we have what we have because of our own hard work. But
the origin of all that we have is God and God’s generosity to us.
The way we think
about money reflects our relationship with God. At the council meeting, we
discussed this passage as part of our opening devotions. The question was
raised if we should calculate the amount we give to God on our net – after-tax
– income, or on our gross income.
If everything we have
belongs to God, why would we not calculate our own giving on everything God has
given us, in other words, on our gross income? Giving generously to the church
allows us to give back to God almost as generously as God gives to us.
… On American coins
are images of dead presidents and some words. There is the value of the coin or
paper money, serial numbers, other images, and a motto. What is the motto? … In God
we trust. … The question I have for you is: Do we really trust God with our
money? If we really trust God, we will
have no problem giving it away, because we trust that God will make sure we
have what we need and more.
The Pharisees and the
Herodians ask Jesus a question. Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar? Their
assumption was that people give a tithe to God and much more with all the
special offerings. People pretty much had no choice but to give these
offerings, because everybody knew everybody else’s business. The Pharisees and Herodians
are really wondering, “If they pay the taxes, will there be enough left to be
able to afford the basics, food, clothing, sandals?” For many people, the
answer was, “Barely.”
For us today it’s the
opposite. We begin by assuming that we must pay our taxes, federal, state,
sales, transportation, liquor, hotel. We have no choice but to pay these taxes.
We benefit from them, of course, with roads and schools and police and fire
protection, Medicare, CDC, clean water, trash disposal, military, and so forth.
By the time we pay
these taxes, for many folks there is not a lot left for food, clothing,
housing, transportation, communication, and medical care. Can we afford to go
to college, many young people ask. How, then, can we afford to give anything to
God?
There are some folks
here who give significant amounts to Hope. There are many here who give
generously, based on their own financial situations, though those amounts are
not significant compared to others. And there are folks here who give a few
dollars, just to give something.
When we give to God what
is left after the bills and taxes and living expenses are paid, we are saying
that we don’t really trust God. Our relationship with money should reflect our
relationship with God, putting God first and money second. But it is usually
the other way around. Our relationship with God reflects our relationship with
money. We put the money first and God second. God wants us to put God first,
and to consider how we are using the money God has given us.
So, here’s what I
want you to do. I had the ushers hand out some cross stickers. I’d like you to
put the stickers on your credit cards, so that every time you use them, you are
reminded that everything you have comes from God.
Let the crosses on
your cards be a reminder to give thanks for what the taxes provide for us, and give
thanks that you can afford to pay those taxes.
Let the crosses on
your cards remind you to be as generous with what you have as God is. Never
forget that you cannot possibly out-give God.
Turn in your commitment cards, and consider them
a promise to support Hope and the ministries we do here. If things in your life
change, and you need to reduce or raise your giving amount, that’s ok. The amounts
on the commitment cards allow us to produce a ministry spending plan, telling
us how much we can pay staff, how much utilities will cost, how much paper and
copier costs will be, and so forth. The commitment cards also tell us how much
we can give away.
Please pray with me. Giving, generous God, you
give us more than we need. Help us to share what we have with others, and learn
to truly trust you. Amen
