Rendering ourselves, our souls and bodies unto God

Can you imagine it today?  Imagine a great banquet of various political and church leaders, perhaps a prayer breakfast at the Capitol.  Gathered are leaders of the political parties, government officials, the wealthiest lobbyists, and some of the most influential religious leaders.  Into this august gathering, a social media prophet who is considered by the establishment to be a red-neck rebel rouser comes in, all ‘Occupy Wall Street’ style, turning over some tables, calling those at the head table hypocrites, and grabbing the microphone he stands before the TV cameras proclaiming that country will be taken from them and given to the common folk and that foreigners and sinners will enter the kingdom of heaven before they do. 

Now imagine that, surprisingly, both a leading Republican and a leading Democrat join forces side-by-side and approach the trouble-maker with insincere smiles on their faces and with a question that they both hope will entrap him in the public eye, “Should we continue to pay taxes to support this government?” 

The crowds have gathered and millions are watching on TV.  If he answers “yes”, his credibility will be lost with the crowds who see him as a messianic social prophet.  If he answers “no”, he will be viewed as seditious and they might try him for treason.

Avoiding their trap and wishing to raise the stakes of this game, he asks them to pull out the common currency of the day and says to them, “Show me the money.  Tell me what is on it.”

They reply, “Images of the United States of America, indication that this is a Federal Reserve Note, and the saying ‘In God We Trust.’”

The prophet then says to everyone listening, “then tender this paper to the reserve to which it says it belongs while rendering unto God all that belong to God.”

In today’s Gospel lesson, when the Pharisees and Herodians confronted Jesus with the question about paying taxes to the Emperor, the scene was the same.  The meaning of the tricky answer that Jesus gives them is something for us to continue to pray about.

“Give… to the emperor the things that are the emperor’s, and to God the things that are God’s”

As hasty interpretation might simply ponder a separation of church and state (a concept that would have been hard to imagine at the time Jesus spoke these words), or that Jesus was simply saying that we should strive to balance being a good citizen of the earthly empire while also being a faithful subject of God’s kingdom.  And, in fact, that’s probably what many of us hear in the story and what some of us have struggled with at times when our allegiance to capitalism and/or our democratic federal republic conflicts with our commitment to the revolutionary gospel of Christ which challenges conventional notions about wealth and social order (just as it did in the 1^st Century).  

However, Jesus might be highlighting a higher call that puts even our governments and the vast storehouses of gold in humble perspective.

Our discernment both about what is of God as well as how to faithfully utilize of our wealth and political influence should be continually offered up in prayer.

To help fuel some prayerful reflection this week, let’s consider some of what we’re told our Lord has said about money and wealth as well as what we’re told belongs to and should be offered to God.

It’s been said that Jesus preaches more about money and wealth than any other topic other than the kingdom of God (and sometimes addresses both in his parables).  We could occupy at least the rest of the day exploring what Jesus says about material wealth.  For our purposes this morning, let’s just hear again three sayings of Jesus from earlier in the Gospel of Matthew:

(Matthew 6:19-24) Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth… where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. No one can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the other, or be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.

(Matthew 19:21) If you wish to be perfect, go, sell you possessions, and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.

(Matthew 19:24) …it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.

Hear what the Spirit is saying to God’s people… particularly the part about you can’t serve both wealth and God.  The possession of material wealth that is not the problem for Jesus… it’s our obsession with it and our misplaced trust in it (neither belongs in God’s kingdom).  Christ compels us to reconsider the nature of true wealth and to more generously and charitably share our earthly possessions as good neighbors to those have the least.

Give to God the things that are God’s.  What are the things that are God’s which we are to hand over / to offer up?

On the Roman coin is the image of the emperor from which is came – offer that imprinted image back to the one who minted it.  Upon our very being is the image of God from which we come, for we’re told that we’re created in the image of God (Genesis1:27; 5:1).  How are we to offer ourselves back to our creator?

Our scriptures tell us in many ways that all things come from and belong to God – even the emperor and his coins. E.g., “…for all things come from you, and of your own have we given you.” (1 Chronicles 29:14)

The primary Jewish declaration of faith and pledge of allegiance to God, known as the Shema, says that the lord our God is one and that we are to love God will all our heart, soul, and might.

In Paul’s letter to the Romans (Rom 12:1), he encourages the offering of our bodies as living sacrifices to God.  Thomas Cranmer adapted this in the Eucharistic Prayer found in Rite 1 which reads, “…here we offer and present unto thee, O Lord, our selves, our souls and bodies…”.

And, sometimes as we prepare for the Holy Communion you might hear the priest say, quoting from today’s Psalm, “Ascribe to the LORD the honor due his Name; bring offerings and come into his courts” (Psalm 96:8). This alludes to the tradition of offering the best of our harvest – our first fruits from our vineyards – to God (Lev 23:9-14; Deut 26:1-11) as acknowledgement that all good things come to us from God, a sign that everything ultimately belongs to God, and a gesture expressing our trust in God’s continuing provision for us.

The theme here is that we, and everything around us, is God’s creation and that we’re to offer all of who we are to God’s service.  Jesus has shown us how to do this… and although he says his yoke is light, the labor is challenging indeed, if we take it seriously.

We are laborers in vineyards that have been leased to us by God.  We’re told to harvest the best fruits of the Spirit (E.g., Galatians 5:22-23) and to render them first to God, then to our neighbors (Matt 22: 36-40), trusting that there is plenty in the kingdom to go around.

Sometime later today, look again at the currency in your pocket and prayerfully consider what it represents in God’s economy (not in ours).  It’s not only your daily bread, but also an opportunity to express unreasonable generosity and charity toward others (as God has shown toward us). 

When you next handle your money, in whatever form, ask yourself what it might mean to more truly and full render our trust to God and God’s kingdom rather than any earthly reserve.  

Ask yourself what belongs to God and what should be given to God for the sake of the new kingdom to come.

Let’s close with these words attributed to a Serbian Orthodox Bishop in the late 1920’s: 

Render sacrifice to God; a sacrifice of gratitude,
O you wealthy ones; according to God's mercy!

Who is wealthy and with what; with that let him barter,
Everyone with his gift; let him, the Kingdom acquire.

Whoever is wealthy with money; let him money, offer,
Whoever is rich with wheat; wheat let him distribute,
To whom wisdom is given; others, let him teach,
To him whose hands are strong; let him perform service.

Whoever knows a trade; let him honorably uphold it,
Let him conscientiously consider himself as a debtor of God.

Let him, who knows how to sing; praise God,
Only he is small, who does not know God.

Whoever received what; with that let him serve,
With mercy toward men; let him repay God,
Not all are the same, nor do all possess the same,
But a pure heart, everyone could give to God….

AMEN