Difference between revisions of "Sermon for November 17th, 2019"

Revision as of 18:41, 16 November 2019

Mark 12:13–17 (NT p.49)

13 Then they sent to him some Pharisees and some Herodians to trap him in what he said. 14 And they came and said to him, “Teacher, we know that you are sincere, and show deference to no one; for you do not regard people with partiality, but teach the way of God in accordance with truth. Is it lawful to pay taxes to the emperor, or not? 15 Should we pay them, or should we not?” But knowing their hypocrisy, he said to them, “Why are you putting me to the test? Bring me a denarius and let me see it.” 16 And they brought one. Then he said to them, “Whose head is this, and whose title?” They answered, “The emperor’s.” 17 Jesus said to them, “Give to the emperor the things that are the emperor’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” And they were utterly amazed at him.

Coins: Render Unto Caesar

When I was in high school, my favorite type of exam was the kind with True or False questions. Even if you didn't study, you still had a 50% chance of getting those questions right. So in that spirit, I've decided to give you a "pop quiz" true or false style. If you think the answer to a question is "True" I want you to give me the thumbs up sign. If you think the anwer is "False," give me the thumbs down sign. Oh, and the subject of the exam is...you. So it should be easy, right? Here we go...

True or False: Breakfast is my favorite meal of the day. True or False: True or False: I regret my decision to cheat on my spouse. True or False: I no longer lock innocent children in my basement. True or False: My answer to this question will be false.

• WHO ARE YOU INDEBTED TO?

• In a chapter about the word battle between Jesus and the religious leaders
• Stories of entrapment, but Jesus always finds a clever way out.
• Who are you in this story? A Pharisee (religious fundamentalist)? A Herodian (Roman sympathizers)? The "they" who sent the leaders? Jesus? The Emperor?
• Relevance to my life
• watch out for people who begin with flattery.
• Tertullian, in De Idololatria, interprets Jesus as saying to render "the image of Caesar, which is on the coin, to Caesar, and the image of God, which is on man, to God; so as to render to Caesar indeed money, to God yourself. Otherwise, what will be God's, if all things are Caesar's?"
• Henry David Thoreau: "Render therefore to Caesar that which is Caesar's and to God those things which are God's" – leaving them no wiser than before as to which was which; for they did not wish to know.
• Ghandi - "Jesus evaded the direct question put to him because it was a trap. He was in no way bound to answer it. He therefore asked to see the coin for taxes. And then said with withering scorn, "How can you who traffic in Caesar's coins and thus receive what to you are benefits of Caesar's rule refuse to pay taxes?" Jesus' whole preaching and practice point unmistakably to noncooperation, which necessarily includes nonpayment of taxes.
• Render...does it mean "give" or "give BACK"?
• Indebtedness. You are already in debt to Caesar (clearly you have his coin). Are you also in debt to God?
• Story, Statistics, Next Steps
• What's the most important thing to you? Give to that. Or....look at where you spend your money, and that's the most important thing to you.