21^st October 2011

Rev Dr Max Champion at St John's UCA Mt Waverley Sunday 16 October 2011

Lessons -- Psalm 24; Romans 13:1-7; Matthew 22:15-22

Jesus said to them, 'Give to Caesar the things that belong to Caesar
and to God the things that are God's.' (Matthew 22:21)

Jesus infuriated people who questioned him only in order to discredit him.
He refused to get embroiled in their religious and political squabbles. He so unnerved conservatives and progressives alike that, at the end of this series of disputes, we learn that from that time 'no one was able to answer him a word and no one dared to ask him any more questions' (22:46).

Jesus saw through the slyness, insincerity and malice of people who, to protect their self-interest, pretended to be interested in him. That is why he accused them of hypocrisy. They are not sincere.

As we know, religion and politics are touchy subjects. Jesus'
interrogators understood this very well. So they formed a coalition of self-interest, chose a controversial issue and devised a clever strategy.

* The Pharisees and Herodians are 'strange bedfellows'. They are political enemies. The former were staunch defenders of Jewish faith against pagan Roman rule; the latter were Jewish supporters of stable Roman rule. Though they hated each other, they forge an 'unholy alliance' against this troublemaker. A painting by Masaccio in 1427 depicts members of each party shaking hands in the background to the dispute. It is a case of 'the enemy of my enemy is my friend'.

* This 'odd couple' set out to trap Jesus. They try to 'butter him up' by praising his integrity for acting 'without fear or favour' of what others may think. They flatter him for being a person who does not take notice of flattery! What a brilliant tactic!

* Then they choose a hotly-debated issue that is certain to land Jesus in trouble. Payment of the annual poll-tax was unpopular with both God- fearing, law- abiding Jews and freedom fighters. They regarded it as an unconscionable compromise with pagan culture. It was supported though by Jews grateful for the relative peace under Roman rule.

In this highly charged atmosphere they try to put Jesus in a 'no-win'
situation. If he says, 'Pay the tax,' then he will be disowned by devout Jews as a supporter of pagan religion and God's enemy. He will lose credibility as the prophetic Son of God. If he says, 'Don't pay the tax,'
he will be disowned by civic-minded Jews as an enemy of the State. He will be arrested for inciting rebellion. Either way, he is in deep trouble!

Jesus foils their attempt to outsmart him. Before answering, he poses a question of his own. He questions their integrity. Why are you interested in this? He accuses them of 'hypocrisy' (v18) because they do not really want to know whether he is 'conservative' or 'progressive' in his views.
These sworn enemies simply want to discredit him.

His answer is more brilliant than their strategy. 'Give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to God.' Pay the tax and obey God. There is a place for fulfilling civic duties and for obeying God.

At first glance though this looks cowardly -- a clever way of wriggling out of a tight situation while 'sitting on the fence'. But on closer inspection his profound answer is precisely what we need to hear to enable us to live responsibly in the world before God.

Jesus' enigmatic reply has shaped the history of relations between Church and State in countries where Christianity has been widely accepted. It has often been interpreted to mean that there should be a sharp separation between the 'spiritual' and the 'temporal'. It is often said that 'politics and religion do not mix'. Unseemly clashes between Emperors and Popes are thought to prove that the Church should not meddle in politics and the State should not meddle in the Church. Keep them separate!

This is not what Jesus meant by his puzzling answer. He assumes that the State has an important but limited role in shaping human society. Money is needed, even by pagan rulers, to see that people are well governed. But this does not mean the State can act with impunity.

Despite many attempts in history to do so, this text and the one in Romans cannot be used to justify tyranny. Rulers are to be given their due when they recognise the proper limits of their authority. However, there is no joy for rulers and citizens who think they have a Divine Right to do whatever they like and whose inhuman policies show contempt for the fact
that 'the earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof' (Psalm 24).

But neither is there joy for freedom fighters (Zealots) or religious purists (Pharisees) who oppose the State in principle. They are rightly aghast at the blasphemy of the Emperor. The coin that Jesus used was not only engraved with the head of Tiberius Caesar, but with words in praise of his divinity. So the Pharisees were right to challenge idolatry! Indeed Jesus agrees with them in rejecting the attribution of divinity to the Caesars of this world. Giving them their due means not ascribing to them divine authority. That belongs to God alone. However, as God has appointed rulers to a specific task, they were wrong to think that those who govern us should be opposed in everything.

Throughout history this text has caused debate and led to terrible conflicts as Church and State have battled to establish their proper authority.

It is clear from the text that Jesus does not support the establishment of a theocratic State where God's law is supreme. He does not provide a basis for creating a 'Christian Empire', a 'Religious State of Israel' or a 'Holy Islamic State'. But neither does he set down a 'Christian Manifesto'
or 'Universal Principles of Social Justice' that should be enshrined in every society. We are not given guidance about who to vote for in an election or which particular policies we should support.

In fact, his instruction to 'give to God what belongs to God' is very short on detail. This is so much so that Jesus' clever reply does not seem to be much use in helping us to make complex political decisions.

But Jesus is most helpful precisely because he does not lay out a grand program of political and religious action. Instead, he urges us to take responsibility in the world -- without being deceived by unrealistic political or religious hopes -- knowing that 'the earth is the Lord's'. It belongs to the One whose costly love has triumphed over evil in Christ Jesus, the Lord.

It is a pity that, on one hand, Church leaders often seem to think that political action is the most important kind of action and, on the other, that Christians often take no interest in politics. It is just as serious to ignore what secular rulers are doing as to try to impose on them a Christian program.

It is enough to be a strong 'Christian presence': to refuse to let politicians and Church leaders 'play God', to encourage them to govern well in their own spheres of authority and to testify to the incomparable grace-and-goodness of God for all -- Jew and pagan alike -- in Jesus Christ.

In pointing to him, we should not forget that he is not the 'Jesus' who fulfils our religious and political preferences but the 'Christ' who infuriates and bewilders us in the way he answers our questions -- by questioning us! Where we want clear answers to complex questions about religion and politics, he gives us a challenging vocation. Where we want him to endorse our conservative or progressive values, he unsettles us
all.

However, in the process of shaking our religious and political certainties and exposing our self-interest, he frees us to participate in our worldly tasks without having illusions about ourselves or our leaders. We are free to 'pay taxes' to the State and to 'worship God alone'. We are free to work out what this means in every concrete situation.

No wonder that, despite themselves, the scheming Herodians and Pharisees 'marvelled' at Jesus' brilliant and cutting answer to their question. But what a pity that, instead of becoming his disciples, they 'left him and went away' (v22). Unnerved by his exposure of their 'hypocrisy' and 'malice' (v18) and astonished by his clever reply, they do what so many others do. They walk away.

It is the natural human thing to do! But it is not the way to serve the 'Lord of the earth' with gladness, as we are privileged and duty-bound to do as members of the Body of Christ. For the incarnate, crucified, risen and ascended Jesus is the Lord of all nations and the Head of the Church.

That being so, it is imperative today that we ask whether dramatic social changes, such as the redefinition of marriage, belong to Caesar or to God.
Neither the State nor the Church has the authority to enact laws that clearly are contrary to God's good purposes for our lives, as affirmed by Christ. May we not walk away from the 'Lord of the earth' on this or any other matter that demeans our God-given dignity!

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Rev Dr Max Champion is minister in the St John's Uniting Church, Mt Waverley, Victoria, Australia.

Dr Champion is Chair of the Assembly of Confessing Congregations within the UCA.