SERMON SERIES: Follow Jesus

SERMON TEXT: Mark 12.13-17

SERMON TITLE: Death & Taxes

SERMON STYLE: Buttrick’s “Three Moves” (visuals here used on screen in worship)

DEATH & TAXES

We’ve said previously that Mark’s Gospel has multiple “controversy” stories that follow a basic formula: (1) Jesus is questioned (2) Jesus responds (usually with a question or an example and (3) Jesus makes a “ruling” on the matter.  Today’s passage is one such story.  It begins: Is it right to pay taxes?  It’s still a good question. It is still relevant to our lives: How involved should a Christian get with politics? What’s the Christian’s relationship to the world? Whether we like or not, we all ask and answer that question every day. How we answer the question often reveals our true allegiances. It’s inevitable.  

Perhaps that’s why the Pharisees and Herodians choose this moment to come together to try to trap Jesus with another impossible scenario. It’s taken them awhile, the last time they joined forces was Mark 3.6 when they decided they needed to kill him. To put this into perspective – this is like Ted Cruz and Bernie Sanders joining forces to attack Pope Francis. They hated each other, but Jesus was a threat to them both. They try to soften him up: “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”  – perhaps they believe flattery will cause him to slip up. If he denies the tax – he’ll be accused of insurrection against the emperor. If he agrees with the tax – he will alienate the poor, marginalized people who follow him – because, as if often still the case today – taxation was regressive, often leaving the poor worse off than before. Out of all the questions they’ve tried to trap him with, taxation was the one most likely to force Jesus to reveal his allegiance. It was inevitable.

It was Ben Franklin who quipped: In this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes. As you may know, my first paying job was as a caddie. I held this job from the age of 13-15. Every time I worked I was paid in cash. My first “paycheck” job was at a Pizza shop called Donatos. My starting wage was a massive $4.15/hr. I worked 20 hours and expected to receive a check of $83. It was considerably less – due to something called “FICA.” It was one of the first times in my life I realized I wasn’t fully free. Everything comes with a cost. 

Jesus says: Show me the coin. Who’s face is on that coin? They produce a coin with an image of Caesar enthroned as a God.The Herodians benefitted from political alliance with Rome. The Pharisees benefitted from Rome’s economic system. Their hands are already dirty. They were compromised. They weren’t free. Everything comes with a cost.  Jesus answer recognizes this inevitability in our human situation. In this world, we are shaped by forces, seen an unseen that influence the way we speak, the way we act, the way we think, the way we spend, the way we vote, the way we raise children, the way we work, the way we love. You think you’re free? You think you can have something without cost?  It’s not possible. We are compromised. Our hands are dirty. We benefit from the political and economic system in America without ever asking: “Should we?” Jesus’ response doesn’t allow any of us to get away free and clean. The first step in recovery from this is to admit we have a problem greater than ourselves and that we are powerless to do anything about it by ourselves. Our complicity is inevitable. 

We benefit from the political and economic system in America without ever asking: Should we? Click To Tweet

RENDER UNTO CAESAR

Unless we believe in fate and simply accept our lot in life, the question of our relationship with the world needs resolution. On the surface, Jesus’ answer sounds clean – a nice “separation of church & state” solution. Indeed, the text is most often interpreted in this way. It’s the theory that life can be separated into two categories – sacred and secular.  On one side of the equation, there are things that have to do with God. Church things. One the other side of the equation, there is “the stuff of this life” secular things, or for old Nazarenes “worl-ly things” (like makeup). The sacred & the secular either don’t mix at all or it’s the job of the sacred to conquer the secular and create a kind of theocracy. These two ideas are always in tension.

I first became aware of this tension through the great evangelical Amy Grant scandal of 1991. For those of you alive during this time, you’ll remember that Amy was the DARLING of the evangelical music industry. Talented and spiritual, every song she sang went to the top of the Christian music charts. Every girl in every youth group sang an Amy Grant solo (usually: She’s Got Her Father’s Eyes) for the special song in church on Sunday.  Then one day it happened. Amy released a SECULAR LOVE SONG titled “Baby, Baby” that found its way on to the SECULAR TOP 40 chart.  Almost overnight, the darling of Christian contemporary music became (for many) like The Morningstar who fell from heaven to earth! She went from saint to sinner for some because she mixed with the “secular” world. For a few, Amy was applauded for “using her Christian influence” to affect the secular world for Jesus. Both responses stem from the same fundamental misunderstanding. 

Jesus saw through the hypocrisy and attempt to trap him. Jesus was not advocating compromise with Rome; nor was he advocating straightforward revolution. Rome has some authority in some matters, but God has final authority in all matters. The previous parable highlights the refusal of the wicked tenants to give God what rightfully belongs to him. Jesus’ ultimate concern was faithfulness in all matters, putting God first. They are robbing God. 

GIVE TO GOD WHAT’S GOD’S

This compartmentalization of faith into “sacred” and “secular” categories results in frustration and failure. There’s actually an implied question behind Jesus’ answer: What doesn’t belong to God? Jesus’ answer isn’t “What is Caesar’s” VS. “What’s God’s” but rather – WHAT ISN’T GOD’S? 

The earth is the Lord’s and all that is in it, the world, and those who live in it” (Ps. 24.1) echoed by Paul’s assertion that in God “we live and move and have our being.”  For Jesus, faithfulness to God’s reign means living by values different from those of the political rebels but also different from the collaborating politicians. Jesus doesn’t deal in the categories of sacred OR secular, but rather, he reveals a sacramental Reality. The presence, love, and grace of God are not distant things but realities all around us every day. Jesus asserts that it all belongs to God, God is involved in all of it, and his people are to live in such a way to testify to this reality. 

Jesus' answer isn't 'What's Caesar's' VS 'What's God's' but rather - WHAT ISN'T GOD's? Click To Tweet

NOT UNLIKE THE IMAGE (ICON) on the coin in the story – The CHURCH has an IMAGE (ICON) of reality that we participate in weekly. The Eucharist is our weekly reminder that we belong to a sacramental reality. We believe in God’s active presence in our world – redeeming, reconciling, renewing. We are the body of Christ broken and made whole, a tangible conduit of grace in this world. Our allegiance is to this image of Christ. The old saying is true. You are what you eat.

Christian authorJames. K.A. Smith says: “We go out into the world with the knowledge that we are to be servants to the world by showing what redeemed community and culture look like, as modeled by the One whose cultural work led Him to the cross. In short, we are sent out into the world to be martyrs, witnesses of the Crucified One.” To be a Christian in this world means we actively engage in counter-formation.  We engage in practices and beliefs that shape our understanding of reality. We do odd things like set aside time to gather together for worship and declare our allegiance to Jesus Christ alone. We promote peace, not division.  We seek to serve, instead of seeking to be served. We offer forgiveness, whether or not it is deserved.  We refuse to believe that our net-worth defines our self-worth. We don’t feel the need to keep up with the Joneses because they Joneses have no idea where they’re going. We see our lives as conduits of grace. We invite people to belong to this reality.  We give our lives willingly – as martyrs  (literally and figuratively) because as we know in baptism, we’re already died with Christ & will be raised up with Him. For those who have died to self, it is inevitable. Remember Church – you are what you eat. AMEN.