Sermon on Matthew 22:34-46

Pastor Jennifer Garcia

We humans like rules.

We may say we don’t, but there’s a lot to like about rules.

It can be satisfying to make rules that others have to follow—ask any kid playing “Simon says.” It makes life easier if others play by our rules.Whether we’re deciding “no shoes in the house” because it makes cleaning the floor easier or “no phones at the dinner table” because it opens us and our families up to more conversation and connection, setting rules can make our lives easier and better.

It can also be fun to find loopholes for rules. How fun was it as a kid to annoy your sibling or a friend by getting all up in their face and saying, “I’m not touching you”? Honoring the letter but not the spirit of a rule can make us feel clever while still getting what we want.

It can even be enjoyable to break rules.For example, as author Douglas Adams wrote, “I love deadlines. I love the whooshing noise they make as they fly by.” There’s something intoxicating about “sticking it to the man” and disregarding others’ rules.

And for those rules we do follow, or at least try to follow, they can make our world simpler to understand. They keep our world in tidy boxes. I can only go this far before breaking a rule. If someone breaks a law, then they are a criminal, unlike me. And that red light I ran? It was only orange. I definitely obey the law. And I get to keep my concept of self and my orderly understanding of the world intact.

These are the very human games the Pharisees are playing,“Let’s trap this upstart rabbi into discrediting himself so that our understanding of the world will stay intact. He’s causing too much trouble, so let’s get him to say the wrong thing or break a rule so that we can quiet all this down and get back to business as usual.”

It's so human. We want rules that keep our lives simple. We want to understand the world in broad strokes: things are either this or that, with no gray area in between. Toddlers want rules—they test boundaries to make sure they understand how far they can go. Grown-ups aren’t much different.

And God gave us rules. God gave Moses the Law. God taught God’s people how to live in community.

Jesus sums it all up in our reading today: love God and love your neighbor.

It all comes down to love.

God’s Law is summed up by love. That’s what God wrote on the hearts of our ancestors in faith in our first reading from Jeremiah. Love.

Butfar too often, too many of us humans use the letter of God’s Law as a weapon to harm our neighbor instead of using the spirit of God’s Law to love them. People use the letter of God’s Law to bludgeon our LGBTQ siblings or to justify violence. That’s not love. But it’s way easier to quote the Bible to justify our own actions than it is to live our lives dedicated to the well-being of every single one of our neighbors—our Muslim neighbors, our Jewish neighbors, our atheist neighbors, our trans neighbors, our addicted neighbors, our neighbors who seem unfriendly or even hostile toward us.

But the spirit of God’s Law is love.

We also remember today, though, that it is not God’s Law that saves us, but God’s grace, as Martin Luther reminded the Church of his day over 500 years ago.

We humans want rules—rules to enforce, bend, and even break. But God gives us grace.

That is our starting point. That is what matters more than anything else. We cry for rules, and God says, “I created you. I love you. There is nothing you can do to make me love you any more or any less. I love you for every bit of who you are, because I am who I am.”

God’s Law is love, because God is love. And it is God’s grace that sets us free to strive for love in this world. And God’s grace is what God wraps us in like a blanket when we miss the mark. And God loves us through it all.

Today marks the 35th anniversary of Pastor Greg’s ordination. Pastor Greg has spent 35-plus years preaching God’s grace and love in his words and actions. What a gift!

And we now prepare for him to follow God’s call to do ministry in new ways apart from this immediate community. It’s okay if our feelings are mixed. We can be happy for his exciting new chapter and also sad that we will be losing his gifts and vision and leadership and friendship in this place.

We can celebrate his 35 years of ordained ministry and mourn that they will continue elsewhere.

God is with us in all of it—joy and grief, love and loss.

We can give thanks that we have been collaborators with Pastor Greg in the ministry the Holy Spirit is up to here at First Lutheran and in Fullerton.

And we get to carry on the legacy of God’s love that Pastor Greg has shared with so many in this place.

We will carry that love forward into the world as we discern where God is leading this congregation in this new chapter.

Whatever God is leading us to, it will be full of God’s grace and love. Because that’s who God is and who we are created to be.

First Lutheran Church

October 22, 2023 + The Twenty-First Sunday in Pentecost A

Matthew 22:15-22 + 15Then the Pharisees went and plotted to entrap [Jesus] in what he said. 16So they sent their disciples to him, along with the Herodians, saying, “Teacher, we know that you are sincere, and teach the way of God in accordance with truth, and show deference to no one; for you do not regard people with partiality. 17Tell us, then, what you think. Is it lawful to pay taxes to the emperor, or not?” 18But Jesus, aware of their malice, said, “Why are you putting me to the test, you hypocrites? 19Show me the coin used for the tax.” And they brought him a denarius. 20Then he said to them, “Whose head is this, and whose title?” 21They answered, “The emperor’s.” Then he said to them, “Give therefore to the emperor the things that are the emperor’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” 22When they heard this, they were amazed; and they left him and went away.

Sermon

“Allegiance”

Pastor Greg Ronning

“I pledge allegiance” …  What does that mean? “A faithfulness to something to which one is bound by pledge or duty.”

The Merriam-Webster’s dictionary fleshes it out further …. A strict and continuing faithfulness to an obligation, trust, or duty.  An adherence like that of citizens to their country. A fidelity acknowledged by the individual as compelling as a sworn vow. A faithfulness that is steadfast in the face of any temptation to renounce, desert, or betray.   A devotion marked by zeal and service amounting to self-dedication.  An expression of commitment and devotion in the firmest sense of the word!

“I pledge allegiance” …   So, what is “worthy” of your allegiance?What deserves your allegiance? What has your allegiance?

In this week’s Gospel the religious leaders try to trap Jesus with a question about “allegiance,” a question about living in “two different worlds,” a question about ultimate concerns.  They begin by trying to “butter Jesus up” with flattery, “Teacher, we know that you are sincere, and teach the way of God …” And then with no sincerity, with guile,they ask him, “Tell us, then, what you think. Is it lawful to pay taxes to the emperor, or not?"

You see the Pharisees know that if Jesus says “no” to paying taxes the Romans will arrest him for treason; and if he says “yes” they can perhaps discredit him with the faithful as a Roman sympathizer.  Once again, it’s a trick question, he will be damned if he says “yes,” and he will be damned if he says “no.”  It’s funny how “allegiance” is always framed in such ultimate ways in this world, often leaving no room for critical thinking and honest questions, for any kind of nuance,for any conversation as if such things are solely a matter of “blind” allegiance. 

But Jesus does not fall into the trap, as he so often does in the Gospels, he does not answer the question with a “yes” or a “no” answer.  He rejects that kind of simplification of life, he refuses to reduce things to “black or white,”to “us or them,” or “red or blue.”  Instead, he asks those with questions to be thoughtful and reflective about answers, he invites them to seek after truth, to be in dialog, to be comfortable with the tension of living in between.  Jesus shows us all once again, that he is not “the answer,” but rather to the contrary, that he is “the question” that leads us more deeply into “the way, the truth, and the life,” the abundant life of faith.

At face value one might suggest that today’s Gospel is all about paying taxes, “Is it lawful to pay taxes to the emperor, or not?” But Jesus’ answer takes us to a very different place …"Whose head is this, and whose title?" They answered, "The emperor's." Then he said to them, "Give therefore to the emperor the things that are the emperor's, and to God the things that are God's."  When they heard this, they were amazed; and they left him and went away.

Theologian Marcus Borg, in an essay entitled, "What Belongs to God?" writes…

“… this text offers little or no guidance for tax season. It neither claims taxation is legitimate nor gives aid to anti-tax activists. It neither counsels universal acceptance of political authority nor its reverse. But it does raise the provocative and still relevant question: What belongs to God, …”

 “At issue is not merely my economic relationship to the government, but my existential relationship with God. On that ancient coin was an image of Caesar, and merely money is owed to him. On the other hand, and far more importantly, every human being bears the image of God, implying that I ‘render to God’ wholly and without condition my entire self. So, pay your taxes to Caesar, and give your whole self to God.”

Today’s Gospel invites us to engage in this very hard question, the question of allegiance, a question about belonging, one of those questions of ultimate concern, the questions of faith.  What is “worthy” of your allegiance?  What deserves your allegiance? And what truly has your allegiance?

This past Monday I was walking into a store and came upon a couple walking out of the store.  One of them was wearing a “Dallas Cowboy” jersey, and the other a “Los Angeles Charger” jersey.  It made me laugh, as the Cowboys and Chargers were set to play each other that very night.  So, I asked them both, “Whose gonna win tonight?”  The guy wearing the Cowboy jersey quickly answered, “We are!”  And the woman with Charger jersey, just smiled and shook her head, - No.  I laughed again and wondered, “How in the world does that relationship work?”I am so thankful that Melissa and I share an “ultimate allegiance” to the “San Francisco 49ers!”  Anything else just might have been a deal breaker!  I can see how Democrats and Republicans can make a marriage work, but being fans of different football teams???  I don’t know???

We all live our life in different “spheres” that demand our allegiance.   Our family makes demands on us, our work makes demands on us, our country makes demands on us, the various organizations we belong to make demands of us, our political parties make demands on us.  Sometimes it feels like everyone wants our allegiance.Sometimes it feels like everyone wants, even demands, our complete “blind allegiance.”

Managing our various allegiances can be tricky.  And what happens when they overlap? (Seinfeld Episode) What happens when our different worlds collide? What happens when they demand different outcomes?  What happens when they conflict?  And they do, often, conflict!  The allegiances of this world seldom leave room for differing opinions and approaches, compromise and the possibility of working together for the common good.  More and more in our world, allegiance demands separation, conflict, and the demonization of the other.  At times we seem completely and utterly divided by these allegiances that that seem - less than worthy.

As the followers of Jesus,we claim that our allegiance belongs to Christ and the Kingdom of God.  However, we all know that is easier said than done.The Kingdom of God by its very nature is always going to be in conflict with the world, and ultimately in conflict with the other “spheres” in which we live and work and play.  Christ and the Kingdom’sproclamation of love; love for neighbor, love for the needy, love for the forgotten, love for the stranger, and even love for enemy, challenges each and every allegiance of this world. 

The demand for allegiance in our world and in our faith, leaves us conflicted at best.  The allegiance demands of this world leave us despondent and hopelessly divided against each other.  And the invitation to be a part of the Kingdom of God, though it resonates deep in our soul, is always a challenge to our flesh in this world.

As we find ourselves struggling between the various spheres in which live, struggling with demanding loyalties, struggling with competing values, struggling with the ultimate concerns of our hearts, struggling with the hard teachings of Jesus, struggling with our belonging to the Kingdom of God yet living in the kingdoms of this world; we are invited to reflect on the question found in today’s Gospel, "Whose head is this, and whose title?"

I know it’s not an easy question.  It’s a hard question.  But it’s also a question that opens us up to a promise, to a great truth that will set us free.  You see in the question about the image found on the coin, there’s an unspoken question that is also being asked, “Who’s image do you bear?”

Our faith and the scriptures proclaim that we have been created in the Image of God, that we are nothing less than the beloved children of God.  What does it mean to be created in the image of God?It means that we were created in love, to be loved, and to love others.  We were created to be “co-creators” in the Kingdom that is present and “at hand.”  And in that identity, in that calling, there is great peace, that peace that passes all understanding; there is great joy, in a life of loving purpose; and there is an untouchable salvation, grounded in a radical grace that “cannot separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus.”

So where does your“allegiance” belong?  Where does your fidelity belong? Where does your devotion belong?  Certainly not to your identity in this world, not to allegiances that are unworthy and cause division and the demonization of others.  "Give therefore to the emperor the things that are the emperor's, and to God the things that are God's."Give you “allegiance” to that which is your true identify, the image of God, your beloved-ness, the promises of the Gospel, the coming of the Kingdom - and your unique ability to love and bear witness to love.

Our allegiance to the Kingdom of God, while it may put us in conflict with the world around us, will bring about in us that peace which surpasses all understanding, a life of purpose and meaning, a life filled with hope, a life that will make a difference, a life claimed by love.

"Give therefore to the emperor the things that are the emperor's, and to God the things that are God's."  May it be so.  Amen.

Sermon on Matthew 22:1-14

Pastor Jennifer Garcia

This week, we’re looking at another in a long series of parables. Jesus is yet again reprimanding the religious authorities who tried to entrap him with a question after Palm Sunday and the cleansing of the Temple.

And it’s a pretty offensive and unpleasant parable.

We’ve already heard the parable about the two sons—one who talked back but followed through, and the other that didn’t follow through on his word.

Then, we heard about the vineyard tenants who killed those who came to collect the landowner’s share of the harvest, including the landowner’s son.

Once more, Jesus is speaking to the chief priests and the elders in the Temple, probably in front of a listening crowd.

The parable for today has two major points of conflict.

It starts off happily enough: there’s a king whose son is getting married. If any of you have watched any of the British royal weddings, you’ll have a picture of the joyous spectacle.

But here’s the first point of conflict:

Can you imagine what it would be like if for Prince William and Kate Middleton’s wedding or Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s wedding—if every single RSVP came back marked “regrets”?

In the parable, it’s worse than that! The invited guests are not only making half-hearted excuses—some of them even beat and killed the messengers!

This is not just an embarrassment or an insult. It’s incredible cruelty.

The king wreaks swift vengeance on the perpetrators. But there’s still a problem (apart from all the violence and death—thankfully it’s a parable and not a factual story): the problem is that there are still no guests for the wedding.

So, the king orders that anybody and everybody be invited. “Fill the banquet hall with whoever you can find—good and bad, rich and poor—just make sure it’s filled for my son’s wedding.”

And just like that, we have a glorious image of the Reign of God as a wedding banquet filled with people laughing, feasting, celebrating together. Especially having lived through a time when so many weddings were postponed, downsized, or livestreamed, this is such a beautiful picture of what the Reign of God will look like.

I wish the parable ended there—the loveliest happy ending you could ask for.

But there’s a second point of conflict:

There’s a guest who isn’t wearing the correct attire. The king confronts him and has him tied up and thrown out of the banquet into a pretty terrifying-sounding landscape.

This is a rough parable, especially since we are so far removed from its time and culture. This is the most satisfying explanation I’ve found:

Since the king had people brought in from the street, wedding robes would have been provided for these new guests. It wouldn’t have been expected that they would have been wearing tuxedos on their way home from work. The proper attire would have been provided.

Which means that this improperly-attired guest was purposely choosing not to participate in the festivities and was rejecting his host’s hospitality.

This parable has a twofold warning:

1.    one warning is to these particular chief priests and elders (yet again)—that they have rejected God’s message brought to them by the prophets and John the Baptist and by Jesus. They have not been listening to God and they have mistreated those who bring God’s truth to them.

2.    The second warning is to the crowds—everyone listening apart from the chief priests and elders. Lest they feel self-righteous at Jesus’ stern words to the religious authorities, Jesus reminds them that no one by their own power is deserving of being a part of the Reign of God. It is by God’s grace alone that anyone celebrates at the wedding feast of the Lamb.

This is hard. I still wish the parable ended with the celebration, not with judgment.

The wedding feast of the Lamb is expansive. The table is long and full and rich. It is for everybody. Everybody is invited. Everybody is welcome. Everybody is included. Everyone’s presence is important and valued.

Sometimes though, when we focus so much on God’s mercy, we can downplay God’s justice.

Our God is both merciful and just.

I attended an online conference a few years ago called “When Faith Hurts.” It was about various types of abuse inside and outside the church—how best to support survivors of abuse, how best to prevent opportunities for abuse, how to recognize and report it, etc.

In one session, we were talking about language and stories in church and how some things can be comforting for some people and not for others because of traumas they have experienced.

The presenter was talking about an interview with our Presiding Bishop, Elizabeth Eaton, from 2017, in which she was asked about Hell.

“Do you think there’s a Hell?” the interviewer asked.

“There may be,” Bishop Eaton said, “but I think it’s empty.”

“Jesus was clear in John 3 that when He is raised up, He will draw all people to Himself,” Eaton stated. “And if we take a look at salvation history, ever since we got booted out of the garden, it has been God’s relentless pursuit to bring His people to God.”

“Now, people wonder, ‘Well, can you say no?’ I imagine you can say no to God, [but] I don’t think God’s going to give up on us. And if God has eternity, then God can certainly keep working on those folks,” she said. “That might be a little bit of heresy along the lines of origin, but I don’t think God gives up.”

I love this, and I so hope it’s true.

But the presenter from the conference said that he encountered numerous people who had survived abuse who were not comforted by Bishop Eaton’s interview.

He said it wasn’t so much wishing their abusers to be in Hell, but more that it undermined their hope in God’s justice.

So often survivors of abuse do not experience justice on Earth—

whether because they feel they must remain silent, are not believed, or are ruled against in court. So the idea of Hell being empty made them feel like they would be denied justice by God also.

I had never thought of it that way, and it broke my heart to hear it. I realized that what I found to be a life-giving, hopeful, generous idea was the opposite for some people who have experienced terrible trauma.

God is both merciful and just.

I don’t know exactly how that works. How God can on the one hand be so merciful that God brings us to the wedding feast when we don’t deserve it and on the other hand that we will also be somehow held accountable for the ways we hurt each other and dishonor our relationship with God.

This is one of the mysteries of faith. In biblical Greek, the word for “faith” doesn’t mean to mentally assent to something. It means something more like “trust.”

This parable reminds us that we can trust in a God who has an expansive table that everyone is invited to—not just the “important people,” but the good and the bad and random people on the street and everyone in between. And also that we can trust in a God who brings justice for those who have been abused by people with power over them.

Without God’s justice, the feast would not truly be a celebration.

Without God’s mercy, the table would be empty.

When we eat and drink a foretaste of that wedding feast in a few minutes, I invite you to contemplate the mystery of God’s simultaneous justice and mercy. And I pray that you will feel the presence of that just and merciful God.