God’s Coins (Twenty-first Sunday after Pentecost)
Sermons on YouTube…
There are many common things in the Bible which – even though we know what they are – we don’t really use anymore. For instance, most of us don’t count our wealth in the number of sheep we have. We probably do not ride donkeys. And except when the power goes out, we don’t have lights that we physically have to light with matches.
But until recently, coins were always one of the things that we still used! And back when I was in college, finding coins – especially quarters – was a part time job. You needed quarters to buy sodas, and to play video games and especially when it was time to do laundry!
But coins – and cash in general – are rarely used by us anymore. Mostly, they just sit in jars and we don’t think about them very much. Even on my recent trip to Germany – where just a few years ago cash was king – most payments are now tap to pay.
In many ways, this makes my life SO much easier. But, it’s also sad in a way, especially as a guy who’s collected coins since I was a kid. And that’s because coins are more than just method of payment. When you hold a coin – especially one that’s been around for a while – you’re touching history, and holding something that generations of people before you have held. But even more, when you look at a coin, you can learn a lot about the people who minted the coin, what their history is, and what they value, by what they put on their coins.
So, while I was in Germany, I visited a couple of our Posaunenchor friends in Saarland, which is a tiny German state right next to the borders of France and Luxembourg. Their most famous geographic feature is a 180 degree bend in the Saar river, which I got to see from this really cool tower that’s been built to give you a birds-eye view. And as I was leaving, Dominik gave me a 2 Euro coin as a souvenir, because each country in the Euro zone can choose images for the back of Euro coins. And this one shows the Saar River bend – and they’re very proud of having made it on the 2 Euro coin!
From ancient times, coins have displayed images of what people are proud of. And what’s important to their history. And what they value.
Jesus knew this, too. And when he asks to see the coin in today’s Gospel reading, it wasn’t because he didn’t know what it looked like or what was on it. They all did. And the images on the coin had meaning to the Romans – and also to the subjugated peoples who were forced to use it. That was the real issue.
Every time a Jewish person used a denarius, they saw:
- On the front, an image of the reigning Emperor who demanded not only obedience, but worship (all the Emperors considered themselves gods), and so for Jews this always involved handling a graven image (and did paying the taxes give assent to the Emperor’s egotistical claim to be a god…?)
- On the back, a symbol of Roman subjugation of other nations – and it was a reminder of their oppression …
- The words that glorified the Emperor as the master of all things …
The coin itself was a loaded symbol. It indicated who the Romans thought was important; it showed what the Romans valued; and the words proclaimed Roman propaganda.
And so Jesus asks for the coin – not to learn what the coin looks like, but to make a point. And the point is this: if the image on this little piece of silver can make such an impact, what impact can you – you who bear the image of God – have on the world around you?
Indeed, Jesus seems to have in mind the notion that Genesis says that people have been created in the image of God. And therefore, like God’s coins in the world, we show others who God is and what God values by how we represent who’s important, what’s important and what words and attitudes we use to convey those things.
“Render to God the things that are God’s” is really another way of saying, “Be God’s coin in the world around you.” And just as the denarius circulated among people each and every day, we’re called to be God’s coin as we circulate in the life of others in our world.
And God makes an impact through us by the “image” we give of:
- Who is most important – is it God? Or is it really me? There are places in our world where people really are being persecuted for being Christians. I mean, it can get you killed! But I worry when Christians in America act like we’re being persecuted just because people are dissing us, or saying bad things about us. After all, isn’t that what Jesus said was part of the program for being his followers? And when we show righteous indignation for ourselves, are we really lifting up Jesus as being the center, or are we just showing that we’re upset that we’re not the center anymore? Whose image are we showing the world around us?
- What we value – Are we conveying the values of Jesus? Is helping my neighbor what I value? Or am I more concerned with getting a tax break and looking good? Is including my neighbor what I value, or only being around people who think and act like me? Is caring about people who have a more difficult life than me worth my effort, or is it only worth the effort if it really doesn’t cost me anything? Are our values, and the way we live them, conveying the values of Jesus to the world around us?
- The words we use – many American coins (even if they just sit in a jar) have the words “liberty” or “in God we trust.” Do we really mean those things, or are they just there to make us feel good? What about the words we use about Jesus and for Jesus? Do we use those words to convey confidence or insecurity about our faith? Do our words about Jesus convey promise or judgement? Do our words about Jesus tell the world around us something they wouldn’t know about God if we weren’t there to say those words?
Each and every day, Jesus has called us to be God’s coin in the world. And so as you circulate around, be the God’s coin in the world. Be someone who shows image of God to the world by the way you live your life. Be someone who shows the image of God to the world by valuing what Jesus values. And be someone who shows the image of God to the world by using your words and attitudes to convey words that the world lately doesn’t hear a lot of – words of hope and promise and confidence in God’s presence and love.
Amen.