Building in the Spirit

In today’s Gospel Matthew tells us what Jesus said to the Pharisees who questioned him about whether it is lawful to pay taxes to the emperor.  Jesus said to them, “Show me the coin used for the tax.”  Then he asked them, “‘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.”

The Pharisees may have been amazed at Jesus’ response to their question, but I doubt that any of us are amazed that it is lawful in our time to pay taxes to the government.  What we do is our responsibility so the government can provide needed services for the orderliness and sustainability of our society and culture.  In an article I read not long ago, we can refer to the taxes we pay as “Caesar’s economy.

When it comes to giving to God the things that are God’s, it is God’s economy.  As I mentioned in last week’s parish messenger, the theme of our annual giving program this year is “Building in the Spirit.”  Annual giving is the commitment we make to our life together for the next calendar year.  We give thanks to God for the blessings we have received and we plan for the life and ministry we share with one another and the outreach we give to the wider community.  God’s economy includes our worship, the education of our children, music and the arts, outreach to the wider community, building maintenance, and administration. 

With our hosting of the City Meal Site, La Iglesia Luterana, AA, and what we do within our own congregation our magnificent and historic building, this sacred space, is well used.  “Building in the Spirit” is our thanksgiving to God for the gifts we receive.  We give our time, talent and treasure for the work and ministry to which we are  called through our baptism.  It is about our relationship to God and to one another, and it manifests itself in our annual giving, the offerings we contribute, the pledges we make, and the checks we write in support of our Church.  It is our support of God’s economy.

When I read the article about God’s economy, it brought home the reality that “we live in a world with two economies: the economy of transactions and the economy of gift, Caesar’s economy and God’s economy.”  In reflecting about the way we live in these two economies ask yourself the following questions: “What do you do?  How do you exchange your time for money?  What do you care about?”

What we do is far more important than how we earn money.  It is about our relationships, our families, our activities, how we exercise, what we enjoy for entertainment or travel.  It is all these things and more.  It is about our core values.  It is everything that matters to us.

In the economy of transactions, “we humans name a price for everything and then trade.  This allows us … to earn a living.”  We recognize our interdependence and we use our talent and our money to buy food and clothing, to purchase or rent our housing, to acquire computers and cell phones, and many other things. However, all these transactions are not everything and they are not the business that makes up the Church.

God’s economy is different; it is a gift economy, it goes well beyond any price we can name for a commodity.  God’s gift economy is known by the value that “we are all loved; we see beauty in the world and each other; we care and are cared for; we rely on each other; we give as we receive, living in a cycle of kindness; we deepen relationships and understand meaning.” What is important to note here is that the gift economy is about our relationship to God.  What is our relationship, what is your relationship with God?  How do you know God?  What can you do to deepen your relationship with God?

When we talk about Building in the Spirit we are talking about deepening our relationship to God and serving God in all that we do as we provide compassionate care to those in need.  As the article I read suggests,  “Think about the two economies we live in: the economy of transactions and the economy of gifts and reflect on these questions:  How does my money life influence how I live out my Baptismal Covenant?  Am I in charge of my money or is my money in charge of me?  What role does my money play in my relationships, behaviors, and decisions?”  Think about these questions “in terms of your religious/spiritual life and also in terms of your home life, work life, community life, and leisure life.”

Finally, in these two economies, how do you render to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and how to you give to God the things that are God’s?  During the next few weeks we shall focus on “Building in the Spirit” here at All Saints’, on our relationship to God and his church.  May all that we do enable us to continue growing in the knowledge and love of God as we seek to deepen our relationships in the life of the Spirit.  Amen.