In the 1930s three thousand German pastors called themselves ‘German Christians’ and put their theology in the service of Nazi power, while only a handful said no. From that sobering lesson of history, the sermon leads us to Jesus’s only recorded statement on politics, ‘render to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s’ (Matthew 22), and to Paul’s words about authority established by God (Romans 13). As Augustine wrote, a battle between two cities rages within each of us: the city of God and the city of man. Listen and ask yourself which one is winning in you.
Discussion questions
For your small group or for personal reflection after the sermon.
- The Pharisees and the Herodians ask Jesus whether to pay taxes to Caesar. Why was this question a trap with no way out, and what does the inscription on the denarius bearing Tiberius's image tell us about it?
- In Romans 13:1-7 Paul writes that all authority comes from God, and the letter goes to a church living under Nero. How might the first Christians have heard these words, and what in them do you find hard to accept?
- The sermon says Jesus answers a question about loyalty and that God's order and Caesar's order must not be mixed. In practice, what do we owe the authorities, and what belongs to God alone?
- The pastor asks whether we let our political views shape our theology or our theology shape our political views. How can you tell which of these lenses dominates your thinking?
- The pastor compares us to a crowd shouting "Hosanna" to a favorite politician instead of to Jesus. Where do you see in yourself or around you the temptation to expect salvation from politics?
- How can you pray this week for specific people in authority, especially those you don't support, and change the way you speak or write about them online and in conversations?
