One of the oldest and most insidious sins is that of IDOLATRY. Whether we worship hunks of wood and gilt or name our god Mercedes or Chevrolet, it’s still with us. Scriptures to be heard this upcoming weekend deal with our proclivity to split our loyalty between YHWH and material objects. (These, of course, include ownership of land, “defending” it, and the conceit of thinking ourselves better than others.)
We first consider ISAIAH 45:1-7–when Cyrus of Persia defeated the Babylonians in 539 BC, he allowed the Judean captives to go “home” and rebuild their Temple. Isaiah of Babylon saw Cyrus as the Champion of the People, the hand of God at work. Why then should we assume that strangers are enemies? Is God in charge even in Persia? “The primary concern of the passage seems to be to deny any limits on God’s power.” (James Burns, in FEASTING on the WORD, A 4:175) “I am the Lord, and there is no other; besides me there is no god.”
I THESSALONIANS 1:1-10 is Paul’s appreciative greeting to his pals in Macedonia. He lauds them for their willingness to be inhabited by the Holy Spirit, and for accomplishing ministries so empowered: evangelism and other labors of love. Here again is the oneness of God celebrated: “the people of those regions report…how you turned to God from idols, to serve a living and true God….” In our waiting for the Christ to be revealed, we become partners in mission, even within “the wrath that is coming.”
MATTHEW 22:15-22 is presented as yet one more Holy Week parable of Jesus, aimed primarily at the System in the Temple at Jerusalem. “Shall we pay taxes/homage to Caesar?” Jesus shows them a coin with the Emperor’s likeness, and famously says, “Return to the Emperor the things that are the Emperor’s, and return to God the things that are God’s.” It’s a fair question: how much can we pledge allegiance to the secular without diluting our dependence upon God? Are taxes used for military might, or to promote racism, legitimate? And shall we withhold the share which isn’t used for relief of the poor, or educating all children? Who’s in charge here?
Norman Podhoretz, in his excellent book THE PROPHETS, reminds us that “the battle will have to be fought first and foremost within ourselves and then in the world of ideas around us.” (page 359) “Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God is one Lord; and you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might.” –Deuteronomy 6:4
In the process of unfolding, Horace Brown King
You are invited every Tuesday to meet with the Scriptural passages to be read in worship during the coming weekend–at horacebrownking.com
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