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<p><font size=3 color="#666666" face=Verdana><span style='font-size:12.0pt'>Resources
for Proper 24</span></font> <o:p></o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Verdana><span style='font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:Verdana'>Matthew 22: 15-22 - "<b><span style='font-weight:
bold'> What Is Caesar’s and What Is God's?</span></b>"</span></font><font
size=1 face=Verdana><span style='font-size:8.5pt;font-family:Verdana'><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Verdana><span style='font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:Verdana'>Matthew 22: 15-22 - "<strong><b><font face=Verdana><span
style='font-family:Verdana'>Get the Monkey off Your Back</span></font></b></strong>"
by Leonard Sweet</span></font><font size=1 face=Verdana><span style='font-size:
8.5pt;font-family:Verdana'><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Verdana><span style='font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:Verdana'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Verdana><span style='font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:Verdana'>Matthew 22 the sermon title “<b><span style='font-weight:
bold'>What Is Caesar’s and What Is God's?</span></b>”] </span></font><font
size=1 face=Verdana><span style='font-size:8.5pt;font-family:Verdana'><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Verdana><span style='font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:Verdana'>A young lady was soaking up the sun's rays on a <st1:State
w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Florida</st1:place></st1:State> beach when a
little boy in his swimming trunks, carrying a towel, came up to her and asked
her, "Do you believe in God?" She was surprised by the question but
she replied, "Why, yes, I do." Then he asked her: "Do you go to
church every Sunday?" Again, her answer was "Yes!" He then
asked: "Do you read your Bible and pray everyday?" Again she said,
"Yes!" By now her curiosity was very much aroused. The little lad
sighed with relief and said, "Will you hold my quarter while I go in
swimming?"<br>
<br>
The little boy was straightforward and honest in his questions because he
wanted to entrust to the lady something valuable. The Pharisees are not being
honest. They have no intent in entrusting Jesus with anything. They are not
looking for the answer to a question. They don't want someone to hold their
quarter. They are looking for a way to get rid of this trouble making Nazarene
named Jesus.<br>
<br>
The Pharisees were so angry it blinded them. Think for a moment about the
ironies here: We know, because we live on this side of the resurrection, that
Jesus was God. They thought he was demonic, an agent of Satan. We know that
Jesus is the King of kings. They thought he wanted to be the King of Israel. We
know that he was the Son of God. They thought he was simply Joseph and Mary's
son. We know that Jesus has influenced the world for 2000 years. They thought
his influence would end at the cross.<br>
<br>
It's a fascinating story. We look at the Pharisees and we shake our heads. How
could they have been so wrong when the truth was standing right in front of
them? I believe they were upset because Jesus held them accountable and exposed
their hypocrisy. "Teacher, we know that you are sincere," they say to
him, "and teach the way of God." Not for a moment did they believe in
Jesus' sincerity. It was a set up. It was a way of putting him at ease before
they stabbed him in the back. Tell us then, they continue, what do you think?
Is it lawful to pay taxes to the emperor?<br>
<br>
I suppose we ought to be grateful to the Pharisees. In their question, which
Jesus says was motivated by malice, they prompt one of the greatest of Jesus'
teachings. It may not seem like much on the face of it, but the implications of
this teaching have echoed through the centuries and they have shaped western
societies. Jesus said, Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's and to God
the things that are God's." Let us ask three questions this morning and
find out why this little teaching has had such a great influence.</span></font><font
size=1 face=Verdana><span style='font-size:8.5pt;font-family:Verdana'><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Verdana><span style='font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:Verdana'>1. What Is Caesar’s?</span></font><font size=1
face=Verdana><span style='font-size:8.5pt;font-family:Verdana'><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Verdana><span style='font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:Verdana'>2. What Is God’s?</span></font><font size=1 face=Verdana><span
style='font-size:8.5pt;font-family:Verdana'><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Verdana><span style='font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:Verdana'>3. Which Will You Choose?</span></font><font size=1
face=Verdana><span style='font-size:8.5pt;font-family:Verdana'><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Verdana><span style='font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:Verdana'>The rest of this sermon following the outline above can be
obtained by joining <a
href="http://mail.churchmail.com/lists/lt.php?id=Kk8GAgkFCQVSCUkDCAFKDAtXUVw%3D"
title="blocked::http://mail.churchmail.com/lists/lt.php?id=Kk8GAgkFCQVSCUkDCAFKDAtXUVw="><font
size=1 color=blue
title="blocked::http://mail.churchmail.com/lists/lt.php?id=Kk8GAgkFCQVSCUkDCAFKDAtXUVw="><span
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size=1 face=Verdana><span style='font-size:8.5pt;font-family:Verdana'><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Verdana><span style='font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:Verdana'>Click here: <a
href="http://mail.churchmail.com/lists/lt.php?id=Kk8GAgkFCQVSCUkDCAFKDAtXUVw%3D"
title="blocked::http://mail.churchmail.com/lists/lt.php?id=Kk8GAgkFCQVSCUkDCAFKDAtXUVw="><font
size=1 color=blue
title="blocked::http://mail.churchmail.com/lists/lt.php?id=Kk8GAgkFCQVSCUkDCAFKDAtXUVw="><span
style='font-size:8.5pt;color:blue'>http://www.sermons.com/signup</span></font></a>
or call 1-800-777-7731 to join.</span></font><font size=1 face=Verdana><span
style='font-size:8.5pt;font-family:Verdana'><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Verdana><span style='font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:Verdana'>_______________________</span></font><font size=1
face=Verdana><span style='font-size:8.5pt;font-family:Verdana'><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Verdana><span style='font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:Verdana'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Verdana><span style='font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:Verdana'>Matthew 22:15-22 the sermon titled "<b><span
style='font-weight:bold'>Get the Monkey off Your Back</span></b>" by
Leonard Sweet] </span></font><font size=1 face=Verdana><span style='font-size:
8.5pt;font-family:Verdana'><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Verdana><span style='font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:Verdana'>W. H. Auden once described life as a very grand opera
played by a tenth-rate touring company. </span></font><font size=1
face=Verdana><span style='font-size:8.5pt;font-family:Verdana'><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Verdana><span style='font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:Verdana'>This seems never more true than after a tragedy, when
people are asked “How do you feel?” What comes out of our mouths next? </span></font><font
size=1 face=Verdana><span style='font-size:8.5pt;font-family:Verdana'><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Verdana><span style='font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:Verdana'>“What a senseless murder.” Well, is there such a thing as
a sensible murder? </span></font><font size=1 face=Verdana><span
style='font-size:8.5pt;font-family:Verdana'><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Verdana><span style='font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:Verdana'>Or “She didn’t deserve this! She didn’t deserve to die.”
Well, does anyone ever? Does anyone deserve to die? </span></font><font size=1
face=Verdana><span style='font-size:8.5pt;font-family:Verdana'><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Verdana><span style='font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:Verdana'>Or someone was “at the wrong place at the wrong time.”
Well, no, they were at the right place at the right time. It’s not the victim
who is in the wrong. It’s the shooter or the criminal who is in the wrong</span></font><font
size=1 face=Verdana><span style='font-size:8.5pt;font-family:Verdana'> </span></font><font
face=Verdana><span style='font-family:Verdana'>—</span></font><font size=1
face=Verdana><span style='font-size:8.5pt;font-family:Verdana'> </span></font><font
face=Verdana><span style='font-family:Verdana'>doing the wrong thing at the
wrong place at the wrong time.</span></font><font size=1 face=Verdana><span
style='font-size:8.5pt;font-family:Verdana'><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Verdana><span style='font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:Verdana'>The clumsy prose and </span></font><font size=1
face=Verdana><span style='font-size:8.5pt;font-family:Verdana'>clichéd</span></font><font
face=Verdana><span style='font-family:Verdana'> phrases that pour from our
mouths in the wake of tragedy or disaster is also evident when we hear about
some horrible massacre, some vicious crime, some raging genocide. What do we
say? “How inhuman!” And what do we call those who murder and maim? We call them
“animals.” We brand their behavior “brutish.” </span></font><font size=1
face=Verdana><span style='font-size:8.5pt;font-family:Verdana'><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Verdana><span style='font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:Verdana'>Talk about calcified </span></font><font size=1
face=Verdana><span style='font-size:8.5pt;font-family:Verdana'>clichés</span></font><font
face=Verdana><span style='font-family:Verdana'>. Glance anywhere in human
history. The vicious, vindictive vendetta is an all-to human trait, endlessly
repeated across the globe, by all peoples, all cultures, all religions.</span></font><font
size=1 face=Verdana><span style='font-size:8.5pt;font-family:Verdana'><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Verdana><span style='font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:Verdana'>What this </span></font><font size=1 face=Verdana><span
style='font-size:8.5pt;font-family:Verdana'>cliché</span></font><font
face=Verdana><span style='font-family:Verdana'> of “inhuman” does reveal,
however, is our very human conviction that we are called to be something more. </span></font><font
size=1 face=Verdana><span style='font-size:8.5pt;font-family:Verdana'><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Verdana><span style='font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:Verdana'>That there is a distinguishing “something” that separates
human life from all other life. </span></font><font size=1 face=Verdana><span
style='font-size:8.5pt;font-family:Verdana'><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Verdana><span style='font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:Verdana'>That there is a higher standard we are called to and
capable of, beyond that of mere genetic and cultural survival. </span></font><font
size=1 face=Verdana><span style='font-size:8.5pt;font-family:Verdana'><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Verdana><span style='font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:Verdana'>That there is something more we are urged to imitate and
emulate. </span></font><font size=1 face=Verdana><span style='font-size:8.5pt;
font-family:Verdana'><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Verdana><span style='font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:Verdana'>That there are the actions and attitudes demanded of a
being who has been created in the image of God:</span></font><font size=1
face=Verdana><span style='font-size:8.5pt;font-family:Verdana'><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Verdana><span style='font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:Verdana'>“God created humankind (“adam”) in his image. In the image
of God he created them, male and female.” (Genesis 1:27)</span></font><font
size=1 face=Verdana><span style='font-size:8.5pt;font-family:Verdana'><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Verdana><span style='font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:Verdana'>That image, that first incarnation, is the true face of
humanity, of genuine humanness. It is when we fail and fall short of reflecting
that divine image that we become something less than human</span></font><font
size=1 face=Verdana><span style='font-size:8.5pt;font-family:Verdana'>…<o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=3 face=Verdana><span style='font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:Verdana'>For the rest of Leonard Sweet’s sermon click here: <a
href="http://mail.churchmail.com/lists/lt.php?id=Kk8GAgkFCQVTAEkDCAFKDAtXUVw%3D"
title="blocked::http://mail.churchmail.com/lists/lt.php?id=Kk8GAgkFCQVTAEkDCAFKDAtXUVw="><font
size=1 color=blue
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size=1 face=Verdana><span style='font-size:8.5pt;font-family:Verdana'><o:p></o:p></span></font></p>
<p class=MsoNormal><font size=2 color=navy face=Arial><span style='font-size:
10.0pt;font-family:Arial;color:navy'><o:p> </o:p></span></font></p>
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