Living in the Spirit
September 26, 2020
Scripture Reading: Matthew 21:23-32
When he entered the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people came to him as he was teaching, and said, ‘By what authority are you doing these things, and who gave you this authority?’ Jesus said to them, ‘I will also ask you one question; if you tell me the answer, then I will also tell you by what authority I do these things. Did the baptism of John come from heaven, or was it of human origin?’ And they argued with one another, ‘If we say, “From heaven”, he will say to us, “Why then did you not believe him?” But if we say, “Of human origin”, we are afraid of the crowd; for all regard John as a prophet.’ So they answered Jesus, ‘We do not know.’ And he said to them, ‘Neither will I tell you by what authority I am doing these things.
The crossroad of politics within religion is marked with various obstructions and further complicated when it spills over into the separation of church and civil governance. The Bible reflects the need for some type of civil control from the time of Moses through the judges and then kings. Keeping the balance of power straight has always been a challenge. The founders of the USA had experienced the extremes of faith-based governance, and thus encased within our Constitution the principle; Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof. Yet, we still struggle to discern what is sacred and what is civil, and for some reason, we want to make people with other belief systems follow our principles.
In our scripture above, Jesus had just completed his Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem, cleansed the Temple, and cursed the fig tree. The chief priest and elders had had enough of his failure to follow their rules challenging their authority and wanted to know by what authority he was acting. He sidestepped the question, as it failed to address the real problem.
This scene was played out under the outside oversight of the Roman government. Eventually, the temple governance joined allegiance with the Roman government to seal their temple power and rid themselves of this interloper who was turning the people to another way, grounded in greed and power but not in love. Sound familiar?
I do not believe Christ wants anyone to follow his way unless by choice. We are called to share the love of God with all people; we are not called to force them to accept it or punish them for not practicing our tenets of faith. Living in a nation that claims to be of the people by the people for the people, we must continue working hard to assure the rights of the people are protected and not overtaken by principalities and powers who do not have all the people’s interest at heart.
Prayer: Lord, as we seek to serve you more fully, guide us in doing our part as citizens within the boundaries of your love. Amen.
All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.