You may wish to light a candle before you begin.
May the grace, mercy and love of God be with us all. Amen.
Collect
Faithful Lord, your steadfast love never ceases, and your mercies never come to an end: grant us the grace to trust you, and to receive the gifts of your love, new every morning in Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Confession
We come to God the source of forgiveness and peace, to make confession of our sins and to be strengthened in service and witness by his Spirit.
Lord of mercy, we have sinned in your sight. We confess before you the wrong we have thought and said and done, and the good we have failed to do. For the sake of our Saviour Jesus Christ, lift from us the burden of the past, and help us to live each new day in his light and love. Amen.
May God the Father forgive us, and lift and strengthen us to walk in his light and to share his love, in Jesus’ name. Amen.
God’s Word - I Thessalonians, chapter 1, verses 1 to 10 :-
From Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy to the church of the Thessalonians who belong to God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ: grace to you and peace.
We always thank God for you all, and mention you in our prayers. We continually call to mind, before our God and Father, how your faith has shown itself in action, your love in labour, and your hope of our Lord Jesus Christ in perseverance. My dear friends, beloved by God, we are certain that he has chosen you, because when we brought you the gospel we did not bring it in mere words but in the power of the Holy Spirit and with strong conviction. You know what we were like for your sake when we were with you.
You, in turn, followed the example set by us and by the Lord; the welcome you gave the message meant grave suffering for you, yet you rejoiced in the Holy Spirit; and so you have become a model for all believers in Macedonia and in Achaia. From you the word of the Lord rang out; and not in Macedonia and Achaia alone, but everywhere your faith in God has become common knowledge. No words of ours are needed; everyone is spreading the story of our visit to you: how you turned from idols to be servants of the true and living God, and to wait expectantly for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, Jesus our deliverer from the retribution to come.
Matthew, chapter 22, verses 15 to 22 :-
The Pharisees went away and agreed on a plan to trap Jesus in argument. They sent some of their followers to him, together with members of Herod’s party. ‘Teacher,’ they said, ‘we know you are a sincere man; you teach in all sincerity the way of life that God requires, courting no man’s favour, whoever he may be. Give us your ruling on this: are we or are we not permitted to pay taxes to the Roman emperor?’ Jesus was aware of their malicious intention and said, ‘You hypocrites! Why are you trying to catch me out? Show me the coin used for the tax.’ They handed him a silver piece. Jesus asked, ‘Whose head is this, and whose inscription?’ ‘Caesar’s,’ they replied. He said to them, ‘Then pay to Caesar what belongs to Caesar, and to God what belongs to God.’ Taken aback by this reply, they went away and left him alone.
Thanks be to God, for this his holy word. Amen.
Reflection on the Readings
The word “holy” actually means “set apart” - particularly in the sense of being set apart for sacred use. On the one hand, a plate, that you could put your sandwich or your slice of fruit cake on; on the other a paten, a holy plate set apart for use at communion. On the one hand, a cup, such as you might use for your coffee or cocoa, and on the other a chalice, set apart for the wine blessed at the altar, which is itself a holy table, and not to be used for ordinary things.
Paul, writing to the Thessalonians, a church that had faced and endured opposition and persecution, praises the people there for being steadfast in the faith, and daring to be different from the pagan world around them. Jesus, neatly side-stepping a trick question posed by his enemies, makes a clear distinction between what is due to the state, or in this case Caesar, and what is due to God. So we too should be holy, and set apart from worldly things, for the service of God.
A week today, God willing (and Covid willing too, I suppose), I’ll be on my way to spend a time of retreat in a holy place, a religious community down in Devon, and it will be good to be, just for a few days, completely set apart in a beautiful setting and among people who live their Christian lives at a different rhythm from the frenetic way of the world.
And yet - this isn’t an enclosed community, cut off from the world, but one that is in fact very open and engaged. Its leader is one of my circle of Facebook friends; and they’re not at all separate from the village community around them. And I’m reminded that holy also means pure, complete, and being as God would have us. In that regard, it derives from the Old English halig, and is related to our modern English words heal (h-e-a-l) and whole (w-h-o-l-e).
And if we are set apart, it’s for a purpose. As we draw closer to Christ, being set apart to be his disciples, and apostles, and friends, so we see that he is always engaged with those around him, always reaching out, always seeking to be a source of healing and blessing and positive change. And it’s the difference they are making to others that Paul most praises in our reading from Thessalonians today - “Everyone is spreading your story,” he tells them.
“Render unto Caesar that which is Caesar’s,” says Jesus. As good citizens, we should pay our taxes, obey the laws, and support what the state is doing to promote peace and wellbeing, and to provide safe space in which to live. The reason a coin had the head of the emperor on it - the reason our coins carry the head of our queen - is that it was deemed to belong to him. So it wasn’t just a clever answer but an accurate one to say “Give to Caesar what is his anyway.”
But that doesn’t alter the fact that we are already citizens of the Kingdom of God. And it is our citizenship of that Kingdom that leads us to be good citizens of whatever earthly kingdom we may reside in. They are not two separate and distinct allegiances, occupying different sections of our lives. Our higher allegiance is to God; where the state is promoting the common good, it can command our respect - but if the state is acting in an unjust way Christians should be among the first to speak out.
That hasn’t always happened. The confessing Church, so called, was brave and unyielding in its opposition to Hitler, but it was a minority movement, when most Christians felt they were bound to support whatever government held power. But though Caesar may own the money, and money may seem to equal power, God has prior claim on the heart. Ultimately, of course, those who opposed Jesus would make use of the might of Caesar to have him put to death; but they couldn’t and didn’t win. For no Caesar can last for long, even if we can find his fading image still on old coins. Only God’s love stands firm for ever - and we are set apart to be always his, and his not for ourselves alone, but for the world.
Statement of faith -
We believe in God the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named. We believe in God the Son, who lives in our hearts through faith, and fills us with his love. We believe in God the Holy Spirit, who strengthens us with power from on high. We believe in one God; Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Amen.
Prayers -
Today is anti-slavery day, and we pray for all those in our world who are denied their freedom, and for all who work for the release and freedom of those who are treated unjustly. We pray for those who live in places were government is corrupt, unfair and undemocratic, and for all who face persecution because of their faith. And we continue to pray for the nations of the world to work together against the continued threat of Covid.
We pray for the Church to be clear about our higher allegiance to God’s call and Kingdom, and that we may be ready and unafraid to speak up for those who are abused or treated unjustly. We pray for the churches of the United States, as the election campaign enters its final stages, and for the Episcopal Church, within the Anglican Communion. We pray for Bishop Richard, and for all that develops and resources ministry within our own diocese.
We pray for all who are ill today, including those infected by the Covid virus. We pray for all who work in hospitals and healthcare, and also that where stricter rules have to be applied, they will be obeyed. We pray for all who are working to improve treatment and tracing, and to develop a vaccine.
We pray for our families and friends, and for the life of our churches and communities. On St Luke’s Day we pray for our local doctors and health workers, and in the week of Apple Day for fruit farmers and growers. And we pray we may continue to act with responsibility and care, looking out for each other, and keeping safe ourselves.
Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name; thy kingdom come; thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory for ever and ever. Amen.
Blessing -
May God bless us in his service; may his light be our guide, and his love our hope. So may we walk in his ways, and glorify his name. Amen.
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