A homily for the twenty-third Sunday after Trinity, by Fr. Joshua Leigeber.
“Our citizenship is in heaven,” St. Paul writes. And Jesus tells us, “Render to God the things that are God’s.” These two statements belong together. As Christians, our allegiance belongs to Christ, and our lives should reflect the reality that we belong to Him. In the Gospel, Jesus reminds us that earthly authority has its proper place, but it is not ultimate. We are to render to Caesar what belongs to Caesar, but above all, we are to render to God what belongs to God: our offerings, our days and years, our allegiance, and our very lives. For “the earth is the Lord’s, and the fullness thereof.” The danger is that we take the good gifts God has given us and turn them into idols. We look to money for security, possessions for contentment, earthly pleasures for happiness, and worldly success for our sense of worth. We worry, grasp, hoard, and grow discontent. We are guilty of idolatry, and we must repent. These things cannot forgive our sins, rescue us from death, or give us eternal life. As Proverbs teaches, “Wisdom is better than rubies. Her fruit is better than gold.” True Wisdom is found in Christ Himself. Here, in His Church, through His holy Word and blessed Sacraments, we receive riches infinitely more valuable than anything this world can offer.
And our heavenly citizenship is not merely a future reality. It is ours already, right now, through Christ. In the Divine Service, heaven and earth are brought together. Christ comes to us with forgiveness, and we partake of His very body and blood. We worship with angels and archangels and all the company of heaven. Though these gifts remain hidden beneath earthly veils, they are truly ours already. When Christ appears, what we now know by faith we shall know by sight. What we now receive in part we shall possess in its fullness. Until that day, let us not cling to the passing treasures of this world, but receive with thanksgiving the gifts God gives us. Our citizenship is in heaven, and our true riches are found in Christ alone.
Listen to the full homily below.