Sermon for Nineteenth Sunday after Pentecost
October 19, 2014, St. Paul Lutheran Church, Wallis, Texas
Sermon Text: Matthew 22:15-22
Sermon Theme: “Render to Caesar and Render to God?”
(Sources: Anderson’s Preaching Journal, Cycle A; Embassy of Heaven Midnight Rider Newsletter, 1995; “Heaven Is a Tax-Free Paradise in Oregon,” online article; Emphasis Online Commentary; Emphasis Online Illustrations; original ideas; Luther’s Small Catechism with Explanation, 1986 edition).
Grace, mercy and peace to you from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ.
“Paul Revere has established the kingdom of Heaven in Oregon!” That’s what newspaper headlines said in 1994. Of course it wasn’t the 18th Century Paul Revere of the American Revolution we know from history.
It was a pastor in Oregon who established “the Kingdom of Heaven” on 34 acres of land about twenty miles from Salem. Twice Revere was jailed for issuing his own license plates with the word HEAVEN embossed thereon and for failing to pay property taxes. He insisted that the kingdom of Heaven is not of this world, and that it is impossible to serve both God and the State. He urged that his followers should not be yoked by the government, so should throw away their state-owned driver’s licenses and Social Security cards, cancel their car insurance, bank accounts, etc. He argued that Jesus didn’t pay any taxes so why should we.
Revere posted a regular online Embassy of Heaven newsletter on the internet, entitled Midnight Rider. He advertised his 34 acres as “God’s Government on Earth, and apparently had many followers, who were promised they could live tax free forever, first in Oregon, then in Heaven. Officials in Marion County were unconvinced by any of Revere’s arguments, and informed him that if he didn’t pay the $10,000 he owed in taxes, they would put the 34 acres of the Kingdom of Heaven on the market. Continue reading →