‘God’ and ‘politics’ are two topics we are told to avoid in polite conversation. Yet in the sermon – that mysterious dialogue between preacher, congregation, and biblical text – these two topics not only belong, but they belong together.
J esus was political, and so was his message. Not that he was a politician. And to co-opt Jesus and force him to fit the brand of whatever contemporary political party best matches the preacher’s civic loyalties would be an exercise in missing the point (and an act of homiletical abuse).
Jesus’ political sensibilities cannot be accommodated by any earthly political ideology or system. Jesus and his Gospel are political, but they cannot be conveniently pinned to the bottom of today’s party manifestos. Preachers need not be shy in broaching the topics of theology and politics on Sunday mornings, but we do need to be wise. In what follows, we will look at political themes appearing in the four canonical Gospels, to gain wisdom for preaching the politics of Jesus with energy and urgency, and also with faithfulness to the text.
