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Gospel: Mark 12: 13-17
Some Pharisees and Herodians were sent
to Jesus to ensnare him in his speech.
They came and said to him,
“Teacher, we know that you are a truthful man
and that you are not concerned with anyone’s opinion.
You do not regard a person’s status
but teach the way of God in accordance with the truth.
Is it lawful to pay the census tax to Caesar or not?
Should we pay or should we not pay?”
Knowing their hypocrisy he said to them,
“Why are you testing me?
Bring me a denarius to look at.”
They brought one to him and he said to them,
“Whose image and inscription is this?”
They replied to him, “Caesar’s.”
So Jesus said to them,
“Repay to Caesar what belongs to Caesar
and to God what belongs to God.”
They were utterly amazed at him.
The Gospel of the Lord.
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“Is it lawful to pay the census tax to Caesar or not?”
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The Pharisees know how much the Jews hated paying taxes. They wanted their own land and their own government; they wanted to rule themselves.
If Jesus tells the Jews it’s lawful to pay their taxes, then he’ll appear to be a friend of Rome, and in opposition to their cause.
But if he tells the Jews not to pay their taxes, then he can be arrested as an enemy of the State.
It’s a catch-22.
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“Bring me a denarius to look at,” Jesus says.
Where else will the Pharisees draw a coin from but their very own pockets?
As much as they hate to admit it, they, too, paid their taxes. “So, repay to Caesar what belongs to Caesar,” Jesus says, “but to God what belongs to God.”
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What belongs to God?
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We do.
In one of the very first verses in the bible, God says, “Let us make man in our image and likeness.”
Meaning, Caesar can have our coin.
But God is deserving of our lives.
How do I give God my life? What would it look like to hand over a little more of myself today?
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“Give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to God.”
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Image credits: (1) Got Questions (2) Coin Talk (3) Compelling Truth