And they sent to him some of the Pharisees and
some of the Herodians, to trap him in his talk. And they came and said to him,
“Teacher, we know that you are true and do not care about anyone’s opinion. For
you are not swayed by appearances, but truly teach the way of God. Is it lawful
to pay taxes to Caesar, or not? Should we pay them, or should we not?” But,
knowing their hypocrisy, he said to them, “Why put me to the test? Bring me ia
denarius and let me look at it.” And they brought one. And he said to them,
“Whose likeness and inscription is this?” They said to him, “Caesar’s.” Jesus
said to them, “Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the
things that are God’s.” And they marveled at him. (Mark 12:13-17 ESV).
Then they posed a question that they
hoped would get him into trouble with the Romans: “Is it right to pay the
imperial tax to Caesar or not?” But Jesus wasn’t about to be trapped. He knew
their hypocrisy.
He asked to see one of their coins, and
he used it to teach about meeting our obligations to authorities (cf. Romans
13)—and recognizing that “what is God’s” is a whole lot more. All that there
is, is the Lord’s—“the earth … and everything in it, the world, and all who
live in it” (Psalm 24:1). That includes you and me and everyone else today, as
well as in the past. We’re all God’s!
Thus, we are all called to give of who
we are and what we have to God. It’s stated this way in an ancient confession:
“I belong—body and soul—to my faithful Savior Jesus Christ” (Heidelberg
Catechism, Q&A 1). And as God’s Word puts it, “Offer your bodies as a
living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God” (Romans 12:1). Giving God his due
still means honest giving and taxpaying.
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