The text: Matthew 22:15-22
Living life costs. Doing all the things we do costs money. All the things we are blessed with and use are paid for by someone. There are “no free lunches”, as
they say. Two things are certain in life: death and taxes… and maybe enjoying a BBQ when in Australia!
Some people have a bit of trouble with the idea of paying taxes. Others have don’t have too much trouble paying taxes. They drive on good roads, receive excellent treatment in excellent hospitals, enjoy education in good schools, delight in the facilities in beautiful national parks and so on. They all cost money. Someone has to pay for them. Citizens help pay for them. This seems right and good.
But this is right and good in modern Australia. Maybe not so for other parts of the world now or in Jesus’ time. Many people live in communities that are corrupt or unjustly ruled. Some pay exorbitant taxes to feed that corruption and some even have to pax taxes to a brutal foreign power they did not vote for, know well or like much. Paying taxes there would be hard.
This was the lot of the Pharisees, Herodians and average person in Palestine in Jesus’ day. There was disagreement among these and other groups about what to do about paying taxes in their country. Some said taxes should be paid (The Herodians). Some said taxes should not be paid (the Pharisees).
Part of the issue was not just about money or even politics or justice, but about religion. There was an image of the Roman ruler, Caesar, on the coins. For some this was a direct breaking of the First Commandment – the one about images of idols. As they heard Jesus speaking to people with such authority on all the issues of life and the things of God, you can see that they would want to hear him on this troublesome issue. All the better if they could trap him to diminish his growing influence on people.
So, you can hear them thinking, “What is this troublesome Rabbi from the north going to say about this contentious matter?”
For the first time, probably in living memory, the arch-enemies combine for an agreed purpose – to diminish Jesus. They think this way: Maybe they can use this tricky issue of paying tax to Caesar to get Jesus to sign his own death warrant in public. If we can checkmate him in public on this difficult issue which has instant mass interest (because everyone has to pay this tribute tax and hates doing so), that would play into our hands and the plan to get rid of him would be easier to enact.
But this is risky. The people love him. That is the reason for the need to set a trap. They cannot be seen to be too obvious about this.
It is Tuesday of Holy Week. This will turn out to be the last week of Jesus’ earthly life. It is peak time in the city – Festival time. The whole country is there in the city. Jesus’ fall (if it happens) would be as good as any Facebook meltdown! It would go ‘viral’. So, the hunters circle in the crowded temple area.
It is helpful to know more about these coins. The coin is one cent or a penny (denarius). This coin was used to pay the “Tribute Tax”. The Tribute Tax is what everyone had to pay in homage to Rome. They paid it often. Everybody hated paying it, not because of the amount so much as to what it represented, which was bowing down to Caesar as God. Paying anything to the Romans was spiritual and a political selling out!
The image of Caesar Tiberius is on the coin. The inscription says, “Caesar Augustus Tiberius, son of the Divine Augustus”. Paying this tax in tribute to Tiberius is going along with the claim that he is ‘Divine’; that he is a god.
The Pharisees believed that even handling these coins with images of Caesar was breaking the first commandment, which is to “Love the Lord with all your heart” . They did not want the people to give their heart to Caesar more than the Lord and his promises.. But the Sadducees liked the temple and see it as part of the Lord’s future. So, they affirmed the payment of the tax for that reason.
So, what does Jesus do here? If Jesus says “Don’t pay the tax to Caesar”, the people will be very pleased, but he would likely be immediately arrested by the Roman authorities and jailed–or worse. If Jesus says, “Pay the tax to Caesar”, he would be accused of idolatry. Many of them would stop listening to him. What is he going to do?
Jesus is masterful under pressure! There are some things to note here. Jesus carries no coins. If they were consistent, the Pharisees would not dare carry Roman coins into the sacred Temple area, and yet, when Jesus asks them to produce a denarius, one immediately appears. Someone has broken the first commandment right there right there in the holiest place on earth – the Temple!
Checkmate. Both groups are now associated with the graven image for their joint evil intent. But Jesus remains his own man. They have broken the law. Jesus has not. They are all tainted by Caesar’s image. He is not.
Astonishingly, Jesus says, “Give back to Caesar what is Caesar’s”. Through the payment of tax to the governing authorities, God provides things like water supply, maintaining the city and so on. So, in other words, “Person of God, pay for what needs to be paid for. Use your resources to your own good, your family and the good of society. Pay school fees, tax, medical bills, donate to good causes, buy clothes, food and live.
But then a difference. Jesus adds: “and give back to God the things that are God’s”. We confess, “I believe that God has created me and ALL THAT EXISTS” (Small Catechism). Genesis 1:26 tells us who we are; we are people created in our kind and loving heavenly Father’s image.
With your whole self and whole heart of thanks, give everything you have ever received or will receive; everything you own or will own, everything you are and will become to him in thankfulness and praise for his will above your own. He is your life. He gives you life by the cross of this Jesus who speaks this word.”
We are free to do this today. We are free in our baptism into Christ to agree or disagree on all the issues and needs of life. We are free to listen, talk, and decide on the things of politics, money, community needs, family needs and etc. We are free to use money and pay taxes because we are made in God’s spitting image in Christ.
As a community of faith it is the same. In 1 Peter 2: 4-5, we hear that together in our Baptism we are living stones in his living spiritual house – a holy priesthood, no less, ordained for his kingdom work in his world.
And we are free to pay our tribute to Jesus today. He gets all the tribute we can muster. He paid for you in blood once and for all and he keeps his promises to complete his work with your life. You righty pay homage with everything you are and own every day, for all he has done and is doing for you out of sheer underserved love for you every day.
As we decide on the many issues we face in family, work, church and life in general, we simply pay right tribute to our Saviour in all of them and do what comes from the heart; we “give back to God’s what is God’s”.
If you were a coin then the image of God would be on you for the world to see.
Today he calls us to give our very selves to him, not merely money, things, or plans.
We give our very selves and whatever we possess to be his image bearers where we live. Whatever we do together in love today, we do it for the Lord’s glory and his kingdom’s coming. That is how we “give to God the things that are God’s.”
The peace of God who gives his all for you keep you this day. Amen.