GIVE GOD WHAT IS HIS
Text: Matthew 22:15 - 22
How many times have you heard someone say something like, “I only have to do two things, pay taxes and die”? Now they even have a new tax added on which is called by some a “death tax” which means that they tax the estate that is on by a will to the heirs. There is a lot of talk, debate and obstruction about cutting taxes in the last few days in current political affairs.
Today’s text is not about taxes but how we put things in their proper perspective. The Pharisees want to trap Jesus with a trick question about taxes that will make him side with their law or Caesar’s tax code. Jesus blows them away when He takes a coin with Caesar’s image on it and tells them, “Give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and give to God what belongs to God” (Matthew 6:21). Not to give God what belongs to God is to rob God according to Malachi 3:8 – 9. The Pharisees were astonished which seems to mean speechless as they departed (Matthew 22:22).
Why were the Pharisees wanting to try to trick Jesus? The reason why they wanted to try and trick Jesus was because Jesus’s authority rivaled their own! In trying to force Jesus to choose a side, they hoped to get Jesus to incriminate Himself. Did they have a thrifty devotion? What do our own decisions say about us?
THRIFTY DEVOTION
How is it is possible to have a devotion to God that falls short? The Pharisees had motives that were not pure. Their motives were not religious but political. Jesus sees through their plan and turns the tables by emphasizing that the proper thing is to give to both God and Caesar what belongs to them. 1) Thrifty Devotion: Is it possible that Jesus was calling the devotion of the Pharisees a thrifty devotion? Although the notion of thrifty devotion is not mentioned directly in this passage of scripture, it seems to be implied. There are times when we might approach our spiritual lives the same way we do our bargain shopping. 2) Totally committed devotion: Anything that is not whole-hearted devotion is nothing more than mediocre at best.
How is our devotion? Are there times when our bargain shopping echoes our devotion in our spiritual lives? Does God skimp us on offering us His grace? There are two extremes of how we spend money. (1) We either stockpile it (hoarding) because we are thrifty; (2) Or, perhaps we might be extravagant because we might be a little careless in spending more than we should have. Do we suffer from having a thrifty devotion?
Illustration: “In 1626, Peter Minuit, the director-general of Dutch West India Company's settlement in North America, made what he thought was a very good deal. He bought Manhattan Island from native Indian chiefs for $24. Unfortunately for him, company headquarters didn't think it was such a bargain and charged him a fine for his "extravagance." Mr. Minuit's extravagance would not purchase a square inch of Manhattan Island today. What we see as extravagant today may someday be seen as cheap”. (Raymond McHenry. ed. McHenry’s Quips, Quotes And Other Notes. [quoted from: The Timetables of History, Bernard Grun, 1975, p. 283; Houston Post, Nov. 11, 1992, p. 2]. Third Printing. Peabody: Hendrickson Publishers, 2004, pp. 294- 295). Does God thinks of us as thrifty in our devotion to Him?
God does not think of us as cheap, because Jesus bought us with a price (I Corinthians 6:20)! Does God think of us as cheap? Of course not! We are made in God’s image! Just as God does not think we are cheap, God does not want us be thrifty in our potential for serving Him! God’s grace is free to us but it was extremely costly to Jesus Christ who paid the price that we could not have paid. Matthew 22:37 reminds us that … "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your min” (ESV).
WHAT DO OUR DECISIONS SAY ABOUT US?
Was their question a masquerade for a seemingly genuine curiosity? What is odd about the group that asked Jesus this question? 1) Usually polarized : The group that was asking Jesus this question was not a likely group. Why would we think that they were not a likely group? Herodians and Pharisees were both politically and religiously at odds with each other. 2) Opposites attract?: Was it a law of opposites attract? The Herodians would have been in favor of taxes whereas the Pharisees opposed taxation. The Pharisees dislike Roman oppression but would play the game so long as the Romans did not interfere in their religion.
There were Roman emperors who declared themselves a god to be worshipped. 1) Emperor worship: They wanted their subjects to say “Caesar is Lord!” In the church at Pergamum (Revelation 2:12-17) people were required to call Caesar Lord which meant that refusing to do so would more than likely cause persecution. 2) God not government!: There are some in our world today who want to make our government the answer for every problem. Our government can solve some problems but it can never give us the gift of eternal life! Like him or not, whether you voted for him or not President Donald Trump has said publicly on more than one occasion, “We worship God not government!” No matter what side of the fence you are on, if you are a Christian you have to agree with that statement!
What would happen to our success if we did not give to God what is His? How well would we succeed without God? Or we even succeed at all? What does Jesus say about success and being connected with God? Apart from God, we lose our place and our purpose. Consider what Jesus said in John 15:4 – 5: 4 “Remain in me, and I in you. As the branch can`t bear fruit by itself, unless it remains in the vine, so neither can you, unless you remain in me. 5 I am the vine. You are the branches. He who remains in me, and I in him, the same bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.” (ASV). John 15:4 – 5 is one of the places that Jesus reminds us that he gives us our place and our purpose. Money can give us things but it cannot give us our place in eternity.
What is our duty as Christians in the world? What would Jesus say the answer is? Probably all of us would mention a list something like these just to name a few…. humility, honesty, compassion, loving, reconciling, forgiveness, prayer, diligence, welcoming, evangelizing, self-denial, using our talents. Doesn’t our duty as Christians help us to understand our purpose in the world? Doesn’t our duty as Christians help us understand who we are and why we are here?
What is it that Jesus wants us to do with our lives to get real and to make Him real to others? Jesus wants us to be like Him in denying ourselves and taking up our crosses as we follow Him. “There is no integrity in being a cross-wearer if you cannot be a cross bearer.” (Michael Duduit. ed. The Abingdon Preaching Annual 1999. Gary G. Kindley. “What God Desrevres”. Nashville: Abingdon press, 1998, p. 337). Jesus wants us to give to Him our best because He gave to us His best. Jesus wants us to give to God what is God’s by giving our best in all that we do.
Illustration: “Most everyone will remember the era of the Susan B. Anthony dollar. It lasted merely three years, for a very good reason. The coins looked too much like quarters, and people didn't like the confusion. In the public's mind a dollar needed to look like it was worth four quarters, not just twenty-five cents. The coin seemed like "chump change" so fell out of circulation and became a memory. Christians can learn a poignant lesson from the U.S. Treasury's error. The world expects believers to look like Christ, not a cheap imitation. People outside of the church see too many professing Christians who look more like "chump change" than the real thing. Live in such a way that others will easily recognize a significant difference”. (Raymond McHenry. ed. McHenry’s Quips, Quotes And Other Notes. [quoted from: "The Innovating Man," Tony Evans, The Innovative Church Growth Conference, 1994; Houston Post, May 1, 1994, p. A-32]. Third Printing. Peabody: Hendrickson Publishers, 2004, pp. 41 - 42). God wants us to look and live like Christians. Are we giving God our best in all that we do? Does our church do all that we can in our world and in our community through our prayers, presence, gifts and services?
ILLUSTRATION: A pig said to a chicken, “what shall we have for breakfast?’ The chicken suggested “Let’s have ham and eggs.” The pig said, “Oh no, not ham! The chicken replied, “Why not? I’ll furnish the eggs and you the ham.” “The pig said, “For you it’s involvement; but for me it’s total commitment.” Which would God prefer from us “involvement or total commitment?” (Roy B. Zuck. The Spseaker’s Quote Book . Grand Rapids: Kregel Publications, 1997, p. 78). Do we not rob God if we give Him anything less than our total commitment in our giving, in our living and in our loving service in His Name?
Is God satisfied with our thrifty devotion? Did Jesus skimp on His love, sacrifice and commitment for us while He was on the cross? There are some who might avoid paying taxes and get by under radar for a brief time but the IRS will find out and expect the unpaid taxes to be settled. They’ll even garnish one’s wages to make sure. Nobody can cheat death. God does not owe us anything! Our very souls belong to God. Ezekiel 18:4 says “Behold, all souls are Mine. As the soul of the father, also the soul of the son, they are Mine. The soul that sins, it shall die” (KJV). We owe God our praise because without God, life is incomplete and without our belief in Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior eternal is impossible! In the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
