God and Taxes

Mark 12:13-17, CEB - They sent some of the Pharisees and supporters of Herod to trap him in his words.  They came to him and said, “Teacher, we know that you’re genuine and you don’t worry about what people think. You don’t show favoritism but teach God’s way as it really is. Does the Law allow people to pay taxes to Caesar or not? Should we pay taxes or not?”

Since Jesus recognized their deceit, he said to them, “Why are you testing me? Bring me a coin. Show it to me.”  And they brought one. He said to them, “Whose image and inscription is this?”

“Caesar’s,” they replied.

Jesus said to them, “Give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to God.” His reply left them overcome with wonder.

 

                Having been bested by Jesus in the first challenge concerning authority, the Pharisees join forces with Herodians (Jewish supporters of and colluders with Herod, the Roman-appointed governor) to try and trick Jesus into saying something either chargeable under the law or unpopular with His supporters.  They ask Jesus about a hot-button issue at the time which was the taxation of the occupying Romans.  The Roman was extremely unpopular almost everyone and there were Zealots among the Jews who defiantly refused to pay it.  The Herodians, on the other hand, benefitted from their cooperation with the Romans and some of them were both civic and religious leaders.  They would have loved to have Jesus quoted as supporting NOT paying taxes to Caesar.  He could then be charged with rebellion and dealt with as a traitor to the Roman government.  However, if Jesus clearly advocates paying the taxes, his own followers will be displeased.  The Pharisee-Herodian alliance sees this question as a win either way.

                Jesus is aware of what they are trying to do (their ruse is quite obvious) and his answer once again avoids the trap.  The answer also gives Mark’s readers a decision framework to work from when making decisions concerning the sometimes competing claims of civic duty and faith in God.  After asking his questioners to produce a Roman denarius, he gives the following principle.

                “Give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to God.”

We should note here that the fact the questioners are able to produce a denarius within the walls of the temple exposes their hypocrisy.  Jewish Oral law prohibited coinage with anyone’s image upon them to be carried in the Temple.  Everyone present would have known that because everyone was subject to the coin exchanges outside the Temple to facilitate adherence to this law.  The leaders are visibly in violation of their own law concerning money when asking Jesus about the proper use of it. 

Jesus doesn’t instruct people to pay taxes or not pay taxes.  His answer makes some assumptions:” (1) paying taxes to governmental authorities is necessary to serve the common good and (2) while #1 may be true, a faithful follower of God will always consider what should be given to God.  I like the way Lamar Williamson summarizes Jesus instruction here:

“The guidance offered is not that of a quick and unequivocal answer. Rather than give a direct answer in an oracle from God, Jesus uses an object lesson from everyday life and expects us to use our discipline common sense.  He does not simply tell us what to do, but suggests how we ought to think about our decision.”  (Williamson, p. 220)¹

While other New Testament writers talk more extensively about navigating matters of civic and religious life, this is one of the few places where we hear straight from Jesus on the subject.  The principle we get from Jesus here is that we are to use all the resources of our faith and our acumen as citizens to make honorable decisions that have integrity.  This might mean making different decisions on different occasions should the details demand it.  While it can be frustrating not to have a black and white pronouncement to follow in these matters, what Jesus gives us is a responsibility to exercise all of our theological and moral resources to act justly in each situation.  In most cases, “Caesar” is due at least something because “Caesar” is charged with the common good and needs resources to accomplish it.  Civil disobedience may sometimes be warranted, but it is not to be untaken lightly and before one has carefully weighed all the options. In all cases, what is due to God is always our first concern and responsibility.   

 

Question:  What is the relationship between what you give to governments and what you give to God?

 

Prayer:  Lord, our first citizenship is that in the Kingdom of God, but we are also subject to earthly authorities.  Gove us wisdom to navigate both allegiances in a way that serves the common good and honors You above all else.  Amen.

 

Prayer Focus:   Pray for all public servants of the common good today.

 

Song:  Taxman – Beatles

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bsFRMTbhOn0

The Problem With Having It All

Mark 10:17-31, The Message - As he went out into the street, a man came running up, greeted him with great reverence, and asked, “Good Teacher, what must I do to get eternal life?”

Jesus said, “Why are you calling me good? No one is good, only God. You know the commandments: Don’t murder, don’t commit adultery, don’t steal, don’t lie, don’t cheat, honor your father and mother.”

He said, “Teacher, I have—from my youth—kept them all!”

Jesus looked him hard in the eye—and loved him! He said, “There’s one thing left: Go sell whatever you own and give it to the poor. All your wealth will then be heavenly wealth. And come follow me.”

The man’s face clouded over. This was the last thing he expected to hear, and he walked off with a heavy heart. He was holding on tight to a lot of things, and not about to let go.

Looking at his disciples, Jesus said, “Do you have any idea how difficult it is for people who ‘have it all’ to enter God’s kingdom?” The disciples couldn’t believe what they were hearing, but Jesus kept on: “You can’t imagine how difficult. I’d say it’s easier for a camel to go through a needle’s eye than for the rich to get into God’s kingdom.”

That got their attention. “Then who has any chance at all?” they asked.

Jesus was blunt: “No chance at all if you think you can pull it off by yourself. Every chance in the world if you let God do it.”

Peter tried another angle: “We left everything and followed you.”

Jesus said, “Mark my words, no one who sacrifices house, brothers, sisters, mother, father, children, land—whatever—because of me and the Message will lose out. They’ll get it all back, but multiplied many times in homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children, and land—but also in troubles. And then the bonus of eternal life! This is once again the Great Reversal: Many who are first will end up last, and the last first.”

 

                One of the most memorable moments from the movie Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory comes at the end. After bequeathing his factory to the boy Charlie, Wille Wonka, played brilliantly by Gene Wilder, says the following to Charlie:

 “Don't forget what happened to the man who suddenly got everything he wanted…. he lived happily ever after.”

If only that were true.  So many people have found this out the hard way.  They amass wealth, power, and/or influence, thinking it they are securing the keys to happiness only to find themselves miserable in ways they never dreamed.  Jesus looks into the eyes of this young man who already has acquired great wealth and sees the hints of this misery already developing this young man and is filled with compassion for him.  He wants to save him from the suffering that is already on it’s way, but realizes it will be costly to the rich young man.  The hold that wealth has on the man is complete.  Jesus realizes that the only way this hold can be loosened is if the man is physically separated from it.  The hold that the wealth has on him is confirmed when he leaves Jesus sad because he cannot bear the truth with which Jesus confronts him. 

After the man has left, Jesus uses the encounter to point out the difficulty of wealth to his disciples.  It is a rare individual who can be wealthy and follow God completely.  This is hard for anyone to hear, but in Jesus’s time, it was even more difficult because the teaching flies in the face of the then-common belief that wealth was a sign of divine blessing.  Jesus teaches here and elsewhere that often, the opposite is true; wealth can be a curse.  It can create a blockage to divine blessing and connection.   

We’d all like to think that we are the rare individual who could pull it off – we’d be the one who could hold wealth, but not let it erode our trust in God.  I think the disciples may have been thinking the same thing and so they ask, “than who has any chance at all?”  They were hoping Jesus would say something like, “it won’t be a problem for you guys,” but alas he says something even more surprising. 

““No chance at all if you think you can pull it off by yourself. Every chance in the world if you let God do it.”

Peter points out that all the disciples hearing this actually done what Jesus told the unfortunate man to do.  They’ve left behind people and things in order to follow Him. 

                Jesus finally offers some reassurance in response that the disciples’ sacrifices have been noticed by God.  They have chosen God over other things and their choice was the wisest thing they’ve ever done.  They, unlike the wealthy young man, were able to trust God to provide for them when they gave up the means to provide for themselves.  However, their choice doesn’t accomplish the provision; God does.  God always does.  This truth is at the core of the entire passage.  Only God can offer eternity.  Eternal life cannot be earned; it is always the gift of God. 

 

Question:  To what extent do you believe you have earned the blessings you now enjoy? 

 

Prayer:  Lord, expose any way in which we feel entitled to the good things we enjoy and break any unhealthy attachments we have to things other than you.  Amen.

 

Prayer Focus:  Pray for those who are wealthy nut miserable nonetheless.

 

Song:  Can’t Buy Me Love – The Beatles

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=srwxJUXPHvE