Last week, Jesus told a story about some renters of a vineyard refusing to give the owner his due Mark 12:1-12. This week, some local leaders quiz Jesus about giving the emperor his due.
The tax in question was a poll tax. It was levied by the Romans on every adult listed on the census. The tax had to be paid with a silver coin from the imperial mint. On one side was an image of Caesar. On the other side, a female figure representing peace.
The irony is that these coins were not in wide circulation in Palestine at this time. They went against the mandate to abstain from graven images. Archeologists have determined that the coins most people used on a daily basis had no images at all.
Jesus neatly sidesteps the question. The coin has Caesar’s image on it, so it must be his. Give it to him! The larger question of what belongs to God is left hanging.
Generally, Christians have understood that loyalty to the state and following just laws is appropriate. We stop at stop signs. We pay our taxes. But we also understand that God and the state are not equal. God always comes first. Anyone who is ordered to falsify a report, pass a defective product or put up with some other form of wrongdoing should resist. And if resisting costs them their job, then the church needs to step in and support them.
Today, our country is grappling with lots of questions about immigration and citizenship. (As someone born overseas, these questions resonate with me.) As with many other questions, reasonable people can disagree. There is too much diversity in the world to expect everyone to agree about everything.
What all Christians should agree on, though, is that God’s will comes first. God is not subordinate to the state. God is not equal to the state. God is always superior to any country or nation on earth. As Christians, our primary loyalty is never to the state. Our primary loyalty is always to God. We first give to God the things that are God’s. Then, we give to the state the things that are the state’s.
What belongs to God? Tune in next week and find out!
God’s peace to us all, Pastor Ken
