Kevin Martin
13. Then they sent to Him some of the Pharisees and the Herodians, to catch Him in His words. 14. When they had come, they said to Him, “Teacher, we know that You are true, and care about no one; for You do not regard the person of men, but teach the way of God in truth. Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not? Shall we pay, or shall we not pay?”
15. But He, knowing their hypocrisy, said to them, “Why do you test Me? Bring Me a denarius that I may see it.” 16. So they brought it.
And He said to them, “Whose image and inscription is this?” They said to Him, “Caesar’s.”
17. And Jesus answered and 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 NKJV
In America
In America our coins bear the images of our greatest presidents.
Our quarters bear the image of George Washington. He was our first president. Without him we may have lost the war for our independence.
But, was he the deciding factor? No! The deciding factor was the God he worshiped, who used him to see this great nation free!
Our pennies bear the image of Abraham Lincoln. Without him, we may have remained a nation of slavery. But was he the deciding factor or even General Ulysses S. Grant; another of our great presidents? Neither! It was the God they worshiped. The same God many of the slaves cried out to; He who created all men and women to be free. Our God wanted this great nation free for all!
In Israel
“Woe to you lawyers! For you have taken away the key of knowledge. You did not enter in yourselves, and those who were entering in you hindered.”
And as He said these things to them, the scribes and the Pharisees began to assail Him vehemently, and to cross-examine Him about many things, lying in wait for Him, and seeking to catch Him in something He might say, that they might accuse Him. Luke 11:52-54 NKJV
As the days approached the end of Jesus’ ministry in Israel, He became more confrontational with the failure of the religious rulers. They became angry and fearful, and therefore, tried to find a way to accuse Him.
In Jerusalem
Jesus had previously warned His apostles of persecution. We need to trust His promise today, as well.
“Be on your guard! For there will be those who will betray you before their religious councils and brutally beat you with whips in their public gatherings. And because you follow me, they will take you to stand trial in front of rulers and even kings as an opportunity to testify of me before them and the unbelievers. So when they arrest you, don’t worry about how to speak or what you are to say, for the Holy Spirit will give you at that very moment the words to speak. It won’t be you speaking but the Spirit of your Father repeatedly speaking through you.
Matthew 10:17-20 TPT
In the passage of Mark 12, the Pharisees and Herodians came to Jesus to catch Him in His words. They began by flattering Him with the truth about His integrity.
Thinking Him to be a false Messiah, they thought they could outsmart Him. Therefore, they asked Him a question about their Law. Should they be paying tribute (taxes) to Caesar or not?
Jesus saw through their hypocrisy and asked them to bring Him a penny; a silver coin worth a day’s wages, a denarius.
When they handed it to Him, He asked them whose image and whose inscription was on it. It wasn’t the image of their great deliverer, Moses. It wasn’t of Abraham – the father of their faith. It was the image of Tiberius Caesar, their oppressor.
Jesus startled them, declaring to them that they should pay or render to Caesar the things that are his. And to God the things that are His.
This is how The Passion Translation declares it. “The coin bears the image of the emperor Caesar, so you should pay the emperor his portion. But because you bear the image of God, you must give back to God all that belongs to him.”
The Pharisees and Herodians were stunned and trapped in the snare they set for Jesus.
They were birthed from the lineage of Abraham, the Father of the faith of the Jewish people, yet they did not recognize nor honor Jesus as the Christ their forefathers longed for. Even more so, Yahweh, the Father of all mankind – they bore His image, as did even the Roman soldiers.
Today we bear His image as human beings, but more – as believers in Jesus, our Savior and Deliverer, we bear His mark imprinted by Holy Spirit on our foreheads and on and in our spirits, which have been sealed by this same Holy Spirit.
We are His!
As His children, we can trust Him to always provide for our needs, even to pay our taxes. Peter, following the Lord’s instruction, received the miracle of one piece of money sufficient for himself and Jesus in the mouth of the first fish that rose up.
After they arrived in Capernaum, the collectors of the temple tax approached Peter and asked, “Does your teacher pay the tax for the upkeep of the temple, like the rest of us?”
“Of course he does,” Peter answered.
When Peter walked into the house, and before he had a chance to speak, Jesus spoke up and said, “Peter, I have a question for you. Who pays tolls or taxes to a king? Is tax collected from the king’s own children, or from his subjects?”
“From his subjects,” Peter answered.
Jesus replied, “That’s right. The children get off free without paying taxes. But so that we don’t offend them, go to the lake and throw out your hook, and the first fish that rises up will have a coin in its mouth. It will be the exact amount you need to pay the temple tax for both of us.” Matthew 17:24-27 TPT
We bear God’s image, not our president’s. But we are also God’s children. And as we cast our care upon Him, He cares for us.
Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you. 1 Peter 5:6, 7 NKJV
We bear His image! And more so – We are His!
Therefore,
For example, if you have a speaking gift, speak as though God were speaking his words through you. If you have the gift of serving, do it passionately with the strength God gives you, so that in everything God alone will be glorified through Jesus Christ. For to him belong the power and the glory forever throughout all ages! Amen. 1 Peter 4:11 TPT
For Further Insight
So it is your duty to pay all the taxes and fees that they require and to respect those who are worthy of respect, honoring them accordingly.
Don’t owe anything to anyone, except your outstanding debt to continually love one another, for the one who learns to love has fulfilled every requirement of the law. Romans 13:7, 8 TPT
Learning to love not only honors all men, but ensures heartfelt payment of all that honor and duty requires.
Have you forgotten that your body is now the sacred temple of the Spirit of Holiness, who lives in you? You don’t belong to yourself any longer, for the gift of God, the Holy Spirit, lives inside your sanctuary. You were God’s expensive purchase, paid for with tears of blood, so by all means, then, use your body to bring glory to God! 1 Corinthians 6:19, 20 TPT
Be listening closely to Holy Spirit united with your spirit. His instructions to you, not only honor the price Jesus’ blood paid for you, but empower you to glorify God in your body.
to be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and to put on the new man who has been created in God?s image – in righteousness and holiness that comes from truth. Ephesians 4:24 NET
Yielding to Holy Spirit renews your spirit’s knowledge of who you now are: recreated in God’s image of righteousness and holiness according to His divine nature in truth (2 Peter 1:3, 4 NKJV).
Little children, you can be certain that you belong to God and have conquered them, for the One who is living in you is far greater than the one who is in the world. They belong to this world and they articulate the spirit of this world, and the world listens to them. But we belong to God, and whoever truly knows God listens to us. Those who refuse to listen to us do not belong to God. That is how we can know the difference between the spirit of truth and the spirit of deceit. 1 John 4:4-6 TPT
As God’s sons and daughters, knowing you belong entirely to Him, you have defeated every lie of your powerless enemies. For they don’t know God’s will or His ways as we do. They who don’t belong to God have not listened to His Spirit, but to deceitful voices.
If you really knew God, you would listen, receive, and respond with faith to his words. But since you don’t listen and respond to what he says, it proves you don’t belong to him and you have no room for him in your hearts.” John 8:47 TPT
Those who really know God listen to and faithfully follow His words. Those who don’t follow God, show their hearts are full of deceit; it’s obvious they do not belong to Him.