Chapter 92
THE QUESTION ABOUT TAXES
Part II – Render unto God the things of God
Matthew 22:15-22
As it is our custom, before we begin this study let us pray.
Dear Heavenly Father,
We come before You in the name of Your only begotten Son, Jesus Christ. Almighty God, we come to ask You to please bless this study and move upon us to truly hear, see and understand what You are teaching us. In addition, please move upon us to heed Your instruction and go forth to do what You have taught us. In Jesus Christ’s Holy Name we pray.
Amen
INTRODUCTION
As a prelude to this study let us read the following confrontation Jesus had with the Pharisees and the Herodians. To do this we go to,
Matthew 22:15-22
[15] Then the Pharisees went and plotted how they might entangle Him in His talk. [16] And they sent to Him their disciples with the Herodians, saying, “Teacher, we know that You are true, and teach the way of God in truth; nor do You care about anyone, for You do not regard the person of men. [17] Tell us, therefore, what do You think? Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not? [18] But Jesus perceived their wickedness, and said, “Why do you test Me, you hypocrites? [19] Show Me the tax money.” So they brought Him a denarius. [20] And He said to them, “Whose image and inscription is this?” [21] They said to Him, “Caesar’s.” And He said to them, “Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” [22] When they had heard these words, they marveled, and left Him and went their way.
In chapter 91 we explored Jesus’ teaching that; “We are to give to Caesar that which belongs to Caesar.”
We now come to the topic of this chapter, chapter 92, which is; “We are to give to God that which belongs to God.”
In considering this portion of Jesus’ teaching the question may arise as to; “What exactly are the things that belong to God?” The short and concise answer to this question is found by reading a short description of Jesus Christ’s Lordship. To do this we go to,
Colossians 1:15-16
[15] He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. [16] For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him.
In other words, all things belong to God.
To expand upon this truth we will examine two major areas of our life. These areas are: (1) the physical and (2) the spiritual.
With this introduction, we begin by examining,
THE PHYSICAL ASPECTS OF OUR LIFE
In doing this we will find that,
1. Everything upon this earth belongs to God.
2. God requires us to be good stewards of His possessions.
Let us now expand upon the fact that,
EVERYTHING UPON THIS EARTH BELONGS TO GOD
As we expand upon this truth, we will discover that: (1) the earth and water upon the earth, (2) the plants, (3) the animals and (4) the people were created by Him and for Him. To do this, we begin by noting that,
The earth and the waters upon the earth are His creation
To see this let us read the following account from the book of Genesis.
Genesis 1:9-10
[9] Then God said, “Let the waters under the heavens be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear”; and it was so. [10] And God called the dry land Earth, and the gathering together of the waters He called Seas. And God saw that it was good.
Since the entire earth is part of God’s creation, it then follows that,
All the silver and gold within or on the earth are His
In fact God, through His prophet Ezekiel, verified this truth. To see this, let us read what God, through His prophet Ezekiel, said to the Israelites who were making gold and silver idols or images to worship. As we read the following Scripture please notice to whom all the silver and gold belongs to.
Ezekiel 16:17
[17] You have also taken your beautiful jewelry from My gold and My silver, which I had given you, and made for yourself male images and played the harlot with them.
The Bible also teaches us that all the plant life was created by God. Thus,
All plant life is His
To refresh our memories let us read from,
Genesis 1:11-12
[11] Then God said, “Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb that yields seed, and the fruit tree that yields fruit according to its kind, whose seed is in itself, on the earth”; and it was so. [12] And the earth brought forth grass, the herb that yields seed according to its kind, and the tree that yields fruit, whose seed is in itself according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.
In addition to all the plant life, the Bible teaches us that,
Every animal is His
This is clearly stated in a word of correction to those who did not realize the true reason God instituted the Old Testament animal sacrifices. More specifically, the sacrificial system became a burden to the people. They, for some reason, lost sight of the fact that God put this system in place for the people’s benefit. Instead, they believed it was God who needed the animals that they sacrificed. Consequently, God rebuked them for this type of reasoning. The important excerpt of His rebuke for this study can be found in,
[9] “I will not take a bull from your house,
[10] For every beast of the forest is Mine,
And the cattle on a thousand hills.
[11] I know all the birds of the mountains,
And the wild beasts of the field are Mine.
[12] If I were hungry, I would not tell you;
For the world is Mine, and all its fullness.”
Finally, for this portion of our study, we find that even,
The people or all of mankind were created by God
This is recorded in,
Genesis 1:26-28
[26] Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” [27] So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. [28] Then God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”
Since God has given mankind dominion over His earthly creation,
WE ARE TO BE GOOD STEWARDS OF HIS POSSESSIONS
To see this, we will review various areas of our life where we are to use His possessions for His purpose. In other words, we are to give back to God the things that are God’s.
Let us recall that in the previous chapter, chapter 91, we were instructed to use God’s gold and silver (that is money) to,
Support our governing authorities and leaders
To refresh our memories let us reread the following Scripture,
Romans 13:1-7
[1] Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God. [2] Therefore whoever resists the authority resists the ordinance of God, and those who resist will bring judgment on themselves. [3] For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to evil. Do you want to be unafraid of the authority? Do what is good, and you will have praise from the same. [4] For he is God’s minister to you for good. But if you do evil, be afraid; for he does not bear the sword in vain; for he is God’s minister, an avenger to execute wrath on him who practices evil. [5] Therefore you must be subject, not only because of wrath but also for conscience’ sake. [6] For because of this you also pay taxes, for they are God’s ministers attending continually to this very thing. [7] Render therefore to all their due: taxes to whom taxes are due, customs to whom customs, fear to whom fear, honor to whom honor.
As we pay our taxes to the governing authorities let us remember that we are doing it for the Lord’s sake. In other words, we are rendering back to God that which is God’s. To see this let us consider the following instruction,
1 Peter 2:13-14
[13] Therefore submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord’s sake, whether to the king as supreme, [14] or to governors, as to those who are sent by him for the punishment of evildoers and for the praise of those who do good.
Let us notice the following verses,
13-14 … It is for the Lord’s sake we are to submit and physically support the governments of man. The reason for this is because God put in place the governors or Caesars to maintain rule and order over His earthly creation. However, as we learned in Chapter 91, we are only to obey the human authorities when their commands do not violate God’s laws and/or commands.
In addition to our secular governments and leadership, God also wants us to use some of His possessions to,
Help support the physical needs of those who provide us spiritual support
God’s desire for us to do this is recorded in,
Galatians 6:6
[6] Let him who is taught the word share in all good things with him who teaches.
To expand upon this command let us read the following passage,
1 Timothy 5:17-18
[17] The elders who direct the affairs of the church well are worthy of double honor, especially those whose work is preaching and teaching. [18] For the Scripture says, "Do not muzzle the ox while it is treading out the grain," and "The worker deserves his wages."
By using the illustration of the ox eating while he treads the grain, God is teaching us that in like manner the elder, while laboring for our spiritual well being, is deserving of material support for their physical needs.
In addition to providing some of God’s possessions for the support of the physical needs for those who are our secular and spiritual leaders we are also to use some of His possessions to,
Provide for the physical needs of our families
To see this let us read the following two passages from the book of Genesis. The first passage is,
Genesis 1:29
[29] And God said, “See, I have given you every herb that yields seed which is on the face of all the earth, and every tree whose fruit yields seed; to you it shall be for food.”
The second passage records what God told Noah after the flood receded from the earth.
Genesis 9:1-4
[1] So God blessed Noah and his sons, and said to them: “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth. [2] And the fear of you and the dread of you shall be on every beast of the earth, on every bird of the air, on all that move on the earth, and on all the fish of the sea. They are given into your hand. [3] Every moving thing that lives shall be food for you. I have given you all things, even as the green herbs. [4] But you shall not eat flesh with its life, that is, its blood.”
Even though God has provided us food to nourish our physical bodies, He does require we work for it.
An example of this truth occurred approximately one and one half months after Israel was released from their bondage to the Egyptians.
Exodus 16:1-3
[1] The whole Israelite community set out from Elim and came to the Desert of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month after they had come out of Egypt. [2] In the desert the whole community grumbled against Moses and Aaron. [3] The Israelites said to them, "If only we had died by the Lord's hand in Egypt! There we sat around pots of meat and ate all the food we wanted, but you have brought us out into this desert to starve this entire assembly to death."
After traveling approximately one and one half months through the desert and its associated hardships, Israel’s faith in God was shattered. Since there was no food in the desert wilderness they became convinced they were going to starve to death. Consequently they longed for the provisions they had while enslaved by the Egyptians. In spite of their lack of faith, God, out of His love and compassion, miraculously provided bread to sustain the Israelites during their journey to the promised land of Canaan.
To see this, let us return to the Old Testament and read how, during their 40 year journey to the promised land of Canaan, God miraculously provided bread for their sustenance.
Exodus 16:4-5
[4] Then the LORD said to Moses, "I will rain down bread from heaven for you. The people are to go out each day and gather enough for that day. In this way I will test them and see whether they will follow my instructions. [5] On the sixth day they are to prepare what they bring in, and that is to be twice as much as they gather on the other days."
Let us notice the following verses,
4a … God told Moses He would give them bread for their journey. However, each day they were to go out on the desert floor and gather in their allotment. In other words, they had to work for their food.
4b … This was also a test to see if the people would follow His instructions. If they did, they would be nourished. If they did not, then because of a lack of food, they would be physically hungry and weakened.
The analogy is that God has also provided us water, plants and animals for our physical sustenance. In addition, as we previously found, when needed, God has also provided the silver and gold (money) so we can purchase these items. However, as it was with the Israelites, we are to work for it.
To see this let us read the following instruction God gave to us through Paul’s letter to the Thessalonians. The Scriptures of interest are in,
2 Thessalonians 3:6-12
[6] But we command you, brethren, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you withdraw from every brother who walks disorderly and not according to the tradition which he received from us. [7] For you yourselves know how you ought to follow us, for we were not disorderly among you; [8] nor did we eat anyone’s bread free of charge, but worked with labor and toil night and day, that we might not be a burden to any of you, [9] not because we do not have authority, but to make ourselves an example of how you should follow us. [10] For even when we were with you, we commanded you this: If anyone will not work, neither shall he eat. [11] For we hear that there are some who walk among you in a disorderly manner, not working at all, but are busybodies. [12] Now those who are such we command and exhort through our Lord Jesus Christ that they work in quietness and eat their own bread.
Let us notice the following verses,
6-7 … We are not to fellowship with those who claim to be a born-again Christian that behaves in a disorderly fashion (which is a behavior contrary to Biblical guidelines).
8-9 … As we read earlier, those who were and are instructed in God’s Word are to provide physical support to those who provide them with spiritual support. However, Paul did not exercise this right or privilege. Instead, Paul worked day and night to: (1) to not be a burden to them and (2) to be an example of how they must work for their physical needs.
This brings us to Paul’s following exhortation in,
1 Corinthians 11:1
[1] Imitate me, just as I also imitate Christ
Let us return to 2 Thessalonians Chapter 3 and notice the following verse,
10 … If a person refuses to work, then they should not eat.
However, God asks us to use some of His possessions,
To help those in genuine need
To see this let us consider the following instruction that is recorded in,
James 2:14-16
[14] What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can faith save him? [15] If a brother or sister is naked and destitute of daily food, [16] and one of you says to them, “Depart in peace, be warmed and filled,” but you do not give them the things which are needed for the body, what does it profit?
In other words, if we find someone in genuine need and we, without providing them with some food and/or money, say we will pray for them, did we really help them with their immediate issue?
When we do help those who are in real need we are not only helping them, but are also giving to God. To see this let us read the “Parable of the Sheep and the Goats.” To do this we go to,
Matthew 25:31-40
[31] When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory. [32] All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats. [33] And He will set the sheep on His right hand, but the goats on the left. [34] Then the King will say to those on His right hand, “Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: [35] for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; [36] I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.” [37] “Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, “Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You drink? [38] When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or naked and clothe You? [39] Or when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?” [40] And the King will answer and say to them, “Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.”
We now come to,
THE SPIRITUAL ASPECTS OF OUR LIFE
As we explore this aspect of our being we will find that,
1. Even though Adam was created in God’s image, we and the rest of mankind were born in the image of Adam.
2. All born again believers in Jesus Christ are children of God.
3. All glory, praise and honor belong to God.
With this outline in mind we begin our exploration by discovering that,
ALL OF MANKIND WERE BORN IN THE IMAGE OF ADAM
To see this, we begin by noting that the book of Genesis records for us that after Adam and Eve sinned and were banished from the Garden of Eden, they had two sons: (1) Cain and (2) Able. Unfortunately, there was strife between the two sons that ultimately led Cain to kill his brother Able.
When Adam was 130 years old he had another son named Seth. This is recorded in,
Genesis 5:3
[3] When Adam had lived 130 years, he had a son in his own likeness, in his own image; and he named him Seth.
Even though Adam and Eve were created in God’s image and likeness, Adam and Eve’s offspring Seth was born in the image and likeness of Adam. It is the same for you and me. The significance of this comes to light by noting that because Adam and Eve sinned, we too are sinners.
Romans 5:19(a)
[19] For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, …
Therefore, the Bible teaches us that because we are sinners we are also spiritually dead and under God’s wrath. To see this, let us carefully consider the following Scriptures that describe the condition of the Christian prior to their new birth,
Ephesians 2:1-3
[1] As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, [2] in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. [3] All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath.
As we reflect upon the above we come to understand we are in a very sorry state. We realize our tendency to sin comes from the sinful nature we inherited from Adam. Therefore, it is our innate nature to sin. Therefore, we are unable to save ourselves from the sin that so easily entangles us.
It is for this very reason Jesus told Nicodemus that in order for man to see the kingdom of God he must be born again. In other words, Jesus told Nicodemus and now is telling us that we must receive a “new” nature. To see this, let us read the conversation Jesus had with Nicodemus from,
John 3:1-6
[1] Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a member of the Jewish ruling council. [2] He came to Jesus at night and said, "Rabbi, we know you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the miraculous signs you are doing if God were not with him." [3] In reply Jesus declared, "I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again." [4] "How can a man be born when he is old?" Nicodemus asked. "Surely he cannot enter a second time into his mother's womb to be born!" [5] Jesus answered, "I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit. [6] Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit.”
Let us notice the following verses,
1 … Nicodemus, being a Pharisee and a member of the Jewish ruling council, was a very learned man and a respected teacher of the Jewish faith.
3 … Jesus avoided Nicodemus’ observation and addressed the issue of eternal life. Namely, to enter the Kingdom of God you must be born-again.
4 … Nicodemus did not understand.
6 … Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. In other words, in the normal course of things, we are flesh descended from Adam. However, the Holy Spirit gives birth to the spirit. Namely, it is only the Holy Spirit, God Himself, who imparts His divine nature in us and makes us spiritually alive. This is the new birth or being born again.
Thus, we discover the following truth as recorded by the Apostle John in,
John 3:16-18
[16] For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. [17] For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. [18] “He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.
With the above in mind, we find that the Bible teaches us that,
All born-again believers in Jesus Christ are children of God
To see this we begin by reading the following Scripture,
John 1:12-13
[12] But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: [13] who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.
Let us notice the following verses,
12 … Those who whole heartily accept and believe Jesus Christ to be their Lord and Savior have been given the privilege to become a child of God.
13 … Those who are the children of God have been born of God. As we read in John 3:1-6, these are those who are born-again of God the Holy Spirit.
As we read the Holy Scriptures we also discover that it is God the Holy Spirit living inside the believers that bear witness to their adoption to be children of God. To read this we go to,
Romans 8:15
[15] For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, “Abba, Father.”
Consequently, we are no longer to live for our own gratification, but we are now to live in a manner that is pleasing to our God. To see this let us read from,
Romans 12:1-2
[1] I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. [2] And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.
To expand upon this a bit more, let us read from,
Colossians 3:12-17
[12] Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering [13] bearing with one another, and forgiving one another, if anyone has a complaint against another; even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do. [14] But above all these things put on love, which is the bond of perfection. [15] And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body; and be thankful. [16] Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. [17] And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.
In other words,
We are to love God with our whole heart, soul and strength
To read His command, we go where the Ten Commandments are recorded in the book of Deuteronomy and read from,
Deuteronomy 6:4-5
[4] Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one! [5] You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.
Because God has given us His only begotten Son so we can become a child of God the Father and have eternal life with Him,
ALL GLORY, PRAISE AND HONOR BELONGS TO GOD
Before we begin our readings it is noted that in the Bible the terms glory and honor are sometimes used interchangeably. In addition, the words praise and worship are also used interchangeably.
Psalm 24:10
[10] Who is this King of glory? The Lord of hosts, He is the King of glory.
Since our God is the King of glory, we are to give Him the glory that is due to His name. This command is recorded in,
Psalm 29:2
[2] Give unto the Lord the glory due to His name; Worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness.
And,
Psalm 57:9-11
[9] I will praise You, O Lord, among the peoples; I will sing to You among the nations. [10] For Your mercy reaches unto the heavens, And Your truth unto the clouds. [11] Be exalted, O God, above the heavens; Let Your glory be above all the earth.
To summarize this portion of our study let us read from,
Psalm 96:1-8a
[1] Oh, sing to the Lord a new song!
Sing to the Lord, all the earth.
[2] Sing to the Lord, bless His name;
Proclaim the good news of His salvation from day to day.
[3] Declare His glory among the nations,
His wonders among all peoples.
[4] For the Lord is great and greatly to be praised;
He is to be feared above all gods.
[5] For all the gods of the peoples are idols,
But the Lord made the heavens.
[6] Honor and majesty are before Him;
Strength and beauty are in His sanctuary.
[7] Give to the Lord, O families of the peoples,
Give to the Lord glory and strength.
[8a] Give to the Lord the glory due His name;…
In addition to glory and praise,
All Honor is due to Him
To see and understand this we begin by reading what Jesus once said about His equality with God the Father. To do this we go to,
John 5:22-23
[22] For the Father judges no one, but has committed all judgment to the Son, [23] that all should honor the Son just as they honor the Father. He who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent Him.
To help us understand the type of honor that is due God the Father and His Son Jesus Christ, we go to the book of Revelation. In particular, let us read the following Scripture where John recorded the vision he had of the Throne of God. The Scripture of interest is,
Revelation 4:9-11
[9] Whenever the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to Him who sits on the throne, who lives forever and ever, [10] the twenty-four elders fall down before Him who sits on the throne and worship Him who lives forever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne, saying:
[11] “You are worthy, O Lord,
To receive glory and honor and power;
For You created all things,
And by Your will they exist and were created.”
Let us now read a portion of the Heavenly vision God gave to John with respect to the praise and glory given to our Lord Jesus Christ.
Revelation 5:11-15
[11] Then I looked, and I heard the voice of many angels around the throne, the living creatures, and the elders; and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands, [12] saying with a loud voice:
“Worthy is the Lamb who was slain
To receive power and riches and wisdom,
And strength and honor and glory and blessing!”
[13] And every creature which is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, I heard saying:
“Blessing and honor and glory and power
Be to Him who sits on the throne,
And to the Lamb, forever and ever!”
[14] Then the four living creatures said, “Amen!” And the twenty-four elders fell down and worshiped Him who lives forever and ever.
CLOSING
Let us close this study by reading once again the instruction Jesus gave to the Pharisees and Herodians and now us with respect to their question about paying taxes to Caesar. To do this, we return to,
Matthew 22:21
[21] … And He said to them, “Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.”
Blessed be the Lord forever,
Amen and Amen