Matthew 22:15-22
For God and Country
My sermon title today comes from the Army chaplain motto: “Pro Deo et patria,” “For God and country. Politics and religion are the two taboo subjects at any cocktail party, but let’s talk about both today! Dave Barry noted, “People who want to share their religious or political views with you almost never want you to share yours with them.” Do you ever find yourself getting ticked off at another person (even a Christian for goodness sake!), who ought to know better and see things like you? Where is the line between politics and religion? Is God a fan of the U.S.A.? Was Jesus a Democrat or a Republican? Are Americans the new chosen people like the Israelites of old? And how does one be a good citizen as well as a faithful follower of Christ?
The tension between politics and religion appears in today’s story. Two unlikely partners—the Herodians and the Pharisees—teamed up together to trap Jesus. The Herodians, as their name suggests, were large proponents of the Herod family. They were into Roman rule. The Pharisees prided themselves on their Jewish faith and rejected Roman rule, although they behaved themselves to stay out of trouble. These two groups—Herodians and Pharisees—didn’t much like each other. But “the enemy of my enemy is my friend.” They discovered a common mission in discrediting Jesus before the people.
So they thought they had set the perfect trap: after they buttered up Jesus, saying he was a man of principle, not easily swayed by public opinion, they threw out the key question: “Is it right to pay the imperial tax to Caesar or not?”
To understand why this was a trap, you have to understand both the imperial tax and the coin used to pay it. The Romans only levied the imperial tax or poll tax on a conquered people, not on its own citizens. Each Israelite, then, had to pay a denarius—one day’s wage—annually to the Roman government. These people who viewed themselves as belonging to God received an annual reminder of a Roman claim of ownership over them as well.
And what made matters worse was the coin itself: one side bore the image of Caesar, believed by the Romans to be a deity. The other side referred to the high priest of Roman paganism. For Jews, this coin violated the first two of the ten commandments. Even so, they were forced to use it to pay the tax.
So the catch-22 for Jesus is this: If he says, “Yes, it’s right to pay the tax,” then he loses favor with the masses, who absolutely hate paying it. But if he says, “No, it’s not right,” then the Herodians and Pharisees can accuse him of stirring up dissension against the Romans. Jesus is caught between a rock and a hard place.
I’d like to frame the rest of the talk around the two parts of Jesus’ simple but profound answer. First, he says,
1. Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s.
If you think our taxes are bad today, consider those of ancient Israel: The Herod family collected taxes in the name of Rome to support its military ventures, building projects, and lavish lifestyles. The family also paid a tribute to Rome, so it added heavier taxes to compensate. The prefect of Judea and Samaria collected the land and imperial taxes directly for Rome. The Jewish religious authorities exacted their own taxes for the temple (Matthew 17:24–27). Some scholars estimate a Jewish family may have paid out nearly half its annual income in taxes and bribes! You can imagine how the Israelites felt about this.
But Jesus said to “give to Caesar what is Caesar’s.” Indeed, Paul says, in Romans 13:1, “Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established.” Other scriptures tell us to pay our taxes (Romans 13:6-7), to pray for our leaders (1 Timothy 2:1-3), and to obey their laws (Romans 13:1-4), unless they violate God’s law. At which point we would have to say with Peter and the apostles, “We must obey God rather than man!” (Acts 5:29).
“Give unto Caesar’s what is Caesar’s.” The idea behind the Greek word is to “render” or “give back.” To give back implies that Caesar has done something for you. In Jesus’ time, the government—while corrupt—did offer roads, water, police, and sometimes relief for the poor. Today we must admit that, as big and inefficient and sometimes misguided as government can be, it also does some great things: it offers protection with the finest military in the world. We also have outstanding police and fire fighters that ensure our protection and need our prayers. Our government offers help to the helpless; even with the imperfections of the welfare system, many who truly need help receive it. Our government helps maintain society. And it even delivers the mail! So we give back to Caesar.
One person who was feeling the pinch of taxes said, “Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s ... and not a penny more!”
So Caesar owns the coin. His picture is on it, after all. But Jesus’ next statement puts Caesar’s glorious reign into perspective. Jesus says,
2. Give to God what is God’s.
What does Jesus mean? In one sense, everything is God’s! Psalm 24:1 tells us “the earth is the Lord’s, and the fullness thereof.” God technically owns it all. There is no artificial line between sacred and secular. If God made it, it’s all sacred! Because, as the saying goes, “God don’t make no junk!” Certainly, people have misused or corrupted other people and things through the influence of the evil one and their own selfish sin. But all things come from God.
As believers, then, we honor God with all that we have. If we really get this, it shines a whole new light on our possessions, because we realize they are not our possessions; they are on loan from God. Our kids are not our kids. They are on loan from God. Our home is God’s. Our retirement is God’s.
One time an old preacher came to talk about stewardship at our church, and he put up ten apples on the baptistery wall behind the pulpit. He said, “Now, we’ve been talking about the tithe. How many of these apples belong to God?” How would you answer? Most of us who were raised in the church might guess, “One apple, because one tenth is the tithe.” But he said, “Wrong answer! They all belong to God! We give one back to remind ourselves from where they come.”
Consider the denarius with the image of Caesar. The coin belongs to the one whose image is on it. And we have been stamped with the image of our Creator. Each of us was made in the image of God. Thus, we not only give our possessions to God; we give our very selves to the one who owns us. Ephesians 1:13 tells us, “When you believed, you were marked in [Christ] with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit.” God puts his seal of ownership on you when you enter his family.
Even so, politics are important. Which Caesar is on the throne does matter. Christians should get involved. We should vote, speak out on public issues, and even at times run for office.
Yet, in a church family, politics should never divide us. We carry a higher allegiance. What unites us is greater than any issue that might divide us. As great as these United States are, they will not last forever. We are Kingdom citizens. Our ultimate allegiance is to the God who made us and bought us back from our sinful rebellion with the blood of Christ Jesus our Savior, shed on a cross. Our sins are forgiven, and we belong to God. Our first and foremost allegiance is to him, and then to our nation. For God and country, in that order. Let us pray:
Lord, thank you for the blessings we have in the United States of America. Help us not to take them for granted. Help us to cherish our liberty. And help our nation to cherish the one percent of the population who has raised its right hand and worn the uniform, defending our freedoms from the very beginning of the Republic. Father, we need your help not to give into despair when our country seems divided or our leaders let us down. Help us to trust in you, and to faithfully pray for our nation and its leaders. Lord, we thank you most of all for our citizenship in heaven. May someone enter your kingdom family today, as they confess their sin and accept your Son as their Savior. Help us to live well our two citizenships, for God and country. We pray this in Jesus’ name, amen.
