Made in God's Image

Scripture: Matthew 22:17-21 (ESV)

 ¹⁷ Tell us, then, what you think. Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?” ¹⁸ But Jesus, aware of their malice, said, “Why put me to the test, you hypocrites? ¹⁹ Show me the coin for the tax.” And they brought him a denarius. ²⁰ And Jesus said to them, “Whose likeness and inscription is this?” ²¹ They said, “Caesar’s.” Then he said to them, “Therefore render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” ²² When they heard it, they marveled. And they left him and went away.

Devotion:

            In today’s scripture we find the Pharisees trying to get Jesus in trouble by asking a trick question. But Jesus knowing their plot answered the question wisely and well. Jesus thereby avoided the dilemma that the religious leaders trap that they had laid. They had hoped he would answer with a simple yes or no response thus trapping Jesus. A yes answer would get him in trouble with the Jews who despised this tax. A no answer would get him in trouble with the Romans who depended on the Jews paying the tax to keep their rule intact.

            The answer that Jesus gave has a deeper meaning then is apparent at first glance. His phrase “render to Caesar that which is Caesar’s” is given because of the likeness of Caesar on the coin. The phrase “render to God the things that are God’s” means that since human beings are created with the image of their Creator stamped on them, they belong in distinct way to God. This answer is truly full of wisdom. As it allows for the possibility of paying taxes to Rome while pressing home the greater point that all people belong to God because they are forever stamped with the divine image.

            In our wider modern culture, we are taught that we are to be individuals. The culture denies that people owe anything outside themselves any allegiance. We are told that there is no god or human that has any claim on us. This view of human existence is responsible for many of the ills we see in our country and our world today. Humans left to decide for themselves what is good for them will frequently produce an answer that does more harm than good. We see the obvious results of this philosophy all over our world today. Crime runs rampant within our cities and our police and authorities are unable to stop it. We see rates of depression, anxiety, and suicide reaching epidemic proportions. The world has gone mad, and people are unable to cope. People turn to drugs, and alcohol to numb their pain.

            What is the answer to all this pain? Christians should offer Jesus to this hurting and dying culture. We should remind people that their ultimate worth is that they are created and stamped with the image of God. Therefore, God highly values them and will help them deal with their problems. Not that the Christian life is trouble free, but it always has hope that ultimately all things work out according to God’s plan. We know from the scriptures that God’s plan for us is for good and not evil. (See Jerimiah 29:11) Let us pray that God will bring about a revival in our land.

Prayer:

            We praise you Lord because you have stamped your image on each and every person. You desire to know and love us. You plan for our success. We, however, have often rejected your plans for us in favor of our own sinful desires. Confront us with our sin. Help us to see the futility of our ways. Save this tired old world. Create in us clean hearts. Renew us with your love. Amen.