Stamped

The leading priests and elders failed to trick Jesus into blasphemy when they questioned His authority, so they set another trap and recruit two other Jewish sects to help.

Later the leaders sent some Pharisees and supporters of Herod to trap Jesus into saying something for which he could be arrested. “Teacher,” they said, “we know how honest you are. You are impartial and don’t play favorites. You teach the way of God truthfully. Now tell us—is it right to pay taxes to Caesar or not? Should we pay them, or shouldn’t we?” (Mark 12:13-15, NLT)

Now, you have to understand the Pharisees and the “supporters of Herod” (also known as the Herodians) disagreed on everything. The fact that they were coming together to question Jesus would have tipped Him off before they had said a word.

The Pharisees were devout Jews who vehemently opposed Rome’s rule over their nation. The Herodians, on the other hand, supported Roman rule and its delegation of control over Israel to the Herodian dynasty.

Their single point of agreement was over Jesus.

The Pharisees wanted Him out because His teaching threatened their tradition. The Herodians wanted Him out because His claims to be King would threaten to their political status if Caesar caught wind of it.

“This is it,” they must have thought. “This time we’ve got Him. It doesn’t matter if He answer yes or no. Either way, we’ve got Him.”

See, if He said, “Yes, Jews should pay taxes to Caesar,” then the Pharisees would pounce. They’d accuse Him of religious compromise. They’d call Him a traitor to His Jewish heritage and faith. They’d drag Him before the crowd of men and women burdened by Roman taxes and make a spectacle of His support.

If He said, “No, Jews should not pay taxes to Caesar,” then the Herodians would pounce. They’d accuse Him of plotting against the government. They’d call Him an instigator and a rebel. They’d bring Him up on charges of treason.

Either way, He’d be out.

They clearly didn’t learn their lesson from the last time they tried to trap Jesus.

Jesus saw through their hypocrisy and said, “Why are you trying to trap me? Show me a Roman coin, and I’ll tell you.” When they handed it to him, he asked, “Whose picture and title are stamped on it?”

“Caesar’s,” they replied. (Mark 12:16, NLT)

The Roman coin used in the tax was called a denarius. It bore the image of Tiberias Caesar and declared him to be the son of God.

Jesus hands the coin back and renders His verdict.

“Give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar, and give to God what belongs to God.” (Mark 12:17, NLT)

Here’s His point.

Let Caesar have what is made in his image.

Let God have what is made in His image.

So God created human beings in his own image.
    In the image of God he created them;
    male and female he created them. (Genesis 1:27, NLT)

You are stamped, as it were, with the image of God.

You were made by God and you belong to God.

So, give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar. But give to God what belongs to God.

Give Him yourself.

Every sphere of your life.

Every part of who you are.

Read Mark 12:13-17 and prayerfully consider what parts of your life need to be given to God.

By What Authority

The religious leaders of Jesus’ day leveled a lot of accusations against Him, but they certainly never accused Him of being timid.

Jesus boldly rode a donkey into Jerusalem in a clear proclamation of His identity as King.

Then, He boldly drove out the merchants in the Court of the Gentiles in a clear proclamation of His authority over the Temple.

Now, the “leading priests and elders” come to Him and challenge His authority and, by extension, His identity. His authority and His identity are bound up with one another. If He is not who He says He is, He has no right to do what He does.

They demanded, “By what authority are you doing all these things? Who gave you the right?” (Matthew 21:23, NLT)

Jesus responds to their question with a question of His own.

“I’ll tell you by what authority I do these things if you answer one question,” Jesus replied. “Did John’s authority to baptize come from heaven, or was it merely human?” (Matthew 21:24-25, NLT)

This is brilliant.

Jesus recognizes this question for what it is – a trap. They are hoping He’ll give them a reason to arrest Him on charges of blasphemy. Jesus refuses to give them what they want.

See, Jesus had been baptized by John and so is implicitly aligned with him.

Jesus is saying, in a very Jewish way, “I got my authority the same place John got his. So, where do you think John got his authority – from God or from man?”

There is a right answer, but the religious leaders are stuck. They can’t say John got his authority from God because then Jesus will ask why they didn’t believe John’s message. They also can’t say John got his authority from man because the people (rightly) believed John was a prophet and they could end up with a riot on their hands.

So, they cop out entirely. “We don’t know.”

It was the wrong answer but, perhaps, a more honest one than they realized.

Here is the problem.

If they accept Jesus’ identity as God, then they also have to accept His authority as God.

But that would mean giving up their authority. It would mean submitting to and trusting Him.

That is something they simply can’t bring themselves to do.

So, because they reject His authority, they also reject His identity.

Every one of us must face the same choice. Every one of us must answer the question Jesus once posed to His disciples.

“Who do you say that I am?” (Luke 9:20, NLT)

Listen to C.S. Lewis on the matter.

“I am trying here to prevent anyone saying the really foolish thing that people often say about Him: ‘I’m ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don’t accept His claim to be God.’ This is the one thing that we must not say.

A man who was merely a man and said the sorts of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic – on a level with the man who says he’s a poached egg – or else he would be the Devil of Hell.

You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God: or else a madman or something worse. You can shut Him up for a fool, you can spit at Him and kill Him as a demon; or you can fall at His feet and call Him Lord and God.

But let us not come with any patronizing nonsense about His being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to.”

These are the only answers we can give. These are the only options available to us.

But make no mistake. There is a right answer.

Who do you say that He is?

Have you accepted His identity as God? If you so, have you also accepted His authority as King?

Take time to read Matthew 21:23-27 and consider what it means for Jesus to have authority over your life.