Jaw-dropping Jewels about Jesus
Rarely does Jesus, God the Son, do exactly what we expect of Him. It seems odd that He so frequently surprises us, given that He never changes. Hebrews 13:8 makes this absolute statement: “Jesus the same yesterday, and today, and forever.” Still, though He is blessedly consistent in His goodness, Jesus does unforeseen things. Even when He does what is expected, He does not always do it in the way that we anticipate. Let us join with Jesus on a jaw-dropping journey. (I will be using this opening paragraph for each of the brief messages in this series. The following material will change daily.)
Jesus’ answer to the religious leaders’ trap question (Mark 12:13-15a) is sublime: “’Why tempt ye me? Bring me a penny, that I may see it.’ And they brought it. And He saith unto them, ‘Whose is this image and superscription?’ And they said unto Him, ‘Caesar’s.’ And Jesus answering said unto them, ‘Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.’ And they marvelled at Him” (verses 15b-17). The seemingly no-win situation for Jesus turns out to be a no-win situation for His opponents. His impeccable logic is irrefutable and should have brought deep and immediate conviction upon the religious establishment, who were always looking to connive their way out of their obligations to both man and God (see, for example, Mark 7:9-13). A modern misinterpretation of Jesus’ teaching (one that I have heard over the years from Christians) is that, since everything ultimately belongs to God, we are not obligated to pay taxes. This concept is contrary to Christ’s clear instruction here. It should also be noted that these benighted believers who reject the principle of taxation never give God all that they possess. Rather, they are merely looking for ways to keep more for themselves. Let us not be grasping and greedy like the religious elites of Jesus’ day.