Have you begun to pull together all those receipts and papers you will need to file this year’s taxes? (Now don’t embarrass me by saying that you have already filed for this year. Maybe I had to put it off until I had a chance to purview this text.)
There is something at the beginning of this account that challenges me. When those who wanted to trap Jesus (the Greek word for “trap” is one used for trapping an animal) began speaking, they began with a load of praise (Matthew 22:16). They tell Jesus that He is Mr. Wonderful and surely always He teaches exactly what God would have taught. Jesus sees right through that flattery and knows they are up to no good (v. 8). What bothers me here is that now I an wondering: Do all of my praises of our Lord seem hollow to Jesus? When Jesus looks at my actions (and not merely my words), does He see that I am posturing and pretending? When has my lauding of Jesus not matched the way I lived my life?
Jesus’ answer to his questioners is not a slam dunk of clarity. Over the years students of the Bible have disagreed as to the implications of what Jesus said. Did He mean that faithful Jews should submit to Roman authority? Did He mean that government has a legitimate place in human society? Was He giving a principle for our understanding of separation of Church and State?
It helps to look at the context in which Jesus spoke. He was addressing Pharisees (v. 15) and Herodians (v. 16). So, He was facing two groups, one of whom was a strict stickler for every minute detail of the Law of Moses and the other who was a political ally of Herod. Maybe He is saying to the Herodians, “Go ahead; pay your taxes.” Maybe He is saying to the Pharisees, “Everything in life belongs to God.” Neither Pharisees nor Herodians could argue with those statements. No wonder “...they were astonished at His teaching” (Matthew 22:33).
It helps to look at the verses that follow this study text. The Pharisees have a follow-up question: “What is the greatest commandment of the Law?” (Matthew 22:6). That is when our Lord reminded us all of our call to love God fully (Deuteronomy 6:5) and to love neighbor fully (Leviticus 19:18). And I think that is what this week’s lesson is about!
What Someone Else Has Said: In the Charles P. Frank novel Digging for Cash (iUniverse), there is this scene: “Bette Curtis got up from her seat, walked directly to Gertie, and embraced her. ‘Ms. Babble, I have loved you. I do love you. I will love you. Does that cover all the tenses?’”
Prayer: As you prepare this lesson, let your prayer begin: “Lord, teach me to love both myself and my neighbor...”
