Nepaug Bible Church - http://www.nepaugchurch.org - Pastor's Prayer Meeting Lesson Notes - http://www.nepaugchurch.org/pm/pm20100428.htm

THRU THE BIBLE EXPOSITION
Luke: Jesus, The Son Of Man For All Mankind
Part LXXII: Christ's Identity As God's Savior By His Comments On Caesar's Poll Tax
(Luke 20:19-26)
  1. Introduction
    1. If Jesus were the true God's true Savior of the world and Incarnate Son, we would expect His wisdom and intellect far to exceed the wisdom and intellect of even the highly educated religious leaders of His day.
    2. One event that exposes His level of wisdom and intellect in contrast to that of others is revealed in Luke 20:19-26, and we view it for our instruction and application (as follows):
  2. Christ's Identity As God's Savior By His Comments On Caesar's Poll Tax, Luke 20:19-26.
    1. The setting for the question the religious leaders had men ask of Jesus in Luke 20:19-22 was a hostile one where the leaders were trying to entrap Jesus to discredit and have Him slain, cf. Luke 20:19-20.
    2. Accordingly, the leaders sent out spies to corner Jesus with a question, asking Him after a deceptively flattering introduction (Lk. 20:21), "Is it lawful for us to give tribute to Caesar, or no?" (Luke 20:22 KJV)
    3. The question was of course a loaded one, for any answer was thought to corner Jesus in both a political and a and religious web (as follows): (Bible Knowledge Commentary, New Testament, p. 255)
      1. The tax involved a Roman silver coin, a denarius, that bore Caesar's image and an inscription to Caesar that he was a god, Ryrie Study Bible, KJV, 1978 ed., ftns. to Luke 20:24 and to Mtt. 22:17.
      2. Now, "the burning question in the minds of many Jews of that day was simply this: If God gave the land of Israel to the Hebrews, and if God meant them to live there, and if He received their sacrifices and offerings in acknowledgment of His relationship to them, how could they pay tribute to any other power, king, god or person? If Christ said that they should pay, they could then charge Him with disloyalty to Judaism" that would result in discrediting His ministry to His Jewish audience. However, "if He said no, they could denounce Him to the Romans" and see Him executed for insurrection, Ibid.
    4. Luke 20:23 reports Jesus perceived their craftiness: this issue was a tough theological riddle to the Jews of His day, so anyone could easily see they were trying to "corner" Him with it to His harm!
    5. Accordingly, Jesus responded, "Why tempt ye me?" (Luke 20:23), and He asked them to show Him a piece of the tribute money used to pay this poll (head) tax, Luke 20:24a; Ibid., ftn. to Mtt. 22:17.
    6. He then asked, "Whose image and superscription hath it?" (Luke 20:24b KJV) and they said, "Caesar's", expecting He would then side with paying the tribute tax to Caesar and thus to discredit Himself to Jews.
    7. However, Jesus cut through their deceit with a simple but intensely Biblical conclusion, Luke 20:25:
      1. He told them to give to Caesar what was Caesar's and to God what was God's, Luke 20:25.
      2. Since this answer came after Jesus had directed His questioners to focus on the coin's image and superscription, He was directing the people to think Biblically about the theology of the word, "image":
        1. Jesus revealed that God realized Caesar had struck the coin since it bore his image and idolatrous superscription, so for a Jew to pay the poll tax to Caesar with this coin was not to worship or consent to emperor worship promoted by the coin, but simply to give to Caesar what was Caesar's.
        2. However, Scripture taught Jesus' Hebrew listeners themselves were struck in the image of God at creation (Genesis 1:27), so, bearing God's image in themselves, they thus needed to give all of themselves, i.e., their minds, hearts, bodies and devotion, to the Lord and not to Caesar!
        3. This way, Jesus solved a big problem in His era: He neither promoted insurrection against Caesar nor offended His Jewish listeners, even the "right wing" Zealots! (Ibid., Bible Know. Com., N. T. )
    8. Consequently, the enemies of Christ could not entrap Him in His words before the people, and they marveled at His answer, and did not press any charges or pursue the matter any further, Luke 20:26!
Lesson: When His enemies tried to corner Jesus into discrediting Himself over whether to pay Caesar's poll tax, a hotly debated issue in that era, Christ BRILLIANTLY, BIBLICALLY SOLVED the issue, claiming Caesar's money was to go back to Caesar and God's people were to give themselves to God!

Application: (1) May we trust Jesus is God's Son and Savior by the way He ably solved a theological puzzle that stumped the educated theologians of His era! (2) May we give to human rulers what is theirs and to God what is His in all issues of question relating to heeding the government or the Lord!