This morning we will find Jesus on the last Wednesday of His life before the crucifixion in the temple. Just the day before, He cleansed the temple by driving out the thieves and livestock. Now, we lean in to hear Him telling one of his most intense parables. In this parable He holds the chief priests, scribes and elders of Israel accountable for all of the prophets and men of God who were ever martyred for their message of repentance. He drops this on them while in the temple and being questioned by them. The story that He tells them goes like this: A rich man built a beautiful vineyard. When he had to travel to a distant country, he leased the vineyard to a group of men called vinedressers. The vinedressers worked the land and turned a profit. When it came time for the grapes to be harvested, the owner of the vineyard sent a servant to get some of the grapes, but the vinedressers ganged up on him, beat him senseless and sent him back to the owner with nothing. The owner of the vineyard then sent many other servants some solo, others in a group. All of the servants were mistreated by the vinedressers some received life-altering head injuries while others were even killed during this little war. Finally, the owner decided to send his on to the vineyard to get some of the fruit that was rightfully his. This son was the owner s only son, and he loved him very much. The owner thought that because the vinedressers knew just how much he loved his one son, then they would not dare hurt him, knowing it would cause sure and swift consequences. 1 of 10
However, all the vinedressers saw was the heir to the vineyard. If the heir is dead then when the owner is dead, that vineyard would be theirs in the clear. So they killed him and threw his body out of the vineyard to rot. The temple leaders were so shocked by the tale they did not know what to do. They knew that Jesus was calling them the vinedressers who killed all of God s messengers and that He knew they wanted to kill Him (the Owner s only, beloved Son) as well. Verse twelve says that they wanted to run at Him, capture and kill Him, but they were too scared to do anything against Jesus because He had such devoted followers right there. They also knew that by attacking Him in public like that would only give His story about the wicked vinedressers killing the Son more credence. So they walked away fuming. Soon after, however, they send a group to Jesus to try and trap Him in His words. 13 Then they sent to Him some of the Pharisees and the Herodians, to catch Him in His words. You have probably heard the ancient Hindu proverb, The enemy of my enemy is my friend. The Sanhedrin (Jewish court, most likely the they in this passage) are living that proverb out in a major way. We have represented here, the two most fighting factions of Jewish society. PHARISEES advocated Jewish religious law intensely devoted to Israel religious Herodians violated just about every Jewish religious law devoted to Rome political 2 of 10
The Pharisees have paired up with the people who are most unlike them in order to unite under the cause of discrediting and ultimately killing Jesus. This is the Hail Mary, half-court shot, fourth and long attempt to bring Jesus down. While we will only focus on the first group (verses 13-17), in reality, Jesus will face off against three major groups of the Jews throughout chapter twelve Pharisees, Herodians, Sadducees and Scribes. He will handle their questions with ease. Verse thirteen tells us why the Herodians and Pharisees had made this marriage against Jesus. The New King James says to catch Him in His words. A more raw translation of the original language is to trap Him in His words. In fact, this is the only time that specific word (agreuswsin) is used in the entire New Testament. It specifically relates to hunting and trapping game. The Pharisees have tried unsuccessfully for three years to catch Him in some twist of Mosaic Law, but Jesus, Who is the Author of the Mosaic Law, is too cunning and righteous. They have brought with them the far left of their society. I am sorry for all of the political analogies, but that really is what is happening. The Pharisees (being the extreme right) have brought the Herodians (extreme left) to try and trap Jesus into making incendiary remarks against Rome. The Pharisees have given up on Him being the Messiah that would usher in a new era of Jewish history like they had under Saul, David and Solomon, and now, He has just become a nuisance, disparaging their name and taking away their followers and with them their source of income. Jesus must be stopped. 3 of 10
14 When they had come, they said to Him, Teacher, we know that You are true, and care about no one; for You do not regard the person of men, but teach the way of God in truth. Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not? We have looked at the group who has come to trap Him the Herodians and Pharisees. Now, let s look at the question that they use to try and trap Him. Before they ask Him their trap question, they are going to try and butter Him up though. Teacher-(Ministry) This was a term that was reserved for Rabbis in Israel. By calling Jesus Teacher, they were validating His ministry. They probably choked on the word as it came out. True-(Message) In Luke s account of this story in Luke 20, he records that they say, You speak correctly. Basically, You teach Scripture the way it should be taught. Not Partial-(Methods) You care about no one. To our ear, that statement is an indictment on someone who has a lack of compassion on other people, but what they are actually saying is that Jesus is impartial. He is not in the ministry to stroke anyone s ego. He is the same with the leper that He just healed and the spiritually elite of His day. To say that Jesus spoke the impartial truth about the Pharisees is the understatement of the century. Just a few hours from this event, Jesus will preach one of His final sermons. What is it about? The Hypocrisy of the Pharisees. I will read to you the many ways He refers to them in just that final sermon. It is recorded in Matthew 4 of 10
23. While reading them I want you to focus on what the Pharisees have already said, You teach the way of God in truth. Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites. Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites. Woe to you scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites. Woe to you blind guides, fools and blind men. You blind men...woe to you scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites Woe to you scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites. Woe to you scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites. Woe to you scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, you serpents, you brood of vipers, sons of hell. How will you escape the sentence of hell? Before they have asked Jesus their trap question, they have validated His ministry, His message and even His methods. With each step I am sure that they are struggling to get the words out, but in their minds, the end justifies the means. If they can just get Jesus to say something wrong, calling Him Teacher and flattering Him with kind words about His teaching is a small price to pay. Now the question: 14 Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not? 15 Shall we pay, or shall we not pay? Israel was under Roman rule. In fact, the Jews had not been a free people since before the time of Daniel. Babylon had come in and carried away their people to serve in distant lands over 600 years ago. They were handed off to the Persians when they overtook the Babylonians. From the Persians, they were placed under Greek rule, and when Alexander the 5 of 10
Great died, they were among the kingdoms split between his four generals which turned into the Roman empire. As Roman subjects, they were forced to pay a poll tax. Aside from having their possessions (land and trade goods) taxed, Rome enforced a tax on the individual. Every non-roman in the Roman Empire had to pay one denarius (one day s wage) a year. The poll tax was a bitter reminder that they were not free, but instead, they were subjects to Rome glorified slaves. By paying that tax, many in Israel felt like they were saying that they were complicit with what Rome was doing. While Rome allowed diversity in its empire, they would not bow to the expectations of the countries they had conquered. Much of the Roman life was offensive to the Jew. Who and how they worshipped. What they ate. How they carried themselves. All of it was against the Old Testament law that most Jews during this era held so stringently to. About two decades earlier, Jesus would not have even been a teenager, a man from Galilee named Judas would lead a revolt against having to pay that poll tax. While Judas s rebellion was stopped and he was killed, his group the Zealots were still very active. They were a terrorist organization who saw their responsibility as good Jews to oppress the Roman rule. They did this by a number of ways refusing to pay the poll tax and assassinating Roman officials. Interestingly enough, one of Jesus s disciples was introduced to us as Simon the Zealot. Do not let that escape you. Jesus had twelve disciples. One was Simon the Zealot and another is called Matthew the tax 6 of 10
collector. Jesus had men from all walks of life in His group. They had very different ideas on how the government should be run, but they put that aside and rallied around Jesus Christ. Many have suggested that the very reason that Jesus is being asked this question ( Should Jews have to pay the Roman poll tax? ) is because of the broad diversity in His disciples. 15 Shall we pay, or shall we not pay? But He, knowing their hypocrisy, said to them, Why do you test Me? Bring Me a denarius that I may see it. 16 So they brought it. I always love how Jesus deals with these kind of questions. He knows that they are trying to trap Him. He even asks them, Why are you playing with me? By the way, that is the very same thing that Jesus could ask many of you this morning. You come to church, sit on the pew, mouth the hymn s words, listen to a sermon and then drive home unchanged and unmoved. Jesus is looking at you this morning and asking, Why are you playing with me? Why are you taking spiritual things so lightly? Then, He calls for a denarius. This may have caused for a little problem, and it is possible that this is why the Herodians were involved in this discussion. Many Jews found the Roman denarius so offensive that they did not keep them on their person. They considered the coin a graven image because of how they were minted. They bring Jesus the coin, and I can just see Him raise it to the light and look it over. 7 of 10
(SLIDE ) A denarius was a two-sided coin that had the face of Tiberius Caesar minted on the main side. Because Tiberius was the adopted son of Augustus Caesar (and Augustus being considered a god) the main side had the inscription Tiberius son of god. On the reverse of the coin, Tiberius was seated on a throne robed in priestly apparel. That side had the inscription The high priest. These coins were mini pieces of propaganda at best that claimed their ruler was a son of god and high priest. Feel the full weight of that as Jesus Christ, the Son of God and the Great High Priest flips it over in His hands. Should we pay the tax? 16 So they brought it. And He said to them, Whose image and inscription is this? They said to Him, Caesar's. 17 And Jesus answered and said to them, Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's. And they marveled at Him. Jesus s answer was so good that it caught them off guard. The coin was Caesar s already. His face was on it. It was the property of the state. The Jewish leaders were making a mountain out of a mole hill, and then, they wanted to die on that hill. I will never pay the tax because I am a Jew and no man s slave but God s! Or I will never carry around that kind of coin because it directly aligns me with those evil men! Jesus very abruptly says, Stop playing games with me. Pay the tax, as He flips the coin back to the one who gave it to Him. 8 of 10
Jesus did not answer the way the Pharisees were hoping. They wanted Him to draw a line in the sand between He and Caesar. They wanted Him to assume authority and cause an uprising. Then He could be tried as a traitor. Then He could be killed. Instead, He advised everyone to pay the annual poll tax. Oh well, now at least they could hold it over His head about how spiritual they were and sinful He was. Jesus might bow down to Rome, but we will not! We only bow to God! They thought their double sided trap had worked when all of a sudden Jesus finishes His sentence. Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God s. Give to God what is His. The coin bears Caesar s face. Therefore, it s already his. Jesus breaks through the fog and asks, Whose image is on you? Immediately, the Pharisees, who knew the Old Testament frontwards and backwards, thought of the very first chapter of Genesis. Genesis 1:26 Then God said, Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; 27 So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. And they marveled at Him. Their only response was amazement and rightfully so. However, they did not stop and reevaluate whether He was the Son of God. They were amazed, yes, but they were not changed. In fact, in just over a day s time, many of these men will have a direct hand in having Jesus arrested. Many 9 of 10
of these same men will sit in the jurors seat as the Sanhedrin judge whether or not to take him to Pilate. Many of these same men will be His accusers. Since Jesus was so clever with His answer, they will have to completely lie to Pilate in order to have the death penalty on the table against Jesus. Luke 23:1 Then the whole multitude of them arose and led Him to Pilate. 2 And they began to accuse Him, saying, We found this fellow perverting the nation, and forbidding to pay taxes to Caesar, saying that He Himself is Christ, a King. They will have to lie to put Him on the cross, and they will have to lie to themselves everyday from here on out. Knowing that there was something different about this Jesus, they chose to disregard Him. Give to God what is His. He created you, and when the debt of sin was too much for you to ever repay, He bought you back. Twice His. Give Him your life. 10 of 10