Read the transcript from today's video devotional.
What's happening here in this text? Well, the Pharisees were trying to trap Jesus. They were trying to put Him in a position where a question would get Him into trouble. They were asking if it was lawful for Jews to pay taxes to Caesar—which was a pretty loaded question. If He said yes, it might look like He was sympathetic to Rome. If He said no, He could be accused of treason. He was either going to get Himself into trouble with the Jews or into trouble with Rome.
Jesus Sees the Trap
Of course, Jesus knew what they were trying to do. He saw that trap coming. So He asks them a question. He says, "Give me a coin." When He has that coin, He looks, and there's of course a picture of Caesar on it. He then said, "Well, give to Caesar what is Caesar's."
Here's the point He was making. If you live in a society, then you respect that society. You abide by the rules—unless those rules would cause you to disobey God. He was saying to the Jews that they were in this Roman society, and so they needed to give to Caesar what is Caesar's. They needed to pay their taxes. They needed to submit to the government. They needed to respect authority and follow laws. Romans chapter 13 talks about this too, and we can use that Scripture for us as Christians today.
But Give to God What Belongs to God
Then He added something very crucial. Give to Caesar what is Caesar's—but give to God what belongs to God. The question is, what belongs to God? The answer is everything. Everything belongs to God. You belong to God. Your life belongs to God. That means that whatever other allegiances you have—including to your nation, your government, your society, your country—there is this overarching, ultimate allegiance, and that belongs to God. Matthew Henry said, "Give Caesar his due, but let God have His own. God's image is upon your souls—let Him have them."
You could think of it this way: if you're a Christian today, you live in two kingdoms. We are members and citizens of an earthly nation, but we are also members of a holy nation. We are citizens of heaven. We have duties here on earth, but we are also citizens of the kingdom of God. When those two kingdoms come into conflict, the kingdom of God must take precedence for the Christian.
Where Is Your Primary Allegiance?
I don't know if you've noticed this, but we definitely live in a season of political upheaval. My encouragement to you from this text would be this: don't forget your primary allegiance. Before anything, you are a Christian. You can respect your government. You can love your country and still put God first. You can pay your taxes and still recognize that your ultimate loyalty is to God. I wonder—where are you tempted to put Caesar first? Where are you tempted to put your nation, your political party, or your culture before God? Wherever you are tempted to do that, you must remember: you belong to God first. "Give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar, and give to God what belongs to God."