Sermons You'll Never Hear In Church - "Render Unto GOD What Is His."

in #religion7 years ago

Second in a series.

I call this series "Sermons You'll Never Hear In Church."

Why won't you hear them in church?

Some bible truths are "inconvenient truths." They are "untouchable" because not many pastors and preachers have the guts to talk about them.

As always, if you have heard one of these sermons in church, please let us know?

If you don't happen to be a believer, you are still more than welcome to listen. Please know, however, that I am primarily addressing believers.


"It is a poor sermon that gives no offense; that neither makes the hearer displeased with himself nor with the preacher."
- George Whitefield -


Today's sermon is another from Jesus.

Up until now, I suspect you've only heard corrupted, watered down, misrepresented versions of this sermon.

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Heard any good ones from the pulpit lately?
Image courtesy of Dean Moriarty and http://pixabay.com

In the first installment in this series, I referred to those misrepresented versions by their typical title:

"Render Unto Caesar!"

Sometimes that is abbreviated simply to "Render."

The "Render" version of Jesus' sermon is so very popular that you don't even have to go to church to hear it. You can hear it from your friends:

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"Render Unto Caesar!"
Image courtesy of Waldryano and http://pixabay.com

Friend 1: "April 15th is around the corner."
Friend 2: "Yeah, I know. Have you got your tax records together?"
Friend 1: "Not quite - I'll probably be up all night."
Friend 2: "I'm sick and tired of paying these taxes."
Friend 1: "Well, you know what Jesus said... 'Render unto Caesar.'"
Friend 2: "Yeah, I know."

And so it goes.

The truly sad thing is,

that version is all wrong. If you believe it, you've been duped.

A number of fellow Steemians have weighed in on "Render Unto Caesar." Some "render" quite good analyses, but this is not an endorsement. I simply want you to see that "the standard interpretation" is far from the only one.


Steemit Articles Referencing "Render Unto Caesar"
| ~1~ | ~2~ | ~3~ | ~4~ | ~5~ | ~6~ | ~7~ | ~8~ |


Why do I say you've been duped?

The organized church has been co-opted by the government. In exchange for "peaceful coexistence," preachers and church leaders have been trained to misrepresent what Jesus said. Jesus' real meaning has been obscured.

In all truth, the "Render" version has become so widespread that many preachers probably don't even consciously realize they are misrepresenting what Jesus said.

I want to counteract that by getting right into today's sermon.


"Render unto GOD what is His."

I've begun with the punchline.

The main point of Jesus' sermon is this: our principle duty is to give God what is his.

How did the sermon get turned on its head, how did it become focused on giving to Caesar instead of God?

You have to understand the circumstance.

Jesus was being mercilessly pursued by the human governments of his day.

"The scribes and the chief priests sought to lay hands on him at that very hour, for they perceived that he had told this parable against them, but they feared the people. So they watched him and sent spies, who pretended to be sincere, that they might catch him in something he said, so as to deliver him up to the authority and jurisdiction of the governor."
- Luke 20:19-20

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We read about this in Luke and elsewhere.
Image courtesy of Ben White and http://unsplash.com

The authorities wanted to eliminate Jesus. They had a plan:

Make Jesus say something to get him in trouble.

They thought for sure they had the question that would do the job, something Jesus absolutely could not answer.

"So they asked him, “Teacher, we know that you speak and teach rightly, and show no partiality, but truly teach the way of God. Is it lawful for us to give tribute to Caesar, or not?”"
- Luke 20:21-22

Their question was the equivalent of asking a married man, "Have you stopped beating your wife?" Any plain answer would be damning.

If Jesus were to say "It is unlawful to pay tribute to Caesar," he would fall under the condemnation of the Roman government.

If Jesus were to say "Pay tribute to Caesar," his own Jewish leadership would condemn him as disloyal. This was a "damned if you do, damned if you don't" moment.

Jesus, of course, recognized the evil motive behind the question.

"But he perceived their craftiness, and said to them, “Show me a denarius. Whose likeness and inscription does it have?” They said, “Caesar's.” He said to them, “Then render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's.”"
- Luke 20:23-25

Contrary to the vast majority of commentaries, Jesus brilliant answer was in no way the equivalent of "Give tribute to Caesar." Even if you were to ignore the second and more weighty half of his statement, all Jesus said with respect to Caesar was to give him what belonged to him.

This leaves a wide open question.

One I've never heard raised in the "standard" sermon on this topic, the question is this:

What does belong to Caesar?

When the government claims you owe them money, that you have a debt to them - is it true? What makes it true?

The genius of Jesus' answer is that he left it to the hearer to determine what, if anything, belonged to Caesar.

This begs another question:

Why won't your religious leaders leave it to you and your conscience to determine what belongs to Caesar? Why do they always assume something of yours belongs to Caesar?

Think about that. Could it be that they're sleeping with the enemy? Could it be that they receive special treatment from the government? Could it be that they are beholden to the state due to having incorporated the church as a 501 c 3 organization?

Those who pledged allegiance to Rome would interpret Jesus' answer according to their own beliefs. Those who did not recognize Rome would have a different understanding.

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Roman Coins
Image courtesy of Classical Numismatic Group, Inc. CC BY-SA 2.5

Why the denarius illustration?

Just as every Roman coin had the image of Caesar stamped on it, every human bears God's image:

"So God created man in his own image,
in the image of God he created him;
male and female he created them."

- Genesis 1:27

Jesus' hearers who believed in the scriptures were well aware of the creation account. It would have been self evident that their creator held a superior claim on their lives and their property. The unbelieving Romans would have simply dismissed that truth.

"Render unto GOD what is His."

Hey, wait a minute. These disingenuous questioners never asked what to give to God, did they? Why would Jesus say this?

Simply because THIS is the core message of Jesus sermon.

It's not about Caesar.

Although "Render unto GOD" was the last thing that Jesus said, he said it last for emphasis. In other words, this was Jesus' final word on the topic.

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"In God We Trust" — All Others Pay Cash
Image courtesy of HealthWyze and http://pixabay.com

What's the bottom line?

It's really simple. Caesar owns nothing. Everything that human government as we know it today has, it takes by threat of force. It extorts it under duress. It is entirely ill-gotten gain.

God created everything. Consequently, God owns everything.

Isn't it time to give God his due?

He created you. He owns you. He has given you custody and stewardship of yourself and your resources.

Enough of this fixation on Caesar! Ignore the sycophantic pundits, the apologists for taxation. You are not a subject at the whim and disposal of human government. Put yourself and your resources where they belong - entirely at God's disposal.

Amen, and amen!


~FIN~

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Really well done article and true as far as it goes. Now for extra credit, weave in the following inspired statements:

1 Peter 2:13 Submit yourselves for the Lord's sake to every human authority: whether to the emperor, as the supreme authority, 14 or to governors, who are sent by him to punish those who do wrong and to commend those who do right. 15 For it is God's will that by doing good you should silence the ignorant talk of foolish people. 16 Live as free people, but do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil; live as God's slaves. 17 Show proper respect to everyone, love the family of believers, fear God, honor the emperor.

or

Romans 13:6
For this reason you also pay taxes, for they are ministers of God's service, attending continually on this very thing.

or

The Temple Tax - Matthew 17:24-24:16

After Jesus and his disciples arrived in Capernaum, the collectors of the two-drachma temple tax came to Peter and asked, “Doesn’t your teacher pay the temple tax?”

“Yes, he does,” he replied.

When Peter came into the house, Jesus was the first to speak. “What do you think, Simon?” he asked. “From whom do the kings of the earth collect duty and taxes—from their own children or from others?”

“From others,” Peter answered.

“Then the children are exempt,” Jesus said to him. “But so that we may not cause offense, go to the lake and throw out your line. Take the first fish you catch; open its mouth and you will find a four-drachma coin. Take it and give it to them for my tax and yours.”

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The genius of Jesus' answer is that he left it to the hearer to determine what, if anything, belonged to Caesar.

Excellent point.

I have only heard this sermon preached once, but not in a church. Ravi Zacharias was the wise man who taught the principle.

Superbly written article, brother.

Thanks, Lydon...

If you happen to find a reference to that message by Zacharias, I'd love to see it. ;)

I found a short sermon jam that hits on two of the main truths you enjoy writing about.

Hey, Thanks a lot, Lydon!

I just listened to that... Outstanding! :D

I really appreciate your locating it for me. ;)

You're welcome! My pleasure. :)

Bravo! Excellent post. I've often looked at this exchange as "render unto God". Thank you for this study. I wish I could upvote this 1000X.

It makes my teeth hurt when glory is given to Caesar, as if he was being glorified by the Son of God Himself. Disgusting!

It's also obnoxious when people say the bible sanctions bowing down to governments and paying their taxes, as if you are sinning against God if you don't. Whether they know it or not, they are equating the government with God. Ugh.

I was thinking... according to scripture, what belongs to God?

The earth belongs to YHVH and the fullness therein. All the inhabitants and everyone dwelling in her. Psalm 24:1

It seems as if scripture answers that question for us. @ironshield

Greetings, my new friend @ironshield.

"I wish I could upvote this 1000X."

Thank you so very much for your encouraging affirmation today. I needed it, and it was worth to me more than a 1000x upvote! ;)

"Whether they know it or not, they are equating the government with God."

Ah, how true, and how blind we have become to this truth!

Scripture does indeed have the answers, if only we listen to and believe what we see there.

Thank you again for your encouraging visit, and for Re-Steeming my article. It's very nice to "meet" you here today.
😄😇😄

@creatr

Really thoughtful look at what most sermons overlook. It really makes you think what other well known bible stories have taken on a life of their own, with people's interpretations, diluting the true message.

Thank you, friend @hopehuggs...

There are indeed a number of other "barnacle encrusted" bible messages that need to be cleaned up and re-presented. I hope to continue doing that from time to time, God willing!

I appreciate your visit and thoughtful comments. :D

Another great post @creatr! I have been saying many of the same things about this passage for quite some time. Keep up the faithful reconstructing of Christian thinking/reading!

Thank you, @ironmanmatt, for dropping by, reading, and commenting. I will keep on, God willing.

Wow! I feel as if I have found an old friend! Thanks very much for this "sermon". It is spot on correct.

Yes, Doctor John, I am kinda old... ;)

And so I hope we will be "new/old" friends. :D

Thank you for your visit and comment.

Very well written post @creatr which tells truths like the one for the role of the organized church, not only now, but through the centuries, that in most cases misrepresented what Jesus said and acted to opposite direction.

Yes, friend... Sadly, I think the "organized church" has become a false prophet supporting the beast of human government.

I appreciate your visit and comment.

Might be the most misunderstood passage in the Bible. Good sermon.

Thank you, brother... This and Romans 13...

well, we've been down this road before. You know what I think. I was wondering what you think about tithing. Some say you haven't even given until you pay the full tithe and then you begin to give. The first is your duty, the second sacrificial. What's your take, my friend?

Unlike human governments, the God who created us can, of course, demand any and everything of us.

If he were then to demand a fixed percentage of our income, that would be completely within his right. Before the first advent, this may have been a tithe or some aggregate combination of tithes.

In the present age, I believe giving is an entirely voluntary matter, not to be done under coercion or compulsion, but rather accompanied by the promise of blessing:

"Give, and it will be given to you. Good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap. For with the measure you use it will be measured back to you.”"
- Luke 6:38

The widow put her entire livelihood into the temple treasury.

God does, in truth, require all we have (Romans 12:1-2) as a living sacrifice.

The first and greatest commandment is this:

"You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might."
- Deuteronomy 6:5

It is evident to me that this leaves Caesar zero legitimacy to demand anything.

off topic warning I sent you a message about the #steemdiego meet up on discord. Let me know if that date works for you.

thank you so much for sharing this post. I never thought of it that way and indeed it has opened my mind. Everything comes from God. Nothing really is the governments because 1) What they have also comes from God. 2) What they steal or take by force is not theirs to begin with. So it begs the robin hood alternative of taking from the Government to give to God because it is of God to begin with. We all know that would land you in the slammer fast. But how far do you go? Where do you draw the line? It would be helpful to get some guidance on this. Your interpretation makes a lot of cents! LOL I have been posting away as well. poetry music politics and other stuff as well. Trying by trial and error what categories are best to use. Again thanks for opening my eyes and mind to a wonderful new take of a misunderstood scripture my friend. - Blessings

As far as how and when to avoid government plundering, every man must live with their own conscience before God.

In the United States, the federal government/god falsely and deceitfully claims a right to a portion of your "income." This, by its very nature, is a claim of ownership. Furthermore, they falsely claim that when you "give" your income tax to them, this is "voluntary compliance." What an oxymoron.

So, the question is, do we "voluntarily comply" and by so doing, essentially confess "Yes, you own me?"

Something to think about...

You and I are in the same school of thought. It is how one defines "voluntary". You know that if you do not do it, the government will make you life a living nightmare. You could go underground and give up your citizenship including your social security and driver license but most folks are not willing to take such extreme measures. At some point the dollar will be abandoned and a settled crypto currency will be instituted upon the world. When it is digital they can track everything so you WILL have to comply then. Yes they have you where they want you. And God allows this to go on. Again thanks for sharing my friend.

God the creator is the owner of the creation indeed. It's such a privilege to find here a community of strong believers. Excellent post! Just one question: does anyone here know of the Baptist Christians from the indigenous areas of northeast India?

Thank you for your thoughtful comment.

I'm not at all familiar with the territories of India, but perhaps another reader may respond?

Good post