SERMON TITLE: Jesus, whose money is it?
TEXT: Mark 12:13-17, 41-44 (ESV)
SPEAKER: Josh Hanson
DATE: 10-24-21
You can watch the sermon here.
You can find the sermon notes here.
As always it’s a joy to be with all of you this weekend at Gateway Church. And there’s one thing I want you to know — and this is true if you’re worshipping with us for the first time or are joining us at our North Main campus — the one thing I want you to know is that God loves you and that I love you too.
Each week — in the gospel of Mark — we’re seeing people ask Jesus all kinds of questions. And their questions are what we’re focusing on — because — we’ve all got questions. Questions about life, about spiritual things, about relationships, and so on. And the questions — we see people asking Jesus — here in Mark’s gospel — are questions many of us are still asking today.
So let’s turn to our passage and see what question Jesus will be asked today. If you have your Bible, please turn with me to Mark chapter 12. We’ll be reading verses 13 through 17 and a few verses from the end of the chapter. And the question Jesus will be asked — this week — is gonna ruffle some feathers.
We’ve talked about divorce. We’ve talked about authority. And — if those weren’t uncomfortable enough for you — well today’s topic surely will be. So what’s our question this week? Jesus, whose money is it? Jesus, whose money is it? So are you all ready to talk about money? I bet you are.
Here are the words found in Mark chapter 12. Beginning in verse 13.
“And they sent to him some of the Pharisees and some of the Herodians, to trap him in his talk. 14 And they came and said to him, “Teacher, we know that you are true and do not care about anyone’s opinion. For you are not swayed by appearances, but truly teach the way of God. Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not? Should we pay them, or should we not?” 15 But, knowing their hypocrisy, he said to them, “Why put me to the test? Bring me a denarius and let me look at it.” 16 And they brought one. And he said to them, “Whose likeness and inscription is this?” They said to him, “Caesar’s.” 17 Jesus 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.” (Mark 12:13-17 ESV)
And then — beginning in verse 41 — we read, “And he sat down opposite the treasury and watched the people putting money into the offering box. Many rich people put in large sums. 42 And a poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which make a penny. 43 And he called his disciples to him and said to them, “Truly, I say to you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the offering box. 44 For they all contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on.”” (Mark 12:41-44 ESV)
As I said — we’re talking about money today. And this is a comfortable topic to talk about in church, right? If you brought somebody to church today — you’re probably freaking out a bit right now. “Josh, of all the weeks to talk about money — not this week — my friend’s finally come to church with me.” Now — if you’ve been at Gateway for some time — you’ve probably figured out that what I’ll be preaching on is pretty predictable. Wherever we leave off today — in Mark’s gospel — just look at the next few verses — and you’ll know what I’m preaching on next time.
And — this week — our verses are about money. But — you should know — that Jesus talks about money a lot. Of Jesus’ parables — the short stories he used to teach spiritual lessons — sixteen of his parables are about money, wealth, or possessions. One out of every ten verses — in the gospels — mentions money. In the Bible, there are around 500 verses on prayer, less than 500 on faith, but over 2,000 verses on money, wealth, and possessions. (Howard L. Dayton as quoted in Will Thomas, “Never Apologize for the Offering,” https://www.disciplemagazine.com/www/articles/218.1458.) Makes me wonder why money isn’t talked about more in the church.
Studies over the last few years reveal much about our relationship with money — and by “our” — I’m referring to Christians. For example, only 25% of Christians give to their local church. (Jayson Bradley, “Church Giving Statistics,” July 18, 2018. https://pushpay.com/blog/church-giving-statistics/.) Of those 25% — who do give to their church — the average giving is 2.5% of their income. (Ibid.) For comparison, during the Great Depression Christians gave 3.3% of their income to their church. (John Lee, “Who Are the Most Generous Not Who You’d Expect,” August 13, 2020. https://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2020/august-web-only/most-generous-not-who-you-expect-vertical-generosity.html.) Yet — when asked — the majority of people who go to church claim they tithe — or give 10% of their income away — though they often add something like, “but I don’t give all of my tithe to the church.” (Bob Smietana, “Churchgoers Say They Tithe, But Not Always to the Church,” May 10, 2018. https://lifewayresearch.com/2018/05/10/churchgoers-say-they-tithe-but-not-always-to-the-church/.) Which — is kind of strange, honestly. The tithe — by it’s very definition — doesn’t mean just giving ten percent of your income away — even secular dictionaries know this. That’s why their definitions include giving “to the church” (https://www.dictionary.com/browse/tithe) or giving “to the religious establishment” (https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tithe) — meaning the church.
But — even more than money — we’re continuing our topic from last week’s question — who’s the authority? And — as we saw last week — the topic of authority has all sorts of nuances to it. There’s an aspect of authority that's viewed — rightly so — negatively in our nation. An abuse of authority — where people with power act like they own other people. Our nation’s history of slavery — where people made in the image of God owned others made in the image of God — is still fresh on the minds of many. Being under an authority in this way — is to be controlled — it’s being viewed as a piece of property — it’s to have the will of others imposed upon you. And — in rising up against this kind of authority — our culture preaches a message: “You’re in control of your destiny. Don’t let anyone have power over you. Rise up and fight for your rights.”
Now — as Christians — we do believe that all people are created in the image of God. Thus, people are not to be owned by others. And — we have a responsibility — to protect the freedom of ourselves and others so no one is put in a position of being enslaved. Enslavement of others is an abuse of authority.
Now — none of that should be controversial. Yet — though we oppose being enslaved to others — we often willingly enslave ourselves to sin and stuff — including greed and money. Many people — including Christians — find themselves owned by the American Dream. Owned by the stock market. Owned by their retirement account or that new car or house or next trip to Disney World. We don’t see that we’re enslaved to these things — but they own us. They’re what we’re living for — they’re what we give our lives in worship to as we spend our time and money on these things.
I won't do it — but if I asked for a raise of hands of those of us who would admit they're owned by money and stuff — I’m sure the hands would be few — if any at all. Why not? Did we get a vaccine that protects us from being owned by money and stuff? No! Are we all free from the sin of greed? No! Then why is this so hard to see in ourselves? Because we’ve blended the Christian faith with the American Dream.
And — like the rich, young ruler — who we encountered weeks ago — many of us have bowed our knee to money. And it’s enslaved us — it’s our authority. And though we willingly bow our knee to money as our master — God as our Master — God as the authority over all of life — including money — is something revulsive to us. We want God to be our lucky charm — or our loving Father — or our sinless Savior — but our Authority over our money — no thanks! That sounds way too much like a killjoy to my hopes and dreams.
Yet today we’re going to see where God’s authority and our money intersect. So let’s put our big boy and big girl pants on and open our hearts, hands, and — yes — our wallets — in submission to his Word to us.
So let’s return to verse 13 and see something quite surprising that Jesus says about money. We’re in verse 13.
“And they sent to him some of the Pharisees and some of the Herodians, to trap him in his talk. 14 And they came and said to him, “Teacher, we know that you are true and do not care about anyone’s opinion. For you are not swayed by appearances, but truly teach the way of God. Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not? Should we pay them, or should we not?” 15 But, knowing their hypocrisy, he said to them, “Why put me to the test? Bring me a denarius and let me look at it.” 16 And they brought one. And he said to them, “Whose likeness and inscription is this?” They said to him, “Caesar’s.” 17 Jesus 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.” (Mark 12:13-17 ESV)
So the chief priests — they’re the “they” in verse 13 — the chief priests send in their religious special forces to trap Jesus in his words — they’re trying to trip Jesus up into saying something they can use against him. Now — the Pharisees and Herodians are enemies with each other — but they’ve found a common enemy in Jesus. So they’re working together to gang up on him. Here’s one Bible scholar's thoughts on the two groups.
“The Herodians and Pharisees were strange bedfellows. The Herodians were loyal to Herod, who was unscrupulous and wicked. The Herodians were more interested in political alliances, and they had little patience with religion. The Pharisees, on the other hand, were intensely religious. But Jesus, their common enemy, brought them together.” (Rodney Cooper, Mark (Nashville: Broadman & Holman, 2000).)
So these two groups — one politically focused — the other religious — come together to trap Jesus. Like catching an animal in a snare or a fish on a hook — they’re hoping to lure Jesus into a trap by asking him about money. And the trap begins with them offering Jesus some fake compliments. They say to Jesus, “We know how honest you are. You are impartial and don’t play favorites. You teach the way of God truthfully.” (Mark 12:14b NLT)
Now — they don’t believe a lick of what they’ve just said to Jesus — though — they’re saying true things about him. But then they go in for the trap. “Now tell us — is it right to pay taxes to Caesar or not? 15 Should we pay them, or shouldn’t we?”” (Mark 12:14c-15a NLT)
They want Jesus to answer their either/or question. They’re wanting Jesus to choose between a secular legal law and the Jewish religious law. And — if he chooses one — then he’s not choosing the other — and they’ll have trapped him. Either by saying the secular law doesn’t matter — upsetting Caesar — or by saying the religious law doesn’t matter — upsetting the Jews.
Now — to give us all a clear picture about these taxes — one scholar writes, “These interrogators bait the trap by asking a yes or no question about an explosive issue, taxes. Judea became a Roman province [and then]... A census was taken, from which the Romans levied a head tax, a tax distinct from the one on property and from customs on articles. Its establishment provoked [some Jews] to lead a revolt because it placed God’s own land at the service of foreigners. The question asked of Jesus is loaded because it raises the issue of fidelity to the God of Israel. Can one pay taxes to Caesar and still give allegiance to the God of Israel? Are people traitors to God for supporting Caesar’s [authority] over the land?...If [Jesus] openly rejects the head tax, he will be like those diehard rebels who incited revolt and will be subject to arrest for treason. But if he endorses the tax, he will undermine his support among the [religiously] zealous, who chafe under Roman rule.” (David Garland, Mark (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1996), 461-462.)
Another scholar writes, “Since Judea had become a Roman province...the Romans had required the Jews to pay a yearly ‘poll (or head) tax’ into the emperor’s treasury. The Zealots later refused to pay it, claiming that payment acknowledged Rome’s right to rule over them. The Pharisees paid it but objected strongly to it. The Herodians paid it willingly since they supported Roman rule. Jesus’ critics asked him what was the right or lawful thing to do. In their eyes the Messiah would never sanction foreign rule, but if Jesus publicly opposed Rome he would be in a dangerous position. They thought that either answer would hurt Jesus.” (Thomas Constable, “Notes on Mark,” https://planobiblechapel.org/tcon/notes/pdf/mark.pdf.)
So what did this specific tax go to — I mean — just like here in the US — the Roman Empire had many different taxes. So what did paying this specific tax support? This tax supported the “military conquest and expansion of the Roman government.” (Brad Kirkegaard, “Rending to Caesar and to God: Paying Taxes in the Roman World,” Journal of Lutheran Ethics (April 2006), https://www.elca.org/JLE/Articles/605.)
So here’s the real question being asked. “Jesus, is it right to pay this tax to Caesar — a tax that supports us Jews being under Roman authority — a tax that keeps us in their submission — a tax that keeps us from having our — literal — Old Testament God given rights and freedoms and land? Jesus, is it right for God’s people to pay these taxes or is it right for us to not pay them?”
What a tricky, tricky, tricky question, right? And how relevant to our lives today. If you ever think the Bible is irrelevant — just think of this story.
Because he says, “Of course God’s people are to rise up and rebel against ungodly authority!” Wait, that’s not his response.
He says, “Those Jews — the ones who fought and rebelled against Rome — they were on to something.” That’s not what he said either.
“If the taxes you give support things you don't agree with — you’re free to not pay them!” That’s not it either.
“But, knowing their hypocrisy, he said to them, “Why put me to the test? Bring me a denarius and let me look at it.” 16 And they brought one. And he said to them, “Whose likeness and inscription is this?” They said to him, “Caesar’s.” 17 Jesus said to them, “Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s.” (Mark 12:15-17a ESV)
A denarius was a Roman coin and it’s value was about a day’s pay for a common worker. This was the only coin accepted by the Romans as payment for taxes. (John Grassmick, Mark (Wheaton: Victor, 1983), 162.) Now — Jesus had to ask to borrow a coin from someone — and don’t miss that detail. Jesus doesn’t even have a single coin on him.
And — after someone hands him a coin — Jesus asks an important question. “Whose likeness and inscription is this on the coin?” Two Bible translations — use the word “image” instead of “likeness” — “whose image is this?” The New LIving Translation says, “Whose picture and title are stamped on [this coin]?”
And his opponents tell him it’s Caesar's likeness — it’s his image — it’s a picture of Caesar. On one side of the coin was an image of Caesar and — on the other side were either the words “high priest” or “son of the divine” — another way of saying “son of God.” A pretty bold statement. Can you imagine a president — of our country — putting their image on our money and — on the other side — are words implying that they’re the son of God? That’d probably cause a bit of an uproar, right?
Jesus doesn’t even mention the words on the back of the coin. He simply says, “Well give to Caesar the things that have his image on it.” Again — the words of others are helpful here. “The coin that was minted by the emperor and had his image stamped on it was considered to be his personal property even while it was in circulation. Therefore it was proper for Jews and (later) Christians to return it to him.” (James Brooks, Mark.)
We’ll get to the rest of what Jesus says in a moment — but let’s just sit here for now. Jesus says, “Give to Caesar the things that have his image on it. Give to Caesar — the so-called high priest — the so-called son of god — give to Caesar the things that are his.”
Now we don’t need to go back and read the entire passage again — we’ll just focus on verse 17. Because — in this discussion about money and authority — I want to make sure we’re all following a theological truth that Jesus is revealing to his opponents and to us. We’re in verse 17.
“Jesus 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.” (Mark 12:17 ESV)
We’ve already seen Jesus take the Roman coin and ask about the image stamped on it. But — here — after saying, “Give to Caesar the things that are his — the things with his image stamped on it” — Jesus says, “give to God the things that are his — the things with God’s image stamped on it.” And what things have God’s image stamped on them? Us. We humans. We have God’s image stamped on us — we’re created in his image.
And — the implication — is that — just as we’re to give to Caesar the money that has his image stamped on it — we’re to give to God all of who we are — for we have his image stamped on us. And — suddenly — submission to God’s authority becomes way bigger than a trick question about paying taxes. Submission to God’s authority affects all of life.
For example — our submission to God — in being his image bearers — affects our sexual practices. In speaking against sexual sin — the apostle Paul writes, “Don’t you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself, 20 for God bought you with a high price. So you must honor God with your body.” (1 Corinthians 6:19-20 NLT) Our culture teaches us that we’re our own authority — when it comes to our sexuality — but the Christian faith says that God is our authority because his image is stamped on us — and we’re to give to God the things with his image on them.
Our submission to God — in being his image bearers — affects things like — our view of our relationship with each other — for all people are made in God’s image. How we love our spouses (See Ephesians 5:22-33), how we raise our children (See Ephesians 6:4) , how we treat our parents (See Ephesians 6:1-3), how we encourage fellow Christians (See 1 Thessalonians 5:11), and how we’re to love our enemies (See Matthew 5:43-48). These — and more — are all affected by our submission to God because we have his image stamped on us.
And — relevant to our topic for today — our submission to God — in being his image bearers — affects our relationship with money. Jesus said, “No one can serve two masters. For you will hate one and love the other; you will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and be enslaved to money.” (Matthew 6:24 NLT) And being God’s image bearers affects our relationship with possessions. For Jesus said, “Guard against every kind of greed. Life is not measured by how much you own.” (Luke 12:15b NLT)
Though giving to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s — leads to some challenging conversations — giving to God the things that have his image imprinted upon them — meaning us — is where our natural rebellion against authority and our supernatural submission to God’s authority come to war. Will we give to Caesar — only the things that are his — or will we even give him things that are God’s? And — in our culture today — to be clear — we all view ourselves as our own personal Caesar.
But — as one writer has said, “Search and you won’t find a single verse of Scripture that suggests that God has surrendered his ownership to us. God didn’t die and leave the earth – or anything in it – to me, you, or anyone else. And if we should think, Well, at least I own myself, God says, “You are not your own; you were bought at a price.”...Paul says, ‘No, it’s not your life. You own nothing, not even yourself. When you came to Christ you surrendered the title to your life. You belong to God, not to yourself. He is the only one who has the right to do what he wants with your life – your body, your sexual behavior, money, possessions, everything.” (Randy Alcorn, “The Full Implications of God’s Ownership,” February 24, 2014.)
And — God being God — God being the Creator of everyone and everything — God being the Owner of all things — means that even the things that belong to Caesar...are God’s. And that’s great news for God’s people. Because this tells us that money and stuff aren’t evil in and of themselves — they are good gifts from God — they’re not evil. Being owned by them is what’s evil. And we are way more susceptible than we realize to be owned by things when we’ve all — Christian or not — we’ve all been stamped with the image of the One who is our holy, righteous, and good authority — God.
Which leads us to a beautiful example of submission to God — an example of submission in regards to giving — an image bearer demonstrating who she’s submitted to. We’re in verse 41.
“And he sat down opposite the treasury and watched the people putting money into the offering box. Many rich people put in large sums. 42 And a poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which make a penny. 43 And he called his disciples to him and said to them, “Truly, I say to you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the offering box. 44 For they all contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on.”” (Mark 12:41-44 ESV)
In the previous story, Jesus rebuked his opponents who came to trap him. But — here — Jesus is teaching his disciples a lesson. He and his disciples are in the Temple. And many people are coming and going and putting money in the offering box. And — Mark specifically points out — that many rich people are part of the crowd. And Jesus is watching — he’s keenly aware of who’s there and what everyone’s giving. A good reminder to all of us that Jesus is aware of what we give — we keep no secrets from him.
And Jesus notices a poor widow. Many rich people are mentioned as being present — just one poor widow — yet Jesus notices her. And he points her out to his disciples. He even points out what she gives. Two small coins. Not very valuable. But they were all she had.
And Jesus essentially tells his disciples, “Don’t be impressed by the giving of the rich — they’re giving out of their abundance — it’s not really costing them anything. Be impressed — be amazed — by the widow’s giving. She gave everything she had to live on. And — though in value — it’s significantly less than what the rich have given — the spiritual value of what she’s given far exceeds their gifts. For her gift reveals that she’s completely devoted and submitted to God. She’s willing to give everything she has to live on with no regard to the potential consequences. For she trusts that God will supply her every need according to his glorious riches. She has given to God the things that are God’s — all of herself.”
It’s been said that, “If we give back to God what has his image on it, we must all give ourselves to him.” (D. A. Carson, Christ and Culture Revisited (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2008), 57.) And in giving ourselves to God — we must surrender our money and wealth and possessions to him. For “if Christ is not Lord over our money and possessions, then he is not our Lord.” (Randy Alcorn, The Law of Rewards (Carol Stream, IL: Tyndale, 2003), 1.)
And — like the widow but — more importantly — like Christ — we’re to give all of ourselves in worship to God. Holding nothing back from him. Not the money we’ve been entrusted with. Not the gifts and talents God’s given us. Not our intellect nor our time nor our lives — we’re to give all of who we are — to God.
And — we do so — because the God we worship is the God who gave all of himself — on the cross — for us. Jesus is the “image” of the invisible God. The perfect likeness that we — humanity — have failed to be. And — in love — he substituted himself in our place — to pay the penalty of our sins — in full. He didn’t tithe his blood — he gave it all for you. So you might find life. A new life. A generous life. A life of worshipping God — not holding anything back from him because it’s all his anyway.
Will we be worshippers fully submitted to our generous God? Will we trust him — like the widow — to take care of all of our needs? Will we demonstrate that he is Lord of our whole life and that our joy and hope and security are found in him alone? These are the characteristics of the people of God. This is who — by God’s grace and his Spirit’s power in us — we can be. If we submit to his authority with our whole lives. “Give to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s and give to God the things that are his.” Let’s pray.
Heavenly Father, what grace we’ve heard today. Grace that Christ didn’t tithe his blood but gave it all for our sins. Grace that we have been stamped with your image. Grace that we don’t have to be owned and enslaved to things like money — there is freedom available. Grace abounding for all of us.
Spirit of God, open our eyes to see where we’re slaves to sin or to money and possessions. None of us are immune to the lure and desire of money. And none of us can serve two masters. Again, open our eyes so we can repent and turn to Christ — in faith — as we submit ourselves — including our money — to him.
And — Jesus — thank you for not only giving a partial payment for our sins. You paid it in full. Freeing us to live new lives — different kinds of lives — generous lives that imitate our generous Savior. May our generosity and our relationship to money and our submission to you be noticed by others so they wonder and ask, “What makes you so different from everyone else I know?” For then we have the opportunity to tell them the Good News — your Good News. And we pray all of this in your name. Amen.
Being made in the image of God — may you go — giving to God the things that are his — submitting all of your life to him. Amen.
God loves you. I love you. You are sent.
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