Canada Day

Matthew 22:15-22

Introduction

Today is Canada Day. When I think of all the blessings we have in this land, I am thankful to be a Canadian. My mother once told me about a time, after they came to Canada and before she and my father were married, when she went with a group of other people who had immigrated from Russia to a celebration of thankfulness which was held in Winkler. At that time, those who had come out of the oppression of communist Russia were very thankful to be out of that land and in Canada and they gathered about once a year to give thanks to God for their deliverance.

Today we often take our country for granted and assume that the blessings we experience are our right. Those who have traveled or lived abroad know otherwise. We are blessed to live in this country. Most of the time, I am thankful for my home and native land and am proud to be Canadian.

But then there are other times. Our government is heavily involved in raising revenues through gambling. I am sad to be part of a country that thinks that is a good idea. A few weeks ago the newspaper carried an article outlining all the treaties made with native people that have not been kept. I am ashamed that we haven’t fulfilled these obligations. When I do a wedding and see that the registration form has removed the words “bride” and “groom” and replaced them with “partner,” I am sorry that we have diminished the meaning of marriage. At times like that, I would just like to bury my head in the sand and forget about this world and politics and wait until God brings in His kingdom.

Of course, these tensions exist because we hold dual citizenship. On the one hand, we are citizens of heaven and on the other we are citizens of Canada. John Piper speaks of the “pilgrim principle” and reminds us of Romans 12:2 which says “don't be conformed to this world” but on the other hand of 1 Corinthians 9:22 which calls us to “become all things to all men.” He says, “We are here in this world and must adapt in some measure to the culture where we live. But we are citizens of heaven and must make the counter-cultural life of Christ known in this world.”

What does Scripture say about our relationship to the land in which we live as citizens of the eternal kingdom? One passage which speaks about this is Matthew 22:15-22. Let us read it and hear what God is saying to us.

The Problem

One day some Pharisees came to Jesus to test him. They were not interested so much in his opinion as they were in trapping him. On this occasion, they chose what for the Jewish people was a real sticky problem. Their question was, "is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar or not?" This was no academic question, but a matter of deep concern.

There were three taxes which the Romans imposed on the Jewish people. One was the ground tax which was imposed on agricultural produce. They had to pay 10% of the grain and 20% of the oil and wine. Then there was an income tax which was 1% of income. The most hated of all, because it was a tax which reminded them of the Roman occupation, was the poll tax. It was imposed on all males 14-65 and all females 12-65. It was a 1 denarius tax. A denarius was about a days wage for a labourer. It was likely this tax which the Pharisees were talking about.

It was also an issue which many people saw from very different points of view. Because they were trying to trap Jesus, they made sure the crowd included people who held both points of view

It was the Pharisees who posed the question. They hated the tax because we all hate taxes and are not happy about paying them. They hated this tax because they believed that paying it legitimized the Roman government. They hated this tax because in their eyes paying it compromised their faith in God. In the Old Testament they were very clearly told that they should not worship other gods. The Roman people at times declared that “Caesar is Lord.” Some of the Jews thought that paying this tax was the same as acknowledging Caesar as a deity. They could not in good conscience do this and so refused to pay it.

But they had brought with them a group called the Herodians. They were not a political party, but they represented the opinion of many that the way in which to advance the cause of Israel was to support the Roman government. By not stirring up trouble, they felt that their nation had a better chance in the long term. They were supporters of Rome and would report any insurrection.

Jesus was in a no win situation. If he said one should not pay the tax, he would have been marched rather quickly to the Roman authority and arrested as an insurrectionist. If he said one should pay the tax, he would be discredited as a prophet of God in the eyes of those who believed that paying taxes was an affront to God.

As the Pharisees posed the question, they were, of course, trying to trap Jesus. But the question is a real one even for us. Just as the Pharisees and Herodians saw the issue from different perspectives, we also see the issue of involvement with the secular government from different perspectives.

Some churches fly a flag in the sanctuary to show their support of the government. We say, the flag has no place in church, this is the place for God's kingdom.

Some people believe that as salt and light it is important to take out party membership or even become an MLA or an MP. Those who do, still struggle with the basic issue. They must ask, “Is it possible to maintain the Christian agenda when you have to tow the party line?” Is it possible to maintain Christian principles when you may have to compromise in order to get passage of a bill that is important to you? David McKenna was the president of a Christian university in Seattle. One day the governor of Washington state asked him to chair the state-wide ad hoc committee on gambling. He knew that if he did, he would have to support legalized gambling, although he was not personally in favour. He knew that if he did not, gambling would be controlled by organized crime. Was he being salt and light, or was it a compromise?

Because of this difficulty, others believe that any close relationship with the government is a compromise of faith and so they don't even vote. Our forefathers made such a decision. We today have become much more involved in the political agenda.

Some believe that we should speak boldly against the evil things the government sometimes promotes and that we need to be involved in the process. They will protest and get involved in lobbying. On the other extreme some simply ignore the whole matter and keep silent. That is a tempting option especially when we wonder if we really have any influence. For example, we lobbied the government regarding the redefinition of marriage. It was redefined anyway. What is the use of being involved if nothing changes?

Some protest by refusing to pay the military portion of their taxes, other Christians believe that it is all right to join the army.

The problem of living as members of a political system which does not give first allegiance to God when our first allegiance is to God has never been easy. It was a problem for the Jews of Jesus day and it is a problem for us today.

Of course, the point is that the Pharisees and Herodians used this dilemma because were trying to trap Jesus because they hated Him. However, the question is a relevant one.

Giving Back To Caesar

Jesus was not fooled for a minute. He knew their evil intentions from the beginning and even confronted them for their hypocrisy. He asked to see the coin used to pay the poll tax. It was a denarius coin and had a picture of Caesar on it. He told them, “Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s…”

The Pharisees used the Greek word, "dounai," which means “to give” when they asked Jesus shall we "give" Caesar tax money. They viewed giving taxes as a gift which could be given or withheld.

Jesus used a different Greek word when he answered them. He used the word "apodote" which means "pay back." With the illustration of the coin and the words he used he made it very clear that they were to give back to Caesar what belonged to Caesar. Jesus convicted them by the very fact that they were using this currency. They used Caesar's currency, but were not willing to pay Caesar what he was owed.

Jesus’ answer serves also to instruct us that we have obligations to our government. What are we called to "pay back" to “Caesar?”

First of all, we are obligated, according to Scripture, to obey the laws of the land. Romans 13:1 says, "Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God."

What does that mean?

There are laws which we find personally inconvenient or we might even say ridiculous. For example, the law regarding off road vehicles is very clear. It says, “you must not ride on a roadway.” Yet people do it all the time. I believe that Jesus is calling us, as Christians, to obedience to the laws of the country, even if we don’t like those laws. Paul actually uses the word “submit” and this is really what the issue is all about. When we submit to the government, even if we don’t like the law, it is submission to God. If we refuse to submit to the government, it is a refusal to submit to God.

Of course the difficulty which the Jews were discussing was that obedience to this law was, in their mind, disobedience to God. The Bible gives examples where people disobeyed the government, precisely as an act of obedience to God. Peter said, “We must obey God rather than men.” Daniel continued to pray even though the law said he couldn’t. This statement, in which Jesus challenged the Pharisees to give to Caesar what is His, shows us that although there is a place for civil disobedience, we need to be very careful about when we do it.

Giving back to Caesar means obedience to the laws of the land.

It also means paying the taxes we owe. The Pharisees were receiving benefits from living under Roman occupation. As much as they hated the occupation, there was order and government in the land. The Romans built roads and other public works and they were the beneficiaries of these. As such, they were to pay for the benefits they received. Romans 13:6,7 says, "This is also why you pay taxes, for the authorities are God's servants, who give their full time to governing. Give everyone what you owe him: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honour, then honour." We receive public services, what do we owe for that? If we enjoy the benefits of a certain government, we should be willing to pay for those benefits.

We notice in Romans 13:6,7 what we also notice in I Peter 2:17, that we are to honour the government. There we read, "Show proper respect to everyone: Love the brotherhood of believers, fear God, honour the king.” We enjoy mocking government and yet, according to Scripture, we ought to accord respect to those who give their time to governing. If they were not there, we would have a very different world. In a message on Romans 13, John Piper tells a story from the June 10, 2005 Star Tribune. “Across the border from Laredo, Texas is the city of Nuevo Laredo, Mexico. The town has lost its civil authority and is ruled by gangs.

“Alejandro Dominguez was the only person brave enough to be police chief. Hours after he took office, assailants riddled his body with dozens of bullets in this city wracked by a turf battle between Mexico's two main drug gangs.

“The streets were virtually empty Thursday, a day after the killing, with only a handful of federal police armed with rifles and automatic weapons. . . . “We are defenceless,” attorney Zorina Medrano said at City Hall. “It's obvious that the criminals are better organized (than the authorities.) They sent the national army and even they weren't respected. Who else can we ask for help?'”

That's a small snapshot of what the world would look like without God's common grace of civil authority. We owe them the honour due them for the work they do.

We also owe thanksgiving. This is stated in I Timothy 2:1-3, "I urge, then, first of all, that…thanksgiving be made for everyone--for kings and all those in authority..." Those who come from other countries and know what it is like in those countries have often expressed that thankfulness. My mom has spoken of this because of what she experienced in communist Russia and war-time and post war-time Germany. Let us be faithful in giving thanks for those in power.

Finally and probably most important of all, we owe the government our prayers. We read in I Timothy 2:1-3, "I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession… be made for everyone--for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. This is good, and pleases God our Saviour..." Do we pray for Vic Toews, Stephen Harper, Gary Doer, Herm Martens and all the others who give leadership in our country?

When Jesus said, "return to Caesar what is Caesar's," I believe that all of these things are included in that concept.

Giving Back To God

But Jesus did not leave it at that. Remember, a "yes" or a "no" answer were both grounds for condemnation. He also covered the other side of the issue. He told them, "give to God what is God's."

It is not a coincidence that he asked them "whose inscription and image are on the coin." The image and inscription on the coin was that of Caesar, indicating that the coin belonged to Caesar. But, and here is the crux of the matter, the image and inscription of God is imprinted on us. Thus giving to God what is God's means giving ourselves first of all to God. The image of God is stamped on our whole person and the inscription of God is written over our whole body and when Jesus said, "give to God what is God's,” he meant the whole of who we are is to be dedicated to God.

When this fundamental issue of giving to God what is God's is solved, then we can begin working on the problem of our relationship to government. If we are having trouble obeying the law, it is important to remember that first of all we need to submit to God. If we want wisdom to discern how to know when giving to Caesar is going too far, first we need to give God our heart. With ourselves given to God, obedience to “Caesar” will fall into place.

One of the best examples of dealing with this problem is Daniel. He had a choice about allegiance to the king. When he was first brought to Babylon, he could have refused any alliance with the Babylonian king. Although he would have been killed, he still had that choice. He knew that it was not God's will for him to refuse obedience to the king. Thus, he obeyed and served first the Babylonian kings and later the Persian kings faithfully.

However, he never forgot his first allegiance. His heart belonged to God. When the demands of the government clashed with the demands of God, he put God first. As a result he was put in the lions den, but he never wavered in his commitment to God. In the end, such a stand caused him to have a great influence on the government. "In putting God first, Daniel became light and salt at the very center of an idolatrous government."

In an article by David T. Owen-Ball we read, “Returning, then, to the original question (Is it lawful to give tribute to Caesar?) Jesus allowed that one should render to Caesar what is Caesar's, but what can be said to belong to Caesar when one's entire life belongs to God? While emphasizing the supremacy of religious duties, the passage does not specify the precise nature of a Christian's duty regarding civil taxes, or regarding civil obligations in general. The passage does suggest, however, that Christians ought not to respond to civil issues without considering, first and foremost, their religious duty in the matter.”

Conclusion

We want a "yes" of "no" answer, but Jesus did not give such a simple answer. He told us that first allegiance belongs to God, but we are also to give to Caesar what belongs to him. The people were amazed at his answer. Did they do it? we don't know.

Will we do it? That is up to us.

We are privileged to live in a great country. We have peace and abundance. We have much to be thankful for. In obedience to God, let us give to the government all that we owe. But let us not forget that we live in a secular society where God is not primarily honoured or consulted. Our first allegiance is to God. Will we give him first place in our lives? Have we given him our hearts?