Mark 12:13-15
Have
you ever been sent on a mission to do someone else’s dirty work? It really is a
job they should be doing themselves, but you get stuck with it. It starts as a
kid. We get sent to tell a sibling about a chore, or a punishment, instead of
our parent speaking directly to them. We become the bad guy. Or perhaps the
phrase, “Wait ‘til your dad gets home” sounds familiar.
The
three groups of religious leaders send these two enemies to try and do a job
they failed at themselves. The chief priests, the teachers of the law and the
elders were too timid to arrest Jesus themselves. But they didn’t have the
guts. They lacked evidence. But when did a lack of evidence ever stop tyranny?
The
Pharisees and the Herodians were on opposite sides of the political spectrum.
The Pharisees wanted to establish a purely religious society from top to
bottom. They wanted a Law driven society, with themselves as the arbiters of
the correct interpretation and application of the Law. They wanted nothing to
do with Rome and its evils. They saw Rome as an enemy, with its secular ideas
and questionable moral values.
The
Herodians were political allies with the Romans. We might say they became Roman
patsies. They became the front men for Roman policies. Rome spoke and they
listened. They carried out policies against their own people that contradicted
their Jewish values. If there was ever a question about who they would obey, it
was Rome rather than the LORD. Rome had the sword, and the sword was mightier
than tradition.
So
these two opponents come together to try to trap Jesus. And they start laying
their trap with a big slab of butter. They flatter Jesus. Be careful when
flattery is thrown into conversations, especially when they are out of context
or inflated in their language. Jesus knew their hearts and could smell a rat.
He wasn’t taken in by their flattery. They tell Him He is a man of integrity.
They aren’t people of integrity, trying to trump up charges so that they can
get Him killed.
We
might say that Jesus was His own person. He made up His own mind. He didn’t
belong to any political party and wasn’t turned by a glitzy political campaign.
He always told it like it is. He had no hidden agendas. He didn’t kowtow to pressure
from a big named celebrity. He didn’t take dirty money. He was a straight
shooter.
There
were two taxing systems in place during that time. One tax applied to everyone,
including Roman citizens. The other tax only applied to non-Roman citizens. But
more important than that was the accommodation that Rome made for the Jews.
They allowed a minted coin to be used in that area that didn’t have Caesar’s
image imprinted in it. This way money could be given to the Temple without
violating the conscience of the people giving it. You wouldn’t want someone
submitting “Caesar” as an offering to the LORD. “Caesar” would submit to no
one, let alone to the Jewish God.
So
should Jesus and His disciples give money to support the oppressive Roman
state? Should we give taxes that support abortion, corporate bailouts, ObamaCare,
Fannie and Freddie Mac, secret buyouts of corrupt dictators, the International
Monetary Fund…?