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 When
certain Pharisees tried to ensnare Jesus by asking, “Is it
lawful to give tribute unto Cesar?” he asked to see the
tribute money. They showed him a coin, and he asked, “Whose is
this image and superscription?” They said, “Caesar's” Then
Jesus gave the classic reply, “Render therefore unto Cesar the
things which are Caesar’s, and unto God the things that are
God’s.” (Matt. 22: 15-21) (KJ)
The
literal rendering of Marshall seems to give even greater stress
to the point. “Render then the things of Caesar to Caesar, and
the things of God to God.” Things of Caesar — that were of
Caesar’s world—— that bore Caesar ‘s image. While we are
in the world, and have responsibilities to society, government,
etc., our legitimate obligations here must be met. We meet such
obligations with the currency of the realm — material debt
paid with material coin; and it should be noted that there is a
sense in which God is served when we use this material world
properly.
But
the coin is not given to God, it is given to Caesar; and God is
served only in that He sees His creatures function in this
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life as He would have them function. There is
“Christian” significance in properly fulfilling all rightful
obligations. (See Co]. 3: 17-25 Rom. 13: 1-f.)
In
a far greater sense, we have something else to “render to God.”
It is that on which God has placed His image — the very soul
of man. God made man in His own image (Gen. 1:26), i.e., an
intellectual being, to think and to choose. He gave man
individual identity, a conscious “self”, an affinity and
capacity for “spirit” being “but little lower than God.”
(Psm. 8:5) These are “things of God” which must be
“rendered to God.”
We
must “deny self” for earthly, sensual uses, and “render
unto God.” Of what value is the gift without the giver? How
may one worship who brings Caesar’s things, but who’s heart
is far from God? (Matt. 15: 7-9)
We
have plead so long for men to give Caesar’s “things” to
God (well enough, in the relative sense) we may have ignored
giving God His “things”.
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