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| By Gustave Dore |
Scripture: Mark 12:13-17
13 And they sent to him some of the Pharisees and some of the Hero'dians, to entrap him in his talk. 14 And they came and said to him, "Teacher, we know that you are true, and care for no man; for you do not regard the position of men, but truly teach the way of God. Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not? 15 Should we pay them, or should we not?" But knowing their hypocrisy, he said to them, "Why put me to the test? Bring me a coin, 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 were amazed at him.Reflections: The Pharisees sought to trap Jesus with a clever question: "Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar or not?" If Jesus answered yes, the Jews would accuse him of being disloyal to his own people, if he answered no, the Pharisees would report him to the Romans as a troublemaker and have him arrested. Jesus knew what was in the hearts of those who wished to get rid of him, and he answered with profound wisdom that he was able to impart a great truth. The coins are stamped with an image of Caesar therefore it belongs to him according to the customs of those times. But a deeper meaning that Jesus wishes to share is that we are created in God's image. Just like the coins who bear the likeness of Caesar, we are images of God and we belong to Him.
We belonged to God from the beginning, but we chose to turn away from him. He was willing to pour out his most precious blood and send us his Spirit so that we may once again reclaim our true image as God's child.
