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…?
The Arnold Journey 