Ben Franklin, a Pharisee, and God
Mark 12:13-17
It is Holy Week and my son and I are reading through Jesus’ life as He is preparing for His victory on cavalry. It has been fun and this morning, we read Mark 12:13-17 about the Imperial tax to Cesar and the trap of the Pharisees.
Benjamin Franklin once said, “Our new Constitution is now established, everything seems to promise it will be durable; but, in this world, nothing is certain except death and taxes.” A certainty, which is as true today as it was two thousand years ago. Amazingly, as we approach Easter and Tax Day, these two realities are once again strange bedfellows.
Picture in your mind the large courtyard of the Jerusalem temple. There are various groups congregating around different teachers, each deeply engaged in discussion about religion, politics, or the world. On one side are the Sadducees, teaching about strict interpretation of the Law handed down to Moses and incorporating Hellenism into the Jewish world. On the other side of the yard are the Pharisees, teaching about the oral traditions of Moses and culturally very pro-Jewish. Somewhere in the middle is a small group that caused a big disruption just a few days ago when they entered Jerusalem. This group is surrounding the man called Jesus. No one can figure out which side this guy is on, but He is causing much unwanted attention.
The pro-Jewish, Pharisees approach Jesus with a question designed to make Jesus choose a side. They ask Him a simple question, “Should we pay taxes or not?” The question is effectively, which side are you on? Are you a pro-Jewish teacher or a pro-Roman teacher? Jesus’ answer is clear and deep. He says, “Bring me a denarius and let me look at it.” They brought the coin, and he asked them, “Whose image is this? And whose inscription?” “Caesar’s,” they replied. Then Jesus said to them, “Give back to Caesar what is Caesar’s and to God what is God’s.” What a way to skirt out of that trap, but what does He really mean?
Well, the implications to paying our taxes is pretty clear. But what about the whole “give to God” part? The question is who is bearing the image of God just like the coin? Well, we are in one respect. We are created in His image and belong to Him as the creator. This is beautiful and true, but it is incomplete. And this statement would not account for the amazement of the Pharisees. Of all the people in the courtyard that day only one actually bears the full image of God, because He is God. Jesus is claiming His image of God and telling them to recognize it. Now this is something to be amazed at!
This season as we prepare to pay our taxes, we must also prepare to pay to God what is God’s. We are all in the courtyard and must make a choice as to which group we decide to stand with. Are we pro-American, pro-spirituality, or are we pro-Christ. Choosing Christ is recognizing Him as payment for our sins, because God minted Him as the currency. Ben Franklin’s truism reminds us that Easter is just as much a certainty as April 15.
Note: Yes Tax Day 2021 is extended to May 17, but I wrote the article before I found out. #dadlife
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