The gladiator’s paycheck ∙
Give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar, and give to God what belongs to God. – Luke 20:25
Matthew 22:15-22
15 The Pharisees met together to plot how to trap Jesus into saying something for which he could be arrested.
16 They sent some of their disciples, along with the supporters of Herod, to meet with him. “Teacher,” they said, “we know how honest you are. You teach the way of God truthfully. You are impartial and don’t play favorites.
17 Now tell us what you think about this: Is it right to pay taxes to Caesar or not?”
18 But Jesus knew their evil motives. “You hypocrites!” he said. “Why are you trying to trap me?
19 Here, show me the coin used for the tax.” When they handed him a Roman coin,
20 he asked, “Whose likeness and inscription is this?”
21 “Caesar’s,” they replied. “Well, then,” he said, “give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar, and give to God what belongs to God.”
22 His reply amazed them, and they went away.
Constantius II was the son of Emperor Constantine the Great. After his father Constantine died in AD 337, Constantius II ascended to the throne and became Emperor at the age of 20. Constantius II was a devout follower of Arian Christianity and continued his father’s work to establish Christianity as the religion of the Roman Empire.
During his reign, Constantius II minted bronze coins. The coin came to be called the “Gladiator’s Paycheck.” They were used for everyday transactions as well as for the payment of wages. They were the “silver dollars” of their day.
On one side of the coin, a likeness of Emperor Constantius II was stamped. The other side depicted a struggle between two gladiators. One warrior is on horseback while the other raises his spear.
Surrounding this iconic scene is the Latin inscription: Happy Days are Here Again (Fel Temp Reparatio). It commemorated the 1100th anniversary of the founding of Rome.
REFLECT & PRAY
There are two important takeaways. “Obedience to God’s will is not compromised by letting Caesar have money which bears his name” (Bruce). There are limits on what belongs to Caesar. When conflicts arise, We must obey God rather than any human authority.
Acts 5:29 We must obey God rather than any human authority
Father I love You. I want my life to reflect my loyalty, devotion, and worship to You.
INSIGHT
Luke 20:25 Render to Caesar what belongs to Caesar, and render to God what belongs to God.
In His response, Lord Jesus Christ clearly states that there is a distinction between what belongs to civil government and what belongs to God’s realm. Both realms coexist. It is somewhat curious that the Lord Jesus Christ does not elaborate and specify what belongs to each realm.
Lord Jesus Christ, however, lays down a guiding principle for the conduct of the children of the King: we are to fulfill our obligations towards Caesar while also giving what is rightfully due to the Father.
The Greek verb apodidomi is translated as “render” or “give.” It signifies the act of giving back something to someone, implying the fulfillment of a rightful obligation. The recipient is entitled to receive it.
The entire conversation was a deliberate ruse, a trap designed to goad the Lord Jesus Christ into incriminating Himself and being branded an enemy of Rome. He quickly recognized their flattery and malicious motives. He replied with such keen insight and wisdom that His adversaries were stunned and speechless.
The Jewish people were under Roman authority and granted privileges and responsibilities. With one comes the other. Many were citizens of Rome. By accepting Caesar’s currency and using it in everyday life, they also accepted Caesar’s authority, binding themselves to Caesar’s right to impose taxes.
However, there’s a more significant question: What are the children of the King supposed to render to their King? The answer isn’t spelled out in the passage. First-century culture provides some insight. In the Roman Empire, citizenship was extremely important. Roman citizens were granted special privileges that were not available to those who lived in the Empire but were not citizens.
Philippians 3:20 We are citizens of heaven, where the Lord Jesus Christ lives. And we are eagerly waiting for him to return as our Savior.
The Greek word translated as “citizen” or “citizenship” is politeuma. Politeuma refers only to the people of Philippi, who were Roman citizens and benefited from all the rights and privileges that came with them. Additionally, as children of the King, they held dual citizenship – they were also citizens of heaven.
We do not owe the government the same allegiance we owe God. The Father alone is deserving of our worship and loyalty.
All that the Father has done for the children of the King was given because of His grace, mercy, kindness, and love. We could not earn our citizenship and adoption into His family; it is priceless. As such, we could never pay for it. Therefore, the Father freely gave us all our blessings without cost. We are not indebted to the Father for what He freely gave us.
What, then, do we render unto God?
We do not owe the Father anything. But because we love Him, we choose to render everythingto the Father. Our responsibilities are derived from our relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ.
John 14:15 If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.
1 John 5:1-3
1 Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has become a child of God. And everyone who loves the Father loves his children, too.
2 We know we love God’s children if we love God and obey his commandments.
3 Loving God means keeping his commandments, and his commandments are not burdensome.
We pledge our spiritual allegiance to Him: our love, loyalty, devotion, worship, and lives. This sacred resolution mirrors the commitment demonstrated by the signers of the Declaration of Independence.
The 56 signers of the Declaration made a solemn, bold, and courageous commitment when they added their signatures. “And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes, and our sacred Honor.”
When children of the King genuinely love Him, we willingly give our lives to Him out of love, not because we owe an unmanageable debt. Our love for Him compels us to obey His commandments. We love Him because He first loved us, and this love should drive everything we do.
¯\_(ツ)_/¯ 2-10-2
© Dr. H 2024
Dr H Reflections 