Devotional Thoughts: Should Christians pay taxes?

Am looking at Matthew 22:15-22.

This is the famous story where questioners try to get Jesus to answer about paying tax to Rome.

The Pharisees were there. These were Jewish religious leaders of the day. Modern day Judaism is from this brach of Jewish thought. During Jesus time, there were other branches of Jewish belief: Essenes (mystics and they separated themselves to communes), the Sadduces (ran the Temple) and the Zealots (wanted to overthrow Rome).

The supporters of Herod were there too. Herod was the Jewish political leader. Pilate was the Roman political leader.

Some in the audience would want to hear Jesus say, don't pay taxes, overthrow Rome!

If he said that, they could try to arrest him for trying to start a revolution.

Jesus answered the famous answer, give me a coin, whose face is on it?

The people said, Caesar's.

Jesus then says, give to Caesar what is Caesars and to God what is God's.

Bottom line: pay your taxes.

Today, as we approach April 15, tax due date here in the USA, we may have objections to some of the things our government is doing but we should pay our taxes.

Also, I think the US government is nothing like the Roman Empire despite what some critics might say about the USA.

Take a coin out and see what is on it... I just fished out a quarter. Washington's face is on it. We honor our leaders but nothing more.

The coin also has three "sayings" on it that embody what we aspire to as a nation: "liberty," "in God we trust," and "e pluribus unum."

So give to Uncle Sam what is Uncle Sam's!

But also, give to God what is God's!!

Lord, guide this nation to be a force for good in the world. Help us as Christians in this nation to love our neighbors whom we can see and give to others who help our neighbors in the global village whom we can't see. Amen.