Happy Fourth of July! This week, we celebrate the birth of our great country. Our founding fathers were not all Christians, but they founded our country on Judeo-Christian values. The Declaration of Independence clearly states:
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.
As Christians, we are so thankful that we can worship as we please and are free to share the message of Christ with others. We are thankful for a voice and a vote, and we have many concerns as we see a nation moving away from the very principles on which it was founded.
As believers, we have dual citizenship. We are citizens of the United States, and we are citizens of the Kingdom of God.
But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables him even to subject all things to himself.
-Philippians 3:20
So, how do we deal with this dual citizenship? Citizens of a great country, and citizens of a greater eternal Kingdom!
MARK 12:1-27
In Mark 12:1-27, Jesus defends his authority and answers questions from the Pharisees, Herodians, and Sadducees—the conservatives, nationalists, and liberals of his day. In these three encounters, we discover a theme:
Jesus is THE ANSWER, and he answers all our questions.
The Parable of the Tenants (Mark 12:1-12)
In response to his authority being challenged (Mark 11:28), Jesus told a parable about a man who planted a vineyard and leased it to tenants. When the man sent servants to collect his share of the produce, they were beaten and killed. Finally, he sent his son. Thinking the owner was dead and the son was the only heir that stood in the way of them owning the land, they killed the son.
This parable is called a historical or judgmental parable. Jesus, in effect, describes the history of Israel. The religious leaders turned from God, rejected the prophets, and were days away from putting the Son of God on the cross. The religious leaders knew the parable was about them but were not willing to change their course of action.
Questions about Paying Taxes (Mark 12:13-17)
In the Roman Empire, a poll tax was required for each male 14 – 65 years old, and each female 12 - 65 years old. The amount of the tax was a denarius that had the picture of the emperor and noted his “deity.” The Pharisees were against the tax, and the Herodians were for the tax. The “enemies” came together to try to back Jesus into a corner. Jesus answered the tax question with:
Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.
-Mark 12:17
Governments are instituted by God (Rom 13:1-7, 1 Tim 2:1-6; Titus 3:1ff.; 1 Pet 2:13-17). We pay taxes for law and order, military protection, roads, highways, freedom of travel, harbors, and airports. You can’t honorably enjoy all these things and then opt out of the responsibility to pay your fair share. Pay Caesar for the temporal benefits he provides in a God-ordained government. Obey the laws of the land unless they contradict the laws of God, but Jesus is making a bigger point that we often miss.
Give to Caesar his denarius—Give to God your life.
Questions about the Resurrection (Mark 12:18-27)
The Sadducees were the rich and powerful group of the Jewish leadership. They only acknowledged the Pentateuch (the first five Books of Moses), and they did not believe in the resurrection of the dead. In a hypothetical question about a woman married to seven men, they asked Jesus whose wife she would be in heaven. Jesus showed them the truth of the resurrection from Exodus 3:6 (one of the books they acknowledge to be authentic) and made his main point by saying:
Is this not the reason you are wrong, because you know neither the Scriptures nor the power of God?
-Mark 12:24
Individual and national reformation and revival always took place when individuals return to the Word of God as the authority for life and living. In the Old Testament, the great reforms took place under King Josiah when Scripture was discovered, read, and obeyed (2 Chron. 34-35). The Middle Ages (Dark Ages economic, intellectual, and cultural decline) were the times when the Bible was kept from the people. Then, the Bible was translated into a common language and circulated for the common people to read and obey. That was the impetus for the Protestant Reformation.
Nations that enjoy the most moral light are nations where the Bible is known. Churches that flourish spiritually are focused on the Bible. Godly men and women are Bible-reading people. Godly families are Bible-reading families.
Let us teach our children to value the Bible. The very best [inheritance] we can give them, is a knowledge of the Scriptures.
-J.C. Ryle, Expository Thoughts on Mark, 258
Jesus is THE ANSWER and answers all our questions.
Two choices: You can curse the darkness. You can keep proclaiming that the world is going to hell in a handbasket. You can fill your mind with cable news—purposed to keep your blood pressure high. You can keep lamenting the issues in our culture without confronting the issues in your life.
Or you can immerse yourself in Scripture—”a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.” In Scripture, you will find that Jesus is The Answer and provides all the answers. You can read and study God’s Word, and in doing so, learn the power of God to change your outlook, purpose, mission, marriage, parenting, family, life, and eternity.
Additional Notes
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