MONDAY 20TH JULY 2020
WORD FOCUS: LOYALTY TO GOD
TEXT: Matthew 22:21 “They said to Him, “Caesar’s.” And He said to them, “Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s….”
Each time Jesus faces some tests, He proves His integrity by handling the situation expertly. In this story, the Pharisees attempting to trap him with tax issue, as either expected answer would get Jesus in trouble, either with the Romans or the Jews. So Jesus answers the question with a question. He asked for a coin, then says “whose image are inscription is this? The coin carried Caesar’s image – so it should be surrendered to him. But the people were made in God’s image – so they should surrender themselves to Him. Jesus wasn’t attempting to wiggle out of a sticky riddle by countering with one of his own. Behind his words were some profound implications [1] he hadn’t come as a military or political threat to the established rules of this world [2] Those who responded to His kingdom invitation would continue to have obligations to governing authorities. [3] God as creator has sovereign right over all creation and everything in it. What belongs to “Caesar” is Caesars’s only secondarily
Our allegiance to God isn’t to make us reluctant as citizens to pay our dues to “Caesar” but neither should our allegiance to ‘Caesar’ ever infringe on our loyalty to God. When the kingdom of this world violate the demands of God’s kingdom, the penetrating command of Peter and the other apostles comes to play: “we must obey God rather than men”[Acts 5;29]. The authority of political and religious rulers is always subordinate to that of Christ. He is to be obeyed when human authorities demand something contrary to His will. Can you cite some situations today in which human authorities are ordering Christ’s followers to remain silent and not proclaim the gospel? What price are you and other believers paying when they obey God instead?
MEDITATION: Romans 13:7- 10; Acts 5:29
STUDY THE BIBLE IN ONE YEAR:
1COR 8; 1KGS 22; AMOS 6
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Godhead Interdenominational Ministry