"And when they were come to Capernaum, they that received tribute money came to Peter, and said,' Doth not your master pay tribute'? He saith,' Yes'.
And when he was come into the house, Jesus prevented him, saying, 'What thinkest thou, Simon? of whom do the kings of the earth take custom or tribute? of their own children, or of strangers? '
Peter saith unto him,' Of strangers'. Jesus saith unto him, 'Then are the children free. Notwithstanding, lest we should offend them, go thou to the sea, and cast an hook, and take up the fish that first cometh up; and when thou hast opened his mouth, thou shalt find a piece of money: that take, and give unto them for me and thee. ' "
(Matthew 17:24-27)
Then went the Pharisees, and took counsel how they might entangle him in his talk. And they sent out unto him their disciples with the Herodians, saying,
"Master, we know that thou art true, and teachest the way of God in truth, neither carest thou for any man: for thou regardest not the person of men. Tell us therefore, What thinkest thou? Is it lawful to give tribute unto Caesar, or not?
But Jesus perceived their wickedness, and said, Why tempt ye me, ye hypocrites? Shew me the tribute money. And they brought unto him a penny. And he saith unto them, "Whose is this image and superscription?" They say unto him, "Caesar’s."
Then saith he unto them, "Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar’s; and unto God the things that are God’s. "
When they had heard these words, they marvelled, and left him, and went their way.
(Matthew 22:15-22)
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BIBLICAL LIVING 101: TAXES
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We said that we are going to focus on practical application of Biblical principles in this series, and what could be more apropos from a timing and practicality perspective than TAXES?
Benjamin Franklin, is said to have written in a 1789 letter that “Our new Constitution is now established, and has an appearance that promises permanency; -- but in this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes.--” The American Revolution that gave us independence was centered on the issue of taxation without representation, and it was a tax on tea which ignited that powder keg in Boston Harbor!
Taxation also brings up the issue of governance. There are individuals that even today do not recognize the right of the government to collect taxes ( a very small and largely incarcerated/fined minority :-)), and even for those that agree to be taxed, there are -severe- differences in opinion over how our tax dollars should be spent (witness the current shutdown and past squabbles over healthcare, socialism, big/small government, the balance of power between states and the federal govt. etc.). There are deeper philosophical issues here about an ideal government structure as well.
IF you are interested in learning what the Bible has to say about these topics, read the full post ; if you just want to know what you should do ?, drop after reading the two points below.
1. Pay your taxes on time like a law abiding citizen. (Christ paid a religious tax though He didn't have to)
2. Tax avoidance is legal, tax evasion will land you in jail. We are asked to cooperate with authorities that have been lawfully given jurisdiction over us, UNLESS, they command us to do something the Bible prohibits, or prohibit us from doing something the Bible commands.
Disobey wisely, e.g. in Saudi Arabia, we may not preach the Bible literally or evangelize, but we can win people over with our actions and love. There is no law against THAT!
Lets take a look at the system God had in mind (will help us understand our texts above), and maybe we will not be so irritated with the IRS this tax season. Our prayers go out for those suffering under the current shutdown situation.
Gods proposed structure in the Old Testament:
1. No king : God warned the people of Israel that a king would not only tax them severely to pay for his armies, servants, and expenses, he would also conscript their children into government service (1 Samuel Chapter 8.) in exchange for his protection. Sounds familiar...
2. 11 Tribes governed the land allotted to them by inheritance. (think of them as States). Within each tribe, there were people that owned land, and those engaged in service/trades. People that owned land and livestock paid tithes to the Tribe of Levi (food and animals only) who alone among the 12 tribes, had no inheritance in the land, but were provided for out of these offerings as a Tax set by God Himself, for performing duties other Israelites were forbidden to do.
"And the LORD spake unto Aaron, Thou shalt have no inheritance in their land, neither shalt thou have any part among them: I am thy part and thine inheritance among the children of Israel. And, behold, I have given the children of Levi ---all the tenth in Israel for an inheritance, for their service which they serve----, even the service of the tabernacle of the congregation. Neither must the children of Israel henceforth come nigh the tabernacle of the congregation, lest they bear sin, and die." - Numbers 18:20-22. For further study, you can watch our video on tithing, available under Videos on this Page.
3. The Levites themselves paid a BEST 10% tithe out of everything they received to God, which was to ensure that the poor would always be fed from the Temple (Malachi 5:10).
4. There was a temple tax, which is what is referenced in our first text above....
"And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, When thou takest the sum of the children of Israel after their number, then shall they give every man a ransom for his soul unto the LORD, when thou numberest them; that there be no plague among them, when thou numberest them. This they shall give, every one that passeth among them that are numbered, half a shekel after the shekel of the sanctuary: (a shekel is twenty gerahs:) an half shekel shall be the offering of the LORD. Every one that passeth among them that are numbered, from twenty years old and above, shall give an offering unto the LORD. The rich shall not give more, and the poor shall not give less than half a shekel, when they give an offering unto the LORD, to make an atonement for your souls. And thou shalt take the atonement money of the children of Israel, and shalt appoint it for the service of the tabernacle of the congregation; that it may be a memorial unto the children of Israel before the LORD, to make an atonement for your souls. " - Ex 30:11-16
This tax applied to every Israelite 20 years and older (an interesting age to note), and was to prevent a plague from breaking out amongst Israel every time a census was taken. We do not have time to go into this here, but God does not like to have His people counted or limited in any form... !! David dealt with this first hand, when he ordered a census against Gods instructions... (2 Samuel 24:1-9).
Another interesting thing to note is that this was a FLAT TAX. God specifically says, the rich shall not give more, and the poor shall not give less!
And it was to support a religious institution - this money was dedicated to the service of the Temple. No difference in Church and State here, but the Church (or the Priesthood to be more correct), was the keeper / interpreter of the Law, in a Nation RULED BY LAW.
Those are the divine principles. A divine dictatorship (rule of HIS Law), federated governance (11 tribes), a tribe gifted to God Himself (Levi) and supported by the other 11, and a flat taxation structure - 10% with no exemptions applied to landowners , 1/2 a shekel with no exemptions, applied to EVERYBODY else. Beyond this, there were free will offerings, first fruits, fines (for transgressions) and yearly feasts.
So now, in the first text, we see Peter giving a flip & easy answer to those that asked if Jesus paid the 1/2 shekel temple tax or not.
Our Lord takes the opportunity to teach Peter and us, a valuable lesson. This tax was not any ordinary tax just meant to support the temple. In its original design, it was to protect the children of Israel against God's wrath. ( “Make atonement for your souls” ). Christ did not need to be atoned for, and neither did Peter. Jesus tells Peter, that God doesn't expect/exact a tax from His children like the kings of the earth do, and we are free of this legal obligation, but nevertheless, in His Human incarnation, to comply with the Law, AND NOT OFFEND,He deigned to fulfil even this requirement - setting forth an example for us, His disciples, to do the same.
And that is the message from the second text too.
This passage talks about a trap the Herodians (followers of Herod, who collaborated with/paid tribute to the Romans for political power over Israel) set for Jesus - when they asked Him if it was legal to pay taxes to Caesar.
The Roman taxes were unpopular with the people, and these guys were betting, that whichever side of the issue Christ came down on, they would be able to either label Him as a criminal (tax evasion), or collaborator (supporter of Herod).
Christ does not give them the satisfaction - instead we get a message that says we are to pay our debts to those to whom they are lawfully due.
If you are enjoying the safety, security, and infrastructure of your town, community, city, state, country, CHURCH(!), you owe paying your RIGHTFUL share. The government, and the church needs your support to survive (and they don't always solicit it correctly), and they should get it.
"Put them in mind to be subject to principalities and powers, to obey magistrates, to be ready to every good work, To speak evil of no man, to be no brawlers, but gentle, shewing all meekness unto all men." - (Tit 3:1-2)
"Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God. Whosoever therefore resisteth the power, resisteth the ordinance of God: and they that resist shall receive to themselves damnation. For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to the evil. Wilt thou then not be afraid of the power? do that which is good, and thou shalt have praise of the same.." - Romans 13:1-3
Pay your taxes, and let your elected representatives decide how to spend the money. That is the system in this country, and if we want to usher in a revolution, let every person do his/her civic duty as a citizen - vote, pay taxes, get involved in the community, and make a difference in the world!
Hallelujah!