Jesus, Tricks, and Taxes
October 18, 2026. Matthew 22:15-22. Erin Lussier
Political tension runs high in our society and in our lives. There are new issues every day, and old issues that continue to get us fired up. Alberta referendum. Municipal election. Upcoming provincial election. American politics heavily influences our Canadian atmosphere. Let’s talk about Trump. Let’s talk about Carney. What about social issues? Have we, as Christians, figured out how to navigate abortion?
Medical Assistance in Dying? Same-sex marriages? Washroom practices for transgender people?
Perhaps the mere mention of these things gets your heart pumping and sends steam shooting out of your ears. Perhaps it makes you deeply uncomfortable or nervous. It sure makes me nervous to bring these things up, knowing that my sermons remain online “forever”! Do you struggle with navigating how to handle these complex issues? Do you struggle knowing what the right answer is? How often do we hear or say this phrase: “The world’s going to hell in a handbasket!” Things feel like they’re falling apart. What is the solution? How do we, as God’s children, as followers of Christ, address these issues?
In Matthew, Jesus was approached with a political question that, like many of the issues I mentioned above, was a source of contention, passion, frustration, and disagreement. The Pharisees and the Herodians came up to Jesus. The Pharisees: nationalists, who hated Rome, who believed that the Messiah would come to overthrow the government, lead in political revolution, and establish the Jews with the Mosaic Law as the power and authority. The Herodians: those who serve Rome loyally for their own benefit, who believe and hold to the power of the emperor. An unlikely combination!
Usually, they hated each other, but they were united by a shared purpose: bringing down this Jesus. They began with false flattery, attempting to butter Jesus up, and then they asked their question: Is it lawful to pay taxes unto Caesar (Rome) or not?
This is a deceptively simple question. In fact, it was a trick. If Jesus answered “yes”, the Herodians would agree, and the Pharisees would find Jesus guilty of idolizing the emperor and rejecting God’s authority. If Jesus answered “no”, then he agreed with the Pharisaic nationalists while condemning himself as a lawbreaker before Rome.
Think about some of the political issues that weigh on you today. Do you ever feel trapped? Do you ever feel that it is impossible to give the right answer? How do we deal with these complex issues? We want Jesus to give us a nice, clear answer.
Jesus answers their question in this way. He doesn’t play games. He immediately recognizes their malicious intent, their unrighteousness in asking him this question. He calls them out on their hypocrisy and asks for a coin. What is on the coin? An image and inscription of Caesar. Then he says, “Render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.”
Render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar’s. We are called to live under the government that God has placed over us. Even a pagan or corrupt government. Rome was oppressive and cruel. And yet Jesus called the people to pay their taxes. If the government taxes us, we are to pay the taxes.
Render unto God what is God’s. This is the very heart of Jesus’ answer. What belongs to God? What bears God’s image? Where is God’s inscription located? Is it on a coin? A Denarius?
Whose image do we bear? What is the inscription upon us? The image something bears is to whom it belongs.
We bear the image of the living God. We have God’s Word written upon our hearts. What belongs to God? Our very selves. God calls us to faith. We do not “pay” faith as if it is a tax, something owed–we have faith in Christ apart from the law. We have freedom from the Law in the Kingdom of Heaven. We are free from its condemnation. We are free from its accusation. We cannot keep the law. But in the kingdom of this world, we are under the law. We owe to Caesar what is Caesar’s.
We pay our dues. We do not need to combine these two kingdoms together. We are to pay unto Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s.
How does this land on your ears? Tough things to talk about and to hear. The Messiah is not here to overthrow the government. He is here to give us himself in pouring out life abundant for us, for the Pharisees, for pagan and cruel political leaders and emperors. For all sinners, generously, freely, mercifully, lovingly.
More to come on Sunday. Bring your questions, your worries, and your struggles as we turn to Christ, who points us towards our Creator and reminds us of our identity: Child of God, image-bearer of the Lord, chosen, and set free.
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