Render to Caesar: Remembering the Imago Dei

So they watched him and sent spies, who pretended to be sincere, that they might catch him in something he said, so as to deliver him up to the authority and jurisdiction of the governor. So they asked him, “Teacher, we know that you speak and teach rightly, and show no partiality, but truly teach the way of God. Is it lawful for us to give tribute to Caesar, or not?” But he perceived their craftiness, and said to them, “Show me a denarius. Whose likeness and inscription does it have?” They said, “Caesar's.” He said to them, “Then render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's.” And they were not able in the presence of the people to catch him in what he said, but marveling at his answer they became silent. (Luke 20:19-26)

This is one of my favorite passages in the Gospels because it reminds us that Christ's ministry will always point us to the Father.

As a reader you should feel the tension in this passage. Just before this interaction Jesus had taught the parable of the wicked tenants which was founded in His displeasure with the religious officials. Because of this, they watched him and planned their attack. The crafted this trap that we, the readers, think we can see but Jesus can't. However, the text says, “and he perceived their craftiness.” It may have been a trap, but Jesus is not unaware.

Jesus is clever and uses their evil motives to discredit them. Jesus knows that if he tells the leaders that they should not pay tribute that he would be arrested by Roman officials. He also knows that he say that they should pay the tribute that his word would be undermined in a group that felt marginalized by the Roman empire. Therefore, He gives an answer which does not really answer their question the way they expected.

But He isn’t dodging the question, just answering it differently. When he asks whose image is on the coin, He uses the Greek word eikón which ties this passage to Gen 1:26-28. Although the Genesis passage is in Hebrew, the Greek word eikón is used to translate the Hebrew word selem in the Septuagint.

Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”

Some key points to consider here. No other thing in creation other than human beings are created in God’s image. We are set apart, we are special, we are very good. Psalm 8, for example, calls our existence the pinnacle of creation. We have intrinsic value, dignity, and worth. We were made to be in relationship with the Father and it is because this relationship, the fact that we are made in the Image of God, that we see the Father fight so diligently for his people throughout the Old Testament and then ultimately through the person of Jesus Christ. We belong to him, He cares for us and He wants us back into relationships with Him.

Therefore, when Jesus himself is standing there saying the word “image,” He is not making an ambiguous statement which leaves us to decide what belongs to Caesar and what belongs to God. The fact is that many people would disagree on that topic. Maybe a certain amount of money belongs to God and some of it belongs to Caesar… it could go on and on. That is not the point of this passage. The context is a once yearly tax to Rome. It has very little application to our system of tax and government. What at issue behind this question is what the scribes value… money, which is made in the image of Caesar.

When Jesus asks whose image or likeness is on the coin it brings to mind the one who we are made in the image of. Like every part of His ministry, Jesus uses this moment to point to God the Father, to remind us who He is and ultimately who we are in relationship to Him. While the scribes value money, He is valuing people, who are made in the image of God. While the coins bear the image of Caesar, we bear the image of our creator. The answer is clear, regardless of what does and does not belong to Caesar. That is, we belong to God.

We see in this passage, then, that Jesus pulls the focus away from the earthly concerns which distract us from our relationship with Jesus. His omniscience and cleverness point us to the real issue that we should be concerned with. It illuminates the truth that we are bearers of the image of God. We live in a world with many pressures and things pulling at us. We have kids and schedules and bills. We try to follow Jesus, but sometimes it gets hard. We feel raw and tired. Sometimes in the middle of it all, we forget what is means to be relationship with our Creator. Sometimes we ask the wrong questions. We forget that we are made in His image.

We should render our lives not unto Caesar but unto God. This is what Jesus’ entire earthly ministry was about. Through the truth of the Gospel and His atoning death on the cross, we are brought make into relationship with Him. We are reminded of our unique and intimate bond. It is a process for most of us, but every single day as we draw closer to Jesus, we are continuing to render onto God what is His only.

#imageofGod #imagodei #Luke20