Give to God all that is His!

  

“They say to Jesus, ‘Sir, we know what an honest teacher you are. You always tell the truth and don’t budge an inch in the face of what others think, but teach the ways of God. Now tell us—is it right to pay taxes to the Roman government or not?’ He saw through their trickery and said, ‘Show me a coin. Whose portrait is on it? They replied, ‘Caesar’s—the Roman emperor’s.’ He said, ‘Then give to the emperor all that is his—and give to God all that is his!’” (Luke 21:21-25)

What questions do you have for God? What is at the root of your questions? In a devotional I am using in praying the Bible over the youth in my church this year, they start with questions that were raised by JI Packer in his book, Knowledge of God. “What is the best thing in life, bringing more joy, delight, and contentment, than anything else?” “What aim should you set for yourself in life?” “What were you made for?” The answer to all these questions is knowing God.[1]

Your question’s will reflect where your heart is at. Here, these folks that were sent by the chief priests and religious leaders were asking Jesus this only to outwit him before the people. They wanted Him to say something that would get Him in trouble.

Yet, Jesus used it as an opportunity to call people to give more to God and glorify Him with their lives. They marveled at His wisdom. He answered a deeper question of do we contribute to things that are not His Kingdom? He responds to give to Caesar what is Caesar’s and God what is God’s. In essence, to honor the law and do what is required by it and in the same way, honor the law of the Kingdom and do what is required by it – by loving obedience. As they marveled, I’m sure it came with a sense of conviction as they were not doing what was required under the law of God. The purpose of the law was to drive them to see their need and that they couldn’t pay it themselves.

The next question for God was about marriage and the resurrection. The folks that asked it were Sadducees who believed that death was the end of existence. They asked if you had multiple partners and then died, who would you be married to in heaven? Their purpose was to prove a point that life after death was not rational or reasonable. Yet Jesus answers that there is no marriage in heaven just as death does not exist in heaven.

Jesus then responds in Luke 20:37-38, “But as to your real question—whether or not there is a resurrection—why, even the writings of Mosses himself prove this. For when he describes how God appeared to him in the burning bush, he speaks of God as ‘the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.’ To say that the Lord is some person’s God means that person is alive, not dead! So from God’s point of view, all men are living.’”

Part of them not understanding was that the Holy Spirit had not been sent yet to teach them all things that relate to Him. John 14:26 says, “But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.”

Later, if they received Christ as their Savior, they would have a deeper understanding of Kingdom things and that we were people of His Kingdom. All that to ask, what questions do we have for God and what are we missing?

For me, a constant question in my heart for years was, “Am I safe?” I wanted to know that I was safe. For many years of my life, I didn’t feel safe. I would try to find a safe place but couldn’t. So then, I walled up myself in a hidden fortress behind my face. There was wall after wall after wall of protection. But God penetrated it. He began to take the walls down. Through it, He taught me that He is the only safe place. As I let my wall drop, I found that I was safe in His love in everything. I no longer needed to fear disaster at all. Not only this, but I could trust to step out further and further in His love.

In Matthew 22:36, a lawyer then spoke up asking, “Sir, which is the most important command in the laws of Moses?” A question so good that it has been held to for all times, Jesus replied, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, and mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. The second most important is similar, ‘Love your neighbor as much as you love yourself.’ All the other commandments and all the demands of the prophets stem from these two laws and are fulfilled if you obey them. Keep only these and you will find that you are obeying all the other.”

Something similar is said in Micah 6:8, “He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.”

Be the first, not to throw a stone at our brother for the wrong they did, but to help our brother up out of love for Jesus. In bowing low and caring for others, by getting the log out of our own eye first and helping our brother up, we honor and show our love to the Lord.

Since I often feel so safe and no longer question this the same, the question that often pops up for me is, did I miss it? Did I miss something that God has spoken to me and failed in some way? I want to know if I am getting it right. I know this is a performance question. I want to tell Him something with my life and often feel so short of this.

There is part of me that is concerned that in hardness of heart, I will reject something God has for me to do. I will miss an opportunity to give to Him and glorify Him. But these scriptures in Matthew 22 and Micah 6 remind me what He is looking for: To love others that are right in front of me out of love for Him. Whenever I do this, I am not missing it.

As mentioned in Luke 9:48b, “Your care for others is the measure of your greatness.” If I am loving others and making this a priority in my life out of love for Him, I am not missing it. When I fail to love others well, I probably am missing it.

Another question I ask of Him in my heart with so many things that pull for my attention is, ‘What is important?’

Before Jesus had entered Jerusalem to answer all these questions, He overlooked it and wept over it. He cried out over the hardness of hearts in the religious leaders that were meant to serve Him. He wept that they would be crushed under the decisions they made – having rejected the opportunity that God offered them. (Luke 19:44)

The religious leaders in Luke 19 were rejecting the Lord. This is missing it. They totally missed the point. When we receive Jesus in our hearts and let Him have our lives, we are all a work in progress but we are not missing it. In following Him, He will pull us into our purpose and give us a rich and satisfying life (John 10:10). The thief’s purpose is to steal, kill and destroy by keeping people out of this.

In helping others to know Christ, we are caring for others in what is most important in their life. It is only as they know Christ that they can have a rich and fulfilling life. And once they find this life, to follow after Him with their whole heart.

Coming back to the first answer Jesus gave, "give to God all that is his!" As we order our lives around God, He orders our lives. We don't need to worry about missing it.

Lord, we do not want to miss a thing you have for us. At the same time, we do not want those around us to miss out either. Help us to love You and others well. Put us on a path to share the good news with those who are being stolen from and help us to love well in all situations.