How A Tax Payment Testifies To Christ | How A Tax Payment Testifies To Christ | By Richard Caldwell

About this sermon

Introduction: One of the amazing mercies of an almighty and compassionate God is how He presents His Son to us in so many different ways on the pages of Scripture. It is amazing is that much of that presentation is in the form of narrative. What that means is that before it was written down in words, it was written down through a life. It was LIVED before the eyes of needy sinners. John and the other apostles were not writing fiction. ESV John 1:14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. ESV 1 John 1:1 That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we looked upon and have touched with our hands, concerning the word of life-- 2 the life was made manifest, and we have seen it, and testify to it and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was made manifest to us-- 3 that which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ. What we now have as a testimony in words, John received as a testimony to his own senses. He saw Jesus. He heard Jesus. He had contact with Jesus. He lived with the Lord of glory. Christ’s glory was seen EVERY DAY that these men were with Him — in the miraculous and in the seemingly mundane. When a demon possessed boy needs deliverance — there is a miracle and people marvel at the majesty of God (Luke 9:43). And now, in our text, when tax-collectors come looking for the annual payment expected from Jesus and His disciples — Peter, and those who read the conversation that Jesus had with Peter, and those who read about what Jesus did for Peter, we all get see the majesty of the Savior. In the spectacular things, we see Christ’s glory. In the common things that belonged to the life of a 1st century Jew, we see the majesty of God. This morning we think about How a tax payment testifies to Christ. It is ironic that it is the former tax-collector alone who is chosen by the Holy Spirit to preserve this event from the life of Christ. We will examine the narrative under three headings. (1) A question about temple taxes (2) A lesson about royal sons (3) A provision that demonstrates divine love. • A QUESTION ABOUT TEMPLE TAXES (vs.24-25a) This will be the final mention of Capernaum in Matthew. The unique opportunity afforded to the place that Jesus made His base of operations for a time was now coming to a close. Oh, what Capernaum has seen and heard! ESV Matthew 11:23 And you, Capernaum, will you be exalted to heaven? You will be brought down to Hades. For if the mighty works done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day. They arrive and they meet with temple tax collectors. These would have been common people. These are not religious leaders, and these are not employees of Rome. They are collecting a tax that most Jews thought of as a patriot duty. In the book of Exodus, at the time of the census, a half-shekel was required from the Israelites for the support of the tabernacle. ESV Exodus 30:11 The LORD said to Moses, 12 "When you take the census of the people of Israel, then each shall give a ransom for his life to the LORD when you number them, that there be no plague among them when you number them. 13 Each one who is numbered in the census shall give this: half a shekel according to the shekel of the sanctuary (the shekel is twenty gerahs), half a shekel as an offering to the LORD. 14 Everyone who is numbered in the census, from twenty years old and upward, shall give the LORD's offering. 15 The rich shall not give more, and the poor shall not give less, than the half shekel, when you give the LORD's offering to make atonement for your lives. 16 You shall take the atonement money from the people of Israel and shall give it for the service of the tent of meeting, that it may bring the people of Israel to remembrance before the LORD, so as to make atonement for your lives." What was collected at the time of the census, was now taken as grounds for an annual tax in support of the temple. Scholars tell us that everyone didn’t take this to be binding. The Sadducees among them. But various groups participated to one degree or another, and MOST JEWS DID see this as a matter of obedience to the law. Why these tax collectors approached Peter instead of Jesus we don’t know for certain. It might have been a matter of respect. The way that the question is asked, though put in the negative, assumes a positive answer. We could paraphrase it like this, “He hasn’t paid the tax, but he’s not one to ignore it, correct?” TO WHICH PETER FEELS THE NEED TO DEFEND JESUS, AND HE ANSWERS “YES.”

Topics

• Jesus Christ