“Give therefore to the emperor the things that are the emperor’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” Jesus says these words today, and we tend immediately do some mental math to make meaning. As one scholar points out, “Some people point to this passage as proof that God and politics should be kept separate — that things like taxes have absolutely nothing to do with one’s theological commitments. Others say that this story proves that religion is a matter of the heart, and that Jesus doesn’t really care about mundane things like what you do with your money. And some have cited this passage as proof that Jesus taught that the law is the law, and our duty as Christians is to support the government no matter what.”[i]
But before we start doing our own twenty-first century mental math, we need to understand what is happening in today’s story that evokes this seemingly clear statement, “Give therefore to the emperor the things that are the emperor’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” Jesus is not laying out a treatise of how his followers are to navigate the tensions between church and state. Jesus is navigating the various factions that would much rather have him eliminated than hear the real meaning of his words. The Pharisees and the Herodians have little in common. In fact, they are pretty much enemies, with the Herodians dedicated to King Herod and the Pharisees dedicated to Jewish Law – including being opposed to paying the tax to Caesar for religious reasons. But despite these divided loyalties, the Pharisees and Herodians unite in their desire to remove Jesus from the scene.[ii] And so, they play this game, trying to trick Jesus into either angering the state or angering the faithful – either way, cursing Jesus. But Jesus transforms the trick into something much bigger than the narrow question about taxes. His clear statement, “Give therefore to the emperor the things that are the emperor’s, and to God the things that are God’s,” volleys a question back to both the Herodians, the Pharisees, and even us, over 2000 years later. The return question for all of us is: What belongs to the emperor and what belongs to God?
Now, when I’m exploring a new concept, I’m a bit of a visual learner. I need to see something in writing or have something in a chart or spreadsheet to really grasp a new idea. So, let’s take Jesus’ statement, “Give therefore to the emperor the things that are the emperor’s, and to God the things that are God’s,” and make a mental pie chart. Are you ready? First, let’s put our taxes pie piece in the chart. We’ll estimate that to be about twenty percent. So, now we have a pie chart with about eighty percent left. From that, let’s take out our pledge. For ease of argument, let’s say we subscribe to giving a tithe, so we will take out ten percent. That leaves us with seventy percent with which to play. But Jesus says that the things that belong to God should be given to God. If we have jobs, or retirement funds, or we go to school, our ability to do those things belongs to God. So, we have to give that back to God. That probably leaves us with about fifty percent in our pie chart. Our health is all owed to God as well, so now we are down to about forty percent. Those friends and family that we hold so dear – those are also gifts from God. That takes us down to about thirty percent. And we can’t forget about food, shelter, and clothing. We just dropped down to about fifteen percent. Then there is the air we breathe, and God’s own creation, upon which we rely. Now we are down to about five percent.
So, we officially have five percent of our “stuff” that belongs to us. But wait – Jesus did not say, “Give therefore to the emperor the things that are the emperor’s, and to God the things that are God’s…and then keep the final five percent for yourselves.” Surely Jesus knew we needed a little something that was just ours – a tiny slice of pie for our sense of self or identity. But here is the rub in our lesson today. The reason Jesus is able to send the people away amazed is because Jesus points out one even trickier, harder truth – everything we have – our tax money, our tithe, our jobs, our health, our family and friends, our food, shelter and clothing, the very air we breathe – everything belongs to God. What Jesus is really saying today is that our question – and yes, this is our question too, not just the question of the Pharisees and Herodians – our question today is laughable. We can make all the pie charts and balance sheets we want. The pie chart really only has one big piece – and that piece says, “God’s.”
That coin that the Herodians and Pharisees carry around is of the Roman empire. It has an image of the emperor on the coin, proclaiming that the emperor is both divine and the high priest – blasphemous proclamations about the identity and power of the emperor.[iii] Furthermore, the emperor required all taxes be paid in Roman money – money they must carry around for that purpose. So, Jesus turns the coin on its head, as it were, and asks us what is the “coinage” of God? Professor Raj Nadella argues, “God does not trade in Caesar’s currency. The whole nature and trajectory of God’s kingdom that Jesus has inaugurated, and is inviting people to participate in, is fundamentally at odds with Caesar’s. Which is why, while people must pay to both Caesar and God, they must pay them not only for different reasons but in entirely different currencies. Paying to God and participating in the divine kingdom entails repenting of the ways they have been complicit in the Roman Empire and [the Roman Empire’s] agenda. Paradoxically, then, people should pay taxes the empire has imposed upon them while actively resisting [the empire] and working to promote the alternative kingdom.”[iv]
Third century scholar Tertullian rephrased Jesus’ command as thus, “Render to Caesar Caesar’s image, which is on the coin, and to God God’s image, which is on man.”[v] If the emperor’s coins had the emperor’s face and blasphemous title on them, the coinage of God has our image on them – because we are made in the image of God. So, the “things” that belong to God, the “coinage” that belongs to God, is our selves – myself, yourself, our neighbor’s self, and our enemy’s self.
When we moved to Virginia many years ago, I got distinctive plates on my car. Over the years, I have come to think of those plates as both a blessing and a curse. On the one hand, the plates have led to conversations with strangers who have asked me whether I am a pastor and where I serve. On the other hand, when my driving reflects the bad day I am having – the impatience, the frustration, the self-centeredness I may be showing as I drive – well, that is easily identifiable to others too.
Because everything belongs to God, being a follower of Jesus means dealing in the coinage of God. But unlike being able to hide away the emperor’s coins in our pockets, our coins are visible to all – our very beings are the coinage of God. And so how we engage the world around us matters – not just as a reflection of our selves, but of God’s very own self. Jesus knows we will participate in political and secular life and religious life equally. But the currency of that participation can never be separate. When we pay our taxes, when we cast our votes, when we feed our neighbors, when we let that aggressive driver merge in front of us, when we encounter the stranger, when we sit at the bedside of a friend, or even when we send that text, we do that with the coinage of God. Jesus is just reminding us what’s in our wallet and showing us how we can use our enfleshed coinage for good. Amen.
[i] Lance Pape, “Commentary on Matthew 22:15-22,” October 19, 2014, as found at https://www.workingpreacher.org/commentaries/revised-common-lectionary/ordinary-29/commentary-on-matthew-2215-22-5 on October 16, 2026.
[ii] Marvin A. McMickle, “Homiletical Perspective,” Feasting on the Word, Year A, Vol. 4 (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 2011), 191.
[iii] N. T. Wright, Matthew for Everyone, Part 2, (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 2002), 87.
[iv] Raj Nadella, “Commentary on Matthew 22:15-22,” October 18, 2026, as found at https://www.workingpreacher.org/commentaries/revised-common-lectionary/ordinary-29/commentary-on-matthew-2215-22-7 on October 16, 2026.
[v] Susan Grove Eastman, “Exegetical Perspective, “Feasting on the Word, Year A, Vol. 4 (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 2011), 193.
