Worrying About Caesar's Stuff

Like many of you, I have been involved in a number of conversations over the last week that centered on the financial and economic crisis facing our country. To be honest, as much as I may try to convey some sense of understanding and insight on these issues, the fact is, it's all beyond my level of understanding. All I know is that, apparently, a whole lot of people loaned a whole lot of money to a whole lot of people who can't pay it back, and now it's all come back to bite us. As you can see, God clearly did not provided me with the necessary gifts for working in the financial field. Just ask my wife - she took the checkbook away from me a long time ago due to my proven inability to keep it balanced.

But despite my lack of knowledge and understanding, one thing is obvious to me - people are afraid. Many of us find ourselves haunted by dread and uncertainty, terrified by the prospect that we might just wake up from the American dream to see our more than comfortable life-styles slip away. While such a reaction would be expected and understood within our affluent culture, it's interesting that the followers of Jesus, myself included, seem to be easily drawn into the same spirit of fear and uncertainty. I do not intend to minimize legitimate concerns, and I certainly would not belittle the pain of those who face the loss of a house or a job. The issue I raise is one of Christians living in and being driven by fear. Is it not true that the people of God's kingdom are called to build their hope and security on something greater than the kingdoms of this world? If our hope rests elsewhere, if our lives are built on a different foundation, then should we fear what others fear?

Perhaps our sense of fear and uncertainty reveals something about us, a revelation of the painful truth that we are too attached to the things of this world, too dependent on the life-style we have created, too obsessed with our own comfort and welfare. Shaped by the culture more than I care to admit, I build houses on the sand, and when the sand shifts, I am afraid.

On one occasion, when Jesus was confronted with a question about the interaction of God's people with the kingdoms of this world, He simply responded, "Give to Caesar what is Caesar's, and to God what is God's." I have often heard those words interpreted as, "Be a good citizen, be a good Christian." In other words, you have a foot in both worlds, so do what is right on both counts. Now there is certainly nothing wrong with being a good citizen, but I'm not sure that was the point Jesus was trying to make. I tend to think that Jesus was impressing on us the truth that when we are surrendered fully to the kingdom of God, we can freely let go of the wealth and power of this world. When we truly live as people of His kingdom, the issues that bring fear, concern, and conflict to the world around us do not impact us in the same way.

This is what I hear Jesus saying: If it has Caesar's picture on it, and it has Caesar's name on it, then it obviously belongs to Caesar. So let him have it - why do you care? You should be so fully devoted to God, so completely invested in His kingdom, that you can let go of this stuff without fighting and fear. Don't worry about Caesar's stuff; he can do that. Be more concerned about the fact that you belong to God.

It's one thing to express that belief when life within Caesar's realm is comfortable and profitable. It's another thing entirely to hold to that belief when the retirement account is getting hammered, the value of the house plummets, and the factory may shut down. But if we do not believe it in a time like this, can we say that we ever really believed it at all?