Death and Taxes, Part 2

In what appeared to be a spontaneous moment, Matthew tells us about a time when Jesus was walking with His disciples and launched into a foreboding description of the betrayal to come. His enemies, Jesus said, were going to kill Him. And on the third day, He added, Jesus would be raised from the dead. Well, today on Insight for Living, Chuck Swindoll describes this surprising forecast from Jesus and the implications for us today. We're in Matthew chapter 17, looking at verses 22 through 27.

Chuck titled his message, Death and Taxes. We read in the scriptures that our Lord changes the times and the seasons. He loves change. We don't like change. I read somewhere the only one who likes change is a wet baby. Most of us are turned off by changes. The reason is we fall into habits and we don't like those habits to be broken.

We certainly don't like it when it's not in the realm of our comfort zone. That's why God loves changes. He loves to break us free from long-standing habits, habits of thinking, habits of responding, habits that relate to our relationship with others, habits in how we spend our time, our leisure, how we react to testing, and on and on we could go. May God open us up to hear what he has to say and to be ready to change. Bow with me, will you, for just a few moments. We bow before you, our Father, and acknowledge that you are the author of every good and perfect gift and those gifts come to us often unexpectedly not wrapped as we had expected and not containing what we had expected.

You are full of surprises. You are engaged in shaping us to be formed into the image of your son and that requires chiseling away, working away, hammering away at those areas of our lives that need attention. May we be more engaged today in dealing with our own selves rather than how someone else should be responding to life. May we take these words personally. May we live with the pointed questions that come at the end of this message and may we come to terms with them honestly and with authenticity.

We pray that you would watch over our nation, that we would somehow become a people who reflect the things that have made us great. Begin with us. Start within each of us.

Show us areas of our own lives that have no business continuing in that realm. Give us the determination and the discipline to call a halt to those things, to begin anew and afresh for your glory. We pray for those who carry heavy weapons and occupy places that are hard to pronounce, where we will never be. Protect them.

Use them. Comfort their families and bring them safely home. We pray for those who are in school, away from home, that you would guide them, connect them with those who know your son, and may it be a time of spiritual deepening and refreshment for them. May they grow not only intellectually, but may they grow spiritually. For all the homes represented in this place today, we pray.

Pray for the fathers and the mothers. May they be men and women of God. May they be people of compassion and consistency, faithful to your word, honest to the core. May that become a part of their teaching of the young. May the children imbibe those qualities. Grow up from within our midst those who would help lead in the days ahead.

Watch over our schools, our neighborhoods, our relationship with others, the way we do business, the way we conduct ourselves in our marriage, or in our singleness. May we honor you, our father. And now we commit to you, Lord, these gifts that we give. It is our desire that they be used for the right things, in the right way, that they be handled with integrity, and that you be honored even in the motive of the giver. Make us generous at the same time, free of any ulterior motive, as we release to you what is already yours.

Remind us that you own it all. We're grateful for your grace. We walk in it gratefully as we give our gifts generously and ask these things believingly through Christ our Lord.

And everyone said, amen. You're listening to Insight for Living. To study the book of Matthew with Chuck Swindoll, be sure to download his Searching the Scriptures studies by going to insightworld.org slash studies. And now the message from Chuck titled Death and Taxes. Unlike all of us who come to live and to live a full life, he came to live a short life and died at age 33. Knowing that his death was imminent, about six months away, he decided it was time to bring up a subject again. He did that frequently and sometimes, as in this case, abruptly. So out of the blue, as they're walking along having been together following the transfiguration, and then time with him at the base of the mountain, you remember, they're making their way back home to where Peter would call home and Jesus would call the, well, what might have been the home of his ministry, Capernaum.

On their way to that town, he brings up the subject again. Look at verse 22 of Matthew 17. After they gathered again in Galilee, Jesus told them, the Son of Man is going to be betrayed into the hands of his enemies.

He will be killed, but on the third day, he will be raised from the dead. And the disciples, literally from the original we read, they grieved exceedingly. He tells them bluntly and forthrightly that a betrayal is underway. Little did the disciples realize that the traitor was standing in their midst. Bad enough that there would be one who would betray him, but to think that he would be one of their own, they don't know that right now. So now we leave them grieved and I think they were silent.

So there is no talk any further until we arrive at Capernaum. So, if you will, they're back home and they must have been a familiar sight. Jesus with his 12 as they walk into the town.

No doubt people took notice. In this case, a temple tax collector observed their arrival. We read the collectors of the temple tax came to Peter and he asked a question that suggests an affirmative answer. Your teacher pays the temple tax, doesn't he? Now, I think in his heart of hearts, he would hope that he wasn't paying taxes, that he might report him and they would have further grounds of accusation against him. But in fact, he was paying those taxes. Look at the response. Peter replied, yes, he does.

He pays those taxes. And then Peter went into the house. Before Peter can open his mouth, Jesus addresses him and does a little instructing of his own.

It's a teaching moment, I call it. He asked him two questions. First, he said, Peter, what do you think? Then he asks, do kings tax their own people or the people they have conquered? He doesn't ask about the temple tax, but he happened to know what had been said because he's omniscient.

He was aware of what had gone on outside the house. But he asked Peter the broader question. When you have a king who rules over a country, does he tax his own people?

It can be taken one of two ways. Does he tax his own family? Could also mean, does he tax those who were citizens in his country as opposed to those he has conquered and brought into his country?

That's the way these translators have taken it. Your Bible may render it otherwise, but he asked the question about the kings and those they tax. In other words, who would be exempt when kings tax in these days?

Peter's answer is in verse 26. They tax the people they have conquered, Peter replied. If it were a reference to the king's own family, his answer would be they tax those who were not in the royal family. Wouldn't make sense for a king to tax his own family.

He taxes others or in the case of the national scene, he taxes those who are strangers in the land and have been brought in to live there. Well then, said Jesus, the citizens are free. In other words, if you're a part of the kingdom, you're free. You're exempt or to use the other analogy, if you're a part of the family of the king, if you're a member of the royal family, you're exempt. You don't have to pay taxes.

Taxes are called for by the king and required by the king. He does not require them from his own flesh and blood or from his own citizens. Now, it's that word free that Jesus has on his mind and I have it on mine as well.

You're exempt. Think about it, Peter. Going back to the temple tax, I'm the son of God. Remember when Jesus was 12 and his parents couldn't find him and they came back and he said, I must be about my father's business. I'm engaged in the work of my father, the things of the temple. If anyone was to be worshiped, Jesus is to be worshiped. And so naturally one would wonder why would he pay taxes? He's the Lord of the universe. He's the master of not only the disciples but of the world.

Well then who's free? All who would be a part of his family would be free. And I'm sure Peter would think, well I'm as close as your own family to you.

In fact, we are like family. I could be exempt. Now the turning point, if you follow the thought, comes at the beginning of verse 27. However, however, we don't want to offend them.

Before I go on to the miracle that he mentions, I want to explain this. We who are citizens in these United States are obligated to pay our taxes. We have the responsibility living here to obey the laws of the land and we are required every year, sometime during the year, to pay certain taxes. That is why when someone runs for public office, the question invariably comes up, does he or she pay taxes? We want to see the tax return. We want to be certain that that individual is paying his fair share, we would say. That will prove something of the person's character. For if he does not, he is an offense and that would be a reason not to vote for that individual or not to respect that individual.

Because while obligated he's found a way around it and he doesn't pay those taxes. So Jesus says here, however, we don't want to offend, even though I have every right to be exempt, as you do, being my close follower. Or let's face it, those who lived in that temple were not men of holy character. Those who carried on the business within the temple were the very ones who were a part of the betrayal. They are the ones who hired Judas and paid him the 30 pieces of silver.

So these are evil men who run the temple. Nevertheless, so that we don't offend them, we need to pay and we need to pay now. So he tells Peter to throw a line in the lake and the first fish he catches will have a coin in its mouth. Take the coin, it will represent that four drachma that are required for the tax and take that coin and use it to pay the temple tax. Take it, he says at the end, pay the tax for both of us.

It would equal twice what would be paid by one man. But the main reason he says this is that there not be an offense. Listen to the clear exposition that one expositor writes.

Listen carefully. Regardless of how unjust a tax is assessed or how blasphemously or irresponsibly it is spent, that tax is to be paid. If the Son of God claimed no exemption for himself in paying taxes to the den of thieves run by the wicked false teachers and leaders of Israel, how much less can his followers claim exemption for themselves? It's a very good point. And if he was concerned about not giving offense to unbelievers over that issue, how much more should his followers have such concern?

What's he saying? He's saying that we are to fulfill our obligation regardless of the lack of character among those who take our taxes, who spend those tax monies. Regardless of that, we are required to pay those taxes.

Here's a way to look at it. We are all possessors of dual citizenship. If we know Christ. First and foremost, we are citizens of heaven. He is our master. He is our Lord. We are obligated to obey him. We are expected to hold up his reputation and magnify his name because we serve him. We are a part of his citizenry, if you will. We are a part of his citizenry, if you will. We must never forget we are also citizens of this planet, of this government, of this country.

We are to honor that citizenship and not give an offense by not obeying those rules and laws. Let me show you this in two different passages. Look at First Corinthians chapter 9 right now. Turn please. First Corinthians chapter 9 describes Paul's philosophy regarding living, though he's free, in such a way that he is not an offense to those to whom he ministers.

Look at 919. Follow along. Even though I am a free man with no master, he says that in this in the theoretical sense of my master is in heaven. I don't serve Caesar. Nevertheless, I become a slave to all people to bring many to Christ.

Look at his submission, his submissive spirit. When I'm with the Jews, I live like a Jew to bring the Jews to Christ. So when he was among the Jews, he ate what the Jews ate. He observed their customs.

He observed their celebrations. He was not an offense to the Jews, even though he was a citizen of heaven and followed the Lord Jesus Christ as a converted Jew. When he was among the Jews, he lived like them.

Why? So that he would bring the Jews to Christ and not offend them. Read on. When I was with those who followed the Jewish law, I too lived under that law, even though I'm not subject to the law. I did this, he states, so I could bring to Christ those who were under the law.

He doesn't stop there. He says when I'm with the Gentiles. Now Paul is Jewish, but he says when I'm around the Gentiles who do not follow the Jewish law, I too live apart from that law.

Why? So that I might bring the Gentiles to Christ. I do not ignore the law of God. I obey the law of Christ.

He goes further. When I'm with those who are weak, I share their weaknesses, for I want to bring the weak to Christ. Yes, I try to find common ground with everyone doing everything I can to save some. I do everything to spread the good news and share in its blessings. In other words, I don't want to cause any offense, if it's at all possible, on the pathway that will lead them from their unconverted state to conversion to Christ.

My love for their souls is greater than my love for my own freedom. In this age of fierce independence, it's important to recognize our influence over those in our community. Chuck Swindoll is showing us the biblical model for tolerance for those who are weak. This is Insight for Living, and to learn more about this ministry or to see what resources are available for today's topic, please visit us online at insightworld.org.

And just before our time is up for today, let me point you to one of the most helpful resources offered by Insight for Living. As you've grown to appreciate and even rely on the clear and practical Bible teaching on this program, you'll be glad to learn Chuck has condensed his life's work into a study Bible. It's written in the refreshing style Chuck is known for and laid out in a format that's easy to navigate as well. Someone left a note on our website recently, and they specifically mentioned how much they're enjoying this study Bible, saying, I bought a copy the day it was first released, and I read my study Bible every day. I highly recommend this Bible. Well, the Swindoll Study Bible represents decades of personal study by Chuck, preparing for sermons and writing books, and it belongs in your personal library. To discover the different options available to you and to purchase a copy of the Swindoll Study Bible, go to insight.org slash offer. You can also call us if you're listening in the U.S.

Dial 1-800-772-8888. And then let me take a moment to thank those who give generously and sometimes sacrificially to Insight for Living. Perhaps you have no idea the impact of your gesture, but we do. A day never passes without hearing from someone whose life has been touched because of the Bible teaching they receive through Insight for Living. We read each and every comment that comes to our attention, and each one represents a sacred moment that was made possible through the voluntary gifts of people like you.

Thank you so much. To give a donation today, call us if you're listening if you're listening in the United States, dial 1-800-772-8888 or give online at insight.org. In March 2022, Insight for Living Ministries is hosting an unforgettable journey to Israel carefully planned to deepen your understanding of the Bible and draw you closer to God.

Chuck Swindoll. For thousands of years, no place has been more meaningful to God's children than the land of Israel. The rugged landscape reminds us to find refuge in God alone. The fertile valleys invite us to follow our shepherd. Jerusalem's position at the very center of the world announces the good news of Christ to every nation. And now you can see Israel with Chuck Swindoll and Insight for Living Ministries March 6 through 17, 2022. Every time I visited the Holy Land, I've returned home with a refreshed heart for God and a renewed vision for the world.

Really, I mean it every time. And so I want you to have the same life-changing experience. To learn more, go to insight.org slash events or call this number 1-888-447-0444. Insight for Living Ministries tour to Israel is paid for and made possible by only those who choose to attend. Join us when Chuck Swindoll concludes his message titled, Death and Taxes, Friday on Insight for Living. The preceding message, Death and Taxes, was copyrighted in 2017 and 2021, and the sound recording was copyrighted in 2021 by Charles R. Swindoll, Inc. All rights are reserved worldwide. Duplication of copyrighted material for commercial use is strictly prohibited.