By Andrew Williams – August 2, 2022
And they came up and said to Him, Teacher, we know that You are sincere and what You profess to be, that You cannot lie, and that You have no personal bias for anyone; for You are not influenced by partiality and have no regard for anyone’s external condition or position, but in [and on the basis of] truth You teach the way of God. Is it lawful (permissible and right) to give tribute (poll taxes) to Caesar or not?
Mark 12:14 AMPC
Good morning fellow disciples.
We already know that the purpose of this conversation was to entrap Jesus by the words that He spoke. The conversation was introduced by giving praise to Jesus about His character. What they said was true, however they were using flattery to make Jesus think that they were on His side.
How many times have persons come to you and spoke glowingly about you, then proceeded to ask questions or make insinuations that would put your character in jeopardy, and your role in whatever organization you are in at risk?
How adept are you at recognizing false persons by the way that they speak?
The question that they asked was a simple one. “Is it lawful (permissible and right) to give tribute (poll taxes) to Caesar or not?”
We get simple questions like this everyday. Questions like:
“How are you doing? How is your family? Did you watch that show last night? What is your opinion about what she is wearing? What do you think about your fellow disciples?”
Our answers to questions like these can cause problems. In the hands of a shrewd and wicked person they can retell our answers in ways that can destroy us or others. It is the motive of persons that are important.
Let us learn to evaluate their motives. Let us be circumspect in our answers to simple questions so that persons will not be able to use them for harm.
Prayer: Father God, I don’t want to be paranoid when it comes to people’s motives, I just want to be careful. I want to be honest with my answers. I want to be clear with my answers. I want to represent You well, so that whatever I say will be in keeping with Your word, Your will, and Your Spirit.
May my answers and declarations in conversations fill others with knowledge, wisdom, and understanding. Also, I pray that those that I speak to will come into closer relationship with you. Amen.
