”Watching for their opportunity, the leaders sent spies pretending to be honest men. They tried to get Jesus to say something that could be reported to the Roman governor so he would arrest Jesus. “Teacher,” they said, “we know that you speak and teach what is right and are not influenced by what others think. You teach the way of God truthfully. Now tell us—is it right for us to pay taxes to Caesar or not?” He saw through their trickery and said, “Show me a Roman coin. Whose picture and title are stamped on it?” “Caesar’s,” they replied. “Well then,” he said, “give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar, and give to God what belongs to God.” So they failed to trap him by what he said in front of the people. Instead, they were amazed by his answer, and they became silent. Then Jesus was approached by some Sadducees—religious leaders who say there is no resurrection from the dead. They posed this question: “Teacher, Moses gave us a law that if a man dies, leaving a wife but no children, his brother should marry the widow and have a child who will carry on the brother’s name. Well, suppose there were seven brothers. The oldest one married and then died without children. So the second brother married the widow, but he also died. Then the third brother married her. This continued with all seven of them, who died without children. Finally, the woman also died. So tell us, whose wife will she be in the resurrection? For all seven were married to her!” Jesus replied, “Marriage is for people here on earth. But in the age to come, those worthy of being raised from the dead will neither marry nor be given in marriage. And they will never die again. In this respect they will be like angels. They are children of God and children of the resurrection. “But now, as to whether the dead will be raised—even Moses proved this when he wrote about the burning bush. Long after Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob had died, he referred to the Lord as ‘the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.’ So he is the God of the living, not the dead, for they are all alive to him.” “Well said, Teacher!” remarked some of the teachers of religious law who were standing there. And then no one dared to ask him any more questions. Then Jesus presented them with a question. “Why is it,” he asked, “that the Messiah is said to be the son of David? For David himself wrote in the book of Psalms: ‘The Lord said to my Lord, Sit in the place of honor at my right hand until I humble your enemies, making them a footstool under your feet.’ Since David called the Messiah ‘Lord,’ how can the Messiah be his son?” Then, with the crowds listening, he turned to his disciples and said, “Beware of these teachers of religious law! For they like to parade around in flowing robes and love to receive respectful greetings as they walk in the marketplaces. And how they love the seats of honor in the synagogues and the head table at banquets. Yet they shamelessly cheat widows out of their property and then pretend to be pious by making long prayers in public. Because of this, they will be severely punished.”“
Luke 20:20-47 NLT
Jesus and the religious leaders got into some debates. On a deeper level, these debates revealed the person and authority of Christ, who revealed the true nature of God. There is a resurrection because God is the God of life. The resurrection was hinted at in the first five books of the Bible (the only ones the Sadducees believed in) but stated more directly in the prophets (v.38). God revealed Himself more of Himself through time (and most fully in Jesus), but His nature never changes. God also wants us to fulfill our good duties and give our due—giving to Caesar the payments that are owed to him, and giving to God what He deserves (v.25). The coins had the image of Caesar, but WE are the image of God. We are called to give all of who we are to God, our King, Savior, and Friend. This is something that most people don’t believe, thinking rather that God only wants a portion of who we are or what we own. God is inviting you into a relationship where you receive all from Him and give your all to the One who gave His all for you.
These verses show that we can ask God any question; Jesus listened and answered. God will also ask us questions (Jesus asked over 70 in the Gospels), and how we answer is important. Jesus asked them a question, “Whose Son is the Messiah?” They understood the Messiah to be a human figure anointed by God to drive out their foreign overlords. Jesus came as the Messiah to drive out the oppression of sin. He is more than Messiah—He is the Lord and Suffering Servant. This is who God really is, and what reality truly is like, and when we live it out and follow the real Jesus, life makes sense—even in our pain—and we experience true joy.
Everyone has an answer to the question of God, but every answer is not accurate. Even an atheist will say “There can’t be a God because God would not allow pain or suffering to happen in the world.” That is theology—defining how you think God should act. Praying is theology—understanding that God loves us and hears our prayers. Action is theology, though we often don’t live consistently with how we believe. Our whole lives—words, prayers, attitude, actions—are the answer to the most important questions. Pay attention to your answers.
How can people sometimes use debates to avoid following God? How does your life reveal who Jesus is to you?
