What else should we “render” to God?

Most of us are probably feeling a bit poorer this week. When Jesus taught us to “render unto Caesar” (Matthew 22:21) what we owe, our annual taxes became both a financial and spiritual responsibility. Rendering seems to get more complicated and costly every year. It is a good feeling to put a stamp on those envelopes and just mail them off!

According to Strong’s dictionary, the biblical definition for the word render is “to give away, give up, or give back.” I couldn’t help but think how much easier it is to give back than to give up. It was difficult for the Jewish people to give up their earnings to Rome because they didn’t agree with the way Rome used their money. It’s easier to give to those things we believe in and trust.

That’s why Jesus’ words were so powerfully important to the early church and remain equally important today. Our taxes are owed, whether we like what the money is used for or not. We have to give up some money that doesn’t feel like gratefully “giving back” for something we owe.

Why did Jesus tell Christians to “render to Caesar?”

Caesar Augustus was the Roman ruler at the time of Jesus’ birth, but he wasn’t the Caesar during his earthly ministry. Roman history regards Caesar Augustus as the most important and successful ruler, even though he worshiped multiple gods and allowed himself to be honored as a god. 

The Caesar who Jesus told his followers to pay taxes to was Tiberius, the stepson of Caesar Augustus. Tiberius was a reluctant leader and while successful, he never achieved the acceptance and acclaim of his stepfather. 

The Roman leaders crucified people for crimes, worshiped their gods in vile and detestable ways, and randomly enslaved and taxed people as they willed. There was good reason for the Jewish nation to be angry and distressed about financially supporting ungodly people and their policies. Yet, Jesus clarified their emotions with his truth.

Jesus didn’t ask people to give to Caesar what he deserved; he asked the people to give what they owed because doing so would be their best service to God. That statement may be of great help to Christians in our American culture going forward.

What else should we render to God?

My husband and I were talking about the coming months, especially with the social and political divisions in today’s culture. We talked about something we need to remember personally, and wish we could stress to God’s people today.

As Christians, we will need to be careful that politics don’t become our “religion” this year. There are Christians on both sides and equal opportunity to sin on whatever side we choose. So much of the political rhetoric these days is caustic, slanderous, one-sided, and sometimes just downright untrue. It’s so important we do our best to make our faith a higher priority than our political positions. 

Jesus would teach us to carefully “render unto Caesar” our vote for the people and policies our faith should support. At the same time, Jesus would teach us to render our words, our attitudes, and our witness to honor God. We are called to serve his kingdom purpose through the leadership of God’s Holy Spirit.

And I admit this is a tough thing to do! People who know me know I have definite opinions, and I’m not afraid to offer those opinions to others. I’ve often said the same mouth that teaches Bible is the same mouth that speaks sinful things too. It’s always been a problem for God’s children. James told the first-century Christians, “If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person’s religion is worthless. Religion that is pure and undefiled before God the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world” (James 1:26–27).

As I typed those verses from James, I thought, “Is there anyone whose politics are unstained from the world”? I can’t think of one, can you?

We can’t allow our politics to become a religion. We owe it to our country to “render unto Caesar,” but we owe God everything.

Jesus paid it all. All to him I owe.

I believe and can sing (off-key) every word to the hymn, Jesus Paid it All. I wish I lived more often like I believe those words I sing. Sometimes this world makes it difficult to “walk the talk.” I expect that this year will be one of the most difficult to navigate. 

We owe our vote to the country but we owe everything to God. If we will remember what Jesus paid for our sins, we will be less likely to commit them. That’s especially important for those of us who do a lot of “walking and talking” for the Lord. 

Again, our politics cannot become a religion, especially this year. God’s children serve a higher purpose, with a higher calling. I wonder how Washington D.C. would change if God’s elected children put their faith ahead of their candidacy.

What else do you need to render to God?

We have “rendered” our taxes and now, on to the higher priorities of God! We have a kingdom purpose this year as the subject of politics heats up. What do you need to render to God so that you can walk away after all those conversations knowing you honored and served your Lord?

Thankfully, all of us have his grace for our imperfections. This is going to be a messy year, and we might as well accept that reality. I just wanted to write a blog post that planted a few seeds ahead of time. What if we all worked on a commitment to God for this upcoming political season? Our words can speak to our shared faith more than they speak to our differing opinions.

I know I’ve got some more “rendering” to do. I just thought the taxes were tough this year! I needed to write this blog post to myself before I could give it to all of you. I’m praying that all of us will take our souls to God and walk away from his throne having left several of our opinions, attitudes, and unspoken words at his feet! 

Let’s keep ourselves “unstained by the world,” and we will be kept securely blessed by things eternal.

 

Let the world be our teacher too

There is an Amazon ad this Christmas that touches my heart. 

Actually, the Lord used the ad to convict my heart and inspire this blog post.

I hope you will take the time to watch it now before you keep reading.

Kindness, the greatest gift

Amazon has a wonderful message for our Christmas season. The title and message of their ad is “Kindness, the greatest gift.”  

The marketing aspect is not lost on me, but I don’t think marketing was their only goal. They know the pandemic has made them a great deal of money. They also know there has been a human cost behind their profits. 

The reason I wanted to write this blog during our Christmas season is that the message of the ad should be our message as well. I was struck by the idea that maybe we have believed Satan’s lies about the world more often than we should. 

God created human beings in “his own image” (Genesis 1:27). First John 4:8 tells us that “God is love.” Those two verses can assure us that every human being on this planet has been created with a capacity for love and a need to give and receive love. That’s why our most important commandment is to “love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself” (Luke 10:27). God created us in his image, and God is kind. Jesus told us the most important thing we can do with our earthly lives is to act like our heavenly Dad

Imagine your life if you had never been “adopted”

This is a lengthy passage, but take the time to read and soak in every word. This passage is a gift from Scripture for your day: 

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love he predestined us for adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved” (Ephesians 1:3–6). 

If you are a Christian, God is your heavenly Dad. You were created by him but lost to him. When you made Jesus your Lord and Savior, God adopted you forever. Your life and your character were gifted again with his. That is who the Holy Spirit is and wants to be in your life. 

I’ve often said, “We shouldn’t be surprised when lost people act like they are lost.” Who would you be if someone had not led you to faith in Christ? Think about the last thing you did that you know God didn’t approve of. Think about what it would be like to live without that conviction. Wouldn’t your life develop into some wrong patterns too? I know mine would. 

If we sin this much while saved, imagine how much we would blow it if we didn’t have Jesus!

The lost are closer to God than they realize

No one wants to be lost. No one wants to feel lost. No one enjoys admitting they aren’t good enough. But, deep down under the pride, is the knowledge that all of us were lost, or we still are. 

In the Amazon Christmas ad, an older woman cares about, and for, a younger woman who needs her encouragement. That is the “gift” that comes out of the Amazon box. Amazon’s marketing company was wise to know that kindness is what people most need right now. 

The point of this blog post is: Amazon has worked to understand what people want and need. Christians understand that everyone’s greatest need is to be filled with the source of kindness. Human kindness is a great gift, but it is a temporary gift. Jesus is the gift of Christmas who is the source of eternal love and kindness. 

When I watched the Amazon ad, tears came to my eyes. People know what they need most. How do we tell them how to find it? How do we explain they are so close to finding an answer to their greatest needs? The Amazon ad was a good reminder. All of us who know Jesus simply need to care enough to do something in his name and for his kingdom purpose.

The end of the ad held the answer

When the ad came to a close, the older woman was sitting on a bench with the younger woman. They were both enjoying their time together. Isn’t that a picture of what it means to “love your neighbor as you love yourself”? 

Whom is God calling you to invest in? And, let me say in advance, that investment isn’t just for the Christmas season.  

Jesus told his followers to “go and make disciples” (Matthew 28:19). Discipling a person is rarely a one-time conversation. Jesus wanted us to invest our lives into the spiritual growth of others. Whom has Jesus called you to disciple? That question is answered by specific names. Can you list those names? 

If Amazon knows what the world needs, how much more should we? We know the greatest gift of Christmas and every other season of life. He has a name too. The angel told Mary, “And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus” (Luke 1:31). 

Evangelism isn’t just for some. Jesus called all of us to make disciples and teach them. We know what to say and we know what to do. But, that isn’t the first step. The first step is to care

When we see the ad run on our television sets this Christmas season, let it call each of us to this simple prayer: Father God, help me to care like that. 

Who will you be sitting next to if you do?

  

The Giver of good things

’Tis the season once again. 

Somehow the coffee just tastes better when it is enjoyed with the lights of Christmas. 

Somehow, the quiet, colorful mornings of the Christmas season put the rest of the day in a bright, more God-filled perspective. 

The news is a bit iffy right now, but our joy doesn’t have to be. Romans 8:31 reminds us, “If God is for us, who can be against us?” 

And we know that God is for us!  

God is the Giver of Christmas and the source of our peace, comfort, and joy. Let’s plan to celebrate this month with the Giver of all good things.

The Giver from a biblical perspective

Aren’t you glad that you have God’s presence in your Christmas season? 

The non-believing culture has always tried to foster belief in anything but Christ. Santa isn’t a bad story; he just isn’t the true story. God has given us the perfect understanding of Christmas in his word. 

I’ve often said that we can’t understand Christmas without Easter. If we only think of Jesus as a babe in a manger, we miss the enormity of his birth. Paul gave us an important message for Christmas in his letter to the Roman church. He wrote: “He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?” (Romans 8:32). 

The Giver gave us Christmas so we could have Easter. The Giver has graciously given believers all things, now and forever.

The Giver from a novel perspective 

I read Lois Lowry’s novel The Giver when it was published in 1993. The book made waves in our world and in the church. It is on the list of the most banned books in the United States. Many say it is unsuited for the age group it targets because it addresses dark subjects. 

I understand the angst, but I’ve always held to the idea that we should educate children rather than indoctrinate them. Our relationship to Christ is a choice, and no one can choose if there is only one side presented. I didn’t fight the message of the novel; I used it to present the difference between truth and fiction. And, frankly, I took some heat from fellow believers over my position. 

I think the novel is an interesting read and provides a message about our world from a non-Christian perspective. The Giver won the Newberry Medal for young adult fiction in 1994 and eventually became a movie. Chances are pretty good that most junior high schools have it in their libraries as recommended reading. I read the book when it was assigned to my son and it sparked some great conversations.  

The Giver is a science-fiction novel that describes a dystopian world that aims for a utopian experience. The book teaches that truth can’t exist in utopia because people passionately desire freedom, choice, and love. Utopia can’t exist in a controlled, non-feeling existence where people are taught to obey rather than care. 

Jonas is a young man in the novel whom the “Giver” is hoping to influence. The giver, in the novel, is the one who knows the “truth” about their existence. At one point, Jonas tells the giver, “You and I don’t need to care about the rest of them.” As soon as Jonas speaks those words, he knows they aren’t the truth. The paragraph continues, “Jonas hung his head. Of course they needed to care. It was the meaning of everything.” 

The Giver is a well-written novel that attempts to inspire truth. Sadly, truth cannot exist without its Author. The giver in the novel is a man, not God. 

The true Giver of all good things 

There is so much about Christmas that sparks joy, especially this year. Or at least, hopefully this year. 

If I had to assign Satan a one-word description, I would call him a virus. As the news of this new virus progresses, it should serve as a reminder that our world continues to need our Christmas celebration. The world needs our Christian truth about the reason for this season.  

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him” (John 3:16–17). 

I was inspired to write this blog post as I read the autobiography from Lois Lowry’s website in light of the verses above. It doesn’t help to condemn lost people for believing “lost” ideas. Christians aren’t superior people because we know the truth; we are just blessed by learning how to live it.  

Lois Lowry wrote, “My older son was a fighter pilot in the United States Air Force. His death in the cockpit of a warplane left a little girl fatherless and tore away a piece of my world. But it left me, too, with a wish to honor him by joining the many others trying to find a way to end conflict on this very fragile earth. . . . I try, through writing, to convey my passionate awareness that we live intertwined on this planet and that our future depends upon our caring more, and doing more, for one another.” I thought it was profoundly moving that Ms. Lowry is most famous for writing The Giver, a book that proves her goal is humanly impossible. 

If I could share the truth . . . 

I wish I could talk to Ms. Lowry about God, the actual Giver of all good things. In some ways, I feel like I write for the same reasons Ms. Lowry listed.  

I believe we live “intertwined on this planet” too. I believe that “our future depends upon our caring more, and doing more, for one another.” But, Lois Lowry and I believe very differently about the Giver. I don’t believe human beings can do the work of God apart from the strength of God. 

Everyone we see this week is filled with the Christ of Christmas, or needs to be. God is the true Giver, who gives perfect gifts that are humanly impossible. His word tells us that he will “graciously give us all things” (Romans 8:32).  

Let’s enter this Christmas season with his perfect strength, his complete truth, and with his inspired goals. And, may the Christ of Christmas light our way through the coming weeks. 

If the Giver is for us, who can be against us?