To God the things that are God's

To God the things that are God's

 

Mark 12:17 『And Jesus answering said unto them, Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's. And they marveled at him.』

On the surface, this appears to be a tax issue. If you are a citizen of a country living in this world, you must pay taxes to the king of the country. So, since they are under Roman rule, they must pay taxes to Caesar. But what is God’s?

Those who are under the law must pay taxes according to the law, and those who are under the Holy Spirit must pay taxes according to the Holy Spirit. The law is written in Leviticus 27:30, “And all the tithe of the land, whether of the seed of the land, or of the fruit of the tree, is the LORD's: it is holy unto the LORD.”

In the Old Testament times, Jews paid tithes according to the law. This means that people who think they must keep the law must pay tithes. However, believers must know the reason for tithing.

In Matthew 23:23, “Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!” for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.』

“These ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.” Looking at the Greek in this part, ταῦτα [δὲ] ἔδει ποιῆσαι κἀκεῖνα μὴ ἀφιέναι. It is translated as “This should have been done, and that should not have been abandoned.” Most pastors tell their believers that they should still tithe because Jesus told them to do this and that. These words are Jesus pointing out the past events of the Jews. Jesus looked at the Jewish leaders and pointed out that you should have done this and that, but you failed to do so. Jesus is saying that although they paid their tithes thoroughly, they abandoned the righteousness, humanity, and God that the law speaks of. These words point out facts from the past.

Tithe has the meaning of “Look to Christ.” However, since he did not find Christ, Jesus is telling the Israelites to find the Messiah. People think of tithing only for worldly goods. However, the ultimate meaning of tithing is that it makes us realize that we are beings who must spiritually return to the kingdom of God. So, believers return to God in Christ. However, those under the law are still waiting for Christ, so they tithe.

Saints under the Holy Spirit offer eternal sacrifices to God in Christ. Therefore, the saints became spiritual living sacrifices and gave spiritual tithes. Those who have entered into Christ are those who are united with Jesus Christ on the cross. That is why the saints give themselves completely to God. Being united with Jesus on the cross becomes a spiritual tithe. Jesus gave his all to God on his cross. Those who are united with Christ who died on the cross believe that they have given themselves entirely to God. Therefore, the Saint receives salvation from God by offering himself in Christ. When he offers himself, he also becomes dead on the cross.

In Mark 12:16, “And they brought it.” And he said to them, Whose is this image and description? And they said unto him, Caesar's.』The image engraved on a denarius is Caesar. But the image of God is Christ. In Hebrews 1:3, “Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high:』Colossians 1:15『Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature:』

Christ, who bears the image of God, offers Himself up to God, so the saints in Christ are also those who are offered up to God. In Romans 12:1-2, “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world.” : but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.』

About “but be ye transformed(metamorphosde μεταμορφοῦσθε) by the renewing(anakainosei ἀνακαινώσει) of your mind(noos νοὸς)”,

If you look at the Greek Bible, 『ἀλλὰ μεταμορφοῦσθε τῇ ἀνακαινώσει τοῦ νοὸς』, if you translate it again, 『By being transformed and renewing your mind.』 Metamorphos means be transformed. The shape changes. So this word means resurrection. This means that if a saint is offered as a living sacrifice with Christ, the saint will be resurrected with Christ. So, because the saints have a resurrected body, they become spiritual minds. When believers were under the law, they had bodies that were not resurrected, so they had a carnal mind, but since they are resurrected, they now have a spiritual mind, so they know what God's good, pleasing, and perfect will is. This is because through resurrection one becomes the son of God. So he becomes an inheritor of the kingdom of God.

“The money that believers pay at church” is not tithes, but free donations necessary for operating and maintaining the church. Saints do not need to think about tithing according to the law. People who believe they are saints but say they must tithe must first think about whether they are in Christ. Believers must think deeply about whether they actually died on the cross with Jesus and were resurrected with Christ in the present.

He who is in Christ belongs to God because the image of Christ is in the saints. Therefore, saints become people dedicated to God. Saints must prove this principle and act.