Matthew 22

Mat 22:21 Then He said to them, Therefore render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things which are God's.

Sounds easy, but how far do we take that advice?

The only way I know to explore the meaning of a teaching like this
is to look at examples in my own life, one at a time
and see how they measure up.

So say I'm driving along
and get pulled over by the police
and get ticketed for whatever.
(I'm not a totally law-abiding driver,
so this is no stretch of the imagination.)

But how will I handle it?

Argue with the cop about it?
Moan and groan about it to everyone I know?
Fight it in court?
Take measures to have it removed from my record?

Hey, I broke the law...
Pay the fine and move on.

Why waste time and energy that could be better spent on other activities?
The more I waste on it, the more I am "giving to Caesar" in a way.

And theoretically,
I would like to give him as little as possible.

So that's the way I'm thinking about this verse,
using an obvious example.

Well, the MOST obvious example is probably taxes.
I get taxed,
I pay it
I move on.
faggittabouddit

The more time and energy spent on it,
the more of my life I am voluntarily giving up.
The more I give to Ceasar.

Anyway, that's easy and obvious.

Mat 22:22 When they heard these words, they marveled, and they left Him and went away.

huh?

they marveled?

Hmmm, I wasn't exactly marveling....

but maybe there is more to this than the simple stuff above.
(how often do we come into contact with law enforcement in our daily lives anyway?)

Now I'm wondering about how much of my attention is being diverted
in not-so-obvious ways.
How much (of what I could be devoting to a higher purpose)
do I squander away?

Recently, I gave up watching television.

OK, so that may not sound like a sacrifice to a lot of people
who don't watch much TV anyway,
but I'm not one of those people.

If a TV is available, I am a compulsive watcher.
When I'm tired at night, I don't go to sleep.
Instead, I spend hours and hours flipping through channels,
always finding something to look at.

But like I said, I gave it up.

And you know what? I don't miss it.
I don't know how I ever found the time for it before,
I seem busier than ever.
It almost seems like I am more alive than I was before.

Have you ever heard,
that if you put a frog in a pot of warm water,
and heat the water slowly,
the frog will boil to death rather than jump out?

But that if a frog touches hot water
without getting used to it gradually,
it will recoil from it,
just like you or I would.

I kind of feel like that.

Now that I have partially gotten away from the comfortably numb warmth
of mindless television watching,
I am starting to realize what a trap it is.

And how living in this world,
I am forced to give a certain amount to Caesar.
I have to give a certain amount to the world
just to exist in it.

But that's all I'm gonna give.
All they get is my money,
they don't get my anger
or frustration
or time
or attention
or anything else.

I have a brother who refuses to give anything to Ceasar.
He doesn't accept the authority,
and won't buckle unless he is physically forced to.
But he spends so much energy opposing it,
and so much mental processing time and attention on resisting it,
that I'm wondering about what it really costs him.

Maybe it is better to pay the piper and be free.

Now that I am partially free,
(at least free enough to notice how duped I have been by the world),
I am noticing that I am getting even more sensitive to
the lies of advertising,
mental bombardment,
constant distraction.

It's almost as if the world knows we might just walk away from it
if we were to notice that silence and peace can be joyful.

I think that is what is happening to me.

So I don't watch television.
I don't read the newspaper.
and I don't feel any less "in the know".

I still listen to the radio,
but the ads are really becoming offensive to me.
"REWARD YOURSELF after a good physical workout by going out for beer beer beer!"
"PLEASURE your self by buying more more MORE!"
"Fill that empty hole inside you with an EXTREME MAKEOVER!"
"Render unto us everything you have!"

If I am constantly distracted and wanting,
what us left over for God?
What exactly am I "rendering unto him"?
What is He going to inherit from me when I die?

Maybe I need to decide

What I will give to Caesar
and
What I will reserve for God.

Now that I am slightly outside the range of continous feed,
I recoil from it.

(like mustard in my nostrils)

Thank God for the break.