Whose Image Do You Bear?

Jesus’ answer to the question about paying taxes to Caesar can sound like the kind of political nonanswer that leaves everyone frustrated. But the question is not honest. The Pharisees and the Herodians want a trap, not a conversation. A yes would make Jesus look disloyal to his own people. A no would make him look like a troublemaker encouraging rebellion against Rome. The two groups disagree about plenty, but their shared opposition to Jesus brings them together.

Jesus refuses to play their game. His question about the coin turns the tables: whose image is on it? The emperor’s coin exposes an uncomfortable reality. Opposition to Rome has not stopped participation in Rome’s economy or dependence on its money. Jesus’ answer acknowledges that life in an imperfect world does not always offer an entirely clean choice. But his answer also breaks free from the demand to choose one camp or the other.

The coin bears Caesar’s image, but human beings bear God’s image. That distinction gets to the deeper question: what belongs to God? God’s concern is not finally a coin, a monument, or a display of religious power. God desires the people who bear the divine imprint. Religious symbols matter, but an obsession with symbols can become another trap, another way to sort people into the good camp and the bad camp while missing what actually counts.

God makes the divine heart known in vulnerable human flesh, not in a piece of metal. Christ’s flesh can be hurt, torn, and nailed to a cross. The baptismal cross marks a belonging that no earthly ruler can cancel. God’s promise places human worth, belovedness, and ultimate fate in the hands of a loving God, not an empire.

The mistreatment of those who bear God’s image, rather than the disappearance of religious symbols, defiles that image in the world. Hunger, abuse, homelessness, and bullying push aside the very people through whom God calls for love. Care for the poor, the hurting, and the stranger bears witness to a kingdom greater than Caesar’s. Christ’s gift at the table makes that love tangible again: the same Christ who took on human flesh and gave himself on the cross gives himself in bread and wine. His life and love become the ground for honoring every person who bears God’s image.

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Key Takeaways

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Bible Reading

Matthew 22:15-22
“Then the Pharisees went and plotted how to entangle him in his words. And they sent their disciples to him, along with the Herodians, saying, “Teacher, we know that you are true and teach the way of God truthfully, and you do not care about anyone's opinion, for you are not swayed by appearances. Tell us, then, what you think. Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?” But Jesus, aware of their malice, said, “Why put me to the test, you hypocrites? Show me the coin for the tax.” And they brought him a denarius. And Jesus said to them, “Whose likeness and inscription is this?” They said, “Caesar's.” Then he said to them, “Therefore render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's.” When they heard it, they marveled. And they left him and went away.” [31:19]

Matthew 25:40
“And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.” [41:44]

Genesis 1:27
“So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.” [38:25]

Observation questions

1. In Matthew 22:15–22, how was the tax question designed to get Jesus into trouble whichever answer he gave? [35:20]
2. What did the coin in his questioners’ possession reveal about their participation in the Roman system? [36:42]
3. How does Genesis 1:27 help identify the contrast between the image on Caesar’s coin and the image human beings bear? [38:16]
4. What examples of mistreatment were identified as dishonoring God’s image, and how do they connect with Matthew 25:40? [41:19]

Interpretation questions

1. How does Jesus’ response challenge the idea that faithfulness to God always means choosing one of the two sides offered in an argument? [37:52]
2. Read alongside Genesis 1:27, how does Jesus’ answer in Matthew 22:15–22 deepen the question of what belongs to God? What does that suggest about the limits of an earthly ruler’s claim on a person? [38:16]
3. Religious symbols can matter without being the main thing. How can a church recognize when defending a symbol has begun to overshadow caring for the people it represents? [39:22]
4. In light of Matthew 25:40, why is caring for someone who is hungry, homeless, or mistreated more than simply an act of kindness? [41:51]

Application questions

1. Think of a recent conversation where you felt pressured to choose a side or prove your loyalty. What might it look like to take the concern seriously without accepting an unfair either-or choice? [38:02]
2. Have you ever asked a question mainly to expose someone’s faults rather than understand them? What could help you approach your next difficult conversation with genuine curiosity? [34:26]
3. When have you found yourself more upset about the treatment of a religious symbol than about the treatment of a person? What might help you keep those concerns in their proper place? [39:00]
4. God’s promise in baptism places your worth in loving hands, not in the approval of earthly powers. Where do you feel pressure to prove your worth, and how might remembering that promise change your response this week? [40:41]
5. Who in your neighborhood, workplace, school, or family is being overlooked or treated as though they matter less? What is one realistic way you could honor that person’s dignity this week? [41:19]
6. Christ gives himself in bread and wine, grounding love for others in the love already received from him. How might receiving Communion shape the way you treat someone you find difficult to love? [43:10]