Matthew 22:15-21
Lead in #1: In Matthew 22:15-21, the Pharisees were plotting how they might trap Jesus, hoping to silence him once and for all. Careful to conceal their scheme, they flatter him with heaps of praise, “Teacher, we know that you are a truthful man and that you teach the way of God.” But Jesus could see through them. So, he was not intimidated by what they were up to.
Prompt #1: Reflect on a time when you did not let the hostile environment you found yourself in keep you from speaking your truth and saying what you needed to say.
Prompt #2: Reflect on a time when the hostile environment you found yourself in kept you from speaking your truth and saying what you needed to say.
Lead in #2: The Pharisees and the Herodians posed a question which would either peg Jesus as a Jewish revolutionary or a Roman sympathizer. But Jesus answers in a way that turns the tables on his adversaries. The discussion is no longer a debate. It simply invites his listeners to reflect on their own lives and what it means to give to God what belongs to God.
Prompt #3: If there were any area of your life where you may be holding back on God, where would that be?
Lead in #3: When asked by the Pharisees if it was lawful to pay the census tax or not, Jesus asked for the coin that pays the census tax. On one side of the coin was the image of a foreign ruler, Ceasar. On the other side of the coin was an image of a pagan god. That put the common people of that day in an awkward position. While the Roman coins they used put food on the family dinner table, they struggled knowing that some might think that by using the coins they were endorsing the image of the foreign ruler who oppressed them and a pagan god they didn’t believe in.
Prompt #4: How do you stay true to the values you want to live while living in a culture that does not support those values?
Lead in #4: Jesus’ response to the Pharisees was as straight forward as you can get, “Give to Ceasar what is Ceasar’s and to God what is God’s.” In his heartfelt letter to the Thessalonians, Paul reminds us that if God never holds back on us, why would we hold back on Him? Give your all to God and you’ll never be disappointed.
Prompt #5: What in your experience tells you that Paul is right? Give your all to God and you’ll never be disappointed.