Jesus makes a very interesting statement in Matthew 22:21.
“Give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar, and give to God what belongs to God.”
So … what belongs to God?
What are we to give him?
Based on Matthew 22, what belongs to God is everything that bears His image, primarily people themselves.
Jesus’s teaching to “give to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s” establishes that while we have civic duties to government (like paying taxes, which is what was on the coin), all of humanity ultimately belongs to God.
- That which bears Caesar’s image: The coin itself, bearing Caesar’s face and name, belongs to him. This represents our obligation to fulfill civic duties to the state, such as paying taxes.
- That which bears God’s image: The people themselves, because they were created in God’s image.
So God created human beings in his own image. In the image of God he created them; male and female he created them. – Genesis 1:27
We have the opportunity to give ourselves to the Creator by fulfilling our calling!
We are made in God’s image. We bear his image. We belong to God and are called to give our lives, hearts, and ultimate allegiance to Him. We are called to give him our all!
