Jesus Reframes Everything
April 19 | Rick Thiemke
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Luke 20:19-47
Paying Taxes to Caesar
19 The scribes and the chief priests sought to lay hands on him at that very hour, for they perceived that he had told this parable against them, but they feared the people. 20 So they watched him and sent spies, who pretended to be sincere, that they might catch him in something he said, so as to deliver him up to the authority and jurisdiction of the governor. 21 So they asked him, “Teacher, we know that you speak and teach rightly, and show no partiality, but truly teach the way of God. 22 Is it lawful for us to give tribute to Caesar, or not?” 23 But he perceived their craftiness, and said to them, 24 “Show me a denarius. Whose likeness and inscription does it have?” They said, “Caesar's.” 25 He said to them, “Then render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's.” 26 And they were not able in the presence of the people to catch him in what he said, but marveling at his answer they became silent.
Sadducees Ask About the Resurrection
27 There came to him some Sadducees, those who deny that there is a resurrection, 28 and they asked him a question, saying, “Teacher, Moses wrote for us that if a man's brother dies, having a wife but no children, the man must take the widow and raise up offspring for his brother. 29 Now there were seven brothers. The first took a wife, and died without children. 30 And the second 31 and the third took her, and likewise all seven left no children and died. 32 Afterward the woman also died. 33 In the resurrection, therefore, whose wife will the woman be? For the seven had her as wife.”
34 And Jesus said to them, “The sons of this age marry and are given in marriage, 35 but those who are considered worthy to attain to that age and to the resurrection from the dead neither marry nor are given in marriage, 36 for they cannot die anymore, because they are equal to angels and are sons of God, being sons of the resurrection. 37 But that the dead are raised, even Moses showed, in the passage about the bush, where he calls the Lord the God of Abraham and the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob. 38 Now he is not God of the dead, but of the living, for all live to him.” 39 Then some of the scribes answered, “Teacher, you have spoken well.” 40 For they no longer dared to ask him any question.
Whose Son Is the Christ?
41 But he said to them, “How can they say that the Christ is David's son? 42 For David himself says in the Book of Psalms,
“‘The Lord said to my Lord,
“Sit at my right hand,
43 until I make your enemies your footstool.”’
44 David thus calls him Lord, so how is he his son?”
Beware of the Scribes
45 And in the hearing of all the people he said to his disciples, 46 “Beware of the scribes, who like to walk around in long robes, and love greetings in the marketplaces and the best seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at feasts, 47 who devour widows' houses and for a pretense make long prayers. They will receive the greater condemnation.”
Jesus is surrounded by people trying to trap Him. Not one question is sincere. Every question is designed to control the moment, to gain advantage, to expose weakness and to trap Jesus (verse 19-20). And yet, Jesus is completely unhurried. He is present, discerning and free.
When they ask about taxes (verse 22), Jesus exposes a deeper reality. The coin bears Caesar’s image, so it belongs to Caesar (verse 24-25). But human beings bear God’s image. Which means the deeper question is not about coins. It is about our very lives. What belongs to God? You do.
Then the Sadducees question Him about resurrection (verse 27-33). Again, Jesus does not get pulled into their assumptions. He lifts their vision. There is a coming age. God is bringing life (verse 38).
And then Jesus turns the moment. He asks the question. Who is the Christ? Not just David’s son, but David’s Lord (verse 41-44). This is a crucial moment. Everything hinges here. They are not evaluating Jesus. They are responding to Him.
Finally, He warns about the scribes (verse 45-47). People who look spiritual, but are driven by recognition, image and control. It is possible to be around the things of God and still miss God Himself.
Belonging Fully to God
“Render to Caesar… and to God…” (verse 25) is not a divided life. It is a rightly ordered life. Jesus is teaching that everything finds its place when God is first.
This is deeply practical. We live in overlapping spaces - work, family, culture, responsibility, authority, faith community. It can feel fragmented. But Jesus’ way is not fragmentation. It is integration. You can fully engage your world and fully belong to God at the same time.
Walking with Jesus means asking a different question each day. Not just, “What do I have to do today?” But, “What does it look like for me to belong to Jesus today?”
At work, in your home, in conflict and in decisions about money, time and attention, your life is being shaped by who you ultimately belong to. The Spirit forms in us a steady, non-anxious faithfulness. We are not pulled apart by competing loyalties. We are rooted. We belong to God, and that begins to shape how we show up everywhere else. And that way of life begins to take on a deeper shape when Jesus lifts our eyes beyond this moment and into what is coming.
Living In Light of What’s Coming
The Sadducees live as if this life is all there is, so their questions are limited, small and earthbound. Jesus lifts everything. “There is an age to come… the resurrection from the dead” (verse 35). Jesus is teaching us how to live now in light of what is coming. When resurrection becomes real to us, it changes how we carry everything. We do not cling to status, because it will not last. We do not panic in loss, because death is not the end. We do not live for appearance, because what is unseen is more real.
Walking with Him now means bringing your whole life under His Lordship. You learn to listen to Him, trust what He says and follow Him in the real moments of your life. This is not about doing it perfectly, but about responding honestly, with the help of the Spirit and in community. So consider where your life is feeling fragmented right now, and what it would look like to belong to God in that place and where Jesus might be inviting you to live today, in light of the resurrection, not just your circumstances. This is His wisdom, and when it takes root in us, it does not just silence questions, it forms a different kind of life.
Discussion Questions
What stood out to you about the way Jesus responds under pressure, and what does that show you about His character?
How does remembering that every person bears God’s image change the way you see and respond to people this week?
What is one area of your life where living in light of the resurrection and new creation could reshape how you handle fear, control or uncertainty?