Daily Bread

As they were gathering in Galilee, Jesus said to them, ‘The Son of Man is going to be betrayed into human hands, and they will kill him, and on the third day he will be raised.’ And they were greatly distressed.

When they reached Capernaum, the collectors of the temple tax came to Peter and said, ‘Does your teacher not pay the temple tax?’ He said, ‘Yes, he does.’ And when he came home, Jesus spoke of it first, asking, ‘What do you think, Simon? From whom do kings of the earth take toll or tribute? From their children or from others?’ When Peter said, ‘From others’, Jesus said to him, ‘Then the children are free. However, so that we do not give offence to them, go to the lake and cast a hook; take the first fish that comes up; and when you open its mouth, you will find a coin; take that and give it to them for you and me.’

Every Jew had to pay a 'maintenance' tax to the Temple in Jerusalem. It was not a huge amount, just a couple of 'didrachmas' (small coins), and this tax would keep the show on the road — the buildings and the staff. Even though the temple was the locus of worship, not everyone was a fan of this tax, and Jesus — coming to replace the temple as the locus of worship — embodied an opposition to the temple regime and how it had become corrupted.

Jesus asked Peter a question about whether the children of royalty had to pay taxes to their royal parents, which of course they did not, and the implication was that Jesus was the most royal of them all and was exempt from the temple tax, therefore, the question is, why did Jesus acquiesce and pay the tax?

Payment of the temple tax was prescribed in the Law of Moses (Exodus 30.11-16) and as Jesus came to fulfil or complete the law, perhaps it made sense that he should pay this tax? Perhaps too, it was not 'mission-critical' and besides, it would not be long before the temple would become theologically obsolete and within a few years it would be physically destroyed.

So what was with the whole fish and coin thing? It is, without doubt, the strangest miracle in the gospels, and which is more miraculous, a fish with a coin in its mouth or that Jesus knew about it in advance?

Some scholars assert that it was about God's provision for our needs, others assert that faith in God does not excuse us from our earthly responsibilities, others think that Jesus was poking fun at the whole temple system, and others that it was a nod to Peter, the fisherman, to go and catch a fish and sell it.

The truth? Honestly, we do not know, but what is clear is that Jesus did not wish to offend for the sake of offending, and that, perhaps, is the faith lesson we can learn from this story. I am reminded of the phrase, "If momma make the sauce, you eat the sauce." In other words, you do not offend momma if you are able to be obedient without complaining or refusing.

You see, sometimes we have to swallow our pride, do things we would rather not do, and choose to take a path of obedience to a way of doing things, all for a greater good — and the hurt is ours to carry quietly in our hearts. Certainly in the light of this week's Insight and discussion on culture, to change culture we have to choose carefully our battles, and quietly endure the aspects with which we personally struggle — especially if we are not to alienate those we have come to win over with God's love.

Yes, as Christians we are to make a stand against injustice, but sometimes we have to nod and say, "okay," knowing that there is a bigger picture and that we are part of God's bigger story.

Holy God
Help me be as wise
as a snake and as
gentle as a dove.
Give me wisdom
when to make a
stand against injustice
or be obedient,
trusting in your
faithfulness and love.
Now and forever.