PrayerBits for Sunday

PrayerBits

A bite sized devotional program
produced by the West Side Presbyterian Church

Sunday

Scripture lesson:        Matthew 22:15-22 Render unto Caesar

Time to reflect: The issue at hand in this trick question is the fact that the Roman coinage had images of humans and animals, which was forbidden in Torah as a protection against breaking the first commandment. Should people handle or hold such coins. Jesus' answer is – give it back to the people that made it. A safe, non-committal answer to the question that skirts the issue.

Moving through the day: There is always the question of how much compromise is too much compromise. Where are the compromises in your life? Is there someway of quietly giving up the compromise? Pray about this.

Scripture:

 Then the Pharisees went out and laid plans to trap him in his words. They sent their disciples to him along with the Herodians. "Teacher," they said, "we know you are a man of integrity and that you teach the way of God in accordance with the truth. You aren't swayed by men, because you pay no attention to who they are. Tell us then, what is your opinion? Is it right to pay taxes to Caesar or not?"

 But Jesus, knowing their evil intent, said, "You hypocrites, why are you trying to trap me? Show me the coin used for paying the tax." They brought him a denarius, and he asked them, "Whose portrait is this? And whose inscription?"

 "Caesar's," they replied.
      Then he said to them, "Give to Caesar what is Caesar's, and to God what is God's."

 When they heard this, they were amazed. So they left him and went away.