Giving Caesar God's Due
Scriptures: Matthew 22:15-22 ; Malachi 3:6-10 Have you ever received something that you didn’t deserve? Some of the most beautiful gifts in life are the ones we do not deserve. A stranger paying for our lunch in the drive-through. An unexpected grace offered to us from a friend when we are not acting with grace. Our very salvation is offered as something we do not deserve from our Creator, the offering of his own Son on our behalf. The very nature of a gift implies that it is somehow not deserved. That’s what makes it a gift! It is also a wonderful thing to give something when it is not deserved. We can be the one who offers grace when it is not merited; we can be the one to surprise someone else with kindness. This can bring even more joy! As nearly everyone can tell you, it is truly more blessed to give than to receive. But there can be a dark side to giving when it is not deserved. Giving something to an unworthy recipient can be an act of grace, but it can also be...