{"id":36508,"date":"2025-12-17T13:26:09","date_gmt":"2025-12-17T13:26:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.christianvoice.org.uk\/?p=36508"},"modified":"2025-12-19T13:39:51","modified_gmt":"2025-12-19T13:39:51","slug":"nanosermon-render-unto-caesar","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.christianvoice.org.uk\/index.php\/nanosermon-render-unto-caesar\/","title":{"rendered":"Nanosermon: Render unto Caesar"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><u>Listen to our nanosermons<\/u> on:<br \/>\n<a title=\"Opens in a new tab or window\" href=\"https:\/\/www.soulfoodgospel.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><b>Soul Food Gospel Radio<\/b><\/a> every Monday, repeated every Wednesday, at 10.00am UK time.<br \/>\n<a title=\"Opens in a new tab or window\" href=\"https:\/\/www.heartsonglive.co.uk\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><b>Heartsong Live Radio Scotland (DAB)<\/b><\/a> Mondays &#8211; Sundays 8.30am &amp; 2.30pm UK time.<br \/>\n<a title=\"Opens in a new tab or window\" href=\"www.soarisemusic.com\/soariseradio.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><b>So Arise Radio Antigua &amp; Barbuda<\/b><\/a> Mondays and Fridays at 7:30 AM AST.<\/p>\n<p><a style=\"font-size: 18px; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; color: #000000; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; border-radius: 9px; background-color: #ffff00; border-top: 9px solid #FFFF00; border-bottom: 9px solid #FFFF00; border-right: 18px solid #FFFF00; border-left: 18px solid #FFFF00; display: inline-block;\" title=\"Opens in a new tab\" href=\"https:\/\/www.christianvoice.org.uk\/index.php\/nanosermons-bible-articles\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">More nanosermons and teachings \u2192<\/a><\/p>\n<p><b>Know the mind of God. Read the whole Bible in one year<\/b>:<\/p>\n<p><a style=\"font-size: 18px; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; color: #000000; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; border-radius: 9px; background-color: #ffff00; border-top: 9px solid #FFFF00; border-bottom: 9px solid #FFFF00; border-right: 18px solid #FFFF00; border-left: 18px solid #FFFF00; display: inline-block;\" title=\"Opens in a new tab\" href=\"https:\/\/www.christianvoice.org.uk\/index.php\/product\/lamplight-1-year-bible-reading-plan\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">ORDER OUR \u2018LAMPLIGHT\u2019<br \/>\nBIBLE READING PLAN \u2192<\/a><\/p>\n<p><u>Watch this nanosermon here<\/u>:<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"YouTube video player\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/N_Z6fQy_AWQ?si=JVYMhPjOy-j2jrYR\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<h2>Nanosermon Script:<\/h2>\n<p>You may have heard the expression \u2018Render unto Caesar\u2019 and wondered what exactly it means. When the Lord Jesus said it, he meant \u2018pay appropriate taxes to the Roman authorities\u2019. And then he said \u2018Render unto God the things that are God\u2019s\u2019. We have things of Caesar and things of God.<\/p>\n<p>So you might think &#8216;Render unto Caesar&#8217; means the church should have nothing to say to government, or even that the realm of the &#8216;secular&#8217; Caesar is entirely separate from the realm of God. The realm of God. That&#8217;ll be the church and spiritual stuff.<\/p>\n<p>That\u2019s the position of secularists. They say God had just better &#8216;butt out&#8217; of anything to do with actual ruling. And of course when they say the civil government is \u2018secular\u2019 they claim it for themselves and try to shut God and his people out.<\/p>\n<p>But is that really what our Lord intended? What led to this &#8216;Render unto Caesar&#8217; expression from the Lord Jesus? Turn, please, to the Gospel of Matthew chapter twenty-two. Let&#8217;s read from verse fifteen:<\/p>\n<p><b>Matt 22:15 Then went the Pharisees, and took counsel how they might entangle him in his talk. 16 And they sent out unto him their disciples with the Herodians, saying, Master, we know that thou art true, and teachest the way of God in truth, neither carest thou for any man: for thou regardest not the person of men.<\/b><\/p>\n<h2>What\u2019s really going on here?<\/h2>\n<p>They are provoking Jesus to say something fearless and get himself into trouble.<\/p>\n<p>Verse seventeen:<br \/>\n<b>Matt 22:17 Tell us therefore, What thinkest thou? Is it lawful to give tribute unto Caesar, or not?<\/b><\/p>\n<p>This was actually a big issue at the time. Most of the Pharisees were opposed to giving Caesar any money at all. But you couldn&#8217;t say that in public, or you would be in a Roman jail for sedition. And no Pharisee would even touch the money.<\/p>\n<p>You&#8217;ll see Jesus in a moment saying &#8216;shew me&#8217; one of the coins. Not &#8216;give me&#8217;. The Rabbi from Galilee won&#8217;t touch it either.<\/p>\n<p><b>Matt 22:18 But Jesus perceived their wickedness, and said, Why tempt ye me, ye hypocrites? 19 Shew me the tribute money. And they brought unto him a penny. 20 And he saith unto them, Whose is this image and superscription?<\/b><\/p>\n<h2>\u2019the things that are God\u2019s\u2019<\/h2>\n<p><b>Matt 22:21 They say unto him, Caesar&#8217;s. Then saith he unto them, Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar&#8217;s; and unto God the things that are God&#8217;s. 22 When they had heard these words, they marvelled, and left him, and went their way.<\/b><\/p>\n<p>Hmm. Give Caesar what is Caesar&#8217;s and give God what is God&#8217;s. How many things are Caesar&#8217;s, the realm of civil government. Well, the responsibility to maintain law and order, which the Apostle Paul in Romans 13 says is what the money is given for:<\/p>\n<p><b>Rom 13:6 For this cause (maintaining law and order) pay ye tribute also: for they are God&#8217;s ministers, attending continually upon this very thing.<\/b><\/p>\n<h2>How many things are God\u2019s?<\/h2>\n<p>Now then. How many things are God&#8217;s? Well, Psalm twenty-four verse one says:<\/p>\n<p><b>Psalm 24:1 The earth is the LORD&#8217;S, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein.<\/b><\/p>\n<p>I think the Psalmist has just told us everything is God&#8217;s. Everything and everyone in the world. Civil rulers are responsible to God, just as much as Pastors and Bishops. Paul says in Romans chapter thirteen that every civil ruler is &#8216;the minister of God&#8217;, whether he admits it or not.<\/p>\n<h2>Christ puts Caesar in his place, under God<\/h2>\n<p>You see, that\u2019s because all authority comes from God. As the Psalmist puts it, with no compromise at all:<\/p>\n<p><b>Psalm 47:2 For the LORD most high is terrible; he is a great King over ALL the earth.<\/b><\/p>\n<p>So this discourse in the Gospels does not tell God to keep out of Caesar&#8217;s realm at all. It does not limit God, it limits the state. It puts &#8216;Caesar&#8217; in his place, under God. He has a God-given duty to maintain law and order.<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s not the church, or its prophets, who have to butt out of government. We have a duty to call the government to account and tell rulers to rule in righteousness. No, it is the state that has to keep its nose out of the church.<\/p>\n<p>If you know someone in the realm of Caesar, some king, or president, or member of parliament, or congressman, you can tell him all that. He might not thank you for it. But he needs to know.<\/p>\n<p>SCRIPT ENDS<\/p>\n<h2>Support us!<\/h2>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><b>We appreciate your support; it enables our research and helps us inform your prayers.<br \/>\nSo click below to support Christian Voice and stand up for the King of kings<\/b><br \/>\n<a title=\"Opens in a new tab or window\" href=\"https:\/\/www.christianvoice.org.uk\/index.php\/information\/\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-3940\" style=\"border: 0px;\" title=\"Join Today!\" src=\"https:\/\/www.christianvoice.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/08\/Join_donate_Logo2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"185\" height=\"180\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #800080;\"><em><b>Click on the social media links below to share this post:<\/b><\/em><\/span><\/p>\n<p><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>You&#8217;ve heard the expression \u2018Render unto Caesar\u2019, but what does it mean?  Did the Lord Jesus limit God to the church, or put Caesar, the &#8216;secular&#8217; ruler, under the authority of God?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":36509,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[5463],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-36508","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nanosermons-teachings"],"aioseo_notices":[],"rttpg_featured_image_url":{"full":["https:\/\/www.christianvoice.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Nano0044.jpg",701,394,false],"landscape":["https:\/\/www.christianvoice.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Nano0044.jpg",701,394,false],"portraits":["https:\/\/www.christianvoice.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Nano0044.jpg",701,394,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/www.christianvoice.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Nano0044-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/www.christianvoice.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Nano0044-300x169.jpg",300,169,true],"large":["https:\/\/www.christianvoice.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Nano0044.jpg",640,360,false],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/www.christianvoice.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Nano0044.jpg",701,394,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/www.christianvoice.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Nano0044.jpg",701,394,false],"td_0x420":["https:\/\/www.christianvoice.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Nano0044.jpg",701,394,false],"td_80x60":["https:\/\/www.christianvoice.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Nano0044-80x60.jpg",80,60,true],"td_100x75":["https:\/\/www.christianvoice.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Nano0044-100x75.jpg",100,75,true],"td_180x135":["https:\/\/www.christianvoice.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Nano0044-180x135.jpg",180,135,true],"td_238x178":["https:\/\/www.christianvoice.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Nano0044-238x178.jpg",238,178,true],"td_265x198":["https:\/\/www.christianvoice.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Nano0044-265x198.jpg",265,198,true],"td_300x160":["https:\/\/www.christianvoice.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Nano0044-300x160.jpg",300,160,true],"td_300x194":["https:\/\/www.christianvoice.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Nano0044-300x194.jpg",300,194,true],"td_300x350":["https:\/\/www.christianvoice.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Nano0044-300x350.jpg",300,350,true],"td_341x220":["https:\/\/www.christianvoice.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Nano0044-341x220.jpg",341,220,true],"td_341x400":["https:\/\/www.christianvoice.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Nano0044-341x394.jpg",341,394,true],"td_511x400":["https:\/\/www.christianvoice.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Nano0044-511x394.jpg",511,394,true],"td_537x360":["https:\/\/www.christianvoice.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Nano0044-537x360.jpg",537,360,true],"td_640x0":["https:\/\/www.christianvoice.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Nano0044-640x360.jpg",640,360,true],"td_640x350":["https:\/\/www.christianvoice.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Nano0044-640x350.jpg",640,350,true],"td_681x0":["https:\/\/www.christianvoice.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Nano0044-681x383.jpg",681,383,true],"td_681x400":["https:\/\/www.christianvoice.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Nano0044-681x394.jpg",681,394,true],"td_741x486":["https:\/\/www.christianvoice.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Nano0044.jpg",701,394,false],"td_1021x580":["https:\/\/www.christianvoice.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Nano0044.jpg",701,394,false],"ultp_layout_landscape_large":["https:\/\/www.christianvoice.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Nano0044.jpg",701,394,false],"ultp_layout_landscape":["https:\/\/www.christianvoice.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Nano0044.jpg",701,394,false],"ultp_layout_portrait":["https:\/\/www.christianvoice.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Nano0044-600x394.jpg",600,394,true],"ultp_layout_square":["https:\/\/www.christianvoice.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Nano0044-600x394.jpg",600,394,true],"woocommerce_thumbnail":["https:\/\/www.christianvoice.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Nano0044-300x300.jpg",300,300,true],"woocommerce_single":["https:\/\/www.christianvoice.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Nano0044-600x337.jpg",600,337,true],"woocommerce_gallery_thumbnail":["https:\/\/www.christianvoice.org.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Nano0044-100x100.jpg",100,100,true]},"rttpg_author":{"display_name":"Stephen","author_link":"https:\/\/www.christianvoice.org.uk\/index.php\/author\/stephen\/"},"rttpg_comment":0,"rttpg_category":"<a href=\"https:\/\/www.christianvoice.org.uk\/index.php\/category\/nanosermons-teachings\/\" rel=\"category tag\">Nanosermons &amp; Teachings<\/a>","rttpg_excerpt":"You've heard the expression \u2018Render unto Caesar\u2019, but what does it mean? Did the Lord Jesus limit God to the church, or put Caesar, the 'secular' ruler, under the authority of God?","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.christianvoice.org.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36508","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.christianvoice.org.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.christianvoice.org.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.christianvoice.org.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.christianvoice.org.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=36508"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.christianvoice.org.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36508\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":36510,"href":"https:\/\/www.christianvoice.org.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36508\/revisions\/36510"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.christianvoice.org.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/36509"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.christianvoice.org.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=36508"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.christianvoice.org.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=36508"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.christianvoice.org.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=36508"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}