Taxes

Isn't nice to know the debate over taxes is not new?

Tell us, then, what you think. Is it lawful to pay taxes to the emperor, or not?' But Jesus, aware of their malice, said, 'Why are you putting me to the test, you hypocrites? Show me the coin used for the tax.' And they brought him a denarius. Then he said to them, 'Whose head is this, and whose title?' They answered, 'The emperor's.' Then he said to them, 'Give therefore to the emperor the things that are the emperor's, and to God the things that are God's.' When they heard this, they were amazed; and they left him and went away.- Matthew 22:17-22

Back in the day, those who sought to bring Jesus down attacked him for not paying taxes.

Sure, this is about loyalty to the emperor, but they had a point.  Jesus and his followers shared all they had and gave all they could to the poor.  They were a not-for-profit enterprise of sorts.

So, what was there to declare as taxable income?

Probably not much.

Imagine if everyone did as Jesus did.  If we all gave to those in need first and then reported what we had left for tax purposes, the government would have to cut back bug time in spending.

Of course, there would be fewer things to spend the money on, since the needs of the people would be pretty much covered, right?  Infrastructure and the military would need funding, and we would still need to come up with a good way to treat disease and illness.  We are not that good at curing the sick, like Jesus was.

But the question is this.  If everyone gave first, would it be enough to solve problems like hunger and unemployment and housing?

Would there be money left over to pay for education, healthcare and the infrastructure?

I think Jesus put too much trust in people loving and caring for each other.  Surely he didn't trust government to take care of the sick and the naked and the lonely and the hungry.  Why should we?

In us God trusts.  Shouldn't we do the same?

More to come...