So they watched Him, and sent spies who pretended to be righteous, that they might seize on His words, in order to deliver Him to the power and the authority of the governor. Then they asked Him, saying, “Teacher, we know that You say and teach rightly, and You do not show personal favoritism, but teach the way of God in truth: Is it lawful for us to pay taxes to Caesar or not?” But He perceived their craftiness, and said to them, “Why do you test Me? Show Me a denarius. Whose image and inscription does it have?” They answered and said, “Caesar’s.” And He said to them, “Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” But they could not catch Him in His words in the presence of the people. And they marveled at His answer and kept silent. (Luke 20:20-26)

A Life Of Truth

The chief priests and scribes were threatened by the teachings of Jesus. They questioned the authority of Jesus as He taught the people in the temple because they feared the influence the Lord had upon the people. No one could deny the miracles that were done. The Jewish leaders wanted to lay hands on Jesus but were worried about how the crowds would react. Spies were sent among the multitudes seeking a way to catch Jesus in what He said so He could be arrested and taken before the governor. The ploy was to send men who pretended to be honest and trap Jesus in something He said. What was remarkable about their ruse was the men who pretended to be righteous told the truth about the Lord. They said He spoke the truth and what He taught was right. It was clear Jesus was not swayed by the opinions of men. The claim was made by these false pretenders of truth that Jesus taught the way of God truthfully. What they claimed about Jesus came from a pretense of truth but what they said about Jesus was true.

Everything Jesus said and taught was true. He spoke the words of the Father. Comparing what Jesus taught with scripture proved that everything He taught was in accordance with the word of God. The scribes were the lawyers of the Law of Moses and would have known if Jesus misquoted or misrepresented the Law. He never did. The charge against Jesus was that He spoke the truth. They accused Him of teaching what was right. If Jesus was guilty of anything, He was convicted of being completely truthful about all things. The character of Jesus was not swayed by the opinions or wisdom of men. There was no personal favoritism in his teaching. What He said was often harsh and offended His audiences but He spoke the word of God in truth without reservation. All of the teachings of Jesus came from the word of God.

If Jesus lived in the age of modern media that prides itself on finding sound bites and videos of what was said in the past, the Lord would be under the intense microscope of examination in everything He said. There would no variation of what He taught when he was twelve years old or thirty years old. The life of Jesus is an open book of open dialogue of the word of God. He spent nearly three years of intense ministry of teaching the message of His Father and the brightest of the Jewish inquisitors could never find one thing that Jesus taught in error. Not only was Jesus perfect from the bondage of sin but His words were never challenged as false. He taught one message and that was what He heard from the Father. The chief priests and scribes could not catch Jesus in His words.

There is a great lesson for the followers of Jesus Christ to take away from the teaching of Jesus. Teaching the word of God requires a disciple to teach the word of God alone. The world needs to see in the lives of God’s people they say and teach rightly. There can be no personal favoritism in the teachings of the Bible. One of the greatest tools in the arsenal of the Christian is a life of truth. Pretenders of righteousness will attempt to entrap a man in his teaching but if he teaches the word of God in truth and sincerity, there is nothing to fear. Truth never suffers from examination. A life of truth is a wonderful testimony to the word of the Father living in the heart of His children. Jesus let the truth of His Father stand on its own merits without reservation. The Christian cannot be ashamed of what the Bible teaches. His word is truth. Let the word of truth live in your heart and share that truth with the world.