Today we're going to be in Matthew chapter 17, 22 through 27. If you have the Pew Bible, it's in the New Testament on page 15. Each and every one of us is someone's child. Each and every one of us has this in common. We don't get to choose who our parents are. They're simply assigned to us at birth. God has chosen who our parents will be long before we were ever born. And depending on who our parents are, we receive different benefits and responsibilities. For myself, I had the pleasure of growing up in Japan, because that's where I was born to my parents. I had the blessing of seeing them do ministry and church planning in Japan, sharing the gospel with those who never had the opportunity to hear him. There were certain responsibilities and challenges that came along with that, whether that would be staying late at church while they talked to people on and on, or traveling and not living in the same place for very long. But regardless of what benefits or challenges there were, each of us received certain benefits or certain challenges, depending on whose children we are. And if it's the way with earthly parents, wouldn't it be so with spiritual parents? Depending on whose children we are, we may not receive certain benefits, but also certain responsibilities, ways in which we are expected to act as evidences of those children. And we know from our own actions. That we, we lie, we cheat, we steal. We do things that are wrong. And no one has to teach us these things. In fact, our parents usually teach us to do the opposite. They try and teach us to tell the truth, to do what is right. And yet, we do what is wrong, thus showing we are not children of God, but instead, children of Satan, the devil. We are naturally opposed to what is good. We are naturally enemies of God. Yet, God in his mercy and grace allows us the opportunity to come to him, to be made children of God, to those who believe he gave them the right to be children of God, not by human will or the will of a father, but by God's will. And children of God are called to live in a way that is opposed to the way the world thinks. opposed to using your benefits for yourself, but to use what you have for the sake of others. And today in the passage, we will see that Jesus does this. He shows himself as a child of God, as the son of God, and declares how the children of God should live, opposite the way the world lives, in a sacrificial manner, in a manner of humility. Let's read God's word. Matthew chapter 17, 22 through 27. And while they're gathering together in Galilee, Jesus said to them, the son of man is going to be delivered into the hands of men and they will kill him and he'll be raised on the third day. And they were deeply grieved. When they came to Capernaum, those who collected the two drachma tax came to Peter and said, does your teacher not pay the two drachma tax? He said, yes. And when he came into the house, Jesus spoke to him first, saying, What do you think, Simon, from who do the kings of the earth collect customs or poll tax, from their sons or from strangers? When Peter said, From strangers, Jesus said to him, Then the sons are exempt. However, so that we do not offend them, go to the sea, throw in a hook, and take the first fish that comes up. When you open its mouth, you will find a shekel. Take that and give it to them for you and for me. This is the word of the Lord. Let's go to Lord in prayer. Heavenly Father, thank you for your word and the goodness of it that you have given to us. Lord, we need you. We need you to reveal your truth to us in your word, and we ask that you would be here with us. Thank you for your spirit that is at work in each of our lives. Thank you that you have promised by your word that your word will not return to you void, but will accomplish all that you desire, providing seed for the sower and food for the eater. So we ask that now, Lord. We ask that you would accomplish what you desire through this morning, that your Your word would convict us of our sin, would show us Christ's righteousness, that we would draw deeper in love with you and would seek after you, Lord. We also ask for those who do not know you, that they would come to know you through your word and the preaching of your word. They would see the truth and the beauty of your gospel. Come and work in our lives and have your way. Thank you that you use weak vessels like us to accomplish your purposes. We give you thanks. We pray these things in Jesus' name. Amen. When Jesus speaks first, he speaks of the Son of Man in verse 22. The Son of Man is going to be delivered into the hands of men. When Jesus uses this title, the Son of Man, the disciples and the Jews around him would have understood what he was referring to. This is a phrase that is used many times in the Old Testament, but the most prominent one we see is in Daniel chapter 6, verses 13 through 14. where Daniel has a vision of the throne room of God in all its majesty, where God the Ancient of Days sits upon his throne. I'll read from it now. Daniel 6, 13 through 14. In my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like the Son of Man coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into his presence. He was given authority, glory, and sovereign power. All nations and people from every language worshipped him. His dominion was an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom was one that will never be destroyed. So the Son of Man is led into the presence of the Ancient of Days, and is given authority, glory, and sovereign power from him. And not only that, but all nations and people from every language worshipped him. A group from the whole world is worshiping the Son of Man. And we know from Exodus 34, 14, as well as other places in God's Word, that God commands, do not worship any other God, for the Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God. God will not give his glory to another. He is the only one who will receive praise and worship from all things. Now this son of man receives this praise, which means he must be God. And not only that, but he receives an everlasting dominion, one that will not pass away, and his kingdom will never be destroyed. Eternal rule in a kingdom that will never end. This is the one of whom all things will come under subject. He will be the one to rule all things. Jesus, by using this title, is alluding to himself as the Son of God, the Child of God, Emmanuel, God with us. the one to whom all things will be given, the Lord of lords, the King of kings, the Prince of peace, the one who will receive worship from all things. Now to the Jews who are hearing this title, this would have even more impact. They had been living under Roman rule for the last 250 years. The Romans chose who would govern them. The Romans had garrisons in their cities. They would see soldiers walking around, and they were even obliged to carry the soldiers' equipment and stuff if they asked them to for at least a mile. They longed for freedom from these people. They were God's people living under the pagan ruling of these godless people. They were longing for the day when the Son of Man would come, when God's kingdom would be restored. They would push out the Romans. This Messiah, the chosen ruler, the anointed one of God's people, who would crush God's enemies and triumph over evil. Even long before this passage in Daniel, this prophecy, the Jews were waiting for this promised one. All the way since the beginning of time, God's people have been waiting for the one to crush the head of the serpent, God's enemies. Many of the Old Testament promises were pointing forward to this one man who would restore God's kingdom, who would rule in the land, where the lame would leap for joy, the blind would see. And in the context of this, we understand then why the disciples, it says in verse 23, why they were deeply grieved. If this one, if Jesus was the son of man going to be killed, why then? Why would he go to be killed? Why would he allow himself to be killed at the hands of men? Should not he seek to preserve his life? The way Jesus is living is counter-cultural, is so opposed to the way the world works. Those who are in power use their power for their own benefit, to preserve their life, to preserve their kingdom, to continue ruling for as long as possible. They seek to protect their lives from those who are seeking to kill them. They arrest them or put them in jail or run away. They build themselves up by putting others down. And yet the Son of Man understands he's going to be delivered into the hands of men and be killed. Why would Jesus do this? It doesn't make sense. The natural inclination of our sinful hearts is to seek ourselves, to serve ourselves. You always look out for number one. You save your own skin as we live in this dog-eat-dog world. Yet Jesus does not have this mindset. He's not seeking his own benefit. He's seeking the benefit of others. He knows, and he's already stated it twice before here in Matthew, that he is going to his death, that like a grain of wheat that cannot reproduce unless it falls to the ground and dies, so he goes to his death so there will be a great harvest. And it is the will of God the Father who directs him. Mark 10 45, he says, for even the son of man did not come to be served, but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many. Jesus came to serve, even though he is the one who deserves to be served as the son of God, and to give his life as a ransom for many. And who are those he's giving his life for, but those who are children of the enemy. That each and every one of us was a slave to sin and under the bondage of Satan. Part of his kingdom. That through Christ we can be delivered from the domain of darkness into the kingdom of Jesus, the beloved Son. That we have transgressed God's perfect law and without a perfect substitute we can never be freed from that. We will face the wrath of God. Yet Jesus has come, the perfect substitute so that we might be freed from that. That he paid the price. He paid the ransom that was needed to be paid so that we can become children of God. This is the surprise of the good news that does not make sense. That Jesus came to serve, not to be served. Living as a child of God, he used his life for the sake of others, not for his own benefit. He did not deserve life. He deserved life and we did not deserve it. Yet he gave it up for our sakes. And this is the model Jesus sets for his disciples. And we see more as we continue the passage that this is the model set for all children of God to use their lives for the sake of others. Continuing in verse 24, the disciples and Jesus come to Capernaum and a question of tax is raised. A tax collector asks Peter, does your teacher not pay the two drachma tax? And he says, yes. And when he came into the house, Jesus spoke to him first, saying, what do you think, Simon, from who do the kings of the earth collect customs or poll tax, from their sons or from strangers? And Peter said, from strangers. And Jesus said to him, then the sons are exempt. However, so that we do not offend them, go to the sea, throw in a hook, and take the first fish that comes up. And when you open your mouth, you will find a shekel. Take it and give it to them for you and for me. Again, we find Peter speaking out of turn. He quickly answers even though he doesn't know what Jesus' answer will be, which I find funny. Peter just continually seems to do this over and over and over again. And it's funny until I realize that I'm in the same shoes as Peter. I often speak out of turn instead of listening to what God has to say first. But this two drachma tax, we know that this two drachma tax is not something the law requires, like the atonement tax in Exodus chapter 30 or 38. And we know this because of Jesus' response. Jesus' response of why they're going to pay the tax in verse 27 is so that they do not offend them. We know that Jesus fully obeyed the law, that he was perfectly under the law and did not sin. And if this were part of the law, Jesus' reason to pay it would have been to fulfill all righteousness, to be the one who was of no sin. But he pays the tax because it is to not cause offense. Now, before we judge the Jews for their tradition of creating another tax, another thing for others to do, We should recognize the heart behind them. The reason they had this two drachma tax was for the temple. Other Bible translations will translate it that way. They'll call it a temple tax instead. And this temple tax would be similar to a required giving to a church or to a nomination. And they had created this because they wanted to provide for the temple. They wanted there always to be enough funds for the ministry of the temple. And shouldn't that be a good thing? That God's people would provide for the ministry of, for the worship of God? But Jesus pulls out that they're missing the point. Why would God have any need to tax his people? Psalm 59 through 12, God says, I have no need of a bull from your stalls or a goat from your pens for every animal of the forest is mine and the cattle on a thousand hills. I know every bird in the mountains and the insects in the field are mine. If I were hungry, I would not tell you for the world is mine and all that is in it. And here Jesus employs the analogy that God is the king of all things. Of the kings of the earth, who do they take tax from? From their own sons or from those from others, from strangers? And of course, they take it from others. The kings of the earth do not tax their own children because everything they children have is already from them. They have already provided all that their children have. To tax their children would be of no purpose. They tax others. They tax from those that they do not own. In the same way, God has no need to tax his people. God could provide for all that he needs. And God will provide for all that he needs. There is no need for the children of God to pay this tax. Now I find even more surprising is Jesus after already showing he is the Son of God, the Son of Man, the one to rule all things, and that because God owns all things there is no need to pay this tax, yet he pays the tax anyway. Jesus willingly abides by their tradition for the purpose of not causing offense Jesus willingly gives up his liberty to not offend these tax collectors so that they might not cause offense. Jesus doesn't want to put any stumbling block before them in front of the gospel. He willingly gives up his liberty for their sakes. This is the place of a child of God, sacrificing the liberty that he has for the sake of others. This is not how the world works. Again, the world uses their liberty to indulge themselves for their own benefit, for their own relaxation, to gain a little bit more and a little bit more. But God's people don't do that. And we know that, and they have that liberty because as children of God, they have the freedom because they know their father will provide for all that they need. And we have this clarified, this confirmation in verse 27, with the small miracle in which Peter goes and fishes out a single fish from the sea, and in that they find a shekel, which is worth four drachma, enough to pay the tax for both Peter and for Jesus. God provides for all that his children need. So in this passage we have seen that Jesus has shown himself as the Son of God and what the sons and the children of God ought to behave in. And so for those of us who have received Jesus, who are trusting upon him to pay the punishment for our sins, who are children of God, We find in this passage several principles we ought to live by. Not that are required of us, but out of love and out of joy we ought to live by as children of God. The three principles we see are a life directed by God, a life of humility, and a life of sacrifice. First is a life directed by God. God's will must direct our life. We see Jesus' freedom as the son of man and the child of God was always directed by God's will. John chapter six, verse 38. He said, for I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will, but to do the will of whom who sent me. Jesus was always about his father's business. Seeking first the kingdom of God and God's righteousness first and foremost. that his liberty and his freedom as a child of God, as a prince of all things, was not to indulge himself, but to walk in obedience with what God had commanded. And how do we know God's will? God has given us his word by which we might know him and walk with him. All 66 chapters of it help us live how we ought to, a guidebook that we can walk as his children. And we know that from Isaiah 55, that God's ways are not our ways, neither are his thoughts our thoughts. As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are his thoughts higher than our thoughts and his ways than our ways. And so we must be careful when we think we know what God's will is to always come back to God's word. Always come back to what God has declared in his word of how we ought to live, of what obedience to God looks like. And yet, as many of you may have found out as you seek to read God's word, it can be confusing. There are passages we may not understand, and how each part fits together. And thankfully, God has given us resources by which we might know that. We live in a technological age, but first and foremost, God has given us each other that by which we might know God's word. We see in the passages today, we saw that Peter, he had the Old Testament. He had the knowledge of the Old Testament, but he needed Jesus to help teach him how to live. He didn't understand how the taxation and God is the king over all things, how those two things fit together, that he didn't need to necessarily pay the Jewish tradition. And so we see that God has given Peter Jesus by which he can learn what God's word says. And in the same way, God has given us people around you, people around us who know God's word, who have taken time to study God's word. God has given you Pastor Nathan and Pastor Kevin, by which you could, you can ask them questions. You can take advantage of the Tuesday night Bible studying, which you can go and ask Pastor Nathan the questions you might have about what you're reading in God's word and what it looks like to live as children of God. God has given us books by which people have spent their lives studying and have written down what they think God's word says and how we should live. God has given us an abundance of resources that we might know what his will is, starting first and foremost with his word and with those around us. That as children of God, our lives should be directed first and foremost by God's will. Second, a life of humility. Jesus was humble. He had every right to demand things from others. He had every right to live as a prince. He was the one to whom all things will one day be put under subjection. And yet, he chose to give them up. He chose to not use them for his own benefit or advantage. Philippians 2 puts it beautifully. Speaking of Jesus, who, being in the very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage. Rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness, and being found in the appearance of the man he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death, even death on a cross. Jesus came from the highest of heaven and was born in a manger and lived a life of obscurity to be put to death like a common criminal on a Roman cross. What a model this is for us as children of God, as children of the true King, to not use what we have been given to put ourselves into a higher position, but to be willing to lower ourselves, to humbly love others as we have first been loved. John 13, two through five, Jesus models this. Jesus knew the Father had put all things under his power and that he had come from God and was returning to God. So he got up from the meal, took off his outer clothing and wrapped a towel around his waist. After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples' feet, drying them with a towel that was wrapped around him. Talk about the position of a servant. This was the role of the lowest servant in the house, to wash the feet of the guests who had come in. And Jesus, their teacher, the Son of God, the one to whom they should have been washing his feet, he sets aside his position and washes his feet and gives them the command, as I have done to you, so do to others. Be willing to put yourself in the lowest position, to accept the dirty, to take the jobs that no one wants to, to be willing to do things that are not enjoyable, to be willing to be dirty, smelly, and filthy for the sake of others. Are we willing to, in the same way, accept loss, humility, inconvenience? Knowing that God gave us when there was nothing in return for him. God's grace, God loved us in his grace. He receives nothing from us. And yet he gives to us. Are we willing in the same way to give to others? Are we willing to give up our traditions for the sake of others? Willing to humble ourselves and say, our traditions aren't as important as others being able to worship with us. Are we willing to submit our liberty for the sake of others? Or in the other way, are we willing to give up our liberty to subject ourselves to others' traditions, to recognize that they have done this way for many years, and to seek to honor them by abiding by their traditions? Do we always feel the need to be right? Are we willing to humble ourselves? And even though Jesus could have explained himself to the tax collectors, was willing to humble himself and submit to their taxation? Children of God, know that they belong to God the Father. That one day they will be rewarded for the work that they do here. That one day they will rule in a kingdom alongside Christ, being co-heirs with Christ of all things. And that allows us to give up the need for justification now. The need for being seen rightly by others. We can humble ourselves now. Because we know we are still loved and seen well by God. God is the one who sees all things. He rewards those who humbly seek him. Which leads us to our third point, a life of sacrifice. That a life subject to the will of God and a life by humility will lead into a life of sacrifice. And Jesus models his greatest sacrifice for us. That he laid down his life for others. Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one's life for one's friends. And this is what Jesus calls us into, to lay down our lives for others, to sacrifice for the sake of others. Whatever it might be that we hold dear, is it money? Is it power? Is it influence? Is it time? Is it comfort? Our culture teaches us to keep these things, that you have worked hard, you should receive the benefits for how you work. And we do receive benefits for how we work. God's word makes that clear. But then what should we do with those benefits? Should we try and keep them for ourselves? Or are we given a place to reward, to seek our reward in heaven by giving to others? Knowing that we don't necessarily need a bigger house, or a better car, or more time off. Because one day in heaven, those things will all burn. Those all things will pass away. But the things that are in eternity will last forever. Are we willing to help those who are seen as low in society? Willing to help the single mom with their kids? Helping someone get their feet under them after a hard time, or to sit with someone through their hardship and loss. Are willing to use our vacation time so we can better serve the church. Whether it be a building project here in the States, or to go and serve workers overseas who might need childcare, so they might have some time for relaxation and recuperation, or to go to a training seminar. Are we willing to live lives that are defined by sacrifice because we know we are children of God? I have been benefited greatly by people who have done this, people who have sacrificed their time to spend time in God's word with me, to read and pray through God's word so I could better understand what it means to follow God. These men didn't need to sacrifice the time. I didn't deserve it. But yet they gave up their time for my sake. And I have benefited from that, and I'm so thankful for it. And it's amazing, and I'm thankful to be a part of seeing how God is now using that in my life. How would I learn from these men? I now get to go and share with others. But the benefits I've received as being a child of God, what God has given to me through others and through his word, I now have the benefit to go and share with others, to share a little bit with you here to now. My wife and I, as we make steps to move towards the field, have just been utterly, just, so benefited from others who have sacrificed for us, who have given of their time and money, time to pray for us, to invite us into their homes, to be on their knees day by day, to ask us questions and learn about what we're hoping to do, to provide financially for where we're hoping to go. We know we could not, if it had not been for these people who are living like children of God, who are sacrificing the benefits that they have reaped for their hard work, for the time and effort that they put in, we would not have the pleasure of going overseas. And let our sacrifice be always directed by God's word, not giving so much time or energy or money so that we are not able to provide for those around us whom God has commanded us to provide for, to provide for our families, to serve in our churches, to go and share the gospel. The affluence of America tempts us to keep more than we need, to give up the benefit of giving for the sake of Christ, to give it for the sake of the gospel going forward. And it's so easy to fall into that temptation, to give up that benefit of what Christ says. It is better to give than to receive. And there we will find God's word true. That God provides for all his children. Seek first God's kingdom and all his righteousness and all these things shall be added to you. That we don't have to worry like the world does. We don't have to worry about are we going to have enough money? Are we going to have all the clothes we need? Knowing that as we work hard, God will provide for all that we need and we can give out of the abundance that God gives us. Our lifestyle of sacrifice or humility or obedience to God's word does not earn our salvation. God has freely given us salvation in Christ to those who trust upon Jesus, who trust that Jesus is the only one who will pay for their sins, that Jesus alone has started and will complete the work in our life. But we have the blessing of living as children of God, as living out that salvation, and fear and trembling, knowing that we are loved by God and he will provide what we need. For those of you who may not be children of God, I implore you, confess your sins. He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Turn to him, for his arms are open wide to receive you, that you might become children of God. For those of us who are children of God, may we live as Jesus did, in accordance with God's word, humbly living and sacrificially living, even though it may be opposed to where the world lives, that the world might see our identity as children of God. And may we never lose sight of Jesus, who is our high priest, who is the perfect model of all these things. recognizing that he alone did it and he has given us his Holy Spirit by which we might live these things out. Knowing that we can gladly accept loss in this life because we are children of God and God will provide all that we need. Let us then seek to live as children of God so that others might see, so that others might see that difference and come to know Christ, that one day we'll have the pleasure of knowing and seeing the full extent of how God used us for his glory so that we might stand with him and worship alongside people of every tribe, tongue, and nation. who were affected by how God used us in their lives, no matter how small or large, that he might get the glory.