The Son of Man is going to be betrayed

As they were gathering in Galilee, Jesus said to them, ‘The Son of Man is going to be betrayed into human hands, and they will kill him, and on the third day he will be raised.’ And they were greatly distressed.

When they reached Capernaum, the collectors of the temple tax came to Peter and said, ‘Does your teacher not pay the temple tax?’ He said, ‘Yes, he does.’ And when he came home, Jesus spoke of it first, asking, ‘What do you think, Simon? From whom do kings of the earth take toll or tribute? From their children or from others?’ When Peter said, ‘From others’, Jesus said to him, ‘Then the children are free. However, so that we do not give offence to them, go to the lake and cast a hook; take the first fish that comes up; and when you open its mouth, you will find a coin; take that and give it to them for you and me.’

- Matthew 17:22-27

Once again, Jesus speaks of what is going to happen to him. He is preparing his disciples well for what is to come. We get, in the past several readings, the great juxtaposition of so many elements that we know of Jesus: he warns the disciples repeatedly that he will suffer, this time clearly stating that he will be betrayed, and that he will die and be resurrected. This greatly distresses the apostles. And we also recall the tremendous revelation of Transfiguration and the reality of the kingdom, the fulfillment of the Law and the Prophets. In the midst of great demonstrations of faith, Peter's confession, and miraculous signs of Messianic identity: healing the blind and mute, feeding the multitudes, for example; we also have this counterpoint of teachings about what Jesus will suffer. The gospel is teaching us lesson after lesson, of paradox and beauty and help and suffering. All of it is encountered in the person of Jesus, the reality of the Christ. And via this gospel, so we are called to this - or perhaps I should say these - encounters with the reality of Christ. My study bible notes that the repeated teachings about Jesus' Passion teach us that Jesus is not led by compulsion, but rather that he is going to the Passion willingly.

The temple tax was an annual head tax on all male Jews, 12 years and older. Exceptions to the payment of the tax were priests and rabbis. This tax was for the maintenance of the temple. Once again, Peter is called as a sort of voice for the chorus of the disciples, as Jesus asks him a very pointed question, "What do you think, Simon? From whom do kings of the earth take toll or tribute? From their children or from others?" When Peter replies, "From others," Jesus responds by saying, "Then the children are free." Clearly, Jesus' Messianic identity, his title of Christ, Son of God, exempts him from this tax. We must also ask, who are His children? We recall again Peter's confession of faith, and his witness to the Transfiguration. Nevertheless, Jesus voluntarily pays the tax for himself and his followers, just as he will voluntarily accept his death via the instigation of the temple leadership and betrayal. Jesus tells Peter, "However, so that we do not give offence to them, go to the lake and cast a hook; take the first fish that comes up; and when you open its mouth, you will find a coin; take that and give it to them for you and me." We get a lesson in things that are of great importance, and things that are not. Jesus never fails to stand up for his ministry, his mission of "bringing the kingdom near," and to respond to the criticism of the priests and scribes, Pharisees and Sadducees. But in this tax, he deems it worthy not to give unnecessary offense. And we have this mystical, strange image of the fish: the first fish Peter will hook. There will be a coin in its mouth with which Peter is to pay the tax: "give it to them for you and me." Clearly, Jesus indicates his togetherness with his children. He wants no harm to come to them unnecessarily. The fish we know as a symbol, and we recall Jesus' teaching to Peter the fisherman, and his brother Andrew the first apostle, in the first chapter of our gospel of Matthew: "Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men."

So, there is a great lesson here about what is necessary and what is not. There are times when conflict is not only unavoidable, but is entered into voluntarily, knowing the consequences to Jesus. There are times when it is appropriate to defend oneself, to stand up for something that angers others, even those in leadership. At the same time, we're given a clear example of a conflict that Jesus feels is unnecessary to pursue. He has the "right" not to pay, but Jesus deems it important not to give offense unnecessarily. This is an important lesson on discernment, and on the capacity within us to discriminate between those things that we need to stand up for, and those things that are of less importance, not crucial to what God is asking of us. Jesus is not a hot-headed revolutionary, nor is he merely an angry rebel; he is someone who weighs and measures, who knows what he is about, whose discernment is always to follow the will of the Father, and whose business is serious, not frivolous. Nor is he merely working off of abstract ideas, applied in theory. His tremendous intelligence, experience, wisdom and courage are always there for us. He does not waste his time on useless argument and debate nor meaningless protest. He knows what he is about, and he is about His Father's business.

How can we go through life cultivating such discernment, such capacity to discriminate between what is important and what is not? Do we know when to avoid useless quarrels? To avoid wasting our time on issues that are not important, and focus on those we must be fully present for? Do we know about standing up all the way, and voluntarily taking the consequences when doing what is truly right for us demands that of us? Do we understand how to find this in faith, and not merely what we might label "good intentions?" These are crucial questions. The answer, I believe, if it comes from nowhere else, must come from our prayer life, from the cultivation of an openness to what we find in that relationship, from the door Christ calls us to open to him. "Behold, I stand at the door and knock." To use an American expression, Jesus calls us, with his tremendous presence and personality, to be "stand up" as he is. He is faultlessly loyal to the Father, and to His children. And yet, in that light of purpose, we must learn when "standing up" is important, and when it's not - when the prudent and right thing to do is not to give offense, and not to waste our time. There are ways in which we serve, and ways in which we don't.