Unashamed Reading Plan
Check out all the previous Unashamed readings here.
Unashamed Reading Plan | Week 14 | Day 2
Prayer
Allow some silence for your soul to catch up with your body. Thank God for time to spend with Him and ask Him to meet with you.
Bible Reading: Romans 13:6-7
Read these verses three times slowly.
This is also why you pay taxes, for the authorities are God’s servants, who give their full time to governing. Give to everyone what you owe them: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor, then honor.
Reflection & Questions
They say there are two things for sure in life: death and taxes. And people have never stopped trying to cheat both. However, for the Christian, Paul’s words about taxes are simple: “If you owe taxes, pay taxes.” These words of Paul sound very similar to what Jesus says in Matthew 22:18-21, where Jesus says about taxes, “So give back to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s.”
Taxes help our society develop roads, education, military and more. These are very good things. But it is also true that we can question the fairness of a taxation system and the wise handling of tax revenues. It was the same in Paul’s day, hence his need to write these words. You see, while we may feel justified in our arguments, the action of a Christian is to simply “pay taxes” and the attitude of a Christian is to be “respect” and “honor.” This doesn’t mean we can have opinions and respectfully disagree, but the Christian always remembers that the authority established over us has been established by God, and we respect and submit to them as such.
- Do your actions, such as paying taxes, reflect a godly character in relation to authorities?
- Does your attitude, including the words you use, reflect a godly respect towards authorities?
Prayer
Talk to God in response to today’s reading.
Worship Song
You might use this song today to worship Jesus today:
Bible Reading: Romans 13:6-7
Read these verses three times slowly.
This is also why you pay taxes, for the authorities are God’s servants, who give their full time to governing. Give to everyone what you owe them: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor, then honor.
Reflection & Questions
Today’s verses talk a little bit more to adults than to kids. But maybe you’ve heard your parents complaining about taxes. Taxes are a part of the money that you earn that has to be given back to our government. Some adults try to cheat and get out of paying taxes to the government, but Paul says we should pay what we owe.
Did you know that when adults pay taxes, they are helping to pay for good roads, for our military that protects us,the parks and playgrounds, and even schools and education? Sometimes adults don’t like some of the ways their tax money gets spent. Paul said the same thing way back in his time! However, he said that as Christians we are still to pay our taxes and to have a respectful and honoring attitude.
Maybe in your house you have to do chores, like clean the bathroom or pick up after the dog. You might not like to do these chores and perhaps you think it is not fair that you have to do them. But Paul tells each of us that we should still show our parents honor and respect and that we should obey them, even when we don’t want to.
- Is there something you should be doing that you keep skipping out on because you just don’t feel like doing it?
Pray
Ask God to give you a good attitude when it comes to doing what you are supposed to do: chores, homework, or taking care of the family pet.
Check out more Bible Reading Plans here.
Questions?
Ed Applegate
