¶ Intro / Opening
Take the first fish you catch, open its mouth, Matthew chapter seventeen verse twenty seven. Welcome to today's encouragement from our daily bread. God Our Provider was written by Monica LaRose and read by Tony Collier.
¶ Jesus Pays Temple Tax Miraculously
Matthew 17 verses 24 through 27. After Jesus and his disciples arrived in Capernaum, the collectors of the two Drachma temple tax came to Peter and asked. Doesn't your teacher pay the temple tax? Yes he does, he replied. When Peter came into the house, Jesus was the first to speak. What do you think, Simon? he asked, from whom do the kings of the earth collect duty and taxes, from their own children or from others? From others, Peter answered. Then the children are exempt, Jesus said to him.
But so that we may not cause offense, go to the lake and throw out your line, take the first fish you catch, open its mouth, and you will find a four drachma coin. Take it, and give it to them for my tax and yours. GOD OUR PROVIDER. Written by Monica LaRose. In 2024, teenager Keegan happily reeled in a two-foot barramundi. But his happiness became elation when his little sister pointed out a tag on the fish.
His catch was worth one million dollars as part of an Australian fishing competition. The annual event had been held since 2015, and Keegan was the first to win the coveted top cash prize. However slim the odds of catching that fish, the odds were far lower that a fish caught at random would have a coin in its mouth. But in Matthew's gospel, Jesus instructed his disciple Peter to go to the lake and take the first fish you catch, open its mouth, and you will find a four drachma coin.
The context of this unlikely catch was a question of whether Jesus paid the temple tax. The irony of insisting that Jesus, God's son, pays a tax to support God's temple wasn't lost on him. He pointed out that the king's children don't pay taxes to the king. But there was no need to cause offense and distract others from his teaching by being perceived as a tax evader. So Jesus instructed Peter to catch that fish.
¶ Trusting God Our Ever-Present Provider
which had the exact amount to pay both his and Peter's tax. Perhaps, in part, it was a reminder to Peter and to us that God is a provider who is always with his children as they find. Let's pray. Lord, thank you for being the God who provides in ways we could never predict, showing us that you see our needs before we do. Help us trust you wholeheartedly. Living with confidence that you will always care for us and meet our every need. Thank you, Lord. It's in Jesus' name we pray.
As you go about your day, reflect on these questions. When have you experienced unlikely events in which you saw God's hand at work? How does trusting God free you to live in obedience?