Most people go places or do things that are a mix of necessity (work) and opportunity (meeting with friends). During these experiences, and especially through conversation, meaning and mystery can be found. However, most people misunderstand the meaning and completely miss the mystery of what they do and what has been done for them. Just last week, I perceived the meaning and glimpsed the mystery.
I have needed the help of a physical therapist for many weeks. She and I have talked in each session. We have begun to share information about ourselves that is not usually shared among strangers. I told him about the joy that my wife and I have with our granddaughter. The therapist lights up about it. I asked about her family and she proudly showed me pictures of her two dogs. “They,” he said, “are my husband’s and my family’s.”
I didn’t pry, but several sessions later, the therapist told me that her mother had died of ovarian cancer at a young age. She didn’t say more than that. For me, this was a mystery. I searched the web and learned that there is a 10% risk of hereditary transmission of that type of cancer. There are tests that can be done, and the tests can suggest a much higher risk. I thought I made sense, that my therapist would love to have a family, but she was afraid or had taken steps to stop the pregnancy. I prayed that she and her husband would have God’s grace.
Today’s Jewish places of worship are mostly called synagogues, but during Jesus’ three-year ministry, they were called temples. Even the smallest temple was run by a priest who had support staff. The money was necessary for them to eat. Commonly, those who used the temple were expected to offer some payment (a title) for being in the building. In addition, the priest’s staff left the temple to actively try to collect a “Temple Tax”. The Temple Tax was neither a title nor a law, but a local custom. The disciple Matthew wrote about an experience of his brother, the disciple Simon Peter (Peter), who was asked if Jesus had paid the temple tax.
The disciple Matthew heard Peter tell this to Jesus. Web search Matthew 17:24-27. Look for a meaning and a mystery. Jesus taught his disciples during his ministry. He listened to Peter, then asked Peter questions, allowing him to reason and comment. Did the Temple Tax support God’s business or did he personally support the priest and his staff? You may have to read the passage several times to find the meaning. The mystery lies in how Jesus decided what to do with the tax.
Form your opinion about the meaning, the mystery. Was a miracle performed? A miracle is an event that cannot be explained by scientific evaluation, nor is it natural.
My opinion:
Jesus taught Peter to open his eyes to the meaning of what men do. And he helped Peter understand that those who sin are still loved by God. Instead of trusting God to provide for him, the priest used his office to get more for himself. However, upsetting the priest by refusing to pay the tax would be contrary to God’s purpose for Jesus and would be contrary to God’s (and Jesus’) practice of teaching lessons that would bring people closer to God.
Was the appearance of a 4 drachma coin in the mouth of a fish a miracle? No. Fish are attracted to shiny objects. That’s why many fish lures today feature shiny metal. Jesus told Peter that the first fish he caught would get the coin. Was that a miracle? No. At that moment, Jesus knew that he was the Son of God. Through prayer, Jesus had conversations with God, and since God sees everything, it is possible that God told him. Now when Jesus proved himself worthy of the task that God had for him, God transferred power to him (raising the dead). It is possible that Jesus had a vision of what would happen when Peter went fishing. This is a mystery.
What about the meaning? Why a fish at all? Why a 4 drachma coin? Search the web for “Fish” in the Christian Bible to come to an understanding of fish as a symbol of God providing for his people. Seven of the disciples selected by Jesus were fishermen. Two fish were injured by Jesus, along with five loaves, and they fed 5,000 men and even more women and children. The 4 drachma coin had meaning. Jesus meant: “I will pay for what I shouldn’tand I will also pay for you (Peter).” Not long after this teaching, Jesus paid with his own life for all the sins of mankind. Peter was allowed to glimpse what was to come, and Matthew was allowed to observe and listen for millions of people to read about it in the Christian Bible (the word of God that has stood the test of time).