Hrooms and Shrooms

Joyfully Plundered

Dealing with taxes is possibly my least favorite thing to do. It’s painful on a number of levels. It’s a hassle to figure out. It costs a lot of money. I tend to be fretful and obsessive about the little details. And on top of all that, I have to go and become a libertarian and gain a much stronger belief that most of the things my tax money goes to are unjust and foolish. I have a growing awareness of what Bastiat called “legal plunder.”

But God has been faithful to both convict and encourage me through his Word. There’s this wild verse in Hebrews 10 that talks about Christians joyfully accepting the plundering of their property. What? I’m supposed to be happy about all this highway robbery the government is doing? Apparently.

For you had compassion on those in prison, and you joyfully accepted the plundering of your property, since you knew that you yourselves had a better possession and an abiding one.

This kind of attitude is certainly not natural to me. But I believe the Scripture. I believe that it is possible, and right, to be joyful about being plundered—whether the plunderer is Uncle Sam or a thug in a dark alley.

The reason that Paul’s friends could be joyful when plundered was that they knew that they had a better and abiding possession. I, too, have such a possession, and when I dwell on that thought, I can be joyful. In fact, there’s so much joy stored up in the idea of this great possession that I can not only endure being plundered or facing other unpleasant things—I can actually be filled to overflowing with joy in the midst of trials far worse than reading tax form instructions.

The better and abiding possession of the Christian is not merely endless life in a pain-free heaven. We have been given much more than that. God has given us himself! He has granted to his children the eternal life of knowing and fellowshipping with him. And in light of that, who cares about taxes, or money in general, or anything?

I am learning that the key to a lot of things in life is simply remembering the gospel. God, who is perfectly holy, created me. But I, in my nature and my actions, have broken his law. I deserve his holy wrath. Because God is perfectly just, he cannot tolerate my sin by simply letting me off the hook. But because he is perfectly loving, he sent his own son to bear the wrath that I deserved. His grace has drawn me to repent of my sin and trust in him for my salvation. Because of the death of Jesus on the cross and his glorious resurrection, I am not only forgiven—I am made a child of God!

Now, in light of these things, does it really make sense to fret about taxes? Or about rude drivers, or bad weather, or the Post Office? Can I really hold grudges if I am constantly reminding myself that I deserved the wrath of God, and Jesus took it instead? Can I hoard my money when I remember that everything I have is a gift? I want to learn to dwell on the gospel every day.

I believe that much of what our federal and state governments do is plunder. Most of our tax dollars go to pay for things the government shouldn’t even be involved in. But the Bible makes it clear that I am to pay the taxes I owe, honor and pray for those in authority, and do it joyfully. When I remember the gospel, I can joyfully accept the plundering of my property.