Mark 12:17  
“Well, then,” Jesus said, “give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar, and give to God what belongs to God.” 

His reply completely amazed them. (NLT)

Jesus said, “Give Caesar what is his, and give God what is his.” 

Their mouths hung open, speechless. (The Message)

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I finished reading Andy Weir’s book Project Hail Mary a few days ago. There’s a character who is learning to speak English. When something extraordinary happens, he says, “Amaze” instead of “Amazing.” 

You get the picture from Mark’s Gospel that there were a lot of people who were so amazed at Jesus that they would be forgiven for saying “Amaze” instead of “Amazing.” Sometimes grammar and syntax are not adequate to communicate what happens in our hearts and minds. 

Jesus constantly amazed people with what he said and did. His words of truth and life were so clear and so obvious that people listened to him with delight. Scroll down this chapter and find verse 27. We see the reaction of the people to Jesus’ commentary on Psalm 110:1:

“Since David himself called the Messiah ‘my Lord,’ how can the Messiah be his son?” The large crowd listened to him with great delight.

They listened to him with great delight. 

Grace and truth do that, don’t they? 

If you have an old hymnal lying around, turn to the hymn I Stand Amazed in the Presence. If you know the tune, sing it aloud. If you don’t know the tune, watch and listen to it here: (https://bit.ly/3JaqEFZ “i stand amazed in the presence”)

What amazes you about Jesus? 

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I will stand amazed at Jesus’ words of truth and life, and at his works of grace and mercy. 

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Our Father, give us ears to hear with clarity the truth you are speaking to our hearts. Open our eyes to see the wonders you bring to life. Empower us to carry your grace and mercy everywhere we go and to everyone we meet. Amen.