Are you a Christian, or do you believe in science? Do you love your country, or do you follow Jesus? Do you stand for biblical truth, or do you treat people with kindness? Do you obey God, or do you pay your taxes? Welcome to the world of false dichotomies: forcing people to choose between two things that were never enemies in the first place. You can believe in science without worshiping it, love your country without idolizing it, defend truth without being cruel, and pay your taxes without surrendering your conscience. False choices are more than bad logic. They are traps. Frame the question narrowly enough, and you can make a reasonable person look foolish whichever answer he gives. Jesus knew the trick. The Pharisees asked whether it was lawful to pay taxes to Caesar. Say yes, and He alienates the people. Say no, and Rome has grounds to arrest Him. Either answer serves their agenda. Jesus refused the script. "Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar's; and unto God the things that are God's" (Mat. 22:21). He did not choose one side of their false dilemma. He exposed the question itself as being a dud. We still do this in politics, in everyday life and even in church. If you disagree with me, you must be against me. If you question a leader, you are disloyal. If you show mercy, you must be compromising. If you insist on principle, you must lack compassion. Nuance became a casualty of every argument. Of course, real choices exist. Sometimes we must choose between faithfulness and compromise. But when someone insists that two compatible things cannot coexist, be careful. Jesus was never confused by a loaded question, and He never needed a false choice to defend the truth. Neither should we. So, the next time someone offers you only two options, check whether those are truly the only options or simply the ones that best serve the person asking. After all, following Jesus should sharpen our thinking, not require us to check our brains at the church door. We can stand firmly for truth without becoming enemies of kindness, and we can give Caesar his coins without giving him our souls.

— Pastor Ovid Radulescu