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In Christ, Mark
In Christ, Mark
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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
Jesus sat down opposite the place where the offerings were put and
watched the crowd putting their money into the temple treasury. Many rich
people threw in large amounts. But a poor widow came and put in two very small
copper coins, worth only a few cents.
Calling His disciples to Him, Jesus said, “Truly I tell you, this poor
widow has put more into the treasury than all the others. They all gave out of
their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything—all she had to
live on.”
Mark 12:41-44
As Jesus looked up, He saw the rich putting their gifts into the temple
treasury. He also saw a poor widow put in two very small copper coins. “Truly I
tell you,” He said, “this poor widow has put in more than all the others. All
these people gave their gifts out of their wealth; but she out of her poverty
put in all she had to live on.”
Luke 21:1-4
This ends
today’s reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.
How much should we give in tribute to our
Lord?
That is a question that nearly every
believer seeks an answer to.
Why do we ponder such a question?
Because there is a constant battle, a tug
of war if you may, in play for our resources: our time, talent, and treasure.
On one hand, we have the world. It wants us
to invest our time, talent, and treasure on what it has to offer. It seeks to
convince us that true fortunes in life are found within it, fortunes that can
be held onto and stored up for our own gain and benefit.
On the other hand, we have the Lord who
desires that we store up treasures in heaven through all that we do, using all
that we have. This requires that we give away what we have to serve others and
bring honor and glory to the Lord who has provided. It’s a sacrificial approach
towards applying our time, talent, and treasure.
Jesus was fully aware of these two
competing factions and so He addressed them during His Sermon on the Mount, His
first extensive formal teachings. Here’s what He had to say:
“Do
not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy,
and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in
heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break
in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”
Matthew 6:19-21
The key to how we handle our time, talent,
and treasure lies in where we incline our hearts. If we are tilted to the
world, then our hearts will be attached to earthly treasures. If we connect our
hearts to the Lord, seeking to carry out His will and way, then we will seek to
store up heavenly treasures that endure and cannot be taken away.
Need an example of someone in the Bible who
wasn’t concerned about storing up earthly treasures?
Take a look at today’s scripture passage
from the Gospel of Mark.
Jesus sat down
opposite the place where the offerings were put and watched the crowd putting
their money into the temple treasury. Many rich people threw in large amounts. But
a poor widow came and put in two very small copper coins, worth only a few
cents.
Calling His disciples
to Him, Jesus said, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put more into the
treasury than all the others. They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out
of her poverty, put in everything—all she had to live on.” Mark 12:41-44
Here we find Jesus assuming a place where
He could observe people making offerings to the temple treasury. People would
enter the court and place their offering in one of a series of wooden boxes
which had funnel-shaped attachments where people would insert their giving.
As Jesus watched He saw many rich people
approach the boxes and put in large amounts of money but it was a widowed woman
that really caught Jesus’ attention as she went to the offering box and put in
two very small coins, the extent of what she had. Realizing and opportunity to
teach His followers something important, He called them and elevated the poor
widow’s offering over the giving of the rich people.
Why?
Because she had not just given a portion of
what she had like the rich but rather had surrendered everything, even though
she was living in poverty (You’ll recall that widows in Jesus’ time often were
left destitute with no one to care for them once their husband passed away). The
widow was most interested in storing up treasures in heaven through
sacrificially giving to the Lord before herself.
Through her actions, the widow provides a
human model of what a divine Jesus would do Himself. For our Savior didn’t
concern Himself with the treasures of the earth. Rather, He willing offered up
everything that He had, to include His very life, for the benefit of all
mankind. Here’s what the Apostle Paul had to say about what Jesus did as he
wrote to the Christians in Corinth:
“For
you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for
your sake He became poor, so that you through His poverty might become rich.” 2
Corinthians 8:9
As Paul reminds his readers, Jesus
surrendered everything. He died on the cross with nothing to His name, except
the love of His Father and the promise that death would not be the end but just
a glorious eternal beginning. He was rich, one with God, His Father, and yet He
chose to become poor so that through His poverty, dying a criminal’s death at
Calvary, He could bring the riches of heaven to all those who place their
belief, faith, and trust in Him.
Jesus and the poor widow gave in whole, not
just in part as the rich givers did. We need to do likewise, holding none of
our time, talent, or treasure away from carrying out the Lord’s purposes for
our lives. For when we do this, and only when we do this, will we ensure that
we are storing up treasures in heaven and paying proper tribute to Jesus who
showed us what sacrificial giving looks like.
Amen.
In Christ,
Mark
PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.
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