Here is the text.
Mark 12:38–13:2 As he taught, Jesus said, “Watch out for the teachers of the law. They like to walk around in flowing robes and be greeted in the marketplaces, 39 and have the most important seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at banquets. 40 They devour widows’ houses and for a show make lengthy prayers. Such men will be punished most severely.” 41 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. 42 But a poor widow came and put in two very small copper coins, worth only a fraction of a penny. 43 Calling his disciples to him, Jesus said, “I tell you the truth, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others. 44 They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything—all she had to live on.” 1 As he was leaving the temple, one of his disciples said to him, “Look, Teacher! What massive stones! What magnificent buildings!” 2 “Do you see all these great buildings?” replied Jesus. “Not one stone here will be left on another; every one will be thrown down.”
I cannot quote it word for word, but Dr. MacArthur said that this is a denouncement of the religious leaders that devour widows. He said that those that lead widows to give all they have and to go home and die will see the structures they worship in be trampled and thrown down. Dr. MacAruthur said that if that text teaches us what we should do then we should all sale everything we have, empty our accounts, give it to the church, and go home and die. That is not God's calling.
God demands faithfulness to His Kingdom work and good stewardship in our lives. His Word is clear on that. But God's desire is that we trust Him and give to Him out of love and not because we have to or because we are trying to make a deal with Him.
My prayer: Father, thank you for the blessings you give me. My family is fed and slept in a home last night. For that I praise you. Thank you for the joy that is mine to give as a starting place 10% of my income and for the opportunities to give more to help people hear the Gospel, to care for people in need, and to encourage the faithful. Thank you that I do not have to give to convince you to care for me and my family. Thank you for blessing us in your grace. I pray that you will bless your people and allow the poor to be resourced and for the resourced to give to the poor and in the process that your name would be praised and your Kingdom expanded.
2 comments:
It’s interesting that right after Jesus warns His disciples of the religious leaders who devour widows’ houses, along comes a widow who puts in everything she had. But surprisingly Jesus is not upset with her for putting in everything; He knows God will provide for her, that’s His promise. This story is not about the religious leaders, He has finished speaking about them and Jesus’ attention is now caught by people putting their gifts in the treasury. He watches them as they put in their gifts. In the same way God watches what we give, whether it is our time, money, energy or other resources. He is not impressed by the small percentage of our abundance that we give; rather He is impressed by how much we would have to rely on Him after we’ve given. Don’t wait to give till you have enough, don’t worry about what you’ll do tomorrow. Have faith in Him. Giving is not emptying our bank accounts, selling everything and going home to die, it’s our attitude towards the riches He has given us. Are we going to cling to our riches or is everything available to Him to use as He directs us? Let’s not fool ourselves, if we really want God to notice our gift it’ll have to be as good as that widow’s. It all boils down to how much we love Him. God gave us His all, why can’t we?
I like what McArthur said. Definitely a different take. But there are plenty of other instances where Jesus makes direct comments to giving. Like "the rich young man" in Mark. Jesus knew that this man held his riches above his faith. That's the question we must always be asking... I don't think, living in America, it's a question that can be answered once, but rather, constantly asked and answered of ourselves. By God's grace continuing to humble ourselves, continuing to renew our minds, continuing to keep Jesus as our LORD... that's the challenge. Selling everything and giving it to the poor, then moving to a third world country to share the gospel would perhaps make it easier... the reliance would not, could not be on ourselves. Complete dependence on Jesus. Maybe that's the point. Praise God for his Grace.
Post a Comment