A WIDOW’S OFFERING

Mark 12:35-44

Key Verse 12:44

“They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything---all she had to live on.”

In today’s message, Jesus makes note of two people: the teachers of the law and a poor widow. The teachers of the law lived before men’s eyes. They appeared to be rich in their lifestyle and social standing. However, they were spiritually bankrupt before God and corrupted, because they did not give to God their hearts and lives. They were like dirty and smelly clothes. No one wanted to go near them. The poor widow gave all that she had to God. She gave everything. To the eyes of the world she was poor and a nothing; a nobody. But to the eyes of God, she was greater than all the teachers of the law combined and all the rich people who threw in large amounts of cash at the temple.

This morning, let’s think about the kind of offering that pleases God. Let’s also take Jesus’ warning to watch out for the teachers of the law so that we may make sure our Christian life is done before God’s eyes and not to make a show before men. May God help you to give him your best offering. May God help you to give a heart-offering to him.

Part one. Whose Son is the Christ? (35-40)

Let’s read verse 35, “While Jesus was teaching in the temple courts, he asked, ‘How is it that the teachers of the law say that the Christ is the son of David?” Previously, Jesus’ authority had been questioned by the chief priests and teachers of the law. So he taught them many things. Jesus’ clear desire was for them to repent of their sins and to accept his ownership of their lives and his authority as God’s promised messiah. Jesus had less than one week to live. He was desperate to help the teachers of the law to repent and accept the good news.

It has been a while since we studied Mark’s gospel. I can’t review everything we studied. But we can look in our Bibles and see that he taught them about the parable of the tenants. Because this parable challenged them to repent and hurt their feelings, they conspired with the Herodians to try and trap Jesus with a question about taxes. They were very tricky!

Then they questioned him about marriage and the resurrection. It was a ridiculous story they made up about a woman who married seven brothers because each of them died without leaving any children. What a ridiculous story! Then one teacher of the law asked him about what is the greatest commandment. Each time Jesus was questioned, he gave the best answer because he was the one who wrote the Bible. He is the author of the Bible. So after all of Jesus’ answers, they did not dare to ask him anymore questions. He stumped them every time.

Now Jesus kept on teaching. His shepherd heart grew more urgent. His question here in verse 35 is to help these people to know who he really was. He is the promised Messiah sent from God through the line of David. The teachers of the law knew this in their heads, but they did not want to accept any more about him.

Let’s read verses 36-37, “David himself, speaking by the Holy Spirit, declared: ‘The Lord said to my Lord: Sit at my right hand until I put your enemies under your feet. David himself calls him ‘Lord’. How then can he be his son? The large crowd listened to him with delight.” Here, Jesus quoted Psalm 110:1. David could not know this with his general knowledge. He could not know it with his brain. However, he was a man after God’s own heart. He wrote many of the books of Psalms which reveal his struggle in prayer and his praise and thanksgiving to God. When he struggled with God, God gave him his words of hope for the coming messiah. Some of his Psalms, like Psalm 110 are messianic or prophetic Psalms. God revealed to David by the Holy Spirit that the messiah is also the Lord.

This means that the Christ is not just the son of David. He is also the Lord. He is the Lord of all. His power is greater than all the forces of evil. He is the one who died for our sins and rose from the dead. After that he ascended into heaven and now he sits at God’s right hand. What is he doing there at God’s right hand? Jesus is there to intercede for us and to plead for us. He is sympathetic towards our weaknesses because he himself was tempted in every way, just like we are. We can go confidently to him in prayer and be ready to receive his mercy.

This Psalm also teaches us that the Christ saves us from all our enemies. He is the one who puts all his enemies under his feet. Who are his enemies? His enemies are our enemies. They are death and Satan. Jesus was sent to conquer them and put them under his feet. In the ancient times, the victor would put his foot on his slain enemy as he laid dead on the ground. It was a sign of conquest and of victory. When Jesus died and rose from the dead, he put the enemy Satan and death under his feet. He destroyed them, rendering them powerless.

The apostle Paul spoke of this in his famous resurrection chapter, 1 Corinthians 15. He wrote in 1 Corinthians 15:25-27, “For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. The last enemy to be destroyed is death. For he has put everything under his feet…” This promise of God’s victory through the messiah strengthened King David. He wrote in Psalm 16:8-11, “I saw the Lord always before me. Because he is at my right hand, I will not be shaken. Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices; my body also will live in hope, because you will not abandon me to the grave, nor will you let your Holy One see decay. You have made known to me the paths of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence.”

Jesus continued to teach the crowds. They were delighted with his teachings because they were lively and gave them hope. Then Jesus turned his topic to the teachers of the law. In verses 38-40 he gave a warning about them. Let’s read verses 38-40, “Watch out for the teachers of the law. They like to walk around in flowing robes and be greeted in the marketplaces, and have the most important seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at banquets. They devour widows’ houses and for a show make lengthy prayers. Such men will be punished most severely.”

When Jesus said this, he was concerned about the teachers of the law and their bad influence. Many people saw what they did and were impressed by them. On the outside they looked religious. They looked holy and righteous. They wore beautiful flowing robes that made them appear to be dignified and special. They made it their point to walk around to the marketplaces so that they could be seen by people. “Hey, look at me! Don’t I look impressive?!” They liked to hear their names being called out to them when they walked through the marketplace. “Hello, Most Honorable Rabbi Levi!” When it was the Sabbath day, they made sure they took the most important seat in the synagogue where everyone could see them. At banquets, they liked to sit in the most important seat so that they could be seen by all people. They refused to take any lower seat or lower position. They wanted recognition and wanted others to think highly of them.

However, their lifestyle was not pleasing to God. This is because they did everything for men to see. They did not live before the eyes of God. They did not fear God who sees everything and who knows the motives of the heart. In Matthew chapter 23, Jesus rebuked the teachers of the law with seven woes. He called them hypocrites. This is because they lived a double life. What they appeared to people on the outside was completely different what was on the inside. That is, their hearts were wicked and evil. In Matthew 23:27-28 Jesus said to them, “Woe to you , teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of dead men’s bones and everything unclean. In the same way, on the outside you appear to people as righteous but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness.”

We can see their further corruption and evil hearts by their actions towards widows. They preyed on these helpless women. They knew that they did not have much money after their husbands died. They knew that it was hard for them to keep their homes. So they took advantage of them and claimed their homes for the work of God. Then, when they claimed their homes, they sold them and pocketed the money for themselves.

However, we can say that the teachers of the law’s greatest sin was abandoning God’s mission. Their mission was to teach the word of God to the people. This was God’s act of grace to them. Because they had the word of God, they should have fed the people who were hungry and in need of God’s truth. But they did not have a shepherd heart for the people. They did not have any responsibility for these people. They only took advantage of them and used them, instead of serving them and loving them.

When Jesus came as the promised Messiah, they could not accept him. The reason was is because they loved the darkness instead of the light. Jesus is the true light. He comes to shine the light of God’s truth into people’s hearts. He came to reveal men’s sins so that people may repent and have salvation. However, the teachers of the law did not want to confess their sins of doing evil. They did not want to change their evil ways and do what was right. They did not want to say, “You are right. We are doing wrong. My heart is dirty and selfish and self-righteous.” They just became angry at Jesus and plotted ways to have Jesus killed. Jesus said that these kind of people, who were entrusted with God’s word and God’s mission, who live for men’s recognition, will be punished most severely.

In my young Christian life I naturally sought recognition. I enjoyed being recognized as a shepherd and as a Bible messenger. I enjoyed when people laughed when I gave messages and when I heard them tell me, “That was a good message.” As I served at the Bible Center full-time, I used to like to greet people and let them know just who I was. However, when I was sent to GMU, we had no Bible Center and there was no one there to recognize me. I began to feel lonely. It was really difficult. But through some time God helped me to accept my inner life before him was most important. God looks more at our hearts. In my lonely time I really began to have sincere and personal Bible study time with God. I then repented of my selfish sins of seeking human recognition. I began to have deep peace when I sought to live before God’s eyes and not men. We can learn here that our Christian life is not to be an outward show to please people. Our Christian life is to be before God who sees the heart.

According to Jesus, those who live like the teachers of the law will be punished most severely. May God help us to watch ourselves carefully so that we don’t live like the teachers of the law.

Part two. The Widow’s Offering (41-44)

Let’s read verses 41-42, “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 in and put in two very small copper coins, worth only a fraction of a penny.” In the temple there was an offering box. The money that was offered here by the people was used to maintain the temple. God wanted his people to respect his house and have a responsible attitude towards it. The offering shows one’s heart and attitude towards God.

To Jesus, this was important. This is why he sat and watched as people came by to give their offerings. There are two kinds of people he noticed. Who were they? One type were the rich people. The other was a poor widow. The rich people looked like they were giving a lot. They pulled out 50’s and 100 dollar bills and threw them in. They did this for everyone to see. They liked to be noticed, very much like the teachers of the law.

How might the disciples have thought about this? For sure, they thought, “Wow! These people really love God! Look how much they are giving!” Matthew the former tax collector said, “ I haven’t seen that much money since I was a tax collector.” Perhaps they also felt a bit intimidated and even felt like nothing compared to these rich people. This was because they could not give much because they were so poor. They were like homeless people. They felt humiliated. However, there was another person here whom the disciples completely ignored and who everyone else did not see, except of course, Jesus. It was a poor widow. What she put in looked like nothing. She put in two very small copper coins. All that she gave did not even add up to a penny! When she put in her money there was no sound at all, no noise at all. She was completely ignored by everyone and unnoticed.

Jesus noticed this woman. When he saw her actions he was moved by it. What did he say about her and what did he teach his disciples? Let’s read verse 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.” Wow, how can this be? How can two small copper coins be worth more than all of the money that the rich people were throwing into the temple treasury?

Let’s read what Jesus said in verse 44, “They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything---all she had to live on.” For the rich people, to give such an offering was no problem. They could throw in large amounts because they had so much money. All the money they threw in did not even make a small dent in their income and what they had in their bank accounts. What they gave would not affect their living situation even one bit. They probably spent more money on video games than giving to the Lord.

But what about this poor widow? She had nothing except two very small copper coins. She had no bank account. She had no savings account. She had no stocks or mutual funds. She had nothing except these two very small copper coins. Her physical life depended on these two coins. Maybe they were worth two days worth of food and rent. Just two days, and that is it. But what did she do? She did not just put in one, but she put in both of them. When she put them in she had absolutely nothing. She had nothing because she was a widow. What could have moved her to make such an action and such a sacrifice?

It was her value system. She loved God first. In Genesis chapter 1 we learn the importance of spiritual order. God is the Creator God. He owns the world and everything in it. He made the world for man whom he created in his image and likeness. He made man to rule over and subdue the world. He gave man all that he needed to do this mission. As long as man loves God first and others second and puts the material world next, he can have the right value system and find peace and joy. However, when man holds back and does not keep this spiritual order, he becomes corrupted and unthankful and burden.

This widow loved God first even before her own physical life. She believed that God is the provider of all things. She did not complain, “Lord, my heart is broken because I have no husband.” Instead she gave her heart to God. She did not also say, “Lord, I have nothing to give you because I am a poor widow!” She did not hold back anything. She did not calculate and she did not worry. She offered her heart to the Lord. She offered her life to the Lord. She probably prayed, “Lord, I believe that you are my good shepherd. You will take care of me.”

This widow was greater than all the teachers of the law and all the religious looking rich people because of her heart-offering to the Lord. Usually widows are ignored in society and not noticed. But Jesus noticed her because of her heart-offering. This is the kind of offering that God is looking from us. It is natural and easy for us to become habitual and superficial over a period of time in our Christian faith. Our hearts easily go astray from God and we lose our joy.

What kind of offering is God looking for? Does God really need our offerings? Since I am studying the book of Hebrews through the Scripture reading conference, I found this verse in Hebrews 10:5-7. It says, “Therefore, when Christ came into the world, he said: ‘Sacrifice and offering you did not desire, but a body you prepared for me; with burnt offerings and sin offerings you were not pleased. Then I said, ‘Here I am---it is written about me in the scroll---I have come to do your will, O God.’”

Our offering to God is to offer ourselves to do his will. This is the best sacrifice and the best offering. Yesterday was Dr. Samuel Lee’s homecoming. He offered his entire life to God. He sacrificed himself and gave himself fully to serve God’s flock in America and throughout the world. To this capitalistic society and this materialistic generation, he went unnoticed, much like the widow in this passage. But to many he was a source of blessing. He was rich in his heart because he served many people and gave his life to God. When I thought about his life I realized how much one person who gives their life to God can make a difference. Jesus notices these kinds of people and honors them.

That kind of life is a beautiful life and a fruitful life and a happy life because it is a life that gives life to others much like Jesus’ life. Jesus poured himself out to save others and give others eternal life. We might not have much or think we can do a lot like others. But we do have something very valuable to God that is very precious. It is worth more than silver and gold. It is our life. We can give our lives to Jesus. We can make a heart-offering to God.

This means whatever you do for the Lord, do it with all your heart to please him, not people. If you go fishing, do it for the Lord with all your heart. If you sing and like singing, do it to the Lord with all your heart. If you have one sheep, give your heart to feed and take care of that one sheep. When you pray, offer it to God with all your heart. If you serve, do it with all your heart to please God and don’t worry if no one recognizes you, because God will.

When we give our heart to God as a sacrifice and offering we have no regrets later on. God blesses us with joy and peace and we are a true blessing to others. I pray that God may help you to make your life a heart-offering to him. May God help you in whatever you do to offer your heart to him.