Episode Transcript
[00:00:24] Speaker A: Hello, I'm Josh.
[00:00:25] Speaker B: And I'm Gabriel.
[00:00:26] Speaker A: And today on reading the Gospel, we are studying the event, the widow's offering. This is found in Mark, chapter twelve, verses 41 through 44. It's also found in Luke, chapter 21, verses one through four. Follow along with us as we read mark 1241.
[00:00:47] Speaker B: As Jesus sat down opposite the treasury and watched the people putting money into the offering box, many rich people put in large sums.
And a poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which make a penny.
[00:01:05] Speaker A: And he called his disciples to him and said to them, truly, I say to you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the offering box, for they all contributed out of their abundance. But she, out of her poverty, has put in everything she had, all she has to live on.
This is a very short event.
It's a brief story, but it's a powerful story, and it's important in the Bible. It's important that we read it, that here we have people. They were coming, and they were putting in large sums of money. And I think as pastors, you know, we'd be happy that, oh, man, people are putting in large sums of money into the offering plate. We can do so much to help out communities around us, but this is not the one Jesus points out. Jesus points out this woman who puts in a penny or two small coins that equal a penny.
What are these two small coins like? What's it worth today?
[00:02:14] Speaker B: There was two small coins in those times were worth 160 fourth of a denarius, which was daily wage for a manual worker.
So technically, how much is a daily pay for unqualified handyman? Let's say around $300.
And divide that by 64. By 60 is about $5.
So imagine that everything you have in your house is $5. It's enough to stop by one of these fast food chains like McDonald's and have a meal. So money for your last meal of your life.
[00:03:02] Speaker A: It makes me think of the story of Elijah and the widow of Zarepath, who came out and gave Elijah the last food that her and her son were gonna have before they died.
And we don't know, maybe this woman had tons and tons of food, but no money.
We don't know. More of her background other than this was all the money she was able to find. And she's bringing to God everything.
I've hit the bottom in my life, and I came to God.
And when you hit the bottom coming to God, broken, ready to be changed, it's a different feeling than when you're coming to God with a bunch and thanking him for the abundance that you have. And I think this woman, I don't know, maybe she's coming to God with this is, like you said, her last, but she's willing to give it to God. Instead of going down to McDonald's and getting a meal, she's willing to pass it on.
That's her greatest desire.
[00:04:13] Speaker B: I like how Jesus chose his words in verse 43. Truly I say to you, in the same way Jesus Christ reminded his disciple when another woman broke a vase of alabaster with a very expensive ointment.
And Jesus said, every time the gospel will be preached, that story will be included. So it seems that Jesus Christ includes this story again in the gospel. And Jesus says, for all contributed out of their abundance. But this poor widow, she contributed out of her poverty and she gave everything she had.
[00:05:03] Speaker A: When Jesus called the disciples, how much did he ask them to give up?
[00:05:12] Speaker B: I think the main teaching of Jesus is nothing quantitative. It is primarily about the motivation. It's about total commitment. Abandoning yourself in the hands of God, in the arms of God. I don't think God is calling everyone to give everything he or she has. Because we see some stories from Abraham to David and Solomon, all of them close to God's heart. And they were rich people. And they were called to connect with other rich people and share the gospel in their circle of influence.
What is Jesus Christ's teaching here? Is that we have to give ourselves to God. Sometimes the Lord will call us to sell what we have and invested in preaching the gospel as the church in Jerusalem did. And that is in the book of acts. Other times we might be called to save and at the right moment to help the work of God in a different way. Other times we might be called to invest, invest into a organization or institution that helps the community or invest in education, or invest in, in other right and building a house of worship or so on.
[00:06:41] Speaker A: And I think the biggest thing, when Jesus calls us, he calls us completely that to be willing to walk away from everything, it doesn't mean that we have to. It doesn't mean he's going to call us away from everything, but to put everything in his care, in his hands, that it all belongs to him.
[00:07:03] Speaker B: There is a backdrop for this teaching. The disciples already left everything when he read the calling of the first disciples, primarily in the gospel of John.
All of them left everything. That expression is there repeated.
And at one moment Peter comes to Jesus Christ and he says, we left everything.
What is our reward? And there is a one of those difficult to understand teachings of Jesus when he says, you have to love me more than you love your father and mother and children.
It is not just the material possession that is external to you. It is what is the most dear to your heart, the closest relationships in life.
[00:07:55] Speaker A: These are things that God asks us. He might not ask everyone to give up the same things, but the point of this is we need to be willing. And this woman here was willing. She came and she gave everything she had to God. And Jesus commends her for that. I know from my experience in my life, I've never given to goddess and then not had God take care of me.
He's always provided food. He's provided. He's provided more than I deserve.
I have a very comfortable life because God just makes things go further.
If I look in my house, I think there might be only one piece of furniture that we bought.
People were getting rid of things and giving things, and God just. God has a way of supplying.
When we give to God, when we surrender to God.
I've not seen, at least in my experience, I've never been lacking.
[00:09:07] Speaker B: I'd like to connect with another teaching of Jesus Christ. When he says, if you want to follow Manda, that is a good intention.
You have to deny yourself, take off my cross daily, and then follow me. If you have a good intention, you have to put it into practice. But in between, you have to remove every barrier. Self denial is heaven's tool offered to us today to trim our selfishness, to help us focus from ourselves to God, and to help us really understand what is the burden on God's heart and what is he caring the most about. And we should take that burden, because in Matthew 1128, when Jesus says, come to me, we are come to exchange our burden with his and our yoke with his.
[00:10:09] Speaker A: So what does this passage, how does it speak to us today? What are we gonna do about it?
For me, as I read this, I think it makes me go through an inventory in my life.
You know, what really is the most important thing when I wake up? What is it that I wanna do first as I go through the day? What is it that I'm looking forward to when I go to spend my money? Where am I wanting to spend it? And as I do a self check, it helps me to see where my priorities are. And if my priorities aren't on God, then I can come back to God and ask him to change me, to change my heart, to take over my finances. That is a prayer. I pray a lot. One of my downfalls, one of my weaknesses is materialism. And so I'm constantly, God, please take over my finances. Please help me not to spend on things I don't need. And as I surrender it to God, my life is happier and my life is better.
[00:11:22] Speaker B: One of the trends that we should embark on today is simplicity.
Simplicity is defined as getting rid of the unnecessary so the necessary can stand out.
And this is the battle that we have to fight. The battle between the need and the want. And the need is necessary.
What is necessary to fulfill the purpose in life. And we realize that it's not that much necessary.
We need, as Jesus Christ said, to put food on the table. And of course, we have to invest in good quality food. We need good sleep. So you get a mattress and a bed and you need good relationships in which you invest.
And the rest is not that much necessary.
We made them necessary in our western civilized society. But we realized that people around the world can live on way, way little and be even happier than we are here.
[00:12:37] Speaker A: Yeah.
Let us have a word of prayer.
Father God.
I pray that we can take inventory in our lives and that we can find areas that maybe we're holding onto too much and surrender them to you.
I pray, Father, that we'll be like this widow, willing to give you everything if you ask. But Father, even if we have abundance, that we will put you first in all that we do, that we will lift up those around and help those who don't have.
I pray, Father, that we can share the blessings we've been given in Jesus name. Amen.
[00:13:27] Speaker B: Amen.
