Today’s Reading: Mark 12:41-44
Optional readings: Matt 22:15-46, Mark 12:13-37, Luke 20:20-44, 21:1-4
Jerusalem-Questions, Widow’s Offering
I had a coworker 20 years ago who told me her dad took out a second mortgage on their house so that she could have the wedding she wanted. I want to skip over the part where we judge him for being foolish and go straight to the part where we hear him say, “I would do anything for my little girl.”
Sometimes our love is so great that we abandon our caution just to express it. Suitors give up their hard-earned savings for the right engagement ring.
Moms give up their Saturdays to give their children the joy of playing a sport. And apparently, dads take out huge loans to give their daughters dream weddings.
When we truly love someone, we give to them, even if it’s a sacrifice.
Love is measured in sacrifice.
God is not after our money.
God is after a heart that loves him so much that I abandon caution just to express it.
My offering is not measured in dollars, but in sacrifice.
Remember when I mentioned that all good theology has to be formed in light of the entire Bible? There are verses that talk about being wise and planning. There are also verses that teach us not to worry and to trust God to provide for our needs. So there is a balance between wise money management and taking steps of faith, trusting Him to provide.
The poor widow gave all she had to live on. One might say that was foolish. But God saw it as the beautiful gesture of love and act of faith that it was. She is still honored today, as her offering was recorded and remembered centuries later.
So 10%? More? Less? Depends on circumstances?
I would say…depends on your heart. Percentages are nice because they are proportionate for everyone, and the tithe has Old Testament precedent. Again though, it’s not the letter of the law, but the spirit of the law.
"Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver" (2 Cor 9:7).
So no one can answer this question for you, because no one knows what’s going on in your heart but you and God.
“God knows my heart” should convict us and maybe scare us, by the way, not excuse us.
I think we can recall another guideline that we discussed earlier.
Give what you’ve decided to give, but be willing to give everything if that’s what God asks.
One of my favorite Corrie Ten Boom quotes is helpful here.
“Hold loosely to the things of this life,
so that if God requires them of you,
it will be easy to let them go.”
So do we need to take a vow of poverty and rid ourselves of every earthly possession? No, not unless you find you’re gripping them more tightly than Jesus.
My guess is that few of us would say that money was important to us.
It’s not the paper that we idolize; it’s the comfort that those dollars bring us.
That may mean physical comfort in a nice home and delivered meals, or it may mean the security of having a big savings account. So perhaps reframing the question may help.
Are you willing to give up some comfort for the sake of the Kingdom?
Lord, I say that I want to put You first in my life. Like the Pharisees, I can be pretty good at talking the talk. I may give to You from my time and my money, but I don’t often give to you sacrificially. I want to love You so much and trust You so completely that I can give generously and joyously. Amen.