February 5: Mark 12

Today's reading.

In this chapter, it's Jesus vs. religion. I can't cover all the ground I'd like to, but the first 40 verses is Jesus taking on the religious leaders of his day. Maybe I'll post more about that later in the day. But this morning, I want to focus on the last several verses of this chapter. 

12:38-40 is a warning to the crowd to avoid being enslaved by exploitative and oppressive religious leaders who do not really practice what they call others to. They take and take, but really give nothing. They want prestige and comfort and the favor of God and men. But Jesus shows us who is truly great in his kingdom.

The supposedly great religious leaders aren't generous but are greedy for respect and social standing. Even the rich who give large sums of money do so out of the abundance of what they have. The widow who put just a penny in the offering is the sort of person the Lord is seeking for his kingdom. Quantitatively, she put in nothing; the temple won't be getting a new façade anytime soon with tithers like the poor widow. But her giving was an expression of love and faith to God that far exceeded any other giving that day.

She gave to the Lord what no one else did in this chapter. She committed herself, body and soul, in faith to God, trusting that he would provide though she had nothing left. And she offered as great an offering as anyone could, giving all her possessions to the Lord, actively loving him by obeying his commands. In fact, she gave far more than the commandment required; I don't know what 10% of a penny is, but the law never required anyone to give all they had to live on. She so loves her Father, so wants to express her gratitude for his grace and mercy toward her, that she offers as great a gift as she can muster. And our Lord himself honored her for it.

Are you stingy? I am. The fact is that we spend our resources on what we most love. I like books and gadgets, so I buy books and gadgets for me because I love myself. A lot. I love myself and that is proven in the way I use my time and money.

God is not stingy. God gave his most treasured possession—his only Son—for your sake and mine. He gave all he had because he so loved us. The widow could not yet even understand that God's love had come to her in Christ, because Christ had not yet died, but she STILL gave all she had in love and worship. Here I am, the recipient of such abundant grace, with the cross fully in view, and I still want to do what I want with my resources.

Are you generous? You are the recipient of God's cosmic generosity. Do you love him, do you love your Father enough to respond? "Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also" (Matt. 6:21). It's clear that the widow's treasure was with her Lord. Where is yours?