Learning to Give it All
Notes
Transcript
42 A poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which amount to a cent.
43 Calling His disciples to Him, He said to them, “Truly I say to you, this poor widow put in more than all the contributors to the treasury;
44 for they all put in out of their surplus, but she, out of her poverty, put in all she owned, all she had to live on.”
Introduction
Today we celebrate 505 years since Martin Luther nailed his 95 theses on the door of Wittenberg church.
His intent was to have a serious theological discussion regarding the sale of indulgences by the Pope of Rome to fund the construction of St. Peter’s Basilica.
This is how Luther introduced his 95 theses:
“Out of love for the truth and from desire to elucidate it, the Reverend Father Martin Luther, Master of Arts and Sacred Theology, and ordinary lecturer therein at Wittenberg, intends to defend the following statements and to dispute on them in that place. Therefore he asks that those who cannot be present and dispute with him orally shall do so in their absence by letter. In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, Amen.”
Throughout the history of humanity, the search, commitment and defense of truth has been a powerful force changing the lives of millions of people.
But how did Luther and so many others arrived at the conclusion that they would risk their lives to follow Christ?
Last week we heard about the four Hebrew men who were cast into a fiery furnace because they were committed to the truth. What makes a person be willing to put their live on the line for their beliefs?
In the case of the Hebrew men it was their absolute trust that God would take care of them no matter what.
Let’s read their declaration of faith:
16 Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego replied to the king, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to give you an answer concerning this matter.
17 “If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the furnace of blazing fire; and He will deliver us out of your hand, O king.
18 “But even if He does not, let it be known to you, O king, that we are not going to serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up.”
I wonder if we believe that?
I am not talking about the emotional response we experience when we sing in worship.
We are familiar with songs like He will Hold me fast
When I fear my faith will fail
Christ will hold me fast
When the tempter would prevail
He will hold me fast
I could never keep my hold
Through life’s fearful path
For my love is often cold
He must hold me fast.
Or what about
I raise a hallelujah, with everything inside of me
I raise a hallelujah, I will watch the darkness flee
I raise a hallelujah, in the middle of the mystery
I raise a hallelujah, fear you lost your hold on me
And who can forget the classic hymn: It is well with my soul
When peace like a river, attendeth my way,
When sorrows like the sea billows roll;
Whatever my lot, Thou hast taught me to say,
‘It is well with my soul.’
I am talking about the actual conscious decision through a thoughtful process by which we daily decide to trust God with everything we have.
Turn with me to the book of Mark chapter 12
Jesus has been teaching in the temple and dealing with his detractors.
Parable of the Tenants
He answered questions about taxes
About marriage and resurrection
about the greatest commandment
and he warned about false teachers.
Not those who taught false ideologies
rather those who use their position for privilege and to scam others:
Hypocrites
Mark 12:40 (NASB95)
40 They devour widows’ houses, and for appearance’s sake offer long prayers; these will receive greater condemnation.”
It had been a long day, and Jesus sits down to observe the people. They came to place their offerings.
You probably noticed we have not collected the offering this morning. Fear NOT, you will have an opportunity after the sermon.
So Jesus is looking at the crowd young and old, rich and poor, they all came to give their offerings.
Or at least that is what they should have been doing.
Back then money came in the form of coins. Gold, Silver and even copper.
Try to imagine the scene. People are coming with their bags of coins and dropping them in the chest thus making a lot of noise.
As Jesus is observing the crowds he notices this poor woman.
She is a widow. She is at the bottom of the social strata.
Perhaps even a victim of the same Pharisees who so proudly were giving large amounts of money.
And there she commits the most generous act that anyone can do: She entrusted everything to God.
Let’s go to the text.
41 And He sat down opposite the treasury, and began observing how the people were putting money into the treasury; and many rich people were putting in large sums.
42 A poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which amount to a cent.
43 Calling His disciples to Him, He said to them, “Truly I say to you, this poor widow put in more than all the contributors to the treasury;
There are many lessons we can learn from this story, so I want to focus on just a few today.
First don’t underestimate the widow
This was not a spur of the moment decision based on emotion.
She had thought it out. When you are about to give everything you have, you don’t do it lightly.
But Carlos it was just two mites, NO IT WAS EVERYTHING SHE HAD!
During the last couple of months we have seen how hurricanes have destroyed entire communities.
My daughter Sara went to a small town in the souther corner of Puerto Rico to bring food and supplies to people who have lost it all.
They did not have much to begin with, but it was all they have.
Even poor children treasure their dirty raggedy dolls, because it is all they have.
Don’t think less of the widow because she only had to pennies.
Jesus didn’t!
Second, this act was probably the culmination of a life of service to God and to others.
She was not investing in the kingdom. She was giving it all.
She probably had heard the story of another widow during the time of the prophet Elijah.
7 It happened after a while that the brook dried up, because there was no rain in the land.
8 Then the word of the Lord came to him, saying,
9 “Arise, go to Zarephath, which belongs to Sidon, and stay there; behold, I have commanded a widow there to provide for you.”
10 So he arose and went to Zarephath, and when he came to the gate of the city, behold, a widow was there gathering sticks; and he called to her and said, “Please get me a little water in a jar, that I may drink.”
11 As she was going to get it, he called to her and said, “Please bring me a piece of bread in your hand.”
12 But she said, “As the Lord your God lives, I have no bread, only a handful of flour in the bowl and a little oil in the jar; and behold, I am gathering a few sticks that I may go in and prepare for me and my son, that we may eat it and die.”
13 Then Elijah said to her, “Do not fear; go, do as you have said, but make me a little bread cake from it first and bring it out to me, and afterward you may make one for yourself and for your son.
14 “For thus says the Lord God of Israel, ‘The bowl of flour shall not be exhausted, nor shall the jar of oil be empty, until the day that the Lord sends rain on the face of the earth.’ ”
15 So she went and did according to the word of Elijah, and she and he and her household ate for many days.
16 The bowl of flour was not exhausted nor did the jar of oil become empty, according to the word of the Lord which He spoke through Elijah.
So she knew about putting God first in her life.
Everything in her life has led her to this moment.
Imagine with me if you will that morning.
She wakes up and lays in bed for a little thinking about what she is going to do.
She smiles nervously as she gets up and eats a piece of bread and then she goes and gets her two coins.
I wonder if these where the two coins her mother gave her at her wedding.
She looks at the coins and remembers that beautiful yet simple ceremony.
Some much love. But the years passed and she was never able to conceive.
Then without much notice her husband dies leaving her alone.
Years have gone by and all of her savings are gone.
She knew this day would come.
Yet she is not sad. She has seen God’s hand in her life especially in the midst of suffering.
She remembers fondly the many times she found a basket of bread and fruits at her door.
Tears of joy run down her tears as she grabs the two mites, pennies and heads out the door.
She walks full of excitement to the temple court.
She can’t wait to do her part for God’s cause.
She stands in line and after some time calms down and begins to see the large amounts others are bringing.
For a moment she feels so small.
But the thought is quickly dispelled as she reminds herself that what matters is that she is doing her part.
She walk to the offering chest and her heart skips a beat when she places her offering.
She has given all to God, and it is ok because she knows He is Trustworthy.
Jesus is watching from a distance and He praises her. Her gift was more valuable that any of the other gifts because she gave it all.
So let me asked you a question?
Have you given it all yet?
Have you decided to serve God regardless of the consequences?
You don’t get there overnight.
The four young hebrews spent their lives serving and honoring God.
So when the time came their foundation was built.
Giving everything she had was not difficult for the widow because she had been training for this her whole life.
You and I must do the same.
Our motto here at Nainhof is
Worship in Spirit
Learn in Truth
Serve in Love
Any who has loved will tell you that love is costly.
You can’t serve in love without paying a price.
God knows this better than anyone.
He paid the ultimate price, Jesus Christ.
This is what it means to Seek his kingdom first.
Serving God and others is costly but it is absolutely worth it!
Conclusion
Here is God’s offer for you today
Put me first in your life, and I will take care of you both in this world and in the world to come.
Blogger Mark Ballenger lists at least three benefits of putting God first in your life.
1. When You Put God First in Your Life, You Will Experience the Joy of Living with No Regrets
“Perhaps one of the biggest joy-stealers in life is regret. Regret robs us of living with joy in the present because we are living under the shame of our past. Regret happens when we know we missed a golden opportunity that we might never get back.”
2. When You Put God First in Your Life, You Will Experience the Clarity and Sense of Purpose Everyone Else Is Constantly Looking For
people are constantly living their life in search for meaning. They go from one religion to atheism. They go from materialism to minimalism. They go from doing drugs to preaching a gluten free diet. And yet their search just keeps going on and on when they don’t truly realize that God made them for himself. When we don’t put God first, we are missing our purpose and thus we will constantly feel lost and confused.
3. When You Put God First in Your Life, You Will Have a Better Chance of Receiving the Good Desires of Your Heart
There are so many more blessings that stem from putting God first in your life. But one huge benefit of truly honoring God in your heart above everything else is that this will free God to bless you with other things which he wants you to use to bring him more glory.