Greatest Sacrifice

Brendan Shea

ALL IN • Sermon • Submitted 5 years ago

Mark 12:41–44

Sacrifice

Generosity

Jesus commends the widow’s gift

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What is the greatest sacrafice we have ever made? What our big sacrafices we have made in or life? In this sermon we are discusing a sacrafice a women made in her life for God and will be looking at what areas in our life God is asking us to sacrafice.

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Big Hero 6 Clip

How many of you have ever seen the movie Big Hero 6?

Well it is a great movie, but its also where this clip is from and basically in this scene of the movie the kid you see (hiro) and baymax the big blob go into this portal to risk their lives to save a persons life

Because just to

however baymax runs out of fuel and he decides that he is going to sacrifice his life to save this kid (Hiro). So he shoots off his hand to get the him back to saftey. But the issue is because Baymax does this there is no possible way for him to get out of this portal.

Baymax actually sacrifices his life in order to save Hiro.

And as I was watching this movie the other day I couldn't help but think of this question what is the greatest sacrifice you have ever made?

Because some of us I am sure have done or even are making sacrifices for our families,

Some may have served our country in some capacity.

Others may have made a sacrifice for a cause they really believed in.

But there are different sacrifices we make throughout our lives and there are these big sacrifices like the ones I just mentioned but there are also small sacrifices which people make every day.

Driving your kids around- my mom is here today and she can definitly testify that she drove me around everywhere as a kid

volunteering around town

sacrificing time to talk with one of your friend who needs you.

There are all sorts of things that are all truley amazing things that we might sacrifice a ton for.

But as I was thinking about all of the things we sacrifice another question came to my mind.

What is the greatest sacrifise you have ever made for Christ.

What are the sacrifices that you are maybe even making daily?

and what is your attitude behind the sacrifice you are making.

Because today we are looking at a story in

and this passage tells the story of a sacrifice that a women made for Christ.

And I am positive that most of us have heard this story in Sunday school probably about the subject of giving, but today I want to dig a little deeper into this story.

Intact right now you are sacraficing time to be here, but we need to

So you can follow along in your Bible or on the screen and once again the passage is and it says:

The New International Version Chapter 12

41 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. 42 But a poor widow came and put in two very small copper coins, worth only a few cents.

43 Calling his disciples to him, Jesus said, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others. 44 They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything—all she had to live on.”

This i

In this passage Jesus is sitting in the area where all of the people are giving their different offerings

and Jesus makes a couple of observations

The first is that there were Rich people who gave their offerings.

and Jesus kind of paints a picture of what these people looked like because even right before this passage Jesus is talking about the scribes who wore these long robes and prayed these lengthy prayers would really do it with the wrong intentions in mind.

They would not do it for God but they did it to show off themselves.

and one of the big things that people in this society were able to do it they were obviously able to give more financially to this offering, but often times it was more of a social thing where you know you put something in and people thought “Wow, that guy is a good person.” “I want to get to know him”

And they were often seen as extremely valuable because they have all of these different resources that could really help what was the temple flourish.

But then it mentions that this widow walked in. And Widows during this time had nothing.

They really did not own much at all and they often were viewed as very low in society, because during this time period the man would earn income and the women were not valued highly so it would be hard for them to even get a job.

So this widow who just has nothing probably living day to day and she would have to have a job but it probably didn't pay very well,

She comes in and it says she places two small copper coins into the box where people would put their offering.

And this is basically like her putting nothing in the offering box.

At this time they actually had a law the amount she gave was the smallest amount you could legally give.

But also at this time this was most likely a full day wages for her.

So you almost get this image of this poor widow who really has nothing coming to the temple after working a job where she was probably treated poorly and didn't make much for it and she gives almost all that she made if not all she made in this offering.

She was this lady who really did not have much to offer but she laid out all that she had for Christ.

And this is the first point I want you to get. and this might apply to you financially but it also might apply in many other areas of your life.

Because you might look at yourself and go I really do not have much to offer, I don’t have a lot of money, I don’t have a lot of skills, I am not an extravert where I am overly friendly and can greet people when they walk in the church, but God isn’t concerned about what you think you have.

What God is concerned about is that you have given all you have to Him.

To often in churches we look for the rich people in this story, instead of the widows.

We as the church think we need the people who have a lot of money to fund the church, or have some sort of talent that could really help the church, when what the church really needs is someone like the widow!

We need people who are willing to lay down whatever they have, whatever they own, whatever skill they posses for Christ.

And don’t get me wrong here because there are people who have money or who are extremely talented that have given everything they have to Christ.

But what we need to have as people in the church is the attitude of the widow.

and that looks different in every person and often times God might not call you to go give everything to the poor and be homeless for the rest of your life, but if he did have you given that area of your life to God where you would say yes.

The widow really did not just give money, but she have herself.

You know last week we talked about the greatest commandment and Love God was the first and this widow carried it out.

And if you are like me thats hard to do because I am looking at this story and going no I don’t want to give everything to God, because It’s kinda scary.

Because I am reading this passage and thinking wait a second here is this widow who gives everything she has in the offering and you start to realize things like how is she going to get food,

How is she going to get clothes,

and ultimately how is she going to live.

Because she made this huge sacrifice by giving all she had to this offering.

and depending on who you are you probably read this passage differently.

I think I have brought this up before but in my Marriage I’m the stinge one and Arika is the giver.

So when I read this I go what is she doing she should be saving that money, and I just dont get it.

But I think what the widow realized was that it is not hers to decide what she does with it.

I dont know if any of you have every gotten a rental car before but when you drive a rental car do you drive it differently then how you drive your own car.

I remember I was at Olivet and I was part of a group where we would travel to different churches and preach and they would give us rental cars to use so we didn’t wear down our cars as much.

And you know I drove the rental cars a little different then how I drove my car because when I am driving my car I drive nice and slow, but when I drive a rental car I would pick things up a little. And I need to watch myself because my parents are in the sanctuary today,

but its true that you are more likely to use something to its full potential when its not yours even if it might seem a little reckless.

But thats what this widow realized. She realized that this money she had, this life she has, its not hers, but it is God’s.

And even though her behavior might seem reckless to us its not to her because it was never hers to begin with.

She is just being faithful with what God has given her.

Recently in our Mens Bible study we have on Saturday morning we were going through the book of Esther and if you are not formilure with this story basically what happens is the Jewish people are being oppressed, and so much to the point that there is actually a plan to eliminate all of their lives.

What if we realized okay God

But in the midst of all of this the queen that was chosen was actually Jewish however the issue is if she talks to the king about this and he could actually take her life as well.

But theres a part in the story when Esther is trying to decide if she wants to talk with the king or not about this and this man she knew he basically tells her “look Esther what if God placed you here for this specific purpose.”

so what ends up happening Esther makes this reckless sacrifice where she could have been removed as queen and lost her life, but she decided I am willing to do what God is calling me to do.

That sacrifice may have seemed like a bad choice to tons of people, but Esther looked at her life and decided God placed me here and because of that I am going to be faithful.

Esther was faithful with what God gave her and because of it she saved this group of Jewish people.

So what has God given you?

Has God blessed you financially

Has God blessed you with certain skills, ideas,

and what would happen if we gave those to God.

In our passage today with the widow whats interesting about it is that just a few chapters later Jesus makes the ultimate sacrifice where he is crucified and died for us for the forgiveness of our sins and so he could be in a relationship with us.

And you might be thinking “well I don’t know how to lay down what God has given me”

and you may remember the first week of our sermon series we talked about how it is impossible if we just rely on our selves, but with God we can do it.

So I want us to take a second and just think is there an area that you still have not given to Christ.

and like I mentioned this is not nesasarally saying okay God I am selling my house and moving to Africa, but this is just saying “God I am giving this area to you.”

And we are going to end our service a little different today. This is the final week of our “ALL IN” series and I figured since our story is about a women giving an offering to God, it would be fitting for us to end with us giving an offering.

But its going to be slightly different. because we will be taking our normal tithes and offering that we take every Sunday, but on top of these tithes, you will notice there are some half small pieces of paper on the pews.

I want to invite you to examine your life and just think what area am I not giving to Christ.

and I just want you to take that piece of paper and write down that area and I invite you to place that in the offering as a way of saying God, I am giving this to you.

For some of us it may have to do with our finances, God might be saying I am asking you to give at this level, but you are only giving at this level.

For others it may be to simply serve somewhere in the church. we are getting to revamp our children's ministry area, maybe God is asking you to serve there.

Maybe your getting nudged that there is a certain area you have not given to Christ, an addiction, a habit, a hurt.

and God is just saying give it to me

Maybe God is even calling you to do something, maybe to start something, maybe hes saying I feel like you might have a call to ministry.

I just want to invite you to write these down and place it in the offering basket as it comes to you.

Because this this is an act of saying God I have this in my life and I want to sacrifice it to you.