Jesus honored a poor unnamed widow in the Bible because she freely gave all she had to the God she loved.
Picture the scene:
It’s a very busy day at the Temple. Hundreds of people are crowding in for an opportunity to worship. A part of their worship was almsgiving. This day, Jesus is watching the people as they approach with their offerings.
Among the crowd are the wealthy. Many of them place large sums of money in the collection bowls. I can see the smiles on the faces of the priests. Most of the worshipers are regular folks dutifully participating. Perhaps lost in the din and confusion of the crowd is a simple widow woman. She’s insignificant to the system. She has very little to offer. She’s poorer than the poor. I imagine the priest isn’t paying too much attention to her. Neither is anyone else. She’s kind of “in the way” of the Temple business. Her presence is tolerated, not wanted. Predictably, she puts into the bowl a tiny amount, less than one cent.
Across the way is Jesus, the Jesus who knows us all fully and completely. The Jesus who knows the very number of hairs on our heads. The Jesus who knows our thoughts and hearts, our motivations and intentions. The Jesus who is able to judge those thoughts and intentions with a terrifying accuracy. Jesus sees all who approach the altar. He sees the thoughts, hearts, intentions and attitudes of the givers. He knows who is genuinely worshiping. He knows who is pure of heart. He knows who is playing games. He knows the ones who are trying to make this whole thing about themselves, to win the applause of men.
Jesus is moved deeply by the generosity of this simple widow woman, a true worshiper. He calls together his disciples for a teaching moment. May I paraphrase what he said to them?
“You know, I’ve spent some time here watching the worshipers place their offerings at the altar. There have been some large amounts of money given today, greatly pleasing that priest over there.
But did any of you notice that widow woman? She had less than a cent to give. Then again, she had less than a cent to her name.
I want to tell you something very important. She has given more today than all the other offerings combined. You see, everybody else gave from their abundance. They all had plenty left over. Most of them should’ve been more generous than they were, but because they lacked faith in God to supply their needs, they held tightly onto the money they had.
But this woman gave all she had. She must now trust the Lord completely. Her offering was a true act of total faith. As such, our Heavenly Father is pleased with her and has more regard for her offering than all the rest.”
How beautiful, right? Let’s take a moment and examine why Jesus noticed this poor widow’s offering.
I The Widow gave the First.
I believe that the widow’s offering represented her obedience in giving to the Lord first. Her desire to worship and to participate in the offering was more important to her than anything else. With less than a cent to give, her needs gave clarification to her priorities. She trusted God completely. The whole process of her economic expressions began in her relationship with God. She gave to God first because giving to God was not optional in her heart.
Herein is an important lesson for you and me. Our offerings to the Lord, perhaps through our churches, must be prioritized as well. Like the widow, we must give to God first, then let other things find their place. When we truly seek the Lord with all our hearts, all others things will be added to us, and will find their rightful place (Matthew 6:33).
Perhaps you, like me, have been tempted too many times to spend almost all we have, then give to God the leftovers. We spend and spend on the best houses, cars, gadgets, entertainments, fancy diets, etc., with little regard to the outcomes, or perhaps with no regard to how God has directed us to handle money in his Holy Word, the Bible. One thing is for certain, God has given us the power to become wealthy so that we then can share those blessings through our generosity and with our testimonies to God’s faithfulness (Deuteronomy 8).
When we participate in offerings, when we purposefully return to the Lord a portion of all with which he has blessed us, we are reminded of his goodness, love, and provisions. We remember and worship the One to whom we pray: “Give us this day, our daily bread.”
II The Widow gave the Most.
Again, Jesus said to the disciples, “I assure you, this poor widow has given more than all the others have given. For they gave a tiny part of their surplus, but she, poor as she is, has given everything she has.” – Mark 12:43-44
You and I may think this poor lady has lost her mind. Perhaps, if I had been advising her, I would’ve said, “Take that money to the grocery store and buy something to eat!” Maybe because of my limited understanding or even lack of faith, I think I might’ve been more concerned about her physical needs than her desire to worship. How about you?
Maybe the widow is showing more faith than you and I are comfortable with! Maybe we don’t attempt many things in this life that really require faith and action at all. After all, if we are attempting to do something “in the name of the Lord” but we can see how, through our own strength and resources that we can accomplish that something, faith is not really required. Faith is required to follow God and be obedient to him when the outcome is guaranteed only by his promises and his Word. When the outcome is something only God can do, then we know faith is actually involved.
Perhaps, even as she was making her offering, the widow was remembering the story of her ancestors as they wandered in the desert following their release from slavery in Egypt. Hungry and thirsty, they cried out to God. Their circumstances suggested they would die in the desert, but God intervened. Exodus 16 records the marvelous story of how God “rained down bread from heaven.” They called it “manna,” asking, what is it?
Interestingly, God was very particular in how much of the bread from the heavens that they could gather. Specifically, God told them to gather only as much as they needed for today. Naturally, being in want in the desert, and with no certainties about tomorrow, they would’ve wanted to store up manna. If they did, however, it soured and filled with worms.
What was God up to? I think the answer is simple. God was saying, “Trust me to meet your need today, then trust me again tomorrow. I am your God.”
I think that’s what motivated the widow’s giving at the Temple. I also think God wants us to do the same. And yes, faith is required to be truly, biblically generous. Oh, and one other thing; God likes faith. So when Jesus says she gave the most, he certainly means she gave the greatest portion. Her offering had less to do with the value of the money in her hand, and much, much more to do with the faith in her heart. Again, what about us?
I know someone else who gave it all away. His offering to sinful, pitiful people sounds like this:
For God so loved the world, that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him will not perish, but have eternal life – John 3:16.
May we all have the courage to follow this poor widow’s example of giving, and the example of the one who so loved that he gave it all.
May God bless you.