“The lack of mercy sends us to prayer; the enjoyment of mercy sends us to praises.”
Samuel Bolton
In Mark 12:38-40, Jesus warns the people not to be like the scribes. He lists several ways that they seek to be prominent publicly and he exposes their deeply unjust treatment of the widows. And since the kingdom of God is often about reversals (i.e. the first shall be last and the last shall be first), he proceeds to observe how a certain poor widow excels all the scribes in her demonstration of trusting the Lord. Here is the passage:
And he [Jesus] sat down opposite the treasury and watched the people putting money into the offering box. Many rich people put in large sums. And a poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which make a penny. And he called his disciples to him and said to them, “Truly, I say to you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the offering box. For they all contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on.” (Mark 12:41-44)
The widow’s offering was like her heart, undivided. She had two lepta and both were given. True discipleship is undivided. The amount of money was extremely small. It was about 1/64th of a day’s wage. Both coins together were the equivalent of a Roman penny (one quadrans)! And yet, she put both in the offering box. There were thirteen of these boxes and they were shaped like a ram’s horn, a shofar. The shofar was used as a trumpet. It was an instrument of praise. And Jesus praised her undivided spirit of dependence on God.
We should also note the following principle: Difficult circumstances are no impediment to the kind of giving that honors Christ and that Christ honors. It matters not the amount that is placed in the offering box. She was a poor widow. She was a person living on the margins of society. She was easily overlooked and often taken advantage of, yet the Lord declares that she has given more than all the rich folks putting in their offerings. Why? Jesus observed her intention. The great preacher, Chrysostom, noted: “When the widow put into the collection box only two small coins, the master did not give her a recompense worth only two coins. Why was that? Because he paid no attention to the amount of the money. What he did heed was the wealth of her soul. If you calculate by the value of her money, her poverty is great. If you bring her intention into the light, you will see that her store of generosity defies description.”
And that’s a great place to conclude this devotional. Does your current level of generosity defy description? Ask the Lord to make 2026 the year of the undivided heart and a “two lepta” year. Have a blessed week and we will see many of you on Sunday.
Love in Christ,
Pastor Dale
