Growing up I don’t think I heard a teaching about the widow’s mite that did not take the widow and make her the standard by which all of us are to give when it comes to our giving.
“This poor widow woman came to the altar and gave her last mite. She did that for the Lord! What an example she is to the church! How can you not do the same?”
I grew up Baptist and we sang the song “You Can’t Beat God Giving” at offering time. “You can’t beat God giving. No matter how you try. The more you give the more He’ll give to you. Just keep on giving because it’s really true. You can’t beat God giving, no matter how you try.” The point? Give as much as you possibly can because God will match it or even give you more.
What is the real message of the widow’s mite?
In this lesson, we’re going to see what Jesus is really talking about when he refers to the widow who gave her last mite. We’re going to begin in Mark 12.
(28) And one of the scribes came, and having heard them reasoning together, and perceiving that he had answered them well, asked him, Which is the first commandment of all?
(29) And Jesus answered him, The first of all the commandments is, Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God is one Lord:
(30) And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment.
(31) And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these.
In Matthew 22:40 Jesus says “On these two commandments hang all the law and prophets.” Keep that in mind. Now, back to Mark 12. Jump down to verse 38.
(38) And he said unto them in his doctrine, Beware of the scribes, which love to go in long clothing, and love salutations in the marketplaces,
(39) And the chief seats in the synagogues, and the uppermost rooms at feasts:
(40) Which devour widows' houses, and for a pretence make long prayers: these shall receive greater damnation.
The scribes (lawyers who were also Pharisees) and Pharisees had convinced the people that they were the final authority concerning God’s Word. “Yes, we know that you have the Law, but we’re going to help you understand what the Law really means.”
We know from scripture that God provided for and protected widows (Deuteronomy 14:29, 24:19-21; Isaiah 1:17; Jeremiah 22:3, Malachi 3:5). And yet Jesus is saying that those who should be taking care of the widows are literally eating them alive – taking all that they have. Keep this image in mind as we continue.
(41) And Jesus sat over against the treasury, and beheld how the people cast money into the treasury: and many that were rich cast in much.
An object lesson about religion and giving
Jesus is about to give the disciples an object lesson. They are across the courtyard looking at the people giving their tithes and offerings.
(42) And there came a certain poor widow, and she threw in two mites, which make a farthing.
(43) And he (Jesus) called unto him his disciples, and saith unto them, Verily I say unto you, That this poor widow hath cast more in, than all they which have cast into the treasury:
(44) For all they did cast in of their abundance; but she of her want did cast in all that she had, even all her living.
Remember I talked about how the widow has been presented to the church? “Do you see this poor widow woman? She only has two little mites. She puts it all in for God! She puts in all she has for God and you’re complaining about the tithe!”
The word “poor” in verse 43 means “a beggar, destitute of wealth, influence, position and honor.” This widow is no better than a beggar but she gives all so God will bless her.
Now, I want you to see the comparison. Let’s read verse 44 again.
(44) For all they (the rich) did cast in of their abundance; but she of her want did cast in all that she had, even all her living.
The word “abundance” – folks, that word means “leftovers”. After the rich paid all their bills, and spent money on the things they wanted, they still had money leftover. Do you see what’s going here? God wasn’t first. They gave God what they had leftover and it was still a lot. And then Jesus says this widow gives out of her “want”. The word describes “poverty or being destitute”. Jesus is telling us that the woman gives money that she really doesn’t have to give.
The widow believes she has to do this to be blessed.
And not only that, but she gives “all her living”. This widow gives her rent money. She gives money she needs for her electricity. She gives her grocery money. Do you see the picture? The rich give money they have left over. This widow gives what she needs to live on – and it still wouldn’t have been enough.
This is the picture Jesus is painting for us. The money the widow has isn’t enough to pay her rent. It isn’t enough to pay her utilities. It isn’t enough to buy groceries. And yet, she gives it because that’s what she has been taught to do by the religious leaders.
We must read one more verse. Mark 13:1 – “And as he went out of the temple, one of his disciples saith unto him, Master, see what manner of stones and what buildings are here!”
Keep this in mind. Now let’s go to Luke 20 and see the same record.
(45) Then in the audience of all the people he said unto his disciples,
(46) Beware of the scribes, which desire to walk in long robes, and love greetings in the markets, and the highest seats in the synagogues, and the chief rooms at feasts;
(47) Which devour widows' houses, and for a shew make long prayers: the same shall receive greater damnation.
Let’s continue with Luke 21. (There should not have been a chapter break here.)
(1) And he looked up, and saw the rich men casting their gifts into the treasury.
(2) And he saw also a certain poor widow casting in thither two mites.
(3) And he said, Of a truth I say unto you, that this poor widow hath cast in more than they all:
(4) For all these have of their abundance cast in unto the offerings of God: but she of her penury hath cast in all the living that she had.
(5) And as some spake of the temple, how it was adorned with goodly stones and gifts, he said.
This word “penury” means “deficiency, less than what her wants required”. All the money this widow has is not enough to pay her bills and she gives it to the synagogue.
The temple, buildings and stones are part of the context.
We read about the stones and the temple in Mark 13:1. We see them again in verse 5. This is very important. We see the record in Mark 12 and Luke 20 and 21 again in Matthew 22:34-40. Now look at verse 1 of chapter 23 – “Then spake Jesus to the multitude, and to his disciples,” Whoa. Whoa. In Mark and Luke the first things they talked about were the temple buildings and the stones. We don’t see temple, buildings and stones here.
Now look at Matthew 24:1 – “And Jesus went out, and departed from the temple: and his disciples came to him for to show him the buildings and the temple.” Do you see this? Now what is in between Matthew 22:46 and Matthew 24:1? You already know! Matthew 23. Yes! ?
The real message of the widow’s mite
Matthew 23 is the teaching that Jesus does to expose the doctrine the religious leaders were teaching and why the widow believes she has to give her mite.
(1) Then spake Jesus to the multitude, and to his disciples,
(2) Saying, The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat:
(3) All therefore whatsoever they bid you observe, that observe and do; but do not ye after their works: for they say, and do not.
Jesus says “When the scribes and Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat, they are giving you the Law. Believe them. But when they are not in Moses’ seat beware of what they say and what they do.”
Barry White, one of my favorite singers, before he passed away had a hit song “Practice What You Preach”. The scribes and Pharisees were not practicing what they preached.
The oral traditions produced hardship for the people.
(4) For they bind heavy burdens and grievous to be borne, and lay them on men's shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers.
The “heavy burdens” were the “oral traditions” they added to the Law. They were usually more stringent than what the Law prescribed. That’s why Jesus says “they (the scribes and Pharisees) bind heavy burdens” on the people.
(5) But all their works they do for to be seen of men: they make broad their phylacteries, and enlarge the borders of their garments,
(6) And love the uppermost rooms at feasts, and the chief seats in the synagogues,
(7) And greetings in the markets, and to be called of men, Rabbi, Rabbi.
Now look at the very first word in verse 8 – “But”. Jesus and his disciples are looking at the courtyard. They’re seeing the rich give. And they see this poor widow give.
(8) But be not ye called Rabbi: for one is your Master, even Christ; and all ye are brethren.
(9) And call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven.
(10) Neither be ye called masters: for one is your Master, even Christ.
Then in verse 11 Jesus begins to show the disciples what he expects of them. “But he that is greatest among you shall be your servant.” I initially thought “servant” in the Greek was doulos, “bond slave”. But it’s diakonos – “a person who executes the commands of another”.
Jesus tells his disciples “You are not going to be like the scribes and Pharisees. You are going to serve, not be served.” The context here is the poor widow woman. “Unlike the religious leaders, who are seeking to be served, you are my diakonos and you are going to follow my leadership when serving people like this poor widow.”
Beginning in verse 13 Jesus turns his attention to the religious leaders. Look at verse 14.
(14) Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye devour widows' houses, and for a pretence make long prayer: therefore ye shall receive the greater damnation.
Do you see the context? Jesus is not holding up this widow as an example of sacrificial giving. She is not being held up as the model we’re to follow. He is angry – not at the widow but at the religious leaders. Ladies and gentlemen, the widow is the one being sacrificed!
Calling out wrong religious teaching.
Jesus is pointing a finger at a religious system that makes this widow feel she has to give her last mite to receive God’s blessing. He’s pointing a finger at the religious system that says you have to give “big” in order to be blessed by God. (As you read the chapter note how often the words gold, gift, and altar appear.)
Do we not hear that today? The preachers on TV tell us that if we don’t have the money in our bank accounts we can put our “gifts and offerings” on our credit cards. Ladies and gentlemen, the blood of Jesus has already purchased our blessings!
And this is the point of this passage. Jesus is showing us, now listen to me, what’s wrong with religion. The religious leaders used the rich as models for the poor. “If you want to be rich, you have to give big just like they do.”
But all of this time we’ve been taught if you want God’s blessing then you need to do what this widow did. And that is not what Jesus was saying.
Look at verse 23. “Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.”
Jesus is revealing the hypocrisy of the religious leaders. Their hearts were hardened toward God and you could see it by how they did the tithe. Jesus tells the scribes and Pharisees the most important thing they should do is show judgment, mercy and faith. Jesus is referring to Micah 6.
(6) Wherewith shall I come before the LORD, and bow myself before the high God? shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves of a year old?
(7) Will the LORD be pleased with thousands of rams, or with ten thousands of rivers of oil? shall I give my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?
(8) He hat shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the LORD require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?
When this widow pulled out her two mites, the religious leaders should have said “No. Stop. You need this money and more to take care your needs. And we will help you.”
God wants our hearts.
Ladies and gentlemen, this is true for us today. When it comes to giving, God wants our hearts first.
For if there be first a willing mind, it is accepted according to that a man hath, and not according to that he hath not. (2 Corinthians 8:12)
Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver. (2 Corinthians 9:7)
So what is the real message of the widow’s mite?
Jesus is not commending the widow for her giving. No, his heart is aching for her. Jesus is angry at the religious system that makes her feel she has to give her last to receive God’s blessings. God didn’t require it then. God doesn’t require it now.
Now you know the real story. Learn this lesson. Go back and read it again. Pray as you do. And then go tell the people you love the good news!
