See if you recognize these men...Evil Kenevil – motorcycle stuntman 4 of to 20 most watched sports events ever. Broken over 35 bones…Houdini still known as best escape artist ever – would dislocate his shoulder to escape straightjackets and in Chinese Water torture act, hold breath for more than 3 minutes...Criss Angel – modern day Houdini, levitates in front of thousands outside, blew himself up in a sealed box and cut himself in half, jumped out of a van for a stunt and broke his neck…Robert Peary, north pole, got there on eighth try in 1909, lost 8 toes to frostbite on 1st try, had other 2 toes cut off to walk better….Chuck Yeager – world’s most famous test pilot, first man to break the sound barrier, (broke 2 ribs 2 days before famous test, went to vet to get fixed so air force wouldn’t take him off) flew 61 missions in WWII… What do all these people have in common? They are all extremists. People like this are all around us. fun to watch, great for television…but are exercises of the extreme good or bad? Some would say good. Everyone told Columbus he would die trying to reach the new world, but his determination led the way for our ancestors to come to America. Columbus discovered not only new routes to the west, but he also discovered certain trade winds and ocean currents that are still used today. But some would say bad. With all the extreme sports and things we see on TV like Espn’s X games, more and more people are getting hurt and even killed trying to do these things. Here’s my question…does it have anything to do with us? REAL people? Again, fun to watch, but does it serve any value, other than just cable tv shows? Is there any real value in exploring these extremes? I asked the same question when I read 3 stories in the Bible recently about extreme giving. During the last two weeks in our Firstfruits series, we’ve talked about giving our best and making a commitment. No doubt the Bible teaches us to give. But there are 3 stories in the Bible about giving, that to me, can be called nothing less than extreme. Today, I want us to read 3 stories about 3 women who are remembered for their extreme giving. And as we read them, I have the same question with these stories and the extreme stunt people of our day…what does this have to do with me? Could their examples teach us anything about our giving? Or is this, like extreme sports and stunts, just for crazy people?
Let’s look at the first one. Mark 14:3- 9 (read scripture)…Here we have our first example of extreme giving. One woman gave something expensive. Now to put this into perspective, Mark let’s you know this was worth a year’s wages. So in today’s terms in our culture, that might be a $30,000 bottle of perfume. I thought and I thought, and I really couldn’t come up with a modern day example where someone gives a gift like this. Sure, rich people make large and public donations, but never this much. It’s extreme, even by today’s standards. Maybe the lesson, the application, is not so much in the gift, but in the woman who gave it. This was not the gift of a wealthy woman. But a destitute woman. A woman who was known in the community as an immoral woman. Her name was Mary (from John’s gospel). Mary was a woman who most likely made her living selling herself to others. So why in the world did she “waste” this expensive bottle of perfume? Why not to the poor? First of all, where did she get it? Scripture doesn’t say, but I have an idea. Probably payment from one of her clients. Maybe it was extortion. Maybe she stole it. We have no idea. All we know is that this is an extremely expensive bottle of perfume. Kept in a jar that was sealed. Could only be opened one time and had to use up all of it. So why did she keep it? I can’t prove this, but I have a theory. Somehow at some point in her life, Mary made some bad choices. She probably dreamed of getting married one day, but instead men had become a source of funding, not for a family. But she dreamed of maybe one day, finding just the right guy who would see past her “profession” and be willing to settle down with her. And in that day, when a wedding would occur, the family of the bride would pay a dowry, a fee if you will, to help them start. I couldn’t find it in any of my commentaries, but I would venture that it’s possible that Mary was saving this for the hopes that when she met the right guy, this cold be used to help start their life together. It turns out, that man was Jesus, but not in the way she thought. When she first met Jesus, he didn’t want to use her. Or marry her. He came to forgive her her sins. And I believe that she realized she would never find another man like Jesus. So she decided to give this gift, what she had been saving, to Jesus. The scripture says that this was done to anoint Jesus for his burial. Was Mary aware of this? Probably not. I think instead, what is clear here is that this is an extreme act of love. This is Mary saying “Jesus, I’ve been waiting for a man who would love me and I could give my life to. And it’s you.” And so she gave Him the best gift she had. And from the rest of the Bible, we see this wasn’t a one time gift. From now on, Mary would never leave His side. One could argue that among all Jesus’ followers, including the disciples, including Peter, no one loved Jesus more than Mary. That’s why she’s there at his arrest, even though the others ran. That’s why she’s at His crucifixion, right there at the foot of the cross. At that’s why she’s there on Sunday morning at what was supposed to be His grave. And maybe this is why, that out of all of Jesus’ followers, she is the first to see Him resurrected. Why? Because she gave an extreme gift. An extreme gift of love.
So what does this have to do with you? Is it just a story? Maybe the reason this story is told is so you and I can look at what we have and ask….are we willing to give what is most precious to us and to say “Lord, I love you more than this…and I love you more than my own life…take it…and use it, and me, according to your will.”
We have a story of another woman. One woman gave two coins. That’s it…two coins. Read Luke 21:1-4. (read scripture) “As he looked up, Jesus saw the rich putting their gifts into the temple treasury. He also saw a poor widow put in two very small copper coins."I tell you the truth," he said, "this poor widow has put in more than all the others. All these people gave their gifts out of their wealth; but she out of her poverty put in all she had to live on. "Imagine, headlines from Billy Graham crusade, offering taken, “Billy Graham praise woman for giving her two cents”. If Tiger Woods or Donald Trump gave a million dollars to Billy Graham, it would make headlines, and we’d all praise them for being so generous, even though they could probably find that much in the cushions of their couches. But a gift of two small coins? Who cares? No one cared in this story…that is except Jesus. Why was this gift so special? It was because Jesus didn’t only see she gave two coins. He also saw that she left nothing else in her pockets. Gave everything she had left. Scripture says “all she had to live on”. Let’s not gloss over this huge word. Everything. ALL she had to live on. She had nothing else. Have you ever literally spent your last dollar? People do it everyday. It’s sad in our society there are people who spend their last dollar on a lottery ticket. Or on alcohol. This woman knew she wouldn’t make it on those two coins. So she decided to trust in God. This was an extreme act…an extreme act of faith. She was saying “God, I have nothing left. So I won’t trust in my coins. I’ll trust in your promises.” Now, if God left it up to me to determine who should give or not and how much, I would have easily let her slide. I’d have no problem saying “pass the plate to those rich people another time or two.” And to this woman I would say “ma’am, please, don’t do this. Here…let me give to you.” But here is the amazing thing that is overlooked, both in the story of the two coins AND in the story we heard about the expensive perfume. Have you caught it yet? In both stories, Jesus ACCEPTS the extreme gifts. Blows me away! You and I…I think we’d react like everyone else in the stories. With the perfume, I agree with the others…sell it, give it to the poor. But look again at what happens. (Mark 14:6-9)… Jesus says “leave her alone, this is for my burial…you can help the poor anytime you want.” Jesus doesn’t say “don’t do this…sell it and use the money for a more noble purpose…me? Oh, a little Aqua Velva from Walgreens will be just fine…” Jesus accepts the generous gift. And again, in this story, he allows the woman to give her very last penny? Why? Because He knows what we forget so often…That our gifts to God should be our very best, and that we are in far better shape giving everything we have to God and being in His care than hoarding our goods thinking they are what’s needed to care for us. Both these women didn’t just say they trusted in God, they showed it. This poor widow…she knew money wasn’t going to save her. This is an extreme act…of faith. It was time to put her money where her faith was and trust God completely. And notice that both stories are on opposite ends of the spectrum. One, even by today’s standards, ridiculously expensive…the other…what kind of God would accept a widow’s last two coins? But Jesus accepts them both. These ladies saw a chance…to trust God at a level most of us would never approach. And now, their stories, their acts of faith, have inspired millions of us.
I’ve given to the church. Tithed. Special offerings. But never anything like this. Made a large gift to special cause. But never a year’s salary. Tithed when money was tight. But never my last dollar. Why these 2 stories? Is it so we find the most expensive thing in our life and give it to the church? Or when we are at the bottom we give everything we have left to the church? So what does this have to do with you? Is it just a story? Maybe the reason this story is told is so you and I can look at what we have and ask….are we willing to give what is most precious to us and to say “Lord, I love you more than this…and I love you more than my own life…take it…and use it, and me, according to your will.”
One woman gave a lot of money. Another woman gave the last of her money. But this last one, this last extreme gift had nothing to do with money. It was a gift far more valuable. And risky. One woman gave her son. I Samuel 1:9-11. (read scripture). Once when they had finished eating and drinking in Shiloh, Hannah stood up. Now Eli the priest was sitting on a chair by the doorpost of the LORD’s temple. In bitterness of soul Hannah wept much and prayed to the LORD. And she made a vow, saying, "O LORD Almighty, if you will only look upon your servant’s misery and remember me, and not forget your servant but give her a son, then I will give him to the LORD for all the days of his life, and no razor will ever be used on his head." Hannah had a husband. But she had no children. She had food to eat and money to spare. But she had no children. Like the first two women…people probably spoke poorly of her. Not because of bad behavior…but because she was barren. No children…in that time, people thought, no kids because of sin. She was faithful, tried, no children. So she prayed…prayed and prayed and prayed. She desperately wanted a child, a son…why? To show she was not disapproved by God? To show up her rival? To impress her husband? Again, I can’t prove it, but here’s what I think. I think she wanted God to use her to do a miracle. She knew all the stories of the Old Testament. Like how Sarah was barren, but God gave her a child in her old age, and that God took that child, named Isaac, and made him into a great nation. Israel needed a great leader. The current priest was old and his sons were corrupt. So Hannah prayed and said “God give me a son…and when you do, I’ll give him back to you.” She didn’t just want to have a child…she wanted to have a part in God doing something great through here. And the only way (slide 25) that could happen? Was if she gave an extreme gift. This was an extreme act of worship. This was Hannah saying “I know what I want…but God I love you and trust you more than what I want most, so if you will give me what I want most…then, as an act of worship, I’ll give him back to you.” The Lord heard Hannah’s prayer and He answered. God gave her a son named Samuel. And as promised, Hannah gave him back to God. He served at the temple. And when he was old enough, God called him to be his prophet and judge for Israel. So what does this have to do with you? Is it just a story? Maybe the reason this story is told is so you and I can look at what we have and ask….are we willing to give what is most precious to us and to say “Lord, I love you more than this…and I love you more than my own life…take it…and use it, and me, according to your will.”
I’ve been a Christian for nearly 30 years. I know a lot about God and a lot about having a relationship with God. But you know why I think these scriptures about extreme giving are in here? It’s so if you are like me, you’ve been a Christian for so long, you think you are as close to God as you can be…maybe you, and I, need to think again. I’ve never trusted God, not at levels like this. Have you? Maybe these extremes aren’t even relevant for you. You need to just start giving something. But maybe some of you…you’ve been faithful, obedient, you’ve given the standard, commanded gift, the tithe, as laid out in scripture. Maybe God is saying to you “I want even more”. Why? Maybe God still has more to teach you…that living dependent on him is far better…if we would trust Him.
Remember Evel Kinevil? All his life, he did his stunts, both on his motorcycle and his life. He partied, he abused himself, he used other people…like his body, he also broke all the relationships around him. For 60 years, he thought the world and everyone in it owed him something. That is until April this very year. At the age of 68, Evel Kinevil made his last great extreme leap, but not on a motorcycle. Evel Kinevil gave his life to Christ. At Robert Shuller’s Crystal Cathedral, Evel Kinevil told a crowd of over 4,000 people that he told the Devil who had been leading him up to this point to “get away from me, I cast you out of my life forever…And then I got on my knees and asked God to wrap his arms around me and never, never, never let me go.”
Giving. Giving that brings us close to God. Sometimes, it requires extremes. For us to be forgiven of our sins, we have to do something extreme. Like Evel Kinevil, like everyone, we have to give our lives back to God and ask Him to forgive us. That’s what God did for us too. He gave the life of His son Jesus, who gave at an extreme level, by dying on a cross for us. Eternal life is available, if we are willing to accept an extreme gift.
