#52 Scribes and the Widow’s Offering
Series: Mark
Chuck Sligh
August 29, 2021
TEXT: Mark 12:38-44 – "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 pretense make long prayers: these shall receive greater damnation.
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. 42 And there came a certain poor widow, and she threw in two mites, which make a farthing. 43 And he 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."
INTRODUCTION
Life is full of contrasts and opposites.
Illus. – I’m going to give you a quick quiz. Don’t worry, it’s easy! I’ll give you a word and you give me the opposite. Ready?
The opposite of Fast is… Slow.
The opposite of Long is… Short.
The opposite of Cold is… Hot.
The opposite of Young is… Old.
The opposite of Soft is… Hard.
The opposite of Sour is… Sweet.
The opposite of High is… Low.
The opposite of Rich is… Poor.
The opposite of Love is… Hate
Today we’re going to look at two stories in Mark, chapter 12. At first glance it may seem that they’re randomly placed, and thus deserving of separate sermons. But there is a reason God put them together. It was to show the stark contrast between one group of religious people who did not please Jesus and a poor, pious widow who pleased Jesus immensely. Let’s dive in and look at this contrast Mark wants us to see.
I. IN VERSES 38-40, JESUS CONDEMNS THE SCRIBES – “And he said unto them in his teaching, ‘Beware of the scribes, who 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 Who devour widows’ houses, and for a pretense make long prayers: these shall receive greater damnation.’”
In Mark 8:15, Jesus had already warned the people to beware of the Pharisees and the Herodians. Now it’s the scribes’ turn for a warning because they sought praise from men and abused their privileges. As a whole, the scribes had a completely false sense of values. They were filled with pride and arrogance, which was completely out of sync with the Lord’s attitude of humility and meekness. Certainly not all of them did the things Jesus described, but it was common enough that the people would have recognized the criticisms and they were probably nodding their heads in agreement while Jesus was speaking.
Jesus mentions several offences of many of the scribes:
First, they liked to go around in long, flowing clothes. These were long white linen robes with fringes worn by the priests, scribes, and Levites. It was the kind of robe in which one could neither hurry nor work and was the sign of a leisured man of honor. In reality, most scribes were not wealthy like the Sadducees. So they decorated their garments with these fringes to accentuate their important place in society. If you can’t be rich, look important.
Second, they loved to be greeted in the marketplaces with formal titles, like rabbi or master or father. – This bolstered their egos and sense of importance.
They also coveted the most important synagogue seats—those reserved for dignitaries, situated in front of the chest containing the sacred scrolls of Scripture and facing the whole congregation so that everyone would see them.
They also sought the places of honor at banquets and special evening meals at which they were seated next to the host and received preferential treatment.
The worst charge was “devouring widows houses.” This a vivid word picture describing the exploitation of the generosity of people of limited means, especially widows. Widows were told if they supported a scribe, it earned them points in heaven. These scribes preyed upon the poor for their own comfort.
Finally, Jesus said they prayed long prayers. – Presumably this was for the purpose of impressing others, not to show true worship of God.
For these offenses, Jesus gave them a stern warning in verse 40. He said scribes who did these kinds of things would receive a greater judgment. It’s a reminder that those in spiritual leadership will be judged more harshly because of their greater spiritual responsibility. “To whom much is given…much shall be required” Jesus said in Luke 12:48.
I. SECOND, IN VERSES 41-44, JESUS APPLAUDS A GENEROUS WIDOW. – “And Jesus sat over against [opposite] the treasury, and beheld [watched] how the people cast money into the treasury. And many who were rich cast in much. 42 And there came a certain poor widow and she threw in two mites, which make a farthing. 43 And he called to 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’”
The “treasury” was in the Temple’s Court of the Women at which there were 13 trumpet-shaped offering receptacles where people could give free will offerings, that is, offerings freely given above the biblically required tithes. Once positioned opposite the treasury, Jesus began watching as people gave their free will offerings. Many people gave large sums of money—marching up; pompously dropping their money in with a loud clang to impress the people present.
But a certain poor widow threw in “2 mites,” which in the Greek is 2 “lepta.” A lepton was a copper coin that was the smallest Jewish coin in Palestine at the time, equal in worth to 1/64th of a Roman denarius. I’m sure THAT clears it up for you, right?! Here’s how to put it into perspective: In that day a denarius was the average day’s wage for a laborer. So today this would be equal to just a couple of dollars at most.
After telling the story, Jesus emphasizes his appraisal of her by saying, “Verily (or “truly”) I say to you,…” followed by saying that she gave more than all the others had.
How could that be?—Because what they gave was no comparable sacrifice. Though their offerings were greater in AMOUNT, they were not greater in VALUE, for they gave out of their material wealth at little cost to them, but the widow gave all she had left to live on. By giving this way, she was trusting wholly in God to provide for her.
John R Edwards says, “How powerfully ironic is the word “more” in Mark’s description. Everything about this woman has been described in terms of less, particularly in comparison to the scribes and wealthy crowd. And yet, the contrast between her genuine piety and faith and the pretense of the wealthy is beyond compare.”
APPLICATIONS
These two passages are contrasting opposites by which to ask ourselves: Are we like the scribes or like this wonderful widow? In these two stories, Jesus gives contrasting approaches of the way of discipleship. The scribes were, as a rule, pretentious, haughty, and self-serving, things totally out of harmony with Jesus Himself and His call for us to follow in His steps. This woman, on the other hand, was a model of piety and devotion and discipleship, giving her ALL to God.
The irony is that some scribes were exploitative towards just such people as this impoverished widow. We saw last week that Jesus taught that the Great Commandment is to love God supremely and to love our neighbor as ourselves, and we saw that our neighbor means all people. Abusive scribes were not loving their neighbor, and thus not loving God by their predatory behavior.
But this widow gave a free-will offering which went towards the upkeep of the Temple where the people worshipped—revealing her wholehearted LOVE FOR GOD, and some of the money went to the Levites, who performed the temple upkeep and who did not possess land to support themselves and thus were dependent on such free will offerings for their livelihood. This showed her LOVE OF OTHERS. Which are you more like?—The self-promoting scribes or the sacrificing widow?
What can we take away from this sermon?
First, take note that God hates “show-off Christianity.”
In the dictionary, to “show off” is defined as “to make a deliberate or pretentious display of one’s abilities or accomplishments.” Jesus’ harshest words were reserved for religious show-offs. We see it in today’s story.
Also, in the Sermon on the Mount Jesus said in Matthew 6:5, “And when you pray, do not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.”
Earlier in His sermon, Jesus said, “Take heed that you do not your alms before men, to be seen of them: otherwise you will have no reward of your Father who is in heaven.” Matthew 6:2).
Here are two symptoms of show-off religion:
• Show-off religion is concerned with outward appearance.
Jesus said the show-off scribes loved to walk around in flowing robes to be noticed and looked up to. Jesus was showing us how empty show-off religion is. Inward purity has little to do with outward appearance.
Samuel said in 1 Samuel 16:7, “Man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.”
Don’t get me wrong, our outward appearance can reflect our heart. But our focus in our relationship with God should be on revealing God’s character in our lives, not showing off outward religious acts. You can fool people, but you can’t fool God. He sees what you really are on the inside.
• Second, show-off religion loves public recognition.
To the scribes, their position in the Jewish religion gave them a special status in their community. They wanted to be at the top of the religious and societal pecking order. They wanted to be seen as “great” in the eyes of others. They wanted others to serve them and meet their needs and pay them special care and attention.
But this runs counter to the calling for disciples of Jesus. Twice before—in Mark 9:35 and 10:43, Jesus had said that the way to be “great” was to be the servant of all. SERVANTHOOD is the measure by which God is pleased, not how we are perceived by others. The true servant of the Lord serves God from his or her heart, caring not if their labor is recognized or not.
The second thing I want us to take away from this passage of Scripture is that sacrificial giving delights Jesus.
What a blessing it must have been to watch this woman give out of sheer faith and devotion. The Pharisees and the Sadducees and the scribes had been hounding Jesus continually. And while watching people give, Jesus sees this precious saint who models for us what it is to give our all to God.
By telling her story, Jesus memorialized her action for all eternity. David Dykes described her as, “…the matron saint for the millions of believers who don’t have much money, but they give generously to the Lord’s work.”
This story reminds us of 2 things about our giving:
• First, it reminds us that Jesus watches what we give.
Jesus wasn’t just people-watching that day in the Court of the Women; He was watching people GIVE THEIR OFFERINGS. He was interested is what people did with their money. Yes, He saw the wealthy give their large gifts, and He may have been pleased with some of them who did not give pretentiously. But He also saw a widow giving two small copper coins.
I doubt that the disciples or the priests even noticed her tiny offering, but JESUS was watching, and He said she gave more than anyone else. And just as Jesus watched those people give back then, He’s interested in our giving today.
Illus. – G. Campbell Morgan was a famous British pastor of Westminster Chapel in London. On the Sunday he was going to preach on this passage, he did something unusual during the offering. As the plates were being passed, he stepped out of the pulpit and walked down the center aisle and looked down every row as the people were giving their offerings. Some of the people were offended, but as he preached on this passage, he reminded the people that Jesus really WAS watching when they give.
2 Chronicles 16:9 says, “For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to shew himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward him.” – I bet when this poor widow returned home, God provided for her in some amazing way because God is watching us and He wants to show Himself powerful in our behalf.
• Second, this passage also reminds us that Jesus appreciates sacrifice.
Jesus doesn’t comment on anyone else’s offering, but when He saw the widow’s gift, He got excited.
The word “Verily” literally is amen which we pronounce as “Amen.”
If the priests had compiled a list of givers, this poor widow would have been the last name on their list—but she was highest on the God’s list for what matters most! You see, God doesn’t just look at the size of your gift; He looks on what you have left over after you give. A person could give $1,000 and still have a million dollars, but when someone gives their last dollar, that grabs heaven’s attention. God’s value system is different.
Illus. – A few years ago, Microsoft founder Bill Gates received a lot of attention because he and his wife donated $100 million to combat global AIDS. The world says that’s a huge gift, and as a dollar amount, it is. At the time, though, his net worth was $83 billion (it’s 146 billion now). That $100 million was a little over 0.1% of his net worth. But this widow gave 100%.
This was a real sacrifice because by giving all she had, she was forced to depend on God. We’ll never know until we get to heaven what happened to this widow, but I think we can say with certainty that she didn’t starve to death and didn’t become a beggar.
King David made this observation about God’s provision in Psalm 37:25, “I have been young, and now am old; yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his children begging bread.”
Jesus—more than anyone—understood the kind of sacrifice this woman exhibited. As He watched the widow place her two copper coins in the offering, He was mindful that in just a few days He would be paying the ULTIMATE sacrifice. Within 3 days, Jesus knew He would be nailed to an old rugged cross and would sacrifice the “priceless silver of His tears and the precious gold of His blood” as David Dykes put it. When you look at the cross, the only response is to say, “Lord, like this poor widow, I want to surrender everything I have and everything I am to you.”
Illus. – Isaac Watts wrote the song When I Survey the Wondrous Cross in 1707. Sing it with me, and listen carefully to the lyrics:
When I survey the wondrous cross
on which the prince of glory died
My richest gain I count but loss
and pour contempt on all my pride.”
The final verse is my favorite. It says,
Were the whole realm of nature mine
that were a present far too small
Love so amazing so divine;
demands my soul, my life, my all!
Such a great sacrifice demands our soul, our life, our all. This morning may you surrender your all to Jesus.
