The Heart Of Giving

“The Heart of Giving"

Mark 12:41-44

A small church in Virginia:

­ needed to have a new roof in the worst of ways, but

­ There was no money in their account.

Most of the congregation was very poor except for the local banker:

­ He was an ornery old cuss, and

­ he would be the first in church so he could always

­ sit in the back pew by the door.

That way, he could:

­ always get up and leave

­ during prayer

­ right before the offering was collected.

One day, on the way to church:

­ An accident in front of him made him late.

­ When he got to the Church,

­ the only place to sit was on the front pew in front of the pastor.

As the pastor prayed for God:

­ to send them money for the roof,

­ a piece broke off and fell down,

­ hitting the banker on the head.

He immediately yelled out, “I’ll give $1,000. for the roof!”

And one of the men in back yelled out, “Hit him again, Lord!”

What does it mean to give in a way that pleases God?

The bulk of our time this morning will be:

- talking about Jesus’ praise for a widow

- who gave sacrificially in her offering…

- And GAVE ALL she had and

- TRUSTING God to Provide what she needed

But before we get there:

- we see that Jesus was just confronting

- the scribes and pharisees

- about their pride and hypocrisy,

Jesus will draw a contrast:

­ between the attitude of the widow and

­ that of the hypocritical attitude scribes and pharisees

Here is a summary of what Jesus said about the scribes and Pharisees:

A. Hypocritical: They say one thing but do another

B. Burden Others: Place heavy burdens on people but don’t help

C. Love Praise: Seek recognition and honor from others

D. Mislead People: Shut people out of God’s kingdom

E. Neglect Justice: Focus on minor rules but ignore justice, mercy, and faithfulness

F. Outwardly Righteous: Look holy outwardly but are corrupt inwardly

G. Spiritually Blind: Lead others astray through ignorance

H. Reject Prophets: Honor past prophets while repeating their ancestors' sins

Now in Mark 12:38–40 contrasts them a humble widow:

“Then He said to them in His teaching, “Beware of the scribes, who desire to go around in long robes, love greetings in the marketplaces, the best seats in the synagogues, and the best places at feasts, who devour widows’ houses and for a pretense make long prayers. These will receive greater condemnation.”

- This takes place on Wednesday of the Passion Week

Jesus once again condemned the scribes:

- who were leading the people

- they taught many good things

- but they themselves did not live what they taught…

Jesus told the crowds to “BEWARE” of the scribes:

- who wanted attention and personal glory

- who and devoured widow’s houses

The widows were the most vulnerable in God’s flock:

- The religious leaders should have protected the widows, instead…

- they cheated them, manipulated them and

- stole from the widows in order to enrich themselves

“Now Jesus sat opposite the treasury and saw how the people put money into the treasury. And many who were rich put in much. 42 Then one poor widow came and threw in two mites, which make a quadrans.”

- Mark 12:41–42 (NKJV)

1. Jesus OBSERVES the GIVING

This all took place in the court of the women:

- where both women and men could assemble

- in the court were 13 offering receptacles, that were shaped

- like the bell of a trumpet or shofar facing skyward

- that emptied into a chest to store the coins

Jesus sat and watched people:

­ put their offering into these offering Trumpets

­ these were voluntary offerings, above the 10% tithe

­ some put in a little money, others dropped in big money

One night, a burglar broke into an elderly woman’s home:

­ As he crept through the living room,

­ he suddenly heard a loud voice say,

­ "Jesus is watching you!"

Startled, the burglar froze:

o He looked around but saw nothing,

o so he continued.

o Again, the voice boomed, "Jesus is watching you!"

This time, the burglar shone:

his flashlight around the room and

spotted a parrot in a cage.

Relieved, he chuckled and said, "So, you’re Jesus, huh?"

The parrot replied, "No, I’m Moses. Jesus is the Rottweiler behind you."

How much thought have we given:

- to the idea that Jesus is aware of our actions

- that He is watching what we do and more importantly,

- that the Lord is aware of our intentions

Do we think that somehow: