Everyone Has Something To Give

Intro

We are in our series, A Generous LIfe, and talking in terms of how God’s call to generosity can be really countercultural. Where culture has conditioned us to look forward to what we are going to get at Christmas, God reminds us it is better to give than to receive. Where culture tells us to only give to those who can pay us back, Jesus teaches us to give with no strings attached. In fact, we should seek out those who couldn’t pay back even if they wanted to.

But what happens if you are in a season of life where you feel like you have nothing to give? What happens when you feel like you’re already stretched too thin and it will be easier to give when you feel like there’s more available? Well this morning, we are going to look at a story in the Gospels that looks at just that scenario. What do you do when you feel like you’ve got nothing to offer?

We will be in Mark 12:41-44 this morning. For a little context, the chapter starts off with Jesus teaching about things like inheritance and money, and moves into resurrection and what the most important commandment is for anyone who considers themselves a believer. By the way, what is the most important commandment according to Mark chapter 12? Mark 12:29–31 “Jesus replied, “The most important commandment is this: ‘Listen, O Israel! The Lord our God is the one and only Lord. And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength.’ The second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ No other commandment is greater than these.””

Keep that in mind as we dive into the story at the end of the chapter.

Mark 12:41–44 NLT

Jesus sat down near the collection box in the Temple and watched as the crowds dropped in their money. Many rich people put in large amounts. Then a poor widow came and dropped in two small coins. Jesus called his disciples to him and said, “I tell you the truth, this poor widow has given more than all the others who are making contributions. For they gave a tiny part of their surplus, but she, poor as she is, has given everything she had to live on.”

Quality over Quantity

Put yourself into the story

Jesus is sitting by the offering box

The box was designed with a funnel or a horn

The money of the day was all coins

The bigger the gift, the more noise it would make

There were some that probably put more in because they saw Jesus sitting there

We often judge by quantity

People would’ve heard the coins going in

Their faith would’ve been judged by how much noise was made, and there would’ve been lots who were impressed by the big donations

Nothing has changed. We judge others by greatness of their actions

You will judge yourself by the amount you can give. In fact, if we don’t think we can give very much, we believe the lie that we shouldn’t bother giving at all because what we have isn’t good enough

There are probably even those who wouldn’t give because they would have been aware of the corruption that was rampant in the temple officials.

Look who isn’t impressed

The crowds may have been impressed by the show of what was clanking in the box, but Jesus isn’t

Not until the little widow shows up. You know, when the widow shows up, she’s got lots to offer. She is the one who can really fill the coffers....

Jesus calls the attention of the disciples so they can see what a truly generous gift is. After everything that has been dropped in, this one must really be good!

She reaches out her hand and drops in… 2 mites, that value of which was less then a penny, for those that remember what a penny is

The disciples, in their limited worldview, would’ve been confused. What are you talking about Jesus? Didn’t you see all these great gifts that came before?

Jesus sees what they are all missing

The reality is that Jesus can see something that no one can; He sees her heart. Where everyone else gave out of their abundance, she gave out of her lack. Where everyone else gave because they had a few coins to spare, she gave inspite of the fact it was all she had left. For her, it wasn’t that she could afford to give; out of love for the Father, she couldn’t afford not to give. For her there wasn’t any other option.

It is in this story that we see the third enemy of generosity: pride. One of the challenges that every single person in the world faces is seeing themselves as the most important person in the world. It is this idea that we are self made men and women, and this is my money and I will do with it what I want. The giving that Jesus was observing wasn’t an act of charity, it was a show of how good life was, what they had accumulated for themselves.

When it comes to practicing generosity, God is less interested about what you are giving and more interested in what you are not giving. In the Old Testament, the prophets said that God was less interested in the sacrifices and more interested in obedience. Generosity has less to do with money and more to do with your heart.

Even in the face of corruption among the temple officials. Some may have not given because they didn’t want their hard earned money going to waste. For the widow, she was acting out of love and obedience to her heavenly Father.

The Most Important Commandment

This brings us back to earlier in chapter 12. Jesus is telling the religious leader what the most important commandment is. Let me unpack for what exactly Jesus is saying when He gives the answer He does.

Love God with all your heart is not a call to love God with all the blood pumping organ of your body. The heart represented your emotions, passions, and desires.

Love God with all your soul is to love Him with all of your will. You soul was the very essence of your life, and when combined with the heart, dictated our day to day conduct

Love God with all your mind is to love God with all your intelligence, your opinions, and your judgments; to love God with all your thoughts

Love God with all your strength is not simply to love him with all your physical capacity, but to love Him with everything your physical capacity has achieved for you. To love God with all your strength is to love Him with all your possessions

It when we unpack this commandment that we are brought back to the widow. She gave all that she had because it was the least she could do for her Lord and her God.

I’ll Give When I Can

Now when most people hear this story, it is very rarely an attitude of refusing to give, but this idea that they simply cannot at this time. Things are tight, there isn’t a whole of extra income, but when we have a little more breathing room, we will give. When there’s a little more in the bank account, then we will start giving.

The truth is, you probably won’t. The NY Times put out a study in 2010 that showed that people with lower incomes tend to be more generous, charitable, trusting, and more helpful toward others. Another study showed that when people had an increase of income, their giving never changed, they just ended up with more disposable income

This brings us to the second passage I want to finish with this morning. Romans 12:3-8

Romans 12:3–8 NLT

Because of the privilege and authority God has given me, I give each of you this warning: Don’t think you are better than you really are. Be honest in your evaluation of yourselves, measuring yourselves by the faith God has given us. Just as our bodies have many parts and each part has a special function, so it is with Christ’s body. We are many parts of one body, and we all belong to each other. In his grace, God has given us different gifts for doing certain things well. So if God has given you the ability to prophesy, speak out with as much faith as God has given you. If your gift is serving others, serve them well. If you are a teacher, teach well. If your gift is to encourage others, be encouraging. If it is giving, give generously. If God has given you leadership ability, take the responsibility seriously. And if you have a gift for showing kindness to others, do it gladly.

Give What You Can

I touched on this last week, but I want to flesh it out even more. The generous life is not just about money, though it is usually the one area we have the toughest time being generous in. A Generous Life, that fulfilling, purposeful life we talked about in the first week, is found when we are generous with everything God has given us.

Paul is reminding us that each of us has gifts and talents that are unique to us and are necessary for the body of Christ to accomplish its goals and purposes. When generosity meets humility, which is the opposite of pride, it creates a desire within us to give what we can.

It all comes back to the heart. It is a recognition that my life is not my own, I was bought at a great price and the least I can do is give all that I can back to God. It is the reminder from Matthew 25 when Jesus tells us what we do for the least of these, we also do for Him. Why? Because everyone is made in the image and likeness of God.

It is not about how much you give, but the quality of what is given. A gift given in love will always mean more than a gift given out of compulsion.