Who Are You Pleasing?

If you have your Bible and I hope that you do, please turn with me to Mark 12. We will be in Mark 12:38-44. We are asking who are you pleasing? and the Scripture is going to provide two- one of what sickens God and one that delights God.

It’s no surprise, but many folks are very self-centered. It’s nothing new for sure. Nebuchadnezzar was focused upon himself and demanded his image be worshipped. The Beatles declared they were bigger than Jesus. Kanye West may the most self-centered person on earth. He’s interrupted awards show winners during their acceptance speech to tell them they shouldn’t have won, he’s declared himself to be a god, he’s said that he is Shakespeare in the flesh. There seems to be no bottom to his vanity!

The fact is that what is pleasing to God goes beyond just what people see. The focus of giving is the heart and its a place that no one really understands, but God sees it clearly. Let’s stand together in honor of God’s Word as we learn from Mark 12:38-44

Mark 12:38–44 ESV

And in his teaching he said, “Beware of the scribes, who like to walk around in long robes and like greetings in the marketplaces and have the best seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at feasts, who devour widows’ houses and for a pretense make long prayers. They will receive the greater condemnation.” And he sat down opposite the treasury and watched the people putting money into the offering box. Many rich people put in large sums. And a poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which make a penny. And he called his disciples to him and said to them, “Truly, I say to you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the offering box. For they all contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on.”

Before we get too far into it, you may want to find Matthew 23 as well. It’s the parallel passage and I will be referencing it often in this sermon. So just be ready. The first thing we are going to examine is

1. The Heart That Seeks Man’s Approval

Jesus emphatically Matthew 6:24

Matthew 6:24 ESV

“No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other.

The context there is about money, but it can extend to anything that we are tempted to trust in. For the scribes it was their religious actions. They believed that they were holy and righteous because everyone praised them! People looked up to these experts of the Law and the scribes loved it! They loved the praises of men, but their actions proved that they had no true love for God.

What are the characteristics of a people? Well we can note that the heart that seeks man’s approval

Seeks Recognition and Status

Look at what the scribe is like… They like to be seen and honored by others. That word “like” is wish or want. It’s what their hope is. They wear their clothes not so God would be pleased but so that others would be drawn in by their outward piety.

The scribes, He said, “desire to go around in long robes.” A Jewish man would wear a prayer shawl for reciting prayers but scribes wore special ones that would extend all the way to the ground. They had ornate tassels at the end.

I once knew a man who carried a beat up Bible. It was marked up and underlined all through it. I loved looking at it and admired it. I was pretty impressed by his study time and complemented him. His kid told me later that it was his uncles who marked it all up and when he passed away, his dad took it and brought it to church. At first it was because he wanted to remember his brother but it changed to enjoying the attention he got from people.

In Matthew 23, Jesus pronounced several woes on the scribes because of their hypocrisy. Look at Matthew 23:5-7

Matthew 23:5–7 ESV

They do all their deeds to be seen by others. For they make their phylacteries broad and their fringes long, and they love the place of honor at feasts and the best seats in the synagogues and greetings in the marketplaces and being called rabbi by others.

Oh man the scribes loved all the greetings. It was a sign of honor to be greeted in the marketplaces because the scribes were revered! These people know God! And they loved it! John 12:43

John 12:43 ESV

for they loved the glory that comes from man more than the glory that comes from God.

In synagogues of the first century, the best seats were the benches along the sides; poorer people sat on the floor, but the scribes had a special place to sit near the scrolls and speaker. At feasts the host would sit at the heads of the table and scribes would sit in seats of honor next to them. They loved these signs of honor and respect.

And these are the leaders and no one can see their hearts, but Jesus does. Secondly the heart that seeks man’s approval

Speaks Righteousness but Lacks True Obedience

The scribes made sure everyone thought they were righteous through their teachings and prayers. They had these long, drawn out public prayers and they prayed that way not out of love for God, but so that others would see them and think, “WOW! That’s a holy man right there!” It’s like Claude Frollo in the Hunchback of Notre Dame. In the first scene we see Judge Frollo kill Quasimodo’s mother, and nearly killed the infant as well. Frollo claimed to be righteous and devout, but his actions which are motivated by hatred, oppression, and lust—betray his true heart. So he tries to justify horrific actions under the guise of serving God.

The scribes they would teach the true things of God. They knew the answers. It was all up here but it never worked its way to the heart and never impacted their actions. This is what James talks about in James 2:24

James 2:24 ESV

You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone.

If your actions don’t match your confession, then you have no evidence of knowing God.

Matthew 23:2–3 ESV

“The scribes and the Pharisees sit on Moses’ seat, so do and observe whatever they tell you, but not the works they do. For they preach, but do not practice.

You can know all the answers, you can look the “right way” whatever that is, you can use all the right words, but if you don’t know and love God, what’s it all for? “There is no worse screen to block out the Spirit than confidence in our own intelligence.” — John Calvin

There once was a lighthouse keeper that kept warning everyone to watch out for the rocks. Day after day, he warned passing boats, to watch out for the rocks. Yet, he never made sure that the light in the lighthouse was burning. While his words were right, his actions had devastating consequences and ultimately made his words empty.

Burdening Others Instead of Serving (Matthew 23:4, 13-15)

Jesus goes into this in detail in Matthew 23:4, 13-15

Matthew 23:4 ESV

They tie up heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on people’s shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to move them with their finger.

Matthew 23:13–15 ESV

“But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you shut the kingdom of heaven in people’s faces. For you neither enter yourselves nor allow those who would enter to go in. Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you travel across sea and land to make a single proselyte, and when he becomes a proselyte, you make him twice as much a child of hell as yourselves.

Many churches put barriers in the way of coming to Christ. Instead of offering the free grace that is available through repentance and belief in Christ, they say you need to repent and believe the Gospel AND…

The truth is that salvation is free and whosoever will may come. And you’re a whosoever and Christ has made payment so that you don’t have to do anything that humans say, but rather what does Jesus say?

Acts 20:21 ESV

testifying both to Jews and to Greeks of repentance toward God and of faith in our Lord Jesus Christ.

These men, instead of serving widows chose to “devour widow’s houses”. There are those that seek to take advantage of widows and their loneliness to build up their bank accounts.

I heard a story of a dance instructor that would go to widows and convince them to take his dance class. In exchange for his instruction he promised connection and community. However, his classes cost several hundred dollars a month! One widow said that she couldn’t afford it and he offered to take her to the bank to get a second mortgage!

God has a special place in his heart for those that are all alone. Widows and orphans are among the most vulnerable and God cares deeply about them. Scribes would go to vulnerable widows and basically convince them that they would be more righteous if they give away all their savings.

Driven by Pride Instead of Humility

The greetings in marketplaces were full of titles like Rabbi! Master! Or Father! The Talmud states “a person must greet one who is greater than he in knowledge of Torah”.

Listen to what Jesus said in Matthew 23:11-12

Matthew 23:11–12 ESV

The greatest among you shall be your servant. Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.

This is what Jesus says because He is the greatest example of humility. Instead of asking others to wash His feet, He stooped down to wash theirs. Instead of telling others to pay for their sins, the Son of God was laid bare and drank the full cup of God’s wrath on our behalf.

Jesus earlier warned the disciples against “the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod”. This was a warning against the pride, greed, and corruption of the scribes which leads to

Condemned by God

Their hypocrisy leads to strong judgment from Jesus. Matthew 23:33-36

Matthew 23:33–36 ESV

You serpents, you brood of vipers, how are you to escape being sentenced to hell? Therefore I send you prophets and wise men and scribes, some of whom you will kill and crucify, and some you will flog in your synagogues and persecute from town to town, so that on you may come all the righteous blood shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah the son of Barachiah, whom you murdered between the sanctuary and the altar. Truly, I say to you, all these things will come upon this generation.

Can you imagine being a scribe and hearing this in the temple? These teachers were charged by God to teach the Law as teachers, but were expected to follow the Law as God’s chosen people! They weren’t concerned with people knowing God and serving God personally. They were concerned with people following the Law and their desires and as a result their condemnation is harsher than others. This is a warning for myself, the elders, Sunday School teachers, missionaries, and others. We are held tighter to the same standard.

Let’s next look at the next example:

2. The Heart That Seeks God’s Approval

The scene changes from Jesus pronouncing judgment and woes on the scribes to Jesus being near the temple treasury which was in the court of women so anyone could give. The temple treasury was the national bank of Israel and had thirteen places for donations.

Giving to the Lord was a practice established shortly after Israel was delivered from Egypt. The Hebrews brought gold, silver, skins, dyes, wood, oil, spices, precious stones and more for the worship of God. After the Tabernacle was built and all the outfits for the priests were made, God gave clear rules for tithing for the people of God. Most of the tithes were grain, wine, oil, and livestock. For many that lived far away they would sell their offerings and bring the money to the Tabernacle. These gifts are what supported the priests and Levites but it also helped with ministry.

And the people participated in this joyfully! Jesus watched the people and He saw several people give vast amounts of money. You could hear the large amounts of silver being dropped into the offering boxes. And a widow slips in and places her two small copper coins into the box and slips away.

God sees everything you do and the heart behind your actions. A few things we can learn from our widow here about the heart that seeks God’s approval is

Gives with a Sincere Heart

God isn’t as concerned with the amount as He is the heart. I recently saw Bill Gates sitting with a late night host talking about his wealth. He said he could give away 99% of his wealth and still be left with over a billion dollars.

Utterly astonishing isn’t it? A man could give away over 100 billion dollar and still be left with plenty to live on for then next several generations. God isn’t impressed with all that being given away if the heart behind it isn’t pure.

The widow’s offering was small, but it was sacrificial and full of love! God took that simple offering and has multiplied it many times over through the last 2,000 years by her example. Jesus saw her act of obedience and love and saw her devotion and this is the kind of devotion we are called to.

She gave with sincerity! We have wealthy people in our church, we have poor people. We have those that give regularly, and we have those that need to work on it. Don’t look at what your friend is doing. Have a Godward view of your offering because that’s ultimately why we give! When you give it empowers ministry here at FBC. It allows us to take care of the facility that God has blessed us with. It allows us to make plans and execute them to minister to our community.

You are called to give, but consider the heart behind your giving.

Secondly the heart that seeks God’s approval

Trusts in God's Provision

The widow gave everything she had. I do not believe Jesus allowed for her to go and starve. She followed the Lord and relied on Him and He takes care of us.

Contrast that with the scribes. She quietly gave and they loudly proclaimed their righteous actions. The poor lady probably never wanted anyone to notice her and her meager offering. She gave two mites. It ‘s called a lepta which means “peeled” in the Greek.

It’s a thin coin that was worth about one-thirty-second of a denarius. In our world it would equal about 15 minutes of manual work. Perhaps about $5. A small amount but enough for a small meal. She was giving up her food for the day to demonstrate her love of God. She trusted that God would meet her needs.

Next we learn the heart that seeks God’s approval is

Humble and Not Seeking Recognition

This woman slips in unnoticed to everyone and slips away. The only person that sees her is Jesus. She is not seeking the praises of men and showing everyone how holy she is in missing her meal for the day for God. She gives and slips away.

Jesus commends those that are humble and meek. Proverbs 22:4

Proverbs 22:4 ESV

The reward for humility and fear of the Lord is riches and honor and life.

In our world today you have celebrities that get together for various fundraisers. Many won’t lift a finger to help unless there’s camera’s around to see them. What would happen if our big charities didn’t give plaques for big contributions? What if there weren’t PR photographers while musicians visit sick children?

“Humility is the ornament of angels, and pride the deformity of devils.” — Thomas Watson

Finally we learn that the heart of a God pleaser

Loves God Above All Else

Like it or not, your money shows where your heart is. We know this on a political level, it shows itself in our business and our homes. The widow’s actions shows a love for God and that it’s about devotion, not performance.

God wasn’t concerned about the amounts being put in the offerings. He cares about the heart!

This lesson helps us to understand, for those that do not have much to give that they can give with joy and enthusiasm! They can pray and give holy offerings to the God that delight the Father MORE than the extravagant gifts that are given with an eye toward man.

Generosity in the kingdom is measured by the heart, not the amount in the plate.

How is the posture of your heart in giving? Do you give grudgingly? Do you struggle with your money? 1 Corinthians 13:3

1 Corinthians 13:3 ESV

If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing.

God knows our motivations. What a terror or a comfort! What do you think?

God can do great things with tiny offerings.

If there is love and sacrifice with the giver, there will be spiritual power in the gift. I truly believe that what churches need are gifts given with the heart of the widow. One that gives with sincerity, trusting in God’s provision, is humble and loves God above all else.

The third observation is, at the Judgment Christ will square his accounts. We don’t know what happened to this woman. Nor the scribes in this world. But the scribes that disobeyed God will be judged. This widow also will have her works revealed.

God is shows no favoritism. Rich or poor. M Div or GED. Charles Spurgeon or a believer in Papua New Guinea. God sees the heart!

Some folks serve the Lord believing that only their service is good enough. What do you think your service will reveal about you? What will your giving reveal? What is our attitude when we are not watched: sharp … judgy … patient … gentle?

God wants us. He wants all of us and yet, we cannot give ourselves to him apart from our money.

What is Your Heart Going After?

The scribes lived for applause and were condemned. You and I are called to live with a Godward focus. We are called to seek the things that are above and to set our minds on the things above. If we’re looking around for the approval of men we will not be looking toward God.

If you live in such a way where you are more concerned with what God thinks than what man thinks you can be sure that folks are going to think you’re weird. The widow lived for God and was praised! She gave all that she had to demonstrate her love for the Lord.

But you know we can look at the scribe and we can look at the widow, but the best example of selfless giving is Jesus Christ. He emptied Himself and became human and subjected Himself to being lied about, accused, beaten, mocked, and murdered. All because it was God’s will. All because of His great love!

John 10:11 ESV

I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.

John 10:14–15 ESV

I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep.

John 15:13 ESV

Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.

Jesus laid down His life and made the greatest sacrifice and it wasn’t filled with money but self. What is your heart going after? Are you concerned with what others think or are you concerned about what God thinks? Your answer to that question reveals a lot about the state of your soul and I pray that you would have a heart that seeks God’s approval.

It doesn’t start with your actions though. You can’t obey your way into the Kingdom of God. You must turn away from your sin and believe the Gospel of Jesus Christ. God created us to know and glorify Him, but we have all sinned and fallen short of His perfect standard. Because of our sin, we deserve God’s judgment. But in His love, God sent Jesus Christ—fully God and fully man—to live a sinless life and die on the cross as the perfect sacrifice for our sins. Jesus rose from the dead, defeating sin and death. Now, He offers salvation as a free gift to all who repent and trust in Him alone for eternal life. Will you turn from your sin and believe in Jesus today?

Head: Know that people-pleasing is empty and leads to destruction. Do not be deceived by your works or other peoples opinions of you. The only opinion that matters is Gods!

Heart: Believe that God sees your heart and values sincerity over show. Your penny or your purse is secondary to your heart. God sees it and knows it. Do you know your heart truly? A truly God honoring heart will reflect the heart of the widow that we’ve learned about today.

Hand: Live in faith, generosity, and humble devotion to God.

Communion