"And He looked up and saw the rich putting their gifts into the treasury, 2 and He saw also a certain poor widow putting in two mites. 3 So He said, 'Truly I say to you that this poor widow has put in more than all; 4 for all these out of their abundance have put in offerings for God, but she out of her poverty put in all the livelihood that she had."
Luke 21:1-4 NKJV
To the casual observer, it appeared that the widow gave next to nothing compared to the richer men. But to Jesus, she had put in more than all of them. They gave out of their surplus, she gave out of her poverty. The rich people's offering would have made a loud noise as they put it in the receptacle but, the widows two mites would have been heard in heaven and that's what matters.
A mite, also known as a lepton, was a Jewish coin and the smallest used in New Testament times. At that time, it would have been worth about 1/64th of a denarius, the denarius being a day's wage for the common worker. Therefore, it would have paid for six minutes of work, two being twelve minutes; and yet, today, one cannot buy one of these certified ancient coins for less than around $9000 on the internet.
The widow's offering demonstrated her total dependance on God, she gave all that she had. Jesus noticed this demonstration of faith, trust and love towards God and, He notices when we give whether it be a tithe or offering to the church or to another source. Some people are desperate for financial help and, if we can help because of our financial abundance, God is impressed and honours us. Sadly, some may say, "I'm sorry to hear about your financial status, I'll pray that you won't be evicted,' and then walk away. If we have the resources to help a person who is desperately in need, it is something that we need to consult God with. If we have the funds perhaps He may want us to pay someone's bill, buy them a lunch or give them a gift. After all, it is God's money in the first place; He has the first call on our finances.
Let me ask you, do you tithe? It is something that God takes very seriously. Many people give a tenth of their income or some other figure. Really, whatever you give, is helpful to the kingdom of God or other organisation. We can never out give God, He will always supply back to us. The widow knew this; she knew that she could give all she had and God would honour her. Do you know this?
'Bring the full tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. And thereby put me to the test, says the Lord of hosts, if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you a blessing until there is no more need'. (Mal. 3:10)
Copyright 2021 Grahame Howard
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