00:00You know, there is a story about Jesus that I think many people make too simple.
00:07A poor widow walks into the temple treasury and gives two small coins.
00:12I'm sure you know the story.
00:14Jesus says she gave more than everyone else because she gave all she had.
00:21Now, if you've heard that story, you probably have an understanding of generosity from it
00:27because most of the time people turn that message into a message of generosity.
00:33But there's a harder question sitting right in the middle of the story.
00:38And as I was discussing it with our team here in Vandergraaf,
00:43a question came up that I hadn't thought of before.
00:48If Jesus knew those were her last two coins, why didn't he stop her?
00:54I think that question matters because God didn't need her money and the temple did not need her two coins.
01:03And this woman was not giving from comfort.
01:08She was not giving from extra.
01:11She didn't have a large savings account with overflow and abundance.
01:16Jesus said she gave everything she had to live on.
01:21Think about that.
01:24Everything.
01:26Imagine going to church this morning and when the plate comes around, giving everything.
01:34Would you do it?
01:36Why did Jesus watch it happen?
01:40Why did he let a poor widow give her last two coins into a religious system that he had already
01:48been criticizing?
01:50Think about it.
01:51Right before the woman showed up, Jesus was talking to his disciples.
01:57And he warned them about religious leaders who love attention, honor, long robes, important seats, public prayers, and religious respect.
02:10Then he says something severe.
02:14He says to them, they devour widows' houses.
02:19And then, almost immediately, a widow comes forward and gives everything she has left.
02:27Now, that's not a random detail.
02:30And I really want you to think about this story.
02:33Because Jesus is not only praising her, he's also exposing something.
02:39He's showing his disciples what happens when religion becomes impressive on the outside, but loses the heart of God on
02:50the inside.
02:50Think about the scene.
02:54Rich people are giving large amounts.
02:57Their gifts make noise.
02:59Their offerings look important.
03:01People can count them.
03:04People can admire them.
03:06People can say, look how much they gave.
03:18But Jesus stops his disciples and says, in effect, look at her.
03:26Not because the temple needed her money.
03:29Not because God was short on resources.
03:33He's not.
03:34Not because Jesus wanted poor people pressured into giving what they need to survive.
03:42He called his disciples over because they were about to miss the most important person in the room.
03:50The crowd saw two coins.
03:53Jesus saw the cost.
03:56The temple saw a small offering.
03:59Jesus saw a daughter.
04:02The religious system received what she gave.
04:06Jesus understood what it meant for her to give it.
04:11That is the lesson.
04:14Jesus does not measure your life by what other people can count.
04:19He sees what it costs.
04:22You see, people measure size.
04:25Jesus measures sacrifice.
04:28People notice what looks impressive.
04:31Jesus notices what was hard.
04:34People applaud what is public.
04:38Jesus honors what is hidden.
04:41Now, those two coins may have meant almost nothing to the temple treasury.
04:46But they meant everything to that woman.
04:49They carried tomorrow's hunger.
04:51They carried uncertainty.
04:53They carried trust.
04:55They carried fear.
04:57They carried her faith.
05:00And Jesus himself saw all of it.
05:04But we cannot stop there.
05:07Because this story is not just about the widow's faith.
05:11It's also about the failure of everyone around her.
05:14That's why this story should bother us.
05:19How does a widow get to the point where she's giving her last two coins and nobody in the temple
05:26seems concerned about whether she is going to eat?
05:30How does a religious system receive everything a poor woman has left and keep moving like nothing sacred has happened?
05:43How do people praise sacrifice but ignore suffering?
05:48That's the tension Jesus wants his disciples to feel.
05:54He did not stop the widow by grabbing her hand.
05:59He didn't stop his disciples from ignoring her.
06:02Both matter.
06:04Because, you see, Jesus was not going to shame her in public.
06:08He was not going to turn her poverty into a spectacle.
06:12He was not going to take away her dignity in the middle of her worship.
06:19But he also was not going to let his followers walk past her like everyone else was.
06:26So, he made them look.
06:28He made them see what real cost looks like.
06:32He made them see what false religion can do when it knows how to collect offerings but forgets how to
06:41care for people.
06:43And that's where this world has moved, unfortunately.
06:49And that's where this becomes a word for us.
06:53Do not use this widow to pressure hurting people.
06:57Do not turn her into a fundraising slogan.
07:01Do not say, she gave everything, so you should too.
07:07While ignoring the fact that Jesus had just condemned leaders who devoured widows' houses.
07:14That misses the heart of the story.
07:17You see, Jesus was not teaching his disciples how to take more from the poor.
07:23He was teaching them how to see.
07:25He was teaching them that God notices the person everyone else overlooks.
07:31He was teaching them that a small gift from a suffering person may carry more faith than a large gift
07:39from someone who never feels it.
07:41But he was teaching them that the kingdom of God must never become the kind of place where vulnerable people
07:50are used and then praised for surviving it.
07:55That's the point.
07:57If someone gives their last two coins, the response should not only be admiration.
08:04It should be care.
08:06It should be responsibility.
08:09It should be love.
08:11Do not just say, what an amazing faith, and then leave the widow hungry.
08:17Do not just call someone strong while refusing to help carry what is crushing them.
08:23Do not praise the offering and forget the giver.
08:28Jesus refused to ignore her.
08:31And he refused to let his disciples ignore her.
08:34So, if you are the one down to two coins today, I want you to hear this.
08:41Jesus sees you.
08:43He sees what it costs you to keep going.
08:46He sees the strength it takes for you to pray when you are tired.
08:52He sees the faith it takes for you to show up when you feel empty.
08:57He sees the love you keep giving when you barely feel held yourself.
09:04Other people may look at your life and think it is small.
09:09Jesus sees the whole cost.
09:13And if you are not the widow in this story, then maybe the lesson is even stronger.
09:20Look for her.
09:22Look for the person giving everything just to survive.
09:26Look for the person everyone calls strong, but nobody checks on.
09:31Look for the person whose two coins may not be money at all.
09:37It may be energy, hope, patience, courage, faith.
09:45One more day.
09:48And when you see that person, do not just admire them.
09:53Love them.
09:54Help them.
09:56Notice them.
09:57Because in the temple that day, the world saw a poor widow give two coins.
10:06Jesus saw a daughter giving everything.
10:10And he made sure his disciples saw her too.
10:16My name is Douglas Vandergraaf, and I believe in Jesus Christ.
10:22God bless every single one of you.
10:25Every single one.
10:31Bye-bye.
10:32Bye-bye.
10:34Bye-bye.
10:34Bye-bye.
10:34Bye-bye.
10:34Bye-bye.
10:34Bye-bye.
10:34Bye-bye.
10:34Bye-bye.
10:35Bye-bye.
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