World English Bible translation
Jesus sat down opposite the treasury, and saw how the multitude cast money into the treasury. Many who were rich cast in much. 12:42 A poor widow came, and she cast in two lepta, which make a quadrans. 12:43 He called his disciples to himself, and said to them, "Most assuredly I tell you, this poor widow gave more than all those who are giving into the treasury, 12:44 for they all gave out of their abundance, but she, out of her poverty, gave all that she had to live on."Today's Lesson
Jesus entered the city of Jerusalem to the acclaim and praise of the multitude. The people marveled at Jesus when He drove the moneychangers out of the temple. Then there were a series of confrontations between Jesus and the religious authorities while Jesus was teaching at the temple. All of these things take place while the city is filling with people that have come to observe Passover in Jerusalem.
While Jesus was in the temple area, He sat down near the place in the temple where the people came to give their contributions. The treasury was located in the Court of the Women and there were 13 trumpet shaped containers where people could place their money. Everyone who was Jewish could enter this area and it was a place where many people were coming and going. Jesus watches the people flowing through this area, many of them stopping and casting their money into the treasury. This was the time of year when the temple collected more money than at any other time because many people had come from far away and it was a time when they could pay their temple tax.
Jesus saw a poor widow come by and put in two small brass coins. Her contribution was about one percent of the average daily wage for a worker. But Jesus praised this woman because she gave all that she had. The rich people that had come by gave much more than she did. But, they gave out of their abundance. They still had plenty to live off of. But this poor widow gave out of her poverty.
When Jesus was questioned about paying taxes He told the Pharisees to give to Caesar what was Caesar's and to give to God what was God's. When He was asked what the greatest commandment was He told the scribe that the greatest commandment was to love God with all of your heart, soul and mind. This widow exemplified both of these concepts. She gave to God all that that she had. She was giving to God what she considered to be God's and she was exhibiting her love for God in a very tangible way.
God wants everything. Anything less is not acceptable. God demands all of our time and all of our resources. They are all His to begin with, we only accept life as a gift from Him. When we realize everything that we have belongs to God to begin with, then we can live our lives in a proper relationship. God allows us to hold our possessions in trust. We are to use them in order to advance God's purposes. Your possessions are not your own. You are only allowed to use them for a time. Do not become too attached to them!
Have you ever given everything that you had to do God's work? Is there anything that you feel you could not sacrifice to God if He demanded it?
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