Daily Bread 2011 - Luke 21
Daily Bread 2011 – Friday, April 1st, 2011 Luke 21
The Widow’s Offering
1 As Jesus looked up, he saw the rich putting their gifts into the temple treasury. 2 He also saw a poor widow put in two very small copper coins. 3 “Truly I tell you,” he said, “this poor widow has put in more than all the others. 4 All these people gave their gifts out of their wealth; but she out of her poverty put in all she had to live on.”
What Does This Mean?
The poor widow Jesus uplifts in this passage show us the true nature of giving. At the heart of giving is trust. This poor widow was able to give everything she had, because she completely trusted God. How else would she able to make such a generous gift given her means?
Because of the patriarchal society she lived in, the OT laws had special provisions for money to be given to widows. Since women in those days were completely reliant on their husbands for economic means, when the husband died the widows were often forced to beg to provide income. This brings into full view the incredible aspect of trust this woman had when donating her two small copper coins.
Jesus wasn’t necessarily denigrating the rich people who were giving, but merely pointing out that this woman had learned the true meaning of giving. Giving is our way of trusting God and realizing all we have comes from His hand anyways.
What Does This Mean For Us?
Many of us live in difficult economic times. It would be easy to say, “I think I will cut back on my tithe, God knows how little I have to live on.” The poor widow challenges our assumption that generous giving can only happen in times of plenty. She challenges us to give generously even when resources are scarce. What a great act of faith she exhibited when she threw her two small copper coins into the treasury that day. May we give with the same faith it took for her to trust God even with what little she had.
Heavenly Father we know that everything we have comes from your generous hand. Help us to give trusting in your even in times where we are tempted to develop a scarcity mentality. We know we can never out-give you! Amen.
The Widow’s Offering
1 As Jesus looked up, he saw the rich putting their gifts into the temple treasury. 2 He also saw a poor widow put in two very small copper coins. 3 “Truly I tell you,” he said, “this poor widow has put in more than all the others. 4 All these people gave their gifts out of their wealth; but she out of her poverty put in all she had to live on.”
What Does This Mean?
The poor widow Jesus uplifts in this passage show us the true nature of giving. At the heart of giving is trust. This poor widow was able to give everything she had, because she completely trusted God. How else would she able to make such a generous gift given her means?
Because of the patriarchal society she lived in, the OT laws had special provisions for money to be given to widows. Since women in those days were completely reliant on their husbands for economic means, when the husband died the widows were often forced to beg to provide income. This brings into full view the incredible aspect of trust this woman had when donating her two small copper coins.
Jesus wasn’t necessarily denigrating the rich people who were giving, but merely pointing out that this woman had learned the true meaning of giving. Giving is our way of trusting God and realizing all we have comes from His hand anyways.
What Does This Mean For Us?
Many of us live in difficult economic times. It would be easy to say, “I think I will cut back on my tithe, God knows how little I have to live on.” The poor widow challenges our assumption that generous giving can only happen in times of plenty. She challenges us to give generously even when resources are scarce. What a great act of faith she exhibited when she threw her two small copper coins into the treasury that day. May we give with the same faith it took for her to trust God even with what little she had.
Heavenly Father we know that everything we have comes from your generous hand. Help us to give trusting in your even in times where we are tempted to develop a scarcity mentality. We know we can never out-give you! Amen.
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