The Worshipping Widow

Bow with me in a moment of prayer. Would you please Father, we thank you for today. Truly, Lord, you are a great God, and you've allowed us to gather together to not only sing praises to your name and to give out of the first fruits of our increase, but you've allowed us to come and listen.

To you speak through your word. The word that you have given that's living and abiding, sharper than any two-ed sword. The word that speaks only truth, for your word is truth. And today, Lord, as we prepare our hearts to receive the Lord's table, we pray that you'd speak to us deeply. That we might be prepared to follow your word ent. We ask in Jesus' name. Amen. Favorite Bible? Turn with me to Luke chapter 21.

Luke chapter 21, we're going to cover the first four verses this morning. If you've been in the church for any period of time, you've heard this series of verses read many times. And if you're visiting our church, you might think, well, he's going to speak once again on what it means to give to the Lord. And that might be the case in most churches, but in our church today, that will not be the case. Let me read to you the verses.

It says that he looked up and saw the rich putting their gifts into the treasury. He saw a certain poor widow putting in two small copper coins. And he said, Truly I say to you, this poor widow put in more than all of them, for they all out of their surplus put into the offering. But she, out of her poverty, put in all that she had to live on. You might think that this is going to be a sermon on what it means to give to the Lord. If you were a part of our church 19 years ago and I was preaching through the Gospel of Mark at that time, that's exactly what I would have said.

But 19 years later, things have changed, and I've realized more and more of what Christ really, truly was trying to demonstrate to all of us by this passage of Scripture. It's imperative to understand exactly where we are in Luke's Gospel. Yes, we're in chapter 21, but where are we in Passion Week? If you've been with us, you know that Jesus came into the city on Monday of Passion Week. It's called Palm Monday. It's not Palm Sunday, it's Palm Monday. So he wrote into the city on Monday. And he would go back to Bethany.

On Tuesday, he would arrive back into the city. He would cleanse the temple. He would heal the lame. He would heal the blind. And he would begin his preaching ministry once again. He would come back on Wednesday. Wednesday is where we are here in our text in Luke chapter 21. He would begin and continue to preach. Now, do we have everything that he said? Probably not. But we have everything he wants us to know that he said on that Wednesday. We know that there were three parables that were given on that day, all in Condemnation of the leadership of Israel.

Luke only records one of those parables. In res to those three parables, there were three questions that were asked by the religious establishment. Three questions in our text that were asked in succession, but more than likely they were asked over the period of the day. One dealt with the issues politically, another dealt the issue theologically, and another dealt the issue spiritually. In response to those questions, Jesus then would ask them a question. He would ask them life's ultimate question.

And it's centered around the identity of the Messiah. Whose son is he? And they would respond by saying it's David's son. And Christ would take them to Psalm 110, verse number 1, a messianic psalm, and he would quote that psalm and explain to them the divinity of the Messiah. That the Messiah is both God and man. And he would explain that to them using their Old Testament scriptures. To help them understand that the Messiah is both God and man, both the root and off of David, as Revelation 22: say.

On the heels of that, Jesus would give them a warning. That's recorded in verse number 45 of Luke chapter 20. A warning about being aware of the Pharisees and the scribes. He would conclude his time by giving them a warning. All the invitations are over. All the questions have been asked and answered. Christ is no longer going to extend to them an opportunity to repent. That's over. His time with him is coming to an end. And in between his His denunciation of the leadership and the pronunciation of judgment, which happens in Luke chapter 21, verse number 5, when he talks about the impending judgment that will happen in Jerusalem, that would take place in 70 A, and then go on to explain about the judgment of God that was going to come.

During the tribulation period. So, between the denunciation of the leadership of Israel and the pronunciation of judgment that was about to come. There is this illustration tucked in between concerning this widow. This illustration about this poor widow. Who would give everything that she had? And most people you read, and most preachers who preach will tell you that this is a story about. Sacrificial giving. After all, Jesus said in Luke chapter 14 that Unless you give up all your possessions, you cannot be my disciple.

And they would piggyback on that by using this woman as an illustration who was willing to give up everything that she had as she would give to the treasury. The question is, are they right? Some would say, well, this is an illustration of light amidst all the darkness of Israel. There is this one woman who would give everything. She gave out of devotion. She gave out of love. And there, Christ would recognize her. Christ would see her across the way, the temple courts, as she. as he saw her giving, he would recognize her as one who would demonstrate selflessness amidst all the selfishness, one who would demonstrate light amidst all the darkness, one who really truly was devoted to God.

The question comes, would they be right? If all the commentators point that direction and most preachers preach that direction, are they right? That's a question we have to ask and we have to answer. People would say That in her giving, there was an attitude of humility, an attitude of contrition, which must mark our attitude when we give to the Lord, because this young Widow or old widow would demonstrate that. Others would say, Well, you know, it goes way beyond that because it's not how much you give.

It's how much that's left over after you give. Well, that's a good point because what was left over for her was nothing. She gave it all away. And so it's not about the amount you give because if you look at Matthew's account and Mark's account, you realize that there were many people that were giving.

And the rich were giving out of their surplus, but she gave out of her poverty. And because she did, she really gave more because there was nothing left over. And there are many preachers, myself included, 19 years ago, who would wax eloquently about giving patterns and percentages and attitudes and all that. The question comes. Is that what's happening? You must always interpret Scripture in light of its context. You can't presuppose upon the text. So if you look at it in context.

And everything surrounding this illustration is about judgment. Beware the Pharisees. And Christ warns his disciples and the multitudes of their religious hypocrisy. And then, on the heels of the illustration about this woman, He talks about the destruction of Jerusalem that's going to happen and the judgment that will fall upon Israel. So the question comes, why would Jesus throw in an illustration About giving patterns in the midst of the context of judgment. Some would say, well, because he was going to give away his life, and because he was going to give away his life, he would use this woman as an illustration who was willing to give up everything for Christ.

But the te never commends the woman for what she did. Christ never commends her. Christ never said he was pleased with what she did. In fact, he might have been displeased. By what she did. Did you ever think of that? Probably not. So I thought I'd throw that out for you so you'd think about it. Maybe Christ wasn't pleased, but maybe Christ, in the depths of his soul, was angered over what she did, or maybe even brokenhearted over what she did. The Bible never tells us that what she did brought honor to God.

You'll say, well, why wouldn't somebody who gave up everything they have give honor to God? The Bible never tells us about her motive. Okay? Her motive. Was her motive dev or was her motive des? Was her motive love or was her motive legalism? The Bible didn't tell us. So you have to understand the cont. After all that Jesus has said on this day. He has said everything he needs to say. This is the last week of our Lord's life. He has answered all the questions that have been asked. He has posed to them life's ultimate question, and he has confounded them.

He has warned everybody about the religious establishment and the heartache they put upon people's lives. Soon he is going to descend the Temple Mount, and the question will be asked. About this beautiful structure called Herod's Temple that's going to be destroyed. And Christ will go into a long dissertation about not only its destruction, but the end of the age. So how does this little vignette stuck in between fit into the context of all that? That's the question you have to ask, and that's the question you have to answer.

What is this st about? Now, if Jesus was a Baptist preacher, you could probably say, well, yeah, it's probably one more opportunity for him to exhort the people about giving because that's what a lot of Baptist preachers do. They're always talking about giving, and maybe he'll just insert that whole thing about people giving more money because that's what Baptist preachers tend to do. But Jesus wasn't a Baptist preacher, Jesus was a Jew. So, what is Jesus saying? He's going to talk about judgment in verse number five with the destruction of Jerusalem.

Is Christ giving us some kind of mystical meaning behind the words? Is he trying to put something out there that maybe isn't really as clear as it needs to be, but if you were to study it even more, you'd find out more of what it means? Or is Christ simply stating something that is absolutely obvious? They can need to ask that question as well. You will note the disciples said nothing. The disciples asked no question. The disciples responded in no way positive or ne. Ask yourself this question. If you had heard all that Jesus had said that day, Or put it this way: let's say your mother is a widow.

And she decides to give everything she has away. How would you respond to that? Let's say it's your mother, it's your aunt. Let's say it's someone you know really well and they've decided to sell their house, to sell their cars, to cash in their insurance policy, to give every last c they have away. What would you do? How would you respond? Would you be happy? You go, Mom. Give it all away. That's right. Just sell it all. Give it all away. And then go home and die. Because that's exactly what happened with this woman.

She gave everything away to go home to do what? To die. She has nothing left to live on. Does God ex us to give everything we have away and live on faith? Answer: No. He never said that. Never said that. In fact, it would be irresponsible and foolish for a man to say, you know, honey, we're going to sell everything we have, we're going give it to the church, and we're just going to live on faith. And we're going to just walk the land and we're going to eat off the land and just trust God to supply all of our needs.

That would be irresponsible and foolish because He's to take care of His family. God never calls us to be stupid, foolish, or irresponsible. He wants us to be responsible people. So we have to ask ourselves the question: what is Jesus doing here? Why is this even in the story? Why is this even a part of passion week? We told you. This is the last week of our Lord's life. You got to get everything He says. You can't miss anything He says. You can't miss anything He does. Why? This is the last week.

Last words are lasting words. What's he going to say? How's he going to say it? Who's he going to say it to? What do I need to hold on to? So, what Jesus does in Matthew and Mark and Luke all add to the story, and they all put it in this last Wednesday of our Lord's life on earth. So, why is it here? What is Christ trying to tell us? Well, if your mother, who was a widow, decided to sell everything she had And give it all to some TV preacher, you'd be irate. And I would tend to think. That our Lord is more irate as to what is happening than pleased over what is happening.

Because she's giving everything to a religious system, all bas on work. All based on almsgiving. It's important to realize that the rabbis stated that through almsgiving you would purchase your salvation. Let me read to you what it says in the book of Tobit, in the Apocrypha.

It is better to give alms than to treasure up gold. For almsgiving delivers from death, and it will purge away every s. The Jews actually taught that they could purge away their sins by giving money to the needy. Sir 3, verse number 30 says, alms atones for sin. There are several quotes from the Talmud that say, almsgiving is more excellent than all offerings. And it is equal to the whole law, and will deliver from the condemnation of hell, and will ultimately make one perfectly righteous. So, within the system of Judaism, it was taught that alms Would atone for your sin, would purchase your salvation.

So let me ask you a question: Is she giving out of devotion or desper? Is she giving out of love or legalism? Because Christ never says she's a part of the kingdom of God. Christ never says he's pleased with what she does. The only thing he says is that this poor widow gave Out of her poverty and giving out of her poverty, she gave all that she had. That's all he says. He doesn't commend that. He doesn't applaud that. He just makes a statement based on what she did. In a system that demands almsgiving, in a system that says if you want to get to heaven, you can purchase your way there.

Now, when you think of the story and you look at the illustration, you can begin to understand what is happening.

Because this is what the Jews believed. Remember, over in Mark chapter 6, in Mark chapter 6. It says these words Verse number six Right did Isaiah prophesy to you hypocrit, as it is written, This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me. But in vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines the precepts of men, neglecting the commandment of God, you hold to the tradition of men. And that was the problem in Judaism. They would set aside the law of God and they would hold to their tradition.

And he tells them how they do that. He says in verse number 9: you nicely set aside the commandment of God. In order to keep your tradition, for Moses said, Honor your father and your mother. That's right out of the book of Exodus, that's right out of the book of Deuteronomy. You honor your mother and father. How do you honor your mother and father? Listen.

You honor your mother and father by taking care of them. By taking care of them when they get old. You are never to neglect the taking care of your parents. By giving everything away to God, God never expected that. God never demanded that. God Demands that you honor your mother and father, that you provide for them and take care of them. After all, they have taken care of you all of your life. And the law of God said to honor your mother and father. And the one, the way you do that is that you provide for them in their older years.

Now, read on. It says, And he who speaks evil of father or mother, let him be put to death. But you say, if a man says to his father or his mother, any of mine you might have been helped by is Corbin, in other words, it's given to God. They even had a name for it. Mom, I want to help you. Dad, I want to help you. But Corbin. Everything's been given to God. I can't help you anymore. My devotion to God is so strong and so high. I've given everything to God. There's nothing left for you. Christ says, You no longer permit him to do anything for his father or his mother, thus invalidating the word of God by your tradition, which you have handed down, and you do many things such as That they neglected the care for the needy, especially when it came to their own homes.

And so Christ would condemn that all throughout his ministry. Because the Lord God Is concerned that people have their need met. And one of the ways to meet those needs is by taking what you have. And providing for those who have needs. And Christ condemned the religious establishment because they did not do that. And they did not do that in the arena, which it would be valued the most, that was their very own home. So you have this woman. This woman, this widow, who, under the pretense that some way she would be able to purchase her salvation or purchase some bl from God.

She would give all that she had. She was manipulated by a system that had been corrupt. And here is Christ watching this woman give. This is not about Christ honoring her giving pattern. This is about Christ's heart brokenness over what she is doing. This is crucial. So let's examine it. Look what it says in verse number one.

And he looked what? Up. Up. Jack's awake. He looked up. Which means he was probably looking where down. Okay, Mark's account says he was sitting down. Now, you got to think about this with me for a moment. Remember, Christ is 100% man, 100% God. He has preached all day. He has preached with passion all day. This is his last public opportunity to extend the truth to the nation of Israel. He's preaching with gusto. He's preaching with passion. He's preaching with determination. He is giving the truth with all that he has.

And if you go over to Matthew chapter 23, because Matthew 23 is the long version of Luke 20, verses 45 to 47. And this is how Christ concludes his preaching for the day. His conclusion to his ministry. Is not about the love of God and the forgiveness of God and the goodness of God and the kindness of God. His conclusion to his ministry is filled with woe. Cursing and damnation upon the leaders of Israel. That's how he concludes his three-year ministry. He says, verse 13, woe to you, scribes, Pharisees, hypocrites.

Verse 15, woe to you, scribes and Pharisees. Hypocrites. Verse 16, woe to you, blind guides. Verse 23, woe to you, scribes, Pharisees, hypocrites. Verse 25, woe to you, scribes and Pharisees. Hypocrites. Verse 27, woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites. Verse 29, woe to you, scribes and Pharise Hypocrites. Whoa, whoa, whoa. It's a word that means cursed, cursed, cursed. You are damned. You are damned. You are damned That's how he concludes his three-year ministry. He'd be thrown out of every church in America.

Because you just can't conclude ministry that way in America. But Jesus did. That's how he concluded it. And then he says in verse 37, O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her, how often I wanted to gather your children together. The way a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you are unwilling, behold, your house is being left unto you, desolate, abandoned, damaged, destroyed. He began the week weeping over the city. He is still weeping over the city.

He is still lamenting the fact that Israel has yet to respond to their Messiah. Our Lord is looking down. Mark's account says he's sitting down. So not only is he looking down, he's sitting down. The day has concluded. He is worn out physically. He has preached his last ser to the public there in the temple courty. And he is wor complete out. I understand that. Listen, I go home on Sunday afternoons having preached two sermons. I want to take a nap. I'm tired. My wife looks at me and she, What are you doing taking a nap?

You've only preached two sermons. I said, Yeah, but man, I was fighting Satan for two hours. I was in a spiritual warfare for two hours, and I had the armor of God on, and I'm worn out. I to take a nap, I got to rest, I'm tired. She says, get up. You got things you got to do. So I can imagine Jesus being worn out, having preached from his heart, the depths of his soul, the truth of the gospel. Because that's what he was, a preacher. He's sitting down. He's looking down. Why? Because he laments the fact that Israel is not responding and will not respond to him as their Messiah.

And as he looks up, as he looks up, it says that there are many people in Matthew's account and Mark's account giving to the treasury. What's the treasury? The treasury was located in the cour of women on the Temp Court. Men and women could both go there. That's where Jesus was after concluding his sermons. He was sitting down, he looked up, in the court of the women, there were 13 sho. Shof are ram's horns. 13 of them lined up. And they tell us that each of them was labeled. Some of them for free will offerings, some of them for gold, some of them for incense, some of them for wood, some of them for bird offerings, and they were all labeled.

And you would go up and you would place your offer in this sho. And it was all done for show. Because remember in Matthew chapter 6 is Christ's very first recorded sermon on the Serm on the Mount?

He condemned them for the way they gave alms because they would blow the trumpet and they would want everybody to know that they were about to give their money. He says, when you give, you give in secret. Don't even let your left hand know what your right hand's doing. Be so secret that you don't even know what you're doing. Be secret about it. Nobody should know what you give. Boy, they wanted everybody to know what they gave. So, would they blow the trumpets and they would parade up front and they would take their gifts and they would drop them in, and everybody would.

Ooh, and awe over the amount in which they give. And there were people that were rich giving out of the surplus. And then there was this poor, defenseless Destitute widow. And Christ sees her walk up and give all that she had. Believing that some, in her giving all that she had, she could purchase eternity. Believing that somehow, giving all that she had, God would be pleased and grant her the opportunity to enter into glory. Because that's what she had been taught all of her life. That's what was ingrained in her.

She was a victim. Of a system that that fed off of the backs of poor widows, poor single women. Every Pharisee would pray every day, Lord, I thank you that I'm not a Gentile and I thank you that I'm not a woman. That would be their prayer every single day, because the women were of the lowest of classes. And if she was a widow and she was destitute, it was because she was being judged by God, and they would aid God in his judgment of her. And doesn't it say earlier in Luke's Gospel, the 20th chapter?

We covered it last time we talked. It says these words. Beware of the scribes. Why? Verse 4, who devour widows' houses. They devour widows' houses. They destroy them. They consume them. They eat them up. This was a part of their system. Listen, any religious system that feeds off of the poor. Is a false rel system. And that 's exactly what Judaism did. Oh, yes, the rich gave, but they gave out of their surplus. And they gave for the same motives that this woman gave. That somehow they could atone for their sins.

Jesus, sitting there watching this, real once again. As she was giving to the treasury. Remember Luke:? The Pharisees were lo of money. And they were rich because of people like this poor widow and Jesus sitting there. Looking up, watches people trying to buy blessings. trying to buy salvation, trying to buy the pleasure of God, trying to purchase with their last amount of money some kind of accept from God. I believe he was heartbroken over her giving patterns. I belie that in the depths of his soul, he was broken because after all he had done for three years, that every sermon he had preached for three years.

And every person he had healed for those three years. And on that very day, having preached his heart out, nothing had changed. It was still the same. He said, you have made my father's house a den of robbers, and you are still robbing people bl. Nothing 's changed. Everything's the same. Nobody's affected. Nobody's making a transition. Nobody's being transformed. Nobody's saying, hey, wait a minute, this is all wrong. Everybody just keep going through the motions, doing the same thing they've always done, almost as if they're robotic.

They go up, they take the money out. They throw it in the shof, they walk away. Sometimes the trumpet's blown if it's a Pharisee, sometimes it's not, but boy, they just do it for the fact that somehow I can purchase a blessing from God. Makes you look at the passage a little bit differently than maybe you've ever looked at it before.

Because I believe that's exactly what's happening here. Especially because the judgment that he pronounces on the whole city, he must destroy it. He must bring the whole thing down. Because it's going to continue on as it always has continued on. It says in verse 3, Truly I say to you, this po widow. The word there is pentach. She's not destitute, she's poor. She's poor because she has very little, but she's not destitute. And then it says in verse 4, for they all out of their surplus put into I'm sorry.

Verse 2, he says, and he saw a certain poor widow putting in two small copper coins. That's Pentac. In verse 3, he says, Sure I say to you, this poor widow, that's Potok. Okay, when she went to the sho, she was just pentac because she had two coins left. But once she put the two coins in, she was potok. That is, she's destitute. She has nothing left. She gave all that she had because she was going home to die. She had nothing else to live on. She gave it all away. And Christ watching this sees this and realizes that what they're trying to do He does freely.

What's that? Purchase one's salvation. Amen. We sang about earlier about being redeemed by the blood of the Lamb. He sits there. Knowing as he watches all these people going through all these gyrations of giving patterns, that what they're trying to do is gain acceptance. Into heaven, gain access to God, somehow appease God, somehow earn their way to God, that maybe God will look on them with fear. Favor and blessing, and grant them some access into glory. And Christ says, I'm here to die, so you can receive glory.

I'm here to give my life away so you can obtain my life in glory. I've come to die for you and yet you continue to try to do everything you can to earn your way to heaven. And it doesn't work that way. That's why the whole system had to come crashing down. Had to. Years ago, there was a thing called the Reformation. And one of the things that upset Martin Luther so much about the Catholic Church was the whole system of alms and indulgences. And one of the things that upset Luther, that sent him over the edge, that spurned or spawned the Reformation.

Was that people in the Catholic Church were giving money to receive the forgiveness of sins? And the Protestant Reformation was born out of that hypocrisy. Because there had to be a way people to understand the grace and mercy of Almighty God. And you watch today on television, and all these TV preachers who are doing the same things that the Pharisees and the scribes were doing, they were living wealthily. Wealthy off of the backs of poor widows who somehow it told if you just buy this, so you just give this.

It's called a faith seed. That if you just give this amount, you'll have a husband, you'll have a blessing. God will multiply it over again, but give it here and watch how God multiplies it. and they continue to live in $10,000 a room a night hotels. They drive their luxurious planes all around the world, living off the backs of poor widows. Who are willing to give everything away for the sake that they might somehow purchase a blessing? Christ condemned all that. Here he sits, look down, having preached his last to the public.

Preached a curse upon the religious hypocrites of the day because they were leading people not toward God but away from God. Having lamented one more time the fact that they still refused to believe in him as their Messiah. They rejected him. He looks up. He just m this statement. This po widow gave everything that she had. For what? For what? Because that's what the system was designed to do. He looks up and he realizes this is it. He and his men will get up. They will walk out and Christ will pronounce the destruction of Jerusalem and go into a long discourse called the Olive Discourse.

That speaks about the coming kingdom of God and the judgment that will take place on this earth in light of that coming kingdom because they rejected their Messiah. Folks, we're about to partake of the Lord's table to celebrate what Christ has done. He purchased our salvation. And as Christ sat there overlooking the temple courty, having preached his last, he knows on Friday he will claim it is finished. Redemption has been accomplished. But the majority would not believe. They would not come to saving faith.

Having sat there, having preached his last, having given everything he had to help people understand the truth about his identity and why he was there. Having exposed the hypocrisy of all the religious leaders, he tried to explain to them, and yet they still did not lose. Listen, they still were going through all the motions, trying to earn their way to heaven. And it doesn't happen that way. It's not by works of righteousness which we have done. It's by the washing of regeneration. It's by the renewing of the Spirit of God that man is saved from his sins.

For by grace are you saved through faith that not of yourselves. It is a gift of God. It's a gift. And here Christ sat, look up, realizing that the gift of eternal life resided in his being. And he was willing to give his life away for people who just continued to try to earn their way to heaven. You know people like that today. They just can't wrap their hands around the fact that this truly is the free gift of eternal life. And that Christ, through his precious blood, purchased our redemption. That's why the story is there.

That's why it's interjected in between the denunciation of leadership and the pronunciation of judgment about to happen. It's one more reminder. That listen, I have purchased your redemption. Your salvation is all about me. Not about you. Come to me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Do you think that when Jesus said that, those people weren't burdened down with the traditions of man? Oh, they were. They were burdened so deep. And Christ says, Come to me, all you who are labor and heavy laden, I'll give you rest.

Take my yoke upon you, learn from me. For I am lowly and I'm meek in heart. You learn from me. You come. Set everything aside. Embrace me as your Messiah. And I will redeem your soul. That's why the vignette is there. Let's pray. Father, we thank you for today. The reminder once again of the free gift of eternal life that was purchased by the King of all kings, Jesus Christ our Lord.