19th May 2010

Mark 12:42-44 – The Widows Offering

• In contrast to a warning about teachers of the law who rip off widows, Jesus now points a widow out as a true giver to God.
• The widow gave the cheapest coins ‘lepta’ or ‘lepton’ singular.
• These coins were old as they were probably the copper prutah, a cheap coin minted during the Hasomean period but still in use in Jesus’ day.
• They were worth one 64^th of a denarius – a denarius was worth a day’s wage.
• She would have put it into one of the 13 inverted trumpet shaped receptacles, These made a noise when money was put in them and was called ‘sounding the trumpets’ – the more money in – the louder the noise others heard.
• Mawunyo Debra the Pais:Ghana Director has just brought a word to the Talmidim Academy – in it she challenged us as to what we were really sacrificing to God. She said to us that because we are on Pais everyone thinks we are sacrificing but in reality for many of us it is just convenient. She used the story of the workers who were all given a denarius even though they worked different amounts of time. To some it is a sacrifice to some it is easy.
• The fact is that in God’s eyes and in the Kingdom of Heaven value is awarded in a different way than on the Kingdom of earth.
• On earth we value something by what is given for something; in Heaven it is valued by what is given up for something.
• God does not look at the money we give but at the money we have left after we have given. It is this that He judges our sacrifice by.
• Praying into Mawunyo’s challenge this morning.
• Note: I started to pray into this and got my mind turned around. I began by praying “Lord show me what it is you want me to sacrifice” and very quickly the ball was thrown back in my court when I felt the immediate answer come back; “it’s up to you”. Of course! God is not asking anything in particular but more He is letting me show Him what I am willing to sacrifice in order to show me your affection. Sacrifice is a better message of love when it is pro-active.