2024 Sun Nov 10

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I. Theme – Offering all to God in faith

The Widow’s Mite – Daniel Bonnell

"He sat down opposite the treasury, and watched the crowd putting money into the treasury. Many rich people put in large sums. A poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which are worth a penny. Then he called his disciples and said to them, ‘Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the treasury. For all of them have contributed out of their abundance; but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on.’" – Mark 12:38-44

The lectionary readings are here  or individually: 

Old Testament – 1 Kings 17:8-16
Psalm – Psalm 146
Epistle – Hebrews 9:24-28
Gospel – Mark 12:38-44  

Today’s readings challenge us to offer everything to God and to celebrate the fact that God similarly offers everything to us. All of these passages today remind us that we are called to step out in faith. This is not easy, but in order to see the greater picture, in order to understand more deeply the fullness of new life offered in Christ, we have to take the leap of faith and to trust God

This week’s lectionary readings deal with some of the most important energies of life- – the energy of romance, conception, and sexuality; the energy of money and its proper use; the energetic quest for God in a difficult time; and the energetic field of force created by Christ, the high priest of wholeness.

In the story of Elijah and the widow, from 1 Kings , God honors the sacrifice and faith of the woman with abundant oil and flour. The author of Hebrews assures us that Christ not only came to remove sin, but now, in God’s presence, intercedes on our behalf. In today’s gospel, Jesus praises the generous devotion of a homeless, penniless woman.

The Kings reading and the Gospel both examine widows. The poor widow in the Gospel only serves as an example of the Kingdom of Heaven contrasting the behavior of the Scribes (“who devour widow’s houses).  Her giving is similar to that of the widow of Zarephath in that she gives all that she has.  This time, however, she gives out of her own faith, a sign to Jesus of her salvation.

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By David Lose, President of Luther Seminary

“How do you hear Jesus’ description of the poor widow’s offering – is it praise or lament? “

Lose comes down on the latter- initially:

• ” This passage is part of a larger set of passages that focus on Jesus’ confrontation with the scribes and Pharisees and center on his critique of the Temple. Indeed, ever since Jesus entered Jerusalem triumphantly (in ch. 11), he has done little else except teach in the Temple and debate with the religious leadership there.
• ” The first verses of this week’s passage condemn the scribes precisely for “devouring widow’s houses” – shorthand for pretty much everything they own.
• ” In the passage immediately after this one, Jesus foretells the destruction of the Temple itself, seemingly the culmination of his attack on the religious establishment of Jerusalem, an attack that has prompted his opponents to seek first his arrest (12:12) and, eventually, death (14:1).
• ” Notably, there is actually no word of praise in Jesus’ statement about the widow or any indication that Jesus is lifting her up as an example. All he does is describe what he is doing. Which makes how we imagine his tone of voice – praise or lament – so critical.

“All of this leads me to conclude that Jesus isn’t actually lifting her up as an example but rather decrying the circumstances that demand her to make such an offering, a sacrifice that will likely lead to destitution if not death. He is, in short, leveling a devastating critique against Temple practice and those who allow, let alone encourage, this woman to give “all she had to live on” (or, in a more literal translation of the Greek, her whole life!).

But then Lose goes in a different direction – “How does this capture, or at least relate to, the good news Jesus both brings and embodies?

“God also sees our struggles, recognizes our challenges, cares about where we are hard pressed to make ends meet.

“But even more, I think God is inviting us to look around and see each other, those in our community we know and those we don’t. And I mean really see each other – the pain of those who are discriminated against because of their ethnicity, the desolation of those who cannot find work and have been abandoned to fend for themselves, the despair of those who have given up on finding work and have lost hope, the anguish of those who have been exploited by sex traffickers. God is inviting us to see them, to care for them, and to advocate for a system that does not leave anyone behind.

“Which means, Dear Partner, that we might send our people out this week not only aware that God sees their struggles and cares, but also that God believes in them enough to use them to make a difference. We might send them out, that is, looking for where God is already at work and join God’s efforts to see those in distress, help them find comfort and relief, and work for a more just world.”

“Mark 12:38-44 is not merely a condemnation of hoity-toity scribes and praise of a generous widow. In this passage of Mark’s Gospel, Jesus condemns a Temple system built to benefit the powerful and prey on the most vulnerable. The scribes of ancient Israel were educated officials, relied on to handle the community’s legal, financial and political issues. Eventually, they gained so much status and power that they became the interpreters of God’s Law. The “best seat” in the synagogue to which Jesus refers in Mark 12:39 is the position of authoritative interpretation. But the power to say, “This is what God’s law means. This is how God’s law is to be practiced,” is also the power to promote personal agendas and build political, economic, and religious systems that most benefit those sitting in the “best seats.”

“The widow in Mark 12:41-44 is pressed to contribute to the Temple treasury by a religious system that convinces her it is faithful to give “all that she had, all she had to live on” (12:44). The poor were encouraged to support the Temple (and the scribes seated within it) to the point of exhausting their resources, devouring even the meager inheritances they hoped to pass to their children. Jesus condemns this system and those who support it, saying it “devours widows’ houses” (v. 40).

“In The Word before the Powers, Charles L. Campbell writes about the act of preaching as a critical practice of nonviolent resistance, one that not only links the biblical text to today’s moral and ethical challenges but also shapes the life and practices of church communities. Campbell tells the story of André Trocmé, the pastor of the Reformed congregation in Le Chambon-sur-Lignon, the small village in southern France that effectively sheltered over 5,000 Jews during World War II. As Campbell tells it, on the Sunday after France surrendered to Nazi Germany, Trocmé stepped into his church’s pulpit to proclaim: “The responsibility of Christians is to resist the violence that will be brought to bear on their consciences through the weapons of the spirit.” Through the “best seat” of authoritative interpretation to which he had been called, Trocmé preached, week after week, of Jesus’ nonviolent resistance against oppressive political powers and his care for the most vulnerable, keeping this vision alive during a politically treacherous time.

“ From our “best seats” we should remind the church of Jesus Christ that change begins with us, how we treat each other, how we work together to solve complex problems, how we treat the widow, the stranger, the orphan—the most vulnerable. Jesus, in teaching his small band of twelve disciples, started a groundswell of love and care for all God’s people — and particularly those oppressed by unjust systems.

“Yes, we have work to do. We also have a teacher we can trust and a path that leads to our own and others’ liberating salvation.”

The antidote to uncertainty, it turns out, isn’t certainty, but courage; and the best response to insecurity is the confidence that comes from knowing that God esteems you worthy of dignity, honor, and love.

“In short, life was something of a mess for many of Mark’s community, and he employs the symbols and metaphors of apocalyptic traditions about Jesus that he inherits to place the struggles and questions of his people in a cosmic context and, in this way, offer a measure of both perspective and comfort.

We can “allow the images Mark employs to name figuratively some of our own challenges and questions. While there are several elements of this passage that might serve in this way, the one that draws my homiletical imagination is Jesus’ warning that many will come claiming to be him in order to lead his followers astray.

“Perhaps it’s the lure of wealth or possessions, the perpetual contender for our allegiance in a consumerist economy oriented to unending consumption. Or maybe it’s the possibility of a more prestigious position at work or acceptance by an appealing school or social group. Perhaps it’s the dream of the perfect relationship, or just being in a relationship with someone who values and cares for you. Or maybe it’s the “smaller” attractions of being super competent (and hopefully being noticed for that) or the ideal friend/sibling/child (again, with due attention to our achievement). Or maybe we find ourselves worshiping at the altar of providing our children with everything we never had but want to make sure they enjoy (with an emphasis on “making sure”). Or maybe…. Well, you get the idea.

“And here’s the interesting thing that all these various claimants of our attention and allegiance have in common: there’s nothing inherently wrong with any of them – not wealthy or status or belonging or relationship or competency or wanting the best for our children. In fact, there is much to be admired about, and much good that can be achieved through, these various desires. Yet none of them can save. Moreover, none of them can bear the weight of meaning we unconsciously ask them to and for which we desperately long. And yet we are either so insecure or confused (or maybe a little of both), that like Mark’s community we so crave a level of certainty that we take these God-given gifts and turn them into, well, God.

“Which is perhaps the human condition – worshiping the gifts of God rather than God the giver. And perhaps that’s what this tricky little passage is about: in times of confusion, challenge, and distress, we will not only be overly impressed by the symbols of power around us – “Teacher, look how big these stones are!” – but we will also take many of the delights and gifts of this life and seek to find our security in and through them rather than in the One who gave them to us in the first place.

“Living with uncertainty was hard for the first century-followers of Jesus and it’s just as hard for his twenty-first century disciples as well. The promise God offers us in Christ, however, is not that if we just work hard enough, are pious enough, make ourselves acceptable enough, or attain enough we’ll leave all our uncertainties and insecurities behind. Indeed, the Christian faith does not offer an end to uncertainty or insecurity at all. Rather, it promises that we can discover who we are only in relation to Whose we are, as we receive our identity as beloved children of the God who created and sustains all things and loves us unconditionally. The antidote to uncertainty, it turns out, isn’t certainty, but courage; and the best response to insecurity is the confidence that comes from knowing that God esteems you worthy of dignity, honor, and love. Rooted in these promises, we are better equipped to resist all pretenders to throne and give our allegiance to the One who gave all things for us. Thanks to be to God.”