Mark 12:38-44 — Takers and Givers

Mark 12:38-44 

Notice how the last two paragraphs of this chapter stand, in marked contrast to each other.

"Woe to You" by James Tissot - Online Collection of Brooklyn Museum;
Photo: Brooklyn Museum, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org

v. 38-40 And in his teaching he said, “Beware of the scribes, who like to walk around in long robes and like greetings in the marketplaces and have the best seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at feasts, who devour widows' houses and for a pretense make long prayers. They will receive the greater condemnation.”

v. 41-44 And he sat down opposite the treasury and watched the people putting money into the offering box. Many rich people put in large sums. And a poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which make a penny. And he called his disciples to him and said to them, “Truly, I say to you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the offering box. For they all contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on.”

Comments:

Jesus warned the people to beware of the scribes for two reasons. First, the hypocrisy of their example might be a hindrance to the faith of those they lead; and, second, they might be in actual danger from the scribes' greed and vanity. These religious leaders were always taking; taking attention and recognition, taking the best seats, taking honor, taking the best food, taking money from those who couldn’t fight back, and then taking a long time for their pretend prayers. When the wine of God’s righteous wrath is poured out they will take the greater part of that as well... down to the dregs.

Widow's Mite. Bronze coins from the time of Jesus.
Photo: Creative Commons

The second paragraph is the well-known story of the widow’s mite. In the midst of rich people giving lots of money to the temple (with mixed motives out of their abundance) and yet Jesus called attention to the person who probably gave the smallest offering of the day, two of the smallest coins in circulation. However, she was noteworthy because she gave all that she had…most likely the price of her last meal. Did the temple authorities appreciate it or even notice? Probably not, but Jesus did, and her story has been told ever since.

The wealthy gave out of their abundance in order to take honor and prestige, while out of her poverty the widow gave everything, expecting nothing. Yet Jesus implicitly commended her gift...at the same time that he explicitly condemned those who were taking advantage of her. He would go on to speak about the destruction of the temple, whose treasury was intended for the relief of the poor not to be the very reason such a woman would not be able to eat for days to come.

It seems that in life we can either be takers—we’re naturally wired for it—or we can respond to Jesus' gift to us by being givers. As Pastor Ron Mehl used to say, “When you know who fills your barns you won’t be afraid to empty them.” In the counter-intuitive economics of the Kingdom of God, it is through taking that we lose and by giving that we gain. It is by exalting ourselves that we are diminished and by humbling ourselves that we are exalted. How does this apply to our churches and religious organizations? Will we face the same condemnation as the scribes and the temple they used for their own purposes? 

We may, or may not, see the circle of reward and retribution completed in this life, but it will be. We have Jesus’ word on that.

So what does it mean for us to give all that we have? This is not really about money. Is all that we are available to be used by the Lord? What are we willing to surrender into his care? Are we willing to give away all the attention, honor, prestige, comfort, and control that we crave? Is it not by being filled with trust in and thankfulness to the Lord that we learn to live our lives open-handedly? What we have received is from him and is still his to use as he sees fit. It means that there is nothing we treasure as much as the Lord and because he is a giver we desire to do the same.

Can we say it like this, "Takers will be taken themselves? Givers will receive more than they give"? Let me know what you think.