And He sat down opposite the treasury, and began observing how the people were putting money into the treasury; and many rich people were putting in large sums. A poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which amount to a cent. Calling His disciples to Him, He said to them, “Truly I say to you, this poor widow put in more than all the contributors to the treasury; for they all put in out of their surplus, but she, out of her poverty, put in all she owned, all she had to live on.”

                                                                                                                   Mark 12:41-44 

How do you handle your finances? Do you accumulate for yourself and your posterity alone or are you using the blessings God has given you to make a kingdom difference? These are good questions for all of us as believers to ask ourselves. As Christians, we understand that whatever material possessions and opportunities we have in this life, they all belong to God. We will not take any of what we have accumulated in this life with us into eternity and neither will our offspring. However, we will answer for the way we have utilized our riches. Wealth is very subjective. Whether you believe yourself to possess a lot or just a little, there will always be someone who is better off (materially speaking) than you and there will always be those who are less fortunate than you.

As we look at today’s passage, we see people putting their money into the treasury. Many of these people were putting in large sums, but their giving was being done out of a surplus. In other words, this giving really didn’t cost them anything at all since they already had everything they needed. Contrast that to the widow who gives two copper coins. We can think of this gift as equaling around two cents. Anytime we hear of a widow in Jesus day, we should think of someone who was often put in social and economic difficulty. In the first century, widows had to rely on others to take care of them. The loss of a husband in those days meant the loss of a livelihood. So when we see this woman putting in two copper coins, we understand that she literally put in all that she had. Jesus confirms this in the statement that He makes to His disciples.

While the world is often at awe with the generosity of others who seemingly make significant contributions to charity, God is looking for sacrificial givers. Giving out of one’s surplus does not equate to the one who sacrificially gives, entrusting his/her finances and life to the Lord. It is not the dollar amount that matters; it’s the heart behind the giving. As Christians, we understand that everything we have in this life is simply being loaned to us for a time. It all belongs to God. Our children, our finances, our homes, and even our lives are simply on loan. We are to be good stewards of what God has given us. Are we investing our time, our talents, and our money in building the kingdom of God or do we view our belongings as ours, hold onto them with tight fists?

As believers, we know that we are merely conduits through which the blessings of God flow. We should live our lives with open hands, not clinched fists. We are instructed in scripture that whoever seeks to keep his life (and everything in it) will lose it in the end. But for those who lose their lives for the sake of the kingdom, they will find their lives (Luke 9:24). Consider the following:

Now this I say, he who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. Each one must do just as he has purposed in his heart, not grudgingly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that always having all sufficiency in everything, you may have an abundance for every good deed…

                                                                                                           2 Corinthians 9:6-8 

If there were ever any words spoken that encapsulate what it means to live by the grace and provision of God, it is these. First, Paul reminds us that if we sow sparingly, we will also reap sparingly. Conversely, if we sow bountifully, we will reap bountifully. We can’t lead anyone to Jesus if we don’t ever share the gospel. We can’t expect for God’s blessings to flow through our lives unless we are willing to give back to the Giver what has been entrusted to us. Paul tells us that the amount we give is entirely between God and the individual believer. We are to give “as we have purposed in our hearts.” However, there are two attitudes that should not be present when we give. One is giving begrudgingly. When we grit our teeth and give out of obligation (secretly not wanting to part with our money), we are missing the point of giving. This attitude does not honor God and it robs us of the blessing of giving promised in scripture. The second attitude is giving under compulsion. I do not believe it is the church’s place to “guilt” individuals into giving. That is the very definition of being “under compulsion.” We are to give freely and cheerfully. This is what God, the judge of our hearts, is after.

But there is still more to this passage than just how we are to give. There is a tremendous promise in this passage. God is able to make all grace abound to you. Are you living by the grace of God and the abundance that comes with that grace? Grace is God’s unmerited love and favor, freely given to those who trust in Jesus Christ by faith. Paul tells us that this grace manifests itself in our lives by the fact that we will “always have all sufficiency in everything” and that we will “have an abundance for every good deed.” Do we understand what that means? God will supply bountifully to the one who cheerfully, unselfishly gives his/her time, talents, and wealth to further the kingdom of God and will make sure that they always have an abundance to continue the work that they are doing in this world.

We can invest all of our wealth in whatever financially sound ways we see fit, but in the end, we will give up whatever we have accumulated and so will our children. The wisest investment any of us could make regarding our wealth is to invest in the proclamation of the gospel. When we put God first in everything (including our finances) we begin to see the grace and provision of God in our lives. Without that, we are only fooling ourselves and kicking the proverbial can down the road of losing everything for which we have spent our lives working.

How are you investing your life? Is it in perishable, temporal things or in godly, eternal things? Do you care about building up the kingdom of God or are you simply living for yourself? Let’s be a people that give sacrificially and not merely out of our surplus!