“And He looked up and saw the rich putting their gifts into the treasury. And He saw a 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.’” Luke 21:1-4
In the wake of Billy Graham’s departure from this world, the atmosphere seems a tad darker. He was truly a mighty man of God who was used to reach all levels of society around the globe. Not only did he touch the lives of many great and influential people not the least of which were several US presidents, but he also touched the lives of the humble such as my grandmother who accepted Christ sitting in her apartment watching one of his crusades on her television. In that light, take a look at the picture described in Luke 21. A poor woman who has next to nothing is noticed by the Lord of all that exists. He doesn’t look down on her as someone who is insignificant. Quite the opposite, He recognizes that her small offering or her “mite” is a mighty act of faith as she is giving all that she has; He acknowledges that she has contributed more than those who have given much larger offerings out of their surplus. When I consider the opportunities, wealth, talents or spiritual gifts of the mighty and those with no more than a mite, three points come to mind: jealousy, attitude and value.
The secular world tells us that if we don’t have great wealth, power, influence or talent, we have little value. Unfortunately, this attitude has a tendency to arise in the Christian culture as well. Consequently, for those of us whose means, opportunities and talents seem insignificant, there is a temptation to allow people like Rev. Graham to make us feel that we have little to offer our God. Even worse is when we become jealous and wonder why God didn’t bless us with similar opportunities to be used like him or other great men and women of faith. Jealousy of any kind is denounced throughout scripture. It is a clear sign of being controlled by our humanity rather than the Holy Spirit. (1 Corinthians 3:3) A second problem with jealousy is that it reveals a lack of love. (1 Corinthians 13:4) Further it fails to recognize that God creates all of us with different gifts, opportunities and means. Individually we have different roles and meet different needs, but as the body of Christ, we work together to accomplish God’s will. (1 Corinthians 12) Finally, it questions God’s plan for us which is both a challenge to God’s sovereignty (Isaiah 45:9-10) and a lack of trust. All of these inhibit our relationships with God and man.
While each of the problems with respect to jealousy speaks to negative attitudes in some way, there is a larger picture to consider. What made Christ take note of the seemingly insignificant woman? It was her attitude and her trust. Her meager amount was a great offering in that she held nothing back and trusted her God to provide for her. Her mind and soul were so devoted to God that she was willing to give all that she had. Are we not the same? It is not the greatness of our resources that determines the greatness of our offering, but rather how much we are willing to offer. God can and does do mighty things with humble offerings…remember the five loaves and two fish? When we are willing to give all that we have to our Savior and Lord, it is significant in the His eyes. The goal for us is to be like Christ in that He held nothing back in His sacrifice for us.
In the end, this thought process boils down to “What is my ultimate value?” Further, if I can’t measure it by comparison, how I do I know that I am of value and that my contribution is useful. We are vessels planned and created by Almighty God for His purposes. (Psalm 139) We were individually designed for specific tasks. (Proverbs 16:4) We are so loved that God sacrificed His son to redeem us…that Christ laid down His life, bore our sin and endured the Father turning away from Him. (John 3:16 and Isaiah 53:5) As a result we are the children of God and heirs as well as a part of the bride of Christ. (Galatians 4:7) Finally, He has prepared a place for us so that we can abide with Him for eternity. (John 14:1-3) No matter what the world says or how we feel, this is the evidence that proves that God views us as significant, worthy and mighty.
Comparisons to anyone or anything but Christ are inappropriate for any of us. Christ is our model and God uses each experience of our lives to shape us into His image. Yes there are those who are given grand tasks that are quite visible while others work in the background, but all are important. Our value comes from who we are before God and our offerings of all kinds are measured by our willingness to give all that we have to God’s kingdom and to complete our tasks “as unto the Lord”.
Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father.
Will