But she, out of her poverty, has put in everything she had, her whole living. (Mark 12:44)

Jesus could really be rough on certain people, especially those whom He perceived to be falsely religious and self-righteous. Judging by some of the severe language we read in the gospels, you didn't want to be on the receiving end of a tongue-lashing administered by one Jesus of Nazareth.

When our Lord spoke to the scribes and Pharisees and to the other religious celebrities of His time, He used words like "hypocrites" (Mark 7:6), "ravenous wolves" (Matthew 7:15), "serpents" and a "brood of vipers" (Matthew 23:33). He used many other colorful epithets as well, including one of my favorites: "Woe to you scribes and Pharisees, for you are like whitewashed tombs, which outwardly appear beautiful, but within they are full of dead men's bones." (Matthew 23:27).

Words like that cut deep, don't they; even deeper than the foul-mouthed obscenities which so often pass for insults today. How would you like to be compared to a whitewashed tomb - on the outside, you appear clean and beautiful, but on the inside, you are just a pile of dead bones? There is no question that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, could be moved to righteous anger, and He could express this anger in no uncertain terms. Like I said before, it couldn't have been much fun to be on the receiving end.

In our text from Mark, Jesus is again speaking of the scribes; and again, He is excoriating them for their religious hypocrisy, which is probably the sin that angers Jesus the most. They are the celebrities, the big names, the superstars of the faith, and they love every minute of it. They parade around in long robes and luxurious clothing so that everyone will know how important they are. They take the most prominent seats at public events and they expect the V.I.P. treatment wherever they go.

They preside over a system of fundraising which funnels money from poor struggling widows into the rich coffers of the temple treasury and so they "devour widows' houses." Jesus hates that! They make a pretense of long prayers in public to show off their faith. Jesus hates that, too! "Woe to you scribes," He cries; and to the people He says, "Don't you be like them, because they will receive the greater condemnation."

Of course, there are such scribes and religious celebrities in every age, even our own. Today they are as likely to be on TV as in the temple, but they are still the same scribes Jesus knew.

They may not wear long, luxurious robes today, but they wear custom-fitted suits and solid gold watches. They may not devour widows' houses, but they devour their Social Security checks. They may not make a pretense of long prayers in the public square, but they do it in front of the camera, to show off their piety and their closeness to God. Jesus wasn't impressed with the scribes of His day and I'm sure He isn't impressed with the scribes of our day, either. They will still receive the greater condemnation.

Nor was Jesus impressed with the rich people who made a show of putting big money into the temple treasury. We know He watched them because our text says so, but Jesus wasn't dazzled as they strutted forward to make their large donations to the "church." The rest of the crowd may have been "oohing" and "aahing" over them (as crowds will always gaggle and fawn over "the lifestyles of the rich and famous"), but Jesus didn't say a word.

Jesus didn't speak until He saw a poor widow come forward and drop two copper coins - one penny - into the treasury. "Do you see that widow, the one who gave a penny?" He said. "She has put in more than all these proud rich people combined, because they still have a lot left over after they give their money, but she, out of her poverty, has put in everything she had, her whole living."

I remember seeing on a college campus a large library named after Andrew Carnegie, the coal and steel magnate. His name was cut in marble over the door and a huge bust of the man sat in the lobby, next to an exhibit about his life.

There was no mention of his monopoly price-fixing, of course, or his brutal treatment of underpaid workers. There was just immense gratitude that Carnegie had given so much to the library.

But did he really give that much, out of his abundance? Suppose there was also a poor widow, an alumna of the college, who sent $10 to the library campaign? Her name wasn't carved in marble over the door and the story of her life wasn't exhibited in the lobby, but maybe she gave more than Carnegie. "She, out of her poverty, has given everything she had, her whole living."

Jesus' words in this text mean good news for all of us "little people" - we who don't have much to give compared to some, but we who can certainly give our all.

The other day, around five o'clock (which, as every young parent knows, is the children's insanity hour), our three children were racing through the house, sliding full-speed down the stairs on their bellies and generally being out of control. Finally, I collared them and sent them upstairs to sit on their beds. "You're acting like wild and crazy animals," I told them; whereupon my six-year-old said, "But Dad, acting like wild and crazy animals is what we do best!" (I thought it was funny, but I still sent them to their rooms.)

Doing what we do best and offering it to the Lord. That's certainly the spirit of the poor widow and the spirit God loves to see in us today.

The other day, one of our members showed that spirit when she said to me, "I hear you and your wife sometimes have problems finding child care during the week. I don't have a lot of money I can give to the church, but I can help with your children once in a while, so feel free to call on me." That is the spirit of the poor widow. "She has put in everything she had, her whole living."

We see a lot of that same spirit in the church when we get together for big projects, like potluck dinners or church fairs. No one comes forward with a $100,000 check to solve all of our fund-raising problems. We won't be carving anyone's name over the altar or putting their bust in the narthex. Instead, we have a lot of people giving their all - giving what they can. Some bring their best dishes and recipes. Some bring homemade crafts or other knick-knacks. Many people donate their time and labor for other chores, like washing dishes and cleaning-up! When we labor together at the church like this, we see people putting in "everything they have, their whole living."

Once there was a young man named Homer, who was deeply in love with Emmy Lou, but he was too shy to express his love in a physical way. So, he spent a lot of time talking to her about it. "Emmy Lou," he said, "If I had a thousand lips, they would all be kissing you. If I had a thousand arms, they would all be embracing you." Emmy Lou looked at him and said, "Homer, stop complaining about what you don't have and start using what you do have!"

Start using what you do have. Start giving what you do have. Jesus' words about the poor widow tell us there is no reason to think that our gifts are insignificant because they are small. There is no reason to think that our gifts are unimportant because we are giving them. When we give our all -to God and neighbor alike - it makes what we give precious beyond any price.

We may not have much to give, but we can give what we've got. Our gifts may not dazzle and shine, but they are precious gifts just the same. Jesus shows us that God loves the poor widow who gives her all, even her living; so we should be inspired to do the same. And even if it seems that our small gifts don't mean too much on earth, they certainly mean a lot in heaven. Amen

Pastoral Prayer

Gracious and Loving God, who gave us the most precious gift of all when You sent Your Son to save us, inspire us to give of ourselves as well - not just from our abundance, but from our living. Make us generous givers of our time and talent, and not just our money, for these are the gifts that matter more to the ones we know and love. Make us like the poor widow Jesus saw: not being shamed as others come forward with much larger gifts, we still offer what we can, for the good of others and the good of our Lord. In His name we pray. Amen