Jaw-dropping Jewels about Jesus
Rarely does Jesus, God the Son, do exactly what we expect of Him. It seems odd that He so frequently surprises us, given that He never changes. Hebrews 13:8 makes this absolute statement: “Jesus the same yesterday, and today, and forever.” Still, though He is blessedly consistent in His goodness, Jesus does unforeseen things. Even when He does what is expected, He does not always do it in the way that we anticipate. Let us join with Jesus on a jaw-dropping journey. (I will be using this opening paragraph for each of the brief messages in this series. The following material will change daily.)
We return to the account of the poor widow in Mark 12:42-44: “And there came a certain poor widow, and she threw in two mites, which make a farthing. And He [Jesus] called unto Him His disciples, and saith unto them, ‘Verily I say unto you, that this poor widow hath cast more in, than all they which hath cast into the treasury. For all they did cast in of their abundance; but she of her want did cast in all that she had, even all her living.’” It is instructive to note that this woman, unlike the scribes in verses 38-40, was not seeking any attention, but Jesus singles her out as an exemplar of an example. She was not interested in popularity, as the scribes were, but her story has been told throughout the centuries, and her self-denial in giving has encouraged millions of Christians. She clearly was not motivated by money; in fact, she was the kind of vulnerable person that the scribes preyed upon (verse 40). Money had no hold on her (and she had no hold on money). Yet, she was the one laying up “treasures in heaven” (Matthew 6:20); this “poor widow” was eternally richer than all of the widow-devouring scribes put together. One woman – a poor woman – demonstrates that a simple, sincere faith is everlastingly pleasing to our Savior God.