Episode 91: Advent Day 15

12/15/19 • 4 min

Luke 21:1-4 (NLT)

The Widow’s Offering
21 While Jesus was in the Temple, he watched the rich people dropping their gifts in the collection box. 2 Then a poor widow came by and dropped in two small coins.

3 “I tell you the truth,” Jesus said, “this poor widow has given more than all the rest of them. 4 For they have given a tiny part of their surplus, but she, poor as she is, has given everything she has.”

Each year, we try to make the holidays bigger and better than the year before. We frantically search the aisles and spend hard-earned money on the perfect gift. At Christmas, we feel the need to go above and beyond for show. So, we fill stockings to the brim and meticulously decorate the tree.

Luke 21:1-4 reminds us that Jesus is not impressed by our status, wealth, or online following.

In Jesus’ day, most widows lacked the means to support themselves. Without a husband or children to provide, they relied on welfare from the church or the kindness of strangers. As the wealthy placed their gifts into the treasury, a widow placed two small copper coins in the offering. She gave only a few cents, but she gave all she had.

You can imagine the widow trying to hide her gift, embarrassed at its lack of size. But Jesus saw the depth of her sacrifice and called attention to her faith. The gift most likely to be seen as insignificant and the person most likely to be overlooked is the one Jesus brought to the forefront.

It’s easy to get caught up in the celebration and forget the person we’re celebrating. Jesus came so everyone — the poor and the wealthy, the curated and the chaotic — would have an opportunity to know their Father in heaven.

Those who have a lot and those who have a little can both lose sight of what matters. Jesus cares far more about the spirit with which we give than the amount we give. He longs for us to feel the same way (Matthew 6).

What if this Christmas we gave others the same attention Jesus gave the poor widow? What if we looked past the stuff to see a person’s heart? We might just help someone take a step closer to their heavenly Father.

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Luke 21:1-4 (NLT)

The Widow’s Offering
21 While Jesus was in the Temple, he watched the rich people dropping their gifts in the collection box. 2 Then a poor widow came by and dropped in two small coins.

Luke 21:1-4 reminds us that Jesus is not impressed by our status, wealth, or online following.

Support the show

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Episode 90: Advent Day 14

Luke 19:1-10 (NLT)

Jesus and Zacchaeus
19 Jesus entered Jericho and made his way through the town. 2 There was a man there named Zacchaeus. He was the chief tax collector in the region, and he had become very rich. 3 He tried to get a look at Jesus, but he was too short to see over the crowd. 4 So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore-fig tree beside the road, for Jesus was going to pass that way.

5 When Jesus came by, he looked up at Zacchaeus and called him by name. “Zacchaeus!” he said. “Quick, come down! I must be a guest in your home today.”

6 Zacchaeus quickly climbed down and took Jesus to his house in great excitement and joy. 7 But the people were displeased. “He has gone to be the guest of a notorious sinner,” they grumbled.

8 Meanwhile, Zacchaeus stood before the Lord and said, “I will give half my wealth to the poor, Lord, and if I have cheated people on their taxes, I will give them back four times as much!”

9 Jesus responded, “Salvation has come to this home today, for this man has shown himself to be a true son of Abraham. 10 For the Son of Man came to seek and save those who are lost.”

If we’re honest, there are people we’re tempted to avoid. In Jesus’ day, Zacchaeus was one of “those people.” Considered a traitor by his countrymen, he got rich fleecing his fellow countrymen to collect taxes for the Romans.

Where most people would avoid a man like Zacchaeus, Jesus does the opposite. Love and obedience to God — not comfort — guided Jesus’ decisions. He calls Zacchaeus out of the crowd and invites Himself to Zacchaeus's house. The encounter with Jesus marked Zacchaeus so deeply that he offered to give his possessions to the poor and pay back what he had cheated from others.

Jesus came to save those we cross the street to avoid. And like Zacchaeus, people who encounter Jesus walk away changed.

Perhaps we’re too busy or too scared to engage. As Christians, the same power that lives in Jesus lives in us (Romans 8:10-11). What if the person we avoid is the very person who needs what we can offer?

The best gift the world has ever received lives inside of each of us. How many people would experience the hope and peace of Jesus if we simply reached out?

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Episode 92: Advent Day 16

Matthew 1:18-25 (NLT)

The Birth of Jesus the Messiah
18 This is how Jesus the Messiah was born. His mother, Mary, was engaged to be married to Joseph. But before the marriage took place, while she was still a virgin, she became pregnant through the power of the Holy Spirit. 19 Joseph, to whom she was engaged, was a righteous man and did not want to disgrace her publicly, so he decided to break the engagement quietly.

20 As he considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream. “Joseph, son of David,” the angel said, “do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife. For the child within her was conceived by the Holy Spirit. 21 And she will have a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.”

22 All of this occurred to fulfill the Lord’s message through his prophet:

23 “Look! The virgin will conceive a child!
She will give birth to a son,
and they will call him Immanuel,
which means ‘God is with us.’”

24 When Joseph woke up, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded and took Mary as his wife. 25 But he did not have sexual relations with her until her son was born. And Joseph named him Jesus.

Mary was an ordinary Hebrew girl. She blended in. She was part of the crowd. But God chose Mary to play an important role in His plan to bring blessing and salvation to the world.

Mary supernaturally carried God’s Son in her belly and brought Jesus into the world. God saw fit for His only Son to be born, nurtured, and taught by Mary and her husband, Joseph. No longer able to blend into the crowd, Mary was set apart by God Himself.

Why? What made Mary so special? She didn’t have wealth, nobility, or social standing. Any talents she may have possessed were unimpressive. While her earthly possessions were few, Mary did possess three valuable traits.

First, Mary’s heart was fully surrendered. Mary answered the angel Gabriel, “I am the Lord’s servant. May it be to me as you have said.” Though she had questions, she was open to God’s plan.

Second, Mary had faith. Mary shared the life-altering encounter with a close friend and relative, Elizabeth. Elizabeth recognized Mary’s faith, “Blessed is she who has believed that what the Lord has said to her will be accomplished!” (Luke 1:45).

Third, Mary was a worshiper. Luke 1:46-55 beautifully captures Mary’s heart as she points the focus and praise back to the One who saw her and knew her. God elevated Mary because she surrendered to Him and His plans for her life.

God uses the ordinary for His extraordinary plan. We can trust in Him.

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