Holy Week - Part 3

And so it comes to Wednesday. Sometimes referred to as “Spy Wednesday,” as it’s generally agreed that it was the day Judas Iscariot went to meet the leaders to make the deal for betraying Jesus. 

It’s also the day that Jesus is anointed for his burial in the form of the woman pouring the expensive perfume over his body. 

But what I wanted to talk about today are 2 teachings:

1. The Widow’s Offering (Mark 12:41-44, Luke 21:1-4)

2. No One Knows the Day or the Hour (Matthew 24:36-51, Mark 13:32-37)

Let’s dive in. 

1. The Widow’s Offering

This is an often overlooked story in the Gospels–at least I always overlook it. Because if I’m being honest, I’m not the widow in the story. And selfishly, I don’t want to be in that position, ever. I think it’s safe to say that most of us relate. 

We’d rather be the rich people putting in large sums rather than the widow offering her 2 copper coins. 

But I was reading Letters to the Church by Francis Chan (highly recommend this book!) the other day, and this quote really stuck out. 

When we approach our offerings, whether that be tithing or serving the church, or our worship, or our prayers, do we give them without thinking about what it is that we’re actually doing? Do we approach our offering with the same desperation, the same attitude as the widow? 

Or are we simply giving because we “have” to? Because it’s a habit that we’ve built up? 

Let’s be frank here. The Lord has no need for our money. It doesn’t matter how much you give up. The Lord wants your heart. The very thing He died for 2 days after saying this. What makes the widow so inspirational is her reliance upon God in this moment. No one would have blamed her for not giving that up. But the Lord saw her heart. And He commends her for it. 

The Lord cares about different things than we do. And it serves us well to think about that from time to time. 

What does God actually want from you? 

2. No One Knows the Day or the Hour

This is one of those passages that can sometimes seem a little “doom and gloom.” One that we’d rather not focus on because it implies that we might not have as much time as we expect. After all, Jesus hasn’t come back in the last 2000 years, what’s another year right? 

But that’s exactly the point of the passage! 

³⁵ Therefore stay awake—for you do not know when the master of the house will come, in the evening, or at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or in the morning— ³⁶ lest he come suddenly and find you asleep. ³⁷ And what I say to you I say to all: Stay awake.”

Mark 13:35-27

Stay awake! He says it multiple times in the span of 5 verses. 

It is the deception of the enemy that keeps us from going “all in” with our faith. The deception that we have many more years to live for. Many decades to live out our dreams, to live “happily ever after,” to use the tail end of our lives to finally take God’s Word seriously. 

Stay awake! 

Don’t be deceived. Jesus can come today, next year, or 5000 years from now. No one knows when He’s coming back. But don’t be fooled. You’re on borrowed time. 

²⁴ “But in those days, after that tribulation, the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, ²⁵ and the stars will be falling from heaven, and the powers in the heavens will be shaken. ²⁶ And then they will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory. ²⁷ And then he will send out the angels and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of heaven.

Mark 13:24-27

Even as I write this, my mind struggles with the urgency. I have so much that I want to do, I want to see my kids grow up, I want to see my grandkids one day. 

But does that matter more than the coming of Jesus? 

I’ve known many people who are under the impression that they have the time to spare. That they can come back to God when it’s convenient, or after they’ve had their taste of the world. Maybe you’ve known them too. And felt bad for them, seeing as they’ve been deceived. 

But I’ve also met many in the church who think the same way. But just because they’re in the church, they’re somehow safe. 

Please don’t be one of them. Take it seriously. 

Stay awake!

Love y’all. 

-Caleb