June 17, 2010
I SURRENDER
Mark 12:41-44
Grace Colombo
Central Truth
Jesus calls us to surrender all we have to Him, even if we barely have anything.
Key Verse | Mark 12:44
“[F]or they all put in out of their surplus, but she, out of her poverty, put in all she owned, all she had to live on.” (Mark 12:44)
Mark 12:41-44
The Widow's Offering
41 And he sat down opposite the treasury and watched the people putting money into the offering box. Many rich people put in large sums. 42 And a poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which make a penny. 1 12:42 Greek two lepta, which make a kodrantes; a kodrantes (Latin quadrans) was a Roman copper coin worth about 1/64 of a denarius (which was a day's wage for a laborer) 43 And he called his disciples to him and said to them, “Truly, I say to you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the offering box. 44 For they all contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on.”
Footnotes
[1] 12:42 Greek two lepta, which make a kodrantes; a kodrantes (Latin quadrans) was a Roman copper coin worth about 1/64 of a denarius (which was a day's wage for a laborer)Dive Deeper | Mark 12:41-44
It is hard for me to consider what it would be like to give up my earthly possessions, because I feel like I need them. I count on them; I depend on them. But I am forgetting that it is only Jesus who can satisfy me.
People today typically fall into one of two categories: their many possessions make them prideful, and they want to keep them all for themselves; or they feel like they don’t have enough to give so they don’t give at all. Unfortunately, I would probably fall into the first category. I sometimes let my earthly possessions take precedence over God.
The woman in Mark 12:41-44, however, was neither of these. She was poor and depended on the little money she had, but this didn't stop her from giving every last penny and surrendering it all to God. She didn’t just give money; there was something much deeper that she gave to Him that day. She gave her love, her trust, her faith, her heart, her everything.
God calls us to surrender to Him everything we have and everything we are. That can be hard to do whether we have a lot or a little. God is still teaching me how to do that and is helping me realize exactly what I need to surrender.
We all have something in our lives holding us back that we need to give over to God. It could be a favorite possession that has turned into an idol in our lives; or it could be something we’re going through that we just need to hand over to Him and say, “God, you’re bigger than this, help me to trust you.”
Whether we are rich or poor, we all need God. He has shown me that I could give Him every single thing in my house and live off nothing because He is the only thing I need to survive. He is bigger than all of our problems, our fears, our trials, and our pain. He is the Ultimate Provider and our strength.
Discussion Questions
1. What do you need to surrender to God?
2. Why do you think it is so hard to surrender our lives to Him?
3. Has there ever been a time in your life when you have had to put your faith completely in Him alone?
FAMILY DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
1. What is worth more: a quarter or a twenty dollar bill?
2. How much did the widow give compared to the rich people?
3. Which one did Jesus say gave more? Why? How can you give to the Lord like the widow did?