Luke's Gospel

While all the people were listening, Jesus says to his disciples beware of the teachers of the law. They like to walk around in flowing robes and love to be greeted with respect in the marketplaces. And have the most important seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at banquets. They devour widows houses. And for a show make lengthy prayers.

These men will be punished most severely. As Jesus looked up, he saw the rich putting their gifts into the temple treasury. He also saw a widow, a poor widow, put in 2 very small copper coins. Truly I tell you, he said, this poor widow has put in more than all the others. All these people gave their gifts out of their wealth, but she out of her poverty put in all she had lived had to live on.

People watching is a great pastime. I love people watching. It's very entertaining. I think you can learn a lot about people and just from taking the time to watch people and there are locations which are really good for that. So the bus being sat in the airport, taking a break from reading in a cafe, and just taking a moment to look at the surroundings that you're in and survey the kind of people that are around you?

What are they looking at? What are they talking about? How are they interacting? As I say, it's a great way of learning what makes people tick. And actually thinking about the kind of ways we can reach the communities that we that we live in, people watching.

It's a great pastime. And I I think in this story, what Luke is inviting us do is to go people watching with Jesus. To spend some time with him watching people in order to see what they're doing and to learn from them. And when it comes to Jesus, what we're gonna see tonight is that he is an expert when he when it comes to people watching. Why?

Because he doesn't just see what the rest of us see the outer shell. He sees what only God can see the heart. Jesus is a heart watcher. And in this passage, there are 3 types of people that we need to look at. 3 people we're gonna watch.

In some ways, we're gonna see that they're very different. But every case we're actually gonna learn the same thing. This section is all about the kind of religion that pleases God. What does God look for? In those that follow him, follow his son.

So in this case, we're not watching people just for entertainment, or because we're taking a break from our book or because we're a bit bored. We're going people watching with Jesus in order to learn lessons about what it means to follow him. And the first people we're gonna look at together is the teachers of the law. So this is the first point. Take note off the teachers.

Take note of the teachers. Have a look with me at verse 45 of chapter 20. While all the people were listening, Jesus said to his disciples. So this is a message for the disciples. But he's unafraid to say it publicly so that the crowds and presumably the teachers of the law can hear it as well.

Beaware of teachers of the law. They like to walk around in flowing row. And they love to be greeted with respect in the market places and have the most important seats in the syllables and the places of honor. At banquets. Last week, Rory Kanair was preaching on this passage and he summed these guys up really well.

You might remember he used the illustration of the theater and in in olden times when you would go to the theater. The most expensive, the most honorable seats were not the ones that gave you the best sight into the action. But they were the ones that were seated above everybody else. So you would be seen in the crowds to be the person of great honor in the theater. Because you got to sit in that in that place.

That's what they were like. What got the teachers of the law up in the morning was the praises of men. They loved the praise which came from men. They loved to be seen. They loved to be noted.

There's religious powerful people. They love to be greeted in the public areas to have everybody know their name. They didn't wanna be the kind of person where you walk into a path and nobody knows your face. They wanted to to have the music, go low, they wanted to have the attention on them, they lived for the praises of men. But it gets worse.

Look what Jesus says about them. They devour widows houses and for a show make link the prayers. These men will be punished most severely. Apparently, in this time the teachers of the law would often act as lawyers and it wasn't uncommon for them to charge widows for legal aid in order to sort out family disputes or to resolve issues to do with their property. Now, they weren't actually allowed to do that but that is what they did.

They would charge and exploit widows to act as their act as lawyers for them. Or in other cases, another common case was that if a widow after losing her husband decided to devote herself to temple as a servant of the temple. What they would do is they would take charge of her assets. So they would say, okay, great. We'll have you as a servant, but your or home, whatever you've got.

That now belongs to us and they would abuse that property and they would embezzle it and they would make money for themselves. Off of her possessions. In other words, these teachers of the law used their power and their religion and their position to trample on the backs of the vulnerable in order to make themselves even more powerful. And in doing that, They were sinning in the same ways their fathers had sinned. Listen to Amos, chapter 2 verse 6.

For 3 sins of Israel even for 4, I will not relent. They sell the innocent for silver. And they're needy for a pair of sandals. They trample on the heads of the poor as they do on the dust of the ground. If you've ever read George Orwell's book 19 84, you'll know he describes life under this oppressive big brother state in a very famous way.

He says this. If you want a vision of the future, Imagine a boot stamping on a human face forever. A boot stamping on a human face forever. That is what these power hungry religious leaders were like. The poor The widows, the vulnerable were being stamped on their faces were being squashed into the dust.

So that these teachers could be on the top of the pile. But Jesus says, In verse 47, these men will be punished most severely. In James 1 verse 27, we're told that religion God, our father accepts as pure and faultless is this. To look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world. And if you work that verse backwards, you can see what had happened to the teachers of the law.

They had become polluted by the world. We know that because they loved power. And because they loved power, they exploited the poor. And because they exploited the poor, their religion was unacceptable to God. Decypors?

Take note of these teachers. Let's not pretend that there is something intoxicating something attractive, something rewarding about this kind of life. It'll make you feel good. You will be recognized. You will occupy positions of religious power.

It will be heady, and addictive like a drug, a religious opiate, but beware. Because God weighs the heart. God sees through it. And in many ways, what happens next at the beginning of chapter 21 is going to illustrate this point. In verses 1 to 4, we have a tale of 2 opposites.

So this is going to be like the youngest son and the older son, the pharisee and the tax collector the rich man and lazarus. Jesus often uses opposites in order to make a point. And here we're going to see the rich givers and then we're going to see the kind of person who is abused by the teachers a widow. It's no accident that we're now moving to a story about a widow. So firstly, we've taken note of the teachers And now secondly, we're going to ponder the prosperous.

Take note of the teachers, now we need to ponder the prosperous with Jesus. And here's where the people watching thing really comes in. Have a look at verse 1 of chapter 21. As Jesus looked up, he saw. Just trying to imagine that.

We're we're going into a busy temple complex. We're approaching passover. There are people coming There are people going, there is hustle, there is bustle, there is the noise of footsteps, there is the noise of conversation, there is the noise of flowing robes, rippling in the wind. There are all kinds of noises and the treasury box is the hub of the place. And in some part of this temple complex, Jesus sits or he stands or perhaps he leans against the wall, whatever exactly he's doing.

And he looks up and he sees something. It's quite an evocative image, isn't it? Think thinking of Jesus. In this busy pace seeing something, looking up and watching something. And the first thing he sees is the rich givers.

As Jesus looked up, he saw the rich putting their gifts into the temple treasury. And for these folks, these rich givers The opportunity to go large in the temple was outrageous. 1 writer pictures it this way. Imagine the hush that came over the crowd when a notable person approached. Perhaps with an offering too cat too heavy to carry by himself and the audible gasp as the shackles crashed into the offering.

Just love that image. You can imagine a rich giver borrowing the hands of a mate in order to lump his heavy load of shekels into the temple. It may take 2, 3, 4 of them to actually upturn the thing. And then there's this noise of money and coins crashing into the box and everybody is taking a sharp intake of breath as they see and hear just how generous this rich giver is. Jesus sees these rich putting their gifts in.

Now just as an aside, we do need to be a little careful with this story because although it is true that there are many warnings in the bible about the dangers of wealth. Having less money does not make you more godling. Having less money does not automatically make you more godly. In fact, there were probably lots of rich people who had very noble motives as they gave to the lord's works. So we mustn't see this just as an outright condemnation of big gifts.

But as this story follows the warning we've just had, I think Luke wants us to see that the teachers of the law and these rich are the same kind of person at the moment. The prayers and the robes and the banquets and the giving are a show thing. Here's how it's put in verse 4 chapter 21. Gives us a little clue. All these people gave their gifts out of their wealth or out of their abundance in other translations.

In other words, as the shackles hit the box and the bank notes sail in 1 after the other, it looks generous. It looks like a huge sacrifice but Jesus knows what's going on. According to him, this isn't actually a sacrifice. They're not going to feel this gift. It's like they're spooning the cream off the top of their dessert.

For everybody to see. We're not supposed to think these are generous patrons. They're more like accomplished actors who are putting on a show for the temple crowds. Looking like they're sacrificing much for the work of God. But actually most of it came from embezzle property and devoured widows and they're just giving what's left off the top.

To look up Jesus says, beware the teachers of the law ponder the prosperous, see how they live, see how they give, and beware. Now we're gonna draw some conclusions in just a moment, but lastly, Thirdly, we need to watch the widow. We've taken note of the teachers. We've pondered the prosperous. Now we need to watch the widow.

Have a look at what he says in verse 2. He also saw a poor widow put in 2 very small copper coins. Now just to give you an idea of scale, the the coins she put in here were were called originally lector, which literally means peeled. And the reason they were called that is because the copper was so thin it was like a vegetable peel. So maybe you've got 1 of those speed peelers at home.

You know when you peel a carrot or a parsnip or a potato, 1 particular appeal is extremely thin. In fact, if you turned it sideways, it might disappear. It's very it's hardly anything. That's what she had put in a thin slice of copper. So you see the contrast.

On the 1 hand, you've got these rich givers who are bringing in sacks of potatoes and they are pouring the potatoes into the treasury. And here's this woman who brings in 1 potato peel and drops it into the treasury box. These coins were worth nothing. It apparently was 1 120 eighth of a day's wage. Which which is nothing.

In our day, it would be it really would be pence, coppers, a sign of kinda small change we don't even see anymore. Certainly wouldn't even buy you a can of coke. It was it was nothing. And when you compare that gift with the beauty of the place in verse 5, You see even more how worthless it was. Have a look at verse 5.

Now this this is a this is a strange comment by the disciples. Given the story we're just looking at. But here's what they say in verse 5. Some of his disciples were remarking about how the temple was adorned with beautiful stones and the gifts. Dedicated to God.

As if they're they're still impressed by the the outward display of riches, rather than what we've just learned about the winner. So it's a strange decidable comment. But the point of that is to say, her coins were nothing compared to those stones. They were nothing compared to those gifts which adorned the temple. When her coins went into the box and landed on the piles of cash, it wouldn't have made a sound.

It would be like dropping a feather onto a carpet. You wouldn't hear it, you wouldn't see it. But Jesus says, This is outrageous really. Jesus says in verse 3, truly I tell you, this poor widow has put in more than all of these others. All these people gave their gifts out of their wealth, but she out of her poverty put in all she had to live on.

You see in reality, the temple the temple is no better off because of her gift, but she is very much poorer because of it. And even if we assume that she put in her wages for the day rather than everything that she owned, which is likely because she would have been living hand to mouth day to day. Even if she'd just put in her day's wages, that is an enormous enormous sacrifice. So that's the people we need to watch with Jesus. We need to take note of the teachers.

We need to ponder the prosperous. We need to watch the widow. But now lastly, I know I said lastly before. That was like Paul when he says finally. He didn't actually mean it.

That was the finally before the finally. Lastly, I want to imagine that we're in the temple and Jesus turns to us. Instead of looking at others, he sets his eyes upon us. Where do we fit in to Jesus' people watching Day? That's the fourth point.

Jesus looks at us. Now this next statement, which I think is the big application of the passage, could could either be pretty unsettling, or it could be quite comforting, or it could be more likely a bit of both. And it's this. God weighs the heart. It's not the length of our prayers, It's not the status we occupy.

It's not our ability with words. It's not the power of our brains. It's not the speed of our wit. It's not the power we have to persuade. It's not the number of our friends.

It's not the amount that we give. God weighs the heart. Those copper coins weighed almost nothing. But Jesus says her heart was weighty with the things of God. You see, if her giving was motivated by the fear of man like these rich, she wouldn't have put those coins in.

Was she? She she wouldn't she wouldn't have even gone there. At least she would have avoided the place when it was busy. It'd be it would be embarrassing. To be seen to be putting a vegetable peel into the treasury box.

But that is not why the widow came to the temple this day. In fact, I doubt or I guess, she didn't even know and maybe never found out on earth. That Jesus was watching her, but she knew that God in heaven was watching her. And that's what mattered. And that's the lesson, isn't it for us?

When it comes to our giving and to how we live in general as Christians and how we interact with each other, the heart makes all the difference. You see, when I pay my council tax, the council have no interest in the attitude of my heart. They are not interested whether I pay with a joyful smile and a thankful heart or through gritted teeth as I curse the institution. It it makes 0 difference to them the attitude of my heart as long as I pay. But to Jesus, it makes all the difference.

And therefore, in financial giving and in the use of our gifts and in the way we speak to our neighbours and in the way we treat our family and our church, let we've gotta remember and learn this lesson. Falling others is really not that hard. We can become quite good at fooling others, but the lord weighs the heart. JC Ryle, an old Bishop of Liverpool makes this comment. Whatever else we are in religion, let us be true.

However, feeble our faith and hope and love and obedience may be, let us see to it that they are real, genuine and sincere. Let us abhor the very idea of part acting and mask wearing in our Christianity, mask wearing. Physically, something we need at the moment, but spiritually, to be avoided because the lord sees the heart. But there's another lesson from the widow and it flows from verse 4. Have a look at verse 4 of chapter 21.

She out of her poverty put in put in all she had to live on. So imagine you were there with this widow. Do you think any normal non pharisee person would criticize her if she kept 1 for herself? She decided to put 1 in and keep the other for the would would anyone have criticized her for that? That would be a 50 percent tithe for the day.

That would be quite a generous gift. And in her position, it would have been a remarkable gift. But no, she puts in both of the copper coins, all she had to live on for the day. Now, what how could she do that? What enabled her to do that?

Well, she must have believed that God would take care of her for that day. As we've already seen for the rich, it was not a sacrifice. It didn't involve faith. They wouldn't notice it. But for her, when those coins hit the box, it was up to the lord to take care of her.

And that tells us something about faith It tells us that in the real business of life every day on the ground, week to week, For that day, she trusted God, not in theory, but she trusted him for the next hour. In order to take care of her, and therefore she could give. What about you? What about me? When it comes to giving, does what we give say to the Lord, both I love you and I need you.

Or does it show that in reality, our treasure and our trust, is in the things of this world. It could be unsettling. It might be encouraging. It could be a bit of both to know. That God weighs our hearts.

And perhaps we will need to repent honestly this evening. But this is also an encouragement. You see, maybe you're listening to this and to be honest you feel like this widow. You think, well, I haven't got much to give, I haven't got much to offer. I'm not someone who would be noticed in a crowded room, I might have more money than her, but in many ways I feel the same as her compared to other people.

Doesn't matter. Here's a quote from Ar Ken Hughes, a bible commentator, which I'm hoping is gonna come up. I just love this. Those 2 pennies given quietly with the widow's motive have produced more for the kingdom in the intervening 2000 years than all the other gifts presented that pass over week. Down through the ages, those 2 little coins have been multiplied into billions and billions for God's work.

As humble people have been liberated to give from their little or from their much. Isn't that wonderful? Nothing more than a potato peel, and yet the harvest from those 2 coins has been immeasurable in church history. How has it done that? Because this story has liberated people to think in every generation, I may not have much I may not have a great brain but this woman tells me that's okay because Jesus doesn't measure things that way.

If what I have is given out of love for him and trust in him, He will take what I've got little or large and he will multiply it for his work. Jesus loves this offering. He loves this woman because she gave in faith. And could leave the results to him. Isn't it encouraging to know that this woman with her potato peels has liberated millions of givers all across church history.

I too can give my little because I love the lord and he sees my heart. 1 encouragement it is that God weighs the heart. And lastly, this woman's witness doesn't even stop there because in giving the way that she did, she was imaging the very lord who was looking at her. 2 Corinthians 8, verse 9 says this. For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was ripped yet for your sake, he became poor so that you through his poverty might become rich.

You see, and this is something we've seen in Philipp, isn't it? Jesus Christ when he came to Earth became like this widow, didn't he? He became a man of sorrows. He became vulnerable. He became poor in the world's standards.

With no place to lay his head. But on the cross, he too put in all he had to live on. He put in his very life. He put in his body. He surrendered it to a cross.

He gave all that he had. In order to ransom us from sin, to save us and to make us rich with the treasures of eternal life. Jesus Christ is the ultimate widow, the generous giver who put in all that he had. To save us and to produce a generous heart in us. If the gospel can't liberate us for this life, then nothing can.

So shall we pray that we would have this sort of