Marks of Discipleship: Devotion - Mark 12: 38-44

Its an all too familiar story isn’t it - the scribe are ch for being unfaithful and the widow is upheld for being faithful in what she gave. But I would invite you to approach today’s scripture passage with open hearts and ears, to see if there is something new to be found in the text.

What does it truly mean to sacrifice? To give something up so that others do not go without. We are a country that honors and upholds sacrifice. We praise our service men and women for being willing to lay down their lives and those who leave their homes to go clean up after natural disasters or are life long missionaries to other countries, leaving behind everything they know for the sake of the gospel. We smile when we hear stories in the news about children giving up every penny they had in their piggy bank to help other children in need. We honor and praise sacrifice as long as it isn’t incovient to us. As long as we are not the ones being called to sacrifice.

For if we are honest with ourselves, this Bible passage probably frightens us a bit. Is Jesus really asking us to give up everything we have? Isn’t this type of sacrifice dangerous? When we dwell on the widow’s sacrifice itself, Jesus’ call to us can seem too daunting. Too risky. So we don’t try to sacrifice anything at all - at least not anything that means something to us. But what if the story isn’t about the widow or the gift she brought? What if it wasn’t so much about how much she gave but rather her attitude behind it? For the next few weeks we are going to be focusing on what it truly means to be a disciple of Christ, what are the distinguishing marks or acts we have as disciples. What the widow shows us today is what it means for a disciple to have a heart of devotion.

The dictionary defines devotion as a profound dedication, consecration, or an appropriation to a person or cause. In lay man’s terms when one is devoted they are sold out, all in, or dedicated to with all they have. But in order to be devoted we must sacrifice - sacrifice of our time, money, and talents. For our sacrifice is an act of worship.

One common leap we make in this passage is to think that Jesus is warning against all of the scribes. Scribes were people who had knowledge of the scripture and the laws who were able to discipher legal and political documents. Jesus wasn’t warning against the whole group, rather he was warning against those who didn’t follow the laws they were discphering for others. Jesus was speaking out against those scribes who told others that scripture demanded that they take care of the widow, when they devour her themselves. Jesus is warning agains those who mask their unfaithfulness under a veneer of faithfulness and paraded their pretense as piety. 

Jesus was warning against those scribes who were not devoted to what they taught. For devotion is not so much a matter of the head, or knowing something, but a matter of the heart. Devotion cannot be hidden for long under the guise of long prayers or other acts of worship that are meant to make you appear a certain way. Devotion is about what we believe becoming the way that we live. 

And that brothers and sisters is why Jesus pointed out the widow bringing her offering to the temple. Not so much for what she gave, but the heart that was behind it. For while the woman gave a lot less then the scribes that Jesus was warning against, she gave her offering as a sacrifice and as an act of faith. She was so faithful that some would call her foolish. She gave absolutely everything she had - not knowing where the money would come from for her next meal let alone anything down the road. She simply trusted that God would provide and she gave. She didn’t give just what she could, she gave more then what anyone thought she should, and isn’t that what we admire about the sacrifices that others make? We admire how much others are willing to risk for what they believe in.

The widow offering was also an act of devotion because of how she gave. She didn’t give so that others would notice her or in such a manner where she would draw all of the attention to herself. Instead she gave in such a way that would bring the honor and praise to God, not herself. How often have you found that some of the most devoted people you know are the unsung heroes? The people who do things in the church you never even knew about until one day they are no longer with us to give of their time and talents?  Devotion is about shedding all egotism or greed that we may have, any desire we may possess for bringing attention to ourselves, and taking on the characteristics or God, chiefly those of humility, love, and sacrifice. 

All too often this Bible passage is used to shame congregations into giving more - and preachers tell people that they need to be all in. But honestly, we don’t go from being skeptical to being all in over night. Our devotion should grow with our faith in God, for they are inextricably linked together. Our devotion to Christ flows out of our relationship with him. So today I ask you, what are you doing to help you grow in your relationship with Christ? Sometimes when we hear the word devotion the first thought that comes to our mind is not dedication but the devotions we do - that quiet time that we have with God. By having a plan for prayer and study, even if you cannot do it every day, we give ourselves the gift of being positioned to be open with God. Positioned to grow in relationship with God. How are you placing yourself in a position to listen to God, soak up God’s love, and respond to the grace being offered?

Secondly, this passage gives us the opportunity to think about what offering truly means. Are we offering ourselves in devotion to God? As we grow with God are we finding ourselves being able to more readily sacrifice those things that we hold most dear to us - be it money, time, or something else? How is offering an act of faith? And how does seeing offering as an act of devotion change us? 

While devotion literally means giving of your whole self, your whole life, this doesn’t necessarily mean that it comes easily. Devotion requires faith and trust. But just because it is hard does not give us an excuse not to try. As Christian disciples we strive to be growing deeper in love with God and our neighbor every day. And that striving is an act of devotion itself. There are going to be times when others will think our devotion is misplaced or foolish. But brothers and sisters we know the truth, that which is foolish to man is priceless in the eyes of God. For it is in ability to love Christ so deeply that we are willing to risk it all that we can truly begin to understand the love that Christ showed for us on the cross and the devotion he had to the kingdom of God. May we try each day to fall a little more deeply in love with God and live a life that reflects that the kingdom of God is our first priority. Amen.