10 November 2024 Pentecost 25

Ruth 3.1-5; 4.3-17    Psalm 127     Hebrews 9.23-28    Mark 12.38-44

We often look at today’s gospel reading as an example of ‘how we should give’, Jesus criticises and calls out the scribes for their habits of self-indulgence, their ‘look at me’ behaviours and their failure to look after the poor in their midst, in fact Jesus says they ‘devour widows houses’, and he then draws attention to the actions of a widow, poor and marginalised, who gives ‘all she has’ in comparison to the rich who give ‘what is left over’.

But is this really a story about stewardship and faithful giving.  At no point does Jesus commend the widow or indicate that her behaviours are something others should follow.  He simply ‘notices’ her and draws the attention of the disciples to her.  Not to her behaviours, but to her.  Jesus tells us that this widow, in putting her two coins in the treasury gives ‘all she has’.  We know that in the time of Jesus, when a person was widowed, they were left without someone to care for them, they were at the mercy of the rest of the family, or if there were no other family, they were at the mercy of the community.  We also know that the Hebrew Scriptures call on the religious leaders to ‘care for the poor, the widow, the orphan’, and this is one of the accusations Jesus levels against the scribes, they ‘devour’ widows’ houses, in other words, they not only didn’t care for them, they pressure them to give what little they had left to them to the temple, forcing them beyond destitution.

But there is a deeper message in Jesus’ words about the widow.  She ‘gave all she had’, in other words, she gave her life.  This woman knows that after putting her coins into the treasury, she will now have nothing left to live on, she has given away her last chance of life.  Now I am not suggesting or implying that this is something we should be looking to do, you and I will never be in a situation of having to make a decision like this.  This is not an a ‘look at her – go and do likewise’ situation.  This passage asks us to consider, should I, do I, speak up for the vulnerable in our society; do I advocate against practices and laws that exploit the poor; and especially, – how does this capture gospel how does this relate to the good news Jesus both brings and embodies.

When we look at the way our society cares for, or doesn’t care for, the marginalised, the outcast, the poor, those without a voice, those who society fails to ‘see’, those questions are especially important.  The good news of this passage comes in what it says about the God we worship, the God we confess Jesus reveals most clearly.  God cared for this woman and her sacrifice.  Jesus noticed, God saw, her plight and recognised her affliction.  God saw her and cared about her.  No one else walking around the temple that day noticed this woman, especially not those making such a show of their large, yet token, offerings.  Even the disciples did not notice her until Jesus drew their attention to her.  And in the same way that God noticed her, God also sees, notices and cares about our struggles; God recognises our challenges; God cares about where we are hard pressed to make ends meet.  And even more, God invites us to look around and see each other, see those in our community we know and those we don’t.  Look and ‘see’ each other – see the pain of those facing discrimination because of their ethnic background; see the desolation of those unable to find employment who are cast aside to ‘fend for themselves’; see the despair of those who have stopped even looking for employment because they have lost hope.  God is inviting us to see them, to care for them, and to advocate for a system that leaves no-one behind.

As you prepare to submit your mission offerings next week, consider what roles you are being invited participate in.  Can you be one of the leadership team that drives this parish forward into mission in our community; can you be one of those who respond to calls for assistance; can you be one of those who assist in preparing for and leading our worship; can you assist in our outreach into the community through the various activities we hold on a regular and ‘one-off’ basis.  God cares, and God invites us to care too.  God believes we all have something to contribute, that we can all make a difference, that our words and actions can help bring the kingdom God’s Son proclaimed and embodied more fully to fruition.  And although we will inevitably fall short sometimes, the God who raised Jesus from the dead will bring all things to a good end.