Freely…Freely
TRANSLATION
(41) Then Jesus asked them, “Why is it said that the Messiah is David’s son? (42) David himself declared in the Psalms, ‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at my right hand, (43) until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.”’ (44) If David called him ‘Lord,’ how then can he be his son?”
(45) While everyone was listening, he said to his disciples, (46) “Beware of the teachers of the Law who enjoy walking in flowing robes, love to be greeted in the marketplaces, take the most important seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at banquets, (47) devour widows’ houses, and offer long prayers to impress others. Such men will be punished severely.”
(1) And looking up, Jesus saw the wealthy deposit their gifts into the temple treasury. (2) He then watched a poor widow deposit two small coins. (3) He said, “Truly I tell you that this poor widow gave more than all the others, (4) for they all gave out of their abundance but she, out of her poverty, has given everything she had to live on.”
OBSERVATIONS
The issue which Jesus raised by asking his question had to do with Messiah’s dual identity as both the offspring of David, David’s son because of his human descent, as well as the incarnate Son of God, David’s Lord because of his divinity. Only one who was both fully man and fully God, the Messiah, could fulfill the prophecies of Psalm 110. By quoting this psalm Jesus was in essence declaring, “This is who I am, if you only had the eyes of faith to believe it.”
With messianic authority, Jesus pronounced judgment on the teachers of the law for their hypocrisy and commended the poor widow for her sacrificial giving. In these brief verses Luke gave us a foretaste of how God’s Son will judge all humankind at the end of the ages. Luke used several repetitions in these three related paragraphs: “how” (vss. 41 & 44), “Lord” (three times in vss. 42 & 44), “David” (also three times in vss. 41, 42, & 44), “son” (vss. 41 & 44), “widow(s)” (three times in vss. 47, 2, & 3), “poor/poverty” (vss. 2, 3, & 4).
OUTLINE
I. Jesus established his authority with his question regarding the Messiah’s identity. (41-44)
II. Jesus condemned the teachers of the law for their hypocrisy. (45-47)
III. Jesus commended the poor widow for her sacrificial giving. (1-4)
IDEA STATEMENT
After establishing his messianic authority with a perplexing question, Jesus condemned the hypocritical and commended the sincere.
APPLICATION
“Grace giving” as taught in the New Testament revolutionized the way people viewed the stewardship of material possessions. In the Old Testament, all Israelites were expected to give a tenth annually: “A tithe of everything from the land, whether grain from the soil or fruit from the trees, belongs to Yahweh; it is holy to Yahweh” (Lev. 27:30). However, under the New Covenant, believers are taught to think differently. Paul wrote at length about grace giving in 2 Corinthians 8 & 9. Instead of living under an obligation to return a tithe to the Lord, Paul wrote: “Remember this: whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. Each one should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver” (2 Cor. 9:6 & 7).
Devoting a specific amount or fixed percentage of our income to God’s work does not necessarily fulfill our call to become generous givers. What matters to God is the motivation of our hearts. If we are giving because we feel compelled to give or have a desire to put God in our debt so that he will bless us, we are giving for the wrong reasons. If, on the other hand, we, like the widow, are motivated by gratitude and love for God who has given to us everything we possess, we honor God with whatever amount we are able to offer. In Matthew Jesus set a standard for his disciples as they went out to minister, a benchmark that can help us decide how much we should give: “Freely you have received; freely give” (Mt. 10:8).