Tag: Elijah

This sermon was preached at Saint Stephen’s Episcopal Church in Sherman, Texas, on Sunday, November 10, 2024.

Texts: 1 Kings 17:8-16, Mark 12:38-44

Sometimes a story from the New Testament can only be truly understood when it’s viewed alongside a story from the Old Testament.

Our Gospel reading today is the story of the poor widow’s offering. At this point in Mark’s Gospel, Jesus has entered Jerusalem for the final week of his earthly life. He is daily teaching and healing the sick in the Temple. On one afternoon, Jesus is sitting opposite the Temple treasury, and he observes people from the crowd putting money into it. He saw that there were many rich people putting in large sums. But one woman, a poor widow, puts into two copper coins, which together make a very small amount, a mite or a penny. Barely anything.

And Jesus is so affected by this act that he calls his disciples to himself and says to them, “Truly I say to you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the treasury. For they all contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, her whole livelihood.”

And that’s the story. It’s brief and leaves out many details we might like to know.

Why was the widow putting into the treasury the last bit of money she had? How did she feel about this?

And what does Jesus really think of this? Does he approve of this act? Does he want his disciples to imitate this?

Because on the face of it, this is not advisable. If you are poor, if you are a widow in the ancient world and therefore without the ability to support yourself, and if all you have is two coins, you should not be obligated to give to the Temple. You’re clearly in need and shouldn’t feel you have to be responsible for giving your money away— if anything, people should be helping you out.

This passage is sometimes used in stewardship seasons to encourage generous giving, even when people are in real financial need. The message goes, “She didn’t have much but she gave all she had. So we should give generously too, even if we don’t have a lot, even if we’re struggling.”

This is, I believe, a flawed reading of the story and ironically the very sort of thing Our Lord was criticizing just a few verses before this episode.

The Lord warns against the scribes, the scholars of the Law, who like to be honored with salutations and the best seats in the synagogues and at feasts… and who do what? Who devour widows’ houses. They encourage the faithful to give large donations to the Temple or the synagogue— what we would call the church— even if they are in a financially precarious situation. And some widows will do it because they want to be faithful, and after all, these are holy men who are encouraging them to do this.

So the leaders of God’s people have a great responsibility when it comes to the financial counsel they give, because people listen. We just concluded our stewardship season, and I was clear about my belief in the benefits of tithing– probably more so than most Episcopal priests. But a tithe is 10%, it’s not 100%! It’s good to give to the church, but we have to do it in a way that’s responsible. We give generously within our ability, in a way that’s not reckless.

So this story is a commentary on the greed of religious leaders, but it’s also a story about faith… about trust in the face of despair. Its counterpart is the Old Testament story of Elijah and the widow of Zarephath.

In those days, there was a drought in Israel. There was no water, and because of course there’s no rain, the crops can’t grow, so there’s no food either. The LORD commands the prophet Elijah to go to this young widow who lives across the way in Sidon. The widow and her son have run out of food. They’re starving, and she has enough meal to make one more small loaf of bread. She’s gathering sticks to make a fire to bake one last piece of bread to feed herself and her young son. This is a woman who is resigned to her fate. Unless a miracle occurs, they’ll soon be dead. She’s accepted that this will be their last meal.

And here comes this man of God, asking for some water and a piece of bread. And she tells him, “I don’t have any bread, just a little bit of meal. And if I make any for you, I won’t have any for me and my son.” But he assures her to trust him, and to make him a little cake and afterward there will be enough for them too.

Though she had good reason to deny his request for hospitality, something in her told her to do this generous act. She could have denied him his request. She could have said, No there’s only enough for me and my son, get lost! But she was generous and gave Elijah what was meant for her and her son.

And the miracle she had been hoping for, but didn’t expect, occurs. The handful of meal is not spent, nor the little bit of oil, but both last many days. They’re able to subsist on the bread the meal and oil make until the drought ended, the crops returned, and the people were able to eat again. Elijah saved the life of this widow through her generous act.

This story gives us the key to the story of the poor widow’s mite. The poor widow may have also reached the end of her rope. She was in poverty. Maybe she had been hungry and malnourished and poorly clad for a long time. Maybe she had been poor for such a long time that it all was starting to take its toll on her health, and she was nearing the end. Unless a miracle occurs, she’s not going to be able to live much longer.

All she had left was these two copper coins. And those added up to something like a penny— not even enough to buy one meal or even a loaf of bread. So if that’s really all she has left, maybe she thinks to herself, “This isn’t enough to sustain me. If I have to spend it, at least I’ll give it back to God.” So she places it in the Temple treasury as an act of faith, as one last act of generosity in the face of the abyss. Like the widow of Zarephath, she gives away what little she has to someone else, because if she’s going to be dead soon anyway, she might as well do one last act of kindness.

And Jesus notes that this offering, given in the face of despair, is more generous than every other offering that day, because the wealthy give out of their abundance, and their offering is just a small percentage of their livelihood… but she gave the last bit of money she had— she gave everything.

We don’t know what happened to the poor widow. Perhaps she did find a benefactor and was able to get the food and necessities she needed. I like to think so. But even if she didn’t, her act of generosity is immortalized in the Gospels, and she takes her place on that noble list of people whom Jesus praises.

This story is not really about how much we should give to the church. It’s certainly not a justification for encouraging giving that’s reckless. This is a story about choosing to act with kindness in the face of despair.

You may feel defeated in some aspects of your life. You may feel that you’ve come to the end of your rope, that your resources have run out, and you don’t know how you can go on.

Some of you may be disappointed by the outcome of last week’s election and concerned about the direction our country is heading. Or perhaps something else is weighing on your mind.

All of us can have seasons in life where we feel defeated. When it’s hard to imagine a better future. It’s hard to envision a solution to our problems. We feel hopeless. And maybe we’ve even resigned ourselves to the idea that things won’t get better. And if we get to that point, we can become despondent, give up, or maybe even lash out at the people around us. Despairing people are rarely good company.

Or… even if we feel defeated, even if we feel like things are hopeless, we can refuse to give in to despair. We can keep living, and when the opportunity presents itself, we can be kind. We can give to others, even if we feel that we should only have to be concerned with ourselves. Because after all, the widow of Zarephath and the widow in Jerusalem would be justified in saying that they shouldn’t have to look after anyone but themselves. “Hey, I’m starving. Hey, I’ve only got a penny to my name. I shouldn’t have to do anything for anyone.” And yet, they both chose to perform an act of kindness for another.

This is especially relevant when we’re going through a time of crisis— a medical crisis, marriage problems or family problems, financial hardship, depression. We may think, “I shouldn’t have to do anything, I’m going through this or that. I shouldn’t have to deal with other people’s problems.” And it is good to not overextend ourselves when we’re stretched thin. But when the opportunity presents itself, we can still do a kind act— even as something as small as a smile or a kind word.

So if you are in a hard place, if you feel defeated or depressed, if you don’t know how to move forward… just keep trusting. Keep on living, and be kind to others every opportunity you have. And who knows? Maybe God will provide a miracle for you too. And you will find a way out of the drought, out of the mire, out of the seemingly hopeless situation you find yourself in. And the acts of kindness you did along the way, in the face of despair, will remain unto the ages. Amen.