Gospel Reflections #330: To truly Give is From God

Mark 12:43,44 "Jesus called his disciples to him and said. 'Let me tell you plainly. This poor widower has put in more than any of those who put in the money box. For everyone else put in from what he had, but this man put in from what he had, from what he lacked, all that he had, and all that he had to live on."

We give money, but we often seem to calculate our own protection and give an amount that will not cause us trouble.

Jesus knows us like that.

God has given us the joy of giving.

But we human beings have taken the "joy of offering" that God gives us as a condition for obeying God.

If we knew how much Jesus sacrificed Himself for us, how much He gave up of Himself for us, how much He persevered to save us and to bring us back, how much He loves us through and throughWhen we see in our lives how much Jesus loves us, how much He perseveres to save us and restore us, we are led to be willing to give a little self-sacrifice for Him.

Jesus did not commend the poor widow for her self-sacrifice, but for her faith in Him.

God sees whether we are truly pleased with Him, whether we truly seek Him, whether we truly have hope in Him.

This is not a salvation evaluation or assessment, but a time for God to remind us of who we are, and He never condemns or accuses us.

God works to make our relationship with Him more secure and deeper.

When we experience this, we will not remain idle.

When we truly realize that God has given us our money, our talents, our environment, and our knowledge, we want to give back, respond, and cooperate with God in any way we can.

We want to keep in touch with God and continue to explore who He is to the extent that we forget who we are.

This Gospel Reflections page is written by Masae San who lives in Hiroshima, Japan. She is a devoted student of the Bible who passionately embraces the Gospel of Jesus Christ. She shares her daily reflections on the Gospels as a way to reach out to others and spread the message of God's true love through the Christ-centered approach of Biblical Reflections. We're sharing her message here so that you too can experience the joy that comes from knowing and understanding the true Gospel