Tuesday, November 12, 2024

Giving as Obedience and Defiance


 

November 10, 2024

Jesus praises a poor widow for giving two small coins to the temple treasury.  In itself, this is a powerful story of sacrificial giving.   What really makes it striking though, is that this very temple is declared to be corrupt by Jesus.   Yet Jesus still praises her.

When we give as Christians, we do so in a world in which there is corruption, greed and hardness of the human heart.  Yet Jesus still commands and praises generosity.  Why? 

— Giving is an act of obedience to a faithful God; it declares human sin will not limit God’s action
— Giving is an act of defiance to a faithless world; it declares human sin will not limit our action

The sermon ultimately focuses on the faithfulness of God, for Jesus’ teaching and life — as well as the ministry of St. Paul congregation — bear witness to how God works in, with and under generosity.

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