Jesus looked up and saw the rich putting their gifts into the offering box, and he saw a poor widow put in two small copper coins. And he said, “Truly, I tell you, this poor widow has put in more than all of them. For they all contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty put in all she had to live on.” (Luke 21:1-4)

As Jesus sat watching the temple treasury, His heart must have been lifted by the sight of a poor widow offering her last two coins. He had just endured relentless questioning from the scribes, chief priests, and Sadducees with deceitful motivation, yet here was an act of pure devotion by a poor widow giving all she had. Her small offering spoke louder than the wealth of the rich.

Jesus sees us when we give. He notices the amount, but what He is really looking at is our heart and motive in giving. The widow’s two coins, worth only about 1% of a day’s wage, could have easily been divided—one for God, one for herself. Yet, she gave it all to God. And God wasn’t measuring her gift by its size but instead He measured it by the depth of her trust in God.

Jesus declared that she gave more than all the others combined, not because of the amount, but because of the cost to her. True generosity is not about abundance but rather it’s about sacrifice. King David understood this when he said, “I will not offer to the Lord that which costs me nothing” (2 Samuel 24:24). God does not seek for us to give out of guilt or obligation. Paul told the church in Corinth that each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver (2 Corinthians 9:7). God wants us to have a heart that delights in trusting Him and therefore gives cheerfully.

I have experienced not knowing where the next paycheck will come from, and maybe you have too, but I’ve never experienced being literally down to my last 2 cents. Yet regardless of what financial situations we’ve faced in our lives, this widow’s offering is a challenge to us. Do we wait to give to God until we have more to give from? Or do we give in faith, trusting that God sees and provides? Jesus’ observation and comment about the widow’s gift shows us that the heart behind the giving is what determines the value of the gift more than the financial amount.

Our giving – whether time, talent, money, or any other resource – never goes unnoticed by God. Our genuine faith is more precious than gold that perishes (1 Peter 1:7). Whatever you surrender and sacrifice to God in faith, no matter how small, is precious in His sight. As we determine what to give God, let’s not measure our gift by the value the world may place on it, but instead let’s focus on giving from a right heart before our Lord.

But he said to them, “How can they say that the Christ is David’s son? For David himself says in the Book of Psalms, “‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies your footstool.”’ David thus calls him Lord, so how is he his son?” And in the hearing of all the people he said to his disciples, “Beware of the scribes, who like to walk around in long robes, and love greetings in the marketplaces and the best seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at feasts, who devour widows' houses and for a pretense make long prayers. They will receive the greater condemnation.” (Luke 20:41-47)

In this instance, Jesus challenged the religious leaders’ understanding of the Messiah. These leaders had prided themselves on their knowledge of Scripture, yet they failed to grasp who Jesus truly was. They assumed they had all the answers and knew the truth, but they failed to see Truth standing in front of them. And when Jesus spoke truth with authority, they hated Him for it and were stirred with so much jealousy, they wanted to kill Him. In the same way, we must be careful not to think we have everything figured out, especially when it comes to God – pride blinds us to truth.

Jesus then warned His disciples about the scribes, exposing their desire for honor, status, and recognition by specific examples in their behavior. The scribes used their positions and titles for personal gain, taking advantage of others, like widows, while appearing righteous and likely even self-deceiving of how spiritual they really were. The truth of the matter is that the scribes focus was on being exalted in this life, but Jesus made it clear that those who live life that way would receive a greater condemnation.

If our goal is to gain status, admiration, or earthly rewards, then that is all we will receive. But if we live for Christ, surrendering our pride and our selfish ambition, we will gain something far greater – Him. Paul said in Philippians 1:21, “For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain.” The question is, are we seeking temporary glory of our own in being driven by our pride, or are we living for God’s glory being driven by humble submission to Him, knowing that one day we’ll gain being with Christ for eternity?

Let’s take a quick moment to do a heart check, just you and the Lord:

• Do you seek recognition, acknowledgement, or thanks, or do you serve in humility solely for the glory of God?
• Do you act spiritual for others to see, putting on a persona of Christianity afraid that others might not see you as a mature Christian, or do you truly hunger for God and obey His words to grow deeper and more mature in Him?

Let’s not settle for fleeting praise and waste time acting like we think we “should” just to gain the perception and opinions of others – instead let’s live for Christ alone, knowing that in the end, HE is our greatest reward.

There came to him some Sadducees, those who deny that there is a resurrection, and they asked him a question, saying, “Teacher, Moses wrote for us that if a man’s brother dies, having a wife but no children, the man must take the widow and raise up offspring for his brother. Now there were seven brothers. The first took a wife, and died without children. And the second and the third took her, and likewise all seven left no children and died. Afterward the woman also died. In the resurrection, therefore, whose wife will the woman be? For the seven had her as wife.” And Jesus said to them, “The sons of this age marry and are given in marriage, but those who are considered worthy to attain to that age and to the resurrection from the dead neither marry nor are given in marriage, for they cannot die anymore, because they are equal to angels and are sons of God, being sons of the resurrection. But that the dead are raised, even Moses showed, in the passage about the bush, where he calls the Lord the God of Abraham and the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob. Now he is not God of the dead, but of the living, for all live to him.” Then some of the scribes answered, “Teacher, you have spoken well.” For they no longer dared to ask him any question. (Luke 20:27-40)

On this particular occasion, the Sadducees came to question Jesus but similarly as the chief priests before with a deceptive motive trying to trap Jesus, not truly to ask Him their question. Luke included in his writing of this interaction that the Sadducees deny that there is a resurrection, which is largely an important note because it proves they were wrongly motivated in their question about the resurrection.

Jesus’ answer gave the literal and plain answer to their question, that while we marry in this age, we won’t be married after we’re resurrected, living in eternity. They couldn’t fully understand this, not having the understanding yet revealed that in heaven there would be but one marriage, the marriage between the Lamb of God (Jesus) and His Bride, which will make up all who are redeemed and accepted His gift of salvation. And even then, it’s not what we typically think of as an earthly marriage – God’s thoughts and ways are much higher than our own and this is just one of those things we can’t fully understand until we’re there.

BUT Jesus’ answer also gave more than they asked for and He addressed the issue they weren’t mentioning – their denial of there being a resurrection at all. The question of whose wife a woman would be in the resurrection who had been married to 7 different men on earth is rather trivial and moot if resurrection isn’t real. Jesus ensured to address the reality of the resurrection in His very clear and robust answer.

And what it came down to was that even their beloved role model of Moses, showed the truth in the passage of the burning bush where God is addressed as the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob – pointing out that He is not a God of the dead, but of the living. We may not fully understand what eternity will look like on the other side or all the details about what we’ll do, but this thing is for certain – those alive in Christ will be resurrected and live to Him because the mighty God we serve is a God of the living.

As we finish out our days on this earth, however long or short that may be, may we keep looking forward with a heavenly mindset. Paul wrote it well when he said, Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 3:13-14)

And John wrote of the Revelation of Jesus as he wrote, And the Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” And let him who hears say, “Come!” And let him who thirsts come. Whoever desires, let him take the water of life freely… He who testifies to these things says, “Surely I am coming quickly.” Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus! (Revelation 22:17,20)

Our Savior is coming quickly, so let’s not get hung up on what if scenarios or unbelief, but instead let us press on and keep our eyes on Jesus awaiting the day when we see Him face to face and stand before Him as His perfect, spotless Bride that He has made us to be.

And he entered the temple and began to drive out those who sold, saying to them, “It is written, ‘My house shall be a house of prayer,’ but you have made it a den of robbers.” And he was teaching daily in the temple. The chief priests and the scribes and the principal men of the people were seeking to destroy him, but they did not find anything they could do, for all the people were hanging on his words. (Luke 19:45-48)

In this powerful scene from the Gospels, Jesus enters the temple and takes direct action against the corruption He sees there. The temple was meant to be the place where God’s people could come together in worship, prayer, and communion with the Lord. But what Jesus found was a place of commerce, exploitation, and distraction from the true purpose of the temple.

He declares that the temple, God’s house, “shall be a house of prayer,” but instead, the religious leaders and merchants had turned it into a “den of robbers.” They had focused on profit, tradition, and outward appearances, ignoring the heart of God’s intention for the temple: a place of reverent communion with God.

We, as followers of Jesus of whom the Spirit indwells, are the temple of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 6:19). Jesus’ words were not only applicable for the physical temple in Jerusalem during that time, but they’re also a reminder to us about where the purity and focus of our hearts and worship should be. God calls us to be a place where prayer, worship, and His glory are central. But so often we allow the distractions of the world—the culture, our personal ambitions, entertainment, or even traditions—to distract us from the call.

Jesus' cleansing of the temple is not just a historical event, it’s a call to personal and corporate repentance. Have we allowed our hearts or churches to be filled with things that distract from the purity of worship? Have we, in our modern culture, turned the Church into something that serves our preferences, comfort, or desires, rather than being a place that humbly seeks God’s will and draws near to Him in prayer?

It’s important for us to remember that the Church exists for one primary purpose: to bring glory to God, through worship, prayer, fellowship, and the preaching of His Word (Acts 2:42). Every action we take as the body of Christ should aim to glorify Him, not to cater to the expectations or distractions of the culture around us.

In a world that often misunderstands and misrepresents the Church, we must remain steadfast in keeping the focus on what God intended. The culture may try to redefine the Church, but we must hold firm and live out the truth that it is a place where God’s people gather to seek Him in prayer, in the reading of His Word, and in the fellowship of believers.

The Church is not a place to gain social status, not a building for personal advancement, and not a platform for self-promotion or the promotion of cultural ideals. The Church is solely God’s house, which He has set apart for His glory as a place of prayer, worship, and deep, authentic relationship with Him. Let us be faithful to keep the focus on God’s purpose for the Church, not on what culture or consumerism might want to make it.

To be faithful in keeping that focus, we have to be willing to do regular heart checks and ask ourselves the hard questions, and even further being willing to be honest with ourselves in the answers, letting God mold and shape what’s out of place. Ask yourself these questions:

• Am I making space for prayer and is it central in my life?
• Am I seeking God’s heart above all else?
• Am I making room for the Holy Spirit to work in my life and in the life of my community?

I encourage you, take time to reflect on your personal worship this week. May we not allow the enemy who seeks to steal, kill, and destroy us turn any part of the God’s Church into a den of robbers. But may it always be our goal to seek God’s heart in prayer with purity, humility, and devotion, making His house a house of prayer.