The Bible Baptist Church located
at 2015 Beulah Road in Madisonville, Kentucky would like to invite
you to listen to a message of the sovereign grace of God in
the Lord Jesus Christ by their pastor David Edmondson. In Mark chapter 12, beginning
in verse 41, we read, and Jesus said over against the treasury,
and beheld how the people cast money into the treasury, and
many that were rich cast in much. And there came a certain poor
widow, and she threw in two mites which make a farthing. And he
called unto his disciples, and he saith unto them, Verily I
say unto you, that this poor widow hath cast more in than
all they which have cast in to the treasury. For all they did
cast in of their abundance, but she of her want did cast in all
that she had, even all her living. Now it seems from reading these
words that the Lord Jesus placed himself over against the treasury
on purpose. You know, everything that our
Lord did was on purpose. He's a God of purpose. And in
reading Luke's account, it seems that Christ placed himself there
on purpose for the very purpose of seeing some things. He saw
rich men cast in their gifts. He saw them cast in much. And then he saw a poor widow
cast in just a little, two mites, less than a penny by today's
standards. And it was all that she had.
Our Lord said even that, even all her living. Now, when it
says that the rich men cast in much, the Lord said that what
they gave was out of their abundance. That means that they gave what
they could spare. They gave out of their excess. To them, it wasn't much. It was
just some they had left over. And it didn't hurt them in the
least to give it. David, the psalmist, said, I
will not offer to God which doth cost me nothing. Now let me tell
you this morning before you turn off the dial, my message is not
about giving. It's not a message on tithing
and offering. That's what modern day religion
always harps on. This is a message about faith.
This is a message about trusting God for everything. This is a
story about attitude, not giving. This is a story about total dependence
on the Lord Jesus Christ. Now, did you notice in the verses
that I read that the Lord set over against the treasury and
beheld? How? He beheld how the people
cast money into the treasury. The Lord was not looking at how
much they gave. He was looking at how they gave. He was observing with what motive
they gave. He was witnessing with what attitude
they gave. The Lord loves a cheerful giver.
Now the Bible not only warns us to take heed as to what we
hear, Mark 4.24, but the Bible also warns us to take heed as
to how we hear, Luke 8.18. And the rich man gave out of
their excess and abundance. They could spare it. They had
plenty. But this poor widow gave all
that she had. Mark says she threw in two mites,
but our Lord says she gave all her living. She didn't have anything
left. And the Lord said she cast in
more than they all. That's just like God, it's just
like God's kingdom. In his kingdom, those who think
that they are rich are poor, and those who think that they
are poor are really rich. Revelation 3.17, the Lord said,
because thou sayest, I am rich and increased with goods and
have need of nothing, and knowest not that thou art wretched and
miserable and poor and blind and naked. Paul instructed Timothy,
charge them that are rich in this world that they be not high
minded, nor trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God,
1 Timothy 6, 17. Now, what is a poor widow? Well, she's a woman whose husband
has died and left her destitute. Her husband left her with nothing.
And we need to remember there were no social services in our
Lord's day. She didn't receive any help from
the Roman government, that's for certain. This poor woman. had nothing. And that word poor
in verse two there means not only to be without, it means
to be without and without the means and the ability to get
any more. It means to be more than weak. It means to be more than destitute. It means to be more than beggarly.
It means to be more than impoverished. There are many today who are
all those things and yet never see their necessity of Christ
who is the one thing needful. But this poor widow, what was
she left with? Nothing. What ability did she
have to get more? No ability whatsoever, none. What a picture that is of the
sinner. She gave all her living, she
gave all that she had, she gave knowing that there was nothing
left to give. But these rich men who gave out of their abundance,
out of their excess, there was no real sacrifice made, but this
poor woman sacrificed all that she had. And all she had left
was complete dependence on God. Now, as a child, I never worried
about being fed. Not one time did I fret over
not eating, not once. I trusted my father to provide
the meal, and I trusted my mother to prepare the meal. And how
much more should we trust our Heavenly Father to provide all
our needs for us? Friends, it's called faith, trusting
God to provide all our need. Paul wrote, but my God shall
supply all your need, singular, according to his riches in glory
by Christ Jesus. You see, Jesus Christ is our
singular need, and every other need is met in him. What can we learn from this poor
widow? Well, when we truly see her condition, we should see
something of our own condition. What was her condition? She was
poor and needy. Is that your condition? Do you
see yourself that way? That's what we are, we're poor
and needy, not a mite worth of merit, not a farthing worth of
righteousness. And that's a good place to be,
for such did Christ come to save. You and I have a need of need. Luke 9-11 tells us just that. The Lord healed them that had
need of healing. Those who are well have no need
of a physician, but those that are sick most certainly do. And
Lord, I'm sick. I've got a deadly disease. It's
called sin. Like the leper was full of leprosy,
I'm full of sin. Do you see that poor man begging
by the highway side? Bartimaeus was blind. He was
a beggar. He was poor and needy. He cried
after Christ. His great need caused him to
do so. So will your need. If you have
one, it'll cause you to cry. And the Lord asked Bartimaeus,
what will ye that I should do to thee? And Bartimaeus replied,
Lord, that I might receive my sight. I've got a great need. I'm blind. I'd love to see. I'd love to work. And Christ
said, go thy way. Thy faith hath made thee whole,
and immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus in the
way." Can you see that poor, impotent man that lay at the
Pool of Bethesda, which is called the House of Mercy? That's what
it was for him that day. 38 years he'd had an infirmity. How needy do you suppose he was?
And when the Lord saw him lie, he couldn't stand, he couldn't
walk, he was poor and needy. And at the Pool of Bethesda there
lay a multitude of impotent folk. Impotent means unable to take
effective action. Helpless and powerless, poor
and needy. That's the condition of all of
us by nature. What was this impotent man doing?
Nothing. He's unable to take effective
action. He was helpless and powerless.
He was poor and needy. And Christ asked the impotent
man, will you be made whole? And his reply was, I have no
man to put me in the water. And it's Christ, the living water
that is speaking to this man. And he's the only man that he
needed. He's the God man. And he said,
rise, take up your bed and walk. You see, Christ is not impotent,
though that's how most preach Him today. His command is always
effectual. His word is always effective.
And that was the case here. And immediately the man was made
whole. The man who just a moment ago
was impotent, by the command of the omnipotent, took up his
bed and walked. Christ came into the world, friends,
to save sinners. Christ came to save the impotent.
Christ came to save the poor and needy. Can you see her on
her hands and knees, having an issue of blood for 12 years,
rendered her helpless, poor and needy. She'd spent all that she
had on doctors. She spent all that she had, leaving
her with nothing. But she went from a nobody to
a somebody. How so? By touching the hem of
Christ's garment. When she touched him, he said,
somebody has touched me. Now there's help and hope for
the poor and needy. I need Christ to put my sin away.
He appeared to put my sin away by the sacrifice of himself,
Hebrews 9 26. This story of the poor widow
woman is a story of faith and dependence on Christ. How did
the poor widow display faith? She cast all that she had into
the treasury. She put all her faith and dependence
in Christ. She had nothing to offer or give.
She was persuaded God would take care of her. Are you persuaded? Paul asked, who shall lay anything
to the charge of God's elect? It's God that justify. And then
Paul said, I'm persuaded, I'm convinced, I'm divinely influenced
and sovereignly swayed. I'm certain, I'm assured, my
mind is put to rest that neither death, nor life, nor angels,
nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things
to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature shall
be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ
Jesus. Has God shown you, as he did
this poor widow, that you're nothing, you have nothing, and
you can do nothing to save yourself? Do you see that you're poor and
needy? If you do, then cast all upon him. Cast all your care,
your concern, your worrying, your fretting upon the one who
came to save poor and needy sinners. And friends, if God enabled you
to do so, And if you seek the kingdom of God and His righteousness,
which is Jesus Christ, everything else will be added unto you. That's right. Seek ye first the
kingdom of God and Christ His righteousness, Why, the Lord
said, consider the lilies of the valley. They neither toil
or spin not, and yet Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed
as one of these. What about the sparrows? None
fall to the ground without the Lord knowing it, and He feeds
them. How much more will He take care
of you? The righteous have never been
forsaken or begged for bread, and all who have nothing but
Christ have all they need. Are you trusting in Christ? He
is all and in all. May God enable you to trust in
Him. You have been listening to a
message by David Edmondson, the pastor of Bible Baptist Church
in Madisonville, Kentucky. If you would like a copy of this
message or to hear other messages of God's free, sovereign grace
in Christ, you can write to our mailing address at P.O. Box 652
Madisonville, Kentucky 42431 or log on to our website at FreeGraceRadio.com. If you would like to come and
worship with us, we meet at 2015 Beulah Road, Madisonville, Kentucky. And our service times are Sunday
morning Bible study at 10 o'clock a.m. Worship services begin at
11 o'clock a.m. Wednesday evening services at
7 o'clock p.m. Please tune in again next Sunday
morning at 10 o'clock a.m. for another message of God's
free and sovereign grace in the Lord Jesus Christ.