They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything--all she had to live on."(12:44)
It is the meditation as an offering. I think I have discussed it only in an ideal way. A more pragmatic approach may be needed. Mostly people offer habitually. Even I also used to set some amount of money for Sunday offering and some for monthly offering. I normally offer in this manner. Whenever we offer, we do not realize the fact that everything is given by God out of his grace or my life depends on God. May be our spirituality is blunt. In my opinion, there should be some different and higher level of spirituality which is different from the level of spirituality followed by most people.
To be more practical, the value of individual’s offering will be different according to the requirement of finance of a church. If we attend and offer in an affluent church the value of our offering is ostensibly lesser than the same amount made in a poor church. This human calculation implies that one offers not on the basis of one’s sound relationship with God but according to the status of a community.
I do not want to blindly denounce these things as nonessential or not-religious thing. Sometimes good habit is necessary and also sometimes we may think of a community’s situation. This can also be the relationship with God in broad point of view.
In whatsoever motivation an individual offers, it is important to offer through worship service. It is because all our offering can be sublimed into a pure level of belief. It is the same case with the sacrificial activity found in the Old Testament that a butcher killed a cow habitually the cow was given to God as a burnt offering through worship, which became a fixed formality. In the same way bread and wine are accepted as the Lord’s holy body and blood through worship service.
Showing posts with label Mark 12:44. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Mark 12:44. Show all posts
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Offering (9)
They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything--all she had to live on."(12:44)
In yesterdays’ meditation, I mentioned that the offering of a widow was a peculiar offering made at the risk of her own survival. At the same time this offering unconsciously invokes the grace. Our present survival itself is a grace from God. The entire foundation of our life on the earth are not ours but the gift of God. It is so easy for us to neglect this point and treat it as a sort of some assumptions. This is the most precise insight for this world and human life.
In this connection, the way to solve the problem of offering in the church is not to impose force on its members but to let them and help them enter into God’s grace. If church members can conceive the secret of grace they can find out the right answer to the question of offering. Of course everybody can easily say like this but problem is that such awareness does not practically come or even though it comes, it is easily forgotten.
The doctrine of grace is applicable not only to an individual Christian but also to church community. If church community practically realizes that everything is God’s gift, then the church may not use their finance to enlarge the size of the church. If they have this spiritual awareness as far as possible, they would spend minimum amount for the church within and spend maximum for things of outside the church.
The most important thing for outside of the church is the survival of the church which does not stand by itself. In my opinion, the entire problems of dependent churches can be solved if the Korean church intends to do it. People say the entire church is one in Jesus Christ but in practice there is no such unity. It may be difficult to have such status of oneness until the coming of Jesus. Despite this fact, we have to follow the word of God. It is because we know that our survival is founded by God’s grace. Lord, help us.
In yesterdays’ meditation, I mentioned that the offering of a widow was a peculiar offering made at the risk of her own survival. At the same time this offering unconsciously invokes the grace. Our present survival itself is a grace from God. The entire foundation of our life on the earth are not ours but the gift of God. It is so easy for us to neglect this point and treat it as a sort of some assumptions. This is the most precise insight for this world and human life.
In this connection, the way to solve the problem of offering in the church is not to impose force on its members but to let them and help them enter into God’s grace. If church members can conceive the secret of grace they can find out the right answer to the question of offering. Of course everybody can easily say like this but problem is that such awareness does not practically come or even though it comes, it is easily forgotten.
The doctrine of grace is applicable not only to an individual Christian but also to church community. If church community practically realizes that everything is God’s gift, then the church may not use their finance to enlarge the size of the church. If they have this spiritual awareness as far as possible, they would spend minimum amount for the church within and spend maximum for things of outside the church.
The most important thing for outside of the church is the survival of the church which does not stand by itself. In my opinion, the entire problems of dependent churches can be solved if the Korean church intends to do it. People say the entire church is one in Jesus Christ but in practice there is no such unity. It may be difficult to have such status of oneness until the coming of Jesus. Despite this fact, we have to follow the word of God. It is because we know that our survival is founded by God’s grace. Lord, help us.
Offering (8)
They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything--all she had to live on."(12:44)
Jesus interpreted how the widow offered more as compared to that of the rich, and said, “They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything—all she had to live on.
Basically from the very beginning the offering of the wealthy people and poor are different. The wealthy people can make offering whenever he is interested to offer to God without any burden but it is not so for the poor. For the poor, to make offering would mean to risk their own survival.
One’s sound relationship with God can be practically revealed when one’s economic status is at the brim of collapse or at the point of bare means of survival. The first blessing of the Beatitude was the blessing for the poor. A poor situation leads his soul into the world beyond its visible situation. This is the very blessing for man. The offering of a widow belongs to this higher level of offering.
We lose this level in our daily life. We will helplessly witness it right before the last breath of life. At this juncture, the death shall be the way to salvation for the entire mankind. Whether a distinguished person or a good person or an evil person, everybody recognizes that their existence and their very being will be completely destroyed before death.
Practically there is no one who offers their entire wealth. The author does not want to say that. It is indirectly related to Jesus’ teaching. For example, the teaching “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well” is the very one. It indicates the type of life to depend on God for one’s survival.
If there is a pastor who forces people to offer based on this account, he is a sort of person who falls under one of the following category of people- he is a fool who never knows God’s word or a cheater who tries to fulfill his pastoral desire.
Jesus interpreted how the widow offered more as compared to that of the rich, and said, “They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything—all she had to live on.
Basically from the very beginning the offering of the wealthy people and poor are different. The wealthy people can make offering whenever he is interested to offer to God without any burden but it is not so for the poor. For the poor, to make offering would mean to risk their own survival.
One’s sound relationship with God can be practically revealed when one’s economic status is at the brim of collapse or at the point of bare means of survival. The first blessing of the Beatitude was the blessing for the poor. A poor situation leads his soul into the world beyond its visible situation. This is the very blessing for man. The offering of a widow belongs to this higher level of offering.
We lose this level in our daily life. We will helplessly witness it right before the last breath of life. At this juncture, the death shall be the way to salvation for the entire mankind. Whether a distinguished person or a good person or an evil person, everybody recognizes that their existence and their very being will be completely destroyed before death.
Practically there is no one who offers their entire wealth. The author does not want to say that. It is indirectly related to Jesus’ teaching. For example, the teaching “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well” is the very one. It indicates the type of life to depend on God for one’s survival.
If there is a pastor who forces people to offer based on this account, he is a sort of person who falls under one of the following category of people- he is a fool who never knows God’s word or a cheater who tries to fulfill his pastoral desire.
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