Do I see Jesus in what to me seems poor and insignificant?

The widow’s offering

(41) He sat down opposite the treasury and watched the crowd putting money into the treasury. Many rich people put in large sums. (42) A poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which are worth a penny. (43) Then he called his disciples and said to them, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the treasury. (44) For all of them have contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on.”

Mark 12: 41–44, NRSVUE

I greet you in the name of our Lord Jesus and warmly welcome you to Finland. It is a great joy to have you, our dear mission partners, visit our country and discuss our cooperation and the future of Christ’s Church. I hope and pray that this week will encourage us in the service of God’s kingdom.

In this mission, in the service of God’s kingdom, it is important to remember that we are sent into the world for one thing only. We are sent to witness to the risen Christ. Everything we say, do, and think is to witness to Christ. Every Christian and every church has been given this mission in their own country and culture. At the same time, this mission is always meant to transcend national and cultural boundaries. Our mission today is the same as was the mission of the apostles that Jesus sent all over the world. Our message is of hope. There is a universal longing for this message.

The risen Christ himself testifies that not even death can overcome the hope that comes for God. Therefore, mission is not just some particular activity in the life of Christ’s Church. Mission is in the being of the Church of Christ. To be a church is to be sent to bear witness to the risen Christ. This week we rejoice jointly of being church, of having this mission.

Bearing witness to the risen Christ is an honourable task. We, ordinary and fallible people, have been called by God to this mission. The Almighty Lord works in and through our churches, which, like us humans, are imperfect and tormented by many challenges. But the fact that God has called sinful people and flawed churches to God’s mission reflects one of the greatest wonders and treasures of the Christian faith. It reflects grace. We are not saved because of our purity or perfection. So also, the power of our Christian witness does not lie in our purity and perfection. The power of Christian witness is in Christ alone, in what Christ does in this world through Holy Spirit.

In today’s Gospel, Jesus prepares his followers for apostolic mission. Our Lord has accompanied his disciples to the temple in Jerusalem. Jesus draws the disciples’ attention to how people behave around the sacrificial coffin. Many rich people donate a lot. But the real lesson is given by the poor widow. Jesus says, “Truly I tell you; this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the treasury. For all of them have contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on.”

What is the relevance and worth of our gift and our giving? Within the Lutheran World Federation one often quotes the late Tanzanian bishop Josiah Kibira, who served as the LWF president in 1977-1984. Bishop Kibira’s vision for the communion of churches was: “There is no church, so big and so rich, that it wouldn’t depend on the gifts of others; there is no church so small and so poor it wouldn’t be able to enrich others”

I hear in this something of what Jesus aimed to teach his followers in the Temple. This teaching is something that resonates with us again and again, generation after generation. The worth of the gift is not primarily in its monetary value. We are not to judge the gift and the giver based on how much is given. The ultimate integrity is in the act of giving. Where we might only see very little, Jesus acknowledges an ultimate value. This comes out beautifully in what bishop Kibira was saying.

Yet the question must be asked: what am I called to give as a witness to Christ? What kind of gift gives glory to God? Do I see Jesus in what to me seems poor and insignificant? What am I ready give up? My need to excel over others, to conquer and control; my selfishness, my comfort?

In the context of mission cooperation and as a Finnish Lutheran, I cannot help but think about the first missionaries of our Church who, 156 years ago, left behind a familiar and safe life and set out for the unknown. The resources were scarce, and the journey was long. But for me it speaks of giving from the little you have, in witness to Christ our Lord.

The story of the poor widow teaches us something else as well. In her giving she had not certainty that the gift would be enough, that it would make a difference. Who would benefit from it and how? Being a witness to Christ does not provide certainty about eventual results. The results are not in our hands. Faith is always a miracle, a gift of the Spirit. While we are called to give what we have for the building up of the church, the Church is not our work but the work of the Spirit. In the kingdom of God, no gift is insignificant. But what comes out of the giving remains in the hands of the Almighty God.

Finally, today’s gospel teaches us something about trust. After giving her gift, the widowed woman had to have trust in that she would survive despite what she had given. We have no way of knowing how she survived without her money, but obviously she trusted she would. Bearing witness to Christ involves giving without human certainty. Our trust is in Christ, above all trust in God’s providence for God’s church.

Ultimately, I think that it is trust that Jesus wants to teach us as his disciples. Therefore, it is important to ask, do we, as followers of Jesus, trust God to guide us as churches?

At times, it might be easier to say the confession “Jesus is Lord” than to really believe it, to live in this trust. Do we trust in the Lord who gave us mission, who equips us for mission, who gives us strength and wisdom for mission, and who also in the Spirit is the one who finally works in mission? We are not on our own errand, and our Church is not on its own errand, because finally we partake in God’s mission to advance God’s kingdom.

Sisters and brothers in Christ. There is one final teaching I want to lift in the gospel story. In today’s gospel, as in so many other gospel narratives, the disciples listened to Jesus’ teaching together. They had one Lord and were given one mission. In the work of God’s kingdom, each witness of Christ serves through his or her own person, yet never alone. God’s Holy Spirit brings us together and guides us.

This is why we too are gathered this week. We look forward to what our Lord Jesus will this week teach us about God’s mission.

When we receive Christ in bread and wine in this eucharistic service, our Lord Himself is with us and encourages us to rejoice, pray, and act together.