The Twenty-fourth Sunday after Pentecost - November 8

Learning to See
Proper 27
Mark 12:38-44

The Gospel reading for today may seem pretty simple and straightforward. But it’s tricky.

Most modern Bibles separate this passage into two parts with separate headings. The first is called something like Jesus’ teaching on humility. The second part is titled: The Widow’s Mite, or The Widow’s (small) offering.

The second part about the widow is well known; it’s a familiar story. And, at first glance, it may look like the perfect text for a stewardship sermon. The message is simple. Give sacrificially. A lot of stewardship sermons have certainly been preached on this passage. I didn’t go back to check. I hope I never have. The temptation is strong, especially since we hear this passage in the fall when most parishes are doing their annual pledge campaigns.

The widow gave “everything she had to live on.” As one commentator said, she was two pennies away from death. Literally. And she gave away those two pennies. The fall parish pledge campaign is not war. It does not demand the sacrifice of a life. There are several possibilities if she really gave all she had to live on. (1) She knew she was close to death and wanted that to be her last act. (2) She wanted to die so gave away her remaining meager means of support. Or (3) she was so mindlessly bound to duty that even in the face of death she acted as she thought she “should.” This stinks as a stewardship text.

But I don’t think today’s Gospel is about the widow. The first thing to do is to look at today’s passage as a whole. Within the broader context of Mark’s Gospel, this passage is a coherent unit, not two separate stories.

And it’s about the disciples. Jesus is teaching the disciples. And he’s teaching them not so much about how to give, as how to see. And who to see. This passage is about how to see.

One commentator reflecting on this passage called it: Jesus' Tips on People Watching.

At the beginning of this passage, the disciples couldn’t take their eyes off of the scribes. They WERE treated with respect. They DID have the best seats in the synagogue. They were the star athletes of their day. The disciples are having an “I wanna be like Mike” moment. After all, the disciples were in the religion business, too. And the Scribes were at the top. The disciples looked at them with envy and admiration.

Some of those scribes, Jesus says to the disciples, at least some of those guys you envy, aren’t so religious. For them, it’s all about the attention and status. They are folks who just use religion for personal status and gain. They are self-centered hypocrites. BEWARE. Be wary. Don’t spend your time ogling those people. Be wary of aspiring to be like them.

Jesus tries to redirect their vision. To change how they see people. Change who they see.

The widow is nobody, not noticeable, worth nothing. In the society of that day, a widow was worth nothing. Jesus doesn’t tell the disciples they should BE her, or be like her. In fact, he never explicitly praises her. Jesus says, NOTICE her. SEE her.

She’s just a woman. Just a widow. But she matters, Jesus says. She is worth noticing. See her. Jesus is trying to teach the disciples how to see people with God’s eyes.

The lesson is just as relevant for us today. Do we just see the people who want us to see them, or do we see the people God wants us to see? Do we focus on the people society heralds and holds up, or do we see people as God sees them?

Or, another way of thinking about it: Do we see people as they want to be seen, in the manner that they present themselves, or do we see people as God wants us to see them?

For those of us who are disciples, followers of Jesus… how we see is very important. It is the beginning of every choice we make. Where we go. What we do. How we see… how we sense… what we learn from all of our senses…. sight, hearing, touch, intuition… How we perceive determines every choice we make. Where we go. What we do. How we give of ourselves. Who we interact with, and how.

Lord, teach us how to see.