“And He looked up and saw the rich putting their gifts into the treasury. And He saw a poor widow putting in two small copper coins. And He said, “Truly I say to you, this poor widow put in more than all of them; for they all out of their surplus put into the offering; but she out of her poverty put in all that she had to live on.” (Luke 21:1–4, NASB95)
Jesus was sitting in the temple courtyard watching the parade of the rich and religious come by and deposit their coins into the ballontas, which were the temple treasury boxes. There were thirteen trumpet-shaped receptacles in the Court of the Women, that served to receive a freewill offering to gather money in order to supply the needs of temple worship. Imagine the noise as the rich would come in and drop their coins into the metal vessels, causing all to stop and pay attention to their great donation.
Then, suddenly in the midst of all the clamor, Jesus notices a poor widow who put in two small copper coins which amounted to 1/8 of a cent. Jesus comments on her gift by saying, “Truly I say to you, this poor widow put in more than all; for they all out their abundance put into the offering; but she out of her poverty put in all that she had to live on.” The woman didn’t give much in human terms, but what she did give she gave sacrificially, because she gave out of her subsistence.
Man sees and applauds the quantity of the gift as being significant, where Jesus recognizes the quality of the gift as being most notable. The widow’s gift, though small in human value was more than all the giving of the rich, because it cost her in terms of her basic needs. Jesus is not putting down the gifts of the rich, but is acknowledging the exceptional heart of a humble giver. In essence this poor widow worshipped God by giving of her livelihood, which truly is the definition of a living sacrifice.
If giving were a spiritual thermometer of motive and priority, how would your thermometer read?