Give Everything You Have

Introduction

In the kingdom of God, the value of what we give is not always measured by its size. God looks beyond the amount and examines the heart behind the gift.

Jesus was sitting opposite the treasury and watching people give. Many rich people put in large amounts of money, but then a poor widow came and gave two small coins. Human beings might have considered her offering insignificant, but Jesus saw something different.

He said that the widow had given more than all the others because she gave out of her poverty. They gave what they could spare, but she gave everything she had.

This teaches us a powerful principle: God is not only interested in what is in your hand. He is interested in what is in your heart.

Giving everything you have does not merely mean giving all your money. It means giving God your whole heart, your time, your strength, your gifts, your resources and your life.

1. God Looks at the Heart Behind the Gift

The rich people gave much, but Jesus did not praise them for the size of their offerings. He noticed the widow because her giving came from a sacrificial heart.

It is possible to give a lot and still give very little from the heart. You can give money without love, serve without commitment, sing without worship and preach without surrender.

God is interested in the heart behind whatever we do.

The widow's offering was small in human estimation, but great in God's estimation because it represented genuine sacrifice.

God does not measure your gift only by what it costs. He measures it by the heart with which you give it.

2. Give God Your Best, Not Your Leftovers

The widow did not give God what was left after she had taken care of everything else. She gave all that she had.

Many people give God their leftovers.

They give Him their attention after everything else has taken it. They pray when there is nothing else to do. They serve when it is convenient. They remember God when they need something.

But God deserves more than our leftovers.

If God has given you life, give Him your life. If He has given you strength, use your strength for Him. If He has given you a gift, use that gift for His glory.

God deserves the first place, not the remaining place.

3. Sacrifice Is an Expression of Love

The widow's giving was sacrificial. She gave beyond what was comfortable.

True love is willing to sacrifice.

Jesus Himself demonstrated this. He did not give us something He could spare. He gave His life for us.

John 3:16 says, "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son."

The greatest expression of God's love was giving.

Therefore, when we genuinely love God, our lives should reflect a willingness to give.

Sometimes giving means money. Sometimes it means time. Sometimes it means forgiving someone. Sometimes it means serving when nobody notices. Sometimes it means obeying God when obedience is difficult.

Where there is genuine love for God, there will be genuine surrender.

4. Do Not Let Your Little Become an Excuse

The widow had very little, but she did not use her little as an excuse to do nothing.

She could have said, "What difference will these two coins make?"

But she gave them.

Never underestimate what God can do with what you have.

You may think your talent is too small. Your resources may seem inadequate. Your influence may appear insignificant. Your knowledge may seem limited.

Give it to God.

David had only a sling when he faced Goliath. Moses had a staff. The boy in John 6 had five loaves and two fish.

The issue is not always how much you have. The question is whether you are willing to place what you have in God's hands.

What looks small in your hands can become significant when surrendered to God.

5. Giving Everything Requires Trust

The widow gave everything she had because she was willing to trust God with her future.

This is where true giving becomes difficult.

It is easy to give when you know you still have plenty left. But sacrificial giving requires faith.

When you surrender your time, you trust God with your schedule.

When you surrender your resources, you trust God as your provider.

When you surrender your plans, you trust God with your future.

When you surrender your life, you trust Him to lead you.

Proverbs 3:5-6 says:

"Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths."

You cannot fully surrender to God while insisting on controlling everything.

Giving everything you have means trusting God with everything you are.

6. God Can Use a Completely Surrendered Life

The widow's offering teaches us that God can accomplish much through someone who is completely surrendered.

God is not looking merely for people who have plenty. He is looking for people who are available.

A person with great ability but little surrender may accomplish less for God's kingdom than someone with limited ability who is completely yielded to Him.

God can use your voice.

God can use your hands.

God can use your home.

God can use your profession.

God can use your experience.

God can use your testimony.

God can use your resources.

But everything must first be placed in His hands.

The question is not, "How much do I have?"

The question is, "How much of what I have belongs to God?"

7. Give Yourself Before You Give Your Possessions

Romans 12:1 says:

"I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service."

Before God asks for your money, He wants your heart.

Before He asks for your possessions, He wants your life.

Before He asks for your service, He wants your surrender.

The greatest offering you can give God is yourself.

You can give money without giving your heart. You can give offerings without giving obedience. You can serve in church without truly surrendering to Christ.

But when you give yourself completely to God, everything else becomes easier to surrender.

Conclusion

The widow in Mark 12 had only two small coins, but Jesus said she gave more than everyone else.

Why?

Because she gave everything she had.

Her offering teaches us that greatness in God's kingdom is not determined by appearance, wealth or human recognition. It is determined by surrender.

God is asking you today:

What do you have?

Your answer may be, "Not much."

But God is not asking you to compare what you have with what somebody else has.

He is asking you to surrender what you have to Him.

Give Him your heart.

Give Him your time.

Give Him your gifts.

Give Him your strength.

Give Him your resources.

Give Him your plans.

Give Him your future.

Give Him your life.

Because when everything is surrendered to God, nothing is wasted.

Do not wait until you have much before you give yourself to God. Give Him everything you have, and let Him decide what He can do with it.