II.The poorest may make some offering.

III.Christ stiff watches over against the treasury.

IV.God's estimate of gifts differs from ours.

V.God looks at motives as well as gifts.

VI.An individual unconscious of God's high estimate.

(T. Sherlock, B. A.)

II. Little services and little gifts are needed by man and noted by God. If we can only give even two mites, God will not despise the offering.

III. Had this woman listened to excuses, she would have lost her great honour and reward.

IV. More justice should be done to the giving of the poor, for their generosity still surpasses that of any other class. God notes their gifts of money, whose necessary smallness permits them to be overlooked by men. O what a gospel for the poor is here!

(R. Glover.)

II. THE LESSON TAUGHT. That the value of the offering depends chiefly on the state of the heart.

1. Some that were rich gave liberally.

(1)No doubt, some gave ostentatiously.

(2)Perhaps some gave in a self-righteous spirit.

(3)Probably some gave only because it was customary.

(4)Possibly some gave dishonestly, who should have paid their debts; and thus gave "robbery for burnt offering," which God declares that He abhors.

(5)Others, no doubt, gave grudgingly.

2. Of the poor widow it is said that she gave but two mites, which make a farthing. What were the motives which rendered her offering so precious in the Saviour's sight?

(1)Her love to God.

(2)Her trust in His providing care.

III. BUT WHAT WOULD CHRIST HAVE SAID TO THOSE WHO GAVE NOTHING, IF THERE WERE ANY SUCH WHO PASSED IN REVIEW BEFORE HIM?

(Evangelical Preacher.)

I. That God is pleased with offerings made to Him and His cause.

II. That it is our duty to devote our property to God. We received it from Him; we are stewards, etc.

III. That the highest evidence of love to the cause of religion is not the amount given, but the amount compared with our means.

IV. That it may be proper to give all our property to God, and to depend on His providence for the supply of our wants.

V. That God does not despise the humblest offering, if made in sincerity. He loves a cheerful giver.

VI. That there are none who may not in this way show their love to the cause of religion. The time to begin to be benevolent is in early life.

VII. That it is every man's duty to make inquiry, not how much he gives, but how much compared with what he has; how much self-denial he practises, and what is the motive with which it is done.

VIII. Few practise self-denial for the purpose of charity. Most give of their abundance — what they can spare without feeling it, and many feel that this is the same as throwing it away. Among all the thousands who give, how few deny themselves of one comfort, even the least, that they may advance the kingdom of Christ.

(A. Barnes, D. D.)

II. THE NATURE OF TRUE BENEVOLENCE.

1. It is unobtrusive. The widow did not want to be observed. "Take heed that ye do not your alms before men," etc. The gifts most acceptable to God do not always appear in the subscription list.

2. It is spontaneous. "The Lord loveth a cheerful giver." Love must rule us in giving, as in other matters. The word charity stands for love.

3. It is self-denying. God is best pleased when our gifts cost us something. He judges less by what is given than by what is left behind.

4. It involves trust in God. She cast in all that she had. Faith asks no questions. It concerns itself with present duty, and leaves the future with God. Have you of your abundance or of your penury cast into the treasury? If Christ gave Himself for you, is it unreasonable that He should ask you for your money?

(Seeds and Saplings.)

1. There should always be a due proportion observed between an individual's contributions and his means. Appearances are often considered. Precedent and example have a painful influence. Strongly excited feeling is not unfrequently a cause of error and of sin in our benevolent contributions, nor must it be concealed that men are often lured, in the present day, by the fame and splendour of an institution, rather than by its intrinsic merits, to contribute to its funds. There should be a due proportion observed between an individual's contributions and his means; a man's means are to be determined by what he has — what he owes — what he can obtain by exertion — and what he can save by economy.

2. There should be a proportion observed between an individual's contributions and his station.

3. There should also be a proportion between our benevolent contributions and our opportunities of doing good.

II. TO THE OBJECTS OF BENEVOLENT CONTRIBUTION. The souls of men are to be preferred before their bodies; we must do good to them who are of the household of faith. Remarks:

1. See that what you give in the cause of Christian benevolence is from love to Christ, and to the souls of men.

2. Give as much as possible in secret, and this will at once relieve you from the suspicion that you give to be seen of men.

3. Never pride yourself on what you give.

4. Consider what Christ gave for you, and be ashamed that you should give Him so little in return.

(T. Roffies, LL. D.)

II. THE GIFT. Money was her gift; hard to get, hard to hold, hard to part with; the severest test of religious integrity. The commercial value is small, but the value to her is great. Wealth called it small, commerce called it small, religious custom reckoned it small; but in relation to the means and heart of the donor, and in the judgment of God, the gift was exceeding great.

III. THE PLACE, OR SCENE OF THE GIFT. It was bestowed in the temple of God, deposited in one of the thirteen boxes in the women's court. It is meet and right that we give where we receive.

IV. And what, fourthly, was THE OBJECT OF THIS GIFT? These two mites were given as a free-will offering to the support of the temple, its institutions and its services, and the offering them with this intent constituted this "certain poor widow" a contributor to all that he temple yielded — to all it offered to heaven, and to all it gave to the children of men. The incense and the light and the fire and the shewbread and the daily sacrifices were, in part, this woman's oblation. She helped to clothe the priests in their holy garments, to supply the altars with oblations, and to preserve the order, decency, and beauty of the house of God. Say not, she gave only two mites. This voluntary offering, although commercially so small, as really contributed to support the temple, as the immense revenue derived from tithes and other appointed contributions. Jehovah received these two mites, and the world was by this offering made a debtor.

V. THE SPIRIT OF THE OFFERING. Was it gratitude for benefits received? She may have valued more highly the benefit of God's sanctuary, since she became a mourning widow, than while she was a rejoicing wife. She had there heard words of consolation which had healed her wounded heart (Psalm 68:5; Psalm 146:9). What impulse opened her hand? Was it the force of hallowed and pleasant association? Her fathers worshipped there. She could say, "Lord, I have loved the habitation of Thy house" (Psalm 26:8). The spirit of the offering was the spirit of true piety and of real godliness.

VI. THE DIVINE RECOGNITION OF THE GIFT. Jesus Christ saw the gift, estimated, approved, and commended the giver. He did not speak to her, but of her, in an undertone to the disciples. "No person takes any account of what I do," some disciples are heard to complain. Thy fellow servants may fail to recognize, but the Master never fails. Jesus is in a position to see, and He is disposed to observe. Everything that is human is interesting to Him, and all that is right is attractive. Some people only see faults. Jesus approves all that He can approve. He gives the testimony of a good conscience.

VII. LOOK AT THE FACT THAT JESUS CHRIST CALLS ATTENTION TO THIS GIFT.

1. That the greatness of a gift depends upon the possessions of the individual after the gift has been made.

2. That grief need not hinder giving. The child of sorrow doubly needs the returns which acts of piety and charity invariably bring.

3. And shall we not be taught by this incident to learn well-doing from each other? The Head Teacher bids His disciples learn from this certain poor woman. He makes her a kind of object lesson.

4. Let us learn to act as under our Great Master's eye. He sees us. He speaks of you, it may be to His angels and glorified saints. And what can He say of you?

(S. Martin.)

(S. Martin.)

(S. Martin.)

1. We have all tried to notice this among children. One little child runs all the errands, makes all the sacrifices, but beyond that is a little nobody; plain, small; not brilliant. This is the two-mite child of the family; the small piece of home heroism, of a worth surpassing all the gifts and graces of the household besides; the little one Christ would see if He came and sat down in the house.

2. We notice this again in the Church. Some naturally attract applause by their gifts; others no more attention than this widow with her two mites. They say their poor word. It is their sorrow that they cannot do more; but the joy of heaven that they do so much.

3. This is true of the whole life we are living. There are many never seen or known who cast in more than the brilliant characters who cast in of their abundance.

II. It was an illustration of this law of our life, THAT THE MOST GOD-LIKE DEED IS THAT WHICH BELONGS TO THE SACRIFICES WE MAKE, giving for sacred things and causes that which costs us most, and is most indispensable, and yet is given back to God. Nothing was worth a thought in this poor widow's gift, but the sacrifice it cost her to give. The whole worth of it lay in that piece of her very life which went with it, but that made the two mites outweigh the whole sum of silver and gold cast in by the wealthy, which cost nothing, beyond the effort to give what a very natural instinct would prompt them to keep. They gave of their fulness, she of her emptiness; they of the ever-springing fountain, she, the last drop in her cup. It was not the sum, but the sacrifice that made the deed sublime.

III. We learn, in this simple and most obvious way, of that whole world of grace and truth that culminated on Calvary.

(R. Collyer.)

II. THAT THE LORD NOTICES THE GIFTS WE CAST INTO HIS TREASURY.

III. THAT THE LORD PASSES JUDGMENT ON THOSE WHO CAST THEIR GIFTS INTO HIS TREASURY. He declared she had given more than all the rest.

1. She had given more, because she had given with a larger heart, with more real love.

2. She had given more in proportion to her possessions.

3. She had given more in the force of her example.

4. She had given more in its beneficial influence on the character of the giver.

5. She had given more in the relation of the gift to its future reward.Learn:

1. The right use of money.

2. The value of the offerings of the poor.

3. That the Lord sits over against the treasury.

(W. Waiters.)

(W. Waiters.)

I. THIS IS A STRIKING. ILLUSTRATION OF OUR LORD'S SYMPATHY FOR THE HEART OF HUMAN LIFE, INSTEAD OF FOR ITS EXTERIOR. He was sitting in the very culmination of the pride and beauty of the Jewish ceremonial. He was not attracted by sumptuous trains of these gorgeous gift bringers. He saw that which interpreted the innermost and the best nature, the gentle, generous, and piteous. When human strength disdains to notice, there is the very point at which Divine strength notices most. Where men see least to be admired, under uncouth forms of helplessness, there Christ looks with sympathy and compassion. This imparts to the Divine government an aspect of comfort and encouragement. If human life takes care of the successful, the Divine government takes care of the weak and obscure. The .great Eye is not looking out for the great deeds alone, but for those whose deeds are in secret.

II. MANY OF THE SECRET FIDELITIES OF LIFE HAVE POWER TO OUTLAW, IN USEFULNESS, THE PRODUCTS OF AMBITIONS, DESIRES AND DEEDS. All the rich gifts of the temple are now forgotten. We do not know what Rabbi was syllabled with admiration among his fellows on that day. The only person who has come down to us was the least conspicuous. The gentle light of that example shines still. All the ages have not buried her. How little she thought she was enriching the world. Christ is still the same. We think those gifts most influential which have most of record; but it is not so. While many a proud philanthropist will scarcely be seen, many strange philanthropists will emerge from among the poor, and take their places as princes in God's glory. So God works Himself, in secret might. So gives He a pattern for us to work after. It is not the thunder which makes the most racket, that does the most work. The things in this world that are accomplishing great deeds are silent things, and hidden things. And we are told, in a kind of strange paradox, that the things which are not, are ordained to bring to nought the things that are. The most inconspicuous things often belong to God's most potential working. The root neither strives nor cries, and yet, all the engines of all the ships and shops on earth, that puff and creak with ponderous working, are not to be compared for actual power with the roots of one single acre of ground in the meadow. All the vast pumps of Harlem Lake, and all that serve our needs, adjoining, are not to be compared for force with that might which inheres in one single tree. It is a fact revealed only to those who study natural history, that leaves, that vegetation, that dews, and rains, and heat, that the natural attractions which prevail in the world, without any echo or outward report, have an enormous power in them, and that they are the means by which God works. He works in silence, and inconspicuously, and almost hiddenly. And so they work importantly who work by thought, by love, by zeal, by faith unrevealed; who work in places not seen by the public eye, in season and out of season, from the mere desire to do good, and not from the mere love of being found out in doing it. Look upon your scarfs, so brilliant. The colour shines afar off. Comely it is on the shoulder of beauty. How exquisite is the dye that comes from the cochineal insect. And yet how small is that insect — scarcely, I may say, so big as the point of a pin — which feeds so inconspicuously on the under side of the leaf of the cactus, nourishing his growth quite unconscious that as one of all the myriads of all these little shining points he will by and by help to produce these glowing colours which civilization and refinement will make so meet and comely in distant lands! So it is with good deeds. The great things in this world are the sum of infinitesimal little things. And those who are in sympathy with God and nature, are not to reject in men the ripening, the development of themselves or their true spiritual life, because the effect is but little. That effect will be joined to other things which are like itself obscure, and others and others will make their contributions; and little by little the sum of these specks of gold will make masses of gold; little by little these small insects will make great quantities of colouring matter; little by little small things will become large in magnitude. Do not be ashamed, then, to live in humility, if you fill it up with fidelity. Never measure the things that you do, or do not, by the report which they can make.

III. THERE ARE TWO SPHERES IN WHICH MEN MUST WORK. The first is that which judges of causes by their apparent relations to the end sought. That is important; but it is not the only sphere. It is the visible, material sphere — the one which belongs to the region of physical cause and effect. We are obliged to work in that sphere according to its own laws. But in the moral sphere men must judge of acts by their relations to the motives and dispositions which inspire them; and they are great or little, not according to what they do, but according to the sources from which their actions spring. In engineering that only is great which does. It matters not what the intention is; he who in the day of battle is not victorious, is not saved by his intention. No matter hew wisely you mean, if your timber is not squared and fitted right, the result is not right. In the outward sphere effect measures the worth of the plan. In that sphere effect must always be measured by the cause; and the worth of the cause must be proved by the effect. And that is the lower sphere. In the moral sphere it is the other way. There, no matter what the effect is, you do not measure in that direction. Pray. Your prayer accomplishes nothing? The measure is not "What did it do?" Speak. Your words fall apparently uncaught and unprofitable? You do not measure in that direction. You measure the other way. What was it in your heart to do? What was your purpose? In the moral sphere we look at the bow — not at the target. From what motive did the soul project its purpose? What gave that sigh? What issued that speech? What created that silence? What produced that moral condition? In that sphere the heart measures, estimates, registers. This gives rise to thoughts which, perhaps, may have relation to ourselves. There are many who will work if you will show them that their working will insure immediate good results. They will work in the moral sphere if they can work according to the genius of the visible or the physical sphere. They will work if they can do what others do. They do not work because they love to work. They do not work because they feel that it is their duty to work, simply, without regard to consequences. They are willing to work under the stimulus of a vain ambition. They will work if they may be praised. They will work if they are to receive an equivalent for their working in some appreciable form. The equivalent, oftentimes, for exertion, is praise or popularity. Do, then, whatever there is to be done without questioning and without calculation. Make progress in things moral. If need be, utter stammering words. Would you console the troubled if you only had a ready tongue? Take the tongue that you have. Ring the bell that hangs in your steeple, if you can do no better. Do as well as you can. That is all that God requires of you. Would you pray with the needy and tempted if you had eminent gifts of prayer? Use the gifts that you have. Do not measure yourself according to the pattern of somebody else. Do not say to yourself, "If I had his skill," or, "If I had his experience." Take your own skill and your own experience, and make the most of them. Do you stand over against trouble and suffering, and marvel that men whom God hath blessed with such means do so little? Do you say to yourself, "If I had money, I know what I would do with it"? No, you do not. God does; and so He does not trust you with it. "If I had something different from what I have, I would work," says many a man. No; if you would work in other circumstances, you would work just where you are. A man that will not work just where he is, with just what he has, and for the love of God, and for the love of man, will not work anywhere, in such a way as to make his work valuable. It will be adulterated work. What if you have not money? If you have a heart to work, it is better than if you had great riches. And if you find that you are hesitant, reluctant, and are acting accordingly, be sure that you do not belong to the widow's school. Did she say to herself, as she handled her fractions of a penny, "What is the use of my throwing these in? They will scarcely be taken out. They are all that I have, with which to buy my day's food. There it will do very little good; here it will do a great deal of good"?

(H. W. Beecher.)

I. Such consecration involves heart dedication to Christ and His service.

II. Such consecration embraces the sacred devotion of time to the work God carries on through female agents. She saves her odd minutes as the jeweller saves the cuttings of gems and gold.

III. Such a consecration implies the devotion of culture to the Divine glory and uplifting of humanity.

IV. Such consecration embodies the ability to do varied work of a beneficent nature, whereby God is glorified,

V. Such consecration involves the sanctification of the pence to the Divine glory.

(S. F. Leech, . D. D.)

(J. Morison, D. D.)

(Anon.)

(C. P. Craig.)

(H. R. Haweis, M. A.)