Keeping Our Spiritual Compass; Luke 20:45-21:4

Delivered during the Sunday Morning Worship Service, 4/13/2025. As we observe the tradition of Palm Sunday and the so-called Triumphal Entry, our attention will turn to Luke's underlying theme in this section of his Gospel-- which is far from celebratory. In episode after episode, Jesus has been exposing and condemning the lifeless, tradition-laden and formalized "religiosity" of the Jews through a plethora of confrontations. In this passage, He exposes the behavioral characteristics of the scribes and their love of self-exalting and very pretentious piety. He then comments on the offering of a poor widow who puts her last two pennies into the Temple treasury. We will carefully analyze what is traditionally called "the widow's mite" and ask ourselves whether it is an example of virtuous giving or the undesirable impact that false teachers like the scribes have on unsuspecting and misguided worshipers. In the end, we will emphasize the need to lock our focus on Jesus, the Scriptures and the Gospel, thereby keeping our spiritual compass and avoiding the pitfalls of "religiosity".