As Jesus was leaving the temple, one of his disciples said to him, “Look, Teacher! What massive stones! What magnificent buildings!”
– Mark 13:1
Just moments before this scene in Mark 13:1, Jesus and His disciples were inside the temple. While there, He drew their attention to something that no one else noticed but Him.
As the wealthy (loudly and proudly) clanged their gold coins into the brass offering receptacles, Jesus pointed to a poor woman who had dropped in two tiny copper coins. Scripture tells us that she was a widow. So no husband, and likely no son to help take care of her.
Jesus was moved by what He had witnessed. “Truly I tell you,” He said, “this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others. They gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything – all she had to live on” (Mark 12:43-44).
You would think that moment would have marked the disciples forever, that they would have walked out of the temple whispering about this woman’s faith, about her sacrifice… about that degree of costly devotion.
Instead, they walked out like tourists. “Look, Teacher! What massive stones! What magnificent buildings!”
If they’d had iPhones, surely there would have been selfies – with Jerusalem’s grand architecture towering behind them.
Jesus had just highlighted the widow’s example of eternal treasure, drawing His disciples’ eyes to her quiet, costly faith. And here they were, moments later, marveling at temporary stone and captivated by man-made splendor. Jesus was quick to rebuke them: “Every one of these magnificent stones you see? All of them will someday be thrown down and become rubble. They will be dust. Gone!” (Mark 13:2).
And history proved Him right.
But you know what’s still here, thousands of years later? This story of a widow with two small coins. No one remembers the names of the wealthy donors that day. No one can point to the exact stones the disciples admired. But here we are still talking about the woman who gave all she had.
Heaven preserved her story, and hasn’t stopped telling the world about her!
We are so easily impressed by shiny things. Big platforms, big buildings, big numbers, big personalities… We are so eager to give our attention to worldly things that look so powerful and impressive.
But Jesus is looking somewhere else.
He notices the quiet sacrifice and the unseen obedience. He’s watching when someone gives generously until it hurts, and He sees the type of faith that trusts Him no matter what.
The disciples were moved by architecture that would someday crumble. Jesus was moved by faith that would echo into eternity.
There seems to be a lesson here for us.
What captures our awe?
What gets our admiration?
What holds our attention?
Are we impressed by what is visible and temporary? Or are we learning to value what Heaven values? The things that dazzle us now may one day be rubble. But the acts of faith done in obscurity are written into eternity.
Today, let’s ask God to adjust our focus. Let us not become tourists in a world that is passing away, or miss the widow because we’re staring at the stones.
May our hearts be moved by what moves Jesus.
Former Blackout Artist 