But before all this they will lay their hands on you and persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues and prisons, and you will be brought before kings and governors for my name’s sake. This will be your opportunity to bear witness. Settle it therefore in your minds not to meditate beforehand how to answer, for I will give you a mouth and wisdom, which none of your adversaries will be able to withstand or contradict. You will be delivered up even by parents and brothers and relatives and friends, and some of you they will put to death. (Luke 21:12-16)

Jesus had been speaking about the end times and now He was warning His disciples that persecution would come, and we too should expect it. He told them that they would be delivered up, betrayed, and even hated for His name’s sake. After all, Jesus was delivered up, betrayed, hated, and killed, and as followers and ambassadors of Him – shouldn’t we expect the same kind of treatment for His name’s sake? Yet, He gave them an unexpected command for when they were faced with those trials: “Settle it therefore in your minds not to meditate beforehand how to answer."

The natural response to pressure, conflict, and betrayal is to rehearse our defense, to ruminate on every possible outcome – all to grasp for control in some way. But Jesus tells us not to. Instead, Jesus gives us a personal promise that He Himself will give us the words to speak. He assures us of grace and wisdom in those moments of trial. And let’s be honest with ourselves anyway - in what situations when we’ve tried to control everything and plan out what to say, have we been an effective witness for Christ? We can’t be, because apart from Him we can do nothing. But Jesus said this would be our opportunity to bear witness, not justify ourselves before men.

This is a call to trust, not to strategize. Our goal in the midst of persecution and trial is not to be securing a particular outcome – regardless of whether we’re being faced with deliverance or suffering, life or death. The goal is to completely trust God in the journey, continue walking in obedience with Christ no matter where the path leads. Some will live, some will die, but nothing is outside God’s sovereignty. We can say with full conviction in the Spirit, “For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.” (Philippians 1:21) because we know that “Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints.” (Psalm 116:15).

Rather than meditating on what to say in the face of opposition, we are called to meditate on the Word of God and to let the joy of the Lord be our strength (Nehemiah 8:10). When trials come, we don’t need to fear or frantically prepare, we only need to keep doing what Jesus has told us to do – abide in Him. The same God who promises to give us words to speak, is the One who promises to walk with us through those moments.

Our hearts and minds can be completely settled and at peace in the Lord when we stay focused on Him. When we’re tempted to endless rumination, may we cry out to the Lord to teach us to trust in His promises to give us wise words and to keep our spirits safe in Him until the end. As Paul wrote from prison, may our heart and perception be aligned with this too – as it is my eager expectation and hope that I will not be at all ashamed, but that with full courage now as always Christ will be honored in my body, whether by life or by death. For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. (Philippians 1:20-21)

And while some were speaking of the temple, how it was adorned with noble stones and offerings, he said, “As for these things that you see, the days will come when there will not be left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down.” And they asked him, “Teacher, when will these things be, and what will be the sign when these things are about to take place?” And he said, “See that you are not led astray. For many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am he!’ and, ‘The time is at hand!’ Do not go after them. And when you hear of wars and tumults, do not be terrified, for these things must first take place, but the end will not be at once.” (Luke 21:5-9)

As some were marveling at the grandeur of the temple, Jesus gave them an unexpected heads up in prophesying that the destruction of the temple would come. Could you imagine the shock? They asked the obvious question on their minds as they asked, “Teacher, when will these things be, and what will be the sign when these things are about to take place?” But Jesus’ response didn’t focus on exact dates; and instead He focused their attention on how they should live in uncertain times: Don’t be deceived and don’t be afraid.

Jesus warned that many would come claiming to be the Messiah, leading people astray. And history confirms this – false prophets have misled so many people with promises of salvation, political revolutions, and doomsday predictions; and yet Jesus’ words remain extremely clear: “Do not go after them”. Our hope is in Christ alone, not in well-spoken and persuasive leaders, cultural movements, or hyped-up trends that claim to have all the answers.

Jesus also cautioned against fear when we hear about wars and turmoil going on in the world. Jesus said that these things must happen, but that the end will not be at once. The world’s instability and end-times chaos can be frightening, but Jesus doesn’t leave us in uncertainty. He has already given us the heads-up, so to speak, so that we will stand firm and trust Him until the end.

Jesus is not only the Author of our faith, He’s also the Finisher of it (Hebrews 12:2) and He will complete what He began in us and bring us safely home. He is sovereign over history, over every storm, over every war, and has equipped us to not be led astray by deception. The world may shake, but He remains unshaken. We don’t need to panic or chase after every sign, we just need to trust our God fully.

I’ll leave you with this encouragement from the Psalms: I have set the Lord always before me; because he is at my right hand, I shall not be shaken. Therefore my heart is glad, and my whole being rejoices; my flesh also dwells secure. (Psalm 16:8-9)

Jesus looked up and saw the rich putting their gifts into the offering box, and he saw a poor widow put in two small copper coins. And he said, “Truly, I tell you, this poor widow has put in more than all of them. For they all contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty put in all she had to live on.” (Luke 21:1-4)

As Jesus sat watching the temple treasury, His heart must have been lifted by the sight of a poor widow offering her last two coins. He had just endured relentless questioning from the scribes, chief priests, and Sadducees with deceitful motivation, yet here was an act of pure devotion by a poor widow giving all she had. Her small offering spoke louder than the wealth of the rich.

Jesus sees us when we give. He notices the amount, but what He is really looking at is our heart and motive in giving. The widow’s two coins, worth only about 1% of a day’s wage, could have easily been divided—one for God, one for herself. Yet, she gave it all to God. And God wasn’t measuring her gift by its size but instead He measured it by the depth of her trust in God.

Jesus declared that she gave more than all the others combined, not because of the amount, but because of the cost to her. True generosity is not about abundance but rather it’s about sacrifice. King David understood this when he said, “I will not offer to the Lord that which costs me nothing” (2 Samuel 24:24). God does not seek for us to give out of guilt or obligation. Paul told the church in Corinth that each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver (2 Corinthians 9:7). God wants us to have a heart that delights in trusting Him and therefore gives cheerfully.

I have experienced not knowing where the next paycheck will come from, and maybe you have too, but I’ve never experienced being literally down to my last 2 cents. Yet regardless of what financial situations we’ve faced in our lives, this widow’s offering is a challenge to us. Do we wait to give to God until we have more to give from? Or do we give in faith, trusting that God sees and provides? Jesus’ observation and comment about the widow’s gift shows us that the heart behind the giving is what determines the value of the gift more than the financial amount.

Our giving – whether time, talent, money, or any other resource – never goes unnoticed by God. Our genuine faith is more precious than gold that perishes (1 Peter 1:7). Whatever you surrender and sacrifice to God in faith, no matter how small, is precious in His sight. As we determine what to give God, let’s not measure our gift by the value the world may place on it, but instead let’s focus on giving from a right heart before our Lord.