WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE ALL IN?

“Jesus called his disciples to him and said, “I tell you the truth, this poor widow has given more than all the others who are making contributions. For they gave a tiny part of their surplus, but she, poor as she is, has given everything she had to live on.” – Mark 12:43-44.

Some high-stakes poker games are televised on TV. There is usually a group of people around a table with stacks of chips for betting sitting in front of them. As the game proceeds, a player occasionally slides all his chips into the middle of the table and says, “I’m all in.” When players go “all In” in poker, they bet all their remaining chips on a single hand. This move can be exciting and risky, and it is often used as a last resort when a player believes they have a strong hand but do not have enough chips to make a standard bet. Sometimes, the “all-in ” strategy works; sometimes, it doesn’t.

When it comes to commitment to God, God wants us to live with an “all-in” attitude. God is looking for authentic commitment. God wants us to be committed to Him so that the world will know He is important to us. Our commitment to Him is our witness. To be fully committed, to be “all in,” Jesus has to be first in our lives.

Once, Jesus and His disciples went to the temple, where they watched the crowd bring their money and place it in the temple treasury. When the copper coins hit the collection boxes, they made lots of noise. It wasn’t much of a secret which worshipers gave large sums of money and which didn’t. However, no one could know who gave sacrificially except for Jesus.

When a widow came and dropped two small copper coins in the treasury, worth only a fraction of a penny, Jesus pointed her out to His disciples: “I tell you the truth, this poor widow has given more than all the others who are making contributions.  For they gave a tiny part of their surplus, but she, poor as she is, has given everything she had to live on” (Mark 12:43-44). This woman was “all-in.” She had cast her lot entirely with God, depending totally and completely upon God to care for her and supply her needs.

Just before He was crucified, Jesus knelt down in the garden of Gethsemane. With His face to the ground, He prayed, “My Father! If it is possible, let this cup of suffering be taken away from me. Yet I want your will to be done, not mine” (Matthew 26:39). Jesus was faced with the brutality of the cross. It was not the hand He wanted to play. He was a King, but this King had a crown of thorns. But He played the hand that God gave Him. He was all in.

Jesus isn’t satisfied with people who give the bare minimum. He indeed loves you just the way you are, but He also loves you too much to let you stay that way. As you follow Him, He will always call you to new, challenging, and increasing levels of commitment. He wants us to be all in.

 Discussion Questions:

1. What does it mean to be all in in your mind?
2. What can we do better this week to reflect our being all in?