THE GRACE OF GIVING
2 Corinthians 8:1-14
Giving starts with the Lord. He gives to us out of His
abundance so that we may be able
share with those in need. The Earth is the Lord's and the
fullness thereof. The Lord does
not promise that we will
have all we want, but He did promise that we will have all we need.
God blesses us through the hands of others, both Christian
and none Christian.
Sometimes when we barely have enough to take care of our
needs, He tests our love
for Him by asking us to give to the needs of others.
V:1. " And now, brothers, we want you to know about the
grace that God has given the Macedonian churches."
A. We should all be
role models of the grace of God's giving.
1. From the start
of the Christian Church in Jerusalem
resources in
a common pool.
a. Everyone's
need were met.
b. Those who
had, meet the needs of those who were lacking.
2. The times changed and the members of the Jerusalem
Church
and in need of
help.
B. When the need of
the Jerusalem Church
Churches to take up a collection to meet their needs.
1. Paul used the
generous giving of the Macedonian Church
Churches.
2. We should set
the example of generous giving for the world to follow.
C. The God we serve
works out our circumstances so that we need each other.
V:2. " Out of the most severe trial, their overflowing
joy and their extreme poverty
welled up in rich
generosity."
A. The members of the
Macedonian Church
1. Yet, out of
their poverty, they gave generously.
2. God's grace is
sufficient for us to give regardless of our circumstances.
B. God uses the circumstances
of others to show us how blessed we are.
1. There is always someone with worst
circumstances than yours.
2. When we can
show others love when our circumstance are in not good,
it is a
testimony to our faith in Jesus.
V:3. " For I
testify that they gave as much as they were able, and even beyond their
ability. Entirely
on their own."
A. The Macedonian
Church did not hesitate to help even though they did not have the
means to
help.
1. Their willingness
to help resulted in a generous offering.
2. If we have
a willingness to help, God will multiply what we give to meet the
needs of
others.
3. God can find
resources in us that we do not know we have.
4. What we take
for granted, may be valuable to others.
B. It is not how much we have that counts, but
our desire to use what we have that
God
blesses.
1. Jesus took a
little boy's lunch and feed five thousand men.
2. Jesus took
one boy's desire to help and blessed many.
V:4. " They urgently pleaded with us for the privilege
of sharing in this service to the saints."
A. Paul did not asked
the Macedonian Church
improvised
conditions.
1. Having heard of
the need of the Jerusalem Church
include them
in this grace giving.
2. When we have a
desire to help, God will make away.
3. When many give
a little, it can end up being much.
B. It is a privilege
to work in partnership with Jesus to support the gospel.
1. We become
effective servants of Jesus when we make it our business to
help others
in need.
2. The evidence
of our love for God shows up in our service.
3. We show
ourselves as a friend of Jesus by what we are willing to do for others.
V:5" And they
did not do as we expected, but they gave themselves first to the Lord and
then to us in
keeping with God's will."
A. We can do all
things through Christ who strengthen us.
1. To be a good
servant, we must first give ourselves to the Lord.
2. We were
purchased by the blood Jesus shed on the cross.
B. When we yield ourselves to the guidance and directions of
the Holy Spirit,
we will always do
more than is expected of us.
1. We can
accomplish nothing without the help of Jesus.
2. Jesus said if
we abide in Him and His Word in us, we can ask what we will
and it will
be done.
V:6. "So we urged Titus, since he had earlier made a
beginning, to bring also to
completion this act
of grace on your part."
A. When we start a
project for God, we ought to bring it to a completion.
1. Every project
for God should have specific purpose.
2. Every project
should have a plan.
3. Every project
should have a list of participants.
4. Every
project should have a start date and a
completion date.
5. Every project
needs dedicated workers.
B. All money
collected must be used for the purpose it was given.
1. The purpose of
the collection was to help the poor saints in Jerusalem
2. What we do for
other lifts us up in the same manner.
3. Service has
it's reward in pleasing God.
V: 7 But just as you excel in everything — in faith, in
speech, in knowledge, in complete
earnestness and in
your love for us — see that you also excel in this grace of giving."
A. To be like Jesus
we must excel in every area of God's favor.
1. The first area to
excel is faith.
a . We must first
believe in Jesus and His crucifixion.
b. We must believe
that He is in control of all areas of our lives.
2. We must excel in speech.
a. We should make
it our business to give God praise and honor.
b. We should be
ready to give encouragement to others
c. We should
control our tongue so that we speak good of everyone.
3. We must excel in
the knowledge of Jesus Christ.
a. Let this mind
be in you that also was in Jesus Christ.
c. Our study of
God's Word is the wisdom we need to live a successful
Godly life.
4. We must excel in
earnestness.
a. Our focus
should always be the righteousness of God.
b. Our aim should
be to do what is right in all situations.
5. We must excel in
our love for one another.
a. Love is the
foundation of Christian faith.
b. God is love.
c. We must love
God first and our neighbor as ourselves.
6. The Lord wants us
to excel in giving.
a. God favored us
with His love.
b. We must love
our neighbor enough to help when needed.
B. God favored us with His grace and mercy
1. Christ died while we were yet sinners.
2. It was because
of God's love that He sent His Son to be our Savior.
3. It should be
because of love that we help those in need, especially those
of the
household of faith.
V:8. " I am not commanding you, but I want to test the
sincerity of your love by
comparing it with the
earnestness of others."
A. Sometimes we think we are doing well serving Christ until
we hear of the
faith of others.
1. Not that we
should measure ourselves by others, but it is good to know that there is
always more that
we could do.
2. When we think we
are stretched to the limit, it good to know that God can
stretch us more.
B. The test of our love is what we are willing to sacrifice
for the sake of others.
1. God does not
command us to sacrifice beyond our means.
2. The Apostle Paul
points out that if we have a desire, God will provide the way.
3. When we are
weak, God is our strength.
V:9. " For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ,
that though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, so that you through
his poverty might become rich."
A. Jesus is the
ultimate example of sacrificial love.
1. He become poor
and we became rich in the Father's love.
2. Jesus faith in
the Father's love sealed the eternal destiny of all His elect.
B. When we lend our
lives to the Father for the sake of others, we can accomplish
the
extraordinary.
1. Whatever we do
for others out of love works to our good.
2. Jesus was
lifted up and all power over heaven and earth was given to Him.
3. If we are
faithful over a few thing, God will make us rulers over many things.
V:10. " And here
is my advice about what is best for you in this matter: Last year you
were the first not
only to give but also to have the desire to do so."
A. After the start
of the collection efforts in Corinth
the money would
be use for the purpose it was given.
1. The
collection efforts had stopped.
2. Paul reminded
the Corinthians of their initial desires to help.
B. There will always
be those in the Church who do not see the need to help others.
1. When we began
what God has called us to do, we must leave the success of
our efforts
to the Father.
2. We are not
immune to the wise of the Devil without the guidance of the Holy Spirit.
3. We must be
careful that we are not listening to the wrong voices.
V:11. " Now
finish the work, so that your eager willingness to do it may be matched by
your completion of
it, according to your means."
A. God gives us the
means to do what He calls us to do.
1. God makes the
needs of our brothers and sisters in Christ our responsibility.
2. We all have
different earthly fathers, but one heavenly Father.
3. We are all
related by the shed blood of Jesus Christ.
B. Whatever we vow to
the Father, we should complete.
1. The Word says,
it is better not to make a vow than to make one and not keep it.
2. Our yes should
be yes.
V:12. " For if
the willingness is there, the gift is acceptable according to what one has,
not according to
what he does not have."
A. God expect us to
give as we have been blessed.
1. Whatever we
give God willingly and without grudging, He accepts
2. It is not how
much we have to give but how much heart we have when we
give.
3. God loves a
cheerful giver.
B. God does not judge us by what we do not have.
1. Our giving is
not a competition.
1. Our giving is a
result of our love.
V:13. " Our
desire is not that others might be relieved while you are hard pressed, but
that there might be
equality."
A. God does not
require us to neglect our needs to satisfy the desires of others.
1. God does not
require us to support those who are able to work, but refuse
to work.
2 . God does
require us to support the Church of Jesus Christ
3. A generous
spirit will come to the aid of those who are truly in need.
14 At the present
time your plenty will supply what they need, so that in turn their plenty
will supply what
you need. Then there will be equality.
A. What goes around
comes around.
1. When we are
generous in our giving to promote the Gospel of Jesus Christ,
we are
storing treasures in heaven.
2. At some point
in our life we may find ourselves in need.
a. Our
generosity will return to us in our time of need.
B. God keeps track
of our giving and will return to us many times what we give in
grace giving.
Rev. M. Mitchell,
Asst Pastor of GMBC
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