2 Corinthians 9
McGeeCHAPTER 9THEME: Collection for the poor saints at JerusalemThis chapter continues directly with the same subject which we had in chapter 8. There it was the grace of giving; now we have before us what Christian giving is.
2 Corinthians 9:1
EXPLANATION OF CHRISTIAN GIVING (Continued)Paul says that he would be very embarrassed if he came over there, having boasted of them to other folk, and then found out they hadn’t given anything. Liberal giving is a real test of any church. I go to some churches that have real spiritual vigor; they are great churches, and I have found out that they are generous in their giving. I have also been to some churches that are really dead spiritually. And I have discovered that they don’t give much either. They are dead in their giving, too. The size of the offering is a pretty good barometer. Now you see that these Corinthian Christians had made a pledge that they would give something toward the relief of believers in Jerusalem. May I say here that any pledge that a Christian makes is between that person and the Lord. It is a pledge to the Lord that you will do something or that you will give something. I know a wealthy man who was asked, “How in the world did you become so rich when you give so much away?” “Well,” he answered, “The Lord shovels it in and I shovel it out, and God has the bigger shovel.” My friend, we can never outgive God.
2 Corinthians 9:5
You will notice that the gift is called a bounty. That indicates that it would be a generous gift, which is the evidence of the grace of God working in the heart.
2 Corinthians 9:6
ENCOURAGEMENT TO CHRISTIAN GIVINGWhen Paul was talking to the Ephesian elders, he reminded them of this same thing. “I have shewed you all things, how that so labouring ye ought to support the weak, and to remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he said, It is more blessed to give than to receive” (Act_20:35). Apparently, “it is more blessed to give than to receive” was an expression which the Lord Jesus used constantly. I know that this has become a very trite bromide today. It is quoted a great deal and practiced very little. The word blessed actually means “happy.” It will make you happier to give than to receive. How does it affect you when you give? Here is an acid test for you and for me today. Do we sow sparingly? Do we give in that way? Suppose a farmer would sow a bushel of grain on a particular plot of ground and reap an abundant harvest. Suppose he would say the next year, “There is no use wasting a bushel of grain on this ground this year; I will save half a bushel for myself and sow only half a bushel.” Any farmer knows that he would get a very small yield. The principle is that whoever sows sparingly will reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will reap bountifully. When I was speaking at Siloam Springs, Arkansas, some folk came from Oklahoma City. The lady is about my age and she was raised in a little place called Tishomingo, Oklahoma. My father was killed in a cotton gin there and is buried there. In that day it was the custom when there was a death in a family for the neighbors and friends to send food to the bereaved family. I shall never forget the wonderful food that was sent to us at that time. This lady told me that she could recall as a girl that her mother cooked up a great deal of food and sent it over to our house.
She said, “I never knew that years later I would be listening to you. We gave you physical food, and now you supply spiritual food for us.” They didn’t sow sparingly, and I hope they are reaping abundantly. I believe this is a true principle in every area of life. One of the reasons some of us are so poor today is that we are so tightfisted when we are dealing with the Lord.
2 Corinthians 9:7
What you feel right down in your heart you ought to give, that is what you should give. But here is the test: “not grudgingly.” God does not want any grudging giving. What does that mean? God does not want one penny from you if you would rather keep it for yourself. Perhaps you say, “Well, I am an officer in the church and it is my responsibility to give.” Or, “I am a member of that church and I feel responsible.” It is true that the church may say that to you. As a pastor, I’ve told people, “This is your church and you ought to support it.” But God does not say that. He says that if you are going to give grudgingly, He doesn’t want it. Not only does God not want it, but I believe that God doesn’t use it either. Not only does it say God does not want you to give if you give grudgingly, neither does He want you to give “of necessity.” He doesn’t want you to give at all unless you are giving willingly and gladly. Some folk say, “Well, I had better give because everybody else is giving, and it would look bad if I didn’t give something.” That is giving of necessity. God does not want that kind of giving. “God loveth a cheerful giver.” That should be the happiest part of the service. I have been in many churches where they take up an offering and then the congregation stands and sings, “Praise God from whom all blessings flow.” I think that is wonderful. The only thing that would be better would be if they would sing it first. This would put them in the attitude of giving and of giving joyfully. Also they would be able to reach for their wallets as they stood up! God loves a cheerful giver. If you can’t give cheerfully, God doesn’t want you to give.
2 Corinthians 9:8
I have never known anyone who has gone broke giving to the Lord’s work. There may be some who have, but I have never met them in my ministry. In believe that God will bless you. I don’t think the blessings He gives to you will always be material blessings. A great many folk think they can hold God to a promise of material blessings. I don’t think you can. He does promise to bless us with all spiritual blessings.
2 Corinthians 9:9
This is a quotation from Psalms 112. It calls the man blessed who fears the Lord and who gives to the poor. We are to share with those who do not have as much. I believe that in the church we ought to take care of our own. There are so many opportunities to share with folk. Many Christians have the gift of hospitalityand that is a gift. They have a way of opening their homes and making people feel at home. Often they take folk to church first so they hear the gospel and then have them in their home for dinner afterward. That is a marvelous way of witnessing. It is a way to reach the lonely and those who lack fellowship. Paul gives the illustration of the farmer who doesn’t mind going out to scatter bushel after bushel of seed, because he believes that he will get an abundant harvest. It is God who multiplies the seed of the farmer. It is God who will multiply everything that you do for Him. So don’t be afraid to give to the Lord’s work. I had an experience once when I had to encourage a young man not to give. He had been recently saved, and he was actually giving so much that he was not keeping enough for his own family. The Bible says that we are worse than the heathen if we do not take care of our own family (see 1Ti_5:8). I pointed this out to him and told him that he also needed to care for the necessities of his family, and after that he should give generously to the Lord. God does not want us to be extremists even in this matter of giving. We need to be balanced. We need good, sound, common sense and good, consecrated judgment.
2 Corinthians 9:11
You see, when you give, it will cause people to thank God for you. It is God who will get the praise and the glory.
2 Corinthians 9:13
While I was visiting the mission field in Venezuela a certain missionary there told me about a family that I knew back in Los Angeles. The missionary said, “How generous they have been to me! I thank God for them.” That is the way Paul said it would be. Missionaries in Venezuela were thanking God for a family in Los Angeles. Is anyone anywhere thanking God for your generosity?
2 Corinthians 9:14
Giving is a grace. We are not commanded to give a tithe. It is not to be something done under law. It is a grace. God asks us to give as a grace according to our circumstances. Some Christians should be giving much more than a tithe. Other Christians are not able to give at all. We are to give as we “are able.” Now Paul caps the whole subject of giving by saying:
2 Corinthians 9:15
Regardless of how much you are giving, you cannot give like God gives. He has given an unspeakable gift. No man can approach the gift that God gave in giving His own Son to die. Think of this for a moment. We are back to what was said in chapter 8, verse 2Co_8:9. Though He was rich, He left heaven, left all the glory, came down as a missionary to this world. He came not only to live but to give His life in death for you. He came to be brutally killed in order that you and I might have eternal life. He made His soul a sacrifice for sin for you and for me. We are told in Hebrews that He did this “for the joy that was set before him” (Heb_12:2). Oh, my friend, He is the wonderful, glorious Savior! Don’t ever bring Him down to a low level. He is the Bright and Morning Star. He is the Son of God who has redeemed us. He is the unspeakable gift to you and me. That is the very apex of giving. No one can go beyond that kind of giving.