Stand Strong in the Word
Stand Strong in the Word is a weekly bible study that teaches through the Bible verse by verse in chronological order. For more information, visit www.standstrongministries.org.
Stand Strong in the Word
#285 "Graceful Giving: Reflecting Christ in Our Generosity" (2 Corinthians 8:7-15)
Today, we will explore 2 Corinthians 8:7-15, the principle of having a generous heart in giving. We’ll recall how Jesus Christ came down from heaven, took on flesh, and exemplified sacrificial love by giving everything for us. What we give is not as important as the spirit in which we give it! Tune in as we discuss how our generosity can reflect the sacrifice of Christ and genuinely change the lives of others. Let's be kind and generous and spread the love we have received!
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Have you ever considered what true generosity means? In 2 Corinthians, paul urges us to give abundantly, not out of obligation, but from a place of joyfulness allowing our love and faith to overflow. So here's a friendly question Are we giving generously, not just financially, but also from the heart, truly reflecting Christ? Turn to 2 Corinthians 8 and let's get into it. Well, hey there, my friends, welcome to Stand Strong in the Word podcast, jason Jimenez, with you, as always. Blessed to be with you. Guys, as we continue our study here in 2 Corinthians 8, we're going to be reading verses 7 through 24.
Speaker 1:And the title for today's podcast is Graceful Giving Reflecting Christ in Our Generosity. So just let that sink in for a minute Graceful giving. You know, one of the profound things as a Christian, as we live this life, is the fact that we have been given grace. Grace is something we don't deserve. This is something that Christ has given us through his death and his resurrection. And this idea that we, as Christians, can extend that grace that we have been given to give that to others, whether it is in our giftedness, in our time, in our finances, in our friendship, in forgiveness, whatever the case may be, reflecting Christ in our generosity is, my friends, so profound and is something to be honest I myself want to reflect more in my life. Even as I was studying this before we jump in, I want to share this with you guys that I even talked to my wife about areas that we are financially giving. Are there areas that we can give more?
Speaker 1:I just spoke with an individual recently and he was requesting some time in my thoughts. As I was listening to him, my heart breaks for this individual. It truly does, and God has genuinely opened a door of friendship there and I believe God's hand is on this individual as he's growing in his faith and figuring things out. But, as he asked me for some time and for direction, as I'm like in my thoughts, thinking of all the things that I have to get done for Stan Strong Ministries and with my family, and knowing that for many years now I've had to pull out or pull back from things because I don't want to be overcommitted, but as he spoke to me and I and I just felt the Holy spirit saying make time, make time, be generous, and I'm so thankful that I listened to the Lord in that moment. So, instead of saying you know what, man, I wish I could and being very gracious about it. No, extending grace and saying you know what I would love to thank you for asking. Let me get back to you.
Speaker 1:And so that's just one example in just the last few days of my life and I wanna share that with you guys because, as we look at the passage of scripture, isn't that what God's word is to do in our lives is to not just challenge us, not just to convict us, but to transform us, so we're more like our savior. So, as always, if you've missed any previous podcasts, I encourage you guys to check those things out and if you are finding this podcast to be fruitful, to be beneficial you know, one of the slogans we have is to help you guys stand strong in your faith, and we can't be strong in our faith without being strong in God's word, with wise thinking and bold living. So if this has really been refreshing and helpful for you because you know we do a chronological teaching, verse by verse leave us a review. That is huge. That's one way that you can immediately help us to stand strong with us by leaving a review. A lot of people listen and a lot of times people just don't get to it and I get it. I'm kind of like that too, but the more that I'm realizing that man, this channel, this podcast is really helpful, I stop give them a review just to leave them also words of encouragement and reread every single one of them. So do that, share it, let other people know about this ministry, and I pray that it is truly a blessing.
Speaker 1:So as we pick things up here, we're talking. Last time in the previous podcast, the title was Beyond their Means the Secret to True Generosity, and at the heart of that was this abundance of joy. Even in the midst of affliction, even in the midst of extreme poverty, their generosity was overflowing and that was so important to us to get context, because oftentimes we just are told, hey, give, you're a Christian, give, that's just what we do, just tithe, and how many times have we really just took a deep dive? And, by the way, let me just say when we get into 2 Corinthians 9, I'm actually gonna be pausing and taking some correlation with some matters again surrounding generosity, because we're not finished with this topic yet. Paul goes into greater detail in chapter nine and there I'm gonna park and go into tithe. Give you guys a biblical theology of, not just the term, where it derives from looking at different references that's used in the New Testament Specifically. Of course, we'll bring some clarification and some groundwork in the Old Testament, but we're going to do that, so look forward to that.
Speaker 1:But for now, what's important, as we go into verse seven, is knowing that these people had overpopulation, there was famines, there was food shortages, there was high taxes, there was persecution. Remember the word for affliction that Paul used in verse two was dokame, this testing, and it's actually something that's worth going through because of what it produces. And so we know that the Corinthians were inspired by the Macedonians. The Macedonians were inspired by the Corinthians, and that's how generosity spreads is. It's contagious. You're seeing the work of people that Paul says they're imitators of the Lord, and he said you receive the word in much affliction and with the joy of the Holy Spirit. And so we see, because of that, that they were actually able to give down from the depths of their poverty.
Speaker 1:I don't know if you've ever been there when you're like this is all we really have left. I mean, there's been many stories that have impacted my life and my wife's life when we stepped out in faith and knew that God was calling us to Charlotte, north Carolina, left the job and it wasn't getting paid a ton of money. It wasn't about the money, but as our family was growing and our expenses were getting higher, we needed to do something. But we have to listen to the Lord. And when I go back and read the scriptures and hear people who just said we had $10 left and God just told us to give that to the church or give that to that needy family, and your needs are greater than that person's needs that's exactly the context of what we're dealing with. So this wasn't somebody who is giving out of their abundance in terms of finances. Now, they had abundance in terms of joy, and that's the point that we cannot miss, matter of fact. I would say that that's foundational, that we cannot miss, matter of fact. I would say that that's foundational that we cannot disregard.
Speaker 1:And so now we pick things up here in verse seven, where Paul says these words. He says but as you excel in everything, notice. He says in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in all earnestness and in our love. For you see that you excel in this act of grace also. I say this not as a command, but to prove by the earnestness of others that your love also is genuine, for you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ that though he was rich, yet for your sake, he became poor so that you, by his poverty, might become rich. And in this matter I give my judgment. This benefits you who, a year ago, started not only to do this work but also to desire to do it. So now finish doing it as well, so that your readiness in desiring it may be matched by your completing it out of what you have. For if the readiness is there, it is acceptable according to what a person has, not according to what he does not have. For I do not mean that others should be eased and you burdened, but that is a matter of fairness. Your abundance at the present time should supply their need, so that their abundance may supply your need, that there may be fairness. As it is written, whoever gathered much had nothing left over, and whoever gathered little had no lack. But thanks be to God, who put it in the heart of Titus the same earnest care I have for you, for he not only accepted our appeal but, being himself very earnest, he is going to you of his own accord. Now.
Speaker 1:I do want to pause there because, really, when we're examining this, I feel that we need to sit on these passages, because what I love about the remaining portion of this chapter, in verses 16 down to 24, is the example that Paul uses of Titus. And this is actually really and I think you guys know this, I've been sharing it off and on throughout the time we've been spending, particularly in 2 Corinthians, of the mentioning of Titus on multiple occasions. Again, he's not the forefront of everything here because it's about Jesus. It's about the work obviously he's doing in the Corinthians' lives and the conflict that Titus and Paul had to deal with to restore these churches in Corinth together, and what a blessing that it eventually became, as we're reading even right now through their generosity and the restoration that they have with people that were sinning in the church and how they handled that, and they respected Paul and his ministry and, of course, he thought that they had abandoned him, all of those things we talked about. So what I want to focus on right now is just the level of this excel in giving, because you see, what Paul's doing it's so fascinating is that he transitions into the subject of giving by recognizing catch this the spiritual gifts that were present among the Corinthians.
Speaker 1:I love what the New King James Study Bible says. It says the Corinthians had an abundance of spiritual gifts and graces. In fact you can see that that is mentioned in 1 Corinthians 1. And I want to read this for you, in verses 4-7. Notice it says I give thanks to my God always for you, because of the grace of God that was given you in Christ Jesus, that in every way you were enriched in him and all speech and all knowledge, even as the testimony about Christ was confirmed among you, so that you are not lacking in any gift as you wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ. So notice there was an abundance of spiritual gifts.
Speaker 1:They were not just super talented people, they were gifted people that God had blessed and they had the gift of faith. We see this going back in 1 Corinthians 12, verse 9, and chapter 13, verse 2, that gifts of speech such as prophecy, in 1 Corinthians 1, 5, as I just read, and also in chapter 12, verse 10,. They had the gift of knowledge in 1 Corinthians 1, verse 5, and 12, verse 8. They were also, the commentary says, blessed with diligence. In chapter 7, verse 11,. The commentary says blessed with diligence, in chapter 7, verse 11, in love for Paul, in chapter 7, verse 7.
Speaker 1:So when he says that you've been excelling in everything, in your faith and speech and knowledge and all earnestness, they were excelling not just in the giftedness, but catch this, as Paul said, in the act of grace See, this is a moment of time, my friends, that we see actually maturity, that the Corinthians were actually walking in the grace of Jesus Christ and they weren't being cocky about it, they were being humble about it, which is why here in verse 80 says I say this not as a command, but to prove by the earnestness of others. So there was an earnestness in the gifts that the Corinthians had. There was an earnestness of others that your love is also genuine. So the Corinthians were being generous. I mean, if you look around your sphere of influence, the people that you spend the most time with that know you best, would they say you are a generous person. Again, people that you spend the most time with that know you best, would they say you are a generous person Again.
Speaker 1:Not that you're always buying them meals and buying them the best gifts. We love those kinds of friends, don't get me wrong. But, to be honest, even in my stage of life, that's not like everything. When someone who is near and dear to me is encouraging me and telling me that they love spending time with me, and I know that they are genuinely walking alongside of me and caring for me and my family, that means the world to me and I know it means the world to you as well. And that's what the Corinthians were showing here is that they were generous and they're giving because they were sincere in their love for not just God but for others.
Speaker 1:So, again, isn't it refreshing to have Christians who say I love God and you actually see them loving other people, as Paul told the Romans in chapter 15, verse four, and he said concerning you, my brethren, I myself also am convinced that you yourselves are full of goodness, filled with all knowledge and able also to admonish one another. What powerful words. When's the last time someone said to you, as Paul said to the Romans? And this is the apostle Paul? When he's saying I personally, he says I myself also am convinced. So it's like him saying this in layman terms today, I want you to know personally and I mean what I'm about to tell you that you are a person that I have witnessed and that I can honestly vouch for and say that you are full of goodness. You are a person who's filled with knowledge. I admire your knowledge of scripture. I admire your ability to articulate what you believe, why you believe it, that you are a defender of the faith. I see that you are a person who admonishes people in such a way that is so encouraging.
Speaker 1:My friends, that's what he is saying when he says that your love also is genuine. So not only are you earnest in exercising your spiritual gifts, but he says you're also genuine in your love. Does that go back to first Corinthians 13? You could be the most gifted person, but if you don't do it in love, it's nothing, it amounts to nothing, for you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. That's why, why are they earnest and serving and being generous? Why is their love genuine? Because they know the grace of Lord Jesus Christ. So they're not just. He's not just saying, when you go back to even Romans, that you guys are these intelligent people and, oh my gosh, I wish I was so smart like you. He says you know God's grace, and I love this verse.
Speaker 1:This is one of the most significant passages of scripture where Paul says that, though Christ was rich, yet for your sake he became poor. Why so that? And these are all these transitions that Paul oftentimes uses so that you may, by his poverty, might, become rich. Now, what Paul's referencing here is Jesus's eternal status. He's talking about his reign in heaven as a son of God. If you go back to the gospel John, where he began these words in the beginning was the word, and the word was with God and the word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him and without him was not anything made that was made.
Speaker 1:In another letter, paul describes Jesus taking on a second nature, humanity. This is in Philippians 2, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God, a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men and being found in human form. He humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on the cross. So Jesus, based on what paul's saying here in second corinthians, 8, verse 9, philippians 2, 5 and 8, john's gospel in the beginning of chapter 1, jesus is the eternal son of god, he's the second person of the trinity and he has shared fellowship, he has shared glory with the father and the holy spirit from all eternity.
Speaker 1:And yet we we see what Paul's saying here is that Jesus, in the terminology he's using, emptied himself by taking the form of a servant, became born in the likeness of men. So when he's now talking here in 2 Corinthians and using language in Philippians and putting them together, it's not that he stripped himself of divinity and meshed with humanity. There was no delusion, there was no diminishing. But rather, when he says he became poor so that you might be, through his poverty, rich, this is a talking about salvation. When you look at John 1 14, when he took on flesh and he bore our sins so that we may be redeemed from both the grasp of sin and the sentence of death. Ultimately, through the poverty of Christ, we become rich because we can embrace the glorious promises of eternal life.
Speaker 1:I love what Romans 5, 8, and 10 says when I look back at this phrase. By his poverty might become rich, it says, but God shows his love for us in that, while we were still sinners, christ died for us. Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. For if, while we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life. So, my friends, when you and I are talking about this earnestness, when you and I talk about love being genuine, when you and I talking about producing the works that God has called us to do and to live in generosity, all of it is built on the poverty of Christ and the exaltation of Christ that he was not just front and center, but he was the second Adam, the last Adam.
Speaker 1:Jesus is our redeemer, and so when he came into this world, he took on human flesh and he defeated sin and death. He lived a perfect life, he was the perfect sacrifice. So, as he lived, not about himself, not you know. You know building a dynasty, building a kingdom, building wealth. You know going out there teaching new thought, new age stuff and how you could be the better version of yourself. None of that. He came as a servant, not to be served, but to serve and give his life a ransom for many, as matthew 28, 20 or, excuse me, 20, 28 says.
Speaker 1:And then here in verse 10, that's why he says and I give you this judgment based on everything he just talked about the sacrifice of christ. It benefits you because he says a year ago there was this work that was being started, there was this desire. He says so now, finish doing it as well. And I want to pause and just point this out, because the great thing about reading this passage think about all the things right now that maybe come to mind that God was maybe calling you to do and you didn't do it. You felt compelled to do it and for whatever reason you felt compelled to do it. And for whatever reason, you know fear, busyness, excuses, or you know selfishness, or you're hoping for something to come about and it doesn't. You weren't ready, you didn't complete it.
Speaker 1:And so Paul here is motivating them, he's telling the Corinthians that it isn't the monetary gift that matters most. I want you guys to understand that. You know. Maybe you said you know we really want to give, let's just say, $10,000 next year towards adoption, this adoption agency, and it didn't come to fruition, for whatever reason, and you feel really disappointed by that. Or you try to help raise awareness and you started to and you never completed, you never met your goal. The monetary gift is not what matters the most. What matters the most is the willingness to give from your resources that God has given you. So you may have wanted to give 10,000, but the real question is did you give out of the abundance of your heart? Did you actually go down deep and give in an area? Maybe that was sacrificial? Wiersbe makes this observation, quote it is important to give willingly. There's a great difference between promise and performance. The Corinthians had boasted to Titus a year before that they would share in the special collection, but they did not keep their promise. Note that in these verses Paul emphasized willingness. Grace giving must come from a willing heart. It cannot be coerced or forced. End quote. Well said so.
Speaker 1:The Corinthians, giving from their poverty, resembles who in the New Testament, remember the widow's offering. Remember when the gospel and this is you can find this in Mark, chapter 12, verses 41 through 44. It says and he, that is Jesus sat down opposite the treasury and watched the people putting money into the offering box. And it says many rich people put in large sums and a poor widow came and put in two small copper coins which make a penny and he called his disciples to him and said to them truly, I say to you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the offering box, for they all contributed out of their abundance, but she, out of her poverty, has put in everything she had, all she had to live on.
Speaker 1:That's what Paul's saying here about the Corinthians is you know, it's sometimes we're well-intentioned but maybe there was not that earnestness because there was not really that conviction, that was not really that generosity. And sometimes we have to fail, if you will, or sometimes we have to look back and say, well, you know I was well intentioned, but did I really mean it? Maybe I shouldn't say those kinds of things outright. If I really don't mean it, am I really generous? Maybe there's greed there and, god, I need you to take this greed away from me and I need to trust you and through that, when you are confronted with that, and through God's grace that overflows your heart and your mind and your and your actions, that you say I want to be like this widow, or I want to get back and and be ready and have that desire to complete the thing that God has called me to do. Remember, it's not just about the $10,000 or whatever resources or amount of money that God has called you to give. It's about giving from your resources, being willing to do that. And that's why he says here now, for I do not mean that others should be eased and you burden.
Speaker 1:So the idea is and I think this is wrong we have to be very, very careful, especially if any pastor or anybody in leadership has a position where you're trying to get people to give, and I'm one of those guys. So I'm speaking to myself here. I pray, I let the word of God speak to me here. You know, when I'm in the business of telling people about the mission and the work and the ministry of Stand Strong Ministries and the podcast here, stand Strong in the Word, we ask people to prayerfully consider giving, as I ask many of you to do so, and I have to be careful that I don't want you to be burdened, I don't want you to feel guilty, I want you guys to be blessed and I want you guys to know that, of over 90 plus percent of the people who listen to this podcast on a weekly basis, that don't give. That doesn't mean that we stopped doing this. It's not about that, and that's what Paul's saying is that he doesn't want them to be burdened. He says, but that as a matter of fairness. So the other thing is it's like okay, well, you know, a lot of people can't give like this other individual can give, so we are just going to have the person who can give more to just give equal weight or equal amount, so that the people who can't give as much don't feel bad. That's wrong as well.
Speaker 1:Paul's urging the Corinthians to contribute financially. Obviously remember, this is going to the Jewish believers in Jerusalem. And he didn't realize that they would give far beyond. And so in a way he was like oh my goodness, I hope that I didn't come off in a way where I was going to strike them dead as an apostle, or I was going to condemn them, or I was going to come back if they didn't give as much as I wanted them to give. And you see this oftentimes again with the prosperity preachers. It's never enough to them and they always are saying if you want God to bless you, you got to give, you got to step out in faith. That's not what Paul's doing here.
Speaker 1:Verse 13, the emphasis is placed on Christians sharing their financial burdens, fostering greater equality and access to life's essential needs. That's the focal point. Like what are we going to do with these funds? What are the essential needs around us? And this call to generosity is further reinforced here in verse 14, because it highlights the concept when he says your abundance at the present time should supply their need, so that their abundance may supply your need, that there may be fairness. So what is the proper fairness? It's mutual sacrifice that sustains equality.
Speaker 1:So, rather than predicting a scenario of economic abundance in Jerusalem and putting this plan together and saying, okay, if we can get in this region this amount of money and I'm not saying that's wrong but what they were doing is trusting the Lord and out of the abundance of their heart and faith in the midst of hardship, and they knew that it was there and it was breaking their hearts because the need is great. Even as I'm recording this right now, they're even friends of ours and friends of friends who've lost their homes in the fires in California, as I'm recording this right now. So there are great needs. It's not just the Hollywood stars that have lost homes. Who cares about them? They're still human. I get that. But, yes, there are people who don't have what those individuals have, and so that's an economic crisis. So how can we, the church, give? Not long ago, there was flooding, major flooding that we've never seen before. In my own state in North Carolina, people up in the mountains friends of mine lost their homes. Sadly, we have people that we know, who know people there that died. So that right there's a is an economic hardship. How can we, the church, help them in those uh again, unpredictable economic climates, especially when you think about in the first century, when they didn't have access to supplies like we have today? So, while the corinthians supported the jewish believers, one never knows when the tables might turn, and before you know it, as you were able to give right now, and then you lose your job, and then how are you able to give moving forward? And so this underscores the necessity for Christians to support one another and to practice generosity in every circumstance of their lives, and I encourage you to go deeper.
Speaker 1:The biblical, theological study Bible has a really great insight in this particular passage, but also one thing that I wanna point out, and this is where I wanna close for today, and we'll pick up with Titus in verse 16. But he says whoever gathered little had no lack, and I love this. It's such a great little insight. Whoever gathered little had no lack, and I love this. It's such a great little insight. Whoever gathered little had no lack. You see, we don't like that. It's like okay, that's it. You know, everyone's contributing a thousand. You only contribute a hundred, like, why not more? Like everybody else. You know what Paul's giving, giving here.
Speaker 1:What he's proceeding to illustrate is this principle of giving by referring to what god provided, and that was manna from heaven. It was tasteful, okay, but over time the israelites and they need its daily sustenance, and god gave it to them, but over time they were either hoarding it or they're complaining because they wanted quail, they wanted meat. They went back and said even when we were slaves, we ate better than this. And this point here whoever gathered little had no lack. Like, do the work with earnestness and generosity and with a cheerful heart that God has given you, and don't ever compare to say well, we only can tithe through our church 5,000, and we know friends of ours were able to give 50,000. And so the church leadership certainly loves those people who can give more because they could do more with their money. We're not to do that more because they could do more with their money. We're not to do that.
Speaker 1:Paul urged the Corinthians hey, your support to the Jewish believers is awesome and this is going to ensure, as we trust the Lord, that whatever needs they have, that they'll no longer be in want because your generosity is going to meet those needs. And that's what I want to leave you with today, my friends, as we've been studying this passage in 2 Corinthians 8. How has God equipped you? What resources do you have that maybe you're sitting on and maybe right now you're wanting to give and you want to give generously and you don't know how to give. You know you need to lay that out before the Lord and maybe there's some wisdom around you, with some people that you respect and you admire, that are generous givers, and just say, hey, what are ways that you give that maybe can help me, or ministries that you're aware of that are very effective, that I can support, or even giving of your time.
Speaker 1:I just talked to a mother recently and I was able to get her in connection with a pastor of this church I was teaching at and he was like, hey, we could help. It's a simple request. We would love for your family to serve in this, in this capacity, and she's like, really she's like he's absolutely. And that was just a one of those moments of time where it says see, people do want to serve, they do want to be used, they want to have a lasting impact. It means so much to them and and it was just great to kind of see the picture of that. So where are some areas in your life where god can use you to bring blessings to others and don't, when that's to you, don't neglect to do it.
Speaker 1:Remember there was a moment, as we just read, where the Corinthians had a desire to give. They talked about it. A year goes by, nothing came about it. And then conviction and all of a sudden, boom, here we go. We see this letter, we see this major response. They're even giving out of their poverty and that is a great reminder and I pray it leaves a lasting impression in our lives that we trust the Lord, that when he lays something on our heart we know what he's doing and we just need to obey. So, my friends, thank you for listening. Know that we're praying for you. If you have any other further requests or questions. You can always contact us by emailing us at info at stanstrongministriesorg. And, as always, encourage you guys to check out our website with all the resources that we have articles, books, videos, podcasts at stanstrongministriesorg. Until next time, keep standing strong in the word of God. Thank you.