8:1 Moreover, brothers, we make known to you the grace of God
which has been given in the assemblies of Macedonia;
8:2 how that in much proof of affliction the abundance of their joy
and their deep poverty abounded to the riches of their liberality.
8:3 For according to their power, I testify, yes and beyond their power,
they gave of their own accord,
8:4 begging us with much entreaty to receive this grace
and the fellowship in the service to the saints.
8:5 This was not as we had hoped, but first they gave their own selves
to the Lord,
and to us through the will of God.
8:6 So we urged Titus, that as he made a beginning before,
so he would also complete in you this grace.
8:7 But as you abound in everything, in faith, utterance, knowledge,
all earnestness, and in your love to us, see that you also abound in
this grace.
8:8 I speak not by way of commandment,
but as proving through the earnestness of others the sincerity also
of your love.
Comparing our Generosity with Christ
8:9 For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was
rich,
yet for your sakes he became poor, that you through his poverty might
become rich.
Fulfilling Our Vows of Generosity
8:10 I give a judgment in this: for this is expedient for you,
who were the first to start a year ago, not only to do, but also to
be willing.
8:11 But now complete the doing also, that as there was the readiness
to be willing,
so there may be the completion also out of your ability.
8:12 For if the readiness is there, it is acceptable according to what
you have,
not according to what you don't have.
Equality as a Motivation in Giving
8:13 For this is not that others may be eased and you distressed,
8:14 but for equality. Your abundance at this present time supplies
their lack,
that their abundance also may become a supply for your lack; that there
may be equality.
8:15 As it is written, "He who gathered much had nothing left
over, and he who gathered little had no lack." (Ex 16:18)
Cooperating in the
Administration of the Gift
The Enthusiastic Attitude of the Administrators
8:16 But thanks be to God, who puts the same earnest care for you into
the heart of Titus.
8:17 For he indeed accepted our exhortation,
but being himself very earnest, he went out to you of his own accord.
8:18 We have sent together with him the brother
whose praise in the gospel is known through all the assemblies.
8:19 Not only so, but who was also appointed by the assemblies to travel
with us in this grace,
which is served by us to the glory of the Lord himself, and to show
our readiness.
Avoiding Criticism in Generosity
8:20 We are avoiding this, that any man should blame us
concerning this abundance which is administered by us.
8:21 Having regard for honorable things,
not only in the sight of the Lord, but also in the sight of men.
8:22 We have sent with them our brother,
whom we have many times proved earnest in many things,
but now much more earnest, by reason of the great confidence which
he has in you.
8:23 As for Titus, he is my partner and fellow worker for you.
As for our brothers, they are the apostles of the assemblies, the glory
of Christ.
8:24 Therefore show the proof of your love to them in front of the
assemblies,
and of our boasting on your behalf.
Discussion Questions
vs 1-8 In what ways is it appropriate to compare ourselves or our
church to other Christians and other Churches?
How might a healthy sense of competition edify the church?
How might it divide?
What particular characteristics of the Macedonian churches impressed
Paul?
vs 9 How has Christ enriched you?
In what ways did he become poor?
How have we or might we make ourselves poor for the sake of others?
vs 10-12 What hinderances do you find you face between your
desire to give and your actual giving?
vs 13-15 What political-economic ideas might be inferred from
these verses?
What attitudes does it promote?
vs 16-19 What dangers did the administrators of the gift face
in delivering the gift?
What words in this chapter most characterize givers like Titus? (You
might also consider the next chapter)
Have you ever thought of taking your own initiative in doing some ministry?
vs 20-24 What did Paul do to assure the Corinthians that their
money would be handled properly?
Comments
vs 1-8 Should we compare ourselves against other Christians or not?
Doesn't Paul write even in this very letter: "We do not dare to classify
or compare ourselves with some who commend themselves. When they measure
themselves by themselves and compare themselves with themselves, they are
not wise."2Cor 10:12 (niv) Yet here Paul is comparing the Corinthians
against the Macedonian churches! But then he also encourages to compare
ourselves against Christ. So I think what he means is that there is an
ideal behavior of Christlikeness expected of the churches, and that the
Macedonians in this particular matter are doing well to fit that standard.
But in 2Cor 10:12, he is referring to an unbiblical humanistic standard
centered on human dogma and not upon Christ.
The attitude which Paul promotes both in this chapter and the next on
generosity, is giving with JOY and ENTHUSIASM. The Corinthian church was
relatively rich. And with affluence comes apathy. But the poor Macedonian
churches knew what is was to be materially needy and thus appreciated meeting
practical needs more. Notice the characteristics he listed:
They gave joyfully
richly
beyond their ability
out of their own initiative
in accordance with the will of God
It is interesting that Paul is promoting a bit of heathly competition between
the churches. Not for divisiveness, but for edification. The Corinthian
church was actually doing quite well, from Paul's point of view. For among
all the churches, they excelled in faith, speech, knowledge and sincerity
in their love for Paul. Therefore he encourages them also to excel in the
matter of generosity. In all this we notice that Paul avoid commanding
them explicitly. For as he also points out in the next chapter, the motivation
of the giver should not be out of reluctance or compulsion. It seems that
the motivation of the giver is as important as the gift itself.
vs 9 Christ was rich. Being rich itself is not a vice. Indeed,
will not all the believers be filled with riches in heaven? And did not
Jesus speak much of the riches of the kingdom of heaven? But Jesus became
a poor man in a poor country, lived briefly and died a humiliating death.
It was not his impoverishment which was virtuous. It was the fact that
he did it for us. He died to pay the penalty for our sins, so that we may
be freely forgiven and reconciled to God and become rich as a result.
But consider also, that if we are to walk as Jesus did, we also must
become poor for the sake of others. Maybe some will decide not to get married,
or not have children, so that they can be more free to minister. Maybe
some will sacrifice their material things for the sake of meeting material
needs. Some will sacrifice their time or emotional energy to edify the
immature or unbelievers and receive little in return. In Paul's case, he
could have legitimately gotten payed for doing ministry, but he didn't,
so that his message wouldn't be affected and that he would provide a good
example to follow.
vs 10-12 It's easy to make pledges to give. It reminds me of
the man who said to Jesus that he would follow him wherever he went. Or
the rich young man who wanted to do something to get eternal life. Or Peter
who claimed that he would never deny Christ. But pledges are nothing unless
they are fulfilled. Also in the fast paced time in which we live, it may
be easy to forget all the details. One thing I find very helpful is set
up automatic monthly payments to charitable organizations. That way, although
they remind me monthly of what I'm giving, I don't have to sit down and
write out checks every month and it becomes a more reliable process for
the receivers.
vs 13-15 Prejudice teaches that if I have more than you, then
I deserved it. But the Bible teaches that one person having more than another
is neither necessarily correlated with what they deserve, nor does it mean
that we should keep it that way. Paul advocates a degree of equality. But
I think he is speaking with respect to meeting real practical needs, and
not simply that we should make sure everyone has an equal amount. From
a political-economic point of view, he is not speaking of communism, but
rather of the rich providing an umbrella of security for the poor.
In view of the present global extent of Christianity, it is my opinion
that monetary giving should be primarily focussed on meeting the needs
of Third World Christians, but today it tends to be spent on meeting the
desires of First World Christians.
vs 16-19 Notice once again Paul mentioning enthusiasm and taking
one's own initiative. Taking one's own initiative is often discouraged
in institutional Christianity, where ministry is limited to an elite few
and where only established institutional programs are considered legitimate
areas of ministry and where the congregation is treated as nothing more
than a bunch of stupid sheep incapable of doing much else than listening
to lectures. Giving tends to become limited to giving to ones own "the
institutional church" devoid of the sense of meeting the real needs of
the broader Christian community. But here the Corinthians are encouraged
to give to somebody else's church far away from themselves in order to
meet real practical needs.
Another aspect unique to Titus and Paul and the unnamed brother who
will be carrying the gift to Israel, is the danger they put themselves
in. For surely, through gossip and rumor, deviant characters will find
out about this large amount of money being carried by a few unarmed men
a long distance. There was a great threat of being robbed on such a journey.
But they made themselves poor - by putting themselves in difficult circumstances
so as to serve Christ. Yet there was no reluctance, but enthusiasm in such
service. And thus the fact that the gift even made it to Jerusalem brings
glory to God, who protected them on such a journey.
vs 20-24 Paul was not unaware that people are quite critical
about how charitable gifts are handled, which is why he himself avoided
taking any for his own ministry. It's easy to mishandle somebody else's
money. Care must be taken in administering such a gift. Even today with
many good charitable organizations, there is the question of how high the
percentage of the gift should go towards "administrative costs" before
it may be consider abuse of the funds. Paul was concerned about that. So
we should be concerned about the administration of the gift and somewhat
critical of the administrators, rather than gullibly hand over large sums
of money to those of no reputation. Paul affirmed the reputation of the
administrators of the gift, which also brings confidence to the givers.
For today, everyone asks for money, many of whom are thieves.