"And now, brothers and sisters, we want you to know about the grace that God has given the Macedonian churches. In the midst of a very severe trial, their overflowing joy and their extreme poverty welled up in rich generosity. For I testify that they gave as much as they were able, and even beyond their ability. Entirely on their own, they urgently pleaded with us for the privilege of sharing in this service to the Lord’s people" (2Cor 8:1-4).
We live in a world in which most people don't give or give just enough to assuage their guilt.
We also live in a world with great need. Even before the pandemic, there were hundreds of millions who lack medicine or food or even clean water. Now, millions have lost their jobs and exhausted their meager savings.
Christians ought to be people who give 'til it hurts. Everyone has a different pain point, but we should all find ours. In a world in which too many think they've done their duty by dropping a five in the red kettle, the world needs people who give "as much as they [are] able." Paul told the Corinthians, "Our desire is not that others might be relieved while you are hard pressed, but that there might be equality" (2Cor 8:13). He did not want them to make others rich by becoming poor, but he did want them to share of their riches. By the standards of the rest of the world, we are very rich.
Paul wants us to imitate Christ: "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 through his poverty might become rich" (2Cor 8:9).
He also told them, "Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work" (2Cor 9:7-8). There is no fixed amount or percentage we're expected to give. God does not want us to give more than we can give with a smile. But he is ready to increase the amount we can give with a smile.
Let's be honest: Giving can be scary. There is always, lurking in the back of our minds, the question, "What if I need this later?" After all, we can get sick. We can lose jobs. The engine can fall out of our cars, too. Giving always requires a certain amount of trust in God. So we should give as much as we can trust God for. And then maybe we can step out a little farther and let God prove himself faithful.
"But since you excel in everything—in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in complete earnestness and in the love we have kindled in you—see that you also excel in this grace of giving" (2Cor 8:7).
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