THE TRIP TO BOUNTIFUL GIVING
2 CORINTHIANS 9:1-6
NASB
1 For it is superfluous for me to write to you about this ministry to the [a]saints; 2 for I know your readiness, of which I boast about you to the Macedonians, namely, that Achaia has been prepared since last year, and your zeal has stirred up most of them. 3 But I have sent the brethren, in order that our boasting about you may not be made empty in this case, so that, as I was saying, you may be prepared; 4 otherwise if any Macedonians come with me and find you unprepared, we —not to speak of you —will be put to shame by this confidence. 5 So I thought it necessary to urge the brethren that they would go on ahead to you and arrange beforehand your previously promised [a]bountiful gift, so that the same would be ready as a [a]bountiful gift and not [b]affected by covetousness.
6 Now this I say, he who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows [a]bountifully will also reap [a]bountifully.
9:1 [a]Or holy ones 9:5 [a]Lit blessing [b]Lit as covetousness 9:6 [a]Lit with blessings
NLT
1 I really don’t need to write to you about this ministry of giving for the believers in Jerusalem.[*] 2 For I know how eager you are to help, and I have been boasting to the churches in Macedonia that you in Greece[*] were ready to send an offering a year ago. In fact, it was your enthusiasm that stirred up many of the Macedonian believers to begin giving.
3 But I am sending these brothers to be sure you really are ready, as I have been telling them, and that your money is all collected. I don’t want to be wrong in my boasting about you. 4 We would be embarrassed —not to mention your own embarrassment —if some Macedonian believers came with me and found that you weren’t ready after all I had told them! 5 So I thought I should send these brothers ahead of me to make sure the gift you promised is ready. But I want it to be a willing gift, not one given grudgingly.
6 Remember this —a farmer who plants only a few seeds will get a small crop. But the one who plants generously will get a generous crop.
[9:1] Greek about the offering for God’s holy people. [9:2] Greek in Achaia, the southern region of the Greek peninsula. Macedonia was in the northern region of Greece.
If you’ve ever struggled with how to tackle a seemingly insurmountable task that had to be done, you know the challenges that can present themselves. We can be paralyzed with fear, demoralized by failures, and agonized over decisions. Yet all the while, the clock ticks away as our deadline approaches.
In my experience, there are four essential ingredients for overcoming these kinds of challenges and actually achieving a goal. First, there must be active participants. When we face a monumental task, it’s no time for one-man bands. Teamwork is necessary. Second, there must be a clear objective. We need to know where we are starting, precisely where we are going, and what steps need to be taken. Third, there must be strong enthusiasm. The best leaders bring out the best in people. This engenders teamwork and a level of energy that can’t be achieved in any other way. Fourth, there must be the promise of reward. The reward doesn’t need to be material, but there must be some kind of “payoff,” even if it’s the feeling of accomplishment one gets when reaching a goal.
Back in the first century, there was a job that had to get done. People’s lives counted on it. The struggling church in the city of Jerusalem depended on the generosity of people they had never met. The job of financial relief required a leader who could motivate the right people to pursue the right goal with enough direction and enthusiasm to get the job done. This leader, the apostle Paul, had taken on the task of gathering support for the Jerusalem church from people who probably would never in their lives visit Jerusalem.
In this kind of situation, all four ingredients for successfully accomplishing a goal were bound to be challenged. Active participation would be challenged by procrastination; clear objectives, by distractions; enthusiasm, by disinterest; and promise of reward, by the feeling of “having it all.” In the opening verses of 2 Corinthians 9, Paul applies a strategy for accomplishing the task that not only motivated the Corinthians to pursue their noble goal but also can help us lead others in an effective ministry of giving.
— 9:1-5 —
The apostle Paul says that his reminder to them about giving was “superfluous” (9:1). He was likely referring to all of 2 Corinthians 8, where he had been writing “about this ministry to the saints” (9:1), that is, the financial contribution to the Jerusalem church. Why was it “superfluous”? Because Paul had confidence that they would be ready to fulfill their promise at a moment’s notice (9:2).
Paul had addressed the issue of giving with the Corinthians earlier in the year (1 Cor. 16:1-3). Since that time he also had received news about their progress from messengers who had visited Corinth (2 Cor. 7:6-7). Therefore, Paul likely had good reasons to believe the Corinthians ran the risk of becoming distracted from their obligation by circumstances they faced in the congregation. Though he had every confidence of their intention, he employed a rhetorical strategy to keep the matter at the forefront of their mind without making it sound like he didn’t trust them to follow through.[148]
From My Journal
Reckless Generosity
2 CORINTHIANS 9:5
My older brother, Orville, now a seasoned and respected missionary, was never a wealthy man, but he was wonderfully generous with what he had. He never held back from the Lord —and that’s still true! This overabundance of faith led him to serve the Lord for more than thirty years in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Prior to that, he had done some short-term mission work in Mexico and had come north to gather his wife, Erma Jean, and the kids for the long trip down into the far reaches of South America.
Before leaving, they stopped off for a quick visit with our parents in Houston. Now, you have to appreciate the kind of man my father was. Look up the word “responsible” in the dictionary, and his picture is there! To him, risks are for those who fail to plan. Responsible people leave nothing to chance. As far as he was concerned, faith is something you exercise when your three backup plans fall through and you have run out of all other options. My father was a believer, but he never understood the life of faith. Not really.
My brother, on the other hand, was stimulated by faith. He has lived his entire adult life on the raw edge of faith. To him, life doesn’t get exciting until God, and God alone, can get us through some specific challenge. Let me assure you, that drove our dad nuts!
Orville pulled up to the house in an old Chevy sedan on four of the slickest tires I had ever seen. My father always inspected tires when we came to visit. I wondered how long it would take for him to say something. I’m sure Orville did too. Not very is the answer.
After a great supper of good ol’ collard greens and corn bread, red beans, onions, and sliced tomatoes, my mother and sister went into the kitchen, leaving my father at one end of the table, Orville at the other, and me (only a teenager) sitting on one side. Then it started.
“Son, how much money do you have for your long trip?”
“Oh, Dad, don’t worry about it. We’re gonna’ be fine.”
Before he could change the subject, my father pressed the issue, “Answer me. How much money do you have in your wallet?”
Orville smiled and shrugged as he said, “I don’t have any in my wallet.”
I sat silent, watching this verbal tennis match.
“Nothing in your wallet? How much money do you have? You’re gettin’ ready to go down to South America! How much money you got for that trip?”
With that, my brother smiled, dug into his pocket, pulled out a quarter, set it on its edge on his end of the table, then gave it a careful thump. It slowly rolled past me all the way to my father’s end of the table and fell into his hand. Dad said, “A quarter? That’s all you’ve got?”
Orville broke into an even bigger smile and said, “Yeah. Isn’t that exciting!”
That was not the word my father had in mind. After a heavy sigh and a very brief pause, Dad shook his head and said, “Orville, I just don’t understand you.”
My brother grew more serious. Looking Dad in the eyes, he quietly answered without blinking, “No, Dad, you never have.”
I don’t know how he actually made the trip to their destination, or how he and Erma Jean took care of all their little kids, but they made it —and they never went hungry. They faithfully served in Buenos Aires and traveled to other parts of the world for more than three decades. My father was a man who lived through the Great Depression, lived in fear of poverty his whole life, seldom took a risk, and, I must add, never experienced the joy of trusting God —the One who made my brother smile so big that day.
Jesus never said that having nice things is wrong. By His sovereign choice, He may ordain some to be as poor as Himself and His disciples. Yet He may want others to have an overabundance of money and material goods. Why? So that they might give in abundance. His chief concern is not the issue of wealth; He cares about us and where we turn for security. Whether or not we own nice things, He wants to be sure that they don’t own us![149]
Paul bounces back and forth between talking about the Corinthians’ role and responsibilities in the ministry of giving and his own (9:2-5). He had been boasting about the Corinthians’ readiness in contributing to the Jerusalem mission: “Achaia [the region of Corinth] has been prepared since last year” (9:2). In other words, Paul pointed to the Corinthians as the first church to volunteer to give (8:10). Since that time, Paul had been using their eagerness to stir up the zeal of others (9:2).
Can you imagine the conversation?
Paul: “The Jerusalem church is suffering. The light of the gospel is spreading to the Gentiles, but the original source is dwindling under persecution. They need help. Fast.”
Macedonians: “But it’s so far away. What can we do?”
Paul: “Well, when the Corinthians heard about the need, they immediately volunteered to set aside a portion of their money for a year and send it directly to Jerusalem. They pledged a significant amount. Of course, it was purely voluntary, but . . .”
Macedonians: “We would love to help out! We don’t have much, but we can do without to keep the flame alive in Jerusalem!”
Now imagine if, after “boasting” of the Corinthians’ involvement, Paul arrived in Corinth with some representatives from Macedonia, only to discover that the church that had expressed such an eagerness to be involved had actually copped out (9:4). How humiliating! To prevent this from happening, Paul sent a small delegation ahead of him to Corinth (9:3, 5). In effect, Paul was saying, “Look, guys, I’ve been telling those Macedonians what kind of people you are, how generous and enthusiastic and willing to give. Can you imagine how you and I are going to feel if we haven’t gotten our act together? So, make sure everything is in its place before we arrive.”
Paul knew the human-nature tendency to part with only the bare minimum and call the job done. That’s found everywhere! The Corinthians’ rough year with internal conflicts and problems, however, had made their situation even more acute. Their own fund-raising for the “promised bountiful gift” to Jerusalem could have been affected by “covetousness” (9:5). This verse serves as a gentle yet firm reminder that the Corinthians shouldn’t wait until the last minute to collect the money for the gift.
— 9:6 —
Paul shifts from his specific message to the Corinthians to a general message for everyone, supporting his practical exhortation with an important spiritual truth about giving: “He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully” (9:6).
Farmers and gardeners know that you will grow only as many plants as you sow seeds for. You can’t sow two seeds and reap a full field at harvest. Likewise, there is a correlation between the amount of time, energy, and finances we give to the Lord’s ministry and the spiritual blessings we reap in return.
I am aware that there has been a lot of false advertising on this subject over the last several decades. The so-called prosperity gospel has spoiled a perfectly healthy doctrine of sowing and reaping. Those “name it and claim it” preachers have turned God’s promise of blessing us in order to bless others into a virtual Ponzi scheme. Let me be clear. God never promises to match you dollar for dollar, or to multiply your financial contribution sent to some TV or radio preacher with a thirty, sixty, or hundredfold return on investment, or to reward your “seed gift” by opening His floodgates of material blessings in the form of guaranteed health and enormous wealth. God promises to supply all of our needs, not all of our greeds (Phil. 4:19). And He promises to reward us with what we might call “incorporeal” blessings —blessings of the heart such as the joy of obedience, the pleasure of inner peace, and the outflow of abundant love for the brethren.
Yes, God promises a bountiful reaping for faithful giving, but don’t take this verse out of its biblical context. God may bless a person with riches in order to use that person as a conduit to bless others. If that is you, then use it generously for God’s work or risk losing it to the world. If you are blessed in other ways, stay faithful in your ministry of giving —whether that’s a gift of your time, your musical ability, your energy, your skills, your intellect, or your more modest —but equally noble —financial contributions.
APPLICATION: 2 CORINTHIANS 9:1-6
Making the Most of Ministry Opportunities
Paul commended the Corinthians for enthusiastically volunteering to contribute generously to what we might call the Jerusalem Relief Fund. Because of their eagerness to be involved, Paul launched a yearlong campaign among churches far and wide to contribute to that worthy cause.
We, too, have numerous opportunities for involvement in worthy ministries. Some of them ask for our time and energy —teaching in the children’s ministry, singing in the choir, serving in leadership, working behind the scenes as a volunteer for a vacation Bible school, or cleaning the church facility after a big event. Other opportunities require financial support —sending missionaries overseas, contributing to a building fund, providing relief for a region of the world where the church is suffering, purchasing Bibles or ministry resources for believers with nothing. For those willing to open their eyes and ears, an abundance of ministry opportunities will present themselves every day. How can we make the most of them? I glean four ways from the example preserved for us in 2 Corinthians 9:1-6.
First, become an active participant. The Corinthians were the first to step up to the plate when they heard of the Jerusalem church’s need for relief and, no doubt, numerous other sister churches then got on board. Are you currently a participant in a specific ministry? At what level would you rate your involvement? Weak? Average? Strong? How would others who work with you characterize your commitment to this ministry? Do you often excuse yourself and back out? Show up late? Give a minimal amount of time or money? If you aren’t involved as an active participant, I urge you to move out of the passive realm of theory and get into the exciting realm of action. Stop studying about giving and start living it!
Second, understand the stated objective. On numerous occasions —in person, in writing, and through messengers —Paul made it clear to the Corinthians the details of the Jerusalem Relief Fund ministry and exactly how he would carry out the stated goal. When you’ve committed your time or finances to a particular ministry, understand what that ministry is trying to accomplish and how. Understand its ongoing, as well as special, needs and be ready to step up to help meet them. In other words, know the ministry and its leadership. If your involvement goes beyond financial contributions, make sure your participation isn’t cross-grained with the purposes of the ministry. And if the ministry suddenly takes a turn contrary to its purpose and objectives, consider whether you want to continue your involvement or focus on a different ministry opportunity.
Third, demonstrate strong enthusiasm. Whereas the Macedonian churches overflowed with enthusiasm, reflected in their giving even beyond their reasonable means, the Corinthians seemed to have lost steam. The fact is that lack of enthusiasm can be even more damaging to a ministry than lack of participation. Why? Because lost enthusiasm preserves the illusion that something is being done, while in reality no progress is being made. I have heard people answer legitimate concerns in church with the lame response, “We have a committee taking care of that,” only to discover much later that the committee had not met for months. Let me suggest that you don’t get involved (or stay involved) in a ministry for which you lack strong passion. I know you might feel like you are abandoning your post, but chances are there is a more enthusiastic person who is being kept from involvement because of your mediocre commitment. Do you demonstrate strong enthusiasm for the ministries in which you are involved? Or do you give of your time and finances grudgingly?
Fourth, remember the promised rewards. When the ministry gets tough (and every ministry does) remember that God will honor your active, enthusiastic, conscientious involvement. He will never just use you and toss you aside like a disposable tool. Quite the contrary! Those who are faithful in little things will be rewarded with much —including greater opportunities to be involved in ministry (Luke 16:10; 19:17). Yes, ministry involvement might cut into your precious and carefully guarded downtime —but you will be rewarded with “a Sabbath rest for the people of God” (Heb. 4:9). Ministry may drain your energy —but you’ll one day be “raised in power” (1 Cor. 15:43). Ministry will also add to your expenses with no tangible return on investment —but even in material poverty “you are rich” spiritually (Rev. 2:9), and one day we will be rewarded with “riches in glory” (Phil. 4:19).
Consider how Christ Himself exemplified these four principles in His own ministry. He was a voluntary, active participant in God’s grand plan of redemption (Heb. 10:7). He always kept sight of His goal (Matt. 20:18-19). He demonstrated strong enthusiasm (John 4:34). And He never forgot the reward (Heb. 12:2). As Christ’s followers, called to be involved in ministry (Eph. 4:12), all of these principles apply to us. Are you enthusiastically participating toward a clear goal, with your eyes fixed on the reward?