ARE YOU GENEROUS?
2 Corinthians 8:9, "For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, that ye through His poverty might be rich."
It seems that we live in a world filled with people who fix their attention on what they can accumulate in life. There are exceptions and those folks are to be commended, just as Paul commends the Macedonian believers. They are commended for their spirit of generosity. Paul spoke of his desire to make known to the believers at Corinth the example demonstrated by these generous believers. He states, "How that in a great trial of affliction the abundance of their joy and their deep poverty abounded unto the riches of their liberality" (vs. 2). The word "liberality" speaks of the openness of the heart to share what they possessed by being generous. You can tell by the descriptive nature of Paul's words that the Macedonian believers weren't "rolling in the dough". As a matter of fact, life was tough, and their deep poverty was evident, but so was their spirit of generosity. "For to their power, I bear record, yea, and beyond their power they were willing of themselves; Praying us with much intreaty that we would receive the gift, and take upon us the fellowship of the ministering to the saints" (vs. 3-4). You see it isn't what you have that matters, but what you seek to do with what you have. Do you want to hoard, or do you want to make a difference by possessing a spirit of generosity?
Jesus is our greatest example (2 Cor. 8:9), the Macedonian believers are a great example (2 Cor. 8:1-5), and so is the widow commended by Jesus in Mark 12:42-44, "And there came a certain poor widow, and she threw in two mites, which make a farthing. And He called unto Him His disciples, and saith unto them, Verily I say unto you, That this poor widow hath cast more in, than all they which have cast into the treasury: For all they did cast in of their abundance; but she of her want did cast in all that she had, even all her living." So often people want to use their inability as an excuse for not giving, but really the problem is found in their heart. For it isn't the amount of the gift that matters most, it is the spirit of generosity that matters most.
May we allow the example of Christ, the example of the Macedonian believers, and the example of the poor widow to help build a spirit of generosity in the depths are our souls. For in one verse Paul commends a willingness to work, a need to give, and quotes Jesus as saying, "It is more blessed to give than to receive" (Acts 20:35).
Your Friend and HIS,
Pastor Abbott
MEDITATIONS
1. Was there a purpose for Jesus giving as much as He did?
2. Could you say that your heart is filled with liberality towards others? Explain.
3. What does it mean to hoard wealth?
4. Who was the greatest giver of all time? Explain your answer.