Giving? How?

How much money should a Christian give away?

Some Bible teachers argue that we are obligated to give God a tenth, a tithe of our income. These teachers say that Christians should give that much away. They may give more; above that is voluntary.

In this present series – Where Do You Find Identity, Security, and Joy? A Scriptural Understanding of Money, Giving, and Material Possessions – we’ve seen that biblical teaching on money goes far beyond the percentage of our income that we give away. Indeed, we’ve noted several times that we can give away 100% of our income and assets and still be disobedient:

If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing. (1 Corinthians 13:3)

So surely we can give away 10% of our income and be disobedient.

Consider in this regard the rich young ruler, in the story told in Mark 10 as well as in other gospels. He runs up to Jesus and asks. “What must I do to inherit eternal life?” Jesus says he lacks one thing: He is to go, sell all his assets, give the proceeds to the poor, and come, follow Him.

And the rich young ruler walks away.

This man was outwardly following all the Old Testament Law. He certainly was tithing. He probably was giving away 25% or more of his income. And yet he valued his possessions more than he valued Jesus, more than he valued eternal life.

Thus, the answer to the question, “How much should a Christian give away?” has to be more complex, more nuanced, than “10% of his income.” If that’s the teaching you hear, it’s easy to give a tithe, and think, “I’m ok with God now – I’ve fulfilled my obligation,” when all the time you’re just like the rich young ruler, with a wrong attitude toward your possessions.

So let’s turn again to 2 Corinthians 8 and 9 to learn more about true Christian giving. We’ll first review what we’ve already learned from this passage, then highlight five additional lessons from 2 Corinthians 8:10-9:15, and finally discuss how to become a true Christian giver.

True Christian Giving: A Review of Earlier Lessons

We first looked at this passage in a sermon on contentment. 2 Corinthians 9:8 includes the phrase, “having all sufficiency in all things at all times.” The Greek word translated “sufficiency” actually implies an inner attitude of contentment: knowing that however much or little you may have, you have enough. You can be content.

If we know our identity as Christians – children of God, adopted into His intimate family, heirs of God; if we know that He will never leave us nor forsake us, that the sovereign, loving God will hold us secure in His hands;  if we see Him as the greatest joy, and thus see that nothing can ever take away our supreme joy – then we are content. Then we are satisfied. Then our circumstances do not determine our attitude.

In our second look at this passage, we focused on the word translated “generosity.” We saw that the word focuses not primarily on the amount given, but on the inner attitude that motivates the giving. That inner attitude is one of sincere concern or love.

The Macedonians exemplify this attitude:

For in a severe test of affliction, their abundance of joy and their extreme poverty have overflowed in a wealth of generosity (sincere concern) on their part.  For they gave according to their means, as I can testify, and beyond their means, of their own accord,  begging us earnestly for the favor of taking part in the relief of the saints–  and this, not as we expected, but they gave themselves first to the Lord and then by the will of God to us. (2 Corinthians 8:2-5)

What is the main motive for this type of generosity, this type of sincere concern?

  • The main motive is not gratefulness to God
  • The main motive is not to do some great work for God
  • The main motive is not to build up an institution
  • The main motive is not to get recognition, such has having a building named after you
  • The main motive is not that you will receive more money in return

The main motive is joy in God – the Macedonians gave out of their joy, after giving themselves to God, after receiving His grace.

In giving, we are displaying the gracious character of God that we have as His children.

Just like the Macedonians, we are to cultivate such joy, we are to beg for such sincere concern for others, to beg for the privilege of giving.

Then, we saw in chapter 9 three results from this sincere concern:

  • It leads to thanksgiving to God – not primarily thanksgiving to us
  • It leads the Jewish recipients to glorify God, as they see that these Gentiles are truly believers in Jesus, are truly their brothers and sisters, in partnership with them
  • It leads to love from the church in Jerusalem toward the givers. This is the currency that the givers receive in return.

Thus, money is the vehicle used for the gift, but money is secondary to all that is going on. The Macedonians and Corinthians are not thinking, “Ok, I need to give certain percentage of my income – now, what will I do with it?” Instead, their giving is the result of having their hearts transformed by God. Their identity, security, and joy are in Him. They are content in Him. And so they delight to live to His glory – whatever that may entail.

In the most recent sermon that considered this passage, we looked at 2 Corinthians 8:1-9. We emphasized again that

1)      True Christian giving results from the overflow of joy in God

2)      True Christian giving is motivated by sincere concern/love

Then we added:

3)      True Christian giving results from grace given by God

4)      True Christian giving begins not with giving money but by giving yourself to God

5)      True Christian giving results from taking on the character of Jesus

Because Jesus was rich in his relationship to the Father, He made Himself poor in His becoming man, in His suffering, so that we through that poverty might become rich in relationship to the Father.

We are to be like that: Knowing we have relational riches in being loved by God, being in His family, being secure in Him, we give out of that abundance, out of sincere concern for others.

So, true Christian giving is not an obligation you have to an institution. It is not a requirement you have to fulfill in order to maintain membership. It is not even primarily a budgeting decision.

Rather, as Romans 8:29 says, if you are in Christ, God predestined you to be conformed to the image of His Son. True Christian giving is a result of that work – the result of a life transformed by God, a life conformed to the image of Christ, so that He might be the firstborn among many brothers.

Five Further Lessons from 2 Corinthians 8:10-9:15

These five lessons flow directly out of what we’ve already discussed:

1) True Christian Giving is Individual

That is: No one pattern will hold for everyone. Look first at a phrase in 2 Corinthians 9:7: “Each one must give as he has decided in his heart.” That necessarily implies a difference among the Corinthians both in the amount they give and in the percentage they give. All biblical giving will be the result of God’s grace – but that grace will manifest itself in different ways. God’s grace led the Macedonians to give way beyond their means, beyond what Paul had any reason to expect (8:3). But Paul doesn’t expect the Corinthians to do the same. As he says in verse 12:

For if the readiness is there, it is acceptable according to what a person has, not according to what he does not have.

Because of this verse, some teachers, including me in the past, have said giving is to be proportionate to our income. I no longer think that’s the most accurate word to use. Paul is not telling the Corinthians to give the same proportion of their income as the Macedonians gave. Instead, they are to consider the generous giving of others, including the Macedonians, and use that to inspire them, to help them imagine what God might do. But they are not competing with the Macedonians to see who can give the most. Rather, they are to follow the Macedonians’ example of Christlikeness, not necessarily their example in terms of the proportion of their income they gave.

If we have sincere concern, if we are giving out of joy in God, if we are giving like Jesus – then we will give generously, and our giving will be biblical. We should expect that such biblical giving will manifest itself differently in different churches, and in different individuals.

So true Christian giving is individual. There is no set amount, no set percentage, that will characterize all Christian giving.

2) True Christian Giving is handled with honor in the sight of men

In 2 Corinthians 8:19-21 Paul describes his plans for taking the gift to Jerusalem. Paul is careful not even to give the appearance of impropriety. He arranges matters so that no one could possibly accuse him of absconding with the money, or misusing it for personal gain. He says, “We aim at what is honorable not only in the Lord’s sight but also in the sight of man” (2 Corinthians 8:21).

We well know that money can cause divisions in the church. We know that money has often been misused by churches and pastors. We must handle it carefully, and have procedures and mechanisms in place that make clear to any observer that the money given to the church is used appropriately.

3) True Christian Giving is not forced

Paul writes:

So I thought it necessary to urge the brothers to go on ahead to you and arrange in advance for the gift you have promised, so that it may be ready as a willing gift, not as an exaction. (2 Corinthians 9:5)

Where the ESV has “not as an exaction,” the NET reads “[not] something you feel forced to do,” and the Holman Christian Standard reads “not an extortion.”

Note that Paul asks for all the money to be collected before he arrives. This is exactly the opposite of how many churches and parachurch organizations in the US tend to raise money. We often bring in a well-known person to draw a crowd and raise a lot of money. But Paul implies that he will not operate in that way. It seems he thinks his presence could be seen as forcing people, embarrassing people into giving, and he doesn’t want people giving out of that wrong motivation.

Verse 7 elaborates on the idea. We are not to give reluctantly (or, in other translations, “grudgingly,” “under compulsion,” “out of necessity”). Thus, we are not to raise money by manipulating emotions, or by promising financial returns, or by shaming people into giving, or by highlighting tax advantages. True Christian giving is never forced, in any sense.

4) The True Christian Giver gives blessings

We have to delve a bit into translation to see this point.

In 2 Corinthians 9:5, the word translated “willing gift” is the normal word for “blessing.” Then in the next verse, Paul uses the same word again in the plural. The ESV here translates it “bountifully.” The translators use that word because Paul is drawing a contrast with giving “sparingly.” But the English reader then misses both the link with verse 5 and the connotation of the gift as a blessing from God. As we saw in the previous sermon in this series, in this passage Paul emphasizes again and again the different currencies of giving and receiving. The primary currency here is blessings.

So let’s re-read verses 5 and 6, using “bountiful blessing” for this Greek word:

So I thought it necessary to urge the brothers to go on ahead to you and arrange in advance for the bountiful blessing you have promised, so that it may be ready as a bountiful blessing, not as an extortion. The point is this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows with bountiful blessings will also reap with bountiful blessings.

The Apostle says: God has given you a grant to be used for His glory. You are to be a conduit of God’s blessing to others. You are to be a means God uses to bless others. If you are not sowing blessings from God, you will reap no blessings of joy, of love, and of prayers on your behalf.

The true Christian giver gives (and receives) blessings.

5) The True Christian Giver is cheerful

The rest of chapter 9 elaborates on and supports this idea.

We could infer that we should be cheerful givers from the first few verses of chapter 8: If the Macedonians are giving out of their overflow of joy in God, if they beg Paul for the privilege of participating in this partnership with the church in Jerusalem, if they are taking on the character of Jesus, loving with His love, sowing His blessings, all the while glorifying God, then surely they are giving cheerfully. But Paul highlights this point in 2 Corinthians 9:7:

Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.

Then in verse 8 Paul says God will make all grace abound to them – and that must include the grace of giving (8:1) – so that they can abound in every good work. So we will have whatever we need to be conformed to the image of Jesus outwardly as well as inwardly.

In verse 9, the Apostle quotes Psalm 112:9. Note that “he” refers not to God but to the blessed man:

He has distributed freely, he has given to the poor; his righteousness endures forever.

The key phrase “his righteousness endures forever” appears also in Psalm 112:3. Using New Testament terminology, this means: “What he does in conformity with the character of Jesus will have an eternal impact.” Who is this true of? Verse 1 of the psalm tells us: “Blessed is the man who fears the LORD, who greatly delights in His commandments.” This is the person who knows who he is before God because of the work of Christ, who finds his identity, security, and joy in God.

I encourage you to read the psalm in its entirety, and to look for ways that the psalmist makes clear that the “blessed man” has his identity, security, and joy in God. For our purposes today, however, it is sufficient to see that Paul quotes the psalm because the blessed man has great joy as he sees his giving as part of God’s plan of blessing.

Turn now to 2 Corinthians 9:10:

He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and multiply your seed for sowing and increase the harvest of your righteousness.

Paul here alludes to Isaiah 55:

For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven and do not return there but water the earth, making it bring forth and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it. (Isaiah 55:10-11)

God supplies both the inputs into the production process – seed – and the outputs of that process – not just wheat, but bread (what the wheat becomes after it is dried, ground, kneaded, and baked). Just so, He will give you what you need in order to glorify Him, and will see to it that He is indeed glorified as you give of yourself, your time, and your resources in accord with the character of Christ. Your righteousness will endure forever, to God’s glory among the peoples.

Then 2 Corinthians 9:11

You will be enriched in every way to be generous in every way, which through us will produce thanksgiving to God.

That is: You will be enriched in every necessary currency so that you can show sincere concern in every way. And this, as we have seen, produces thanksgiving to God, glory to God, and love for the givers (verses 13 and 14).

Paul then concludes in verse 15: “Thanks be to God for His inexpressible gift.” This is what all Christian giving is about. We are showing what God is like, as Jesus showed us what God is like. This is the source of our joy. This is why we can give cheerfully. We are displaying His character. We are accomplishing His purposes. We are actualizing what our Creator intends us to be.

Becoming a True Christian Giver

You may say: “OK, Coty, I understand the conceptual point: My identity, security, and joy must be in God. The greatest gift is indeed His gift to us. And I realize that even my giving is a grace from Him. So, with all confidence in His future grace, I must give myself to God first, and then take on the character of Jesus and cheerfully give blessings to others. Furthermore, from the sermon on spending, I understand that I must set aside for giving a portion of all I receive up front, before I spend anything else, so that I am not giving out of my excess, but out of all that comes in. And I even get the idea that giving must be individual – I know you can’t tell me to give a certain percentage or a certain dollar amount.

“But still: I have to decide. I have to budget. What do I give? Everything? A tithe? If so, a tithe of what? Of my income? Of my assets? You’ve said that biblical teaching has to be more nuanced than ‘give 10% of your income.’ Well, it’s time for some nuance.”

That’s a good question. Here are my suggestions, built on what we have seen in Scripture:

  • First: Consider and meditate on the question in the sermon series title: Where do you find identity, security, and joy? Repent of dependence on anything other than God in these areas.
  • Second: Acknowledge to God verbally and, if it helps you, in writing, that all you have – your income as well as your assets, your Iphone as well as your home equity – is a grant from God to be used for His glory.
  • Third: Consider the institutions and people around you – around you locally, and around you across this globe. Think of the many opportunities you have to glorify God, to display Jesus, to spread the Gospel, to spur church planting movements among the unreached, through giving of time, money, and love.
  • Fourth: Pray, asking God, “What percent of my income should I commit to giving for the next few months?” And pray specifically, “Should I give more than I have been giving?”
  • Fifth: Decide. Designate that amount for giving as soon as you receive any income.
  • Sixth:  When you have given away all that you have planned and other needs arise, don’t immediately say no to those needs. Pray again. It may be right to take money out of other budget categories to meet this need. Indeed, some of us set aside another percentage of our income specifically to be able to respond more rapidly to such unforeseen opportunities.
  • Seventh: A few months later, prayerfully reconsider what has happened since the last time you determined how much you would give. If you increased your giving, ask: What has God done with that additional amount? And ask again: Should I commit to more, to a higher percentage? Should I include giving from my assets?
  • Eighth: Repeat this regularly for the rest of your life.

Do you see how this relates to tithing? Tithing is one small part of this process, only relevant in steps four and five. If you are not tithing now, certainly do pray specifically: Should I begin to give 10% of my income now? Many people think they cannot possibly give that much. But as Randy Alcorn asks: If your income went down by 10%, would you die? If the answer to that is “no,” then you can indeed tithe.

So if you’re not tithing, that can be a good place to begin. Consider that. But if you have been giving very little, and you faithfully go through these steps, and you decide to give 6% of your income – praise God! Be faithful to that commitment. I am confident that when you get to step seven, you will have such joy in God that you will increase your giving further.

Just so, if you are already tithing, don’t think you’re exempt from this process. Keep going through the steps. If we all do this, I am sure the great majority of us will end up giving much more than a tithe.

For each of us must always remember:

God has made all grace abound to you. He created you for His glory. But you – and indeed all humanity – turned your back on Him, thinking you knew better than He how to arrange your life, how to obtain joy and fulfillment. Having rejected the very purpose of your creation, you deserve God’s punishment.

But God showered you, and all of us, with grace by the sending of His Son into this world to live as man. He lived the life you and I should have lived. He died a horrible death on the cross on your behalf. He rose victoriously, and now always lives to make intercession for us. And He will come again to usher in His Kingdom.

This risen Christ calls out to you, rebel that you are: Come be part of My bride. Come be My joint heir. Come, be reconciled to your Creator, and He will be your loving Father forever.

So give yourself to Him.

Follow hard after Him.

Know who you are, what He promises now and in the future.

And so live as to show who He is – through your love, through your sincere concern, and through your giving of money, of time, and of yourself.

Thanks be to God for His inexpressible gift!

 

 

Generosity and Sincere Concern

When you hear the word “generous” what comes to mind?

In 2 Corinthians 8:1-5 and 9:10-15, “generous” and “generosity” appear three times. What did the Apostle Paul mean by those terms?

Suppose you are returning to Charlotte by air, and to your surprise are upgraded to first class. You sit next to a well-dressed man, and strike up a conversation. Eventually you share your story of what God has done in your life; you share Jesus’ story, the Gospel; you tell him of your growing in Christ while at DGCC.

Your seatmate is cordial, and asks good questions. But he makes clear that he is not interested in following Jesus. But after the announcement that you’ll be on the ground in fifteen minutes, he says, “I’ve enjoyed our conversation. I admire you for what you’ve said. I think churches play an important role in our community, and yours sounds like a good one. Would you please accept this check made out to your church for $100,000?”

Would that be generous?

One dictionary defines “generous” as “showing a readiness to give more of something than is strictly necessary or expected.” On that definition, your seatmate’s action is certainly generous.

But as you know, the New Testament was written in Greek. The Greek word translated “generous” in 2 Corinthians 8 and 9 would not apply to that act.

Paul is talking about a different form of generosity – a form so different from the normal meaning of the English word that the word “generous” can be misleading. Seeing this distinction is key for understanding the inner attitude Scripture commends toward others. That is: What should be going on inside us as we encounter people who have needs?

Background of 2 Corinthians 8 and 9

When Paul wrote 2 Corinthians, the church in Jerusalem was hurting. They were persecuted both by the religious leaders and by their families – often being disowned and disinherited once they came to faith in Jesus. Furthermore, the entirety of Judea had suffered a famine in recent years, and in the aftermath there was still considerable poverty. So in general, the new, Gentile believers scattered around the Roman Empire were better off financially than believers in Jerusalem.

So Paul arranges for a collection from the churches in Greece, Macedonia, and Galatia (now central Turkey) to the church in Jerusalem. He refers to this collection in a number of his letters:

  • In Galatians 2, Peter, John, and James (Jesus’ half brother) ask Paul and Barnabas, as ministers to the Gentiles, to remember the poor in Jerusalem. Paul says that was “the very thing I was eager to do” (Galatians 2:10).
  • In 1 Corinthians 16 he instructs the church to set aside money for this collection on the first day of every week. Evidently the church had made an encouraging beginning in raising funds, but then not much happened.
  • Here in 2 Corinthians 8 and 9 he encourages them to complete this grace that they have begun.
  • In Romans 15, he writes that the collection is now complete, and he will be taking it to Jerusalem.

What Does “Generous” Mean

We’ve seen the normal definition of the English word “generous.” But we know that Paul does not mean “showing a readiness to give more of something than is strictly necessary or expected” in 2 Corinthians 8 and 9. We see this by looking at his first letter to the same church:

If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing. (1 Corinthians 13:3)

To give away all I have certainly would be generous in the English sense of the word. That would be showing readiness to give more than is expected. But if that generous act is done apart from love, Paul says it is of no value.

That should prompt our curiosity about what Paul means by “generous” in this passage. So let’s briefly turn our attention to the Greek word he uses.

The word is used nine times in the New Testament, and three of those occurrences are in today’s text. The lexicon of New Testament Greek widely regarded as most authoritative defines this word generally as “personal integrity expressed in word or action ([as in] our colloq[uial expression] ‘what you see is what you get’) simplicity, sincerity, uprightness, frankness. Then when referring directly to today’s passage, the lexicon says the word concerns

“simple goodness, which gives itself without reserve, ‘without strings attached’, ‘without hidden agendas’ . . . ingenuousness” (Danker and Bauer, A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature, 3rd Edition, University of Chicago Press, 2001).

That doesn’t much sound like giving a $100,000 check.

The lexicon acknowledges that some want to use the English word “generosity” for the meaning of the word in 2 Corinthians 8 and 9, but that usage “is in dispute, and it is probable that [the meaning] sincere concern, simple goodness is sufficient for all these pass[ages].”

So we have a word with a disputed meaning.

These different understandings of the meaning of the word come out in the translation of Romans 12:8. Compare the ESV and the NET (including the beginning of the sentence from verse 6):

ESV: Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them: . . 8 the one who contributes, in generosity.

NET: And we have different gifts according to the grace given to us. . . 8 if it is contributing, he must do so with sincerity.

The two translations sound very different to our English ears – it sounds as if there is no overlap in the command. The ESV seems to say, “If by God’s grace you have the gift of giving, give a lot!” The NET, however, seems to say, “If by God’s grace you have the gift of giving, give out of genuine concern, with no ulterior motive.”

Now, Paul may intend to make both of these statements: “Give a lot, and give it out of sincere concern.” But he does not mean only “give a lot.”

So as we read “generous” and “generosity” in 2 Corinthians 8 and 9, we must broaden the meaning of the English word. We need to examine the context closely, seeing what information that gives us, and consider that the word may mean “sincere concern.”

In examining the context, we’ll particularly focus on where Paul says generosity comes from, and what, according to Paul, it leads to.

Where Does This “Generosity” Come From?

The chapter begins in this way:

We want you to know, brothers, about the grace of God that has been given among the churches of Macedonia (2 Corinthians 8:1)

Notice first that this generosity is a free gift of God. It is a grace of God. It is not earned. It is not self-generated. It is not the result of an emotional appeal, or a leader’s manipulation. Nor is it the result of someone begging for money. It is a gift of grace.

Now verse 2:

for in a severe test of affliction, their abundance of joy and their extreme poverty have overflowed in a wealth of generosity on their part.

The Macedonians gave out of joy. They did not give out of an abundance of material goods they had owned for a long time (as in the airplane example). Nor did they give the excess out of a short term windfall. Quite the contrary. They are afflicted. They live in extreme poverty. But because they have joy, they gave. Out of the overflow of their joy, they gave.

So we begin to see the link between this passage and the earlier sermons in this series: We can have a biblical attitude towards possessions if and only if we find our identity, security, and joy in God.

Verses 3 to 5 tell us more about this joy:

For they gave according to their means, as I can testify, and beyond their means, of their own accord,begging us earnestly for the favor of taking part in the relief of the saints –and this, not as we expected, but they gave themselves first to the Lord and then by the will of God to us.

Verse 3 says that they did give generously in the English sense – given their poverty, they gave much more than Paul expected. But then the Apostle goes on to explain more about the joy they had that overflowed in this gift.

Look at verse 5 first: This monetary giving results from them first giving themselves (emphatic in the Greek) to the Lord. That is, their joy is joy in God. Their giving is first and foremost a giving of themselves to God. Their contribution to the saints in Jerusalem is an overflow of that joy. They have such joy in God – as His adopted children, as His heirs, as those protected and guarded by Him – that out of the overflow of that joy they give.

But Paul’s statement is even stronger. Note in verse 4 that they have such joy in God they beg to give. Paul didn’t beg them to give. Rather, they begged Paul for the “favor” – literally, the “grace” – of contributing to this effort.

Continuing in verse 4: “begging us earnestly for the favor/grace of taking part.” “Taking part” is a loose rendering of a Greek word many of you know: “Koinonia.” Often translated “fellowship,” it means “partnership in a common purpose.”

So the Macedonians are saying something like this:

“Please Paul – don’t exclude us from this contribution just because we are poor. God has changed us! We have full joy in Him. We know how to be content when we are lacking material goods. We want to live out the partnership in the Gospel we have with our brothers and sisters in Jerusalem. We want to display the gracious character of God that we have as His children. There is nothing we would rather do with this money. This is to our joy– so don’t leave us out!”

This type of generosity is a grace of God, a gift of God, that comes from the overflow of joy in God.

So, working from this passage and 1 Corinthians 13, John Piper defines Christian love as “the overflow of joy in God that gladly meets the needs of others.”

What Does This “Generosity” Lead to?

2 Corinthians 9:11-12 helps us define this type of generosity by showing us what it leads to. Let’s begin in verse 10:

He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and multiply your seed for sowing and increase the harvest of your righteousness.You will be enriched in every way to be generous in every way, which through us will produce thanksgiving to God. For the ministry of this service is not only supplying the needs of the saints but is also overflowing in many thanksgivings to God.

First, note that this generosity leads to thanksgiving to God. Why “to God” rather than “to you Corinthians”? Because those in Jerusalem know that the generosity is itself a grace of God, a gift of God! They know that joy in God prompted the giving. They know that those giving the support first gave themselves to God.

All true Christian giving results in thanksgiving primarily to God. If our giving results in thanksgiving primarily to us, that’s a problem. We’re not handling our giving correctly in that case.

Verse 13 tells us more about what this generosity leads to (we’ll quote the NET translation here):

Through the evidence of this service they will glorify God because of your obedience to your confession in the gospel of Christ and the generosity of your sharing with them and with everyone.

So, second, this generosity leads to those in Jerusalem to glorifying God. They praise Him. Why? By this generosity, God gives proof that the Corinthians are genuinely in Christ, are genuinely transformed by the Gospel. Through the “generosity of your sharing” they see evidence that these Gentiles are partners in the common purpose of the Kingdom of God. Their sincere concern as partners in the Gospel proves that God is at work among them, thereby showing that the Gentiles are joint heirs with their Jewish brethren, one family, with one common purpose. This leads those in Jerusalem to praise the God of the Gospel – the God who breaks down the “dividing wall of hostility” (Ephesians 2:14).

We see the third result of this generosity in verse 14 (returning now to the English Standard Version):

while they long for you and pray for you, because of the surpassing grace of God upon you.

This generosity leads to love for those giving! Prayers on their behalf! And thus a deeper partnership in the advance of the Gospel among their own people, as God’s church is united that much more across cultural differences.

So, yes, Paul is saying the Corinthians will benefit from giving. But the benefit is not a health, wealth, and prosperity gospel promise, “Give $1,000, and God will make sure that you receive $10,000.” Rather, they will receive love. They will receive prayers. They will deepen their fellowship, their partnership with the wider Church of Jesus Christ.

So now let’s step back and consider what we have seen:

  • This type of generosity comes from God; it is a gift.
  • This type of generosity is the overflow of joy in God.
  • This type of generosity leads to thanksgiving to God.
  • This type of generosity leads to praise of God.
  • This type of generosity results in love and prayers for those giving, and unity in the Gospel across the wider Church.

Note how all of this is God-centered, Gospel-centered. This generosity is prompted by God, and redounds to His glory and to the advance of His Gospel purposes. Man is not the center – either in receiving praise as the giver or in receiving support as the recipient.

Furthermore, note that money is secondary to all that is going on. Money is the vehicle used to display the overflow of joy in God. And to those receiving, money meets their material needs, but much more importantly unites them in heart in Christ with those giving.

  • Prior to Paul preaching the Gospel in Corinth and Macedonia, these Gentiles gave not a whit about the Jews in Jerusalem. Now by grace of God, they care. Because of their joy in God, they have sincere concern. They beg for the grace of giving.
  • Prior to Pentecost, the Jews in Jerusalem looked down on all those unclean Gentiles. They wouldn’t eat with them. They wouldn’t even enter their houses. Now, they long for them, they pray for them, they thank God for them, they praise the God who has welcomed into His family these, their former enemies.

That’s true, biblical generosity. It comes from God. It results in thanks and praise to God. It displays and deepens the impact of the Gospel.

How Then Can We Be “Generous”?

We want to be “generous” in this sense. We don’t want to be like those that Paul mentions in 1 Corinthians 13:3, who give away all they have to no gain. We want to be like these Macedonian believers. We want to obey Paul’s injunctions to the believers in Corinth.

How do we do that?

Our inner attitudes are key: Our inner attitude toward God, and our inner attitude toward persons in need.

If we are to be truly generous,

  • we can’t give primarily to build up an institution.
  • We certainly can’t give to get recognition for ourselves, or to get influence for ourselves, or expecting more money for ourselves through giving.
  • We can’t give primarily out of gratefulness to God.
  • We can’t even give in order to accomplish some great work for God.

Instead, Paul tells us our main motive must be joy in God. Our genuine generosity, our sincere concern, must overflow from a deep joy in the One who saved as, who adopted us.

So if we are to be generous, we must seek this grace from Him. We must cultivate this joy in God daily.

We do this in part by meditating daily on the Gospel itself:

God created you, He created all of humanity to glorify Him by enjoying Him forever. He provided for our every need. Yet all of us have turned our backs on Him, have rejected Him, finding joy, fulfillment, and satisfaction elsewhere. We have arrogantly called into question His goodness, His love, His provision, His power, even His existence. Having rejected the very purpose of our creation, we deserve His rejection of us; we deserve to be cut off from the source of every good and perfect gift. And yet in His mercy and grace, God sent His Son into the world as Man to live the life each of us should have lived: To love Him with all His heart, soul, mind, and strength every minute of every day, to love each person He encountered as He loved Himself. Just as all of us reject God the Father, the authorities of His day rejected Him, and put Him to death, nailing Him to a cross. But God, through that evil act, placed on Him the iniquity of all who would trust in Him; Jesus took on Himself the punishment, the rejection, that you and I deserve. And on the third day, God raised Him from the dead, displaying that the penalty paid was more than sufficient. And He now calls all men everywhere to repent, to come to a restored relationship with Him by confessing their sin and believing and Jesus is their Savior, their Lord – indeed, the greatest treasure imaginable.

Remind yourself of these truths every morning, every afternoon, every evening. You are in Christ by grace! You are reconciled to the Father by His demonstrated love! You are being conformed to the image of Christ because of Jesus’ sacrifice.

Thus, cultivate joy in God through meditating on the Gospel, that you may be truly generous.

Furthermore, meditate on what the Gospel says about those in need.

  • If those in need are not believers in Jesus: We are to love them as we love ourselves. And as we help with their physical needs, we may well have the opportunity to speak to their yet greater spiritual needs.
  • If those in need are believers in Jesus: We can expect the results we’ve seen from 2 Corinthians 9: Thanks to God, praise of God, the progress of the Gospel, and love and prayers for ourselves.

So beg God that you may have such sincere concern in your heart. Beg God for the privilege of giving time, money, and your very self to those in need.

By God’s grace you can be truly generous, biblically generous. May He grant us that grace more and more.

But know: He has already granted us that grace in part.

  • Who has ministered the Gospel to you?
  • Who has counseled you, comforted you, and even upbraided you when necessary?
  • Who has brought you meals?
  • Who has cared for or taught your children?
  • Who has honored God through serving this church in the background, in roles which are often unseen?
  • Who has smiled at you when you were down and depressed and hurting?
  • Who has prayed for you ?
  • And, yes, who has supplied for your material needs when you experienced loss or poverty?

All these are expressions of sincere concern.

All these are expressions of this type of generosity.

All these are given by God, and the result of the overflow of joy in God.

So praise God, thank Him, and express your love and prayers for one another – even using the words of 2 Corinthians 9:14 “I love you and pray for you because of the surpassing grace of God upon you.”

Paul closes 2 Corinthians 9 by saying, “Thanks be to God for his inexpressible gift!”

  • He is the ultimate giver.
  • He is the one truly showing sincere concern.
  • He is the source of all biblical generosity.

So, may we express love and prayers for one another – and may all praise, glory, and honor be unto Him.